At this, Jesus said to her, Go, call your husband and come back here. The woman answered, I have no husband, Jesus said to her, You have spoken truly in saying.  I have no husband.  For you have had five husbands, and the man you are now living with is not your husband.  In this you have spoken truly.      John 4:16 – 18

We think we are so good at hiding things don’t we!  We think we hide what we did, or how sad we are or even how mad we are, but reality is we aren’t hiding anything, some people can still see it, but most importantly Jesus still sees it ALL!!!  But you know what the best part about Him seeing it all is, He still loves us anyway!  What!?!?  He loves us anyway! No matter what I have done or thought He still loves me, that is why He came.  He knew before hand that we were going to blow it, but He still died on that cross to show us He loves us.  It is so hard to comprehend His level of love, I don’t know that we ever will this side of Glory, but as a mom what helps me is to remember is;  the level at which I love my kids (which is unmeasurable),  God loves me more!  I know what you’re thinking, “You don’t know what I have done, there is no way He can love me, I have done too much for that.”  Oh honey, you have no idea what I have done, I won’t go into specifics here but let me sum it up this way, I should have went to jail multiple times, & I hurt a lot of people “in my past life” (that’s what I like to call my life before Christ).  But GOD, I love those two words, But God loves me still, I can say that with all confidence, the things I have experienced Him doing in my personal life, there is no other explanation, He sure didn’t do what I deserved.  He is a God of grace & mercy and oh how I know this well, because don’t think that I have it all together, I still blow it on a regular basis, but He is a God of second chances, I know this well also! 🙂  Don’t be so quick to dismiss that you are not worth it, that you are not lovable, He is waiting on you to open up & let Him in, He wants to heal & help you.  You know that is some of the hardest healing to accept from Him, healing of our past sins, we have a hard time forgiving ourselves, “If we (freely) admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises), and will forgive our sins and cleanse us CONTINUALLY from all unrighteousness (our wrongdoing, everything not in conformity with His will and purpose).” 1 John 1:9  I made that all caps for a reason, I didn’t want you to miss that word continually, He wouldn’t have put that in His Word if we didn’t NEED it!!  It is not just you but everyone who needs a continual cleansing!  Thank you Jesus that You are faithful to cleanse us continually!  Don’t let the enemy (or yourself) trick you into thinking that it is only you, trust me it is not.  I bet you could go to that person you think is the most godly person on the planet and ask them and they will tell you “Yup, I blow it all the time, I am so thankful for God’s grace.”  There is this sweet precious lady in my life that I used to think she had it all together, she never messed up, she is so sweet & gentle with her kids & I’m not, I’m over here screaming my lungs out; her and her husband must never fight, cause they don’t when I’m around, she’s just perfect!  Well let me clue you in, as I have grown as a Christian & gotten to spend more time with her, she fights with her kids just like the rest of us, her & her husband do disagree, & she is not perfect, I love her to the moon & back but she just like the rest of us, still needs God’s grace.  Stop thinking you are the only one, oh that is such a lie, we are all in desperate need of His wonderful grace, & would not make it without it.  You can’t do this thing we call life alone, you need a good Jesus loving friend, ask God to send you one, if you don’t have one, and He will.  “If we say we have no sin (refusing to admit that we are sinners), we delude ourselves and the truth is not in us. (His word does not live in our hearts.) 1 John 1:8  He didn’t put this in there for just one person but for all of us remember that.  I can’t say it enough, He loves YOU!!!  Take that in, I mean really take that in, ponder it for  a minute, let it sink into your being, and let no one steal it from you!

 

Continually forgiven,

Michelle

And now, little children, abide (live, remain permanently) in Him, so that when He is made visible, we may have and enjoy perfect confidence (boldness, assurance) and not be ashamed and shrink from Him at His coming.    1 John 2:28

