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For the heights of heaven, and the depths of the abysses, and the ends of the earth, are in His hand, and there is no place of His rest. For the heavens are His work, the earth is His creation, the sea is His handiwork; man is His formation and His image; sun, moon, and stars are His elements, made for signs, and seasons, and days, and years

- Theophilus of Antioch

Solitude in life a lil too much. Let go of sorrow. Good things to come. Focus on getting rid of stagnation in life. The moon will bring me new beginnings. 🖤
#newmoon #newmoonreading #tarot #tarotcards #moongoddess #faith #trust #unconditionallove #noiwontreadyourcards
https://www.instagram.com/p/B879_OzFICd/?igshid=ug1vs64s5l67

by John Calvin

“And now abide faith, hope, love, these three;
but the greatest of these is love.”
- 1 Corinthians 13:13

The first commendation of love is this: that by patient endurance of many things, it promotes peace and harmony in the church. Near akin to this is the second excellence: gentleness and leniency. A third excellence is that it counteracts emulation [rivalry, competition], the seed of all contentions. Under emulation Paul comprehends envy. Where envy reigns, that is, where everyone is desirous to be the first or appear so, love has no place.

Another aspect of love is moderation. Paul declares it a bridle to restrain men so that they may live together in a peaceable and orderly manner. He adds that love has nothing of the nature of pride. A man, then, who is governed by love, is not puffed up with pride so as to despise others and feel satisfied with himself.

Love does not behave itself unseemly. That is, love does not exult in a foolish ostentation. It does not bluster, but observes moderation and propriety.

Love does not seek its own. From this we may infer how very far we are from having love implanted in us by nature, for we are naturally prone to have love and care for ourselves and aim at our own advantage. Nay, to speak more correctly, we rush headlong into it. The remedy for so perverse an inclination is love, which leads us to leave off caring for ourselves and feel concerned for our neighbors, so as to love them and be concerned for their welfare. In addition, to seek one’s own things is to be devoted to self and to be wholly taken up with concern for one’s own advantage. Paul does not here reprove every kind of care or concern for ourselves, but the excess of it which proceeds from an immoderate and blind attachment to ourselves.

Loves bears all things. By this Paul estimates that love is neither impatient nor spiteful. For to bear and endure all things is the part of forbearance: to believe and hope all things is the part of candor and kindness. As we are naturally too much devoted to self, this vice renders us morose and peevish. The effect is that everyone wishes that others should carry him upon their shoulders, but refuses for his part to assist others. The remedy for this disease is love, which makes us subject to our brethren and teaches us to apply our shoulders to their burdens. And as we are naturally spiteful, we are, consequently, also suspicious and take almost everything amiss. Love, on the other hand, calls us back to kindness so that we think favorably and candidly of our neighbors.

When Paul says “all things,” we must understand him as referring to the things that ought to be endured, and in such a manner as is befitting. We are not to bear with vices so as to give our sanction to them.

Love believes all things. Not that the Christian knowingly and willingly allows himself to be imposed upon, or that he divests himself of prudence and judgment that he may be the more easily taken advantage of, but that there is simplicity and kindness in judging. The consequence will be that a Christian will reckon it better to be imposed upon by his own kindness and easy temper than to wrong his brother by an unfriendly suspicion.

Love never fails; it endures forever. We should eagerly desire an excellence that will never come to an end. And so it must be preferred before temporary and perishable gifts. Prophecies have an end, tongues fail, knowledge ceases. Hence love is more excellent than they on this ground – that while they fail, love survives.

In James 4:2-3, we’re given the most common problems in prayer: not asking, asking for the wrong things, asking for the wrong reasons. Do you talk to God at all? When you do, what do you talk about? Do you ask only to satisfy your desires? Do you seek God’s approval for what you already plan to do? Your prayers will become powerful when you allow God to change your desires so that they perfectly correspond to his will for you.

