JESUS JOY

Today I pray for you to have joy....JESUS Joy!  JESUS is the one that brought joy to the world.  In fact....

                                                                        JESUS is Joy.

Without the birth of JESUS we wouldn't know real joy.  Why?  Because real joy is on the inside of us....in our hearts and souls.  I call it JESUS Joy!  When we accepted JESUS as our SAVIOR, HIS Joy was placed inside of us.  It's a joy that those who don't know HIM don't have.  It's a joy that only believers have inside their hearts.  JESUS Joy!  We may go through many things in our lives that are hard but we can still have a joy inside of us that only other believers in JESUS have.  A deep abiding joy....

                                                                         JESUS Joy

I am thankful today that JESUS came to earth and was born to be our SAVIOR.  If at times you feel you have nothing to be thankful for remember this verse....

Luke 2:11

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a SAVIOR, 

          which is CHRIST the LORD.

Prayer Request For Lisa

I wanted to put out a prayer request for Lisa (Never Forsaken).  She blogs at My Hearts Home. The link is http://theheartandhome.blogspot.com/.  Lisa just found out she has breast cancer and will have a double mastectomy on December 26. This is a little of what she wrote to me on 12/15 after her biopsy appointment.

I am almost strangely calm and peaceful...though we know that is the Lord Jesus and His amazing grace and peace.

Throughout the whole thing I kept reciting:

The joy of the Lord is my strength...and In His presence is fullness of joy!

Even the nurse who held my hand kept saying how warm her hand felt...and that she never had warm hands like that.

Today Lisa received some good news. Here is the comment she left on her blog.

A thousand thank you's are not enough to express my heartful of gratitude to my dear friends who are praying, and sharing scripture with me!
Brenda, those scriptures are only confirmation of what the Lord has been telling me since day one of this!

I have to Praise Jesus today....My x-ray and blood work came back...everything is normal including liver function and clear chest...This is big since this cancer usually goes after the liver...and into the chest wall!
I was so worried about that because I saw my chest x-ray and thought I saw spots on it (when I had it done)...and so I called the doctor today and they checked everything for me. This has eased my mind, and I am ready to go forward again!
Jesus still has me safe in His embrace...sometimes He carries me.
Blessings & Love!
I will keep you updated..here in the comments section.
I promise I won't make this blog all about cancer...It is all about Jesus and me!

Please remember Lisa's husband Jeff, daughters and rest of the family as they walk through this together. 

A Morning Prayer

This morning Lord we surrender all to You
Draw us close to You I pray and never....ever....let us go!
You are our all in all
Jesus....Lord Jesus....
Fill us up with You this morning and throughout the day
Keep us coming back to You when we need strength
Help us to call out Your name when things get tough....
Jesus we cry out to You for Your strength....Your peace....Your protection
Send Your healing oil down to cover all of our sicknesses
Remind us to praise You Lord no matter what may come our way today
Help us to keep You in the forefront of our thoughts
Shine Your light through us so that others may see just how good You really are
We love You Lord Jesus and we thank You for all You have done
Especially for saving us and giving us Your promise of life with You
Thank You....Thank You....Thank You....for everything!
I come before You with all of this in Your name Jesus
Amen

Blessed Assurance

Psalm 100

Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
Know that the Lord, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
For the Lord is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.

Blessed Assurance ~

On this day of Thanksgiving we have much to be thankful for.  One is the blessed assurance that we have because Jesus is our Savior.  I heard that old hymn this morning and I was truly blessed!  It's not the singers....it's not the story behind the song....it's not the music....and no....it's not really even the words of the song.  It's that when you worship the Lord He moves within you and touches that place that is deep within each of us....our very souls!  It's when we allow ourselves to fall into His presence and worship....fall into His presence and tell Him we love Him....fall into His presence and totally lose ourselves in Him....that's when Jesus takes over....reaches out and takes us in His arms....pours His spirit into us....and heals the broken places within that have left us scared and bruised.  Sometimes we just need to abandon every thought and feeling that we hold inside....let go and let God take control....and be with Him.  Jesus will heal you and give you His blessed assurance. 

Today as you are with your family and friends remember that they may not all know Him as you do.  Or maybe they do but deep within they have hurts and scars that still need His healing touch.  Be aware and be open to those around you.  Say a silent prayer for each one that walks through your door that they may feel His love today....and let Him touch them.

Here are the words of that old song....

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
Oh what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood!

chorus:
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior, all the day long!

Perfect submission, perfect delight,
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight,
Angels descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,
I in my Savior in happy and blest,
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

Keep watching and waiting today and be ready. Jesus is coming soon!

until we see Jesus....face to face

Prayer

Father God here we are again asking one more time for Your strength....comfort....and peace.
There are many that need healing for many different things.  Some have hurt or tired souls that need to feel your touch....others have broken spirits for You to mend....some have lost family or friends and need to feel your comfort surround them....and still others need a touch of healing in their bodies.  Father God if You could just let all of Your children know tonight how much You love them and that You are holding them right now....and You are in control of whatever circumstance they find themselves in.  Let them all feel the warmth of Your love and and know that You are holding them in Your arms as they drift off to sleep.  Begin the healing that is needed in all that cry out to You tonight. 

