Focus: Humility in Jesus

Happy New Year! During this Christmas season the Lord has led me to many articles and passages from His Word which have been focused on humility. In today's world the focus is not usually on our being humble but on getting our wants met and thinking more of ourselves than others. And yet, as a follower of Jesus Christ, my desire should be to be more like Him--a humble servant.

According to Philippians 2:5-8

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus; who being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance of a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death--even death on a cross!"

Also, we are instructed in Philippians 2:3-4 to

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of us should look not only to our own interests but to the interests of others."

On a personal note; as I look back over much of my life, that has definitely not been my focus. I wanted my way more than I wanted God's way and put my interests before others. Therefore, I took many wonderful people for granted and didn't really appreciate all the blessings I already had--focusing more on what I didn't have. As the Lord has reminded me during this Christmas season of how much He has changed my heart as I have surrendered my agenda and all that I am and have to Him, I want to challenge you to do the same and to truly rest in His all-encompassing love for you. Our world would be a better place if we would all bow in humble submission to our loving and faithful Heavenly Father.

Becoming humble isn't easy. Dr. Juli Slattery in her book "Beyond the Masquerade" tells us how we can become a humble person:

"Humility isn't something we can attain, but it is something we can both choose and seek. Making the choice to humble yourself is never easy. Humility will feel painful and unnatural because it's inevitably linked with the death of yourself. When Jesus called His disciples to die to self, He wasn't joking. Even in small ways, choosing the path of humility will be marked by feelings of dread or desperation. It may mean not demanding your way even though it's your right to do so. It means choosing to see others with the same value that you give yourself, remembering that but for the grace of God you would be the vilest of sinners. Sometimes choosing humility is as simple and difficult as saying "I'm sorry" or refusing to becomes defensive in an argument. Although we can't make ourselves humble, we can desire humility and ask the Lord to cut away at our prideful hearts."

What a challenge!! The key is that we desire humility and that we understand that we can't "make ourselves" humble. I was encouraged as I read these words from the book, "Radical" by David Platt. "God delights in using ordinary Christians who come to the end of themselves and choose to trust in His extraordinary provision. He stands ready to allocate His Power to all who are radically devoted to making much of Him." How encouraging is that?! As we seek humility, we receive His power (the same power that raised Jesus from the dead) to live for Him. I agree with Andrew Murray who said: "It is indeed the deepest happiness to be so free from self that whatever is said of us or done to us is swallowed up in the thought that Jesus is all and we are nothing." Then, to further encourage you to give all of yourself to Jesus are these words from the book "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young written as if Jesus were talking directly to you. "I am leading you along a path that is uniquely right for you. The closer to Me you grow, the more fully you become your true self--the one I designed you to be. The more completely you devote yourself to Me, the more freely you can love other people. Marvel at the beauty of a life intertwined with My Presence. Rejoice as we journey together in intimate communion. Enjoy the adventure of finding yourself through losing yourself to Me."

That is my prayer for each of us--that we would lose ourselves (surrender all that we are and all that we have) to Jesus and experience an intimate relationship with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. NOTHING is better than that!!! Also, in our very uncertain economy, I want to remind you not to fear the future because our all-powerful, all-knowing Savior holds the future in His hands. He promises in Joshua 1:5 "No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses so I will be with you; I will never leave you or forsake you." Rest in His arms of love today and all year long!!

Enjoy the following fun song by Steven Curtis Chapman and remember to glorify God with everything you do.

Heaven's Cake

Christmas is almost here...again. The years continue to fly by faster and faster. It's such a busy time and can easily become stressful as the focus can end up being too much on gifts and decorating rather than on Jesus. We need to remember that Christmas is Jesus' birthday and our focus should be on Him and celebrating all that He has done for us. Following is an article called "Heaven's Cake" by Vic Black of the Navigators which tells about the greatest gift any of us could ever receive--Jesus.

"If Jesus were the only gift God ever gave, would you be thankful? Mother Teresa said once, "Jesus is not all you need until He is all you have." She also said, "Perhaps God's judgment on America today is the plague of muchness." If we have so much, we tend not to be thankful for Jesus. And if we are not thankful for Jesus we tend not to be thankful for everything else. Because if we are truly thankful for Jesus, if we are genuinely gripped by all that He accomplished for us, then everything else is just icing on the cake. The cake is Jesus!"

