Encouragement for life and faith

Home » Blessings and Grace Blog

Trampled by the enemy or Resurrected and Blessed by God

by · In: Special Encouragement for Tough Times

There virtually isn’t any part of our own life that the world and the enemy of God enemy hasn’t effected, fought over, maimed, stolen, or tried to kill, ruin, and destroy. We would like to think that we’re born into God’s world and that we’re safe, but really the world that we’re born into is God’s world that has been touched and trampled by the enemy of God and the enemy’s minions. The enemy takes God’s good gifts and twists them into all sorts of lies, ugliness, and counterfeits. Our job is to come to know the Creator, King, and …

Trampled by the enemy or Resurrected and Blessed by GodRead More

Praying for Guidance

by · In: Live God’s Blessings Blog

My book, “Building Faith with Bible Pathway,” which I brought back to print is an enjoyable devotional/guide that helps us read the Bible daily. (It’s available through Amazon, plus my website www.ToughTimesandPeace.com.) Dr. John Hash, in the April 8th entry, reminds us that:  Though the way may seem more uncertain each day, we must be like David, who as the days got more difficult and as his enemies pursued him, continued to pray for guidance on which way to turn. How applicable this is for us on many levels. It is what I’m trying to do these days. I’m praying …

Praying for GuidanceRead More

Feelings and Soul-Healing

by · In: Special Encouragement for Tough Times

Sometimes I’m a real mess. Lately, I’ve had a few issues that have hit some sore spots in my soul and I flinch with pain-induced over-reactions. I semi-wake in the middle of the night thinking on these things. Not only are we born with a fully functioning sin and self nature of our own (which easily desires to take us in a direction other than God), but we’ve also been born into a family with it’s own reactive threads that have unknowingly been woven into our lives. Each family and generation has needs and deficiencies and wounds, as well as …

Feelings and Soul-HealingRead More

Jesus’ Power

by · In: Proof, Evidence, Promises, and Joy!

Jesus holds all power. Power over disease. Power over demons. Power over nature. (He calmed the storm and walked on water.) Power over matter. (He turned water into wine, a few small loaves and fishes into a feast.) Power (and forgiveness) over sin. Power over death. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. Hebrews 1:3 Jesus is our Savior and desires that we are resurrected in …

Jesus’ PowerRead More

The King – Royalty and Responsiblity

by · In: Live God’s Blessings Blog

I love, love, love the movie The King’s Speech. I’ve seen it twice. In the movie, the Duke of York was destined to be King of Britain and to speak for the people and to the people, but he painfully stuttered with every conversation. With the patient, persistent help of Lionel – a speech therapist, friend, and coach, King George VI slowly overcomes the things that impede his ability to speak. His progress sometimes seemed imperceptible and sometimes back to square-one. Yet through hard work, love, and acceptance, as well as learning to share honestly about all that he had …

The King – Royalty and ResponsiblityRead More

Pray. Do Right. Rejoice. Wait. Repeat.

by · In: Live God’s Blessings Blog

There is a right time for everything.There is a time to be silly and a time to be serious. There is a time to work and a time to wait. There is a time to plant and a time to enjoy the harvest. Ecclesiastes 3 (NKJV), (or The Message) shares more on this beautifully and poetically. Our job is to know what our needs are at any given time and to, accordingly, do what is right for those circumstances. In God’s Word we are given some basic premises. Always in righteousness (right-thinking and right-living) – we are to practice. In …

Pray. Do Right. Rejoice. Wait. Repeat.Read More

Which Well and Fountain? The Dry One? Or the Much More?

by · In: Special Encouragement for Tough Times

“We struggle to reach our well, trying to get water for ourselves.” My Utmost for His Highest Oswald Chambers 2/27 Our well is deep, but it is dry. It is part of the same supply that we have had all along. If there is anything in there at all it is certainly not living water. It is often putrid and rancid and not life-giving or life-supporting. We need a new, fresh supply from outside of ourselves and from above. The Bible tells that God offers us living water through Jesus Christ. This living water cleanses, brings new life, and refreshes. …

Which Well and Fountain? The Dry One? Or the Much More?Read More

Being Made New with God…

by · In: Live God’s Blessings Blog

“Our Lord never ‘patches up’ our natural virtues, that is, our natural traits, qualities or characteristics. He completely remakes a person on the inside.” My Utmost for His Highest, Entry of 12/30 This is certainly what God has done with me. Who I thought I was and all that I thought I was – strong and tough and in charge and right – I’m not. God keeps teaching me to be soft and gentle, to let go and let Him, and usually to say less and not more. This is huge. None of this is who I tried to be …

Being Made New with God…Read More

Valuing and Glimpsing God’s Relentless Love

by · In: Proof, Evidence, Promises, and Joy!

We talk comfortably about God’s blanket of love that covers everything. We mistakenly do this, because we think it is easy for God to love us. We think it is easy for God to graciously love, love, love us even though we sin and transgress against Him and we are rebellious to His purposes and desires. We might even mistakenly believe it was easy for Him to send Christ as a sacrifice for our transgressions and rebelliousness. But what we don’t understand is how God has pursued us – a rebellious people. In any relationship, when one party is flagrantly …

Valuing and Glimpsing God’s Relentless LoveRead More

Don’t Make Camp in Your Valley

by · In: Live God’s Blessings Blog

Don’t make camp in any valley of chaos, uncertainty, low-living, fear, dysfunctional living, compromise, addiction, or trouble. God has destined us for great, and greater, things! Don’t allow yourself to wallow in valleys  of trouble. God has provided for our victory. God has given us mighty weapons. But we have to pick them up, try them out, practice with them, and use them until we become competent with them. We have to become qualified soldiers in God’s army, a force of His to be reckoned with, because we fight for His purposes! We have an arsenal of weapons – at …

Don’t Make Camp in Your ValleyRead More