SATURDAY STROLL - Sweet Surrender

Welcome to "SATURDAY STROLL!"

In these posts I will be interacting with Scripture – making it a conversational walk of faith.

Sometimes we'll be talking with Jesus, sometimes God will be talking with us.

There might even be *guest appearances* by some of our beloved characters from the Bible!

So put on your walking shoes – you know we can all use the exercise!

SWEET SURRENDER

(My paraphrase from Jeremiah 38:17-20)

This is what the LORD God of Heaven's Armies says to you, Sharon:

"If you surrender...you and your family will live a life of abundant adventure."

I answer:

"But I am afraid to surrender.  Who knows what the enemy will do to me!"

God answers back:

"You won't be handed over to him if you choose to obey Me.  Your life will be spared, and all will go well for you."

These verses were given to me on the last day in my old house - a place where I have lived for 28 years.  I found a tremendous parallel to my situation in the dialogue between King Zedekiah and the prophet Jeremiah.

King Zedekiah found himself threatened by the Babylonians, and he sought the advice of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah told him to surrender to the Babylonians...

I found that this message was perfect for me - on the brink of moving, I am so afraid to surrender the security and familiarity of my life here.  I am so afraid of moving to another place.  

How I echoed the king's sentiments - "But I am afraid to surrender."

Yes.

However, God is absolute in His answer to me.  

Obey and all will be well.

I take comfort and courage in this.

And thus I obey.

What is God asking you to surrender at this point in your life?

BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

"FAN THE FLAME" FRIDAY - Connected

Welcome to "Fan the Flame" Friday.

This is a weekly post that will be "short and sweet" (kinda like me...)

Just a word and a phrase, a sentence or a question...just a little something to "fan the flame" of your creativity!

Today's word: connected

What makes you feel connected to others?

What makes you feel connected to God?

What are the dangers of being UN-connected?

Let me know what you think!!

And...as if I wasn't facing enough changes right now, Blogger has changed their *COMMENT* format - Instead of showing 0 comments before anyone comments, they show NO COMMENTS.  I find this very deceptive -
Rest assured, I have my comments OPEN, and cherish your input!

(NOTE: If you're interested, I'll share my thoughts over the weekend!  After all, I need to fan my own flame!)

"This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you…For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline." (2 Timothy 1:6-7)

BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

COUNTING THE COST

On Monday I told you that God has been teaching me about letting go…

Today I want to share two more lessons that He's been teaching me.

Tougher lessons, perhaps.

The first is all about security.

What gives us security – at least in this world?

Money, possessions, good health, family, friends.  How we count on these things.  I know I sure have.

And yet, all of that has been well shaken up in the last several months.  In these last few days in my old home, I have been made acutely aware of how attached I am to the things that make me feel secure.

Especially familiar places, familiar faces.

It seems that the whole idea of security isn't really much of an issue, until you're forced to change.  Then the rubber meets the road…

And let me tell you, my rubber has met the road SO MANY TIMES in the last 45 days!

Abraham was asked to leave his homeland – his familiar places and familiar faces.  God issued him a challenge – but it was a challenge with a promise attached.

Abraham obeyed.

And in many ways, God's call to move up the mountain was a challenge to me.

"Sharon, are you going to obey?"

My answer has been yes – an anxious, tired yes this week – but still yes.

Because the truth of the matter is this – my security, my earthly and my eternal security – lies squarely in the character of God, and in His faithful promises.

The other lesson that He's been teaching me is that being a disciple comes at a cost.

God doesn't tend to make *suggestions* – He issues commands.

And we are wise to "count the cost" before we obey Him.

A faithful follower named Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a very important and influential book titled, "The Cost of Discipleship."  His thoughts:

"Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.


Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.


Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a man must knock.


Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: "ye were bought at a price," and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God."


Jesus Himself was very, very honest about the cost of discipleship.

"'Then Jesus said to his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.''  
(Matthew 16:24, NIV)


"'And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.  But don't begin until you count the cost.'"  
(Luke 14:27-28)

The original twelve disciples left family and jobs and homes when they chose to follow Jesus.  They left relative security to obey Christ's call.  I want to be a follower, too.

So, the cost is this – leaving familiar places, familiar faces.


But oh the rewards that await me!


I lift my eyes up to the mountains
Where does my help come from
My help comes from You
Maker of heaven, creator of the earth


Oh how I need You Lord
You are my only hope
You are my only friend
So I will wait for You
To come and rescue me
Come and give me life...