Been a lil’ MIA for… most of 2020. It’s been a strange/busy/crazy/wonderful start to the year so far. I’ve spent a lot of the past few weeks speaking at retreats and high schools, helping facilitate events, working up at camp, interviewing staff, and more. It’s been a lot. But mentally/emotionally/spiritually, things have been going well. So well. I’ve been reminded over and over again of Jesus’ words recorded in Matthew 13…
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“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. When he found one priceless pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.“ (Matthew 13:44‭-‬46)
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Jesus and the kingdom of God is worth it all. Worth the craziness. Worth the sacrifices. Worth the whack lifestyle. And He’s worth whatever you’re giving up, too. I assure you of that.

I have for some time now been haunted by the Saami vision of the underland as a perfect inversion of the human realm, with the ground always the mirror-line, such that ‘the feet of the dead, who must walk upside down, touch those of the living, who stand upright’. The intimacy of that posture is moving to me - the dead and the living standing sole to sole. Seeing photographs of the early hand-marks left on the cave walls of Maltravieso, Lascaux or Sulawesi, I imagine laying my own palm precisely against the outline left by those unknown makers. I imagine, too, feeling a warm hand pressing through from within the cold rock, meeting mine fingertip to fingertip in open-handed encounter across time.

Underland: A Deep Time Journey, Robert Macfarlane

(His24-7.com) Matthew 6:24-34
God has promised to meet His followers’ needs, but He never promised to provide their wants. Because we don’t grasp that, we are prone to struggle because we are expecting him to do something He never committed to.

One-Two Gut Punch

“The thief comes but to steal, to kill, and to destroy…” John 10:10KJV

In the dream, I was stressed to get through a school building, carrying something, which had to arrive quickly at the principal’s office. Students were sitting all over the floors in the hallways. To progress anywhere, I had to step between teenagers, because they wouldn’t move. One girl was surrounded with a tightly knit group. She clung to my leg, as I stepped over them.

With the office visit quickly over, I turned to retrace my steps. All students had disappeared. I grabbed for my keys in my purse, finding it otherwise empty. Frantic for my billfold, I noticed trash was strewn everywhere. In the midst of the trash, exactly where the tight knit group of girls had been, something familiar caught my eye— my billfold. It lay empty— gone were my driver’s license, insurance and credit cards. I grabbed the billfold and tried to return to the office, which had disappeared. Teachers met me with disapproval, as I peered in each room looking for the office.

Awakening, our text scripture came into mind. Before sitting up, I began dispatching angels to protect all our belongings, card numbers, everything possible to hack on the internet, or leave us vulnerable to thieves. I took this as a warning for myself. Since pondering this, I’m convinced Holy Spirit was issuing a warning for believers.

Satan is out to steal our stuff, our health, our family, our government, our friends, our values and beliefs in unprecedented ways. People are stressed about the corona virus, presidential election, drug deaths, and the list goes on ad nauseam. Everyone is stressed, under siege, with many sick.

What can we do about these things?
A Facebook post pictured the Bible. Caption said— ‘Get off of Facebook and into THE BOOK.’ The Bible is Jesus speaking into our lives. Begin by dwelling with God in Psalm 91. Speak Psalm 103:1-5 over yourself and family.
God spoke thousands of promises into existence. We can speak them out and base our lives upon each verse’s validity. Every promise comes alive.
— “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid”  John 14:27ESV. Peace can only be found through Jesus in God’s Word.
— “…to which of the angels… …Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?” Hebrews 1:14ESV. Angels are for us to dispatch, as our helpers.
— “For all the promises of God find their Yes in Him. That is why it is through Him that we utter our Amen to God for His glory” 2Corinthians 1:20ESV. Can we agree with His words and believe?

In Jay Zins book, ‘The Unveiling’ all end time Christians, who were studying, speaking and living out the Word of God were impervious to the attempts of the antichrist to destroy them. Remember, the five virgins who forgot the bring oil for their lamps, Matthew 25:1-13? For those end time Christians, the act of studying God’s Word gave them oil of gladness, (Isaiah 61:3), for their lamps.

