Gratitude

Jaw Dropping Love

01/27/2024

Have you noticed that hate between people seems to be in the news more than love is in the news? That’s what makes God the Father and Jesus’ love for us so jaw dropping.

Think about it for a minute. Jesus, at age 12, described the temple as the house of His Heavenly Father and in so doing claimed familial intimacy with God. At Jesus’ baptism, His Heavenly Father claimed intimacy with Him, saying, “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased,” Matthew 3:17.

“Beloved Son” is a term that means esteemed, dear, favorite Son.

Yes, believers are sons and daughters of God. Yet when we ponder the magnitude of our Heavenly Father’s sacrifice in sending His favorite only begotten Son to die for our sins (John 3:16), and when we think of the magnitude of Jesus’ sacrifice when He left His Heavenly Father to come to earth to die for us, we can’t help but have profound gratitude and wonder at their love.

Heavenly Father and BELOVED SON, we praise You for Your magnanimous love, grace, and sacrifice. Thank You! We love You.

Friends, I’d love to have you join me any week on Wednesdays or Thursdays for our weekly Bible Study of John Part 2. Click here for more info.

Live outside of the Texas Hill Country? No problem! My weekly video teachings and Listening Guides are added HERE each week so you can use for individual or group Bible Study.

 

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Are You a Tommy or David?

05/26/2023
Standing in the checkout line, I noticed the child from the corner of my eye. You couldn’t help but notice. He was throwing a temper tantrum. “I want it!” he wailed at the top of his lungs.  The bedraggled mother tried her best to wrestle the package of M & Ms from his hands while apologizing to the cashier. She didn’t dare look at the customers in line behind her. Tommy “wanted” the M & M’s. That was clear. But his mother knew full well that her child wasn’t “lacking” for food. His temper tantrum wasn’t unfamiliar to me. Although I don’t like to admit it, sometimes I can be like Tommy. When I get my mind around what I think I want and I don’t get it, I may complain. I may whine in my spirit.  What makes me different from Tommy? Height and weight. There’s something else, though, that can and should make believers different from Tommy.  The renowned shepherd, David, points us to the key to being calm and trusting God rather than demanding and complaining.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Psalm 23:1 David grasped something I sometimes forget. There’s a difference between what I “want” and what I “lack.” Psalm 23:1 is best interpreted,
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack for nothing.
In other words, David was aware that the Lord was watching over him, leading him, and protecting him. He was mindful of his Shepherd’s provision.  If there are times you focus more on what you want rather than on God’s provision and you want to develop a more grateful attitude, consider journaling what you are grateful for every day in  Prayers of My Heart prayer journal.  Why? It will help you.  7 Benefits of Journaling.  Begin today looking more like Christ and less like Tommy.

Jehovah-Ra-ah, thank You for being our Shepherd. In You, we lack for nothing.

Prayers of My Heart HERE.

 

 

 

 

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Jaw Dropping Love

01/25/2022

Have you noticed that hate between people seems to be in the news more than love? That’s what makes God the Father and Jesus’s love for us so jaw dropping. Think about it for a minute. Jesus, at age 12, described the temple as the house of His Heavenly Father and in doing so claimed familial intimacy with God. At Jesus’s baptism, His Heavenly Father claimed intimacy with Him, saying,

This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased,” Matthew 3:17.  

Beloved Son” is a term that means esteemed, dear, favorite Son. Yes, we are sons and daughters of God. Yet when we ponder the magnitude of our Heavenly Father’s sacrifice when He sent His favorite Son to die for our sins (John 3:16), and when we think of the magnitude of Jesus’s sacrifice when He left His Heavenly Father to come to earth to die for us, we can’t help but have profound gratitude and wonder at their love for us.

Heavenly Father and Beloved Son, we praise You for Your magnanimous love, grace, and sacrifice so we can live with You in eternal glory. Thank You! Thank You! We love You.

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Are You a Tommy or David?

