If We Are The Body….

This song by Casting Crowns has been on my mind the past couple of days. My church, which has been open 65 years, will be closing soon and we will be relaunching as a new church with a new name. The building we are currently in is beyond repair. It will cost way too much to fix and it’s just not worth putting all that money into it anymore.

It’s been bittersweet to think about this church closing, because I’ve been there since I was 4,  but as I’ve been reminded, it’s just a building! Where we meet doesn’t matter because WE are the church. We are the body.

We need to be reaching out to others. The hurting and the lost. They need Jesus. We are called to be a light in this world, to show people Jesus.

1 Corinthians 12:27 tells us,

²⁷ Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

 

Casting Crowns

It’s crowded in worship today
As she slips in trying to fade into the faces
The girls teasing laughter is carrying farther than they know
Farther than they know

But if we are the body
Why aren’t His arms reaching?
Why aren’t His hands healing?
Why aren’t His words teaching?
And if we are the body
Why aren’t His feet going?
Why is His love not showing them there is a way?
There is a way, there is a way

A traveler is far away from home
He sheds his coat and quietly sinks into the back row
The weight of their judgmental glances
Tells him that his chances are better out on the road

But if we are the body
Why aren’t His arms reaching?
Why aren’t His hands healing?
Why aren’t His words teaching?
And if we are the body
Why aren’t His feet going?
Why is His love not showing them there is a way?

Jesus paid much too high a price
For us to pick and choose who should come

And we are the body of Christ
But if we are the body
Why aren’t His arms reaching?
Why aren’t His hands healing?
Why aren’t His words teaching?
And if we are the body
Why aren’t His feet going?
Why is His love not showing them there is a way?
Jesus is the way
Jesus is the way
we are His hands
We are His feet
We are His body
Jesus is the way

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_7j1SMuTN0

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Reckless Love

I heard the song, Reckless Love, by Cory Asbury awhile back and immediately fell in love with it. I invite you all to take a listen to it when you get a chance! Here’s the chorus:

Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights ’til I’m found, leaves the ninety-nine
I couldn’t earn it, and I don’t deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God

God loves us so much. He loves us with an everlasting love, an agape love. It’s so hard to fathom this kind of love, isn’t it?

It’s hard to think that He loved us so much that He sent His only Son to die for us so we don’t have to spend eternity in hell. How is that type of love possible? To love us so unconditionally?

We cannot fathom it because we are human and our minds just can’t wrap around the idea that Someone would love us that much.  But He does and He longs to have a relationship with us.

I long to love people the way Jesus does. As Masey Mclain once put it:

I want to love people with a heart of compassion and see and love people as Jesus does.

Or as my friend Stephen over at Fractured Faith Blog  once said:

Because we are loved undeservedly we need to love unreservedly in return.

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

He loves you and is calling you by name to come to Him. He is knocking at your heart’s door. Won’t you come to Him today?

Standing Firm

I’m struggling today.

I can’t focus. I can’t write. I want so badly to write something. But my mind wanders every 5 seconds and I can’t get a single meaningful word out.

I hate this. I hate being bipolar. I hate having ADD. I hate that I have fibromyalgia. I hate that I can’t do things because my body just won’t allow me.

Satan is really working his magic today, it seems. He knows my weaknesses and is using them against me big time.

And I think I’m allowing him.

I must stop letting him win.

Satan has his ways of sneaking into our every day lives. Before we know it, he has taken our weaknesses, thrown them in our face and laughs at us as we struggle to break free.

⁸ Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

1 Peter 5:8-9

As long as we live on this earth we are going to struggle. We are going to face trials of many kinds. It says so in the God’s Word.

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

James 1:2-3

Consider it pure joy?? Is James saying we must be happy about going through trials and tribulations? Not at all. When we face these hardships, it’s how we respond to them that makes the difference. While it’s true that we can’t always control our circumstances, we can control how we think about them. As 1 Peter 5:9 states, we must “stand firm” in the faith. When we face trials we must respond to them with a determination that things will get better, that we will get through it. God has promised us this.

 

 

 

Do Not Lose Heart

⁸ We are hard pressed on every side,but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. ¹⁰ We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. ¹¹ For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. ¹² So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

¹³ It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.”^[b] Since we have that same spirit of^[c] faith, we also believe and therefore speak,¹⁴ because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself.¹⁵ All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.

