Sunday, February 21, 2016

A Love Letter From God

Photo courtesy of morguefile.com
If God wrote us a love letter, I believe it would read like this:
 
My Dear One,
I am love. Do you know me? I comfort. I heal. I hold. I weep when you weep. There is not a moment that you’re not on my mind. Do you understand who I am?

What I give cannot be bought. It has no strings attached. You can’t work for it, not even a lifetime of good deeds can buy it. My love…I give it freely to anyone who will accept it. Do you know how much I rejoice when one of my children accepts me?
Many stop there. They accept my free give of salvation, My Son, Jesus, as their Savior, but they think that’s it. They don’t know that they can get close to me. They don’t believe they can walk with me like I did with Adam and Eve in the garden. They don’t think they can talk to me face-to-face like Abraham or Moses. I am not a story, stuck in a Holy Book. I am The Living God. I am the same long ago as I am today.

I am a hand reaching out to you today, right now. My love is still the same. It is desperate to draw near to you. Will you come near to Me? Will you dwell in Me?

I long to answer your prayers, to heal your hurts, to deliver you from oppression and addictions, to teach you how to walk in My ways, and to take you deeper. I made you for Me. I give you gifts and so many blessings because I am Your Father. I hunger for you to press in. I made you for so much more than what the world wants you to settle for.

I am all you need. Come to me and let me show you My love. Ask Me, Seek Me, Search Me…I am here, waiting for you, My Child.

Yours Always,
The Father

Wednesday, January 13, 2016

My New Crown


"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."   Isaiah 43:19 

This Scripture is fitting for me right now. God is doing a new work in me... and preparing me for the future that He has for me. 

Last fall, I participated in our local Healthy Eating Adventure and now I am Vegan (except for honey...have to have my honey), eating lots of fruits and veggies. I lost almost 20 pounds too! 


"...who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles." Psalm 103:5

Photo from 2012
And then, God prompted me to go natural in my hair color, which has turned out to be a beautiful gray, silver, and white. So my auburn Nice 'N Easy #111 hair is gone. My best friend blessed me by cutting it and giving me this fun, short style! I'm sending the hair to Locks for Love.

"Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness..." 2 Timothy 4:8

God has been teaching me about wearing His garments and crown (spiritually), but it turns out that the spiritual and physical worlds are connected more than we know. Somehow, my healthy eating and losing weight is connected to my spiritual robe and my gray hair to my spiritual crown.

What has God been teaching you? Do you see correlations between the physical and spiritual?

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Book Review: Climbing With Abraham

Great 30 Day Devo to start the New Year off right!

Climbing with Abraham: 30 Devotionals to Help You Grow Your Faith, Build Your Life, and Discover God's Calling (Testament Heroes Book 1) by David Ramos (currently .99 for Kindle)

Overview: The Christian life requires an immense amount of faith. Often when frustrations and challenges arise, we are left wondering where God is. Thousands of years ago a man found himself in the same struggle. God had chosen Abraham for great things. But the man who would go on to become the Father of Nations had to first learn how to take the smallest steps of faith.

How did Abraham become a character of legendary faith? And how can we learn from his example so that we can become the great men and women God has called us to be?
Climbing with Abraham is a thirty-day devotional which answers these questions. In this short book you will be challenged, inspired and taught how to become a faith giant! Start your journey today and take the climb with one of the greatest Biblical characters towards your purpose. 

 

Dawn's Recommendation: 5 of 5 Stars!

What I Liked: I love these one-page devos! They are easy to read, yet they encourage a deepening of faith. Each devo begins with Scripture reading. Then, as you learn more about Abraham, David Ramos encourages you to apply what you learn to your life. He closes each one with a Takeaway and a Prayer. Each devotion shares a powerful truth about God, and by learning more about Abraham and his interaction with God, we can begin to press into God, as well. God spoke to Abraham and even to Hagar, so why wouldn't He speak to us? Let this devo series take you closer to God Almighty! Here are a few topics that really spoke to me:


*Listening and following God
*Dealing with frustration
*Trusting God when His timing is not our own
*Making mistakes
*Trusting God's promises and being patient
*Leadership and spiritual responsibility


As I read each devotion, I have been journaling too and this has helped me apply what I am learning to my own faith journey. I think many readers will identify with the topics. Great devotion series!

 

Disclaimer: I received this e-book for free from the author in exchange for my honest review.

Friday, November 20, 2015

Identity

courtesy morguefile, pedrojperez
We talked last night about how people have a mask on, like those who commit violence (recent shootings in Harrisburg, PA). They act tough, but are really cowards.

Some wear a mask that shows the world they are tough (bullies). Some, like me, wore a mask that did not cry and one that conformed to the world (in looks and behavior) just to survive school because of what the bullies did. 

Either way, bullies or victims...all wear a mask. They are not living in their true identities in Christ. He takes off the masks to reveal breathtaking light, holiness, worthiness, love, glory, honor, peace, joy...the list goes on and on.

I wrote this this morning, strumming it to the guitar.

Oh, teach me how to live...in my identity. 2x
I want to walk the way You walk.
I want to talk the way You talk.

I want to do the things You do, and even more.
I thank You for the power in me, for the authority.
For all You created me, to be. I thank You, Lord. I thank You, Lord.

Let me step into Your path and never go back.
Your holy hand will guide me, on the path to eternity.
Oh, teach me how to live.
Oh, teach me how to live.
Oh, teach me how to live...in my identity.


Believe the truth...your identity is in Him. There is no mask. Take it off and walk in His healing light.