Monday... So what kind of faith do we need today?

Matthew 9:1 (NLT), "Jesus climbed into a boat and went back across the lake to his own town."

Monday... So what kind of faith do we need today?

Matthew 9:1 (NLT) says, "Jesus climbed into a boat and went back across the lake to his own town." And that takes faith, doesn't it?

For some they just need faith to get up, get ready, get in their vehicle and go off to work. For some just the ride needs faith and then the job. God is right there with you. Just reach out to him and ask him for protection.

Now today is a holiday here in the USA but on a normal Monday, sending your kids off to school takes faith. Every morning after I read the Bible, I lift by faith and by name every member of my family up to God in prayer. I do that by faith.

Verse 2 says, "Some people brought to him a paralyzed man on a mat. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, 'Be encouraged, my child! Your sins are forgiven." Yes, bringing our sins to God takes faith.

I am reading over in Exodus of all the animal sacrifices that people needed to do in so many areas of their lives and there was a certain sacrifice that they needed to bring for their sins. Now some religious leaders who were teachers of the law were in the crowd and they said to themselves in verse 3, "That's blasphemy! Does he think he is God?" And the answer of course was, "Yes".

Now verses 4-6 said, "Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he asked them, 'Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts? Is it easier to say "'Your sins are forgiven,'" or "'Stand up and walk?'" So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins.' Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, 'Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!'"

Now this matter of believing that Jesus can and will forgive us of our sins takes faith today. It really does. Back then it took so much faith. And for many today who have lived lives in deep sin they toomust have so much faith to believe that if they bring by faith, their sins, all their sins and they confess them to God and believe then it means that their sins are gone. And that takes a lot of faith to believe that but it is true. This is the reason why Jesus, the Son Of God, came to this earth to through his death be the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.

"Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, 'Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!'" The people who brought this man to be healed brought him in faith but the man doing what Jesus told him to do also took faith. Verse 7a says, "And the man jumped up and went home!"

Is there some difficulty in your life where you need help? Yes, there may be people around us who have faith but at some point we also need to really believe, to have faith and we too need, to stand up, pick up our mat, and go home!

Now a little later in this chapter, a woman believed she would be healed if she just touched the hem of his garment and verse 22 says, "Jesus turned around, and when he saw her he said, 'Daughter, be encouraged! Your faith has made you well.' And the woman was healed at that moment.

And then a leader of the synagogue had a daughter who had died and he came to Jesus and said in verse 18b, "But you can bring her back to life again if you just come and lay your hand on her."

Verses 23-26 says, "When Jesus arrived at the official's home, he saw the noisy crowed and heard their funeral music. 'Get out!' he told them. 'The girl isn't dead; she's only asleep.' But the crowd laughed at him. After the crowd was put outside, however, Jesus went in and took the girl by the hand, and she stood up! The report of this miracle swept through the entire countryside."

Now we can be one of the laughers but we can also be one of the believers. It is our choice. So what kind of faith do we need today? Yes, God is close by and ready. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

Monday... He did it by Himself

Isaiah 44:24b (AMP), "I am the Lord, Maker of all things. Who alone stretches out the heavens, Who spreads out the earth by Myself." Monday... He did it by Himself. Many have a tendency to think very highly of themselves and what they can do. Oh we do have great ability but we are not the source. Yes it is important to have self-confidence but we are limited. The prophet Isaiah in 44:9-10 (NLT) says, "How foolish are those who manufacture idols. These prized objects are really worthless. The people who worship idols don't know this, so they are all put to shame. Who but a fool would make his own god - an idol that cannot help him one bit?" Now later in verse 24 (AMP) he writes, "For the Lord, your Redeemer, and He who formed you from the womb says, 'I am the Lord, Maker of all things, Who alone stretches out the heavens, Who spreads out the earth by Myself.'" I love that. "By Myself." Now we do need confidence but we are foolish to ma...

Friday... We have this hope of expectancy.

Psalm 5:3 (NLT), "Listen to my voice in the morning Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly." Friday... We have this hope of expectancy. Now David found a great way to start his day. He says in Psalm 5:1-3 (NLT), "O LORD, hear me as I pray." And that is a great place to start. It really is. Morning sunrise He goes on, "Listen to my cry for help, my King, my God, for I pray to no one but you." And that is so important. We don't try to pump ourselves up by ourself. No, we pray to no one but you, God, my LORD, my King. Now this relationship with God is so, so very important. And then David says, "Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you" And that is so great. And then he says, "and wait expectantly." Yes, we have this hope of expectancy. We are experienced. That is what a relationship with God and a moment by moment connection does. It makes a difference in our daily wa...

Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true.

Psalm 12:6 (NLT), "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true. Maybe this is what you want to say in this day in which we live. Psalm 12:1-2 (MSG) says, "Quick, I need your helping hand! The last decent person just went down, all the friends I depend on gone. Everyone talks in lie language; lies slide off their oily lips. They doubletalk with forked tongues." Do you ever feel that way?" Have you found that to be true? Well David the writer of this Psalm continues and says in verse 6 something to encourage us, to lift us up, to give us hope. Psalm 12:6 (NLT) says, "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." The Message Paraphrase says verses 6-8 this way, "God's words are pure words, pure silver words refined seven times in the fires of his word-kiln, pure on earth as well as in heaven, God, keep ...

Todays Beginning

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