Now go back and read that again. Is Jesus enough in your life? Are you truly thankful for Him? Is He your focus? As I've shared before, Jesus sure wasn't my focus for many years. I spent much more time shopping and trying to get what the world says will bring happiness instead of reading God's precious love letter to me--the Bible and getting to know Him better. It's so easy to become consumed by the "stuff" instead of the Savior. I have lived both ways and can promise you that when Jesus is your focus and growing closer to Him is your top priority then you will appreciate everything and everyone more. You will be content with so much less. More of Jesus brings contentment not more things! I challenge you this month to make Jesus your all-consuming passion and follow His example that He left for us in Philippians 2:5-11.

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,

did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

but made Himself nothing,

taking the very nature of a servant,

being made in human likeness.

And being found in appearance as a man,

He humbled Himself

and became obedient to death--

even death of a cross!

Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place

and gave Him the name that is above every name,

that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father."

The life application commentary says: "Jesus Christ was humble, willing to give up His rights in order to obey God and serve people. Like Christ, we should have a servant's attitude, serving out of love for God and for others not out of guilt or fear. Remember, you can choose your attitude. You can approach life expecting to be served, or you can look for opportunities to serve others."

In the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season focus on being a humble servant like Jesus. Remember to celebrate His birth and to be thankful for His amazing love and willingness to die for You. Don't get so busy that you don't appreciate all the little blessings He gives you each day--enjoy all those special moments with family and friends. Share a yummy cup of coffee or hot chocolate with whipped cream (I call it happy cream) with a special friend. Find joy in the simplest of things. Appreciate what you already have instead of always wanting more. Give lots of hugs, compliment often and smile alot! This paragraph from the devotional, "Jesus Calling" sums this up so well. Listen to Jesus' words to you:

"As you go through this day, look for tiny treasures strategically placed
along the way. I lovingly go before you and plant little pleasures to brighten
your day. Look carefully for them, and pluck them one by one. When you reach the
end of the day, you will have gathered a lovely bouquet. Offer it up to Me with
a grateful heart. Receive My Peace as you lie down to sleep, with thankful
thoughts playing a lullaby in your mind."

I'm praying that His peace and joy will overwhelm you this Christmas season as you focus on heaven's cake and God's best gift to you--JESUS!

The following song: To Know You by Casting Crowns speaks so well of what I have shared with you--that more of Jesus is the answer not more things. As the song says, "I live my life to know you more and to know you is to want to know you more." Truly, nothing compares to knowing Jesus. Reach out to Him. Read His Word. He promises that if you seek Him you will find Him and therefore find peace, joy and contentment--the best gifts ever!!!

Thank you, Jesus

What a beautiful time of year! I just love fall and the fresh, cool air and beautiful trees as the leaves change colors. The sunrises and sunsets have been so gorgeous lately too. I had some special ladies over yesterday for lunch, and served that great fall dessert--apple crisp with ice cream. Yum! Our God gives us so many special gifts.

I'm so thankful for the Lord's faithfulness and loving care. He continues to be my closest friend and provides for all of my needs. I'm also thankful for the blessing of many special friends. As I was thinking about friendships, the Lord brought Ruth and Naomi to my mind. Naomi's husband as well as her sons had died. She encouraged her daughter-in-law, Ruth to go back to her people and her gods. Ruth 1:16-17 "But Ruth replied, Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me." That's what I would call true friendship. The summary of their relationship given in my Bible was so good at reminding me that with God at the center in any relationship it will flourish even when the people involved are very different. From the summary: "We know more about Ruth and Naomi's relationship than about them as individuals. In an age that worships individualism, their stories become models of good relationships. Naomi and Ruth are beautiful examples of this blending of lives. Their cultures, family backgrounds, and ages were very different. As mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, they probably had as many opportunities for tension as for tenderness. And yet they were bound to each other. They shared deep sorrow, great affection for each other, and an overriding commitment to the God of Israel." The key to their closeness is a reminder to all of us: "God was at the center of their intimate communication. Ruth came to know the God of Israel through Naomi. The older woman allowed Ruth to see, hear and feel all the joy and anguish of her relationship to God. How often do you feel that your thoughts and questions about God should be left out of a close relationship? How often do you share your unedited thoughts about God with your spouse and friends? Sharing openly about our relationship with God can bring depth and intimacy to our relationships with others." The lesson we can learn from their lives is that "God's living presence in a relationship overcomes differences that might otherwise create division and disharmony."

