Stand Up For The Wounded

Scars don’t equal shame;

Strength comes from experience,

Memories you want to forget

And keep buried in the past;

Your past doesn’t define you

The One who breathed life

Into your ocean, giving you depth does;

Your past doesn’t have to break you,

It can make you stronger;

I admit I’m weak, but I have a strong God,

Therefore, in Him, I am strong;

I won’t let anything in this world take me down,

For I am His and not of this world,

Therefore, I will not be shaken 

By the constant attacks of the enemy,

For he wants to destroy me because he knows

God has a plan and purpose for my life-

A destiny that only I can fulfill, with His help;

I have wasted too much time already

And don’t want to have anymore regrets,

So I accept the challenge

I will be bold and fight the good fight

For my good Father who has called me

To go on this journey with Him;

I know it will not be easy, and at times 

I will want to quit, but I must remember 

Who I am and whose I am,

Trusting that God knows what He’s doing;

I want to reflect ONLY Him in my life,

To those who live in darkness-

A world encompassed in fear and shame,

Feeling trapped within their mind,

Like they can’t escape the pain;

No one deserves to walk alone

We must stand up for the wounded,

Leading their tired souls to God-

The only One who can mend their brokenness.

             ~Bethany Anne 

Thoughts On God’s Love

Listening to a new song….
Let There Be Light 

Brian and Katy Torwalt

Some Lyrics: 

“Let there be light till it fills up every space;

Come and have your way….

Let there be light.”

It reminds me of some thoughts on……
God’s Love

The sun shines 
The breeze blows 
The rain falls 
on EVERYTHING 
missing nothing 
No thought to who or what
Just a gesture from above 
This is God’s Love

God doesn’t relish His love on us for any other reason than……
He Desires and He Does

Light on,

Kelley Allison

http://www.bowlofsplendor.com

Matthew 5:45 For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.

Values

WORTHY THOUGHT: If we don’t pass our values onto all of our children someone else will.

I was thinking back on my last mission’s group trip. 

We visited a children’s orphanage in San Lucas Guatemala. 

The children were so delighted to see us; we played games, did arts and crafts, and shared Bible stories. We wanted all the children to understand and know Jesus is with them and loves each one of them. 

The children may not have their parents today, but I am thankful for the Godly people who do work tirelessly there in the orphanage. They are hard working people with huge hearts, hugs and warm smiles and they allow us to come into their orphanage to minister and love on their children. 

Maybe this will convince you to go visit an orphanage in your area in your country. Maybe even to adopt. Each child is a gift from God.

Bible verses helps us understand what the Bible says about all of our children, the importance of raising and teaching our children.

Remember the Bible tells us not to merely listen to the word of God but to do what it says (James 1:22). Take what you read here, write it down and put it into action!

 I pray that God speaks to you and touches your heart with these Scriptures

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Isaiah 54:13 All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

Proverbs 29:15 The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother

Proverbs 29:17 Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart.

Ephesians 6:4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Psalm 127:3-5 Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

Father God, 

We thank you for all of our children we know that each and every child is fearfully and wonderfully made by You to do works in Jesus Christ. Amen.

        ~Angela Lipe-Pattengill 

Love Conquers All

My heart was pounding as I walked into the courthouse that day. I didn’t know what to anticipate. My husband and I were about to force a legal petition to the court, evicting one of our friends.

At a desperate time in his life, we extended our hand. We extended our heart. Now, we had to evict him for non-payment of rent.

My mind was playing tricks, producing negative scenarios, so that I would fear the worse. The enemy wanted me to feel defeat in this place. He confirmed my fears by telling me lies.

I was bombarded by my emotions. I had to take a moment out and just pray. 

I needed God’s guidance, I needed to feel him close to me.

I knew….the truth

…..Our friend…knew the truth

……….And….our God knew everything….

It was a difficult place to be and I was deeply saddened to see the negative impact that drugs had caused our friend. I could see it in his face, his apology, his heart.
Then God did something amazing. He came and filled us [all] with His presence.

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins.~1 Peter 4:8

We sat, talked, and came up with a satisfactory plan. Though part of the resolution required us to help him move his things out, the message was about the space that lay within the heart.

God spoke and said, “Yes, drugs may have power, but the ability to love in the darkness, has more power.”

We all came into agreement that day. We agreed that friendship is far more valuable than what is owed. We were able to speak about the power that resides in us all, and the ability to accomplish God’s great plan for our life. 

