Easter is a time of miracles
and a chance for man’s redemption.
It started many years ago
And was a plan of God’s invention.
He sent to us his only Son
Whose love for us was great.
He died on the cross and rose again
To save us all from our sin
such as blasphemy and hate.
Enjoy Grace!!!
When we cling to Jesus, we can believe He will change our broken hearts. When we view ourselves as independently righteous, we believe we don’t need change – Eric Nelson.
In Christ, we are free to acknowledge our sins. That is one way we differ from the ways of the world. We have the freedom to rest in the perfect righteousness of Christ and admit our sins. We don’t live in the world holding on to our burden of sin. Rather we express our sins and admit we are no longer self-relying beings.
We show the world that we are vulnerable because we are loved and freed by Christ. Freedom doesn’t rest in the approval of the world; it rests in God has already approved of us. By faith, we are redeemed by the grace and the peace of Christ. A grace that covers us and a peace that grants us freedom in our weakness.
God commands us to live in the world but not to be of the world (John 17:14-15). We can be vulnerable in our admittance of sins to God and others. It will express your reliance on God and may bring encouragement and healing to someone who’s living in the false righteousness of our world.
The upright citizen doing so much good? Society says they are doing good for themselves.
Prayer: Lord, may I cling to you in the midst of my sin. Reveal to me in your Word and my conscience all sin and whatever is not honoring to you. Lead me to the way of your Son. When I commit sin against You, may I confess it, repent of it and rest in your grace and peace as you work to change my heart. Amen.
This is a quick break down:
1. In life, those with the Lion Heart get the Lion share.
2. In life, only the Bold get the Gold.
3. In life, only those with the Liver get the Silver.
4. In life, only the Risk Takers become Rich.
5. In life, only the Brave becomes Great, Successful and Wealthy.
6. In life, nothing happens until you make it happen for yourself.
7. Behind anything Automatic is a ‘Human-matic’ effort.
8. In life, what you don’t expect, you won’t experience.
9. In life, what you don’t desire, you do not deserve.
10. *If you keep on waiting for the Right Time, Right Job, Right Opportunity, you will keep on wasting your life*
11. Your youth is your Peak, if you miss your Peak, you will end in the Pit of life and you become an object of Pity.
12. What you do not Imagine, you will not Manifest.
13. Whatever you can Conceive and Believe, you can Achieve.
14. Whatever you can Conceptualize and Visualize, you will Actualize.
15. *What you don’t Resist has a right to Remain.*
16. *What you don’t want, you don’t watch it happen to you. *
17. Only the Adventurous advances in Life.
18. *What you don’t Fight will Prevail.*
19. If you have nothing to Inspire you, you will get Expired.
20. You have to endure the Pains of today, to have the Gains of tomorrow.
21. Life itself is a race.
When G is added to race, it becomes Grace. G + race = Grace.
The G in Grace is by God.
Let God be in your race, and your life will enjoy His Grace.
My people irrespective of your salary, job or business we are doing the most important thing is the Grace of God, once the Grace of God is involved! That’s all… Is not those that worked nor runneth but by the mercy & grace of Almighty God!
Do have a gracious dream!
Happy Sunday..
Inspiration: Jesus Culture..
Who is like You
Happy Good Friday!!!
If you’re ready to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ—the Prince of Peace—then you can definitely find peace in your life. So ake this season of Easter a time to dwell in his presence and observe the peace of the Holy Spirit through the Son of God Jesus Christ.
Peace is actually part of the inheritance package that comes to us when we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior. John 14:27 says, 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.
At one time, I didn’t know what peace felt like. But His Word has led me to experience a lot more peace and joy in my life…and I’d love for you to experience it too.
Here are seven practical ways you can immediately increase your peace.
1. Search for peace. If you tend to lose your peace to worry or anger or getting stressed out, then make it a priority to learn how to find your peace in Jesus. First Peter 3:11 AMP explains what peace is and how we are to pursue it.
2. Take inventory of your time. Maybe you have way too much on your plate, and yet you keep saying yes to things that really don’t have to be on your calendar. God designed us to be fruitful, not busy. So, cut away the dead branches that are no longer bearing fruit (see John 15:2).
3. Trust God. God cares about everything that concerns us—and He wants us to learn how to cast our cares on Him (see 1 Peter 5:7). As we hand everything over to Him, we enter His perfect peace.
