STAY CALMLY conscious of Me today, no matter what.

God is there for us always. He desires for us to be aware of His constant presence in our lives. It doesn't matter if we screw up. He already knows that we did and He knew we were headed the wrong direction. He knows us better than we know ourselves.

He would rather we admit we messed up rather than be ashamed because His desire is to be with us even in all our imperfections.

OPEN YOUR HANDS and your heart to receive this day as a precious gift from Me.

YES! One of today's passages is one of my most favorite bible verses!

The LORD your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.    Zephaniah 3:17

First it addresses that God is our saviour and He's on our side. Next it mentions how deeply He loves us and cherishes us. He will calm us in our fears and He sings praises over us!

How awesomely amazing is my God!

HOLD MY HAND- AND TRUST.

I might have to make this a habit. To quote text from my daily reading and then reflect on it.

In the world, dependency is seen as immaturity. But in My kingdom, dependence on Me is a prime measure of maturity. 

Oh how true that is! We are seen as weak if we show any dependence on anything other than ourselves.

Does not God say that we are to have faith like children. So this is totally understandable that we should also be dependent on Him just like children should be. When we forget our place in this world, as God's children, we sin easily. We are not called to live a life independent but rather dependent.

LET MY LOVE STREAM THROUGH YOU, washing away fear and distrust.

The whole second paragraph really spoke to me and therefore I feel it's worth repeating...

When you walk through a day in trusting dependence on Me, My aching heart is soothed. Gently bring your attention back to Me whenever it wanders away. I look for persistence- rather than perfection- in your walk with me.

I especially love the last sentence. How refreshing it is to know that the standards I set on my walk with God are mine, not His. I often find myself striving for perfection and then giving up when I don't reach it. God just wants me to spend time with Him and ponder His word. Forgive me Father when I fall short. Help pick me up and dust me off like all the times before then set me back on Your path.

YOU ARE MY BELOVED CHILD.

God chose ME before the world was formed. He also has plans for my future that will prosper me.

My father in heaven loves me more than any love I can imagine. I'm so grateful that I am His.

I love this verse from todays picks:

A person plans his course, but the LORD directs his steps.   Proverbs 16:9

Also I saw this picture floating around facebook. I thought it was worth sharing:

LEARN TO LAUGH at yourself more freely.

Our Father delights in us, His children. He takes pleasure when we trust Him completely, when find joy & happiness, when we smile & laugh.

He asks us to take His yoke because it is much lighter and easier than our own. He wants us to enjoy life to it's fullest and His plan is the best direction we can take.  

WHEN YOU APPROACH ME in stillness and in trust, you are strengthened.

Exercise is required of us if we desire to 'see' God. Not running type of exercise but being still and waiting on Him.

It's strange because when I think of being still my mind still wants to wander. However, it's my mind that needs to focus and get exercised so that when I want/need to see God in this visible world, I can.

I AM CREATING something new in you: a bubbling spring of Joy that spills over into others' lives.

I have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.

Where?

Down in my heart.

Where?

Down in my heart.

I have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.

Down in my heart to stay. 

And I'm so happy. 

So very happy.

I have the joy of Jesus in my heart.

It's a worship song I used to sing as a child and it's oh so true.
My Father's joy is always close by.

I may need to look for it at times because circumstances arise and crowd my life, but it's always near and I never need to look far.

What I need to be sure of is that I never claim His joy as my own. I need to recognize that it's been a gift from Him that He intends me to share with others.

So share I will!

Praise His name for the joy He brings!!

TRUST ME and don't be afraid, for I am your Strength and Song.

We have such hope and joy in the Lord! Praise His Holy name!!

"Look, God is my deliverer! I will trust in Him and not fear. For the LORD gives me strength and protects me; he has become my deliverer." Isaiah 12:2

When we fail in trusting God we create unnecessary worry in our lives. This worry in turn makes us vulnerable to the enemy. There is a raging spiritual battle going on for control of our thoughts. I need to trust God more so that the enemy will never have a handle on my thoughts for long.

