A Better Way

Evidence of Him

When you are attempting to do something and you try several different ways yet still unsuccessful, do you conclude that there must be a better way? As I continue to grow and mature, I realize that, for me, Jesus is the better way. This life journey is not easy. It has many twists and turns. After I accepted Jesus, I was still initially challenged. However, I decided_with full transparency_my way wasn’t working for me. I know that each of us have the choice of free will. God doesn’t force us to choose Jesus. He asks us to.

The choice is whether to surrender or not. Surrender. your will for His will. God does know that this is a challenge for us. His mercy and grace is there to help us make this choice. The last several years have definitely been a challenge for us all. They have been stressful. I have not been overly stressed, but blessed. I have been concerned, having no anxiety because I knew that God was in control. That is a freedom I keep.

This freedom of not trying to fix everything in my life and trusting God is truly liberating. He has everything in His hands. In concluding, I will note that I understand it is hard to believe in the deity that you cannot physically see. However, you see evidence of Him everywhere. The sun, moon, stars, nature are all a part of Him. The other note is that it takes faith to believe in God and believe God’s Word for your life.

Hebrews 11:1 – “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

As we close on 2022, evaluate where you are. If you need love, purpose, friendship, provision, protection, etc. choose Jesus Christ. God sent His only Son that we might have eternal life as well as life more abundantly here on earth. Everything may not seem differently immediately. However, God is true to His Word. His promises are real and true. Faithfulness is part of His character.

I pray that God will bless you all continually as we venture into the next year, 2023. Prayerfully, I hope that you choose Him for a better you and a better life. We were created to serve and glorify Him.

John 14:6 – “Jesus said to Him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”

There is Always Hope

There is always hope even when it’s a little cloudy.

Today my focus is on the Scriptures Jeremiah 29:11-13.

Verse 11 – “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”

Verse 12 – “In those days when you pray, I will listen.”

Verse 13 – “If you look for me whole heartedly, you will find me.”

These are some of my favorite Scriptures. When I begin to feel apprehensive about a situation or circumstances, I turn to Scripture. As believers, we must remember that God is in control. He has us in His hands. It reminds me that God does not intend to harm us. He loves us. He wants what’s best for us. We need to look for God wholeheartedly. Seek Him while He may be found. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, we can go boldly to the throne of grace. We need His grace to grab ahold of the hope He promises.

The handiwork of God

Many times, I accept that when I get worried or fearful, it is because I want my way. We are not to be fearful. God did not give us a spirit of fear.

2nd Timothy 1:7 – “for God gave us not a spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control.” His perfect love casts out fear.

God is well aware of our weaknesses. He knows that surrendering and relinquishing the control we think we have over our lives is like pulling teeth with no anesthesia. It is very difficult. Our pride does get in the way. However, I ask you to consider taking God at His word. Receive His word and then believe His word. We can hear the word of God (receive) but believing His word is the next rung on the ladder.

We can trust God. He is faithful to His word. He know the plans He has for your life; plans for a future and hope.

Go to God, He is Available

Psalm 27:8 – “ My heart has heard you say ‘Come and talk with Me.’ And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”

Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Ask me and I will tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come.”

Even believers tend to forget that we don’t have all the answers. We are compelled to try to accomplish things in our own strength. I encourage you today to revisit these Scriptures. If you have a heavy heart, God says come talk to Him. Through Christ Jesus we can come boldly to the throne of grace. God’s Word holds the answers to what ails us. Through Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirt, God has given us all that we need to walk in victory.

Psalm 28:11 -“The Lord gives His people strength. The Lord blesses them with peace.”

Do you need strength? Psalm 28:11 says He gives us strength. Do you need peace? He has given us peace through Jesus Christ. The peace that passes all understanding.

John 14:27 – “I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. Not the peace of the world.

The Rock, the Living Water and the Way, the Truth and the Life

Your needs are fulfilled through what Jesus accomplished on the Cross.

Moving Forward in Him

faith-is-not-a-feelingToday I thank God for His mercy, grace and provision. Although the lenses from which I few seemed to be clouded, scratched up, etc., I know that He is faithful. As I listen to Him, I am being obedient to take the day to write, rest and leave things in His hands. I am so grateful. Didn’t have to be here today, literally. And, since my dog experience, this is more real than ever before. Not sure why, but things don’t always hit home until something happens so close to home that it cannot be avoided.

Left Behind.jpgThat said, I want to talk about moving forward from the things of this world to the matters of heaven. People are dying senselessly, the crazy presidential race has become a farce regardless of who you want to vote for and making a decent living seems to be a challenge in a class all by itself. (What happened to the middle class?) The Word of God says that things will continually wax worse and worse until Christ returns. Are you prepared? I had to ask myself this serious question. Am I? Are my thoughts consumed with what is going on in the world today or making sure that I am following Christ? This is not about not caring for people in this world. This is about being ready. I know many of you know about the Left Behind novels and what that means Scripturally. While this point may seem irrelevant or invalid to some, the question to ask is if it is true, will you be left behind? If it is not true, no loss.