¹⁶ Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

This passage of Scripture was part of my devotions this morning. It’s a great reminder that one day we will have new bodies. One day all of our  pain and suffering will be non existent

I particularly like the last two verses: ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

It is so easy to focus on our problems in life, to dwell on past mistakes and to beat ourselves up over things. But God’s Word tells us to stop doing that and to focus on what is truly important. To focus on what we can’t see. Because one day all of our troubles will be gone. All of our grief will pass away and we will be with the Lord forever and ever.

I’m reminded of the song by Jeremy Camp called “There Will Be a Day” The lyrics are powerful and true.  Check out the lyric video below.

But I hold on to this hope and the promise that He brings
That there will be a place with no more suffering

There will be a day with no more tears, no more pain, and no more fears
There will be a day when the burdens of this place,
Will be no more, we’ll see Jesus face to face
But until that day, we’ll hold on to you always

 

 

He Knows My Name

***I originally posted just the song lyrics in February of this year but wanted to add more to it after doing my devotions this morning.***

Psalm 139 is one of my favorite passages. It reminds us that God knows us. He knows us more than we know ourselves! He knows our thoughts before we think them, our words before we speak them!

God knows us thoroughly as we go about our everyday chores, at different locations and situations, no matter our condition. He does not abandon us or forget us; nor is He so busy that he neglects us. Even when we are in trouble or difficult circumstances, we are not hidden from His presence.

Lawrence Darmani

We can’t hide from the Lord! He is everywhere! Like it says in verses 7-12, there is nowhere we can go that the Lord will not be there.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
⁹ If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
¹² even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

I’ve always loved this song but I’d never seen the video for it until today (2/15/18) . I strongly encourage you to watch it. It’s about 12 minutes long but it’s totally worth it.

Francesca Battistelli-video

Spent today in a conversation
In the mirror face to face with
Somebody less than perfect
I wouldn’t choose me first if
I was looking for a champion
In fact, I’d understand if
You picked everyone before me
But that’s just not my story
True to who You are
You saw my heart
And made
Something out of nothing

I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes
Make no mistake
He knows my name
I’m not living for applause
I’m already so adored
It’s all His stage
He knows my name oh, oh,
He knows my name oh, oh

I’m not meant to just stay quiet
I’m meant to be a lion
I’ll roar beyond a song
With every moment that I’ve got
True to who You are
You saw my heart
And made
Something out of nothing

I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes
Make no mistake
He knows my name
I’m not living for applause
I’m already so adored
It’s all His stage
He knows my name oh, oh,
He knows my name oh, oh

He calls me chosen, free forgiven, wanted, child of the King
His forever, held in treasure
I am loved

I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes

I don’t need my name in lights
I’m famous in my Father’s eyes
Make no mistake
He knows my name
I’m not living for applause
I’m already so adored
It’s all His stage
He knows my name
He knows my name oh, oh
He knows my name

Your Body is a Temple (Scripture on How We Should Treat our Bodies)

How are we to treat our bodies?

Instead of sharing my thoughts on the subject (another blog for another time) I thought I’d just share some Scripture I found on how we are to take care of our bodies!

Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple. (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own. You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 10:31)

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. (1 Corinthians 12:27)

Therefore I urge you brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God–this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:1-2)

 

Inner Beauty

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

I’ve always struggled with my looks. I’ve never thought of myself as pretty. My self esteem has always been low. My confidence has always been almost non-existent. I’ve been like this for as long as I can remember.

I’ve gained some weight too. Apparently, fibromyalgia causes weight gain and the medicine I’m on FOR the fibro causes weight gain. Super. I’m determined to get the weight off but it’s a struggle.

And now that I’m struggling with dental problems, things have just gotten worse. I’m 35 years old and need dentures but can’t afford them. I have no dental insurance. I hate to smile these days because I am so embarrassed by how my teeth look.

But just this morning in my devotions, I was reminded that God doesn’t look at outward appearances like man does. In 1 Samuel 16:7, it says

….The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart.

It’s our inner beauty that counts. It’s what our heart looks like that really matters. God doesn’t look at our outward flaws.

He cares about what is on the inside.

How is your heart “appearance?”

Do you struggle with inner beauty?