We are blessed to have God’s word and the transparency of the Apostle Paul. He demonstrates this in 1 Corinthians 2:3 NIV; “I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.” We too can come to God and to each other in weakness and fear. In verse 4, we are also blessed to see God’s power and not just hear about it; “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.” In verse 5, he demonstrates this so that we can rest on God’s power; “so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.”

There is something about standing in front of God’s vast ocean to remind us of both God’s power and rest. I made us a little acronym on rest as a reminder on this Water Walking Wednesday to rest on God’s power.

Reconnect with God’s word

Encounter God’s power

Stay a while and find rest

Transparency with God and each other

There is something about being transparent with God and each other that lifts our burdens so that we can find rest. We never know what others are walking with. Through transparency we can help each other to understand.

My husband Hollie and I have been riding bikes most evenings. We like to wait until it is dark because it is cooler and very peaceful to ride at night. My bike light shines light on the path ahead and his bike light alerts the traffic behind us. On this Transformation Tips Tuesday, I think about the strengthening of our muscles that is not only happening physically but in our marriage and spiritually as well.

In 2 Thessalonians‬ ‭3:5‬ ‭NIV‬‬ the Apostle Paul writes to strengthen our faith; “May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.”

I love how the Message version reads that our Heavenly Father takes us by the hand; “May the Master take you by the hand and lead you along the path of God’s love and Christ’s endurance.”

I sit this morning and think of how our bike light guides us as we endure the workout. This Christian walk we are on takes lots of love and endurance. I want us to imagine our Heavenly Father taking us by the hand today and leading us throughout our day. May we remember that we are to shine His love as He strengthens us to endure the days tasks ahead.

On this Mindset Monday, what is your perspective for the days ahead? In this photo we know there is a beach of sand we cannot see. Just like faith, it can’t always be seen. In this verse from Hebrews brings us a perspective of hope; “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews‬ ‭11:1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

My prayer for you and I; that we all have assurance in our faithful God. That we can all have hope when we can’t see the sand. That our glasses are half full verses half empty. According to the dictionary assurance means, a positive declaration intended to give confidence; a promise. Let’s voice a declaration that it is going to be a great week!

Click here and Worship with Blessed Assurance by Elevation Worship.

Last Sunday Deborah asked us to examine our bloom color and our soil. This week at my house, our Cala Lillie’s we planted last year stated to return. They are located in a shady spot under our tree. I remember them being really hard to plant with the trees root system strongly in place. I wondered if they would return. Amazingly the the remnant of the seed bloomed just a beautifully.

Remnant means something left over, small remaining quantities of something. In 2 Kings 19:30 NIV, one year there was an invasion so the land could not be sown. The following year was to be a sabbatical year. Yet the Lord provided; “Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah will take root below and bear fruit above.”

Spiritual Sunday is a time to go to church and get filled so that we have a remnant of worship to carry us throughout our week. That remnant may not always be in full bloom but God is always providing. We always seem to be waiting on something, right? Clothes to dry, dinner to finish cooking, a child to come home, waiting on a Doctor to come in the room, breakthrough, or healing. If we praise in the waiting, our root system will remain and our faith will stay strong. May there always be a remnant of praise on our lips to carry us through the week.

Click Here to worship with Stay Strong by Danny Gokey.

Welcome to See you Saturday!! Click here and Join me as I talk about stumbling blocks!

Let’s ask ourselves; Am I trying to please people? In this verse from Galatians 1:10 NIV we learn only the applause of one matters; “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

Is people pleasing a stumbling block? I know for me it can be. Often I learn the hard way. Two things tend to happen when I people please. If it is not my assignment from God, I get overwhelmed and lack in more important areas of my life. If it is for my applause, I can be left disappointed when I don’t get the approval I thought I needed or deserved.

The truth is, at the end of the day we have no one we need to please other than the creator of this beautiful beach scene. On this Finish Friday let’s not forget to be a servant of God.

As I was running last night, I listened to a Run for God Club podcast. Something that stood out to me was Mitchell Hollis saying; “Humbleness needs to come with graciousness”. Mitchell and Dean had been talking about often with humility we cut ourselves short and don’t give ourselves grace. Could this be a stumbling block in our Christian walk? Being humble, yet not giving ourselves grace? In this verse from Psa 149:4 NIV God gives victory to the humble; “For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.”

In my picture below I am stepping on a fallen, dead tree branch. I normally choose to be a road runner verses a trail runner because of debris that could make me stumble. On this Thankful Thursday, I want us to wear our crown of victory with humility and grace. Let’s take a moment to thank God for His continual work in each of us to be the best version of ourselves. As we pray, envision God removing the debris that could cause us to stumble.

Let’s pray!

Heavenly Father, thank you for taking delight in me and crowing me with victory. Thank you for the continual work you are doing in me so that I can be the best version of myself. Please remove any debris that could cause me to stumble. Remind me to give myself the same grace you give so freely. Guide me today to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with you. In the name of Jesus I pray Amen
‭‭(Micah‬ ‭6:8‬)