Seeking

"God, I need Your love. My life is filled with scars and wounds that can be healed by Your love alone. I celebrate the love You so freely offer. I accept the gift of Your love and thank You for its transforming power in my heart and life. I love You, Father, and celebrate Your presence and power in my life."

"I live on a beautiful lake. I can look at the lake, swim in the lake and even stand in the lake...and still die of thirst. The only way for the water to enter my system is to scoop it up and drink."

God is love

"But anyone who does not love does not know God--for God is love. God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins."

i'll.. try

"God will take what the enemy means for evil and use it as the perfect setting for a miracle. You don't have to understand God to trust Him. Restoration and peace are His specialty. He will be your refuge and your strength. Right now, quietly turn to Him. He is waiting."

art gallery/bible

"This reminded me of how we sometimes read the Bible - like perusing through an art gallery and never really stopping to see what the artist intended in the great masterpieces lining the majestic walls. Like walking briskly through an art gallery, we grab the Bible and read a few verses before running out the door in the morning or closing our eyes at night.

But God's Word is a masterpiece and He speaks through every stroke of the writer's pen. Oh the treasures stored on each page just waiting to be discovered!"

All nations

"In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus tells his disciples to GO and make disciples of all nations. He didn't say, stay here and exchange knowledge with each other. He said GO and put into practice all that I have taught you."

SAB: I want to go back to the 1040 frame to do what he needs me to do.

Hong Kong is the first stop.

anyone in pain?

"The doctor prescribed a cream that she promised would work wonders on the burns. "Will it stop the pain?" I asked because they had taken my bowl of ice water away and I could not believe how much pain three little burned fingers could cause. "It won't help with the pain as much as it will help the burns heal and prevent infection, but you will need a pretty powerful painkiller for the next couple of days," she replied as she wrote a prescription and handed to me. I was surprised to see that it was the same pain medication I had once taken after major surgery. Now, I am not a doctor, but taking pain medication that affects the whole body seems like overkill and almost absurd when only three fingers are in pain. But as the hours passed, I was very thankful for each little pill.

When someone hurts, we should respond to their pain. When one of us is weak, another should be strong. Those who stumble and fall should be able to count on someone to pick them up and finish the race. Instead, we often shoot our wounded and leave them lying in the dirt to find help on their own.

Admittedly, the problem is not always that we are unwilling to help someone in pain. Sometimes we are simply blind to the fact that they exist. We overlook hurting people because we are in a hurry or maybe we just don't want to deal with the mess of a broken life.

Jesus Christ willingly left His throne in Heaven and came to Earth as a man. He felt every pain we have ever felt or will feel. He was afraid and lonely and often had no place to "lay His head." Jesus was misunderstood and slandered and then crucified to pay for our sin. It must break the heart of God when we so easily toss aside what cost Him so much, the life of His only Son, Jesus."

* "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others." - 1 Peter 4:10

The point of living

"Do not judge; and you will not be judged," Jesus taught. "Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give; and it will be given to you.

You are so worried, bothered, and distracted with the details of living that you miss the joys of life."

Stress

The Mayo Clinic once stated that the illnesses in 80 to 85% of their caseload were caused by stress. An article in a leading medical journal entitled "Is Stress the Cause of All Disease?" said that at the beginning of the century, bacteria were the leading cause of illness but today stress has replaced bacteria.
.....
We hear from so many women across the world who would give everything they have for just one minute of peace. I know the list of trials and storms is long. I honestly do not know how some people get out of bed each morning to face the trials and hard times in their life. I understand that the problems we deal with every single day can weigh us down; but I also know that every problem can be given to God. When we surrender the weight of our trials and pain to Him, we will experience peace. As we allow God to carry the weight of worry, the burden of anxiety and the penalty of every sin in our life, peace will reign and leave no room for the deadly trap of stress.

Sab: Oh my - this devotion is absolutely crazy, the entry I typed on tumblr yesterday WAS ABOUT THIS.