Tag: abundant life

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How do your return God’s Love and Favor?

I wrote about the fact that God wants to be your Valentine in my last blog post. https://thankfulinallthings.com/god-wants-to-be-your-valentine-will-you-accept-his-gift/ He has offered us an incredible gift that we can only enjoy if we accept it. A week later, we went from the romance of Valentine’s Day to the somber reflection that came last week on Ash Wednesday. I had never put the two together until now. Interestingly enough, next year, they will fall on the same day. https://thedialog.org/featured/rare-meeting-valentines-day-and-ash-wednesday/ I was struck how close Valentine’s Day communicating God loves us and wants to be in a relationship with us. Ash Wednesday take us into the Season of Lent which gives us the opportunity to think about how we return that love. So many people look at Lent as a period of time where they give up something that will help them in some way. What if we took the 6 weeks to move into a deeper relationship with The One who created us? As an example, maybe we give up alcohol, chocolate, snacking after dinner, etc. Good for us but do, when we miss it, do we let it remind us how God misses us when we don’t show up and spend time with Him? Joel 2:12 reminds us the purpose of fasting. ““Even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” You see, as my friend Tamra Andres reminded me, “just because something is good (giving up x…….) doesn’t mean it is from God. Only when it’s from God can it always be good.” (author unknown) So what are you going to do differently during Lent to show God you are grateful that you are His child?

I think this Season of Lent should be a time where we return the love that God has bestowed upon us. Nothing will bring the Lord more joy than if you make a decision to spend more time with Him as you prepared to celebrate His Son’s death and resurrection. Think about it. You can tell someone you are grateful for their love and that they are special to you but if you can’t find to spend time with them, will they think you mean it? Like the story of the Prodigal Son, the Father is waiting and when you choose to come be with Him, He will run out to meet and embrace you. “When the father saw the son, he did the unthinkable—he received the son back with ecstatic joy and celebration, and he ran to meet his son while he was still at a distance” (Luke 17:17-20).

Another way of returning God’s favor is by leaving behind what you think might be how you want to spend your time and resolve that over these next several weeks you will be intentional about serving others. By spending more time with God and committing to loving/serving others, we will give Him the honor and glory which He so richly deserves and for what he asks of us. Mark 12; 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[There is no commandment greater than these.” Our obedience to Him is our greatest gift to the One who wants to be our Valentine. May Lent be a season where you run to Him who wants nothing more than for you to be in His embrace.

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Stop Listening to others and Talk to yourself

Do you let others tell you who you are or who you can or can’t be? How can you make sure you live the life God created for you?

There are encouragers in this world but there are also those who want nothing more than to discourage us. They want to “rain on your parade” by saying what you are trying to do won’t work or can’t be done. In many cases, it is because they don’t want you to get to a better place than them. Isn’t it so easy these days to look around and wish you were someone else. Social Media allows you to see people living what look to be wonderful lives and having the kind of success for which you are striving. The discouragers or the people whose lives look so easy can make us feel second rate causing us to think, “I could never be that kind of person”

Listening to or watching others can cause us to go down a mental rabbit hole which causes us to say things like, “I can’t, I will never, There is no way, or I wish.” That is why God says to Joshua, “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”

The lesson here is we are to speak the right things into our minds and our hearts instead of letting others tell us what kinds of lives we can live. A coach shared this thought process with me years ago. “Do not let others plant bad seeds by saying it can’t be done or that we aren’t good enough. Instead, allow only good seeds to be planted and then pick the right people who will encourage, nourish, and fertilize those positive thoughts. Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible” That faith; those good seeds planted in your heart will allow you to slowly but surely cross the T off I Can’t; turning your mindset to I CAN! Why, because you BELIEVE.

So what will you speak into your life today? How will you keep from letting the negative thoughts ( the bad seeds) from strangling the wonderful things you want to accomplish? Meditate on this, the Word of God. “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31,32 Free for what? To live the incredible life God has for you. One that produces abundance beyond anything you can imagine. John 10:10 Then go out and show others that goodness and mercy is what the Lord intends for all of us.

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Will you choose to retreat or strive forward with a desire to impact others?