Satan would like nothing more than to snuff us out. Give us a one-two gut punch, stressing us too greatly to study God’s Word, to believe, or to receive what is rightfully ours. We’ve been given the keys to the gates of hell and nothing shall prevail against us, Matthew 16:18-19.

My question is— Are we going to believe Jesus’ words— “…I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly,” John 10:10KJV? Or allow the thief to force us into submission? I’ve decided, and you? It’s your choice. You choose.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for abundant life. Thank You that no weapon formed against us shall prosper as we stand on Your Word, in Jesus’ name I pray.

by Debbie Veilleux
Copyright 2020 You have my permission to reblog this devotional for others. Please keep my name with this devotional as author. Thank you.

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called–his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

• Ephesians 1:18

My homophobic mother got mad at me because I congratulated a mutual acquaintance for coming out of the closet. She said she lives according to the Bible’s word and the Bible word says that is wrong. Well, I live according to the popular knowledge that that “word” is mistranslated.

And I know that because I did investigate the Bible. 

My 500 Greatest Songs (306/500) Faith

1987 - George Michael, from the album Faith

“Before this river becomes an ocean,

Before you throw my heart back on the floor,

Oh baby, I reconsider my foolish notion.

Well, I need someone to hold me, but I’ll wait for something more.

Yes, I gotta have faith.”

Amen

1 John 1:9

Isaiah 46:4

Unity for Reformation (Introductory Video to New Series)

You thought it was just a game, but God’s been trying to tell you the whole time. He’s been trying to help you and give you hints about what you’re supposed to do. It felt like play because learning can be fun. Please do what He asks; He loves you.

Yesterday during the mass, the priest asked us one important question: “Why are you here? Is it just for customary reasons, or is there something else?” For a moment, it caught me dumbfounded. I religiously attend mass but never had the chance to do some introspection why. And this question, I guess, applies not only in the church but to most aspects of our everyday life.

A month ago, I made the big leap to take a pause from my job and get a master’s degree in another country through a scholarship. I had a comfortable professional life - meaningful and collaborative environment, yet there is that push to go beyond and explore more. For so many months, I have been content in convincing myself that this is an opportunity that I cannot pass. But why? There has to be a deeper desire, a longing perhaps for something. This, I really am unsure.

Listening to the homily made me recall back to the time when I applied for my scholarship. Two months before the official start of the semester, I received the news that my program was getting cancelled because of only few enrollees. My heart sunk and I felt devastated. I did not know how to tell my family who was very excited about my study, and my company whom I have already filed an educational leave. I could have quitted. However, I pushed for the application and asked the scholarships team for other options. They told me I can still push with my study, provided that I get accepted in other universities. So I tried applying and only got accepted after I made appeals. By the time I got accepted, another news came - that they will defer my scholarship for another full year. I just felt that everything is worthless at this point. 

And so I waited. Meantime, I diverted all my energy and focus into my corporate work. Along the way I have learned so much, especially on leadership and project management. In fact, I got a two-step promotion for being a program manager. I may not have gained the technical aspects that I could have aspired for that year, but I received better. 

And now, the year has come for my master’s degree. As I approach this year, I feel more prepared. I feel that everything fell into the right timing. I could not have asked for a better opportunity, especially with the university I enrolled in and the cohort I belong to. I feel more content in leaving the workplace knowing that I have gained more experience and made an impact along the way.

At this moment, I still can’t comprehend the big leap that I have taken. But one thing I am assured of is this, God’s love is certain. In every step of the way, through frustrating and challenging times, God has always been with me. And in this journey, God has made His promise in Jeremiah 29:11 more pronounced, “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.” 

Often, we overthink why things are happening. Why am I here? What is my purpose? Why isn’t this happening the way I wanted it to be? 

I learned that sometimes it is okay not to understand everything. It is okay when things are not yet clear. It is okay when plans don’t go as expected. As long as you have faith and the effort to put it into practice, God will reveal His best plan for you at the right time. So keep striding, push on, and let God lead the way. As for me I will keep pushing on this big leap, knowing that God is before me. 

Cheers and God bless!

Jesus save…🌹❤️🌹