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Matthew 5:13-16

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I am a Christian wife and mother of 2. I am the mother of two adult children. My husband is a full time Pastor. I also work full time outside of the home. Ecclesiastes 3:1 “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” And for this season of our lives, I have to work. A couple of years ago I asked God for a job using me to serve others and that is exactly what He did. Not in the way I expected, but I am serving! This blog is a way for me to share devotions, whatever the Lord lays on my heart. It is an avenue for me fulfill something I feel the Lord leading me in, which is writing. I am currently working on a book as well!

  • Who can we trust?

    Now that I have processed the shock from the weekend. I’ve got some things that have been on my heart all week. Not only did we get the shock of an assassination attempt Saturday night, but I also got a shocking call about a death of a family member on Sunday morning.

    The whole world is in turmoil right now. There is the war between Israel and Palestine. The political issues in France and The UK. Not to mention the mess going on right here in America. I am sure that I don’t have to tell you about what a mess we are in!

    There are many stories that come out that are hard to believe. The right says things and then the left completely says the opposite. You never know what to believe these days. The news isn’t even trustworthy anymore. They all contradict each other.

    We all have our own family problems as well. A lot families have people that don’t get along. Some times the only time we see much of family any more is at funerals.

    I don’t say all of this to get you down. All I can think is “we need to back to the Word of God”. The ONLY thing we can trust as the absolute truth is God’s Word. That will never fail us. There may be things that we don’t understand in the Bible, and that is where studying God’s Word is so important. Don’t just take a verse at face value. Read the context.

    When the whole world seems to be falling apart, when it is very easy to allow fear to creep in, we must trust in God. He has everything under control. Things might not turn out the way we want it to, but He allows everything for a reason. And when we trust in Him, and serve Him, and live for Him, we don’t have to worry about the future. He has it all in His hands.

    If you feel that you are not close to God like you should be. Then you are the only one that can fix that. Seek Him, and you will find Him. He is never so far away from us that He can’t be reached. Start just by talking to Him and then go from there.

    Just remember that when things come out and as things in our world continue to get worse, we can trust in Jesus. His word is truth. And He will never leave your nor forsake you, when you put your trust in Him.

    Verses to read:

    Romans 8:28

    Psalm Chapter 46

    John 14:6

    Jeremiah 32:17

    Romans 10:9-10

    Blessings,

    Cheryl

  • Freedom!

    Since tomorrow is July 4th and is the day that we Americans celebrate freedom, I have had that subject on my heart this week. July 4th, 1776 was the birth of American Independence so we call this day Independence Day! We celebrate our freedom.

    Some of us may be free in that way, but may still be in bondage. Sin/Satan can have such a hold on our lives that we feel as if we are a slave to it. It may be just some bad habits that we can’t seem to get away from. It may be that you are living in a very sinful lifestyle and you just don’t see a way out. Sometimes when we accept Christ and become saved, after awhile we may feel that pull and slip back into sin. The thing is it’s a choice. We don’t have to fall for it.

    With Christ we are set free! When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are free from the bondage of sin! We then have a choice. We will be tempted. If Satan tempted Jesus, don’t think he won’t try and tempt you. But where there is temptation, there is always a way out. (1 Corinthians 10:13) We no longer have to be in bondage. Just as the 13 colonies were set free on July 4, 1776, we are set free from Satan’s grasp.

    There is a price to pay for sin, but Christ took our punishment and our penalty on the cross. It doesn’t mean that we are free to do whatever we feel like doing. If we truly accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are choosing to follow Him. We are choosing a better life. A lifetime of freedom in Christ.

    It is not that Christians have the freedom to sin, but that we have the freedom not to sin. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. Romans 6:14.

    Before Christ’s sacrifice we lived in bondage under the law of Moses. Jesus dying on the cross fulfilled the law of Moses and set us free. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36.

    True freedom comes when we fully surrender our lives to Christ. It’s amazing to see what He can do with our lives if we just surrender it all to Him! We can believe and trust that He has it all worked out for our good. (Romans 8:28)

    So tomorrow let’s celebrate our nation’s freedom but let’s also celebrate the freedom we have in Christ Jesus! The freedom we have to worship Him, and our freedom from the bondage of sin.