Are you willing to count the cost and follow Jesus – even into an uncertain future?


Linked today with Joan at the GRACE CAFE


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

THE INCREDIBLE, AMAZING CIRCUS CLOWN CAR (House)

I love the circus.

Except for the dreaded plate-spinning act that I talked (whined) about here.

Except for that, I love the circus.

Even the clowns.

A lot of people are unnaturally afraid of clowns.  I wonder why…

Were they terrorized by Bozo at an early age?  Do they fear oversized shoes and bulbous red noses?  Is their uncle named Chucky?

I like clowns because I enjoy watching people make fools of themselves – (on purpose, that is).  Clowns make me laugh – laughing is good.

Do you remember the circus act where a teeny, tiny car comes out – and clown after clown after clown comes pouring out?  I could never figure that out as a kid.  Later on I discovered that a mathematical impossibility can indeed become a magical illusion.

But I digress.

The circus clown car act is on my mind today – because my house has become one.

The boxes…and boxes…and boxes – the sheer volume of stuff should not (mathematically) have been able to fit into my smallish house.

And yet, the boxes keep on coming…

I'm wondering if there is a Good Fairy who (magically) keeps making more and more boxes in the middle of the night when I'm sleeping…or does cardboard harbor a recessive "rabbit" gene?

At one point I wondered if "The Hub" was doing it.  But of course, silly me, if he was involved in the whole process the boxes would disappear!

Abra cadabra.

God is teaching me some good lessons through all of this – (notice I said good, not easy…just sayin')

First of all, uprooting 28 years and moving two hours away (by yourself) is a challenge…BIG challenge.

And I have been humbled by the sight of my dear and hard-working husband laboring under an unending onslaught of stuff – which is mostly mine, to tell the truth.  You see, I've been in this house for 28 years – he's only been here for 7.

And I've been convicted.

I have way too much stuff.

Don't get me wrong – "The Hub" and I have some really cool stuff – and I think it's fine to accumulate things that make you feel at home in your home – stuff that stamps your own personality on the place you live. It's all the other stuff – the things that I probably don't need, but just can't seem to part with…

That's the part I've been thinking about.

Some people are really good about periodic *weaning* – not me.  I still have the heartbeat of a hoarder inside of me.  I get way too attached to my things – and my things get way too attached to me.

I am guilty of having emotions attached to temporal things.

Lord, I hear You speaking on this.

None of this is going with me.  None of it matters in the long run.  None of it is eternal.

Yes, I have my treasure in Heaven – but I've got a hefty little stash here on the other side, too.

Once we get all settled in (early 2013, hmmm??!) – I need to attend to this. It's time to let go of things…

And maybe it's a time for God to do some spiritual housekeeping, too.

I remember reading "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" by C. S. Lewis. At the beginning of the story, a rather distasteful young boy named Eustace steals away from the rest of the group, and comes upon the treasure of a dying dragon.

When the dragon breathes his last breath, Eustace revels in the treasure. Until he discovers the next day that he himself has turned into a dragon.

He tries and tries to peel, scratch, claw off those old scales by himself. And they come off – sorta.  But he still remains a dragon.

It is only when Aslan comes along, the great and terrifying Lion, that Eustace is saved from himself.

Because the Lion painfully (but oh so wonderfully) removes the scales, by tearing at the heart of the matter – and Eustace becomes a boy again.


"Then the lion said – but I don't know if it spoke – You will have to let me undress you.  I was afraid of his claws, I can tell you, but I was pretty nearly desperate now.  So I just lay flat down on my back to let him do it.


The very first tear he made was so deep and I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I've ever felt.  The only thing that made me able to bear it was just the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off.


And there was I as smooth and soft as a peeled switch and smaller than I had been."


So, I'm thinking –

Maybe it's time to let go of some of the treasure.


Maybe it's time for me to shed some of my gnarly old scales.

It's going to hurt – (and trust me, I'm now beginning to feel the sadness, the anxiety, the unsettled uncertainty of the move) – but I know that somehow there is something really good awaiting me on the other side.

God is going to make me something new.

He is going to make me smaller than I have been – and in the process He will show me how big He is.

Is He big enough?


Oh, I think so…yes, indeed, I think so!


(Please come back on Wednesday, for some more lessons God is teaching me in this final week of moving...)


Is God big enough for you?


