Shout to the Lord

17 02 2015

spot of sunShout to the Lord, all the earth; break out in praise and sing for joy!

Sing your praise to the Lord with the harp,
with the harp and melodious song,
with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn.
Make a joyful symphony before the Lord, the King!

Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Let the earth and all living things join in.

Let the rivers clap their hands in glee!
Let the hills sing out their songs of joy
before the Lord,
for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice,
and the nations with fairness.

Psalm 98:4 – 9 

The words to “Shout to the Lord” have served as a sound track to many seasons in my life. It’s on my playlist for getting ready in the morning and it is often on repeat mode for this song to play over and over again throughout my day. It is a wonderful reminder of the blessings of the Lord and who He is in our lives.   We can shout to the Lord with words of praise and a heart full of gratitude for His mighty love.  He is worthy of every praise.

Shout to the Lord by Darlene Zschech

My Jesus, my Saviour
Lord there is none like You
All of my days I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love

My comfort, my shelter
Tower of refuge and strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease to worship You

Shout to the Lord all the Earth, let us sing
Power and majesty, praise to the King
Mountains bow down and the seas will roar
At the sound of Your name

I sing for joy at the work of Your hand
Forever I’ll love You, forever I’ll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have
In You

Many artists have recorded this song and my favorite is by Keith Staten.


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Guide My Feet

11 02 2015

Rome Moving ForwardTrust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.   Proverbs 3:5-6 (New Living Translation)

Guide my feet, while I run this race – cause I don’t want to run this race in vain.  On life’s journey we have to make many decisions. Each step of the way, we are compelled to ask God to direct our steps based on His will for our lives.  This scripture and the words to this old spiritual are recognition of the importance of God’s leading in our lives.  Even though we may be tempted or convinced to do what we feel is right in our hearts, if it is not aligned with God’s word or His direction, we must think again.  Yielded to His will, we are able to make Godly decisions that create the blessed life He intends for each of us.

Guide my feet, while I run this race – cause I don’t want to run this race in vain

Hold my hand, while I run this race – cause I don’t want to run this race in vain.


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A Steadfast Spirit

4 02 2015

winter clear roadCreate in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right, persevering, and steadfast spirit within me. Psalms 51:10 (Amplified)

My mind is made up to keep moving forward in Him.

My purpose is ahead of me, so I keep pressing.

My focus is on the Lord and His work for my hands.

I will keep my mind and heart encouraged.

He renews my strength.

I can keep the faith.  His plan for me is full of hope.

I know Him as my Savior.  He will never leave me.

So I continue, keep on going, stay the course, stop at nothing and go the distance.

I am steadfast in Him.

So then, Christian brothers, because of all this, be strong. Do not allow anyone to change your mind. Always do your work well for the Lord. You know that whatever you do for Him will not be wasted. I Corinthians 15:58 NLV


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My Present Help

30 01 2015

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Psalm 46:1Lifted hands

He is my refuge.  In the midst of a storm, He is a place where I can find peace and protection.  A refuge is a place of safety, when trouble seems to surround me.  In Him, I can find a place of covering for my heart and mind in every situation.  I thank you Lord for you are my refuge.

He is my strength.  His strength is perfected in my weakness.  I can look to Him for the added strength I need to face what is ahead.  He gives me the renewed will and power to face the challenges of the day.  I thank you God for your perfect strength.

He is my present help.  The Lord provides help that is complete.  His blessings provide for every need.  He supplies all of my needs.  Healing, deliverance, salvation and guidance are all available to His children.  I thank God for His present, right now help.

I am seeking and praising You for your refuge, strength and present help today and for the days ahead.

Surely God is my help;  the Lord is the one who sustains me. 

Psalm 54:4


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Determined

28 01 2015

walking feetI don’t know about you, but I’m running hard for the finish line. I’m giving it everything I’ve got. No sloppy living for me! I’m staying alert and in top condition. I’m not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.  I Corinthians 9:26-27 MSG

Determination is a mental state.  It is place of confidence and strength to keep moving toward our purpose.  It is a place of pressing and exerting effort to achieve our goal.  At times we may feel like we are not making any headway and so many things can get us off track.  But I am thankful to God that He provides new mornings, new opportunities to renew our strength and to refocus.  Our goal is to achieve God’s purpose for our lives.  Our purpose comes from our Creator.  When I align my life with His purpose, He gives me the vision and the strength to move forward.  Today is a good day to move with determination toward our goal. 