My husband and I were reminded that without the support of those who love, staying stuck in the dark becomes normal. Hopelessness wrongly seems right.

Love offered to someone, at its purest form, helps them to release the power of fear. It gives strength and the ability to walk towards the light, and in the direction of the Lord.

May the Lord guide us out of the dark places in our hearts. May we go in the direction of love. My hope is that we all find someone that we can offer value to, even those who least deserve it. Let us be reminded that we were all in need of such grace, at one point in our life. 

May the Lord bless us in wisdom and understanding that He is the Almighty, perfect in power, and always faithful to forgive.

Blessings to you this Tuesday my friend!

          ~Baring His Beauty,

             Tiffany Thomas 

Power Packed Utterances

Save, Lord! Help, Father! Thank you, Father! I praise you, Lord! Come, Holy Spirit! Maranatha!  

Short but sweet, and pleasing to Our Father’s ears.  

Words of grace, power packed utterances.  

Sometimes it takes less than we think to reach Our Father’s heart; no need for lengthy prayers or heroic deeds, just simple heart cries that speak to our gracious, loving Heavenly Father’s waiting ears.

The fervent prayers of a righteous man are powerful and effective. We must abide in Christ – walking in faith and love, pray in faith, and pray with passion. God is passionate about kingdom matters, and so must we be if we are to walk side by side with him. As we pray, we patiently wait and watch for the unfolding of his answers.

Faith, hope, and love; mercy, grace, and peace; wisdom, knowledge, and understanding, love, joy, and peace – Our Father’s gifts to us are graciously dispensed to hungry hearts.  

Humility and the fear of the Lord – the keys to the kingdom which he has lavishly bestowed on us, an everlasting kingdom, a never ending relationship with the Great I Am and the family of the redeemed – free for the asking.

Let us not forget to pray for a harvest of souls – the heartbeat of The Father. Our eternity is already guaranteed, but the souls of many hang in the balance waiting for someone to bring Good News. And let us not neglect the poor – another key to the Father’s heart. We who have both the Gospel and material means are doubly obligated to share with those in need.

So we pray fervently, wait expectantly, then act decisively. We pray for Our Savior’s heart, we wait for his loving reply, and we move and speak at his command. His will, his way, in his time, for his glory, and the blessing of the elect.

            ~Brad Heilhecker 

My Victory

           A cross meant to kill is my victory! 

Great song by Passion Band and David Crowder that I recently heard on the radio. 

Enjoy! ~ XXOO Michelle Bollom 

[Verse 1]

You came for criminals and every pharisee
You came for hypocrites, even one like me
You carried sin and shame the guilt of every man
The weight of all I’ve done nailed into Your hands

[Chorus]
Oh, Your love bled for me
Oh, Your blood in crimson streams
Oh, Your death is hell’s defeat
A cross meant to kill is my victory
[Verse 2]

Oh, Your amazing grace, I’ve seen and tasted it

It’s running through my veins

I can’t escape its grip in You my soul is safe

You uncover everything
[Chorus]

Oh, Your love bled for me

Oh, Your blood in crimson streams

Oh, Your death is hell’s defeat

A cross meant to kill is my victory
[Bridge]

Behold the Lamb of God

Who takes away our sin, who takes away our sin

The holy Lamb of God

Makes us alive again

Makes us alive again

(2x)
[Chorus]

Oh, Your love bled for me

Oh, Your blood in crimson streams

Oh, Your death is hell’s defeat

A cross meant to kill is my victory

We Are The Choice We Make

                     We all have choices.

We can choose to trust God or we can choose to trust in ourselves or others.

We can choose to stay stuck in the past and rehearse every hurt or we can choose to grab ahold of the great Promises for our future in Christ.  

We can choose to live in doubt and unbelief and be tossed around by our unsteady emotions or we can choose to Agree, Believe, and Confess the Word of God over every situation. 

We can choose to eat crap, over indulge in food, alcohol, smoke cigarettes or do drugs, lay around in bed or on the couch all day watching TV or playing with our gadgets online and continue to defile, vandalize, and destroy our temples or we can choose to altar our flesh and honor and respect our bodies as we should by no longer being a slave to our addictions and compulsions and instead choose healthy foods, habits and exercise. 

We can choose to stay in a dead end job or relationship or we can choose to better and respect ourselves and make a change and give some people the much needed Gift of Goodbye. 

