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Growing “In Him”

It is my prayer that you gained new insight for your daily walk with the Lord because of our brief study of “in Him” and “in Christ”. Over the next week or so I will be sharing some thoughts from God’s word that you have probably heard before but if you start each day’s reading reminding yourself that you are in Him I know the Lord will give you a greater understanding of these truths.

The Bible has much to say about seeds, planting and growing. God intended for nature to be an example for us to learn from and live by. We see what good soil, the right amount of water and sunshine can do on a daily basis. The trees in our yards and parks flourish; the pastures grow and provide food for the cattle; the desert has its own beauty from the vegetation that grows there. Yes, it’s all around us!

Jesus taught parables about farmers growing seeds and protecting what they had planted. In one of my favorite stories He warns of birds coming to eat the seeds that are unprotected and of weeds that choke out the plants while they are young. Finally He tells of the harvest that comes when the seeds are well cared for and allowed to grow. Jesus makes this correlation:

“This is what the story means: The seed is God’s message, 12 and the seeds that fell along the road are the people who hear the message. But the devil comes and snatches the message out of their hearts, so that they will not believe and be saved. 13 The seeds that fell on rocky ground are the people who gladly hear the message and accept it. But they don’t have deep roots, and they believe only for a little while. As soon as life gets hard, they give up.

14 The seeds that fell among the thornbushes are also people who hear the message. But they are so eager for riches and pleasures that they never produce anything. 15 Those seeds that fell on good ground are the people who listen to the message and keep it in good and honest hearts. They last and produce a harvest.” Luke 9:11-15 CEV

The seed, God’s word, is perfect. It will grow anywhere but it must be protected to bring a harvest. Did you notice that Jesus said if we keep it “in” our hearts it will produce? In the book of John, chapter one, the first thing John says is “in the beginning was the Word, and the word was with God and the word was God”. Jesus is the word of God in the flesh. That makes Jesus and His word the seed that we should be planting in our hearts.

As the seed grows it provides life, protection and safety. God’s word will do the same in our lives and the lives of those around us.

“Then Jesus said, “What can I use to show you what God’s kingdom is like? What story can I use to explain it? 31 God’s kingdom is like a mustard seed, which is smaller than any other seed on earth that you can plant. 32 But when you plant it, it grows and becomes the largest of all the plants in your garden. It has branches that are very big. The wild birds can come and make nests there and be protected from the sun.” Mark 4:30-32 ERV

A mustard seed will germinate in about five to ten days if the soil conditions are right. The black mustard tree, referred to in the verses above, will grow to an average of three to five feet tall and can continue to grow up to ten to fifteen feet tall.

When we allow God’s word to grow in our lives we can be a blessing and a place of rest and safety to those around us. God’s word is powerful but if we allow the day to day cares of life to take hold in our hearts they can choke out the growth of God’s word. We must keep our focus on God’s ability and not our inability.

“I am writing to you who share the same precious faith we have. This faith was given to you because of the justice and fairness of Jesus Christ, our God and Savior. 2 May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord.” II Peter 1:1-2 NLT

Be blessed and grow!

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Chosen Special

Over the past months I have learned a lot about diamonds. The process of taking a stone from “diamond rough” to brilliant cut requires pain-staking precision and is only done by a Master. Diamonds value is determined by color, carat, clarity and facets. Choosing the right one requires a well trained eye.

God, the Father, has chosen us. He sees value and beauty in us, we are precious in His sight.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In Christ, God has given us every spiritual blessing in heaven. 4 In Christ, he chose us before the world was made. He chose us in love to be his holy people—people who could stand before him without any fault. 5 And before the world was made, God decided to make us his own children through Jesus Christ. This was what God wanted, and it pleased him to do it. 6 And this brings praise to God because of his wonderful grace. God gave that grace to us freely. He gave us that grace in Christ, the one he loves.”  Ephesians 1:3-6 ERV

From before the world was made, God saw through time and picked us out to be His own. A few days back we covered the verses that show that God doesn’t have favorites. He chose us all. He’s not willing for anyone to miss out on life with Him.