I have certainly found that in my relationships with friends and family. Just a side note to you ladies who still have your husbands. I would encourage you to talk about Jesus together, to read His Word and pray together. He will bless your relationship in more ways than you can imagine as you make Him the center of it!! Ty and I didn't do that nearly enough because we let other things take priority. Oh what I would give now to have those opportunities back--nothing else we were doing was more important than spending time with Jesus together! It's such a joy and encouragement to get together with friends and family and talk about what Jesus is doing in our lives and what He is teaching us. As I've shared often here, life is so empty and meaningless when your focus is on things, money, and worldly success (which was my focus for so many years). There is nothing wrong with those things as long as they don't become your focus over an intimate relationship with Jesus. Only He can bring you contentment, peace and joy. Then when He blesses you with friendships like Ruth and Naomi's where Jesus is at the center it's like that yummy cup of coffee with lots of whipped cream on top!

Our best friend, of course, should be our Lord and Savior. The day He reminded me about Ruth and Naomi, He also led me to Psalm 25:14. "The Lord confides in those who fear Him; He makes His covenant known to them." To fear the Lord is to have reverence for Him. My life application Bible says that "It's also to recognize Him for who He is: holy, almighty, righteous, pure, all-knowing, all-powerful and all-wise. God offers intimate and lasting friendship to those who revere Him, who hold Him in highest honor. What relationship could ever compare with having the Lord of all creation for a friend? Your everlasting friendship with God will grow as you respect and honor Him." Take it from me, the one who for so long didn't make my relationship with Jesus my #1 priority, having Him there now as my Savior, Father, husband, best friend and counselor affects every other aspect of my life for the better helping me to appreciate even more my relationships with family and friends as well as all the little and big blessings He gives me each day. I agree with Paul when he says in Philippians 4:11 "...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances." Choosing to put Him first every day is the key to that contentment and nothing is better than that.

My heart overflows with thankfulness for all of my precious family and friends. I'm trusting that Jesus will remind each of you this month of His faithfulness and overwhelming love for you. I just love Him so much!!!

I've chosen "All of Creation" by Mercy Me to share with you today. As the song says, I challenge you to lay your burden down today. Let Jesus carry you, and praise Him for all His many blessings.

On a silly note: the kid in me loved the elephant toward the end of the video. Hopefully it will make you smile!

Discovering God by Resting in Him

This month I'm going to take you on a journey from a time of despair to a time of triumph. This journey has happened many times in my life in the past, but the one I'll share with you happened in the last 24 hours.

Yesterday morning was the time I had decided to write the words of hope to share with you here. The problem was that I hadn't been feeling very hopeful lately. I was battling with extreme loneliness for Ty and was really struggling with my worth, my purpose and a reason to be here. Honestly and selfishly, I just wanted to be home in heaven with Jesus and Ty. In other words, I was very discouraged and feeling sorry for myself. Even amidst the discouraging times, I do know that one of the reasons I'm still here is to share my heart with others. In hearing that I don't have it all together and sometimes feel alone and like God is not listening, I hope that others will be encouraged knowing that we all struggle, but that we have a Savior who brings hope!

So... in this frame of mind, I ask the Lord to help me to know what He wanted me to share. As I read in His Word and through my journals, I seemed to only become more anxious and confused. Nothing seemed to be coming together. I thought, "Lord, you know I can't write without your help. I'm not getting any clear direction from You. Are you sure I'm still supposed to be doing this?" Then Satan started or maybe I should say he continued (remember, he was already getting me to question my worth and purpose) his attacks of "Why do you even try? You know you're not good at this. You're not a writer--everyone else does a better job. This always takes you out of your comfort zone--why not avoid that and just quit?"