Linked with Joan at SHARING HIS BEAUTY


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

BIBLE PICK 'EMS - Someone To Watch Over Me

If you recall, these were my original thoughts about "Pick 'ems":

I know it probably isn't "spiritually PC" to randomly open the Bible and expect to find a meaningful verse – it opens the door to the whole "out of context" dilemma. (And...you might just find yourself in Leviticus!!) But, I decided that I wanted to do this, along with my regular reading through the Bible. The way I figured it, I wasn't *testing* God – in other words, "prove something to me, Lord" – I was *trusting* God – "show something to me, Lord." After all, don't we know that His Word is living, breathing, and powerful?!

So, I'm pickin' every day – letting you know what was going on with me that day – and then I'm going to sum up the *theme of the week* that I think God was impressing on my heart.

Hope you're as blessed as I've been!!

MONDAY - (feeling strong after a great message on Sunday morning)  "Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around him were shouting, 'Praise God for the Son of David!  Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the LORD!  Praise God in highest heaven!"  (Matthew 21:9)

TUESDAY - (a setback with the termite report)  "God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.  So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea."  (Psalm 46:1-2)

WEDNESDAY - (moving furniture into the new house)  "I will bring them home again to live safely...They will be my people, and I will be faithful and just toward them as their God.  This is what the LORD of Heaven's Armies says: Be strong and finish the task!"  (Zechariah 8:8-9)

THURSDAY - (a debit card was *compromised*)  "David asked the LORD, 'Should I chase after this band of raiders?  Will I catch them?'  And the LORD told him, 'Yes, go after them.  You will surely recover everything that was taken from you!'"  (1 Samuel 30:8)

FRIDAY - (packing unending boxes - will it ever be over?)  "Those I choose will inherit it, and my servants will live there.  The plain of Sharon will again be filled with flocks for my people who have searched for me."  (Isaiah 65:9)

SATURDAY - (asking for traveling safety)  "'Yes, we're coming,' the people reply, 'for you are the LORD our God."  (Jeremiah 3:22)

(Song Lyrics)

Tell me, where is the shepherd for this lost lamb?

There's a somebody I'm longin' to see

I hope that he, turns out to be

Someone who'll watch over me

I'm a little lamb who's lost in the wood

I know I could, always be good

To one who'll watch over me

It's been another hectic week.  But oh, the message that I received from God!  He made it so abundantly clear that HE is watching over me (and "The Hub") as we continue on the path up the mountain.

Never alone - this lamb is loved by The Good Shepherd - and He watches over me.

What has God said to YOU this week?

Linked today with Charlotte at SPIRITUAL SUNDAYS

BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

SATURDAY STROLL - I'm a Believer...

Welcome to "SATURDAY STROLL!"

In these posts I will be interacting with Scripture – making it a conversational walk of faith.

Sometimes we'll be talking with Jesus, sometimes God will be talking with us.

There might even be *guest appearances* by some of our beloved characters from the Bible!

So put on your walking shoes – you know we can all use the exercise!

FOLLOW ME

They replied, "We want to perform God's works, too.  What should we do?”

Jesus told them, "This is the only work God wants from you.  Believe in the one he has sent."

Lord, it sounds so easy – just believe.

But sometimes believing is the hardest thing to do.  Sometimes I feel like the disciples did on the boat in the middle of the storm…

"Teacher, don't you care that I'm going to drown?"

And yet, Your answer to me is just the same as it was to them, isn't it?


Why are you afraid?


Do you still have no faith?


Lord, I do believe.  Help me to overcome my unbelief.

I want to serve You, Lord.  I want to perform God's work.

Teach me how to become more than just a believer – show me how to be a disciple.

I will follow You wherever You go.


(Selections from Mark and Luke)


In what ways are you becoming a disciple of Jesus?


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

"FAN THE FLAME" FRIDAY - Miracle

Welcome to "Fan the Flame" Friday.

This is a weekly post that will be "short and sweet" (kinda like me...)

Just a word and a phrase, a sentence or a question...just a little something to "fan the flame" of your creativity!

Today's word: miracle

How would you define a miracle?

Have you ever witnessed a miracle?

What is your favorite miracle of Jesus?

Let me know what you think!!

(NOTE: If you're interested, I'll share my thoughts over the weekend!  After all, I need to fan my own flame!)

"This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you…For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline." (2 Timothy 1:6-7)

BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

UP, UP, AND AWAY

Wings.

Today I'm thinking about wings.

A while ago I shared with you how I always seem to see hawks when I go to church on Sundays (the post is here, if you're interested).  I began to think of them as the Lord looking down at me.  I began to feel a solace when I looked up and saw their majestic beauty…

I look for them all the time.  