    Blessing,

    -Cheryl

  • Fallen from Grace

    Recently we have seen several well known preachers/pastors “fall from grace”. Things are coming out about some kind of secret sins that they have had either in the past or recently, causing them to step away from ministry altogether.

    This is heart breaking for a lot of people. My heart really goes out to the ones that are dealing with the backlash, their families and their followers. Imagine how hard it is to hear this about someone you have have followed, respected and held in high regard. You’ve studied their teachings and you have hung onto things they’ve said. Maybe you’ve even taught their bible studies. And now you find out that they have made some big mistakes or that they aren’t who you believed they were at all. It’s a big blow, especially for those that are not strong in their faith.

    What I want us all to realize is that we cannot and should not put our faith in man. We are all human and people will let you down at some point. Do not hold someone in such high regard that, when you realize the truth about them, it shakes your faith. Your ultimate faith must be in the Creator. Our heavenly Father will never let us down. Even though it may feel like we’ve been let down sometimes, He always has what is best for us as part of His plan!

    Pray for those that are in leadership positions in our churches and in other ministries. It is a difficult position and they are not perfect. I can’t imagine the pressure of being a leaders of a huge church or ministry. I can’t imagine the pressure of being in the public eye as a celebrity Pastor. I will not sit here and say who is and who isn’t in God’s will with these ministries. You can study for yourself and decide who to follow and who not to follow.

    We each have the responsibility of studying God’s word for ourselves and making sure that those we are following are keeping in line with the scripture. When we have studied the word, we will have discernment when hearing God’s word preached. When we see or hear something that isn’t right, we need to call them out on it (in a Christian manner). Or when we don’t understand where they are coming from in their messages, we should question them. If they are led by Holy Spirit, they will be glad to further explain. Use discernment when following someone’s teachings. The Holy Spirit will show you when you should not follow someone.

    Please, please do not allow someone to cause you to stumble in your own faith. Even personal relationships can cause this. Don’t put anyone above God, He comes first. He is always working things out for our good and ultimately according to His plan! (Romans 8:28)

    Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

    When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. John 16:13

    Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep ‘s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Matthew 7:15

  • Gardening and God

    It’s gardening season here in South Georgia! Some things are starting to slow down or stop growing and some things haven’t become ready yet. This is the time of year when all of our friends and neighbors are harvesting corn, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, beans… The list goes on. Those are some of the things that we have grown and are growing. What does gardening have to do with God?

    There are so many good lessons to be learned in the garden! God can use anything to teach us and what better way than something so natural? Something people have been doing from the very beginning of mankind. Growing our own food!

    Preparing the soil. It’s important before you ever plant a seed or transplant that you have prepared your soil. The soil needs nutrients. It doesn’t always have the nutrients that it needs because it gets used and abused over time. The more it is used, the more nutrients it needs. 😉 Before you do anything else, you want to check your soil and prepare it. Much like soil, our hearts need to be prepared. Before a seed can be planted and really grow into what it is supposed to be, the soil has to be prepared. Our hearts also need to be nourished and ready for whatever seed God wants to plant in it. And the more our hearts are used and abused, the MORE nourishment we need. The nourishment being God’s Word, in case you didn’t pick up on that. With gardens, if you plant a seed on a dry, rocky ground with no nutrients, that seed is likely not to bloom. What does grow well in dry and rocky soil? Weeds!!! A weed will grow anywhere won’t it? Well, we don’t want weeds in our hearts. We want that good seed that God sends to us. We want our hearts to be nourished and ready. So when God plants the seeds, we are ready to grow!

    Planting seeds is the fun part! I love the planting and the harvesting. Those are my two favorite parts of gardening. Spreading God’s word is like planting seeds. As a matter of fact, I’ve often heard it referred to as planting seeds. Now, some seeds aren’t any good. They may come from a bad batch. They might be old seed. The seed could even be rotten. We have to be careful that the seed we are planting and the word we are spreading is coming from a good place. Our hearts must be clean before we open our mouth! We must be in prayer and make sure our hearts are clean. Do this by asking God to show us where we are failing Him. Show us what we need to change in our lives. People can tell if you are genuine most of the time. If they feel that your heart isn’t right, they aren’t going to want to listen to anything you have to say.

