Terri's Wellspring

This day belongs to the Lord!  Let’s celebrate and be glad today. Psalm 118:24

Being fully present in the blessedness of now requires focus. This time and this moment will never come again.  Experiencing it with all of your senses is an opportunity.  It is a chance not to let it pass by without acknowledging God’s grace that has brought us to this time and place.  So many guided steps and unearned favor allow me to breathe in and out and to be conscious of His blessings.  The Lord is good to each of us.  His mercy, His love and His grace make this moment possible.  My heart is thankful.  My mind is clear that embracing now is my charge for today.  This is the day.  This is God’s day for me.  I am glad to experience it fully with a grateful heart and attitude of praise for this time and this place.

Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit. III John 2 NLT

As we seek to be strong in spirit, we want to want to walk in health as well. Our lives contain daily choices that can make a difference in our health – exercise, nutrition and even to rest. Making the investment in ourselves of time to walk, to eat fruits and vegetables and to relax seem like a luxury but we often need to change our thinking about taking care of the gift of the body that God has given us. Each decision is an opportunity to choose life and healthy living.  Taking care of ourselves makes us stronger and more able to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives.

My dear friend, I pray that everything may go well with you and that you may be in good health—as I know you are well in spirit.  III John 2  GNT

Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth! Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are His. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation.  Psalm 100

Our God, Our Father and Creator is worthy of our Praise. Just think of His goodness to bless us with the amazing creation of our bodies and to give us even a portion of life, health and strength.  We give praise with a shout of joy for each blessing.

As we follow Jesus, His word, His teachings, His Holy Spirit, He promises to guide us, to protect us and to be our Shepherd, as we belong to Him. We are His people and the Sheep of His pasture. What a place of safety, a place of provision and a place that we can count on no matter what is going on around us. We can be thankful to be a member of the flock. We are so thankful for this blessing and that His love and care for us endures forever.   His unfailing love is available to us and to our children and their children for generations to come. And we are thankful.

Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you.  II Corinthians 5:16-20 MSG

Our passage today is a reminder of the fresh start that we experience when we join the family of God.  We are created with newness in our minds and our spirits.  We receive a fresh outlook that allows us begin a new life in Him.  Many of us can use a fresh start – a renewed spirit and a different approach to the mundane and the destructive that society has to offer.  A new start in Him changes us – our hearts, our minds and even our relationships with others. You may be asking is there more available in this life.  And there is.  If you have not accepted Jesus into your life, salvation is the first step toward newness.  If your journey started many years ago, come closer to Him, there is more newness to enjoy.  I am thankful that our walk with the Lord creates newness and then renewal on our journey with the Lord.  Come to closer to Jesus for a fresh start.

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

God’s love for us is powerful.  Because He loved the world He gave us the gift of His son, Jesus Christ.  This perfect gift is available to us and the Billions of people who inhabit the earth.  He loves each of us regardless of the color of our skin, where we live or what language we speak.  He loves the people of this world.  We honor this gift by loving God and His Word.  We honor God by loving one another.  Each life, each soul has value.   This value is not based on wealth or lack of it. It is not based on achievements or sitting in places of position or power.   He loves us and we are commanded to love one another.  Demonstrating love where the darkness of poverty, hunger, violence, slavery and oppression exist brings light to the world.  Even in this age of human advancement, hatred and disregard for life are pervasive in the land.  We are called to love each individual as a member of the human family;   love, not hate; love, not fear.

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

He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! Psalm 103:5

 A renewed vision and strength for your life is essential for survival today.  Our lives are sprinkled with challenges that could easily weigh us down.   And some situations feel like that they could easily take us out, if it were not for the Savior.  But our God is merciful.  Our Father desires to fill our lives with good things.   I am praying for God’s renewing spirit to abide with each of His children and provide the love, peace, joy, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness and self-control needed for today and the days to come.   We want to soar with the strength and vision of an Eagle.

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.  Romans 8:28 NLT

Absolute terms in the promises of God’s Word amaze me.  The “Everything” or in another translation “All things” in this passage is inclusive of every detail of our lives.  He is working the good, the bad, the ugly and the lovely of our lives into usable experiences for our good.  In our thinking, we are not sure how this setback or that bad decision can benefit, who we are in Christ.  But our God is faithful, even when we have failed to heed His word or circumstances beyond our control yield a negative experience. He can take our situations and meld them into an opportunity for growth, maturity and to come higher in our thinking and our ways.  It may be a circumstance that turns our attention more fully to His will and to our purpose.  The result may strengthen our faith and trust in the Lord.  I am so thankful that He can take the “everything” of our lives and weave them into something good.

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.  Romans 8:26-28 MSG

Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.  Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.  Ephesians 4:2-3 NLT

Staying connected in any relationship takes effort.  We seek love, support and a deeper level of understanding in the relationships we value most.   We are created as physical, emotional and spiritual beings that are sustained through our connections with God and others.  My relationships through family and friends have blessed my journey in so many ways.  They have brought joy and peace and softened and supported steps even during the most difficult passages in my life.  I am so thankful for these gifts of fellow travelers along life’s path.  So even when miles or emotional distance arise within your circle of family and friends, take the time to reach out and reconnect.  The distance may be a factor of the busy lives that we lead or it may be a time of discouragement for someone you love.  I am thankful for the Holy Spirit that leads us to make a call, send a card or to say a prayer for someone who is not connected.  We can be careful to heed those spiritual nudges to reach out with love and concern.  We can encourage one another to stay on the journey and stay connected.

But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.  They will soar high on wings like eagles.  They will run and not grow weary.  They will walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

A walk by faith may have some legs on the journey where we feel tired.  We may feel bodily pains that are contrary to healing or fatigue in our minds that zaps our zeal for the day ahead.  This passage from Isaiah reminds us to keep our trust in the Lord.  Not in what you see today and not even in what you feel but keep your trust in Him.  He is the source of our strength and a very present help when we need Him.  I thank God for a soaring spirit that comes when we rest in Him.  He will provide new strength, new energy when we put our trust in Him.  We can run and walk and continue on the journey strong.

Why would you ever complain, O Jacob,
    or, whine, Israel, saying,
“God has lost track of me.
    He doesn’t care what happens to me”?
Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening?
God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.
 He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine.
He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.
    And he knows everything, inside and out.
He energizes those who get tired,
    gives fresh strength to dropouts.
For even young people tire and drop out,
    young folk in their prime stumble and fall.
But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.
    They spread their wings and soar like eagles,
They run and don’t get tired,
    they walk and don’t lag behind.

Isaiah 40:27-31MSG