Last week I wrote about how we can live with Hope knowing from our past that God will be with us. Habakkuk tells us that, “ The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills.” – HABAKKUK 3: 17-19. Notice the tense here is in the future. “He will make” not “He might” or “He probably” or even “He did” meaning it is only in the past. The picture above is not only beautiful but denotes a quandary. When I come into the presence of God, Will I choose to turn left or right, or will I continue to move forward even if I don’t know what the new day will bring? My friend Pamela Bunn gave me permission to repost her blog From this AM because she makes the point In such an eloquent manner.

Never the Same

“When the people of the land come before the Lord at the appointed feasts, he who enters by the north gate to worship shall go out by the south gate, and he who enters by the south gate shall go out by the north gate: no one shall return by way of the gate by which he entered, but each shall go out straight ahead.When they enter, the prince shall enter with them, and when they go out, he shall go out.” Ezekiel 46:9-10

Moses’ face altered in appearance with its heavenly glow. David was renewed with strength for battle with sin and soldier. Nehemiah gained clear direction for what to do next. Daniel and John had visions of their majestic God and His kingdom plans. Once before their Lord, these men of God never returned or saw the same way, but went ahead with Him in new understanding, passion, and power. (Exodus 34:29,34-35; Nehemiah 1:4-11; Psalm 32:3-5; Daniel 2:19-23; Revelation 1:10-11; 4:1-11)

Every time we come before the Lord, we have opportunity to retreat unaltered the same way we entered, or to go out different. Spending meaningful time with the Prince of Peace, the King of kings, the Ruler of the universe, changes us, and this is our holy God’s intention. 

When we go before our Lord in devotion, what is our desire and expectation? If our hearts are not malleable, and our ears deaf to all but our own voice, we will miss the opportunity for God to have His way. Are we checking the “Quiet Time” box off our list, or are we seeking genuine worship and communion? Do we bring a list of requests we’ve tallied, or ask Him to search our hearts and speak to us with conviction and instruction? Do we allot a hurried amount of time, or converse, and wait, until He is finished with us? (Genesis 17:22; 18:33)

Do we approach the feast He has prepared and sup in such a way that when we enter weary, we leave refreshed? When we enter bitter and angry, do we leave cleansed and emboldened to forgive? If we enter confused over relationships, decisions, finances, future plans, do we leave trusting the Spirit to guide one step at a time?

What has God revealed about Himself and His manner of work in individuals, the church, and the world, in recent time together? How has He reshaped our thinking, or assuaged our fears? What niggling sins has He removed, what new resolve has He prodded, what changed attitudes and transformed affections has He created?

When we want much from Him, He will never disappoint. Our prayers may not be answered how and when we desire, but Almighty God will not fail to bring about His intentions for us and for His kingdom. (Isaiah 46:9-10)

Isn’t this so good? I can promise you God through adversity has revealed a great deal to me. 1st through my health challenges due to Guillain Barre Syndrome and 2nd with having to deal with staying healthy and away from any chance of coming down with Covid19. The closer you become to God the better person you will become, your life will have more purpose and and have a positive impact on those around you. I use the future tense “will have” because as Much Afraid learned in the book Hinds Feet, when you step out in faith, God promises an abundant life (John 10:10) and desires that it be full of Joy. (John 15:11)

I encourage you to subscribe to https://astherainandsnow.com/author/astherainandsnow/ as well as this blog www.thankfulinallthings.com if you haven’t already. You can contact me via email at [email protected]

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How do I remain Thankful in all Things?

I wrote a while back about having read Jon Gordon’s book, The Garden. It was a short book that I read on Sunday afternoon sitting by the water at Smith Mountain Lake. As mentioned in this podcast, https://www.thebrianbuffinishow.com/the-garden-with-jon-gordon-225/ Jon wrote this parable like story to help folks deal with the fear and anxiety in their lives. The uncertainty in our world today makes the book even more relevant today.

It has been a month since I read The Garden. Little did I know God would use it to once again. Teaching me to remain thankful in all things and remain positive even when what is going on in the world makes me feel otherwise. I was on a Zoom call the other day with some of my oldest and dearest friends. (Side note- 6 months ago, who had even heard of Zoom? ?) The conversation turned to having an attitude of gratitude and whether it can make a difference. Studies like this one show people that stay positive and optimistic. https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/giving-thanks-can-make-you-happier Studies like this one prove what God has said all along. He wants us to have an abundant life (John 10:10). Psalm 91:2 teaches that even in the midst of trying and difficult times we can say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” In fact, later in the book of John. Jesus says, “He wants His joy to be in each of us so that your joy may be complete.”

