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Today’s Devotional Verse

What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:31‭-‬39 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/rom.8.31-39.KJV

Today’s Devotional Verse

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. Psalms 23:1‭-‬6 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.23.1-6.KJV

Anxiety About Work 5 Day Devotional Day 1.

With the virus and kids and staff members returning to work this seemed like a devotional to share for this new school year. Maybe something that helps you along the way as you get used to this new way of doing things this school year.

God’s presence is a comfort in all workplace anxiety

You know what anxiety feels like. Maybe it’s the lump in your stomach on your morning commute. Or it’s a buzzing in your mind that keeps you awake at night when you should be resting up for a long day at work. Those are some signs of workplace anxiety. But what is anxiety, really? Dictionaries define anxiety as worry, fear, or unease coming from uncertainty or lack of control. Anxiety is not new. It’s as old as the Bible – as long lived as uncertainty and humanity itself. Thankfully, the Bible can also help.

One of the Bible’s most famous psalms starts out by describing God at work. In Psalm 23, God is compared to a shepherd—he herds the sheep towards good grazing land, wards off predators, and comforts the sheep with his presence. 

Later in the text, the writer of the psalm finds himself in the “darkest valley” (Psalm 23:4). In a work context, your “darkest valley” may be a place of uncertainty or lack of control. This might be a threat to your leadership at work, anxiety about your financial future, or other workplace fears. 

While uncertainty at work is a normal part of being human, fear and worry don’t need to be. In difficult situations, Psalm 23 says that God himself is the antidote to anxiety. “I fear no evil for you are with me” (Psalm. 23:4a). If God is with you, you don’t need to fear the future. God’s help in your time of trial is not hypothetical, but tangible and real. Like a shepherd with a rod and staff, God has every instrument he needs to bring you safely through. God is working amidst the worst disasters work can throw at you. God can shepherd you through your deepest workplace anxieties to work out his purposes for you.

Prayer: God, I have uncertainties about my work. Help me trust that you are my shepherd. Calm my anxieties with your presence. Guide me to the right work to do today—to green pastures, fresh water, and rest.

Option for Further Exploration: For more about God’s promises in the midst of our darkest valleys, see The Theology of Work Bible Commentary on Romans 8:31-39 – Nothing Can Come Between Us and the Love of God. 

What A Wonderful World

Two Artists I love to hear singing this song Louis Armstrong and Mark Lowry.

Louis Amrstrong speaking intro origina first. https://youtu.be/2nGKqH26xlg

The lyrics give such a beautiful paining of the world around us.

Lyrics:

I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom before me and you
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

We have all seen trees of green and roses bloom. Every plant around us we have seen flourished in the sunlight and rain. The air has a scent surrounding what blooms at different times of the year based on where you live.

I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

We all seen skies of Blue.
Bright blessed day.
Dark sacred night.

The colors of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands, saying “How do you do?”
They’re really saying, I love you

We all seen have beautiful rainbows are in the sky. A reminder of God’s promise to us.

Have you ever noticed people walking by. I am not just speaking of simply walking. Have you made eye contact or given a smile in acknowledgement to them maybe even open a door for them or simply offered a greeting? Or is your head cluded to your device you don’t notice the world or those around you?

We have friends when we finally get to hang out we greet either by hand shake or a hug. The one thing this virus has done is made one realize we all need contact with others. We especially needed it with like believers in fellowship. Thankfully churches are back in session and some never fully closed to begin with always had some mean of communication with us and now the world. It is a beautiful to watch the connection we are having with others around the world as one body of Christ and in fellowship worshipping together either near or far away. The web keeps us all connected so it doesn’t seem we are so far away.

II hear babies crying, I watch them them grow
They’ll learn much more and I’ll never know
And I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Yes, I think to myself
What a wonderful world
Oh yeah

The saying is true whem speaking if you blink you might miss it. I had the privilege to watch my twin cousins grow up each time they came down to visit. When they first came they were babies and then over the years as time goes you grow up yourself having been kid at the time next thing you know they graduated high school and you are already in the work force for 10 years. I am 10 years their senior. It is amazing how time flies by quickly with babies. I’ve heard them cry as I always loved hanging out with my younger cousins instead of adults around the holidays and worked in daycare for a few years. Even as a kid I would go to the nursery. They are so innocent they do not know anything about what is happening in the world. They don’t know the hatred and violent going on. All that they see is someone cares for them. They are pure innocent love and have to be taught to hate someone. They don’t know if your black white yellow or purple all they see is a friend. They don’t care where you are from all they care about is a playmate. They see the world through love just like Jesus does when He sees His children. In a way I see it as a reflection of God shining through them. They learn to get along fairly quickly with others. When they don’t it isn’t based on anything other then maybe wanting a toy and not sharing it or something very less equivalent. They surely know vast more than us. If they can so easily get along as chidldren why can’t Adults do the same.

