Memory Verse Challenge: Week 29

Admittedly this week's verse isn't the easiest verse to memorize.  The choppiness of it can be a little challenging.  However, that shouldn't stop us.  There's a powerful life lesson packed into these few words.  If memorizing them helps remind us what our thoughts should rest on, then memorize away!

The things we set our minds on determine our attitude.  Our attitude then affects the strength and power of our faith.  This in turn affects our level of peace and joy.  In fact, the following verse (9) says that if we put this into practice, the God of peace will be with us. 

I, for one, know the truth.  It's very hard to be hopeful, peaceful, trusting, etc. when I'm focused on all the things around me that are going wrong.  There's plenty around me that's going right.  When I focus on those - my outlook changes immensely.  Calmness fills my soul and joy creeps in. 

How we want to live our lives (half empty or being filled up) will help us decide what to focus our thoughts on.

See more about the Memory Verse Challenge here.
See the complete list of Challenge verses here.

Sunday Blogvotional: Building Faith

Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there and it will move.’ Nothing will be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20

It’s relatively easy to have faith for that which we feel is possible but difficult to have strong faith for the seemingly impossible. It’s easy to ask and believe that there will a be good spot to park at the local supermarket when you are in a hurry. But how many of us pray in strong faith for a healing when a loved one is diagnosed with cancer ? If the bank account is empty and the rent is due, can we believe God will provide a way for us to pay it?

I have observed in my own life that it’s pretty easy to have faith for the small things but to believe deep in my heart that God will supply my needs is another matter altogether. My natural eyes are often blind to the power of God.

We’re told that our God is the God of the impossible. He created the universe out of nothing so why couldn’t he supply all of our needs? Many scriptures confirm how important it is to have faith, not just a little faith but great faith. Hebrews 11:6 says, Without faith it impossible to please God. I want my faith to grow and I want to please God.

Encouragement for the week: Begin to ask God to increase your faith. Build on the faith you have and spread out in every direction. Read all the scriptures that deal with faith. You’ll be amazed at how your faith will grow.

Contributed this week by my Mumsy.  Thanks Mom!

Memory Verse Challenge: Week 28

Good Tuesday to you.  This week's verse is short, sweet and powerful.

It's human nature to make plans and try to live our lives accordingly.  Funny thing is - that in my experience - most of the plans I've made in my life have failed to turn out like I intended.  And, yes, many times I fought God along the way because I "knew" what I wanted.

I've discovered - or more accurately - am still discovering that if I commit first to the Lord then He will establish my plans for me.  Plans that will ultimately change and shape my life for the better.  I'm not here on this earth to live this life for me.  I'm here to live this life for God. 

It goes against human nature to think you could have a happier life serving God than serving yourself.  Maybe that's the difference between having a happy life and a truly meaningful and joyful life.

See more about the Memory Verse Challenge here.
See the complete list of Challenge verses here.

Sunday Blogvotional: Being Open To The Possibility

Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus so they watched him closely…Mark 3:2

If you spend any time in the gospels, you will notice right away that Jesus wasn't the most popular man in town.  The Pharisees, the religious leaders of their time, were livid with his arrival.  So what was their real problem with Jesus?  Did they truly not believe what the scriptures said about the coming Messiah?  Were they so caught up in waiting for His arrival that they couldn't see him right in front of them.  Maybe there were they embarrassed by not having been given a special invitation to his birth?  This man - born in a manger couldn't possibly be as important as them, let alone be the Son of God.  Or maybe their animosity stemmed mostly from feeling threatened.  Until Jesus came along people followed them. 

What about us today?  Do we look so hard for God to work in our lives that we can't see what he's already doing? Do we think we're so important that we should always be "in the know"?  Do we ever feel threatened by someone coming in and upsetting our plans and challenging what we know?  Do we close ourselves off to the workings of God just because they don't fit our image or our plan?

Encouragement for the week: When we get caught in this trap it might be helpful to step back - do more listening and observing rather than moving and shaking.  Sometimes it's better for us if we get our own ideas of who God is and how He works out of the way so we can truly let Him show us.