And Father, for all of those that we love that aren't living for You right now....speak to their hearts.  Let them know that You are the One they need to turn to.  That You are the One that can make their life worth living.  Let Your Spirit speak into their thoughts as they sleep so they wake up thinking about You.

Thank You for loving us and being with us. Thank You for giving us restful sleep tonight. We love You and ask all of this in Jesus name....Amen

John 14:27  “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

Philippians 4:7  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Today I continue to find myself in a place that is hard for me and yet....

No matter how hard it is I know....God is here....in this place....with me.  I have been reminded this morning that regardless of where I am today....because of the Lord....I can have peace.  Sometimes we find ourselves in places that are just plain hard!  But look at the place Jesus found Himself in....

Tied to a post and beaten.  Dragged through the streets being whipped.  Carrying our very lives....the cross....on His back.  And then....being nailed on that cross....suffering more than we will ever know....until He breathed His last breath.  

Jesus....He can speak peace and calm the raging storms causing everything to be still and quiet.  If He can do that I know He can calm the storms within us when life just doesn't seem to calm down on its own.  Jesus is the Peace Speaker, and yes....I know Him by name! 

I am reminded again this morning that all you need to do is just call out to Him.  Raise your hands in worship and ask Him to fill you with His peace.  Ask Him to come and help you....then surrender your every thought....your entire being....to Him.  He will come and help you.  He will come and fill you with all that you need for the time you find yourself in...He will impart His peace to you.

If you find yourself in need of His peace today....call out to Him.  He is the Peace Speaker and He knows you by name too.

Peace
Peace
Wonderful peace
Coming down from the Father above
Sweep over my spirit forever I pray
In fathomless billows of Love

Let Him cover you in His peace as you go through your day today.

until we see Jesus....face to face

Transfusion Of Love

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

Trust.  Do we truly trust the Lord in/with everything or is it just something we tell others that we are doing?  Does the Lord let us have wilderness experiences to teach us to trust Him more?  That may be one of the reasons or it may be a by product of what our wilderness is.  Either way....learning to trust in the Lord through....and for....all things is good! 

Psalm 9:10
Those who know Your name trust in You,
for You, O Lord, do not abandon those who search for You.

There may be another reason we go through wilderness experiences in our life....to learn to worship and be thankful!


1 Thessalonians 5:18
In everything give thanks,
For this is the will of God.

This week the Lord has brought this verse to my remembrance more than once.  He has also been talking to me about worship.  You can worship anywhere....not just at church during "worship time"!  In fact the best times of worship can be when you are all alone....with just you and the LORD!  He wants us to worship Him....love Him....be with Him! 

I was reading in Exodus this week about the children of Israel.  Think about your life and your wilderness experiences for a minute....then think about theirs.  Can you relate to some of the things they went through?  Sometimes our lives seem to be stuck, going through one hard time after another.  We can call them wilderness experiences. And if we are truthful it can feel like we are out there walking in circles in a desert....round and round a mountain....getting no relief....with no foreseeable way out of our current situation.  A true wilderness experience.  Why does God let you be in these situations?  He can stop them anytime. God is God and He can change everything whenever He wants too.  He doesn't have to let you stay where you are.  He can change your reality with a word....a wave of His hand....just a breath!  So why does He let us go on and on in the wilderness?!  Maybe....

He wants us to learn to worship Him in everything.  Give.HIM.Thanks.Through.It.All!!
Worship and give thanks. He longs for us to do that. It isn't only that He wants this for Himself He also wants us to worship Him for us....it is beneficial for us! The more we worship Him and give Him praise and thanks....the more He ministers to us!  The closer we get to Him.  He becomes more and more a part of us and we become less and less dependent on ourselves and on the world.

John 3:30
He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.

God wants us to trust Him regardless of our current life situation.  And, while we are trusting He wants us to worship Him. He desires the praises of His people and we are His people.

Psalm 100:2
Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before Him singing with joy.
 
When God led the Children of Israel into the desert He was creating a people for Himself.  He wanted them to learn to trust Him and to Worship Him!  That's one of the things He was teaching them....but it seems they weren't very fast learners!  Many times we aren't either.  Just like He knew their future....He knows ours.  God knows when we are about to enter into the wilderness before we do.  He also knows that in learning to worship Him through it that the trip will be much easier for us.  He wants us to learn to love and worship Him with every part of our being.

Deuteronomy 6:5
And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.

We need to learn to fall into Him with our whole being.  Ignoring everyone around us and becoming one with Him....experiencing His complete and full love for us!  We may still be in our wilderness but the journey won't be as bad because we will feel the presence of the Lord....His love....so much greater with us.

For me I like to think that when we worship the Lord He gives us a transfusion of Love....

Ephesians 3:19
[That you may really come] to know [practically, through experience for yourselves] the love of Christ, which far surpasses mere knowledge [without experience]; that you may be filled [through all your being] unto all the fullness of God [may have the richest measure of the divine Presence, and become a body wholly filled and flooded with God Himself]!


until we see Jesus....face to face