I've seen them fly over my house.  I've seen them on my travels to the new house.  When you set your mind to notice something, you seem to see it more often.

They're almost always perched atop streetlights, staring down with intensity at the world around them.

So, last Sunday, driving to church, I'm on the look-out for the hawks that are looking out for me.  And as I approached one particular streetlight, I thought I saw *something* sitting on top.  It was so "NOT" a hawk.  Until I got closer, I wasn't even sure that it was anything.

But as I drove by, I was able to tell that it was a very tiny little bird – perched all by itself atop a very high streetlight.

I was reminded of those old Looney Tunes cartoons with Foghorn Leghorn.  Remember him?  Do you remember the little tiny chicken hawk that used to try to capture him – Henery Hawk was his name.

This little guy reminded me of Henery, but he was no hawk.

And he was tiny, all right.

Initially, I kinda chuckled at his bravado – imitating the *big guys* – as they scanned the horizon.  At first, I sorta thought he didn't really have a right to be up there like the "real" hawks.

I thought to myself.

"Who is this little poser?"

That is what I thought, until the Holy Spirit whispered a word to me.

"Sharon, it's no different with you."

And then it hit me – a great spiritual lesson.  An awesome word picture.  


I am just like that little bird.  


Not pretending, but proclaiming!  

For, praise God, it is His power and strength that enables me to fly high – just like Him.

You see, we have been granted the awesome privilege of being children of the Living God – we have been given glory! 


The Great Hawk of the Universe has given us wings, my friends!

We can fly.

I began to think about that tiny little bird in a new way.  No, he wasn't trying to be something he wasn't – he wasn't trying to be a hawk.  He was just being himself – and being himself was being a BIRD!!

Created to fly, as high as he wants – made to fly just like the hawk.

Oh, how my spirit lifted.

I began to realize that I can soar with my Lord – I can perch atop the most difficult circumstances.  I can peer out over my life from a lofty, eternal perspective.  I can spread my tiny wings and be what I'm supposed to be.

I can be a "big guy" because I know the BIG GUY!

I don't know who my little friend was on Sunday morning – maybe a sparrow, hmmm?!

But he taught me a great lesson.


In the shadow of the Almighty, I can fly high with the wings He gives me!


Isaiah 40:28-31
Amplified Bible (AMP)


28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, does not faint or grow weary; there is no searching of His understanding.
29 He gives power to the faint and weary, and to him who has no might He increases strength [causing it to multiply and making it to abound].
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and [selected] young men shall feebly stumble and fall exhausted;
31 But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.


How does God give YOU wings?


Linked today with Joan at the GRACE CAFE


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

11 DAYS AND COUNTING...

Tick, tock.

Yes, the deadline to be all moved out is approaching (too) rapidly!

I am packing furiously, frantically - I am packing like a squirrel approaching winter!

And all the while, tick...tock.

That's why I so enjoyed today's (Sunday's) message in church.  It was all about facing our *giants* - meeting them head-on, staring them down, and not running away.

The pastor said a quote from one of my all-time favorite movies - "BRAVEHEART" - a favorite because both of my grandmothers were born and lived in Scotland.

Yes, call me McSharon.

Here it is:

"You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight? Aye, fight and you may die, run and you'll live. At least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!"

So, because I was issued a spiritual *call-to-arms* today, I've decided to re-post something I wrote a while ago.  I hope it emboldens all of us (including me, perhaps most of all).


EN-COURAGEMENT


Encouragement.

What do you think of when you hear that word?

I have a picture of a kind friend or family member sympathetically listening to my woes, giving me a hug, and saying they'll be praying for me.

All wonderful, yes – but I think encouragement means so much more than a comforting word. It's something more than a "warm fuzzy."

Grammar lesson time - (please don't run away – there will be NO pop quiz!)

The word encouragement starts with the prefix "en." "En" means this – to put into, to go into, to cause to be.

Here are just a few of the words that start with the prefix "en."

Enable – To make able
Enoble – To make noble
Encode – To make coded

So, in this sense, encouragement means to make courageous – to put courage into someone, to cause them to be courageous.

Quite literally, encouragement is to inspire with spirit or hope. To raise the level of confidence. To spur on. To imbue with resolution and tenacity. To give someone the mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.

Therefore, conversely, being discouraged is more than just feeling bad, or a little down. It is literally being "un-couraged" – having one's courage taken away. It is being powerless, afraid, and defeated.

I don't want to be defeated – I want to be made courageous.