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.  Philippians 4:13

 


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Believe Jesus

8 01 2015

March 2013 Picture IPhone 323Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  Matthew 16:15-16

We can put our full Faith in God.  He is the creator of the Universe and took the time to create each one of us.  Our existence is a testimony of His ability to create complex organisms and systems that result in our bodies.  His gift of His Son Jesus Christ is the ultimate gift of love to the World.   Our lives and our living are our testimony of our response to God.  Do we recognize Him as God?  Do we accept His Word that His Son Jesus Christ is our Savior?  Do we accept and believe Jesus in our hearts today?  These are important questions for establishing, building and living in faith.  We may believe in Jesus but we are called to believe in Him, trust in Him and believe who He says He is.  We are called to believe in His Word.  We are compelled to do His will each day.  Our belief, trust and faith in Jesus Christ can be demonstrated by our words and actions every day.  We can put our full faith in Jesus Christ and accept Him in our hearts and living today.

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.  John 3:16


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His Wisdom

3 01 2015

winter clear roadIf any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  James 1:5

I need His wisdom every day.  He is able to guide my steps and to help me to make good decisions.  We can thank the Lord for His direction and His leading to keep us on the right path.  On our journey we can encounter detours, snares and traps that are designed to harm us but our God is able to keep us from falling.  What I think is imperfect and lacking but when I put my will in Jesus’ hands it is transformed into something vibrant and productive. He provides wisdom willingly and openly to those who will ask for it and receive it with and open heart.  We thank Him in advance for His goodness and His mercy toward us for guided steps and wisdom for the path ahead.


Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.  Hebrews 12:1


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New Ways for the New Year

30 12 2014

crocus snowBut that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires,  and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:20-24

A new calendar year is nearly upon us. We have just a few days before we celebrate the arrival of a new year.  For many watch night services and parties will be the activities of choice to experience the close of one year and the entrance of another.  We can give thanks for all the blessings of the past and look forward with great anticipation of the future. This is hopefully a time of reflection and planning about next steps in the various aspects of our lives; our health, our work, our relationships with family and friends and our relationship with the Savior.  I am so thankful that the Holy Spirit can provide renewal to our heart, mind and soul to prepare for what’s next.  We want to be renewed for the coming year with our old ways left behind.  Jesus can provide a changed heart and a refreshed lens for new strategies and next steps for thriving in the New Year.  I want to thrive in the New Year.  It starts with creating a God-sized and God-inspired vision for what is possible.  With Jesus’ help we can shed old habits, hampering attitudes, and hindering procrastination.  We can lay aside weights and seek what the Lord would have us to do.  In the coming days, let’s ask the Father for His renewal to permeate our hearts and for His ways to become our ways for thriving in the year to come.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, Hebrews 12:1 ESV


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60 Hours

29 12 2014

time“Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”  John 13:34-35 MSG

This year is quickly coming to an end.  It’s a good time to take a quick inventory of things that were on our “to do list” for this year.  If you are like me some things will be transferred to my 2015 list in hopes that the coming year will be the right time and place to accomplish those goals.  Other items we can proudly say were achievements for the year.  But even with 60 hours left, you may have time to consider your relationship “to do” list.  What are the things that need to get done in our hearts and minds regarding the people in our lives?  Did we intend to reach out to a loved one that we have not connected with in a while?  Did we forget to call and encourage someone who is going through a difficult time?  Did we seek to repair a relationship that was severed or damaged in the past year?  The people in our lives are so important in our walk with the Lord.  It is important to make every effort to remove unforgiveness, malice and bitterness from our hearts and our thinking.  We can use the hours that remain to reach out to those people in our lives and take those steps that will help us to have a clean heart and mind as we approach the New Year.


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Getting A Life

17 12 2014

2014-08-24 20.02.01The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. John 10:10

Jesus came that we might have abundant life. My vision of this life is full of peace, love, joy and contentment. Amazingly it does not include fear, anxiety and hate that seem so commonplace today. I have reached a time in my life where discovering meaningful ways to spend my time and energy are at the forefront of my mind. I have previously walked in ambiguity but I believe those days are behind me. I am excited about the road ahead because I believe our Father is faithful to provide the clarity and direction for moving forward. He can show us how to move into our purpose, providing the gifts and resources to bring it to pass. It’s a journey into the satisfying life He intends for each of us.


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