Personal thought…What causes one to no longer it along with others? I have no problem getting along with others is it always perfect no but I don’t have hatred inside me fo them or any discord. I let go and let God. Truly easy to surrender it to Him then let it eat at me. I pray to get along to find a common ground and build from there. One would like to think others would seek the same. We all want to live our life and live it with peace and getting along together. So thankful most kids are still inncoent of the world that surrounds them and don’t see all that is wrong with the world currently.

Yet despite it all it is “A Wonderful World”. I don’t have time to be brought down by others or pushed to go a certain way. I am merely passing through and this is not my home. As a Christian I am but here for a time and until my Father calls me home. I am to reach out to others and let them see the the difference in me and maybe want the Love and Peace as only He could give for themselves by seeing it in me. I am to spread the gossip which is the good news. Good news is Jesus came to save that which is lost and He took our sins when He went to the cross to pay a debt He did not owe. So that we can have eternal life. He rose again 3 days later. Not even death could hold the King. He paved a way for us through His blood so that we would not parrish. That alone makes it a wonderful world created by God who then sent His son to be born and then to the cross. What A Wonderful World and Love of God we have and truly blessed by the creations He created around us and by sending His son so that we can spend eternity with Him for those that believe.

Only a loving God could create such a lovly and beautiful painting around us each day. Give thanks to God for all He has done, given to you, and continues to do for you.

Mark Lowry singing What A Wonderful World featuring Michael English. https://youtu.be/-d0kuphoWMg

I don’t know where you all are from that will read this. I am blessed to live where I do the freedoms I have. I know so many around the world do not have the same freedoms and some live in 3rd world country. We tend to take for granted what we have. This I hope reminds you What A Wonderful World we have and not to take for granted the things that you have. For in a blink of a moment it could be all gone. I encourage you to go out into the world and truly see it as it was meant to be seen. See and feel the love that surrounds you and breath in the air. Smell the the air with the aromas of trees and flowers and lakes and rivers. The crisp mountain air that cools you down and wraps around you like a hug. Whatever surrounds enjoy it as it is a gift from God.

To Everything A Time

Learning to Trust God in Every Circumstance. Day 5 of 5 day devotional.

The Better Way…………A Time to Love

Love is a word that has been overused, misused, bandied about, cheapened and corrupted. The mention of love assaults (and often offends) our senses from popular songs, advertising, promoting—tinkling and screaming and exhorting us from every direction. Even most dictionary definitions focus mainly on love in the sense of sexual attraction and relationship between people. 

The ancient Greeks had several definitions of love. The four most commonly used are:

Eros, or sexual passion

Philia, deep friendship

Storge, love of parents, children and families

Agape, the love of God for man and man for God.

Perhaps agape love is the strongest and purest of the four, but any attempt to describe agape love will fall far short. For God’s love is vast, immeasurable, unfailing, everlasting and far beyond our human understanding. God IS love. That’s what he is made of. That’s what he is. God’s love is extended to everyone who has ever walked the face of the earth, whether they believe in him or not, whether they’re poor or rich, highly successful or dismal failures, good or bad, nice or nasty, rulers of nations or beggars in the gutter. Nothing we do will make him love us less. And nothing we can try to do will earn his love. It’s a gift and it’s free, because Jesus paid the price.

God created us and loved us from the moment of our conception and will love us to the day we die, whether we acknowledge him, mock and scorn him, deride him or deny him. He longs for us to turn to him and be born again by his spirit, and to live with him forever. And his command to us is that we love one another.

That’s easy when it’s our families, or the inspirational people we look up to, or our best friend, or the lovely people in our church. Not so easy, though, when it’s a druggie hanging around our child’s school, or the bully who made our schooldays a misery, or a dictator creating suffering for thousands, or the sarcastic boss you see every day. But still a command. For love is a powerful force, and there is no weapon against it.

‘Love Wins’ is the title of a book that has caused controversy. Whatever your viewpoint, that title speaks truth. In the end, it is only love that will remain and conquer the horrors of this present world.

Martin Luther King Jnr said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” (From Strength to Love Martin Luther King)

So let’s accept the love of God in Jesus, so that we can love ourselves and love others, and in our own various ways hold back the darkness. It’s a time to love.