06/05/2021
Standing in the checkout line, I noticed the child from the corner of my eye. You couldn’t help but notice. He was throwing a temper tantrum. “I want it!” he wailed at the top of his lungs.  The bedraggled mother tried her best to wrestle the package of M & Ms from his hands while apologizing to the cashier. She didn’t dare look at the customers in line behind her. Tommy “wanted” the M & M’s. That was clear. But his mother knew full well that her child wasn’t “lacking” for food. His temper tantrum wasn’t unfamiliar to me. Although I don’t like to admit it, sometimes I can be like Tommy. When I get my mind around what I think I want and I don’t get it, I may complain. I may whine in my spirit.  What makes me different from Tommy? Height and weight. There’s something else, though, that can and should make believers different from Tommy.  The renowned shepherd, David, points us to the key to being calm and trusting God rather than demanding and complaining.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Psalm 23:1 David grasped something I sometimes forget. There’s a difference between what I “want” and what I “lack.” Psalm 23:1 is best interpreted,
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack for nothing.
In other words, David was aware that the Lord was watching over him, leading him, and protecting him. He was mindful of his Shepherd’s provision.  If there are times you focus more on what you want rather than on God’s provision  and you want to develop a more grateful attitude, consider journaling what you are grateful for every day in  Prayers of My Heart prayer journal.  Why? It will help you.  7 Benefits of Journaling.  Begin today looking more like Christ and less like Tommy.

Jehovah-Ra-ah, thank You for being our Shepherd. In You, we lack for nothing.

Prayers of My Heart HERE.

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Jaw Dropping Love

01/30/2021

Have you noticed that hate between people seems to be in the news more than love? That’s what makes God the Father and Jesus’s love for us so jaw dropping. Think about it with me for a minuted.  Jesus, at age 12, described the temple as the house of His Heavenly Father and in doing so claimed familial intimacy with God. At Jesus’s baptism, His Heavenly Father claimed intimacy with Him, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,” Matthew 3:17.   “Beloved Son” is a term that means esteemed, dear, favorite Son. Yes, we are sons and daughters of God. Yet, when we ponder the magnitude of our Heavenly Father’s sacrifice when He sent His favorite Son to die for our sins (John 3:16) and when we think of the magnitude of Jesus’s sacrifice when He left His Heavenly Father to come to earth to die for our sins, we can’t help but have profound gratitude and wonder at their love for us.

Heavenly Father and Beloved Son, we praise You for Your magnanimous love, grace, and sacrifice so we can live with You in eternal glory. Thank You. We love You.

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Are You Like Tommy or David?

06/01/2020
Standing in the grocery store check out line, I noticed the child from the corner of my eye. You couldn’t help but notice. He was throwing a temper tantrum. “I want it!” he wailed at the top of his lungs.  The bedraggled mother tried her best to wrestle the package of M & Ms from his hands while struggling at the same time to apologize to the cashier. She didn’t dare look at the customers in line behind her. Tommy “wanted” the M & M’s. That was clear. But, his mother knew full well that her child wasn’t “lacking” for food. His temper tantrum wasn’t unfamiliar to me. Although I don’t like to admit it, I’m a lot like Tommy. I may not lay on the floor and kick and scream. But when I get my mind around what I want and I don’t get it, I may complain. I may whine in my spirit.  What makes me different from Tommy? Height and weight. There’s something else, though, that can and should make believers different from Tommy.  The renown shepherd, David, points us to the key to being calm and trusting rather than demanding and complaining.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Psalm 23:1 David had grasped something I sometimes forget. There’s a difference between what I “want” and what I “lack.” Psalm 23:1 is best interpreted, “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack for nothing.” In other words, David was keenly aware that the Lord was watching over him, leading him, and protecting him. He was mindful of his Shepherd’s provision.  If there are more times you focus on what you want rather than on God’s provision and you want to develop more of an attitude of gratitude, join me in daily journaling your gratitudes in  Prayers of My Heart prayer journal.  Discover the  7 Benefits of Journaling.  Our Heavenly Father wants us to grow closer to the image of Christ and less like Tommy. Will you begin today?

Jehovah-Ra-ah, we praise You, our Shepherd. In You, we lack for nothing. May we set our minds on the things above according to Your Word.  Get Prayers of My Heart HERE.

