Acts 1:8 says, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
God has an agenda for the world because God truly loves everyone on the face of the planet, he has always had an agenda, but now the question is, where do we fit in God's agenda?
If you go by Acts 1:8, we are the ones that carry out God's agenda by loving, teaching, and embracing in the way Jesus taught us to. So, where do we fit?
Right in the smack dab middle.
We are the voice. We matter. Even in the worse of times in your lives you will always matter to God, always, and he believes in you and me and that is why he has entrusted us with the care of his creation. People need love. We desire to have love and there is no love like the love that God provides and we have to share it.
I believe it was Francis Asbury that once said, "Offer them Christ." Cause that is an offer that may be refused but never fades and never disappears. God is always there. Always.
One of the most beautiful moments in the Gospels is when Peter walks on water and then gets scrared and drowns, but what does Jesus do?
He extends his hand and pulls Peter up. No matter what you are going through in your life today, tomorrow, or ever you will always have the hand of Christ extended to you. He loves us and we are His voice. Just some thoughts on an early Sunday morning.
Enough Said.
Psalm 139
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 O LORD, you have searched me
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you know it completely, O LORD.
5 You hem me in—behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, [a] you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to [b] me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
When I awake, I am still with you.
19 If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
"The Word of God.
For the People of God.
Thanks be to God."
Living or Existing?
So, what's the difference? Because when you live and exist, you still have a heartbeat either way, but there is a significant difference and a lot of thoughts on living and existing hit me today as I was listening to Robbie Seay.
"Shine Your Light us so that we may live." – Robbie Seay
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." – John 10:10
At the very basis of our existence is that uncontrollable nature of sin. We can't help it. We can't stop it. We sin, and at one point in time in the history of this world everybody (man, woman, children) all were defined by it. Sin is a very troublesome thing that we can't control and to God all sins are all the same. To God when we sin, no matter what it is, it is us telling God, "Ok, I got this. What you offer God is good and all, but I found something better."
Seriously.
Knowing all that and knowing that it is the uncontrollable action of us as human beings, Jesus still came to this earth not to forsake us or even condemn us, but rather to embrace us and die for us. The amazing thing to me is that Jesus doesn't just embrace us when we are good, but he embraces us all and accepts all.
The good, the bad, and the ugly.
Everything.
All.
And what does he do? Jesus knows everything about us and knows how many times we have "found" something better, and yet it doesn't matter. Everything that we are as humans is enough for Him. His grace and love look past the times we have "found" something better and look into the eyes of our heart and say, "I don't care what you've done or what your going to do that is against my will, I still love you and I still would die for you."
So back to my original question. What is the difference? Well, what is the difference between being defined by sin and being defined by grace?
It's huge. Earth shattering. The difference is the reason we live and worship. Why would Jesus want to look past all the sinning and look to us as His love and children? Because He can. Just by existing we know that we uncontrollably sin, but when we live, then we know that we are not defined by that uncontrollable urge. We are defined by what Jesus did. When he died he made the sinners the justified, the idiots he made brilliant. The difference is crucial, because it is a portal to who we are at our existence. Loved.
Lord, help us to always know that you love us beyond our limited understanding and that you died so that we could live forever. Father God your grace and love astound me to my core sometimes and I cant put into words how much it warms my heart and soul to know that you believe in me. Help us always to search our hearts for you and your will for our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.
The Nearness of God
So, on the way back to work from my lunch break today I was listening to music from my iPhone and "Be Near" came on and I really really like this song.
Your fullness is mine (Your fullness is mine)
Revelation divine (Revelation divine)
But oh to taste,
to know much more than a page
To feel your embrace…
To feel your embrace, oh to taste. Yes! there is nothing in the world that compares to then overwhelming sweet taste of God;s love and the nearness of his presence. When I feel God close to me, a flood of inspiration, and courage just shoots through my body and my heart is lifted and oh to see the world through his eyes and with his presence right with you. There is nothing. Nothing better than that.
Father I pray that as we go about our daily routines at work and at home that we would embrace you and your presence because it is so near to us always. Thank you Lord for always being present with us through the good times and the bad and God help us to confront the things we struggle with and let us confront with the strength only you can give. We love you Lord! In Jesus Name, Amen.
May God Bless you with his sweet sweet presence!
That ‘ s it.
I was just hit with something.
No, not in the literal sense..:)
but all the same, something in my head just clicked.
God loves us and yes that is something that is very evident to us believers, but is it really? Do we at all times believe that He really loves us and if so then what about those really bad days when we feel like the dirt under the dirt under the dirt under the….(you get the point), but God loves us.
I couldn't get past this thought. I don't know why.
The thought is that no matter what we think about ourselves and how many mistakes we make God loves us so much that we cannot even comprehend it, it is no possible to put into words how much we mean to Him. Seriously. There aren't words. They don't exist. How friggin' crazy is that!?
God created us in HIS IMAGE, so we are like God. Our beat and feel how God feels. The way we think and do things is somehow connected to him and his essence of who he is. We are His voice to the world, to tell who God is, what God is like and what God cares about. This thought is just so overwhelming to me.
Love that can't be describe because the words don't exist, they can't exist but the Love is too big! It's beyond us and our logical understanding of Love. I dont even know how to end this post but Im so overwhelmed with this Love that is beyond my understanding. God knows what we are thinking, before we think it. What we say before we even think about saying it. How many hairs that are on our heads, and man….that is just overwhelming.
All I can say to end this post is…..
Thank You God for seeing more in us than we could ever begin to see in ourselves. Thank you God.
God Loves us. That's it.