There’s nothing more hopeful than knowing the true love of God. But to understand God’s love we must love others as we love ourselves, yes, ourselves. It’s not easy to love that reflection in the mirror. We remember the past or the fear of the unknown future as we gaze into our own pain-filled eyes. Our eyes may lie, so we must also know the Word of God which is Jesus.
God’s Word can and will change any attitude we may harbor. We can read the Word. We can be persistent in our search for healing and wholeness. We can believe God loves us because His Word says so, and we can have faith that He wants the best for us no matter how we suffer.
I can say without a doubt that through my suffering I’ve discovered joy, and I hang onto hope every day; every time I take medication, every time I faint in public, or fall in the kitchen and break bones. The Lord sees how we persevere and rejoice in our sufferings. And somewhere, somehow, in the middle of it all, we mature. Reality, true reality, finds our hearts and minds. We come to know we can count on God’s promises in His Word.
God, Jesus, loves us more than the drops in the ocean or sands of the sea. He forgives us as far as the East is from the West. We are God’s children, and He wants the very best for us.
Within all the lessons we learn the Lord takes us to higher and higher levels of glory. So, we can hope for a future that is good and an eternity that is better.
Jesus’ death on the cross was so we can have relationship with Him. He is not unreachable or too far away. In the book of John, chapter 3 verse 16, we see the intention of His death on the cross. John 3:16 ESV – 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Next in verse 17, John 3:17 ESV – 17″ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him,” God’s will is for us to have life. Life with the Godhead, God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit is real and tangible. He wants us to participate in the affairs of the Kingdom of Heaven through relationship.
In the book of John, chapter 17, in the following verses we see the conversation from Jesus to his Father. It is tender-hearted and insightful to Jesus’ intention about our life with God the Father and Jesus. I am bringing this up because in the next paragraphs we will look at what man thinks is important for relationship with Jesus. Not what the God head had planned before the foundations of the world. Here are some verses out of chapter 17 from the book of John.
John 17:22-26 ESV – 22 “The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
These verses are stating the very essence of the heart of God and what Jesus expressed to his Father about us. It states boldly, that he gave us his glory! The glory of God is His manifested goodness for us. He is a good God. I would recommend that you read that entire chapter. In this verse, we learn that, the word of God, (Jesus is the word) sanctifies us. The Truth (the word) are/is factual. It is the real thing. The more we read and take in His word, the more we become like Him and know and understand Him. We also become closer to Him. As we eat the word, just like food to our soul and spirit, it strengthens us and changes us into His very nature. We have a need to shed and have the old man changed. We have the ability to become like our Father.
In the following passage, the verses state how Jesus was calling out the religious men of the day, that they thought that there ways were above and beyond God’s ways. They were clearly only interested tradition of men and not a relationship with Jesus. This exchange is in the following passage in the book of Mark chapter 7 verses 1-9.
Mark 7:1-9 ESV – 1 Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, 4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) 5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” 6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ 8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” 9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!
The Pharisees had made their own religious rules of how people should act or behave instead of relying on the power of the scripture (the word of God) to walk with Jesus. In the next verses, Jesus points out what defiles a person is what comes out of their own hearts. Jesus is all about our hearts. He is not about trying to keep ridiculous rules. Rules that are just performance based behavior. Jesus is more interested in us talking with him and knowing we want to be a part of his family. The Family of God.
I promise you all the religious traditions of the world will only frustrate you and your heart will not be at peace. Jesus is as close as inside of you when you ask him to come into your heart and life. Ask Him, He will make himself real and tangible. He created you. He knows everything about you! There is nothing too big or too small that he doesn’t care about in your life.
“Guilty criminals experience paranoia even though no one threatens them. But the innocent lovers of God, because of righteousness, will have the boldness of a young, ferocious lion!”
The Passion Translation
Matthew 10:16
“Now, remember, it is I who sends you out, even though you feel vulnerable as lambs going into a pack of wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes yet as harmless as doves.”