We can choose to gripe, complain, and moan over our misfortunes or we can choose to praise God even when we are suffering and don’t understand or like what is happening.  

We can Choose Blessings or we can Choose Curses…. 
But Guess what? 
We get to choose
And you can’t choose both! 
Stop saying – I don’t have a choice.  
          You always have a choice.  

The choices you make may not be what God wants for you to make. God may have already told you what you need to do and you are still dragging your feet in disobedience.  

We must tune in and turn to God. Read, hear and do what His word says. Get up and turn off the TV and all the other devices and voices trying to influence you so you can make sure you are choosing wisely.  

Don’t just be hearers- be doers.  

            We are the choice we make.   

You can either choose to 

Give up 

Give in

Or Give it all to God! 

Choose Wisely! 

Look, you’ve got two choices: you can be blessed, or you can be cursed. If you obey His commands, which I’m giving you today, you’ll be blessed. If you don’t obey His commands—if you leave the path I’m showing you today so you can worship other gods who are foreign to you, then you’ll be cursed. ~ Deuteronomy 11:26-28 The VOICE 

You must be doers of the word and not only hearers who mislead themselves. Those who hear but don’t do the word are like those who look at their faces in a mirror. They look at themselves, walk away, and immediately forget what they were like. But there are those who study the perfect law, the law of freedom, and continue to do it. They don’t listen and then forget, but they put it into practice in their lives. They will be blessed in whatever they do. James 1:22-25 CEB 

Jesus looked at them intently, then said, “Without God, it is utterly impossible. But with God everything is possible.” ~ Mark 10:27 

~ XXOO Michelle Bollom 

Bowl Of Splendor

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~XXOO Michelle Bollom 

Community

WORTHY THOUGHT: If a believer who walks alone will it lead to shallowness and weakness? 

Those who isolate themselves from other believers and try to go alone will cut themselves off from God’s power. You may end up giving Satan opportunity to take over your life. 

For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his spirit in your inner being. So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.  ( Ephesians 3:14-17)

The scripture describes ( whole family) Jews and Gentiles who share the same spiritual riches as family of God. We all have the same Father. He is the source of all creation, the rightful owner of everything. It is important we stay connected with other believers in the body of Christ as a whole family, whole body and all the saints, take in the spiritual unity and encouragement into our daily lives.

We need a community of love from other believers. We were created to work together in Christ Jesus ( For the body does not consist of one member but many ” ( 1 Corinthians 12:14 ) 

We want to receive God’s blessing, it is important we stay connected with other believers in the Body of Christ.

                 ~Angela Lipe-Pattengill 

Ode To Grace

What can we do that the Lord is not doing through us? What can we pray without the help of the Holy Spirit? What can we think without the Word of God resonating in our souls?

 It is enough to yield to the Lord’s work in us, to pray in the Spirit, and to meditate on the Word. It is enough to keep our hearts and our minds focused on Christ. It is enough to know that we are the beloved children of God.

Every heartbeat, every breath, every thought, every feeling we have is a gift. We are the benefactors of Our Father’s beneficent Spirit. He lives to give. He delights in having children on whom to bestow his gifts. He grieves when we don’t allow him to give himself to us; he grieves for us and for himself, for we all lose out when we refuse his gifts of grace.

God’s pleasure and our good are inextricably connected. He delights in the prosperity of his servants. He rejoices when we live well, when our hearts are wise, when we speak well. We, as his children, have the awesome privilege of bringing joy to Our Father. If we focus on pleasing him, he makes sure that we are happy and joyful. If he is living in us and he is happy, how can we be otherwise?

Our outrageous inheritance is eternal bliss. As we deal with the sorrows of this life, let us not miss this. Right now, we are in a war – a war for the souls of men. It is not easy; it is not always fun, and it requires rigorous discipline sometimes.  

Even Christ learned obedience by what he suffered. He, like us, came from and was heading back to heaven, where there is no suffering. Only here can we learn the lessons and acquire the disciplines that suffering brings. The only thing perfect about this life is that it is a perfect training ground for heaven.

Heaven will be all about Jesus; it is his kingdom. We are here for only a short time to learn to live and to serve in his kingdom. We are born self centered; we must learn to be God centered. It is his mercy that we often have 80 or more years in which to perfect this art. We must learn that we become more like who we were created to be the more we let Jesus have his way in our hearts and lives. We must lose the fear of losing ourselves.

Grace, mercy, & peace,

Brad Heilhecker