“The Lord is not being slow in doing what he promised—the way some people understand slowness. But God is being patient with you. He doesn’t want anyone to be lost. He wants everyone to change their ways and stop sinning.” II Peter 3:9 ERV

He has seen everyone of us and is patiently waiting for us to turn to Him and find the wonderful relationship that He has for each of us. God, the Father, sees us as His inheritance. One thing I’ve learned about a will is that only things that the person making the will sees as valuable are listed.

I’m going to close our teaching on in Christ and in Him with these verses written by the Apostle Paul. I read these verses every morning, for years, and each day I grew to understand them more and more.

I encourage you to make them part of your daily Bible reading. Let each phrase sink in, go back and reread each segment. I pray that forty years from now, if Jesus hasn’t come back, you will still be gaining insight into how valuable you are to God.

“I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, 17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. 18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power 20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. 21 Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. 22 God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. 23 And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself.” Ephesians 1:16-23 NLT

When we are in Christ, He fills us with Himself! We are complete in Him! We are His chosen!

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Everything I Need

If you started making a list of everything you need how long would it be? Not talking about your wants or your wish list but the things you really need. Did you know there is an “In Christ” verse to cover that?

“And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19 NLT

As I was sitting here and thinking about what my day has in store I found that in Christ He has already supplied all that I need. Just like Noah was kept safe in the Ark, I am kept safe in Christ. 

    He became my sin so that I could become his righteousness

    He took stripes on his back so that I could be healed

    He told me to come boldly to his throne to find help (Him) in time of need

    He became my strength when I am weak

   He became my peace when things around me are in chaos.

    He gave me a cup that runs over when the enemy is trying to steal, kill and destroy

   He gave me wisdom when I asked for it

What more could I ask for? Then these verses came to mind, this is the right kind of thinking.

“ You have been raised to life with Christ. Now set your heart on what is in heaven, where Christ rules at God’s right side. 2 Think about what is up there, not about what is here on earth. 3 You died, which means that your life is hidden with Christ, who sits beside God. 4 Christ gives meaning to your life, and when he appears, you will also appear with him in glory.” Colossians 3:1-4 CEV

Not only do we have God’s promise to be all we need here on earth but we have His promise that our life is hidden in Christ and we will be with Him in heaven.

He is ALL I need!

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The Unknown God

Did you know that there is an altar in the Palatine Museum in Rome that is dedicated to the “unknown god”? It was discovered during excavation of Palatine Hill, which is the center most of the seven hills of Rome, in 1820.

It’s true!

This is not the altar to the unknown god that the Apostle Paul spoke of when he was preaching in Athens but it’s interesting that these early Romans and Greeks recognized that there was a god who they didn’t know anything about.

Paul spoke to the men of Athens when they asked him to expound on a new teaching.  The Athenians loved “new” teachings and they were very religious people.

“Then Paul stood up before the meeting of the Areopagus council and said, “Men of Athens, everything I see here tells me you are very religious. 23 I was going through your city and I saw the things you worship. I found an altar that had these words written on it: ‘ to an unknown god.’ You worship a god that you don’t know. This is the God I want to tell you about.

24 “He is the God who made the whole world and everything in it. He is the Lord of the land and the sky. He does not live in temples built by human hands. 25 He is the one who gives people life, breath, and everything else they need. He does not need any help from them. He has everything he needs. 26 God began by making one man, and from him he made all the different people who live everywhere in the world. He decided exactly when and where they would live.

27 “God wanted people to look for him, and perhaps in searching all around for him, they would find him. But he is not far from any of us. 28 It is through him that we are able to live, to do what we do, and to be who we are. As your own poets have said, ‘We all come from him.’

29 “That’s right. We all come from God. So you must not think that he is like something people imagine or make. He is not made of gold, silver, or stone. 30 In the past people did not understand God, and he overlooked this. But now he is telling everyone in the world to change and turn to him. 31 He has decided on a day when he will judge all the people in the world in a way that is fair. To do this he will use a man he chose long ago. And he has proved to everyone that this is the man to do it. He proved it by raising him from death!”

