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Now all glory to God, who is able, through his
mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. ~ Ephesians 3:20 NLT I have known for years that I have a good heavenly Father and that he loves me. Have you? However, it’s not until we are challenged to put that truth into practice that we might notice we have not really applied it to our daily living. In the last month, there have been people in my life who have been put to the test, through harrowing and challenging circumstances. They were stretched to breaking, yet did not break. Why? I believe it was because they were drawn to a point when they either had to apply the truth that God, as our loving Father, will come through on his promise and he will truly supply all that we really need in our direst moments of desperation. If he doesn’t, they will crash and burn. They learned that God is enough, when everyone else, when all other things appear to fail us. He is faithful and good and knows just what we need. He provides it in just the right way and exactly at the right moment. And then, he waits for us to recognize that he loves us that much and loves to rescue us and to be active in our daily lives. Have you experienced that yet? I hate to pray that you do, and, yet, when we do learn that, we become fearless. We know that God will show up when we need him. He will answer our prayers. He will provide answers to life changing questions at the right time. He is good and his plans are ultimately much better than ours. Why do we fret and remain in anguish when we have a loving Father who has promised to provide all that we need? When I forget that truth, I know I become selfish, fearful and independent. Not a lovely sight! It happens automatically, not because I am a “bad” person, but because I am human. How about you? Is it time to test your heart? If you believe Father God loves you, and will provide all you need in every situation, would we know that by the way you act? More than that, would you know that? And if you did believe that, how would you face your challenge differently today? Dear friends, be blessed with a deeper experience of Father God’s love and provision. May all selfishness, independence and fear vanish as you trust in that love and God’s ability to accomplish, even the miraculous, at just the perfect time and in the perfect way. Be encouraged and blessed with endurance and peace in every challenge you face today. Amen. Mary Sumner ~ March 29, 2022
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In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.
~ 1 Peter 5:10 NLT The warmer weather promises spring is close! Maybe things are looking more hopeful for you and your loved ones. But maybe, even though you have had a glimpse of light ahead, it seems the end of this trying time drags on and may never end. Wherever you are today, claim this verse and its promise today. Remember, even when we don’t feel it, our God is always kind to us and moving on our behalf. Our destination is a wonderful, safe place where we share in God’s glory through our relationship with Jesus. God knows we will suffer, but allows it to make us more eternally beautiful as we believe in Jesus and seek to follow him in and through the dark times. So, claim the end of this verse as his promise to you today. You may suffer, but God promises it will only be for “a little while” when compared with what he promises you. God will restore you, support you and strengthen you, and place you on a firm foundation, even when the world seems to be falling apart. You will understand and know from that solid rock that you are eternally loved, secure and belong to a God who will never abandon or let you down. It’s getting warmer. Spring and the new life that it brings is almost here. So, be assured, the God who loves you will demonstrate his goodness in and to you, as you trust him and feel that firm foundation growing more solid in his presence. Dear friends, be blessed as you claim God’s restoration now, his support in this and all times, and his power to overcome every obstacle keeping you from receiving and enjoying God’s love and favor in his presence as his precious daughter. Amen. Mary Sumner ~ March 15, 2022 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. ~ Ephesians 2:10 NLT
After almost three years of pandemic some believers must feel that God created them and put them in a rubber dingy and threw them into the ocean of life to be tossed around without any land in sight – no plan, no purpose. Just be a good person and try to survive. If we aren’t constantly renewing our minds in God’s truth we can easily drift into that same hopelessness. “Why bother?” we tell ourselves. So, let’s stop daily and remind ourselves what God tells us in his Word. As believers and followers of Jesus, though we may not see it now, we can be assured that God has a specific plan for each of us and his Holy Spirit will guide us there if we listen, trust and follow Jesus. How can we be sure? In Hebrews 6:18 it says that God never lies. In fact, it is impossible for God to lie. Then, ponder Ephesians 2:10 above. We each were created uniquely, purposefully and beautifully. We were placed on earth at exactly the right time to do good works that only we can do. Ephesians 1:3 tells us that, even before the world was formed, God loved us and chose us to be his adopted children – co-heirs with Christ with whom we one day will rule. God told Jeremiah (1:5), “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” So, God didn’t just cast you randomly into life. He loved you, created you as his precious masterpiece, then he formed the world to place you into for a specific purpose. You are valuable and who you are, and who you are becoming, matters to the Lord. In Matthew 10:30 Jesus says the Father has even numbered the very hairs on your head. He knows and cares how you feel. Every tear you shed is gathered in a bottle. If he has a refrigerator, photos of all the important moments of your life are hung there for him to see, as your proud Father! You were created, most importantly, to know and experience God, and know that he is the only true living God and that he loves you. You are chosen, cherished and called to live for eternity in his glorious presence. That is the “promised land” ahead and your destination. Dear friends, be blessed as you choose to believe that God has a plan for you today and every day. Following that plan may not be easy. Some days it may even be painful, but through the pain, God is refining you and making you even more eternally beautiful and mature. Be blessed with joy and comfort as you trust the Holy Spirit to guide you one day at a time. Smile! Your destiny is in God’s gracious hands. Amen. Mary Sumner ~ March 3, 2022 |
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