Terri's Wellspring

Live Full Lives

16 06 2014

My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.
Glory to God in the church!
Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus!
Glory down all the generations!
Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes!

Ephesians 3:14-21 MSG

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Tags: Ephesians 3:14-21, Live Full Lives
Categories : GUIDANCE, Uncategorized

My Rock

13 06 2014

I love you, LORD; you are my strength.
The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my savior;
my God is my rock, in whom I find protection.
He is my shield, the power that saves me,
and my place of safety.
I called on the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
and he saved me from my enemies. Psalm 18:1-3 NLT

The Lord is my Rock and my Fortress. We need a firm foundation for our lives and for our living. In Him, we live in safety. He is our fortress. The world offers a shifting landscape but the Lord provides firm footing and a safe place. No matter what we are facing, we can depend on Him. He is God. He is our strong tower, a place of refuge and a place of protection. We give honor and praise to our Heavenly Father for these blessings that surround us. We thank Him for guided steps and guided thinking. We thank Him for an inclined heart to His will and His ways. In His will, we are safe and protected. The Lord is my Rock and my Fortress.

I wait quietly before God,
for my victory comes from him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress where I will never be shaken.
Psalm 62:1-2 NLT

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Tags: My Rock, Psalm 18:1-3, Psalm 62:1-2
Categories : REFUGE, Uncategorized

First

12 06 2014

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. Matthew 6:33 NLT

Putting our Heavenly Father first is the key to a blessed life. Making God our first priority in our daily living – His Word, His teachings and His ways – is the compass we need each day. His way is higher ground that will keep us from things that don’t reflect His righteousness or His plan or purpose for our lives. Serving God and His Kingdom is our first priority. Pursuing Him and His will first, organizes our decisions to align with the wonderful journey He has planned for us. Putting Him first is a pathway for receiving everything that we need. We need His peace, His direction and His righteousness to abide in our hearts as we put Him first.

“So don’t worry at all about having enough food and clothing. Why be like the heathen? For they take pride in all these things and are deeply concerned about them. But your heavenly Father already knows perfectly well that you need them, and he will give them to you if you give him first place in your life and live as he wants you to. Matthew 6:32-33 TLB

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Tags: first, Matthew 6:33
Categories : Uncategorized

One Long Obedient Response

11 06 2014

God, teach me lessons for living so I can stay the course.

Give me insight so I can do what you tell me—

my whole life one long, obedient response.

Guide me down the road of your commandments;

I love traveling this freeway!

Give me a bent for your words of wisdom,

and not for piling up loot. Divert my eyes from toys and trinkets,

invigorate me on the pilgrim way.

Affirm your promises to me— promises made to all who fear you.

Deflect the harsh words of my critics—

but what you say is always so good.

See how hungry I am for your counsel;

preserve my life through your righteous ways!

Psalm 119:33-40 MSG

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Tags: obedient response, One long, Psalms 119:33-40
Categories : GUIDANCE, Uncategorized

Mighty Works

9 06 2014

And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? Mark 6:2
The Lord is able to do exceedingly and abundantly above all that we can ask or think. His ways are above our ways. His thoughts are above our thoughts. God is Holy and God is powerful. We may be seeking the Lord for healing, deliverance, provision or a closer walk with Him. I am thankful that we can put our full trust in Him. We can release our health, the diagnosis, the hurt, the disappointment, the debt, the toxic relationship, the addiction or any other aspect of our lives that does not line up with His word. We can let it go. We can release it and leave it at Jesus’s feet. The Lord can transform our situations in ways that we can’t even imagine. The release requires faith. It requires trust and belief that He is able to bring His glory into our lives. The release requires a yielding to His leading and a turn from our thinking and our ways. In His hands, He saves, He heals and He delivers. Mighty are the works of His hands.
May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:19-20

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Tags: Ephesisans 3:19-20, Mark 6:2, Mighty Works
Categories : GUIDANCE, Healing & Deliverance, Uncategorized

His Creation

3 06 2014

From you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
Psalms 139:13-14 NIV

It is awesome to think about how the Lord created us. We are the individually designed results of God’s hands. All the different features that make us who we are were created by our Heavenly Father. As a mother, I have experienced first-hand the miracle of pregnancy and birth. What a journey each of us has taken to be knitted in our mother’s womb and to arrive in this world as an individual masterpiece.
In this passage, David describes God’s work as wonderful. On our first reflection, many of us would describe ourselves as something less than wonderful. A laundry list of our faults and imperfections may race through our minds. We may want to dwell on features that are not aligned to society’s standards. But I am thankful for this passage that is a reminder of our God Who created the heavens and the earth and Who created you and me. We can give God praise for His amazing handiwork for we are fearfully and wonderfully made.

