Sweet Sounds From Heaven

Yesterday at church we sang some wonderful songs about God’s intimate love for us. One of them was “The Love of God”, which never fails to make me cry. The other one is newer and may be entitled “Oh How He Loves Me.” I have been thinking about God’s Great Love for me personally and as usual, end up in a puddle somewhere. Today did not disappoint. The later song has a verse that goes something like: “when Heaven touched earth with a sloppy wet kiss.” Man, that says it all!

Just remembering the day Jesus made Himself REAL to me was definitely a puddle moment. Yea! You could say it was a sloppy wet kiss. When He baptized me with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. Sweet, wet and sloppy!!!

Watching Ryan Raymond just trotting down the mall last Saturday holding his grandma’s hand, when he wasn’t even supposed to be here. Remembering a puddle moment nearly two years ago with an emergency phone call for prayer. Yep! Heaven Kissed Earth!!!

I have more experiences than time to share about how good God has been to me. Not because I deserved it, but because He Loves Me So Much, He Can’t Help Himself!!! This Sweet Relationship is definitely to be envied. The good news is you can have it too. He has plenty to go around. God’s Love Never Changes. There is nothing I can do to make Him love me more; nor is there anything I can do to make Him Love me less.

God’s Love is unconditional. The receiving end is quite contingent, however. We must believe the Love God has for us and receive it as a Great Gift! God delights in hearing and answering our prayers. Recently when Scott Brown won with a land slide in a northern state known for decades to be quite liberal, was another “Oh how He Loves Me Moment.” It is totally humbling to realize how much God Loves me. Let Him Love you; you can get real comfortable with it. Remember, Faith works by Love ~ Galatians 5:6.

Ephesians 2: 4 – 8 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God our Father, Who loved us and gave us everlasting consolation and encouragement and well founded hope through His grace (unmerited favor), comfort and encourage your hearts and strengthen them ~ make them steadfast and keep them unswerving ~ in ever good work and word.

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With the year quickly spiraling to a close, it is often a time of reflection. Most of us glance back to see what 2009 delivered into our lives. The important thing is to take the good things into our future and dump the things that we do not want to experience again. Lessons learned can propel us and help us not to repeat our failures. We decide not to revisit the issue, to release it, forgive it, spit on it, pour oil on in or in most cases, root it out. With the help of the Holy Spirit we are shovel ready! Matthew 15:13…Every Plant, which my Heavenly Father has not planted, shall be rooted up.

Did you ever leave milk in your refrigerator longer than you should? It sours. It is good for nothing. Its dead, you know its dead ~ throw it away. We learn from these lessons. Proverbs 26: 11 As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to his folly. I always thought that scripture was peculiar but since I have had dogs, I know it’s true. I never could understand and still don’t know why, but the truth of that verse is this. Don’t take back into yourself the things that made you sick. From the hurt, learn wisdom. From the pain, make it pay. From the sorrow, sow it as a seed for a successful future. Don’t go around that mountain again. You will get the same results, and another T-shirt.

Plunder your past and scavenge anything useful for your future. Don’t hit the replay button of negative experiences. Delete that video from your memory. Instead, replay the undeniable direction and deliverance of the Lord. Don’t go out empty handed either. You will need to build upon life’s experiences to pave the way for your future. God didn’t let his people leave Egypt empty handed. Exodus 3:21-22 He told the Israelites to borrow jewels of silver and gold. Wisdom is better than gold!!

Proverbs 3:13-15 Happy, blessed, fortunate (enviable) is the man who finds skillful and godly Wisdom and the man who gets understanding ~ drawing it forth from God’s Word and life’s experiences. For the gaining of it is better than the gaining of silver and the profit of it than fine gold. Skillful and godly Wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you can wish for is to be compared to her (wisdom).

Lastly, let the Lord lead you, and don’t go backwards. Learn from God’s Word and Life’s Experiences and may your future be totally Blessed and Bright!! Proverbs 4:18 But the path of the uncompromisingly just and righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines more and more ~ brighter and clearer ~ until it reaches its full strength and glory in the perfect to be prepared day. Bury your past and press into your future. 2010 will exceed all of your expectations, so get ready.  Prayerfully consider everything that influenced you. If it was not beneficial to God’s Kingdom in and around you, do not do De ja Vu.

Luke 17:21  Nor will people say, Look! Here it is! Or See, It is there!  For behold the Kingdom of God is within you (in your hearts) and among you (surrounding you).  

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Sometimes things take a long time to manifest in our lives don’t they. Ever feel like God has forgotten you; somehow, you have gotten lost in the crowd. I mean, after all, Almighty God has a big family and certainly has His hands full. Your dreams and visions may have fallen through the cracks. Well, welcome to the world of humans.

Failure is not defeat, and delay is not denial. How do we keep failure from being fatal and delay from breeding discouragement? PUSH is an acronym for Pray Until Something Happens. This is easier to preach than to practice.

This is when we must have Enduring Faith. Not just a shot of faith, but lasting a long time Faith. That push through the powers of discouragement to Victory Faith. That come hell or high water, I’m going through Faith. That build yourself up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost Faith. That I didn’t win this time, but I’m not going to quit Faith. That I am not moved by what I see, but I am only moved by what I believe Faith. That I don’t understand what God is doing, but I trust Him Faith.

This race is a marathon, not a sprint. Galatians 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing; for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. Hebrews 12: 1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Hebrews 6:12 That we be not spiritually sluggish, but followers of them who through Faith and Patience inherit the promises.

If this seems like a tall order, it is; but we serve a Big God. There is no faith without risk. We cannot afford to get ourselves involved in the ingredients process. God knows what to toss into our pie to make it a blue ribbon winner. Our job is to trust Him when it does not even look like He is at the Fair. Ecclesiastes 3: 1 To every thing there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven. Philippians 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

When God places a dream in our hearts, He will bring it to pass in His good time. We must let the Dove rest on us. We must let that peace that passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus at all times. We must let His Spirit maneuver us and blow us around like a leaf on a fall day. He knows what He is doing and He will reveal His secrets to us when we can say Yes and Amen!! God is always on time. Personally, I have never known Him to be early, but He is faithful to keep us through the process.

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