Yes, I did read this series. I was able to follow along in Scripture with this selection and it was very intriguing. Another favorite on my Christian fiction list. And very indicative of those sitting on that proverbial fence. Personally, I would rather take a chance on it being true and being prepared than not. First Thessalonians speaks this way about the subject.

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18
15)For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will be no means precede those who are asleep. 16) For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17) Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall aways be with the Lord. 18)Therefore comfort one another with these words.

I am compelled to speak this truth today. We are to comfort each other with the matters of heaven and not be consumed by the things going on in the world. While it is necessary and even expedient to pray for those in the world, it is the hope that we have in Christ that needs the focus. Of course, being led by the Holy Spirit, He will speak to you what He hears from the Lord. He will also pray as needed (Romans 8:26-27) so that what needs to be accomplished in the heavenly realm is done. But, brothers and sisters, we truly need to be praying others into heaven by diligent obedience to the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:26-27
26)Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27)Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

God has us covered on all sides. We need to trust and obey.

He Said “I Love You”

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God’s Hand

Today the quiet allows the mind to ponder the things of God. Reading today allows surrender of the preconceived notion of how things should be. The words shared with me today enhance the place of listening. Thoughts about the past (I am in the now) reflect the journey, the desert, the wilderness, the growth and the personal relationship with my God. When looking back, the choices taken or not taken, reflect to me that God knows who I am. Having experienced the audible voice of God many times and several periods in my life, I know that He knows who I am. What resonates in my soul is that He drew me in with His love, His voice, His gift of His Son that I might have eternal life as well as life here more abundantly. Continue reading…!

Intimacy with God

Deep Thought
Deep Thought

In my devotional today, I read a post on spiritual discipline entitled “Spiritual Discipline: Do You Have a Chair?” by Michael Kendrick. What a joy to read! One thing that sticks out for me is the statement that what you value, you will make time for. The truth of this may touch a tender spot but truth does not change. Facts do. There’s more, keep reading!

Balancing Act

This week has been a balancing act.  Completing homework assignments; working part time in retail; making sure that I pick up my younger daughter from school and take her to school; certainly make sure I have babysitting arrangements for the time I have her when I’m at work; accepting a new writing assignment; taking my 18 year-old to work; or, picking up her friend to babysit; getting my 14 year-old to the gym; and, get to sleep in between is a balancing act.  Oh, I forgot about dinner, laundry, cleaning…The challenge is interesting, can be taxing, but certainly leaves no room for boredom.  My point is that I still want to show gratitude for this life God has blessed me with.  God’s blessing of mercy and grace is surely a reason to be grateful.  Even when I cannot come up with the answers to the balancing act, God’s mercy seems to emerge larger than life and I find myself thanking Him because He saw my need and worked out the situation.  I know that He is opening up doors that no one can close and closing doors no one can re-open.  And, I thank God that He is the only one that can do that.  God’s true justice and mercy is the source of this life for me.  My challenges, trials, successes, and, what might even look like failures are all to His glory.  This post is to glorify my Father in Heaven, proclaim Jesus as Lord and be eternally grateful for who He is and what He has done for me.  I thank God for this day.  “This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24 NKJV)

Sandra Vercellono

Grace

Nature's Beauty

Today as I read passages for my devotional, this word jumped out at me, grace.  I have been reading from the Amplified Bible and really enjoy it.  Why?  Because the definitions or meaning of the words are right there for your thought process.  I really like the definition of grace.  The passage of Scripture is Luke 1:26-33. The verse I was focused on was Luke 1:30: “And the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found grace (free, spontaneous, absolute favor and loving kindness) with God.”  How awesome is that? (King James Version / Amplified Bible Parallel Edition, Zondervan, Copyright 1995)

Free, spontaneous, absolute favor and loving kindness with God.  I was awed by this description of grace.  The word absolute is the adjective that wows me in this definition.  Absolute to me is complete, whole, nothing lacking or changing.  Trying to grasp that kind of favor is beyond me.  One definition from The American College Dictionary says free from imperfection.  God’s grace is so awesome.  It has everything we need to cause us to  live our daily lives in Him.  Free from imperfection is a state that can be only attained through God.  Jesus attained that grace for us because He was the perfect blood sacrifice.  We have so much to be thankful for and to worship God for.  The concept of God preparing a way for us to reconcile with Him because He knew us and in that process gives us an awesome picture of who He is.  We can do nothing but worship our Creator.