Friday... It has so much.

Romans 8 is filled with so much. The Apostle Paul was really inspired when he put this chapter down on paper.

Here is the way it starts. Verse 1 (AMP) says, "Therefore there is no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior]." Now believing is not just a, Oh yes, I believe that Jesus lived and was a great man. No, believing means we have confessed our sins, acknowledged our need for Him, changed the direction of our life, leaving the old way behind and following His way. It is more than just a head believing, it is a change of life, a changed direction believing. But oh the benefits.

Verse 28 says, "And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose."

Now this change of direction may mean there will be some suffering, some stuff that we can't figure out why it is happening but it all has a purpose behind it. God knows what He is doing.

But this we can know. Verses 38 - 39 (NLT) says, "And I am convinced that nothing can separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow - not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below - indeed, nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Listen, He loved us even when we didn't believe in Him. But it is in our truly believing in Him as our personal Lord and Savior that we reap the benefits of His love and His purpose and His plan for our life.

And back to verses 31-32, "What shall we say about such things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won't he also give us everything else?" Now I may not really understand what that means but I do know that believing, truly believing in him will make a total difference in our lives. It really will. And it already has in my life! Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is!

Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is! Look at this, Proverbs 5:21-23 (CEV) says, "The Lord sees everything, and he watches us closely. Sinners are trapped and caught by their own evil deeds. They get lost and die because of their foolishness and lack of self-control." That is true of so many. Now look at this, Luke 15:1-7 says, "Tax collectors and sinners were all crowding around to listen to Jesus. So the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law of Moses started grumbling, 'This man is friendly with sinners. He even eats with them.' Then Jesus told them this story: If any of you has 100 sheep, and one of them gets lost, what will you do? Won't you leave the 99 in the field and go look for the lost sheep until you find it? And when you find it, you will put it on your shoulder and carry it home. Then you will call in your friends and neighbors and say, 'Let's celebrate! I've found my lost sheep.' Jesus said, 'In the same way there is mo...

Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do

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Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together!

Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together! They really do. And this is what caught my attention this morning as I was reading Proverbs 2. Verse 1 (NRSVUE) says, "My child, if you accept my words and treasure my commands within you." Verse 3 (NIV), "Indeed i f you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, Verse 4, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, Verse 5, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God." And verses 9-11, " Then you will understand what is right and just and fair - every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you." There will always be some effort we must do, some ifs for the thens to be realized in our lives. So many of us want to understand without the ifs. But the thens are so worth, so very worth the effort. Verses 5-6 in the Ampli...

Todays Beginning

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