Satan knows each of us so well and knows exactly how to bring us down. He knows that if he can get us discouraged that we will not be effective in sharing the hope of Jesus because we won't be hopeful ourselves. Well, that's where I was. I knew I needed to call a friend to pray for me but almost didn't do that because Satan had me feeling like no one would care; that I should just get a grip and wasn't I always the one who told everyone to just trust and believe God's promises? I finally told Satan to shut up and pushed send so the call would go through. Friends are so wonderful. My friend spoke truth to my despairing heart and Satan's lies crumbled! She suggested that I just set the blog aside and do something else like maybe take a walk. So that's what I did after she prayed for me.

As my dog Shea and I walked, I chose to talk to Jesus even though I didn't really feel like it. As I walked and talked with Jesus, He revealed something to me. Many times it's easier for me to believe my feelings than to believe the truth and promises in His Word. My feelings (or thoughts) seem to shout so much louder. Is that true for you too? Again, Satan's greatest tool is discouragement, and he usually does that through lies and attacks on our character. Satan is also so good at bringing up past mistakes and failures as well as trying to get me to focus on my feelings of loneliness for Ty so that I feel sorry for myself instead of rejoicing in the many blessings I still have.

Anyway, the walk was very helpful and Jesus also brought to mind a song that will be perfect to share with you too. He also revealed to me that when I tried to write the blog earlier that I hadn't really been resting in Him. I was more concerned with getting it written according to "my schedule" not His. His plan was for me to wait on Him for His timing which didn't come until this morning. In the meantime, He gave me the words of hope that He wanted me to share as I chose to rest in Him and quit striving on my own!

Those first words of hope came last night before I went to bed. He led me to Psalm 27:13,14.

"I am still confident of this; I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."

Resting involves waiting many times and as the life application commentary from my Bible says: "Waiting for God is not easy. Often it seems that He isn't answering our prayers or doesn't understand the urgency of our situation. That kind of thinking implies that God is not in control or is not fair. But God is worth waiting for.

Lamentations 3:24-26 calls us to hope in and wait for the Lord because often God uses waiting to refresh, renew, and teach us. Make good use of your resting/waiting times by discovering what God may be trying to teach you in them. I ask the Lord to continue to teach me in this time of resting and waiting.

Then this morning I chose to rest in Him, even though I still didn't feel very hopeful, and ask Him to teach me from His Word. He led me first to Psalm 88 verses 1 and 2.

"O Lord, the God who saves me, day and night I cry out before you. May my prayer come before you, turn your ear to my cry."

I mentioned earlier about being lonely for Ty. It will be two years since he went home to heaven on October 17. I battle with those thoughts that say I shouldn't battle the grief and loneliness anymore; that I should rejoice for the 28 years of marriage that we had instead of mourning the years that I wish we could have had. Again, Jesus knew He needed to remind me and others that it's okay to express our hearts, hurts and despair to Him. He understands and sees every tear. The life application commentary says:

"Grief and depression take time to heal. No matter how low we feel, we can always take our problems to God and express our anguish to Him."

Won't heaven be wonderful when there will no longer be grief and discouragement?

God continued to remind me of the importance of continuing to run to Him even when we don't feel like it. Psalm 86:7 says:

"In the day of my trouble I will call to you, for you will answer me."

That's what He was doing now as I went to His Word--reminding me of His faithfulness. Then to Psalm 86:17

"Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, O Lord, have helped me and comforted me."

Again, the commentary: "It is right to pray for a sign of God's goodness. As David found, it may be just what we need. But let us not overlook the signs he has already given: the support of family and friends, the fellowship of other Christians, the light of each new day. And we can be confident that He knows our situation no matter how desperate it becomes, and He cares."

He had shown me His goodness through the help of my friend as well as His care by taking me back to the hope in His Word. He always knows exactly what we need!

I know this is getting long -- you may need to take a break and get a yummy cup of coffee before you read the rest! Jesus had one more passage to encourage us to put to death Satan's lie that God can't use us because of the failures and mistakes of our past. I Timothy 1:12-14 says:

"I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that He considered me faithful, appointing me to His service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus."