Bring all who claim me as their God,
for I have made them for my glory.
It was I who created them.
Isaiah 43:7 NLT

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Tags: His Creation, Isaiah 43:7, Psalms 139:13-14
Categories : ENCOURAGEMENT, Uncategorized

Blessings

2 06 2014

I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord. Psalm 116:17

Blessings are all around us. We have so many reasons to express our gratitude to our Heavenly Father. We can thank Him for all that He does to meet our essential needs of life, health and strength, food and shelter. We can thank Him for the blessing of friends and family who bring so much love and friendship into our lives. We can thank Him for the tremendous blessings that extend beyond our needs and provide for the desires of our hearts. He blesses us with satisfying work of our hands and visions for higher heights in service to Him. We thank Him for the simple pleasures of the sunrise that start our days and the rain that feeds the earth. We are thankful that He meets us at our point of need, a revived spirit, a healed body a strengthened inner man focused on Him. We give thanks for all these blessings. As we consider each one, we can feel His love and concern for us. We can face a new day with praises on our lips and gratitude in our heart for all His many blessings to us. He is worthy of all honor and all praise.
My mouth is filled with GOD’s praise. Let everything living bless him, bless his holy name from now to eternity! Psalm 145:21

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Tags: Blessings, Psalm 145:21, Psalms 116:17
Categories : GRATITUDE, Uncategorized

Sister Maya

29 05 2014

On my journey now, Mount Zion
Well I wouldn’t take nothing, Mount Zion
For my journey now, Mount Zion

Some people touch your life without ever sharing a physical embrace. That is how one person described the impact of Maya Angelou’s presence in our world. She was an example of strength, gentleness and sage wisdom wrapped in the beauty of her words and her smile. Her courage to love all of God’s children helped me to nurture my own love for all people. Her skilled words on paper as a poet and a writer about her life and living increased my faith and strengthened my resolve to keep pressing toward the mark. Her gentle voice was a reminder of the power of civility and kindness in a sometimes difficult world. She demonstrated that the power of words spoken or written could share strength, promote courage and elevate people. We will miss her presence but honor her memory with staying on our journey of faith and loving all of God’s people along the way.

Dr. Maya Angelou 1928 – 2014

On my journey now, Mount Zion
Well I wouldn’t take nothing, Mount Zion
For my journey now, Mount Zion

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Tags: Sister Maya
Categories : GUIDANCE, Uncategorized

Laser Focus

28 05 2014

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12:1-2

I admire people who have the ability to focus on a goal and work toward it without getting weighed down with the challenges of living. They seem to be able to fix their eyes on their goal down the road and work diligently toward that goal no matter what comes their way. I am working on having that kind of laser focus in my life.

Our passage today is about fixing our eyes on Jesus. We have so many followers that have gone before us, leaving a trail that is encouragement to throw off every hindrance in our lives. We should avoid every sin, every distraction and each thing that will keep us from running swiftly toward our goal. Our Father did not just provide grace, mercy and salvation for us alone. He has given each one of us purpose and work to do to build His Kingdom. Now, like never before we should commit our focus and our hands to getting it done.

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

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Tags: Hebrews 12:1-2, Laser Focus, Philppians 3:14
Categories : GUIDANCE, Uncategorized

His Vision and Our Purpose

27 05 2014

For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for well-being and not for trouble, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 NLV

Our Heavenly Father created us with vision and purpose. We are not here to lead our lives according to the values of this world but we have an eternal purpose for His kingdom. Each of us is uniquely built for what God has our hands to do. It is amazing to think of the specific attention God places on who we are, our abilities and our experience to allow us to journey in His purpose for our lives. So many are searching for purpose and meaning. The purpose of anything comes from the One who created it. We may try to change that purpose but seeking God’s intent allows us to seek His vision and will that can transform the mundane into amazing. Aligning our vision and journey with His will gives us the ultimate peace, joy and wellness we desire. Our passage for today is a reminder that His plans for us are for good and not for trouble. As we make goals and commitments for the year, ask the creator first for His will and direction. His response and our compliance to His direction will allow us to make progress toward fulfilling His vision and our purpose.

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Tags: His Vision and Our Purpose, Jeremiah 29:11
Categories : Uncategorized