32 When the people heard about Jesus being raised from death, some of them laughed. But others said, “We will hear more about this from you later.”Acts 17:22-32

Paul stayed in Athens and taught those who wanted to learn more about Jesus. The Bible tells us that some people laughed at the idea of the resurrection but there were some who believed. There is no other God like our God! He has designed from the beginning of time a way for us to be in relationship with Him. He sent His Son to die for our sins. No other religious leader and/or god has ever died and been raised from the dead. Only Jesus.

“Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”  John 14:6 NLT

Our study over the past few days has been on our relationship “in Him” or “in Christ”.  Without that relationship we are without Christ and without hope in this world.

“Yes, at one time you were far away from God, but now in Christ Jesus, you are brought near to him. You are brought near to God through the blood sacrifice of Christ.” Ephesians 2:13 ERV

I am very glad to say like Paul that in Christ I have life, breath and everything I need.

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Right Thinking

Thinking like Jesus is our thought for today.

“Think about what we have in Christ: the encouragement he has brought us, the comfort of his love, our sharing in his Spirit, and the mercy and kindness he has shown us. If you enjoy these blessings, 2 then do what will make my joy complete: Agree with each other, and show your love for each other. Be united in your goals and in the way you think. 3 In whatever you do, don’t let selfishness or pride be your guide. Be humble, and honor others more than yourselves. 4 Don’t be interested only in your own life, but care about the lives of others too.

5 In your life together, think the way Christ Jesus thought.

6 He was like God in every way, but he did not think that his being equal with God was something to use for his own benefit. 7 Instead, he gave up everything, even his place with God. He accepted the role of a servant, appearing in human form. During his life as a man,
8 he humbled himself by being fully obedient to God, even when that caused his death—death on a cross. 9 So God raised him up to the most important place and gave him the name that is greater than any other name. 10 God did this so that every person will bow down to honor the name of Jesus. Everyone in heaven, on earth, and under the earth will bow. 11 They will all confess, “Jesus Christ is Lord,” and this will bring glory to God the Father.” Philippians 2:1-11 ERV

A few days ago we saw where God the Father was in Christ to fulfill His plan of reconciliation. And now we receive this admonition from Paul to “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus”. We have the mind of Christ when we are born again. We have the Holy Spirit in us creating God-like thoughts and inspiring us to do God-like actions.

Our thoughts are created by what we hold in our heart. Jesus came to earth with the goal of serving man and telling them of God’s love. His heart was filled with love – love for the Father and love for those who accepted and those who rejected Him. His thinking and His actions didn’t change because of what others thought or did to Him. He was single-minded.

The Apostle Paul, who wrote those verses in Philippians, also gave us this instruction in the Book of Romans.

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.  2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:1-2 NLT

These verses above teach us how to develop that thinking. We are to be humble and loving, placing God’s desires over ours. If we copy the pattern that Jesus gave us our thinking will be completely transformed.

So I will say with the Apostle Paul today – Let this mind be in me, I want to think like my Father!

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No Playing Favorites

One verse keeps going over and over in my mind this morning. It has to do with our position in Christ.

“Peter began to speak: ‘I really understand now that God does not consider some people to be better than others:’” Acts 10:34 ERV

This verse should bring a real sense of peace and encouragement to each and every one of us. Perhaps you are someone who grew up battling low self-esteem. You weren’t the prettiest or the smartest or the best athlete or the richest or the most blah, blah, blah…Whatever and whoever, you were just never the best. 

Or maybe you lived on the other end of the spectrum and had always felt that you were one of the elite; the special, the ones that everyone wanted to be like – you were all that and a bag of chips!

But how does God see you? Yesterday I used these verses but they bear repeating.

“You were all baptized into Christ, and so you were all clothed with Christ. This shows that you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 28 Now, in Christ, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or free, male or female. You are all the same in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:27-28 ERV

Rich or poor, educated or uneducated, man or woman, free or enslaved, high society or from the wrong side of the tracks, none of this matters; what matters is that you are in Christ!  Don’t be held back in your walk with the Lord thinking that others are better, more spiritual, more acceptable to God or that they are less than you. God’s love is the same to all. Even before we accept Him, He loved us.