4. Decide not to be a people pleaser. It’s impossible to keep all the people in your life happy all the time. Don’t try to please someone at the expense of displeasing or being disobedient to God. Live to please Him first.
5. Mind your own business. I’ve found out that the less I know about other people, the better off I am. Being nosy and spending energy trying to find out what others are doing is a roadblock to peace in your life. See 1 Thessalonians 4:11.
6. Let peace be the umpire of your life. If you have an important decision to make, don’t rush yourself; weigh it on the Word of God. Colossians 3:15 instructs us to use peace as a deciding factor in our decision-making process.
7. Do what you can to simplify. Sometimes it means you’ll need to go with the flow instead of creating an argument over something petty. Or, it might mean downsizing your “stuff.” Trying to take care of too much can just overwhelm and frustrate you.
Try putting these suggestions into practice, and see if it leads to a more peaceful, positive life. Remember that Jesus is the Prince of Peace, and He can provide the tranquility you need…even in today’s busy world.
Have you ever heard the following phrase used to positively describe someone:
“He/she is so down to earth.”
The connotation that is usually associated with this phrase is that the person being described is easy to relate to, easy to get along with and doesn’t make others uncomfortable.
As I read about the life of Jesus Christ, I often find myself asking, would people describe Him today as “down to earth”? In one sense, it is obvious that Jesus was easy to relate to, that he met people where they were, and that people longed to be around Him. In this sense, I guess He could be described as “down to earth”. He could relate to and empathize with our humanity. At the same time, His very presence convicted people of their sin and sent them to their knees in repentance. He didn’t affirm their sin and make them comfortable with it. The story of the Samaritan woman at the well is such a good example of this. Just by simply conversing with her, Jesus was saying, “I love you, I care about you, and I do not condemn you.” But within a few moments of their discussion, all of her sins were laid out in the open.
I would also point out that Jesus’ response to sin and brokenness was anything but “down to earth”. It was was completely heavenly minded. He didn’t respond to physical ailments with a candid, “I am so sorry that you are not feeling well.” On the contrary, He said things like, “Take up your mat and walk,” or “Your faith has healed you.” When faced with death, Jesus responded with things like “She is not dead, she is only sleeping,” and “His sickness will not end in death.” These responses didn’t make everyone comfortable and content all around Him. Those miracles either had people leaping for joy in awe and amazement, or they made people so angry that they wanted to kill Him. In this sense, I am not sure that anyone in His day would have described Jesus as down to earth, but would probably have been more likely to describe Him as “Out of the world.”
So what does this mean for us as followers of Christ? A speaker that I often listen to named Todd White puts it like this, “We cannot be so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good, but we should be so heavenly minded that we are earthly incredible.” To simplify that a bit, we should be “down to earth” in the way that we connect with people. As followers of Christ, we are not better than anyone by any means. In fact, our declaration of faith is that we are just as lost and broken as every other human being that has ever walked the earth. Our testimony is so powerful, because it is a reminder of where He rescued us from, and it enables us to empathize with others and meet them where they are.
However, our response to their brokenness should be nothing short of “out of this world”. When people open up to us about their struggles, the sins, or their physical ailments, our response should make their jaw drop. It should not be like the candid responses they are used to that affirm their sin or offer unauthentic sympathy to their pain. Our response to these things should immediately point them to our loving Father in Heaven. What if our response to sin was a declaration of boundless grace and forgiveness? What if our response to the physical pain of others was a declaration of faith that legitimately believed for physical healing?
We are the sweet aroma of Christ to those who our perishing and to those who are being saved. Yes, we are in this world, but when we give our lives to Christ our spirit takes up residence in a glorious and powerful kingdom that is not of this world. We operate in this world as ambassadors for Christ, but it isn’t our worldliness that draws people to Him, it is our Kingdom response. That Kingdom response may be met with exuberant joy, or it may be met with anger and rage. Either way, it will point people to our King.
As you seek to pursue Christ today, remember your humanity. Be “down to earth” as you connect with people and relate to their struggles. At the same time, remember that you are a son of the most high God! You are earthly incredible, and you are the sweet aroma of Christ to everyone that you encounter. Let your response to brokenness and pain be chalked full of faith, hope, joy and love! Our ultimate goal isn’t to blend in and be described as down to earth, but for Jesus to stand out and for His love to be exalted as supernaturally out of this world!