The Passion Translation
We are living in a time where we are encountering the explosive nature of evil. It seems like everyday we are experiencing some form of lawlessness associated with evil. Whether it is people running red lights, porch pirates, usury on some level, usually credit debt or criminals raiding stores. We see it on a very blatant level today. I personally witnessed two young adults, a male and female together, stealing two 24 packs of alcohol from a mini mart. Laughing during the whole robbery. The mini mart employee could only video the license plate and car, due to corporate protocols.
I know that this is not even something brand new, although it has become rampant and without remorse. It reminds of the scripture as follows:
“And here is the basis for their judgment: The Light of God has now come into the world, but the people loved darkness more than the Light, because they want the darkness to conceal their evil. “
John 3:19 The Passion Translation
The more we study the word of God and hold it in our hearts, we come out of the darkness and become more like God. We lose our appetite for darkness and gravitate to the light. and the light will hurt our eyes! Just like coming out of a dark room to the outdoor sunlight. The solution to become bold is to become more like God. We take on His righteousness.
Being bold, gives the ability to stand up to evil in the darkest of days. Overcoming evil and darkness shows that we are for the Kingdom of God. In this day we are bringing Heaven to earth. Darkness will not prevail if we move forward in boldness for the Kingdom.
So let’s define the word bold.
1. Fearless before danger
2.Showing or requiring a fearless daring spirit, a bold plan
3. Confident and courageous
The Lion is the King of the land. Lions are apex land predators. They occupy the highest trophic level in their environment, meaning that no animal hunts them. God chose us to have dominion over the entire earth. We have given our authority away to do this unfortunately. God is calling us back to take up our God given dominion over the earth. He also has given us boldness to take it back.
Today, I encourage to be bold in your sphere of influence to model the Love of Jesus. I encourage you to believe what God tells you to do according to the call on your life. I encourage you to not be faint but to ask for more boldness to walk the journey you have with Jesus. You will not be disappointed!
Here are some more scriptures regarding being bold.
“So don’t lose your bold, courageous faith, for you are destined for a great reward!”
Hebrews 10:35 The Passion Translation
Here’s what I’ve learned through it all:
Don’t give up; don’t be impatient;
be entwined as one with the Lord.
Be brave and courageous, and never lose hope.
Yes, keep on waiting—for he will never disappoint you!
Psalm 27:14 The Passion Translation
“I leave the gift of peace with you—my peace. Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace. Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts—instead, be courageous!”
John 14:27 The Passion Translation
“And everything I’ve taught you is so that the peace which is in me will be in you and will give you great confidence as you rest in me. For in this unbelieving world you will experience trouble and sorrows, but you must be courageous, for I have conquered the world!”
John 16:33 The Passion Translation
We are greater than the Lions! We have dominion over them also. Think of how much more God has given us to start getting ready to rule and reign with Him. We are more than conquerors and have the authority to take back that which has been stolen and in some cases forgotten. We can refer back to the original plan in the Book of Genesis 1:26, 1:28
” And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”
“And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”
Jana and Sharon discuss grace in God’s Kingdom and how it impacts our lives as Christian Believers. Learn about the difference between grace and mercy with wisdom and understanding.
The beginning of this year has already had its share of horrific fallout from 2020. Though we are terribly sad at what the world is facing, we also have a positive outlook for this new year. God is telling us to be still and know that He is God. He is asking us to keep our eyes on Him and do only what He tells us to do. We’re good with that!
Read what Psalm 46:10, The Passion Translation, says, “Surrender your anxiety! Be silent and stop your striving and you will see that I am God. I am the God above all the nations, and I will be exalted throughout the whole earth.”
Come, and let us return to the Lord; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight.
Sharon and Jana have a conversation with friends, Yvonne and Jonathan about what is going on right now in God’s Kingdom. Listen as we talk about the spiritual and supernatural realm and all the God has for us this coming season.
We feel pretty terrible. We just discovered that all of our comments were being put in a spam folder. So, for the past two years we missed hearing from you!
We are sooooooooo sorry! We didn’t know that we needed to check the spam folder. We feel like numbskulls.
Please, please, please comment on everything we do!
We feel awful and always wondered why no one comments on our stuff. Duh. But, now that we know, we will fix the issue.
Thank you for bearing with us this whole time and if you are new to our blog, welcome!
Isaiah 54:17 ESV – 17 no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.”
Just Sharon & Jana 
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