It's like this – (here comes the crazy English major with her word picture analogies – you've been warned!)

Out on a muddy battlefield, I've been fighting the good fight. But then, I fall down, losing my sword in the process. Laying in the mud, I am too exhausted to get up. I am discouraged. The truly encouraging comrade-in-arms is not the person who comes over, pats me on the back, and says, "Things will get better. Hang in there."

NO!

The EN-courager is the one who picks me up, wipes the mud from my face, finds my sword, slaps it back into my hand, grabs my arm, and says, "C'mon. We've got no time to waste. We've got a battle to fight, and we can do this! WE ARE CONQUERORS!!"


That person has made me courageous again.

So, I want to EN-courage you today. I don't want to pat you on the back and tell you that things will get better. They might not. In fact, if you really choose to step out for the Lord, I'll bet they get worse. The enemy doesn't like an offensive warrior.

But, pay no attention to him.

He desires nothing less than to dis-courage you. Turn a deaf ear to his lies.

Listen instead to the ultimate EN-courager – God Himself.

"This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."
(Joshua 1:9)

That's the secret. God tells us over and over again – I AM WITH YOU!

So, let Him make you courageous again. Let Him give you His Sword.

Go to the Word of God and let it EN-courage you today. And then go out and EN-courage someone else.

We're all in this fight together!

C'mon.
We've got no time to waste.
We've got a battle to fight.
We can do this.

WE ARE CONQUERORS!

Will you join me and claim our victory TODAY?!

Linked today with Joan at SHARING HIS BEAUTY

BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

BIBLE PICK 'EMS - My Father's Eyes

My mom and dad have three children.

Me, my brother, and my sister.

My mother has beautiful blue eyes.  So do my brother and my sister.  My dad has pretty hazel eyes.

So do I.

My dad is 82, and as I was talking to him the other day, it struck me…

I am the only child with his hazel eyes.

Yes, biologically I can figure it all out.  I remember the little grid charts showing the alleles for eye color.  I remember putting in the big *B* for brown, and the little *b* for blue.  So I had a 50/50 chance of getting hazel eyes.  My dad has a recessive gene for blue eyes, so that’s how my siblings were able to have blue eyes.  (Impressed by my science knowledge??  I'm impressed that I remembered any of that…)

But it never really hit me until the other day.  In some odd way, when I look into my dad's eyes, I'm sorta looking into my own.

It makes me feel special.

Got me thinking – 

When people look into my eyes, can they see the eyes of my Heavenly Father?

Oh, how I want to see the world and other people like He does!



And in honor of our Abba in heaven, here's some great verses about HIM:

Romans 8:15 "So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God's Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, Abba, Father."

2 Corinthians 6:18 "And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty."


Psalm 89:26 "He shall cry to Me, 'You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation."

1 John 3:1 "See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are." 


Matthew 6:26  "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?"


Matthew 18:12-14 "What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?  And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off.  In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost."

Luke 12:32 "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom."

John 14:1-2 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you."

John 16:27 "No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God."
  
Matthew 7:9-11  "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"


HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, DAD!  


And best wishes to all those dads out there!  


How do you want to resemble your Heavenly Father?


Linked today with Charlotte at SPIRITUAL SUNDAYS


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"

SATURDAY STROLL - Peace, Blessed Peace

Welcome to "SATURDAY STROLL!"

In these posts I will be interacting with Scripture – making it a conversational walk of faith.

Sometimes we'll be talking with Jesus, sometimes God will be talking with us.

There might even be *guest appearances* by some of our beloved characters from the Bible!

So put on your walking shoes – you know we can all use the exercise!

MY ANXIOUS HEART SPEAKS

Jesus,

I’m so anxious, so nervous, so tired.

There’s so much going on right now.  I feel overwhelmed.

Please speak a word to me.

Oh, dear one.

I know how hard it is to live in this world.

I lived in it, too.

And I am telling you – here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.

Things that are hard, things that are sad.

Because, you see, this world is enemy territory.

That’s why I came – to bring the Greatest Rescue of all time to this sin-filled world!

And that redemption is why you can have peace in Me.

Peace because I have reconciled you to my Father, and peace because my Resurrection Life gives you hope.

So please take heart, take courage – be of good cheer!

This world is not your home.

FOR I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD!

In Him I have peace – though my feelings are in turmoil, my soul rests.


(Thoughts on John 16:33)

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27)

How does God bring you peace in the midst of your turmoil?


BLOG = "Blessedly Leaning On God!"