From the life application commentary: "People can feel so guilt-riden by their past that they think God could never forgive and accept them. But consider Paul's past. He had scoffed at the teachings of Jesus and had hunted down and murdered God's people before coming to faith in Christ. God forgave Paul and used Paul mightily for His kingdom. No matter how shameful your past, God also can forgive and use you. We will experience times of failure. But we can remain confident that Christ will help our faith and love grow as our relationship with Him deepens. Paul's prayer for the Philippians applies to us also: 'He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus'." (Philippians 1:6)

So there you have it. Like Paul, I have made many mistakes in my past and much of my focus was on myself and pursuing the things of the world rather than on Jesus. Even though I knew Jesus, I tried to find peace and hope in things and other people more than in Him alone. Only He can satisfy our lonely hearts and meet our every need. It would be wonderful if we could live every minute triumphant in Him, but we can't. Until heaven, we will have times of discouragement and despair when our feelings seem to shout so much louder than God's promises to us, but we can choose to persevere, to run to His Word, read and rest in His promises and bask in His never-ending love for us.

Worship and Praise Him as you listen to the song: "Your Grace Still Amazes Me." I pray that you will find rest and peace in His amazing love for you.

Due to the death of Keva's father this past week she may not be posting for September.

Please check back at a later date and keep Keva, her mom Donna and the rest of the family in your prayers.

Jesus--The Ultimate Friend

Pondering the theme of friendship this month, the song, "Jesus is all the world to me" came to mind. When I think of friends, I automatically think of Jesus first because He is my best friend. As I read through the words of the song, I noticed that each verse ended with "He's my friend". How amazing is that? The Lord brought that song to my mind, and it goes right along with the Lovely Branches Ministries theme!! Two of the verses express my feelings perfectly:

Jesus is all the world to me
My life, my joy, my all;
He is my strength from day to day
Without Him I would fall.
When I am sad to Him I go
No other one can cheer me so;
When I am sad. He makes me glad.
He's my FRIEND.

Jesus is all the world to me,
I want no better friend,
I trust Him now, I'll trust Him when
life's fleeting days shall end.
Beautiful life with such a friend;
Beautiful life that has no end;
Eternal life, eternal joy.
He's my FRIEND.

As hard as it's been adjusting to life without my husband, Ty, one thing that Jesus has taught me is that He is the best friend I will ever have and that He is enough. That can also be expressed in the following ways:

Jesus plus nothing equals everything.

Everything I need and long for I already have in Jesus.

When you learn that God is all you have then you learn that God is all you need.

I spent alot of my life expecting my family and friends to meet needs that only Jesus can meet. I now know that no other person or thing can meet the need of our hearts. In fact, many relationships suffer greatly when they rely on each other rather than Jesus to fulfill their deepest needs.

John Elderidge says in his book "Walking With God": "Intimacy with God is the purpose of our lives. It's why God created us. Not simply to believe in Him, though that's a good beginning. Not only to obey Him, though that is a higher life still. God created us for intimate fellowship with Himself and in doing so He established the goal of our existence--to know Him, love Him and live our lives in intimate relationship with Him. Jesus says that eternal life is to know God (John 17:3). Not just "know about" like you know about the ozone layer or Ulysses S. Grant. He means know as two people know each other, know as Jesus knows the Father--intimately.

A. W. Tozer says, "The whole outlook of mankind might be changed if we could all believe that we dwell under a friendly sky and that the God of heaven, though exalted in power and majesty, is eager to be friends with us" Did you get that? Read it again, believe it and run into His arms and just rest in that friendship. I've mentioned before that my favorite time of the day is having coffee with Jesus. Well, the interesting thing is that when you have that intimate relationship with Jesus, and He is your best friend then you are free to enjoy your friends and family so much more - the reason being, that you aren't expecting them to meet the needs of your heart that only Jesus can. Friends are a huge blessing, and I'm so thankful for the many I have, but they cannot meet my deepest spiritual needs. When Jesus is truly all the world to me then each of those friends is like the yummy whipped cream on that great cup of coffee!!!!

May God bless each of you this month as you enjoy Him and all of your special friends!