    Weeding and tending to the garden is not the fun part. I’m going to be honest, I try to avoid this part of gardening. Thankfully I have a husband that can’t stand a garden with weeds. He keeps the cleanest garden! Weeds don’t stand a chance on his watch. LOL I’m exaggerating a little. But this is the hardest part of gardening in my opinion. Because even after we have prepared the soil and planted, them weeds tend to sneak back in and pop up. And multiply! Also bugs and critters like to enjoy the fruits of our labor as well. That is all part of tending to the garden. We have to work every day to get the weeds out, we have to add fertilizer to the plants. We have to water the garden often. Well, you know what I’m going to say right? Our hearts need weeding, fertilizing and watering as well. And sometimes we have bugs and worms that sneak in and take over. And since I like to call hornworms, devil worms, we will refer to the bugs and worms as Satan. LOL Satan works sneakily and slowly sometimes to attack our hearts and minds. He blends in and attacks when we aren’t looking. We must pray and read God’s word daily to keep the weeds and bugs away. We must water our hearts with praise and worship in order to make our heart bloom!

    Harvest is the other fun part! The best part of gardening and the whole point of doing it to begin with us the harvest! To enjoy the fruits of our labor! It’s beautiful thing to have fresh produce to enjoy and especially knowing that you grew this with God’s help! Some things may not grow even when we feel like we’ve done everything right. We may not always get a good harvest. At times like that we have to thank the good Lord for He does give. He blesses us in many different ways. Sometimes our harvest is not what we expect. Some crops pollinate each other and make weird looking produce. I’ve had some weird looking squash over the years. Side note: most vegetables and fruits need multiples to grow. They don’t grow alone. They need other plants to pollinate each other! We also need other Christians to lean on and help each other in our daily walks as well! (I thought that was another interesting point to make.) When we do see a bountiful harvest, we must thank the Lord for His blessings. Because none of it can grow and produce without Him.

    Canning and preserving! You didn’t think that was it did you? Hee, hee. Some of us grow enough food to can and preserve things to last us all year! Preserving is another interesting process that has some biblical similes as well. Preserving our food is much like preserving the things that we have learned and that God has taught us. We all have different processes to do this. I like to write, so I write things down. I write my prayers often as well and I like to look back and see how God answered those prayers. When canning vegetables you use salt to preserve it. It also helps with taste! Jesus said in Matthew 5:13
    Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. One of my first years canning green beans, I forgot to add salt. I realized later that the green beans were ruined and I had to throw them out (just like the word says!). I didn’t realize what had happened to them at the time. A few weeks later a visiting preacher spoke about this verse and it dawned on me in the middle of church! I didn’t add the salt! LOL It’s funny now. And now I MAKE SURE that I add the salt to my jars before putting them into the canner!

    After all is said and done and when we reach our heavenly home, we want to hear the words “Well done my good and faithful servant”. Don’t we? I hope you do. I know that I sure do. Otherwise what are we doing? I hope this has been good “food” for thought for y’all! (Sorry I couldn’t resist!).

    Blessings,

    Cheryl

  • Faith

    Back in 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic, Christians began a campaign of “faith over fear”. Crosses began to show up on people’s lawns. It was a symbol of our faith over our fear. It was a message to remind each other that God is bigger than a virus and He has everything under control.

    I wonder how often we practice having faith over fear in our daily lives? It’s so easy to get caught up in the busyness and the activities each day. Anything that comes along to disrupt our schedule, can throw off our whole day or week. It can make us grouchy and cause us to be short with people when we don’t mean to be. (This is how it is for me sometimes!)

    Faith over fear is an important lesson for us to carry with us. It keeps us from panicking when things happen that seem bad to us. Being strong in our faith is an excellent way to be a walking testimony to others! When people see the peace we have in any kind of situation, they want some of what we have! In a world full of evil, people are looking for peace now more than ever.

    The Canaanite woman had faith and she even challenged Jesus when he tested her faith! (That’s brave!) The story is in Matthew 15:21-28. Her daughter was demon possessed and she was desperate for a miracle! When she asked Jesus for help, at first He denied her. But she persisted. It wasn’t that Jesus didn’t want to help her, He was testing her faith. Her faith is used as an example for all of us. Persist. Keep praying for a miracle!

