The truth.

God has revealed the warmth and love of Jesus.

Psalms chapter 50 verses 7,  13-15.

O My people, listen! For I am your God. Listen! 

"I do not need your sacrifices of flesh and blood. What I want from you is your true thanks; I want your promises fulfilled. I want you to trust Me in your times of trouble, so I can rescue you, and you can give Me glory."

What is it that is occupying your thoughts? Is it financial woes, relational issues, your job or your failing health. Our worries come from the tasks ahead. We can't help thinking all the time. Our minds are problem solvers and that is what distracts us from Jesus. 

   Isaiah chapter 64 says, "For since the world began no one has seen or heard of such a God as ours, who works for those who wait for Him! You welcome those who cheerfully do good, who follow godly ways. But we are not godly; we are constant sinners and have been all our lives. And yet, O Lord, You are our Father. We are the clay and you are the Potter. We are all formed by Your hand. Oh, be not so angry with us, Lord, nor forever remember our sins. Oh, look and see that we are all your people."

   There are a couple of words that are used in the bible that can be hard to understand and may form many opinions. "Sinner and Righteous."

   Being a sinner does not mean you are a bad person, it only refers to a life style that is led by a life without God in it. Being righteous does not mean being "Mr. Goody Two Shoes" either. It means that you are deliberately making a conscience effort to live life according to the ways of God as you follow Jesus. 

   The apostle Paul spoke of this in Romans chapter 7 saying, "I do not understand myself at all, for I really want to do what is right, but I can't. I do what I do not want to---what I hate. I know perfectly well that what I am doing is wrong, and my bad conscience proves that I agree with these laws I am breaking. But I can't help myself, because I'm no longer doing it. It is sin inside me that is stronger than I am that makes me do these things." 

   When I read that, I did not feel alone anymore, like I was the only one struggling with troubles.  Others were going through exactly as I was and the only way I was going to get better was to fight through each day and through each trial and to do it with Jesus at my side. 

   Paul continued to say, "So you see how it is: my new life tells me to do right, but the old nature that is still inside me loves to sin. Oh, what a terrible predicament I'm in! Who will free me from my slavery to this deadly lower nature? Thank God! It has been done by Jesus Christ our Lord. He has set me free."

   The only way to fight the temptations, desires, worries and anxieties is to read the Scriptures, pray to God and know that He is with you all day long. You can win and you can be successful at overcoming, all you need to do is trust in God. Jesus suffered and was buried, yet He is alive. God fulfilled His promises and was there with Him as He is with you. 

   2 Corinthians chapter 5 says, "We know these things are true by believing, not by seeing. And we are not afraid, but are quite content to die, for then we will be at home with the Lord. So our aim is to please Him in everything we do, whether we are here in this body or away from this body and with Him in heaven."

   It brings a smile to your face when you see God working through you and all because you are trusting in Him. You turned away from temptation, you fought through your desires and chose a better path. And you thanked God for showing you the way. 

   Galatians chapter 5 says, "Those who belong to Christ have nailed their natural evil desires to His cross and crucified them there."

   You make the choice. God has placed the offer right there in front of you and when you are ready Jesus will be right there to show you the way and to stand there beside you as you make your journey. 

   In Philippians chapter 3 the apostle Paul says, " All these things that I once thought very worthwhile---now I have thrown them all away so that I can put my trust and hope in Christ alone. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have put aside all else, counting it worth less than nothing, in order that I can have Christ, and become one with Him, no longer counting on being saved by being good enough or by obeying God's laws, but by trusting Christ to save me; for God's way of making us right with Himself depends on faith---counting on Christ alone. Now I have given up everything else---I have found it to be the only way to really know Christ and to experience the mighty power that brought Him back to life again, and to find out what it means to suffer and to die with Him. So, whatever it takes, I will be one who lives in the fresh newness of life of those who are alive from the dead."

   Once Jesus comes into your life you will know there is no other place you want to be than with Him all the time in everything you are doing. And you will know He is with you because of the joy you are feeling. That is the Holy Spirit who has moved into you and opened your thoughts, your eyes and all your other senses to know the love of God through His grace and mercies.

   The truth is you have been brought to life again, and you now know your place is with Jesus. And everyday when the battles show up, you are confident in the power of Christ. You are standing with Him and nothing is going to change that smile upon your face. 

   Thank You Father for Jesus. I could not see the truth about You until I looked Your way and found what had been missing. Jesus is the Way, yes, and the Truth and the Life. 😊  

          

Proverbs chapter 11 verse 2.

A good man is guided by his honesty; the evil man is destroyed by his dishonesty. 

2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21.

For God took the sinless Christ and poured into Him our sins. Then, in exchange, He poured God's goodness into us!   

Jeremiah chapter 17 verse 9.

The heart is the most deceitful thing there is and desperately wicked. No one can really know how bad it is! Only the Lord knows!

Lamentations chapter 3 verses 21-26.

There is one ray of hope! His compassion never ends. It is only the Lord's mercies that have kept us from complete destruction. Great is His faithfulness; His lovingkindness is new every morning. My soul claims the Lord as my inheritance; therefore I will hope in Him. The Lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for Him, to those who seek for Him. It is good both to hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.