I am sure many of you are experiencing your own personal trials and challenges these days. If you have been following along you know my journey through adversity, like what you are facing, has not been easy. We all have to find our own way through it. Here are just a few thoughts on what has helped me.
1) I know that God is with me. As the song, Do it again says, “He has never failed me yet” https://youtu.be/0B_lnQIITxU

2) As Jon Gordon writes in The Garden, I have to fight the distractions of my every day life so that I stay resolved in remaining positive versus succumbing to discouragement.
3) Find ways to be outward focused by serving others. This allows you to break out of just thinking about you and how you wish your circumstances were better.
4) Strive to make every moment matter. Frank Laibach writes, “ Practicing the presence of God is the secret. Paul said “pray without ceasing. In everything make your wants known to God.” As you are led by the Spirit of God you realize you are a child of God“

It is not easy to do. I have recently set up my phone to remind me every 3 hours to “Be Still and know that He is God”. I forget. I get distracted even when I stop to recite The Lord’s Prayer and/or Psalm 23. What I can say is when I do stop and remind myself, my life gains the right perspective and allows me to remain “Thankful in all things”.

My Guillain Barre Syndrome Story can be found at www.caringbridge.org/visit/michaelguthrie You can contact me via email at [email protected]

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Loving your neighbor is more important than ever

‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

Loving your neighbor while distancing

Social distancing is wreaking havoc on us individually and in how we go about loving our neighbors. We were made to be in relationship so to back up, like a turtle pulls his head into his shell, is so contrary to how God wants us to live. Jesus said in John 10:10 that “he came to give us an abundant life” and later in John 15 encouraged us in this way, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” I don’t know about you who are reading this post, but I can say feeling an “abundance and a joy that is full” is not easy to do these days. I wake up many days thinking, “another day, just like yesterday, and the day before. It is magnified as I see so many people enjoying family vacations and, because of my compromised immune system, we cannot. There is a daily choice to be made. Do I slip down into discouragement or choose to make the day a positive one by finding creative ways to love my neighbors? I have found that having a mindset toward acts of service keeps me from allowing my circumstances to defeat me.

The commandment to Love my neighbor literally means to go out and care for those nearby. This moves the exhortation not just to those who live nearby who may look like us or have the same type of lifestyle, but who come nearby as we move throughout our the day, physically or remotely. As I have shared before, even wearing a mask can be a way that we love someone who comes into our proximity. Bishop Claude Alexander in his sermon, https://livingontheedge.org/coffeebreak/july-2020/ says like the Good Samaritan, we need to be willing to not go around an uncomfortable situation. Instead, be called forward so that we go through and into that place. That way we can get close enough to see, feel, and understand what is happening, why it occurred. Bishop Alexander shares that “Seeing, feeling, and understanding will make us realize we must do something about the situation”

When we are moved to make a difference, what does it look like to love our neighbor? The practical application will look differently for each one of us and that is OK. One thing is for sure though. It starts with us getting out of our own comfort zone and entering into a place where we have never been before or haven’t been motivated to make the time. The first step for the Good Samaritan was to see what had happened. He then felt the person’s pain which made him understand he needed to do something. That something cost him physically, (he walked while the injured one rode on the donkey), financially (he paid for a room and for his care, and his precious time ( he cared for the man and then came back later to see if he was OK. What starts with being open to see and responding to others who have a need or just need encouragement. Here are links to three different ministries that started with people like you and me who got shaken into action. https://charlottesvilleabundantlife.org/ https://movementfoundation.org/ https://peaceprep.com/ I share these to show what amazing things can happen when people make the choice to love their neighbors.

Luke 10;36.37 answers the question, What does it mean to love your neighbor? When the expert in the law answered that the one who had mercy on the person who was robbed, Jesus simply answers, “go and do likewise“. As I thought about this blog post this week, this jumped in to my head. What if our love for each other was as contagious as Covid19? I am guessing your life will be filled with the abundance God promised and you will find yourself full of joy. Let’s go out this week and find out. 🙂