    If you haven’t heard the song “Don’t Stop Praying” by Matthew West, I recommend you listen to it! It has a good message that reminds us that our miracle could be just one prayer away! I’ve seen miracles that I’ve prayed for years over. I had even given up at times thinking that it just wasn’t going to happen. But God, in His sovereignty and in His timing, rewards us for our faith and our persistence!

    We can’t give up on the the things that we are praying for. It may be a family situation, or a health concern. I’ve seen God work miracles in both of those in just the past couple of years! He can and He will work a miracle if it is His will to do so. We must remember that He is sovereign and He always knows best. We should always ask things if it is His will. Our will might not match up with His. That is where patience and understanding comes in. Submitting to God’s will and timing, is hard but through prayer and faith in Him, we can do that as well!

    God is so good and He is faithful to meet our needs.

    Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour. Matthew 15:21-28

    It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

  • Prayer ADHD

    Have you ever experienced “prayer adhd”? I actually have been diagnosed with ADHD and I knew exactly what that was when I heard the term. It is basically when you start to pray and your mind wanders off to other things! I think that in this world today, even if you don’t have an ADHD diagnosis, we all fall into this trap because of how busy we are.

    A few years ago I felt led to start writing out my prayers. I haven’t always been consistent with it, but it really seems to help me focus on what I’m praying about and the direction of the prayer. I have a notebook full of prayers that is top secret and no one else has access to it. It’s just for me and the Lord. I recently went back through the notebook and read some of the prayers written in it from years ago. It’s neat to see how some of the things I was praying for then have been answered.

    Prayer is so vital to our walk with God. A relationship cannot thrive without communication. So, I wanted to give some tips on how to keep your prayers more focused. Maybe writing isn’t your thing. That’s what helps me and I would recommend you try it before you decide it isn’t. But, there are other ways and suggestions that I have found over the years and some I have used and still use!

    Making a list of what you need to pray about and reading it while you pray is helpful. You can take your church prayer list and maybe add to it, or keep your own personal prayer list. Maybe you could keep a small notebook around the area that you usually pray in and you can mark off when prayers are answered. Another idea is to keep a prayer list in the note section on your phone! Although personally I can’t be holding my phone while praying. It’s too much of a distraction.

    Some people use prayer cloths, prayer shawls or veils to help keep them focused while praying. It kind of blocks you away from the world. I like the idea of veiling for prayer. Susanna Wesley put this into practice while raising her 10 children, she would throw her apron over her head to pray and this was a signal to the children to not interrupt her! She did what she had to do to get her time alone with God.

    Keep it short and simple. Prayers don’t have to be long and complicated. God knows your heart. He doesn’t need fancy words or clichés. Saying shorter simple prayers more often might be easier. However, this can turn into a problem. Saying a quick prayer here and there is fine, the Bible tells us to pray without ceasing. But, we still need some quiet and focused prayer time devoted to God.

    Praying while you are doing another activity. This may work for some people. My mind usually wanders too much! But, praying while doing dishes or driving (keep your eyes open though!) are good ways to fit some prayer time in. I have gotten some answers from the Lord while driving down the road talking to Him!

    Having a devoted time and place dedicated to prayer is a really good idea. This could be in your car before heading in to work. Or in your car when you get home before going inside. It could be a break time at work that you can get off by yourself somewhere. It’s hard for some (me) to get into the habit of a dedicated time and place but once it becomes a habit, you find yourself remembering to do it and looking forward to that time with God.

    Remember that God knows your heart. He knows your intentions. If we get sidetracked while praying, just redirect yourself back and keep moving. Keep talking to Him. Also side note – if you aren’t sure what to pray about it, ask Him. 🙂 He will actually bring people or situations to your mind that need prayer!

    Praying and reading God’s Word so important to our relationship with Christ. We can’t just sit back and say “Oh well I’m just too busy” or “I meant to pray”. That is what the enemy is counting on. We have to find a way to make it happen! Life is so much sweeter and blessed when we are spending time daily with our Lord.

