Being content is my decision

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5 NIV)

I was asking myself these questions this morning.......

How can people be content with what they have? What is contentment anyway? What leads to contentment? What does it take for someone to come to the realisation that what I have is more than enough? How can people be content when the world around them is screaming out the latest, coolest, fastest, gadgets?

I think being content is being satisfied and happy with what you have! To be content you have to make the decision to be happy or satisfied with what you already have!

The 5 WHY's is a thinking strategy that I sometimes use with my students to help them explore deeper into a topic.

The Bible reminds us to be free from the love of money....WHY?
Because the love of money leads people to want more and the wanting more can lead to problems. WHY would people want more?
They are not satisfied or not happy with what they have. WHY aren't they satisfied?
 The world around them  is constantly presenting coolest, fastest, newest must haves! They don't want to be left out or they want to keep up with everyone else WHY?
 Maybe they feel that to be accepted by others or admired they have to have what others have? WHY?
 They haven't found the true meaning of happiness . Their source of happiness is keeping up with everything, everyone and money. It's a cycle so they will never be happy or satisfied. This unhappiness leads to many problems!

Amazing! Our Creator...the one who beautifully created us knew all that. That's why He reminds us in His Word to keep ourselves free from the love of money and to be content with what we have. Being content is the decision I get to make. Am I happy with what I have now?  I think being content leads to inner peace. 'Inner peace begins the moment you choose not to allow another person or event to control your emotion!' author unknown

I need to trust His promise when He says...
“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5 NIV)

Father, Your presence, Your love, is more than enough for me. 

I will rise when He calls my name

Beautiful song!

What does being 'yoked' to Christ mean for me?

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 NIV)

In these three verses Christ is beckoning us or me to come to Him. It's like He is calling out ' come on, this way!'If you are tired from all your setbacks, challenges, dead ends etc. why don't you turn to Christ?

Why does Christ say take my yoke upon you and learn from me? Just a bit of background information.....
A yoke is a bar or frame by which two draft animals are joined at the heads or necks for working together. Sometimes to explain or simplify a concept, it has to be done in the context of what the audience has experienced. This is what Jesus had done!Two animals are yoked together for the purpose of pulling loads. Often the loads are very heavy but as the animals work together the job is completed.

Christ is saying quit struggling, stop trying to solve things on your own, stop chewing things over, and over in your head. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me! When you get yoked to me, you will find that I am gentle, loving, caring and humble in heart! You will definitely find rest for your soul.

Why would you find rest for your soul?
His yoke is easy and His burden is light! When we get yoked with Christ, we see things from His perspective , we work as one with Him, going in His direction and doing His will. He would give us the necessary strength so we don't have to struggle alone.

Thank you Lord for reminding me today to quit struggling on my own and that I don't have to struggle on my own.

Why 'knowing' is important

John 8:32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

As a child of God, His Word should be or is truth for me! This comes back to the importance of knowing what the Word says. I need to get into the routine of reading,praying and meditating on the Word. I need to know what the Bible says about my situation and about who I am because of Christ.

When I know the truth, I can look at everything through the lenses of what the Bible tells me because the Bible is God speaking to me!

There is none like YOU

There is none like You.

I could search for all eternity long and find there is none like You.

Everything we create is put together with existing materials or built on previous ideas.

The God that we serve has the capacity to speak things into existence. He created the universe in all of its magnitude and creative details. How He does it is way beyond my imagination. He is GOD! 
AND
There is none like HIM!

"Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
his understanding has no limit." (Psalms 147:5)

Stepping inside the walk to Calvary

Stepping inside the scene and using the senses to describe what you see, hear, feel.....

I can see Him bleeding in agony from the violent lashing He received.

His eyes are glazed with pain.

I can also see His mother and family pushing through the crowd to keep up.

I wonder how she must feel?

She had witnessed and heard His first breath as a baby and now she is hearing Him fight the pain.

Why doesn't He use His power to save Himself or call 10 000 angels to come to His rescue?

Why doesn't He do it?

Why is He enduring the pain?

I now understand….I was on His mind. You and I were on His mind!

Thank you for going to the cross! Thank you Lord!

Forever grateful

This morning I'm reminded of the work of the Cross and I'm forever grateful to You my Lord.

Have a blessed Easter weekend.

Freedom to choose

“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:14, 15 NIV)

Joshua had made up his mind...as for him and his household, they would serve the Lord. The same God who gave them land that they did not toil, cities they did not build so they could live in, vineyards they did not plant so they could eat from and who performed great signs before their eyes. This is the God that Joshua decided to serve.

Joshua had witnessed God's amazing power, provision and never ending faithfulness. Throughout his journey, Joshua developed a close relationship with His God and so he knew Who he was going to serve! He made a heart decision!

I like the way God doesn't force us to follow Him but He gives us that freedom to choose. Each day we are offered a buffet of choices.......who or what will you choose. The decision rests with me!

Choose you this day Whom you will serve...as for me and my house we will serve the Lord! That is my heart decision today.

Our battles

The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you.” (Joshua 10:8 NIV)
When they had brought these kings to Joshua, he summoned all the men of Israel and said to the army commanders who had come with him, “Come here and put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came forward and placed their feet on their necks. Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Be strong and courageous. This is what the Lord will do to all the enemies you are going to fight.” (Joshua 10:24, 25 NIV)


God showed yet again to Joshua that He was still in control. As I'm reading through the book of Joshua I can see that Joshua understands and knows the importance of obedience. He understands his human limitations and he knows that he is mighty because of Him who is on his side!

All those neighbouring cities and their great kings....if Joshua had looked at them through his human eyes, it would have been a different story. But through the eyes of faith, obedience and the pillar of past experiences, Joshua went on to conquer. The battle was not his!!

Just like Joshua, I am reminded of the verse in 2 Choronicles 20: 15....'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's.'

With the battles I face, I've got to TRUST that He who promised is faithful to His words. He will fight my battles for me. Thank you Lord.

I need You more

More than the song that I sing

More than the air that I breathe

You're all that I want

I need You more!

I Am the New Year

May 2013 be a year of breakthroughs and one where you're taken to newer heights in your relationship with the Lord. God bless.

Received this in my email today so thought I'd share it.

 I Am the New Year

I am the new year. I am an unspoiled page in your book of time.

I am your next chance at the art of living.

I am your opportunity to practice what you have learned about life during the last twelve months.

All that you sought and didn't find is hidden in me, waiting for you to search it out with more determination.

All the good that you tried for and didn't achieve is mine to grant when you have fewer conflicting desires.

All that you dreamed but didn't dare to do, all that you hoped but did not will, all the faith that you

claimed but did not have--these slumber lightly, waiting to be awakened by the touch of a strong purpose.

I am your opportunity to renew your allegiance to Him who said, "Behold, I make all things new."

  -- Author Unknown

Merry Christmas

Photo credit: Google images

Wishing all my blogger friends a very Merry Christmas and a BLESSED 2013.