Jan. 7

Matthew 28:18
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

When thinking about Garnets, this verse popped into mind. I didn't act upon it and then on Tuesday this verse came up in a youth leaders meeting and then again last night in a teacher's meeting. This was my conformation that I was to use this verse. My first thought about this verse was the word nations, we may not be taking this outside of the United States, but we have to realize that most all of the nations are right around out doorstep now! So we do have an extra opportuntity to take it to all nations.

Now for what I wrote last night during the meeting and the scripture used was verses 18-20:
The command is to Go, it's not asking us if we will or if we want to, we are told to just do it. Don't ask questions, don't grovel, just go! Do as He says. Making disciples, what are disciples? Followers of Christ, people who are different becuase of the touch from Christ. People who don't want to stay the way they are after coming to know Christ. They realize that pit they have been snatched out of and they want to share this news with others. Our desire should be to let others know what Christ has done for us. Not only sharing what He has done for us, but then going beyond, learning more about Who Christ is and we start growing as a Christian. As it was said, we cannot stay where we are, we have to Go, Teach, and Observe. We have the comfort of knowing that God will be with us in all that we do, we will never be alone. He will give us the strength and courage to conquer anything and be able to share with anyone. Jesus didn't ask us to do anything that He wasn't willing to do himself. We must now realize that there is a task at hand, we must Go! Dont' wait, Go and be blessed.

Jan. 6

Psalm 118:29
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His love endures forever.


In all things give thanks whether good or bad. God allows us to go through many circumstances. He loves us and wants us to trust Him completely. When everything is going great we have a tendency to forget to give thanks. Enjoy the day He has given you - thank Him for giving you breath today. And find something that He has created just for you. For me it was the sky opposite the sunrise, it was an awesome shade of purple, and then after dropping Ethan off I turned onto the street home and saw the mountains in the backgroud - INCREDIBLE and it was just for me - I did thank God for letting me enjoy! He is awesome! (Nope the picture is not from this morning, it was taken on one of our motorcycle trips, but I remembered what an awesome shade of purple the camera caught and I wanted to share)

Jan. 5

Proverbs 11:22
As a ring of gold in a swines snout, so is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.


Now this is a verse to think about. Think about it, a ring in a pigs snout, that is unheard of. And so it should be for a woman who can't make wise choices either. I know that each of us are beautiful in many ways and the choices we make and actions that we take can take away that beauty and somebody can see us in a different light. My prayer is that we will seek God to make the right choices and be truly beautiful in His eyes and not be that swine that walks around trying to be beautiful with a ring in our nose.

Jan 4

2 John 1:3
Grace, mercy and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.

I do know that this is a comforting verse. Look at all the words that are used, the are not only comforting words, but they are a reflection of God. You really can't think about these words withouth thinking of our Heavenly Father and His Son. I will always go back to a mirror and challenge you to look inside and see what is being reflected. Do you like what you are seeing? If not, it is up to you to change that reflection. After all it is that reflection that we should be taking with us into the world this year. The challenge is for you to to be the light that reflects Jesus is all that you do this year!

Grace - The influence of spirit of God operating in humans to strengthen them
Mercy - Something that gie evidence of divine favor; blessing
Peace - Tranquillity; serentiy
Truth - Honesty; integrity
Love - The benevolent affection of God for his creatures, or the reverent affection due from them to God.

Jan 3

Psalm 48:5
God has ascended with a shout, the Lord, with the sound of a trumpet.

This just gets me excited thinking about the return of Christ. We have seen some pretty awesome sights all around us, but they will not compare to the return of Christ. How exciting that moment will be for those of us who know Him. For some, it may be that time they realize that all that "religion" talk was true after all. That those who walked by faith, believing that there was a God who sent His Son to die for them, believed just as they say they did. This will not be a happy time for them. But for us - it's rejoicing all the way! I would like to think that I am going to see it in my lifetime, but if not, I am sure that our view will also be spectacular. It's a great hope that we have and we can look forward to The Return of the King!

Jan 2

Psalm 116:5
Gracious is the Lord and righteous yes, our God is compassionate.

Aren't we all proof of that? He has compassion or He would have taken me out of this world along time ago. I am so thankful that He looked beyond my stupidity and called out my name and offered me Salvation! He was gracious and patient with me as I was living my own life, making a huge mess of it, and waited for me to realize that I needed a Savior! A decision that I made just over 23 years ago - one I will never regret - placing my faith in Christ and accepting Him as my Lord and Savior! He is true to His Word and that I am thankful for.

Jan 1

So I didn't finish the year as planned, but all I can do is strive to be better this year!

Genesis 4:4
God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness.

What a great reminder to us - The light is good. We should always remember that we run to the light, His names is Jesus. There are so many times in our lives when we are in the darkness, but we should be reminded that we don't have to stay there. Darkness was separated for a reason. God separated the darkness from the light. We should walk away from darkness and step back into the Light - where God is. His desire is for us to be with Him. Remember the Light is Good - God is Good!
Sometimes is seems the holidays take us back to happy places of people we loved, then we get caught up in the fact that they are gone and we get depressed. Remember that depression takes us to the darkness. Don't go there! Turn and walk back to God - embrace Him and the happy memories that He has allowed us to all have. Cherish them and know that there is going to be a time of rejoicing and happiness again. Let the Light of God warm you and keep you warm this new year.