    1 John 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.

    Philippians 4:6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

  • What we think is a good thing, doesn’t always line up with what God says. When I was really little (about 4 years old), my little neighbor friend, Jenny, told me that we should go to the circus. Now, I don’t know if Jenny had heard about a circus or if she was making it up. But, anyways, it sounded like fun to me! She even told me there would be a queen at the circus so we stopped and gather tadpoles as a gift for the queen! Listen, I’m country and I had never been to a circus.

    This all sounded like a great adventure. It never dawned on me that my parents would wonder where I was. And I don’t know where we thought that circus was. But, apparently it was within walking distance…. Anyways, off we went. I don’t know how long we were gone. But, I believe it was starting to get dark out and an adult neighbor saw us and knew where we lived. So, she picked us up and took us home. No harm done, right? Meanwhile, My parents were worried sick about me. (Also, there was no circus.)

    So, this is just a funny story to share, that really happened. But, it is just an example of how things might sound real good to us, but it’s not what God would have us to do. How many times have we heard about something or thought of something ourselves and thought “that’s a great idea” without ever asking God about it? (I’m guilty for sure!)

    There are many examples in the Bible where people did something that they thought was a good idea because either they didn’t listen to God or they didn’t even ask. One that came to mind this morning was Adam and Eve. Even though in their case, God had already told them not to eat the fruit, they were convinced that it would still be a good idea. And we all know how that turned out!

    When we think of something that sounds like a good idea, we must seek the Lord’s guidance by praying and reading scripture.

    Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

    Sometimes we are faced with a decision to make where outcome wouldn’t necessarily be sinful either way. Those are the hardest decisions to make, aren’t they? A few years ago I was encouraged to apply for a supervisor position at work. I immediately started praying about it and I almost instantly felt the Lord saying in my spirit, ‘don’t do it’. So, I didn’t. I’m so glad that I listened to Him! A few months later the person that did apply and got the position had to take a leave of absence because of stress.

    The answer isn’t always that clear, of course. I wish it were! Usually when making a decision you can pray and read scripture until you get an answer. Sometimes you will just have an uneasy feeling. In that case, wait. It might not be that you shouldn’t do it, but just that now isn’t the right time. God speaks to us in many different ways. He gives us his Holy Word! He sends Pastors and teachers to help us understand His word. And sometimes He is just very direct. The important thing is to stay in communication with Him so that He can guide you.

    He may not guide you, if you aren’t asking Him to. Sometimes, because I didn’t really seek Him in a decision, I have failed miserably. But, as any good parent knows, sometimes you have to let them learn the hard way!

    When we put our trust in Him and obey His word, things tend to work out. Life isn’t always easy, and we don’t always get the answer we are hoping for. But His way is always best. Trust in Him, He will never leave you or forsake you! He will even help us clean up the messes we make when don’t listen to Him! He’s a good, good Father.

  • Missing Out

    Missing out is something that most of us don’t want! We want to be included. We want to be in the know. We want to experience the joy that we see others experiencing. Have you ever heard the phrase “keeping up with the Jones’?” That phrase was around before social media was even a thing! It was referring to trying to keep up with your neighbors that had something better than you.

    Now, that social media has taken over our lives, we don’t try to just keep up with our friends and neighbors. We are trying to keep up with a false image of people’s lives, some we barely even know! Y’all do realize that what people post on social media is a picture perfect image of their lives right? And sometimes it is very misleading. What is going on behind that picture is sometimes a very different story.

    But we see it and think that we want a car like that. Or a cute outfit like the one she’s wearing. Or the money that they must have to be able to go on so many vacations. I’ll admit that I have fell into this trap more than once! Okay let’s be real, all of the time! LOL And I’m a forty six year old woman who knows better! I know that everything is not always the way it seems. And I know that I shouldn’t want what others have when I’ve been blessed by God in other ways.

    You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s. Exodus 20:17

    Imagine how this is affecting younger more impressionable minds? Some of these young people that have grown up with social media, really believe everything they see and hear on facebook, instagram and tiktok. And don’t get me started on the amount of children that have access to social media! (Even though in order to have an account, a child is supposed to be at least 13.)