“But Christ died for us while we were still sinners, and by this God showed how much he loves us.” Romans 5:8 ERV

Jesus loved the lowly as much as He loved the highly esteemed in society. He came to bring life to the leper and the Pharisee, the harlot and the lawyer. The difference was their opinion of themselves and their willingness to ask for and receive salvation.

Nicodemus, a high ranking religious leader, came to Jesus by night. Coming by day, he might be seen. “What will the neighbors think? What about the guys at the club?”  It was to this man, Nicodemus, that Jesus said you must be born again. You must be born from the Spirit and then Jesus spoke to him of God’s amazing love.

“Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him would not be lost but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world. He did not send him to judge the world guilty, but to save the world through him. 18 People who believe in God’s Son are not judged guilty. But people who do not believe are already judged, because they have not believed in God’s only Son. 19 They are judged by this fact: The light has come into the world. But they did not want light. They wanted darkness, because they were doing evil things. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light. They will not come to the light, because the light will show all the bad things they have done. 21 But anyone who follows the true way comes to the light. Then the light will show that whatever they have done was done through God.” John 3:16-21 ERV

Today, make it a point to let God show His love to you and through you!

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Casual, Business or Fancy?

What are you wearing?  I used to wear business suits – blazer, skirt and heels. Glad those days are over. I prefer jeans, boots and a button up top. However, I have told Dave that one of these days I would like to go someplace where I can dress up fancy.

The Apostle Paul wrote to several of the Christian churches about what they should put off and put on. He wasn’t referring to our outer apparel. In our verses today he explains his thought behind that phrase.

“All of you are God’s children because of your faith in Christ Jesus. 27 And when you were baptized, it was as though you had put on Christ in the same way you put on new clothes. 28 Faith in Christ Jesus is what makes each of you equal with each other, whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a man or a woman. 29 So if you belong to Christ, you are now part of Abraham’s family, and you will be given what God has promised.”  Galatians 3:26-29 ERV

“Putting on Christ” or being in Christ is like a new set of clothes. 

Have you ever been out in the snow and gotten really wet and cold?  First thing you want to do is get in and get warm; maybe take a warm/hot shower and then put on some clean, warm, dry clothes.  Oh that feels good!  Draw that flannel or fleece shirt around you, put on some sweat pants or maybe a pair of long johns and then get some fuzzy socks or slippers – yes, warm clothes are the best!

But how did you get out of those old, wet, cold clothes?  Don’t over analyze – the answer is simple. Think – how did you do it?  Answer:  you took them off! See, I told you it was simple.  You didn’t wait for the clothes to magically fall off or for some great force or power to overwhelm you and remove them from your body; you took them off.

That’s how it is in our Christian life, it’s up to us to take off the old and put on the new. It’s not going to be a miraculous or magical overpowering act of God. It’s up to us.  God says I have planned a new life for you.  Here’s your new self and with it will come the blessing of being in right relationship with Me.

Take off the old and put on your new life “in Christ”.  This new life is offered freely to all; it is inclusive, it’s for whosoever will. No one is bigger or better than anyone else, we all must come through Christ and we all receive the same place of sonship.

Those clothes that you took off may have been your favorite outfit; they have defined you to your family and friends but let them go.  Let your new outfit define you – people will say “they used to always act that way but now there’s something different”.  Yes, there is – it’s that you have put on your new life “in Christ”.

“But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9 Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. 10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. 11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.” Colossians 3:8-11 NLT

Put off the old and put on the new in Christ! You’ll find this wardrobe has been custom made.

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He’s Talking to Me

Today we’re going to continue with the our teaching on In Christ and In Him.

As we read through Paul’s writings, let’s stop each time we come across the phrases in Him or in Christ and say “he’s talking to me”. We will see what God has to say about us, who we really are. It’s our identity in Christ.

We’re not just an old sinner saved by grace; we were an old sinner and it was definitely the grace of God that brought us salvation but our new you is free from guilt – no longer a sinner but a saint.  Do you sin? Yes, but that’s not who we are. As we begin to look at the new creature God has created and chosen us to be, we will become less aware of sin and more confident of the righteousness that we  have in Christ Jesus.