This is a powerful verse, don’t you think!?!  As I read that I thought wow, I don’t want to be ashamed of what I didn’t do or say when I see the Lord face to face, & I think that is what He is talking about here.  The Holy Spirit leads us on a regular basis to do & say things that will grow the Kingdom & we don’t always do them, do we?  I know there have been times that later I was mentally yelling at myself for not doing something for someone or for not telling them what the Holy Spirit told me to say, ugh!  We question sometimes, “Was that really the Holy Spirit telling me that or was it just me?”  But, here is the reality of that I don’t think that our natural, carnal mind leads us that way, we naturally want what is best for us, so I lean on if it’s good, it’s from the Holy Spirit.  Secondly, if for some reason you are “that good of a person” then what will it hurt to bless someone with a random gift or to tell them that Jesus loves them & has great plans for them, I don’t see a negative to that.  So, we have to get out of our own heads & let God use us in other peoples’ lives, that is what we are saved for, not just to sit on our “ticket to heaven” but to be used to grow the Kingdom & show the love of Jesus!!!  It is so easy to just ignore the quite voice of the Spirit, but it is so rewarding to obey it!  You will never know what I am talking about it you are not willing to step out of your comfort zone.  We are told so often by the world to “mind our own business” that we think that applies to everything, we allow that to give us an excuse to ignore that older man that we see digging through the trash in the store parking lot or that lady on the side of the road with a flat tire.  Let me give you a reality check, the Kingdom’s business is our business, these people that need a meal or help changing a tire are our business, God wants to bless them through us.  How do you know if they have a saving relationship with Jesus if you don’t stop to ask, how can you tell them about Jesus if you don’t stop to lend a helping hand first??  We will take our family to the movies, take our kids to water parks, go out of state on vacations, but when we see someone that we can tell hasn’t eaten we claim we don’t have the money for that (or worse, the time for that), but really you can feed someone on five dollars & I guarantee that God will replace that for you, because when we take care of God, He will take care of us.  “The King will answer and say to them, ‘I assure you and most solemnly say to you, to the extent that you did it for one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it for Me.'” Matthew 25:40  That is Christ telling one of His parables about Himself, basically when we help someone in need we are helping Christ, that is how much He loves people, He takes all of our needs on as His own needs.  So that being said I don’t want to see Him face to face & shrink because I remember not helping HIM!!  So why not step out of your box today, no wait why not leap out of your box today & do as the Holy Spirit leads you, or even better ask Him to place you where you can help someone today?  Your joy & reward are waiting!

 

Excited to be used,

Michelle

 Is anyone among you suffering? He must pray. Is anyone joyful? He is to sing praises [to God].  Is anyone among you sick? He must call for the elders (spiritual leaders) of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another [your false steps, your offenses], and pray for one another, that you may be healed and restored. The heartfelt and persistent prayer of a righteous man (believer) can accomplish much [when put into action and made effective by God—it is dynamic and can have tremendous power].  Elijah was a man with a nature like ours [with the same physical, mental, and spiritual limitations and shortcomings], and he prayed intensely for it not to rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.  Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land produced its crops [as usual].  James 5:13-18

 

The word pray (or prayer) is used 7 times in this short passage, remembering that 7 is the perfect number, and also that anytime something is repeated like that in the Bible makes it pretty important, we should realize from these six verses that prayer is very important!  There is power when we stop & realize that we have no power in a situation unless we take it to God.  This passage tells us the prayer of a righteous man (a believer, (that is what makes us righteous, our faith in Christ)) can accomplish much!  We don’t really get that though, I think.  We put prayer in this box that we have to “check off” & then go on about our business, but prayer is so much more!  Yes first & foremost it is how we bond with our Lord & Savior, but prayer is also how we can bring Kingdom change into our world that we live in!  Whether that be leading someone to Christ, or just planting the seed to be later harvested by someone else or if we are praying for healing for someone who is sick, or comfort for those in emotional pain.  All these situations can & will be affected by the prayer of the righteous, if we will just believe in what we pray.  I know you’re asking what I mean by believing in what we pray…  well believing that God is who He says He is (For I am the Lord who heals you.  Exodus 15:26), second believing that Christ took away our pain (And by His stripes (wounds) we are healed.  Isaiah 53:5), third knowing that if He says it in His word we can count on it to be ours!  We all know healing is not just physical, it is mental & emotional as well, & God knows that too, He made every intricate detail about us, so He knows we need more then just one thing.  But prayer is not just for healing, God wants to provide for us in every way, (You do not have because you do not ask [it of God].  James 4:2) this doesn’t mean selfishly,  James warns us about that in the next verse, but when you do ask for something make sure you believe that God will do it because James 1:6 tells us that if we doubt when we ask we are like a billowing surge of the sea that is blown about & tossed by the wind, I don’t know about you but I don’t want to be tossed about.

So what is my point to all this, there is untapped power in prayer!!  When we have a need or know someone that has a need, our first thought should be to go to God in prayer, it shouldn’t be our last resort.  When someone calls you up & tells you there troubles before you hang up the phone pray right then with them, it will not only show them you care but it will open the floodgates of Heaven to start working on their behalf, “Again I say to you, that if two believers on earth agree (that is, are of one mind, in harmony) about anything that they ask (within the will go God), it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.  Matthew 18:19.  So get bold with your prayers, God is waiting on you to ask so He can give!

