God's Great Grace and Love

The snowy view from my window this morning

Sunday Scripture

and a

Song

"The Lord your God is with you,

the Mighty Warrior who saves.

He will take great delight in you;

in his love he will no longer rebuke you,

but will rejoice over you with singing."

Zephaniah 3:17

There is no thought more beautiful to me than that of God singing over me with His love.

God's great grace, the gift of His unmerited favor as manifested in the salvation of sinners and bestowal of His blessings,
is given freely to all who call on His name.
Glory to God
and praise and thanksgiving
for this undeserved gift.

To know our Almighty Savior is always with us, and that He will never leave us, is a comfort and an inexplicable joy.

Here is a song for you by Citizen Way, "How Sweet the Sound" that reminds us of God's great love and the beauty of knowing we are never alone. God is always with us, and He will always love us. No matter what. Praise be to God!

Subscribers please click on Hope to find to view this video on my blog site.

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Thanks for visiting today. I pray God's blessings of love, joy and peace to all of you.

Just Say Thank You

Sunday Scripture

and a

Song

"We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus."

Acts 14:11 NLT

Our song today: I wake up with these words and this melody in my head 

on so many mornings lately, so I thought I'd share it with you.

MIKESCHAIR "All I Can Do"

Subscribers please click on Hope to find to view this video on my blog.

Mobile users click here to view this video on youtube. 

Thank you!

And if you would like to find more that I am thankful for, 

read on to my previous post "Late Summer Beauty" 

written August 23rd 

And remember - to be thankful.

This one life

Is all we are given. 

Find beauty

Everywhere

and 

Give Thanks.

Blessings, my friends

Being Made New

   Sunday Scripture and a Song

It was a very good spring for lilacs. An abundant crop of flowers blessed those of us who love these harbingers of the midwestern springtime as we enjoyed their glorious flowers and heavenly aroma. A recent visit to the Longnecker Gardens in the UW-Madison Arboretum was a delight to the senses, as dozens of different varieties of lilacs vied for my attention. I can almost smell them as I write this. Or maybe, it's the new batch of Korean lilacs blooming outside my window.

In all their glorious beauty, these flowers are made new again each spring. 



While enjoying my own 'Sensation' lilac, I noticed an anomaly. What makes this variety so unique is that each lavender flower petal is outlined in white. 

However, I found a branch with a pure white bloom. Somehow, one part of this shrub had reverted back to one of its parent plant's colors. 

In its efforts to make something new, a bit of the past snuck into its genetic make-up. 

I think sometimes I can be like that lilac. 



With the grace of God I am made new with each day. And my forward progress allows me to become a new creation as I journey through my days.

But sometimes, part of my past tugs at me, pulling my thoughts into a place I really should not go. It is wearying to hold onto emotions tied to times in our life that we know we need to let go. We never forget, yet we do not need to dwell on sorrows, mistakes, or painful memories.

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."

Isaiah 43:19

ONLY through God are we made new. With each and every day, we are given the opportunity for new growth in our spiritual lives, and this is reflected in the choices we make every day. We have to make the choice to move forward, and not to revert to past behaviors or ways of thinking. Every day, we must choose. 

God gives us the blessing of His grace, so that we may have the opportunity to change our path, our way of thinking, and our lives. It is easy to be made new. We just have to trust in the One who gives us new mercies with each and every day.


Today's song is "Moving Forward" performed by Israel Houghton, written by Ricardo Sanchez and Israel Houghton. This is a powerful worship song to help us celebrate the freedom of choice in trusting our lives to God, and the strength we gain by giving our lives to God.

Subscribers please click on Hope to find to view this video on my website.

Mobile users click here to view this video on youtube. Thanks!

Who I Am

Sunday Scripture

and a

Song

“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; 

it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 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 2:8-10 (NLT)

The Song "Who Am I?" by Casting Crowns was the song that defined me and called me into my music ministry. Through the words in this song, Mark Hall describes how temporary and insignificant this life is compared to the great gift from God through His Son, Jesus Christ that allows us to know we are God's children and we are loved.

Subscribers please click here to view this video on my blog.

Hope through Forgiveness

We all make mistakes. Some are big, and affect our lives or our world for a long time while others are small, and impact us on the inside in how we view our place in the world.

One thing is certain, we can’t change the past. The laws of physics in our universe assure us of that. So what can we do, but move forward into a new day.

We can learn so much about ourselves by realizing our faults and human frailties. And it does us no good to berate ourselves for our mistakes. We need to learn what we can from our minor disasters and then learn how to move on.

First and foremost, if we have done harm to others, we must ask for forgiveness. If we are unable to do this face-to-face, we can bring our requests to God. After all, He is the master of forgiveness. Pray for forgiveness for your mistakes, and pray that God's comfort will be known to anyone you have caused to feel pain.

We should pray to God for forgiveness if our actions have taken us off the path He chose for us. We know when this is so because of the way we feel inside.  Sometimes our choices seem like a good idea at the time, but we realize later how self-serving they were and how wrong it makes us feel.

There are times when we feel anguish over our choices, like a pounding waterfall beating us relentlessly with torrents of regret and shame. These are the times to come before your Maker and confess your mistakes and pray for forgiveness and a new direction in your life.

Other times, our mistakes are smaller and not as far-reaching, though we feel the sting in our memory and wish we could right the wrong. Sometimes this can be achieved by facing our guilt straight on. Pray for direction in how to go forward. An apology can go a long way in bringing peace to your heart and to others if they feel wronged. Pray for grace, that God will help everyone involved respect and understand the humanness behind the error.

We will make mistakes. It is part of our human nature. Staying stuck in regret will not help us. We must learn what we can from the past, and move forward with new hope. Let the little things go by, as they are probably not a big as you think. And work through the big problems with an eye toward what you can do to right the wrong rather than dwelling on what you have failed to do.

Take time to understand why you made the choice you did, to help prevent making the same mistake again. Understand that we are all human, and God knows we will make poor choices at times. He wants us to live in freedom and in peace, so do what you can to makes things right, and then forgive yourself. This is usually the hardest part, but you can take this to God too. Ask for help. Pour out your heart to Him. His is listening. 

Let God’s grace shine in your life and live it as an example of how we should treat one another. And that includes loving yourself. Charity begins at home, and must extend to all the world. Let us find hope and peace through forgiveness and compassion, and allow it to spread throughout this world we share.