A Confident Expectation of Good

Let's confidently expect good from God our Maker, our Savior, our Comforter, our Friend! He promises to never leave us or forsake us (see Hebrews 13:5). Expect Him and look to Him always!!

Another Great Article

I just wanted to share this article from the ElijahList. It is on the topic of focus and has tremendous power inside! Most likely it speaks something different in each one of lives. For me, this brought great encouragement in the area of music and maximizing my potential.

Enjoy. :-)

http://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word/8562

Be in Thanks Always

Being thankful (by choice) causes us to appreciate things at a much deeper level.

Remember!

Always remember that God hungers, yearns, and desires us more than we do for Him! He passionately loves us!

Allow Him to awaken the flame of love in your own heart.

Stuck on this!

I am still stuck on a topic of one of my last few blogs.... Idolatry. It is an immensely crucial topic throughout the entire Old Testament. When the Israelites were in the wilderness with Moses, when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai, he found that the people made an idol to worship. We are commanded not to bow down to any idol (see Deuteronomy 5:8-10). On and on the Israelites were warned to not have any idols.

It's easy to sit here and think, "What an awful, abominable thing! How could they make something to worship?" It's too easy to do so... It's not a widespread topic to keep God at number one in our lives. It's too easy in the complacency of life to allow certain things to run us ... money, family, jobs, friends, work, etc. It might not be an image or a statue, but how often do we bow down to these and worship them in the sense of allowing them to run our lives?

Where has the honor gone in keeping the Lord in the first and foremost place? May we keep Him first in our love, time, money, and everything. By obeying Him to the fullest, loving Him above anyone and anything in our lives, He will make us successful and bless us in all of our ways.

Coming from within

This morning I felt the Lord speak to my heart...

"Allow the Lord to convict, but please don't condemn yourself!!!"

It's so simple. However, having struggled a grand amount with being hard on myself, this is a statement that constantly needs to be reinforced.

There is such power in allowing God to do the work. It comes from within--not from without. Just as a flower blooms and is opened up to show the world its beauty, so too should conviction gently break down whatever needs to be broken down and lead us closer to God.

Conviction lifts us higher, but condemnation puts us deep into the ground.

Honor God as #1

Ezekiel 16:2 Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know, understand, and realize her [idolatrous] abominations [that they] are disgusting, detestable, and shamefully vile.

Ezekiel 14:4 ...idols of [self-will and unsubmissiveness]...

Wow. Ezekiel chapter 16 is filled with the metaphorical telling of Israel's unfaithfulness to God. It's terrible! They turned and ran everywhere but to God, thus worshiping idols like mad. This type of behavior is compared to an unfaithful wife. That shows how intensely He feels about each one of us. Raising us and giving us everything we could ever want or need... And then we play the harlot and run to other things.

This shows how serious it is that we MUST NOT allow anything come before the Lord. It is an abomination, disgusting, detestable, and shamefully vile to place anything before Him. He loves us with such great intensity, and it pains Him so when there is anything placed above Him in our hearts. How much do our hearts need to be righted by the Holy Spirit and to truly place God in the #1 spot in our hearts and lives?

Dear Heavenly Father,

We confess that there are many things we have placed above You--our job, our family, and even ourselves. We desperately need You to free us from these things that tie us up and in every way to turn whole-heartedly to You with the very same intense desire and passion that You have for us, before anything else. Melt our hearts in Your refining fire, Lord, that we may hold You in the absolute highest place in our lives. In Jesus' wonderful name. Amen.

A Resolution for 2010

My resolution for this year is to learn how to love. To abide in God's love, receiving it and growing in it, and learning how to love others are the two areas I want to grow in.

Ten days into the year the Lord is already answering. Imagine what lies ahead!

Don't Be Deceived!

Hey, everyone! I recently found this article on ElijahList. It is very encouraging. I have been going through some different situations lately that have since cleared, but this article has confirmed what the Lord has shown me.

Stand strong and firm in the truth of the Lord.

http://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word/8371