Last night was share night for my son’s youth mission trip at church, it was so good to hear these young people share about how God & other people had changed their perspective on life, who they are, & who they should be.  My husband & I have recently went to Eldoret, Kenya on a mission trip & it was amazing, God worked so much during that trip in us & those we served, & the county was beautiful!!!  All three of us have been changed by these events & this is something God has called us out to do, but we hear all the time from people that they could never do what we do, and  you know what that is okay.  Everyone is still called to be on mission with God.  Mission is used as such a big word in the Christian life, but really it isn’t that big, everyone is on mission, everyday, it’s just if you answer it in your daily life.  Matthew 28:18 – 20 (AMP) tells us this, “Jesus came up and said to them, “All authority (all power of absolute rule) in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations (help the people to learn of Me, believe in Me, and obey My words), baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always (remaining with you perpetually-regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion), even to the end of the age.”  Wow, He said all nations, you know what that means, that means this nation too, right here in your own backyard, down the street, at the grocery store, at the coffee shop, at the dmv, even at church!  Everywhere we look we will find someone that needs some Jesus, maybe today your mission isn’t leading someone to Christ, maybe today that lady just needs someone to hold the door for her, or they need someone to smile at them, or say a friendly word.  We hear the word mission & we take it as such a heavy word but really it just means to share the love of Jesus, He calls us daily.  Sometimes it may just be in our own home, or maybe it’s that grumpy person that you smile at everyday & don’t seem to be affecting but you don’t know how that could be changing them slowing from the inside out.  It gets harder when we don’t see immediate change, doesn’t it?  We want results now, we can get everything else NOW, so why can’t we see change NOW!  Oh, if we could slow down, God has so much more in store, & He is always on time, whether we like His time or not.  I love seeing my nephew’s post about his youth group, he is always on fire to get more people in there & see more lives changed, & that is just the norm for him, nothing special, that is how it should be for all of us, just the norm to brighten someone’s day.  Just the norm to take that mom of two little ones buggy for her, so she can tend to them, to let someone go before us in line, even though we are running late.  You know God sees all these things whether we are obedient or not, He sees our heart & He wants to draw us in & make us more like Him, sometimes that may not seem easy but it is always rewarding.  Think about it, wouldn’t it be great to think you started a trickle effect of good works; you do something, someone sees that so they do something, & so forth & so on, how good would that be, how much more can you change the world, one act of kindness at a time!  You know I love how the Amplified Bible words things, I love parentheses, (I know I’m a bit of a geek :), Jesus tells us in the above passage that He will be with us always & then the parentheses goes on to add that that means in every circumstance & occasion!!  How awesome is that, you know what that means, that even when it doesn’t feel natural to smile at that stranger or to help someone you don’t know or say nice things to that really bad server, Jesus is with us, wanting to pour out His love on others even when we don’t think they deserve it (by they way I know I didn’t deserve the love others poured out on me years ago & still don’t sometimes now).  Jesus loves all of us regardless of what we do or say, how we act or react, He is just love, 1John 4:8 says so.  So next time you hear the word “mission” don’t be afraid of it, think what can I do today God, He will have something for you, that will not only bless someone else but it will bless you as well!

 

Growing daily,

Michelle

Hebrews 11 is such a powerful chapter!  I get fired up every time I read it, don’t you?  There are so many people listed there for their faith, but it’s not that part that speaks so powerfully to me, it is the fact that they all messed up!!  Moses murdered, Sarah laughed at God, Abraham tried to “take matters into his own hands”, Rahab was a prostitute, David stole another mans wife, Samson turned from God for lust & the list goes on.  The reality is that even though they missed the mark, God still chose to put them in the Hall of Faith!!  Wow!! How powerful is that, even though we mess up God still sees our good!  I can’t begin to list the number of times that I have totally blundered & killed it on the disappointing side, but God is faithful to forgive me & try again.  We have a hard time with that one as human beings but God is greater then us & loves us so much that His nature is to forgive & give us another shot.  The enemy would like nothing more then to tell us when we mess up that it is over, we are no good to God or anyone else anymore, but remember he is the father of lies, so anything that comes from him you can bet is a lie.  Don’t let him bring you down that way, James 4:8 AMP says, “Come close to God & He will come close to you. (Recognize that you are) sinners, get your soiled hands clean;”  if His Word tells us this that means God knew before hand that we would mess up but He doesn’t want that to stop us, He wants us to come back to Him & allow Him to clean us up again to be used for His service!  He still wants to use you, He has great plans for you, Jeremiah 29:11 says so!!!  I don’t know about you but if God’s Word says its for me I want it!  I want it all His love, His companionship, His guidance, His ways, His prosperity, I just want more of HIM!!!  I can never get enough, I don’t want to be satisfied, overflow in me Lord, so that it flows out on those around me!!  Wow, that God wants to use me at all after some of the things I have done never ceases to amaze me, but I have seen Him do it time & again & it humbles me to tears every time!  I cannot imagine life without Jesus by my side, I look back & wonder how I survived without Him & realize I almost didn’t & am thankful for His mercies that have gotten me to where I am today.  Take a look at your life today, can you see where He has brought you from, can you see the change in who you are & where you are?  Isn’t He so good!!  The best part is that He isn’t finished with you, your race isn’t complete, keep running with Him, & when you get out of breath, trust Him & He will carry you through.

 

Loving Him more daily,

Michelle

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