To Him

To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy — to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

—Jude 24-25

I don’t think I have ever even read the book of Jude, much less put it in my daily bread emails.

But this verse, oooooooooo  - think about it: think about God's power and might!

WOW

And we get to be in His presence.

WOW

God's grace is greater and more glorious than anything we humans can put forth!

And on that day when I stand before His throne, the stain of my sins washed away are based on His grace and mercy.

How can I not praise Him from a thankful heart and anticipate seeing Him face to face in glory?

Song reference!!!

There is an endless song
Echoes in my soul
I hear the music ring

And though the storms may come
I am holding on
To the rock I cling

How can I keep from singing Your praise
How can I ever say enough
How amazing is Your love
How can I keep from shouting Your name
I know I am loved by the King
And it makes my heart want to sing

I will lift my eyes
In the darkest night
For I know my Savior lives

And I will walk with You
Knowing You'll see me through
And sing the songs You give

I can sing in the troubled times
Sing when I win
I can sing when I lose my step
And fall…

Oh WOW.

Have a blessed day! 

Strength for the weary

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

—Isaiah 40:28-29

Strength for the weary, I need this for certain!

I am so thankful that I can lean on my Father, especially the past week, when I was physically down.

God is eternal, He has unlimited power, His supply of strength is limitless.

He blesses and shares His grace without growing tired.

Most importantly, He longs to share His power and grace with us daily.

I forget sometimes that God is not as tired, hurt, or as overwhelmed as I am.

He is the awesome creator of the universe, and He has all the power and energy we need.

God is reminding us in this verse that we are not alone, and that His commitment to us is not temporary, but it’s everlasting and without end.

We should be strengthened knowing we serve the all-powerful creator and we are important to Him.

This has been a challenging year for many of my friends and family,  and so often I feel like the world is falling apart. 

Sometimes it is hard to remember that I am not walking alone, and all I have to do is reach out – God is there, with open arms, ready to hold me. 

How lucky am i?

Have a blessed day! 

speak up

Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.

—Proverbs 31:8

Continuing with the theme of carrying each other’s burdens, we are called to defend the rights of the weak, speak up for the disenfranchised, and protect the life of those who are vulnerable.

This comprehensive call is the great reminder that the blessings, rights, wealth, and power we may have is not ours alone; it is a gift from God to be used to bless those who have no power to speak, to defend, or to protect themselves.

Who are you going to bless today?

Have a blessed day! 

carry my burdens for me, will ya?

Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

—Galatians 6:2

There have been a few times when I have felt like I am getting too personal on my “daily bread”.

Times when I pour out my sorrows to the people who are reading my thoughts on His word.

Then there are times when I feel guilty for sharing my burdens, when I know that there are others that need prayer.

But this verse tells us that we SHOULD share!

This verse is really just another way of saying, "Love your neighbor as yourself!"

Jesus came to bear our burdens and carry away the stain and pain of our sin.

With this direction, He now asks us to live redemptive-ly, in practical ways, toward those around us.

More than just praying, or asking what we can do to help, we are called to serve, minister, and assist others who are burdened.

So cast your burdens . . . there are people around to carry them.

Have a blessed day! 

Hold firm

He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.

– Titus 1:9

Hold firmly to the message, isn’t that what we do every day?

When the world is doing its level best to knock us out, we hold firmly to the message.

But we need more -  if you think that we don’t need doctrine or that doctrine is a hindrance to true spirituality, then you misunderstand the role of doctrine.

Let’s start at the beginning – what is “doctrine”?

Doctrine is a belief or set of beliefs held and taught by a church, political party, or other group.

When held to firmly, sound doctrine places courage in our souls to live in harmony with God, protects us from strange teachings, and identifies those who want to misuse Biblical teachings for their own purposes.

Hold firmly, my friends.

Have a blessed day! 

East to West

He will not always accuse, nor will He harbor His anger forever; He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

– Psalm 103:9-12

Song reference!

Jesus, You know just how far the east is from the west
I don't have to see the man I've been come rising up in me again
In the arms of Your mercy I find rest
'cause You know just how far the east is from the west
From one scarred hand to the other
One scarred hand to the other
From one scarred hand to the other

Speaking of getting what we deserve, (remember yesterday’s daily bread?) we are pretty fortunate that God does not treat us as we deserve.

Think about the things that you have done that would be considered sin.

Now think about the punishment that those sins could potentially hold.

Imagine if you will, a globe of the world.

If you travel north far enough you will eventually be traveling south and if you keep traveling soon you will go north again.

But east never becomes west.

This is like God’s love, it has no limit; His forgiveness has no stopping place, as far as the east is from the west.

Our God who created us also gave us His Son Jesus who paid the price for our sin on the cross.

Why?

So that we can know His mercy.

Surrender to His mercy and receive His grace in Jesus Christ.

Have a blessed day!

paybacks

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

– 1 Peter 3:9

“I’ll get even”

“He’ll get what he deserves”

“Just wait for karma”

We hear those phrases a lot, don’t we?

But wait - we are called to bless others.

Others.

Every single person – this doesn’t apply to just the people that we get along with—this also applies to the ones who hurt us.

How do you respond to people who offend you?

Do you lash back?

I know I have a tendency to get snarky.

There is a blessing that God has for those who are willing to absorb the pain of offense and respond with kindness.

I am going to work on getting that blessing.

Have a blessed day!