Memory Verse Challenge: Week 27

This week's verse can be a little tough to take.  For one thing - it's extremely hard (at least for me) to be joyful "always".  Life has a way of getting me worked up.  The second and third parts of the verse (praying and giving thanks) are two key ways of keeping my emotions in check.

When my prayer life with God is going well my spirit is much calmer.  For me, connecting with God is like plugging into a "calm machine".  And focusing on thanking God IN (not necessarily FOR) all circumstances puts life in perspective.  Our hardships seem bearable when seen in the light of God's control and supervision.

Praying continually and giving thanks are God's will for us.  When we do His will His peace rests in us and joy fills our soul. 

See more about the Memory Verse Challenge here.
See the complete list of Challenge verses here.

Sunday Blogvotional: From Where It All Came

When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant then when you eat and are satisfied, be careful that you do not forget the LORD , who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.  Deuteronomy 6:10-12

Everything in our sight, everything in our grasp is something that God created.  We are blessed abundantly yet sometimes we forget where it all came from.  When times are great we notice we have plenty.  We can easily fall into the trap of praising ourselves for what we were able to do and get.  But who made it possible?  In the passage above God may have been talking to the Israelites but He could have well been talking to us today.  We live in a land that, even in a fluctuating economy, still flourishes.  We live in a land of abundance.  It would not be so without God - without God's hand.   Let us not forget the blessings surrounding us day by day.

Encouragement for the week:  Reflect on the blessings you have in your life.  Even if things aren't going great - you can still see the evidence of God's blessings and provisions.  Are the blessings in your life the result of your own actions or are they from God?  There's nothing you could do if it weren't for God's provisions.  Make sure to thank Him.  He deserves so much more.

Memory Verse Challenge: Week 26

Good Monday morning to you.  I hope you all had a very nice 4th of July weekend.  I know we did here - spending time enjoying new friends, the great outdoors and a fabulous fireworks show.

Moving is hard work and I find it helpful to get back to some sort of routine.  So without further ado...here is this week's memory verse.

 

This verse reminds us we can't forget that acting on our faith is key to keeping our faith alive.  There are two main reasons it's hard to live out our faith with our actions.  1) The constant cycle of busyness we find ourselves trapped in and 2) we simply don't want to.  We're good church-going folk and aren't interested in making much more of an effort than that.  

Regardless of the reasoning - the Bible spells it out for us.  Without action, our faith will die.  Just like your muscles will deteriorate if you don't use them.  Living out our faith with actions is our exercise.  It strengthens us - it strengthens our faith - and it strengthens our relationship with God.  We all must decide what kind of faith we want to have.  One kind takes effort and comes with great reward, the other one requires nothing and yet offers nothing.

See more about the Memory Verse Challenge here.

See the complete list of Challenge verses here.

Sunday Blogvotional: The Trap of Freedom

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature.  Galations 5:13

We’re privileged to live in a free country when there are many around the world who still live under tyranny and oppression.  God has greatly blessed us. 

Most importantly what God gave us, with the death of His Son, was freedom from the bondage of sin.  We often see freedom as kind of a free-for-all.  We can do what we want, live how we like and believe whatever is new and fresh at the moment. 

Ironically, when we live with a worldview of total freedom (anything goes), we actually put ourselves back under the control of sin.  We get so bent on not having any rules at all - that we walk right back into the snare of sin.  Captured and enslaved again.

The thing with freedom is that it requires great responsibility -  and discipline.  To keep from falling back into the trap of sin, we must be able to discern true freedom from the illusion of freedom.  God sacrificed His son so that we could be free.  It’s His greatest desire for us to stay that way.

Encouragement for the week:  Over this 4th of July weekend take a moment and think not only about the freedom we have been given by living in this country but most importantly, think about the freedom that God has given us - an eternal freedom.  Praise God and give Him thanks.

Memory Verse Challenge: Week Off

Hi everyone - I know it's Thursday already and I didn't quite make the memory verse challenge post this week.  I do have a good excuse though:-)  I'm in the process of moving to Oklahoma.  So - what say we take the week off?  I'll have something posted on Monday.  Have a great 4th of July weekend.  May we remember the blessings we have from the freedoms we've been given.