“So now anyone who is in Christ Jesus is not judged guilty. 2 That is because in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit that brings life made you free. It made you free from the law that brings sin and death. 3 The law was without power because it was made weak by our sinful selves. But God did what the law could not do: He sent his own Son to earth with the same human life that everyone else uses for sin. God sent him to be an offering to pay for sin. So God used a human life to destroy sin. 4 He did this so that we could be right just as the law said we must be. Now we don’t live following our sinful selves. We live following the Spirit.” Romans 8:1-4 ERV

This group of verses that I am going to use this morning have both “in Him” and “in Christ” in the text. I use these verses a lot but they are filled with such great meaning that they should be foundational truths in each of our lives.

“From this time on we don’t think of anyone as the world thinks of people. It is true that in the past we thought of Christ as the world thinks. But we don’t think that way now. 17 When anyone is in Christ, it is a whole new world. The old things are gone; suddenly, everything is new! 18 All this is from God. Through Christ, God made peace between himself and us. And God gave us the work of bringing people into peace with him. 19 I mean that God was in Christ, making peace between the world and himself. In Christ, God did not hold people guilty for their sins. And he gave us this message of peace to tell people. 20 So we have been sent to speak for Christ. It is like God is calling to people through us. We speak for Christ when we beg you to be at peace with God. 21 Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin so that in Christ we could be right with God.”  II Corinthians 5:16-21 ERV

Verse 16 is very telling. Paul says we are not to think of people as the world sees them. He compares this to the way he looked at Christ. Originally Paul set out to destroy the Christians. He thought the message of Christ, being the Son of God, was heresy and he would arrest the Christians and have them imprisoned and killed.  But once he met Christ on the road to Damascus, his life was completely changed!  He knows what he’s talking about when he goes on in verse 17 and says that “IN CHRIST” it’s a whole new world – things are completely changed.

These verses say that God the Father was “in Christ”.  God the Father placed Himself, all His character, all His power, all His love “in Christ” to bring peace to us.  It goes on to say that God isn’t holding us guilty for our sin.  We have been freed from sin and have been given the mandate to share the peace and freedom we have with the world.

The war is over – the war of Satan and sin to keep us separated from God; the guilt and condemnation that once kept man from having peace with God has been atoned for in Christ.  This was the work Jesus was sent to do and His last words on the cross were “It is finished”!  His purpose on earth was complete; the sinless, spotless Son of God died to give us new life!!  I hope you’re shouting by now because this is GOOD NEWS!

And finally the last verse in this passage sums it all up.  ” 21 Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin so that in Christ we could be right with God”.  

The great exchange – our sin for His righteousness.  When God looks at us He doesn’t see our sin, that has been covered over by the blood of Jesus and what He sees is that we are righteous, acceptable and dearly loved.

This is God’s message to us!

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The Real You!

In 1980 my life with Christ dramatically changed. I had accepted Christ as my Savior when I was a young girl but things were stagnant. Now that I was a young wife and mother my heart cried out for more.

The best example I can give you is the life of Peter. For most of his time as Jesus’ disciple he was impetuous, ruled by his emotions ; it was apparent he struggled to maintain. And then…on the day of Pentecost, Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and his life demonstrated a power he had never known before.

Instead of denying he knew Christ when questioned by a little servant girl, he boldly proclaim Jesus Christ and His resurrection from the grave when he was being threatened with imprisonment and beatings. He went from being tossed about by his emotions to being the man Christ referred to as “the rock”.

The difference was the power of the Holy Spirit in his life. Peter’s boldness came from knowing who he was in Christ and the power that was given to him by Jesus.

We wanted to be like Peter, the rock so Dave and I began to devour God’s word in search of what the Father has given us to live a victorious life while we are on this earth.

Over the next several days I am going to share with you some of the Scriptures the Lord made real in my life during those days. These verses are life-changing. To start this study I need you to answer this question.

Do you know who you are? 

A  child, a parent, a spouse, a grandparent, a niece or nephew, a dear & trusted friend, a co-worker, an opponent – this list can be as long as the list of people we know and are related to. But really, who are you?  This question can be answered in greatest depth and meaning when we allow the Scripture to define who we are.

