20 Sunday Apr 2014
Posted in Reflection
Happy Easter! He is RISEN!!!
The Skit Guys always produce some of the most amazing videos. This video does a great job of showing what it is all about. Remember, though Christ died on the cross through grace for our sins, it is all for His glory.
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19 Saturday Apr 2014
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Today we begin the book of Ephesians. This book is another letter written by Paul to the church at Ephesus and the main purpose of this letter was to encourage and strengthen believers their faith. As I was reading, and since tomorrow is Easter Sunday, Ephesians 1:7-8 stood out to me, 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. The events on Easter give us the redemption and forgiveness of our sins. But there is another part to this passage which was brought on by the resurrection and is mentioned in verse 8; wisdom and understanding, which can only come with the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
18 Friday Apr 2014
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Today we read the relatively short book Philemon. This book is actually a letter written by Paul to Philemon who was probably a wealthy leader of the Colossian church. The purpose of the letter was to try and convince Philemon to accept and forgive his runaway slave, Onesimus, and to hopefully accept him as a brother in Christ. While Paul does not condemn slavery in any of his writings, he does make a bold statement when when he calls Odesimus Philemon’s brother in Christ. No matter what our status in life, whether financial or social, we are all equals in the body of Christ. More importantly, as a body of believers we must be intentional in our acceptance of all people no matter where they are in comparison to us individually.
03 Thursday Apr 2014
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Doing what is right, especially forgiveness, is tough sometimes. It involves both action and attitude. Romans 12:21 says, Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. When we find it difficult to forgive others for their actions, it is important to remember how much we were forgiven through Christ’s sacrifice. Always remember we can not allow evil to control us. Instead we must control evil through the goodness Christ showed us first.
18 Tuesday Mar 2014
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I know I have shared 2 Corinthians 12:9 before, but it is so good! But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. When you feel like you just can’t do enough to make things right it’s because you can’t… No really, you can’t! There is nothing we can do to fix our lives and reach the level of grace God has already provided for us. It is in our weakness that God shows up and gives us the rest we so desperately need. When we open up our clenched hands and allow God to take away the things we hang onto and let Him replace it with His perfect plan, we find peace and the love the way it was intended to be.
12 Wednesday Mar 2014
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Perfection is something that can only be attained in the eyes of God through our acceptance of Christ’s sacrifice for our sins. The process is twofold; turning away from our sin and turning towards God. 2 Corinthians 7:1 says, Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. God doesn’t expect us to be perfect through our own efforts, but He does expect us to look to Him for our righteousness.
11 Saturday Jan 2014
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In Acts 10:47 Peter says, “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” The important thing in my mind is that they received the Holy Spirit before they did anything good. The requirement for these people was not that they become better people before God would accept them. God accepted them first and then their lives were changed. We are foolish to think God needs our goodness. He is in the business of changing lives, not us. His only requirement is that we accept Him and accept His leading in our lives. Trust and obey; that is it.
28 Thursday Nov 2013
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As we finish up the book of Micah, verse 18 struck me as a great reminder of God’s grace, 18 Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. God delights to show mercy! He is glad when we repent and offers forgiveness freely to anyone who comes to Him and asks. When we put away our pride and ask God for forgiveness, He delights in us and shows us grace and mercy of our sins.
As part of this Thanksgiving day, let us be thankful for all God has given to us.
12 Tuesday Nov 2013
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Every time I read the story about the adulterous woman it hits me between the eyes. While we are all sinners, Jesus still forgives us of all our sins. Even the really bad things in our lives He forgives. Jesus’ words in John 8:10-11 are some of the most powerful to me, 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” Other than Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, I think this is one of the most powerful examples of His love. God may be disappointed when we sin, but He never stops loving us.
05 Tuesday Nov 2013
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Thankfully we have a God who is gracious. Can you imagine if God held us accountable for every sin we ever committed? David says in Psalm 130:3-4, 3 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? 4 But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you. Through God’s mercy we are forgiven. More importantly, through the sacrifice of Jesus, our sins are forgotten. Forgiveness should be freeing to us, which in turn is meant to allow us to serve God fully without hesitation from guilt. We must accept God’s forgiveness completely and go out to serve Him freely.
Daily Devotion 