This won’t be possible if not for the support and contribution of Brian Maisch.
By: CHARLES HAMRICK
I read a quote in a friends email today that you have heard, but I am going to steal and share in this post. It read, “Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass, it is about learning to dance in the rain.”
As I do with most things I related this to sports. Golf and Football come to mind when I think of sports that you have to know how to play in the rain. They only stop when there is lighting and thus there needs to be practice for how to compete in these conditions. For football, I know that teams use “wet ball” drills and make it a point to practice when it is actually raining outside. In golf, it is being prepared with the right equipment (rain gear, gloves, etc).
In both cases, it is a very different way of playing the game that you may have learned in perfect or near perfect conditions. While I don’t prefer playing in the rain, understand that sometimes it just has to be done.
God calls us to “dance in the rain” through the storms of life. Being a follower of Christ is not always Sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows (random Leslie Gore reference). But just because it isn’t perfect weather, doesn’t mean that we need to run inside and not continue to play this game that we love (Following Christ). Satan wants to push you inside and have you not share the love of Jesus with others. I promise you that storms will come in your life, and there will be times that you don’t feel like being a Christ Follower. Maybe that’s right now. But in those moments, I encourage you to remember that Jesus came before us, and gave us a great road map of how to dance in the rain and make it through the storms and struggles we encounter. The more you do this the stronger you will get and you will begin to welcome the storms in your life.
James 1:2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
He stepped off of His throne,
So glorious above,
For no other reason,
But to shine forth His love.
The angels in awe,
Bending knee at the sight,
Of the King of Creation,
Robed in radiant light.
But the splendor displayed,
On His heavenly throne,
Was eclipsed by the sight,
Of humility shown.
He walked the earth as a Servant,
Humbled Himself as a man,
As angels looked on, in stunned disbelief,
At the wonder of God’s ancient plan.
Drowning in thick darkness,
Sinking deep into the mire,
We were blown along, so foolishly,
By selfish and sinful desire.
Out of the darkness and tempest,
Out of affliction and pain,
Along came the Prince of Righteousness,
To redeem us from sin and from shame.
The weight of the cross was much lighter,
Than the price of our sins He would pay,
For redemption from, our myriad sins,
Could only be purchased one way.
Why He would show such great mercy,
To ones so unworthy as we,
Will remain the age-old question,
A part of God’s grand mystery.
Why is Christ worthy to be called the Lord?
With wide wonder I ponder the ways;
He’s the Prince of Peace and Lord of Life
Who with fervor goes after the strays.
Why do I love the Savior so?
Oh the ways are too numerous to count;
Were the whole world mine as a gift to give
It would be an insufficient amount.
Why do I cling to my Saviors side
Forsaking things I once held dear?
It’s because I’ve found Someone of infinite worth
The Great Savior who saved me from fear.
Why do I follow a God I can’t see,
And seek to walk in His steps?
It’s because He’s exceedingly gracious to me
I’m a child that He loves and accepts.
Why do I think the great God and King
Would lavish such favor on to me?
It’s a question I still often ask myself
Why He’d die to set my soul free.
Why do I choose to live a life
That could lead to much suffering and pain?
It’s because this world is not my home
And to suffer for Christ is great gain.
Why do I believe that Christ the Lord
Can cleanse the most sin stained hearts?
It’s because He truly has done it for me
By the mercy and grace He imparts.
Why do I hope in a life without end
With no death, sorrow, suffering nor pain?
Because Jesus has gone to prepare a place
In which peace, love and righteousness reign.
Some invest in stocks and bonds
Others stockpile real estate,
Some tie their fortunes to this fleeting world
Along with their lives and fate.
Some squirrel and horde earthly wealth
Clinging to it with all their might,
Some can’t get it off their troubled minds
And worry about it all through the night.
Some scheme, some dream and others steal
In an effort to get further ahead,
Some hope to land the ultimate deal
Or inherit wealth from the dead.
Some think that just a little more
Would cure all earthly woes,
“Cash is king” the masses sing
As the well worn saying goes.
But the wealthiest Man to ever live
Had no earthly home nor a bed,
He had no comfortable nest like the birds
To rest His weary head.