Paul says if any man, person, be “in Christ” he is a new creature; old things have passed away and all things have become new.  A new creature – so who or what is this new creature. What do we look like – how do we act?

One of the greatest things that can happen in our Christian walk is to realize that WE – myself included – are new creatures.  All the old with its past is dead and I’ve been given a brand new life – a new start. I have become a whole new species of being “in Christ”!  The Apostle Paul spent a great deal of his writings dealing with this new person we have become. This morning let’s look at one Scripture in particular.

“In the past you were spiritually dead because of your sins and the things you did against God. 2 Yes, in the past your lives were full of those sins. You lived the way the world lives, following the ruler of the evil powers that are above the earth. That same spirit is now working in those who refuse to obey God. 3 In the past all of us lived like that, trying to please our sinful selves. We did all the things our bodies and minds wanted. Like everyone else in the world, we deserved to suffer God’s anger just because of the way we were.

4 But God is rich in mercy, and he loved us very much. 5 We were spiritually dead because of all we had done against him. But he gave us new life together with Christ. (You have been saved by God’s grace.) 6 Yes, it is because we are a part of Christ Jesus that God raised us from death and seated us together with him in the heavenly places. 7 God did this so that his kindness to us who belong to Christ Jesus would clearly show for all time to come the amazing richness of his grace.

8 I mean that you have been saved by grace because you believed. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. 9 You are not saved by the things you have done, so there is nothing to boast about. 10 God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us new people so that we would spend our lives doing the good things he had already planned for us to do.” Ephesians 2:1-10 ERV

Over the next several mornings I will be developing a study on “Who We are in Christ Jesus”. It is my hope to give you enough Scripture and direction that you develop a hunger to learn more about your relationship “in Christ”.

Welcome to the good life – the life in Christ Jesus!

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Perspective

Some people consider the glass to be half empty while others assess that it is half full.

Perspective!

It’s important to keep a proper perspective when going through a tough time. If we begin to look too closely at the situation it can seem overwhelming. It’s important to pull back and look at things the way God’s see them.

The children of Israel saw a sea too big to cross; God saw a stream and damned it up. Saul’s soldiers saw a giant too big to conquer; David saw a man who was no match for God. Noah saw a world filled with corruption and a devastating flood; God saw a cruise ship of salvation.

What is your perspective? Do you see things as hopeless, do you see defeat?

“As a deer gets thirsty for streams of water, I truly am thirsty for you, my God. 2 In my heart, I am thirsty for you, the living God. When will I see your face? 3 Day and night my tears are my only food, as everyone keeps asking, “Where is your God?” 4 Sorrow floods my heart, when I remember leading the worshipers to your house. I can still hear them shout their joyful praises. 5 Why am I discouraged? Why am I restless? I trust you! And I will praise you again because you help me, 6 and you are my God.

6 I am deeply discouraged as I think about you from where the Jordan begins at Mount Hermon and from Mount Mizar. 7 Your vicious waves have swept over me like an angry ocean or a roaring waterfall. 8 Every day, you are kind, and at night you give me a song as my prayer to you, the living Lord God. 9 You are my mighty rock. Why have you forgotten me? Why must enemies mistreat me and make me sad? 10 Even my bones are in pain, while all day long my enemies sneer and ask, “Where is your God?”

11 Why am I discouraged? Why am I restless? I trust you! And I will praise you again
because you help me, and you are my God.” Psalm 42 CEV

King David saw his enemies but God saw His deliverance.

Jesus’ disciples saw a large crowd of hungry people and a little boy’s lunch; Jesus saw a hillside picnic. Mary and Martha mourned a brother who had died; Jesus saw an empty tomb. The Pharisees saw an outcast, an adulterous woman; Jesus saw someone He came to forgive and a candidate for salvation.

Satan saw Jesus as a dead man, buried in a tomb but God saw the resurrection!

Why are you discouraged or disheartened? Put your hope in God!

Some overlook the feast that God provides and see only the enemies. When the Lord gives us a cup it doesn’t remain half empty or half full. He fills our cup until it runs over.

“You treat me to a feast, while my enemies watch. You honor me as your guest, and you fill my cup until it overflows.” Psalm 23:5 CEV

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