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What Love is This

01/31/2020
Heavenly Father, John 3:16, Beloved Son, Matthew 3:17

Jesus, at age 12, described the Jerusalem temple as the house of His Heavenly Father and in doing so laid claim to intimacy with God. At Jesus’s baptism, our Heavenly Father laid claim to intimacy with Jesus when He said, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,” Matthew 3:17.   “Beloved Son” is a term that means esteemed, dear, favorite Son. Yes, we are the sons and daughters of God. Yet, when we ponder the magnitude of the sacrifice of our Heavenly Father giving up His favorite Son for our sins (John 3:16) and Jesus leaving His Heavenly Father to come to earth to die for our sins, we can’t help but have profound gratitude and wonder at their love for us.

Heavenly Father and Beloved Son, we praise You for Your magnamious love, grace, and sacrifice so we can live with You in eternal glory. Thank You. We love You.

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Not Much or A Year of Much Thanks?

01/01/2020

Have you ever been asked, “What’s going on” and you replied, “Not much” or maybe, “keeping busy.” But what if you were asked what you were thankful for last year; but not only last year, but for each day last year? Could you answer? You could if you had kept a gratitude journal. Why would you want to do that?  Is it a crazy thought that each day we have something for which to be thankful? No, and it’s incredibly advantageous. Research proves that people who journal their thanks are more optimistic about life than those who don’t. No doubt, that’s why 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says to pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks. This does not mean we’re to say, “thank you, God, for the car wreck.” It does mean we’re to be mindfully thankful that God is with us and will see us through whatever we face. Begin the practice of writing your thanks to God each day. This time next year, you’ll have a collection of daily gratitudes.

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What Love is This

12/11/2019
Heavenly Father, John 3:16, Beloved Son, Matthew 3:17

Jesus, at age 12, described the Jerusalem temple as the house of His Heavenly Father. He laid claim to intimacy with God. At Jesus’s baptism, our Heavenly Father laid claim to intimacy with Jesus when He said, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,” Matthew 3:17.   “Beloved Son” is a term that means esteemed, dear, favorite Son. Yes, we are the sons and daughters of God. Yet, when we ponder the magnitude of the sacrifice of our Heavenly Father giving up His favorite Son for our sins (John 3:16) and Jesus leaving His Heavenly Father to come to earth to die for our sins, we can’t help but have profound gratitude and wonder at their love for us.

Heavenly Father and Beloved Son, we praise You for Your magnamious love, grace, and sacrifice so we can live with You in eternal glory. We love You.

#biblegatewaybloggergridmember

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Are You Like Tommy or David?

06/22/2019
Standing in the grocery store check out line, I noticed the child from the corner of my eye. You couldn’t help but notice. He was throwing a temper tantrum. “I want it!” he wailed at the top of his lungs.  The bedraggled mother tried her best to wrestle the package of M & Ms from his hands, while struggling at the same time to apologize to the cashier. She didn’t dare look at the customers in line behind her. Tommy “wanted” the M & M’s. That was clear. But, his mother knew full well that her child wasn’t “lacking” for food. His temper tantrum wasn’t unfamiliar to me. Although I don’t like to admit it, I’m a lot like Tommy. I may not lay on the floor and kick and scream. But when I get my mind around what I want and I don’t get it, I’m rather like him. I may complain. I may whine in my spirit.  What makes me different from Tommy? Height and weight. There’s something else, though, that can and should make believers different from Tommy.  The renown shepherd, David, points us to the key to being calm and trusting rather than demanding and complaining.  “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”  Psalm 23:1 David had a grasp on something I sometimes forget. There’s a difference between what I “want” and what I “lack.” Psalm 23:1 is best interpreted, “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack for nothing.” In other words, David was keenly award that the Lord was watching over him, leading him, and protecting him. He was mindful of his Shepherd’s provision.  If there are more times you focus on what you want rather than on God’s provision and you want to develop more of an attitude of gratitude, join me in daily journaling your gratitudes in  Prayers of My Heart prayer journal.  Discover the  7 Benefits of Journaling.  Our Heavenly Father wants us to grow closer to the image of Christ and less like Tommy. Will you begin today?

Jehovah-Ra-ah, we praise You, our Shepherd. In You we lack for nothing. May we set our minds on the things above according to Your Word.  Order Prayers of My Heart HERE.

#biblegateway Blogger Grid Member

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