His accountant was an acknowledged thief
A tax collector part of His band,
He had no money in His moneybag
While He spoke of a heavenly land.
He preached that you can’t serve two masters
You must choose between God or wealth,
One leads to spiritual atrophy
The other to spiritual health.
He preached that the truest blessing
Was to givers not those who receive,
That His Father had beautiful mansions above
If we trust Him, love Him, believe
Jesus the Father’s beloved Son,
Who made all that we can and can’t see,
Laid down His life and His glory
To make us rich for eternity.
So if you’re burned out on the treadmill of life
Chasing after mirages that fade,
Turn your eyes to Calvary’s cross,
And thank Christ for the price that He paid.
There is beauty all around us,
If we open our eyes to see,
God turns a worm into a butterfly,
And gives flight to the honey bee.
There is beauty in the mind of Jesus,
It’s made manifest by His creation,
For on that glorious dawn of this age,
The Morning Star sang with elation.
There is beauty in the heart of the Father,
Tender mercies and love without end,
For when we were lost and blinded by sin,
He sent heavens High King to defend.
There is beauty in the Holy Spirit,
Who gives comfort and helps in our need,
He is the One who gives voice to our prayer,
When we don’t know how to proceed.
There is beauty in salvation’s story,
How the King became poor for our sake,
And bestowed on us heavens true riches of grace,
That His nature we now may partake.
As Your blood flowed through Your human pores
You endured it in order to make us Yours
As the crown of thorns punctured Your regal head
For our sin Your royal blood flowed crimson red
As cold steel pierced sinless flesh and bone
You endured it so we would not face death alone
As Your tongue was in torment in agonized thirst
Your silence freed sinners living under the curse
As You gazed at the crowd who mocked at Your state
You showed love and compassion — not malice or hate
As the enemy trembled when You drew Your last breath
Your life-giving blood saved lost sinners from death.
Both men received the same sentence,
Both would serve the same penalty,
One man would live in paradise,
The other too blinded to see.
One’s heart was stonily calloused,
His sins he refused to see,
The other fully acknowledging,
Why he’d been led to Mt. Calvary
Dragging their crosses behind them,
Gave them time to reflect on their deeds,
One man defiant and hostile,
The other aware of his needs.
But along with the two walked another,
Sentenced to die that same day,
What did he do to justify,
Them treating Him in the same way?
When they’d reached the place called Golgotha,
One thief could no longer pretend,
As their bodies were raised on the crosses,
It was certain his life would soon end.
Both men had heard the stories,
Of this carpenter from Galilee,
Who raised the dead, gave sight to the blind,
And taught of God’s great mystery.
In one it stirred up a yearning,
Of hope that endures past the grave,
The other found only anger,
And a feeling of being betrayed.
One man joined in the mocking,
“If you’re God come and set us free!”
The other studied His countenance,
His poise and His calm dignity.
In the midst of the hatred and taunting,
Jesus spoke words beyond all belief,
“Father please forgive them,”
Not in anger but chocking back grief.
At the words one man’s heart had melted,
The other stayed hardened as stone,
One entered in eyes wide open,
The other in darkness alone.
The words gave one man confidence,
To ask of Him one grand request,
“Lord remember me in your kingdom,”
“I am weary and need peace and rest.”
In the midst of the pain and anquish,
While suffering for all of our vice,
With a look of love, He said to the thief,
“Today you will see paradise.”
A meek, humble man, uncommon
Gracious in word, deed and pen,
Eyes lovingly looking to Jesus
He was truly a prince among men.
His joy was contagious and winsome
He laughed with the joy of a child,
For he knew that his Father was with him
That through Christ he had been reconciled.
He befriended the helpless and hopeless
Spoke in love what is true and what’s right,
He stood by the side of family and friends,
And brought light on a dark day or night.
He touched the lives of many
Was so generous with all he possessed,
He reached out to those less fortunate
Truly lived out the life he professed.
He preferred to be called a servant
Sought to serve and not to be served,
He knew that grace was the gift of God
That no one can earn or deserved.
He is now singing praise to the Savior
Gladly casting his crown at Christ’s feet,
He’s now with the Lord he loves and adores
And his joy is now full and complete.
Oh dear timothy, how I miss you!
You’re a once in a lifetime friend,
I thank God for our time spent together,
That in Christ this life’s not the end!
Motivated And Free 
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