Freedom in Jesus

Hearing that the theme this month was on FREEDOM, my thoughts went first to Jesus. As I've written in previous blogs, He is the only one who can give lasting peace, hope, and joy. He is also the only one who can give lasting FREEDOM. People and things can offer temporary peace, hope, joy and FREEDOM, but people will always disappoint, things and experiences don't last,and the search for FREEDOM and contentment continues.
That is how I lived for many years. Even though Jesus was my Savior, He really wasn't my Lord and the focus of my life. I desired FREEDOM and contentment so badly but ended up seeking for it in my family, friends, books, TV, clothes, vacations and money rather than in God and His Word. Are any of those things bad in themselves? No. But--they consumed much more of my time and my thoughts than getting to know Jesus did. What I found is that nothing this world has to offer can bring contentment and therefore FREEDOM. There will always be something else on the to-do list or some other thing or a newer or better model of something you already have that will keep you on the treadmill of "always having the right stuff in order to be valued." I was always focused on what I didn't have instead of being thankful and enjoying all the many blessings the Lord had given me.
Well, I finally got fed up with being on that treadmill and having my mind pre-occupied with things rather than loving Jesus and other people. A few years before Ty was diagnosed with cancer, I claimed two promises from God's Word. From James 4:8 "Draw close to God and He will draw close to you." and from Jeremiah 29:13 "You will seek Me and find Me when you seek me with all your heart." I ask the Lord to teach me from His Word and to FREE me from the bondage to all the things I was putting ahead of Him. Psalm 119: 27,28 describe how I was feeling. "Let me understand the teaching of your precepts; then I will meditate on your wonders. My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your Word." The life application commentary from my Bible says: "Our lives are cluttered with rule books, but the authors never come with us to help us follow the rules. But God does. That is the uniqueness of our Bible. God not only provides the rules and guidelines but comes with us personally each day to strengthen us so that we can live according to the rules." Verses 35-37 from Psalm 119 say: "Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight. Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain. Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your Word." The commentary says: "Today people most often covet financial gain. Money represents power, influence and success. For many people, money is a god. They think about little else. True, money can buy certain comforts and offer some security. But far more valuable than wealth is obedience to God; it is a heavenly treasure rather than an earthly one (Luke 12:23). We should do what God wants, regardless of the financial implications. Make the writers prayer your own, asking God to turn your heart toward His statutes and not toward making money; it's in your own best interests in the long run." Verse 32 tells us what obedience to God brings: "I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart FREE." I have found that obedience to God not only sets my heart FREE but is the only way to achieve real happiness and joy. Our security has to be in Him alone.
God's Word continues to be my lifeline. After Ty was diagnosed with cancer and through the 2 1/2 year cancer journey as well as since the time he went to his forever home with Jesus, the promises in God's Word have kept me going. I have clung to them like never before and can testify that every one of His promises are true. For a lot of my life I read the Bible more as a duty so I could cross it off of my to-do list. Now, I read it because I want to know Jesus better and realize that the Bible is His love letter to me and it is through it that He speaks to me. His living Words to me bring the FREEDOM and contentment that I longed for for so long. His Word is true and wonderful!!! Psalm 119: 14-16 convey my thoughts so well. "I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your Word. The commentary says: Most of us chafe under rules, for we think they restrict us from doing what we want. At first glance, then, it may seem strange to hear the writer talk of rejoicing in following God's statutes as much as in great riches. But God's laws were given to FREE us to be all He wants us to be. They restrict us from doing what might cripple us and keep us from being our best. God's guidelines help us follow His path and avoid paths that lead to destruction."
Take it from one who knows how miserable it is to not be content--there is nothing like the FREEDOM and contentment that a relationship with Jesus gives. Make Him your #1 priority; don't just fit Him in occasionally. Run to Him, meditate on His Word, trust Him and rest on His promises. He is amazing and will far exceed your expectations. Remember, regardless of how you feel, the character of God never changes. Regardless of what you're going through, the truth of God's love remains the same.
Robert J. Morgan says in his book 100 Bible verses everyone should know by heart: "As we meditate on God's Word, our minds are improved. They are God conditioned. We begin thinking as He thinks, looking at life from His point of view. As we're transformed by the renewing of our thoughts, we become successful in those things God appoints for us to do."
The following fun song is a reminder of God's unconditional love for us. We all fail, but Jesus never gives up on us!!!