SEEK TO LIVE IN MY LOVE, which covers a multitude of sins: both yours and others'.

When we are living in Christ and following His ways we should be seeing the world through His eyes rather than our own. He gives us lenses of love and that is how we should see others.

I find myself often looking at others through my harsh and discriminating eyes. It's not something I am proud of and wish that it was easier to change. All I can do is continue to press in to Jesus and I know that He will be working on me and improving my 'vision'.

SEEK MY FACE, and you will find fulfillment of your deepest longings.

It seems to me that life flows in a circle that God has designed. We spend time with God > we have desires > God wants to give us our desires... and the cycle continues.

God wants to spoil us. Psalm 37:4 says that, "He will give you the desires of your heart." However, there is a catch. The first part of that scripture reads, "Delight yourself in the Lord and..."

He wants us to draw near to him and the fruit that is produced during that closeness will be desires that He has planted in us. How satisfying it is to receive the desires of our heart and to know that they are healthy desires so long as we are linked up with God.

REMEMBER THAT YOU LIVE IN a fallen world: an abnormal world tainted by sin.

The world we live in is not perfect, nor is anything in it.

God is the only perfection that exists.

Is it true that all humans strive for perfection? I know that I do. Not in everything but in enough things.

Is God how we find our satisfaction? Because we desire perfection?

I do know that we are to keep God central in our lives and He is to be what we desire most. When we try to fill our lives with other things we will constantly come up unfulfilled and desiring more.

I WANT TO BE CENTRAL in your entire being.

The GOD of the entire universe wants to live and be central in our lives. What a privilege that He should even desire to be among us let alone living in us.

Our job is to invite Him in and keep our focus on Him the best that we can. Of course there will be distractions that rise up, but it's in our response that signifies His importance in our lives.

There's one song from probably back in the 90's that has always resonated with me and this day's passage brought it back to the surface of my thoughts. Audio Adrenaline singing Rest Easy.

One more mile 'til I lay rest 
I have put myself through this rigid test 
But the mile has never ended no distance has been gained 
I do not see greatness I wanted to obtain 
Where is my embrace from the race that I have run? 
I have kept a steady pace but still I have not won 


Chorus 
Rest easy 
Have no fear 
I love you perfectly 
Love drives out fear 
I'll take your burden 
You take my grace 
Rest easy 
In my embrace 


I am such a sinner I fear my evil ways 
I fear my imperfection I fear my final days 
I just want to take control and snap this rusty chain 
Drop my heavy burden it seems to be in vain 


Repeat chorus 


Bridge 
I am not a bold man even though I want to be 
I am just a dreamer with a timid history 
Scared of confrontations I fume all through the night 
The world has it's hold on me and I just want to fly 
The sky, the sky is open wide 
But I can't fly 'til I step aside 


Chorus ii 
Rest easy 
Have no fear 
I love you perfectly 
And perfect love drives out fear 
I'll take your burden 
You take my grace 
Rest easy 
In my embrace 
Rest easy, rest easy 
Rest easy, in my embrace 
Rest easy

RELAX IN MY HEALING, holy Presence.

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD.
Psalm 46:10a

All the running around we do to appear like we have it together.
All the worrying we do that helps no one.
All the restless nights we have with unrelenting thoughts circling our pillow like vultures.
All this is nothing.
There is no fruit that can become of it.

Our most success in life is from our stillness when we have our face and ears turned towards God.

I AM INVOLVED in each moment of your life.

Even when life might not seem ideal, God is there with us and knew we would be in the exact place at that exact moment long before we arrived. God is helping us along every step of the way.

Isaiah 41:13 states: For I am the LORD your God, the one who takes hold of your right hand, who says to you, 'Don't be afraid, I am helping you.'

Praise be to God! I pray that I would always be reminded of this when the trials of life seem insurmountable.