    Moving on. I saw something recently that I really liked. Have you ever heard of FOMO? It stands for Fear Of Missing Out. I saw something recently that talked about JOMO. It is the JOY of missing out! I like that! Personally for myself, I have found the more I take a break from social media, the more peace I have! The more joy I have. We don’t have to participate in anything and everything that is going on. We aren’t going to miss anything major if we get off of Facebook for a day or so. (I promise if you miss anything, someone will let you know!) (My problem is that I’m so nosy that I want to be one of the first to know! LOL)

    I find the more time I spend in God’s book and off of Facebook, I am relaxed, I am joyful, I am calm.

    God has a design and a plan for us. And it is not on social media! It is found in His book! We need to get ourselves back to the basics and find the JOY of missing out! We need to start setting the example for our children!

    But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Matthew 6:33

    We don’t need to be worried about what everyone else is up to. We need to be taking care of our own lives, our own families and our own walks with God. In John 21, Peter did this. He was asking the Lord, what about John? And the Lord’s answer was to quit worrying about others and just follow Him. When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about this man?” Jesus said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” John 21:21-22 It’s that simple!

    So, I am challenging you today! Make a goal for yourself to find the JOY of missing out! Take a break from social media. It has become such a habit for most of us that we pick up our phones and start scrolling before we even realize what we are doing. Let your children or grandchildren see you putting the phone down and spending time with them. Even better, spending time in God’s word!

    And please don’t go to Facebook, Tiktok or the Gram to get your Bible teaching! Yes, it is good to use those things as tools to share God’s word. (I’m using that to share this blog post.) But that should not be our source. Get into God’s word either on your phone or in your Bible. Let’s find our JOMO!!

    Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5:19-21

  • Abundant Grace

    Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? Matthew 6:26-27

    I was talking to my son yesterday and the topic came up about how we sometimes get punishment because we deserve it for doing something we should not have done. This is true and I truly believe that a lot of us suffer needlessly because of our disobedience to God. However so often, so very often, God shows us grace. He takes care of things for us. He covers our careless mistakes. He handles things for us often that we didn’t even know about!

    My family teases me about my driving. They say that I’m not a good driver. I beg to differ. But anyways, I tell them all the time that the Lord is riding with me. And He is! Because I don’t know how many times I’ve made a careless mistake driving, usually not paying attention, and God saved me from a wreck (and a ticket!). Don’t act like you don’t make careless mistakes driving too! 😉

    The things is God knows us. He knows our hearts. Even when “bad” things happen to us, I guarantee you it is because He is still looking out for us. It is only for our good when “bad” things happen. Romans 8:28 (y’all should already know the verse by now!) What seems like a bad thing to us, I promise there’s a reason for it.

    Think back to times in your life when something bad happened. Could it be that this “bad” thing was actually for your own good? Did you learn a valuable lesson? Did it save you from a worse situation? Yes, in this life we will suffer. We will have things happen that we don’t feel like we deserve. The key is to talk to God about all of it. He can help you see where a bad situation was actually good. He can help you through any and all suffering.

    When we suffer through something, and we rely on God to see us through, it makes us stronger. And when He showers us with blessings, we will appreciate them even more when we know and recognize that we don’t deserve it.

    God’s grace is abundant and He loves us. He wants what is best for us. We just have to place our trust in Him, always!

    In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, Ephesians 1:7

    And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

    (Trust and obey, for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus but to Trust and obey!)

    Blessings

    Cheryl

    1. Good Friday Reflection

      I used to wonder why it was called Good Friday. What is good about it? My Lord and Savior died on the cross. He took my punishment for my sins. What is good about that? But I learned a new perspective on it.

      It is good because of the results of what Jesus did for us. He willingly laid down his life. He knew what was going to happen. He knew and he did it anyways. That’s how much He loves us. He demonstrated that love in the most sacrificial way possible. That’s what’s good about it.

      But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

      We can remember this day and what Christ did for us on that cross. We can remember more than just on Good Friday. We should remember it all year long and live our lives in thankfulness. The one perfect Son of God laid down his life and took my punishment. All of my sins hung on that cross with Him. That’s what is good about Good Friday.

      For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit. 1 Peter 3:18

      Let’s all remember and thank Him today.

      Blessings

      Cheryl 🙂