A Loving Reminder: Transformation

A Loving Reminder: 

They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they praised God because of me. (Galatians 1:23-24 NIV)

My lovelies,  I'm always filled with hope when I read about Saul's personal encounter with God. God met Saul right where he was. God encountered Saul, a Pharisee in the midst of his journey of Christian persecution, revealing Himself, and bringing forth transformation. We later come to know this man as the disciple Paul, whom God used to bring life through the sharing of the Gospel, to the very same people he was trying to destroy.

If God can transform, Saul, a persecutor of the Christian church, and use him for His glory, I imagine what more God can do in my life. But more so I think about what He can do for our unsaved loved ones. 

Father, I come boldly and humbly before your throne, praising You for You are the Great I AM, the God Almighty, Creator of All. I thank You for meeting us exactly where we are. You come to us in our deepest pits and You reveal yourself to us. Who can remain the same after having a personal encounter with You.  Thank you for the continual transformation that takes place in our lives, so we become more like You.  Father, create in us a clean heart, renewing a right spirit within us, and sustaining us, as is written in Psalm 51. 

Father I stand on behalf of our loved ones, placing them at your feet asking that You reveal yourself to them. Asking that You meet them exactly where they are, wherever that may be, giving them that personal encounter like that, that you gave Saul on the road to Damascus. Confronting them, and removing all doubt that You are who You say you are. 

Thank you for the hope that Your Word brings us. Nothing is impossible for You. Thank you Father, for all you have done and for all that we have yet to see you do. In your precious name, Jesus, Amen. 

A Loving Reminder: I am an heir!

A Loving Reminder: I am an heir!

So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir. (Galatians 4:7)

Lovelies, living in this world is difficult when we lose sight of who's we are.  So often we forget that we are sons and daughters of a King, and we run to the comfort of the world. Binding ourselves to it. 

The moment we truly accept Christ, we became His children, and heirs to His Kingdom. But, instead of embracing the riches of this new life, the new things that God has for us, as  creations in him, we put back on the chains that God has removed. Habitually putting back on: 

the chains of sin,

the chains of depression, 

the chains of grief, 

the chains of fear, 

the chains of loneliness, 

the chains of anxiety/worry,

the chains of addiction.

Becoming weighted, and enslaved to the things we know, that eventually lead us to disappointments and into pits of despair. Blocking ourselves from receiving blessings.

'How often I forget that my new identity as an adopted daughter of the living God defines who I am. How often I still live as an orphan, comfortable with my old spoon and bowl and crib, even entrapped by them, not even wanting new ones. How often I forget that I am an heir, a forgiven, accepted, free, righteous heir because my Father, at the greatest cost, adopted me.' (100 Days of Hope Devotional by Hope International)

Let us remember that we are children of not just any King, but the King of Kings! Let us walk in the Victory of being heirs to His throne; the throne of the Great I Am! Let us walk in the freedom that has been granted through the shedding of the blood by our Redeemer. 

Father, I come boldly and humbly before your throne, praising you and thanking you for the redemption of our lives. Thanking you for the heavy ransom that was paid on our behalf. For the freedom gained that cost us nothing but came at a great cost to you. Forgive us Father that we often forget these things and we enslave our selves once again to things of this world. Help guide us, giving us wisdom and discernment so we do not lose our spiritual sight, our focus that we once were captives but we have been set free. That it is already done! 

Father  I pray for my lovelies, whom have forgotten their identity in you, and also for those walking around still in heavy chains, because they do not know that they have been set free.  

I pray Lord that You meet them exactly where they are reminding those that need reminding and revealing yourself to those that need a revelation. 

Thank you Father that I am your child, that I am heir to Your throne! I pray this in your precious and powerful name, Jesus, Amen! 

A Loving Reminder: Behold I Am Doing a New Thing

My lovelies, A Loving Reminder:

God replaces what He takes away!

The Lord says, “I will give you back what you lost to the swarming locusts, the hopping locusts, the stripping locusts, and the cutting locusts. It was I who sent this great destroying army against you. Once again you will have all the food you want, and you will praise the Lord your God, who does these miracles for you. Never again will my people be disgraced. Then you will know that I am among my people Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and there is no other. Never again will my people be disgraced. (Joel 2:25-27 NLT) 

My lovelies has God taken something away from you? 

Has He replaced it with something greater?

Do you perceive the new thing He has done? 

 

Often times God removes things from our lives that steal our joy in Him. Notice I said 'our joy in Him! We can all think of something or someone God has removed from our lives because we could not see God but rather we choose to focus on the things of this world. The beauty is that what God takes away, He replaces with something greater!  

Let me share with you that God removed a friendship from my life. He was clear with me that I could not serve two Gods. (the friendship being one type of God). 

The friendship brought great comfort, but it did not lead me to Christ, instead it led me to worldly things.  God had to show me that the comfort I sought, should only be sought in Him! I wrestled with God for about two years regarding this matter. Although deep inside I understood, I didn't understand. Or rather.... I didn't want to understand. 

When God removes you from a comfort zone, wether He is, removing you from the comfort of your finances, removing you from the comfort of your job, removing you from the comfort of your friends, or removing you from the comfort of your family, it can be a painful process. But God is awesome, His ways are higher than ours and He always works on our behalf. 

My greater is a relationship with three specific women that He strategically placed in my life. He replaced one friend with three! God brought us together so we could experience joy in Him! So we could experience His love in each other!  Im grateful for these ladies for sometimes I find myself still grieving what God has removed, and in those moments I remind myself that we have to choose to die to self daily (1 Corinthians 15:31 AMP). 

Throughout my day I'm flooded with text from these ladies that remind me of His love! We wake up together, we go to work together, and we seek God together!  With every text that comes in, Im reminded that God has given me greater!  

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. (Isaiah 43:18, 19 NIV)

El Roi you see it all, thank you father for seeing the desires in our hearts. Thank you for refilling the emptiness of what you have removed with Your Joy. Thank you for the beautiful friendship that you have harmonized together on my behalf. Thank you for the beautiful reminders that come from your word that I receive throughout the day for you keep me in your perfect peace and in your joy! The new thing has sprung up! And I perceive it! I pray that You open the eyes of my lovelies and reveal to them the new things you are doing in each of their lives! In your name, Jesus, I come with a grateful heart!  Amen!