Maintain your pace

When I was driving recently, I noticed I was the only one on the road – or at least that’s what it seemed like. By the time I stopped at traffic light, there were so many other cars around me - as usual, the Holy Spirit stepped in and converted this to a teachable moment - simply put, He said:

Face your race

Maintain your pace

I'm sure you have heard so many times that life is a race. Interestingly, it is as much a sprint as it is a marathon. We must all remain focussed on our individual races - what people around you are doing could impact you but must not distract you from your race. Despite the fact that there were more cars around me at the traffic light, it was no reason to change my destination and follow them to theirs when the light changed to green. Unfortunately, some people get distracted and derailed from their destination (& purpose in God) because of what is happening around them. Let's take this to another level...

Who are you related to?

Got this piece by email...

Curtis and Paul Jones wrote how, on a bitterly cold day in a western city, a small boy stood shivering on a steel grate in the sidewalk. He was very poorly dressed and obviously a child of the street.

A well-dressed woman passerby noticed the lad and began to talk to him. Sensing his need, she took him to a clothing store and had him completely outfitted suitable for the weather

—including cap, scarf, and gloves.

The lad was so grateful he couldn't thank her enough.

 As they parted he turned back to ask, "Are you God's mother?"

Surprised, the woman replied, "Oh, no! I'm just a child of God."

Whereupon the smiling lad remarked, "I knew you were related."

Think on this...

Faith is putting all your eggs in God's basket,

then counting your blessings before they hatch.

~Ramona C. Carroll

Definitely the right way to live in calm assurance*...that's the life!

*The author of Hebrews puts it this way: 

And my righteous ones will live by faith.

But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away. (Heb 10:38 - NLT)

Secret # 7: Calm assurance

Secret #7: Calm assurance in the face of injustice comes from knowing that God is in control of the future.*

If I could restate this quotation, I'd say Calm assurance in the face of any circumstance comes from knowing that God is in control of the future. Put even more succintly, "Calmness is the cradle of power."**

How do you describe Him?

He is (author unknown)

In Genesis, He is the Breath of life.

In Exodus, our Passover Lamb.

In Leviticus, our Great High Priest.

In Numbers, Fire by night.

In Deuteronomy He is Moses’ voice.

In Joshua, Salvation’s choice.

In Judges, He is the Law Giver.

In Ruth, our Kinsman Redeemer.

In 1 and 2 Samuel, He is the Trusted Prophet.

In 1 and 2 Kings and 1 and 2 Chronicles, the Sovereign One.

In Ezra, He is the True and Faithful Scribe.

In Nehemiah, the Rebuilder of broken walls and lives.

In Esther, He is Mordecai's (& Esther's) courage.

In Job, the Timeless Redeemer.

In Psalms, He is our Morning Song.

In Proverbs, Wisdom’s Cry.

In Ecclesiastes, He is the Times and Seasons.

In Song of Solomon, the Lover’s Dream.

In Isaiah, He is the Prince of Peace.

In Jeremiah, the Weeping Prophet.

In Lamentations, He is the Cry for Israel.

In Ezekiel, the Call from sin.

In Daniel, He is the Stranger in the Fire.

In Hosea, He is Forever Faithful.

In Joel, He is the Spirit’s Power.

In Amos, He is the Arms that carry us.

In Obadiah, our Lord and Saviour.

In Jonah, He is the Great Missionary.

In Micah, the Promise of peace.

In Nahum, He is our Strength and Shield.

In Habbakuk and Zephaniah, He is pleading for revival.

In Haggai, He restores our lost heritage.

In Zechariah, He is the Fountain.

In Malachi, the Sun of Righteousness arising with healing in His wings.

In Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, He is God, Man and Messiah.

In Acts, He is the Fire from heaven.

In Romans, He is the Grace of God.

In Corinthians, the Power of Love.

In Galatians, He is Freedom from the curse of sin.

In Ephesians, He is our Glorious Treasure.

In Philippians, the Servant’s Heart.

In Colossians, He is the Godhead Trinity.

In 1 and 2 Thessalonians, He is the Coming King.

In Timothy, Titus and Philemon, He is our Mediator and Faithful Pastor.

In Hebrews, the Everlasting Covenant.

In James, He is the One who heals the sick.

In Peter, He is the Shepherd.

In John and Jude, He is the Lover coming for His Bride.

In Revelation, He is King of Kings and Lord of lords.

He is the Prince of Peace, the Son of Man.

The Lamb of God, the Great I Am.

The Alpha and Omega, our God and Saviour.

Jesus Christ the Lord.

And when time is no more. . .He still is!

* * * *

How would you describe Him?

Think on this...

Do you realize that:

Everyone has a right to their opinion about you (& me of course) but
the only one that matters is your opinion about yourself.

That opinion can make such a big difference in your aspirations and accomplishments in life once it aligns with God's opinion of you. So who's opinion are you living by? YOU decide...

A verse for you to think about: "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he" (Prov 23:7a - KJV)

Open My Eyes

A (long) while ago I contributed a piece on eye-guidance (remember?)… well that had to do with God’s eyes. This piece is about our own eyes. I found it on an Allworship.com email [italic red letters are my additions].

At some point, we all seem to question our purpose in life. We wonder what we are supposed to do to make the world better. These thoughts can fill us with doubt and sometimes get us down.

But there's good news. God has a purpose for you [so says Jer 29:11].

When He created you, He fashioned you [Psm 139:16] in such a way that you could accomplish things that build His kingdom [indeed God has given each of us different special abilities/gift/talents (Rom 12:6) all for the purpose of the kingdom].

But that's not all.