Boundries

How neatly our yards are kept show how inviting we are to others. Your happiness is in Christ who gives you His beauty to enjoy.

John chapter 8 verse 31.

Jesus said to them, "You are truly My disciples if you live as I tell you to, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

Fenced backyards. 

   When in a backyard we can feel the security of our home. It is your place of solitude. You can entertain there, your dog can run and play, you can soak up those much loved sun rays and create an oasis of plants, where you can read a book while listening to the birds. 

   It is not a place to hide away but a place where you like to spend time away from the hustle and bustle of life. You still need to go out and interact with society, which for some is a world of anxiety and worries. The challenges are never ending, always being tempted and following our own desires. But that does not have to be the way. 

   God has given us Jesus to go along with us everywhere. We are not alone but with Him under the watchful eye of God, who loves to watch us succeed and as we give Him the praise. And that leads us to feeling at peace, filled with happiness and confidence. God is our own backyard oasis going with us wherever we go. 

   Romans chapter 12 verses 14-16, "If someone mistreats you because you are a Christian, do not curse him; pray that God will bless him. When others are happy, be happy with them. If they are sad, share their sorrow. Work happily together. Do not try to act big. Do not try to get into the good graces of important people, but enjoy the company of ordinary folks. And do not think you know it all!"   

   The worries and concerns of life are the boundaries that are confining us to enjoying the wonderful life that God is offering us through Christ. Instead of an empty backyard that has no life, our yard becomes vibrant and filled with colour. 

   I read this morning about a grandfather holding his 10 month old granddaughter. She was studying his face and he was telling her about the love her parents have for her, and the love he and his wife have for her. Then he told her about Jesus' loves her and her concerned face turned to relief and innocence. 

   That same look comes over all people who live with Jesus in the presence of God. It is relief and joy. 

   2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17, "When someone becomes a Christian he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun!

   It is funny to think that the way we are living is all that there is. It can be scary and unsettling to face change. Most of us do not know what God is offering, because the circumstances of life are all you know and deal with every day. 

   Is your backyard overgrown and in need of sprucing up? I'm not just talking about a makeover but something that you want to maintain and care for. Something that you welcome others into. Something that others see and admire. Your hard work has created something that is beautiful.

   Am I talking about creating a spot that is your go to place of peace and solitude? Or am I talking about cleaning out the cobwebs of your life and creating a new life with Christ? Both can happen. The old boundaries that are blinding you from seeing anything other than what is right in front of you need to be knocked down so that new boundaries are put in place. These new boundaries give you the strength to be creative. 

   Will your change affect others? Yes it will. It all starts with you realizing that the splinter of light you have always wanted to grasp onto is the Light of Christ. In your reaching out to Him, His light lifts the darkness around you, so you can see a smile of hope. 

   Ephesians chapter 5 says, "For though once your heart was full of darkness, now it is full of light from the Lord, and your behaviour should show it! Because of this light within you, you should only do what is good, and right and true. Learn to go along with what pleases the Lord."

   A new design starts with believing that what you hope for can happen. Change comes from perseverance. The thing about Christ is that God has given Him to you. And He will never leave you or try to mislead you. Now you are no longer alone trying to make sense of what you have to live with. He is your strength to get up and clean what was bland and struggling with into something everyone likes to look at and be around.

   No one can take away from you, what you know and have experienced. 

   Thank You Father for Jesus. Thank You for showing us those things that are keeping us from You. Everyone enjoys a beautiful home. 😊        

    

    

Matthew chapter 10 verse 32.

If anyone publicly acknowledges Me as his friend, I will openly acknowledge him as My friend before My Father in heaven. 

1 John chapter 4 verse 16.

We know how much God loves us because we have felt His love and because we believe Him when He tells us that He loves us dearly. God is love, and anyone who lives in love is living with God and God is living with him. 

Matthew chapter 7 verses 24 and 25. 

Jesus said to them, "All who listen to My instructions and follow them are wise, like a man who builds his house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents, and the floods rise and the storm winds beat against his house, it will not collapse, for it is built on rock."