God Will Do Good

 

 

 

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Jeremiah 29:11

Just finished watching Soul Surfer with the ladies in the addiction recovery program I am working for. When I look at these women, I dont see their addictions or criminal charges or sins, I see the women they can be in Christ Jesus. I see women who are free, women who have an everlasting hope, women who are loved so deeply by their Maker. I see women who live for God and are new creations in His Son. I see women who believe and receive the miracle. I see redemption and restoration. I see women who make a difference in this world. I see women who are beautiful and precious, women who rejoice and laugh! Women who smile and walk looking up. Women who raise their hands in surrender to Jesus. Our plans look so ordinary compared to God's extraordinary plan. God took a shark bite and tranformed thousands of lives through the surrendered life of Bethany Hamilton. God has big plans for you and me, He has big plans for my ladies and I feel incredibly blessed to be able to witness His work in their lives as His plan unfolds day by day. God is simply beautiful and these women are created in His image...BEAUTIFUL

Clear, Single Eyes

"The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!"

Matthew 6:22-23

The eye is the physical organ of sight, it enables us to see our way, but it must be "clear" to fulfill this function. Jews considered the eye to be the window of one's soul. What we allow into our mind and thought-life produces desires, which in turn produce action and it is our actions (or conduct) that reveal who we truly are. C.H. Spurgeon said, "The motive is the eye of the soul, and if it be clear, the whole character will be right; but if it be polluted, our whole being will become defiled."

Jesus refers to the eye as a lamp of the body, a channel through which light (and darkness) enters the body. If your eye is clear, it is single, healthy, sincere, and uncomplicated. It pertains to being motivated by singleness of purpose, not characterized by double vision. "Spiritual double vision" is "bad eyes". Such an eye focuses on worldly possessions and on God at the same time. It's difficult to make progress when we are looking in two different directions, you are at a standstill, no spiritual growth. We can only be a slave to one master, if we are giving our attention to something other than God, then our loyalty is not to Him, our mind and our heart is to something else...an idol. Jesus' main point is that believers must maintain a clear, single eye, giving God our sole attention.

C.H. Spurgeon wrote the following:

-A heart professedly set upon heaven but held in bondage to earth is like an eye blinded by the intrusion of a foreign substance, involving the unfortunate owner of it in darkness. There is no such thing as seeing spiritual things while the soul's windows are fastened up with shutters of worldliness.

-If thy motive be single--if thou hast only one motive, and that a right one--the master one of glorifying God--if thy eye be single. When a man's highest motive is himself, what a dark and selfish nature he has; but when his highest motive is his God, what brightness of light will shine upon all.

-Two leading principles cannot rule in one heart; they cannot both be master. Either sin or grace will engross the whole heart; neither will submit to compromise.

Exploring the clear, single eye for God brings new meaning and understanding to Matthew 5:8 when Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." Single-minded focus. Piling up earthly treasures "blurs" our spiritual vision and directly affects our spiritual condition.

Psalm 91:4

"He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart."

Honestly, I needed to be still and meditate on Psalm 91. These past couple of days Ive felt under attack. I really have no idea what I am doing with my life. I have BIG dreams of moving overseas and changing the world. Dreams that can leave me discouraged and ungreatful at times when I think of how "stuck" I feel to living in America.

This verse covers me with peace. God is a loving and caring Father. Curling up under His wings and under His outstretched arms is exactly what I needed to do. Resting in the safe place, knowing that my Dad is faithful and trustworthy, and that He has placed these passions in my heart for a reason. This period of waiting seems long...very long, but I know Dad has an incredible plan for my life!

Today, I am going to simply enjoy being covered by His feathers.

Grains of Sand

I have a hard time wrapping my mind around the fact that the God of the universe thinks of me everyday. It's an amazing truth that gets more astounding as you dive deeper into it! Our Heavenly Father is a personal God. He is the God that knows the exact number of hairs on our heads (Matthew 10:30) and the God who knit us together in our mother's womb (Psalm 139:13), crafting our very being. God's thoughts toward us outnumber the grains of sand (Psalm 139:17-18). According to the University of Hawaii, the number of grains of sand on all beaches  is... seven quintillion, five hundred quadrillion, which is 75 with 17 zeros following!!!! Now that is not even counting the grains of sand making up the ocean floor, and considering how BIG the ocean is...that's a lot of sand! ...And the Bible says God's thoughts towards us outnumber the grains of sand! We are constantly on God's mind. Day after day He supports us, carries us, and bears our burdens. Worrying sounds silly to me, when I think of how MUCH I personally matter to God!