A Heart at Peace

James 3:17- The wisdom that comes from God is first of all pure, then peaceful, gentle, and easy to please.

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The heart of Jesus was pure. The Savior was adored by thousands, yet content to live a simple life. He was cared for by women (Luke 8:1-3), yet never accused of lustful thoughts; scorned by his own creation, but willing to forgive them before they even requested his mercy. Peter, who traveled with Jesus for three and a half years, described him as a "lamb, unblemished and spotless" (1 Pet. 1:19 NASB).

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After spending the same amount of time with Jesus, John concluded, "And in him is no sin" (1 John 3:5 NIV).

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Jesus' heart was peaceful. The disciples fretted over the need to feed the thousands, but not Jesus. He thanked God for the problem. The disciples shouted for fear in the storm, but not Jesus. He slept through it. Peter drew his sword to fight the soldiers, but not Jesus. He lifted his hand to heal. His heart was at peace.

- Just Like Jesus

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The Happiest Heart

WHO drives the horses of the sun
Shall lord it but a day;
Better the lowly deed were done,
And kept the humble way.

The rust will find the sword of fame,
The dust will hide the crown;
Ay, none shall nail so high his name
Time will not tear it down.

The happiest heart that ever beat
Was in some quiet breast
That found the common daylight sweet,
And left to Heaven the rest.

- John Vance Cheney

Seven Wonders of the World

Geography students at the end of the semester were asked to list what each considered the Seven Wonders of the World. The following gathered the most votes: Egypt's Great Pyramids, the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon, the Panama Canal, the Empire States Building, St. Peter's Basilica and China's Great Wall.

One quiet girl had not turned her paper in yet. The teacher suggested, "Well, tell us what you have and maybe we can help."
She began to read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the World are to touch, to taste, to see and to hear..."
She hesitated, "And then to run, to laugh and to love."

That's some of the best advice I've ever read
I love you all

PART SIX: of Six

Proverbs 28:13- He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

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What IS mercy?

What IS forgiveness?
What IS grace?
Not the "testimony" definition.... "An undeserved gift".... but the reality definition.
The knowing, deep down inside realization, that you can't have one without the other and vice versa.

The knowing and applying the fact that "My salvation isn't based on my reputation as a man and/or whether or not people like me"

Not caring whether or not I'm gossiped about, looked at, snickered at, or avoided.

But I mean FORGIVENESS!

It is PEACE.
Peace of mind
Peace of soul
Peace of heart
Peace... the feeling that makes you cry at a sunset, at a song or an elderly couple holding hands... the feeling that makes you appreciate * no* love and take comfort in the wrinkles that show through on my face...
the gray coming out in my hair...
the knowing I'm ONE DAY CLOSER to seeing my Savior face to face!
I mean that... IN YOUR GUT FEELING of PEACE! And longing for home.

And that this fight of "life" is the GREATEST gift and adventure I could ever ask for. *but being given the cross as the ultimate bonus*

Standing on the faith that one day I will hear... "Well done thou good and faithful servant"
But why?
Not because of what I've done.... It is ALL Christ!
Part one: It starts with a soul.
Part two: Acknowledging our weakness and repenting. Knowing that God understands our weakness as humans and created a plan.
Part three: Allowing Christ to cleanse us.
Part four: Standing on and taking courage in Jesus' promises
Part five: And fighting... fighting on in life... fighting for souls... the lost... the blind
Part six: Testimony... glorying in our struggles, our temptations because Christ is using them for sanctification.

It is ALL Christ. His work. His miracle.

And thankful and humbly.... His cross.

*So, I will get down off "my" cross, use it to build a bridge and get over it*

*My selfpity that is.*

I'm sorry

I love you all

PART FIVE: of Six

Genesis 18:14- Is anything too hard for the LORD? No!

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The God of surprises strikes again... God does that for the faithful. Just when the womb gets too old for babies, Sarai gets pregnant. Just when the failure is too great for grace, David is pardoned...

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The lesson? Three words. DON'T GIVE UP...

Is the road long? DON'T STOP.

Is the night black? DON'T QUIT.

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God is watching. For all you know right at this moment... the check may be in the mail.

The apology may be in the making.

The job contract may be on the desk.

The forgiveness of man may be on the way.

Don't quit. For if you do, you may miss the answer to your prayers.

He Still Moves Stones

PART FOUR: of Six

Hebrews 8:12- I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.

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Romans 8:1- Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus

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Romans 3:26- (God) justifies those who have faith in Jesus

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For those in Christ, these promises are not only a source of joy. They are also the foundations of true courage. You are guaranteed that your sins will be filtered through, hidden in, and screened out by the sacrifice of Jesus. When God looks at you, he doesn't see you; he sees the One who surrounds you. That means that failure is not a concern for you. Your victory is secure. How could you not be courageous?

The Applause of Heaven

PART THREE: of Six

John 13:5- He poured water into a bowl and began to wash the followers' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

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To place our feet in the basin of Jesus is to place the filthiest parts of our lives into his hands. In the ancient East, people's feet were caked with mud and dirt. The servant of the feast saw to it that the feet were cleaned. Jesus is assuming the role of the servant. He will wash the grimiest part of your life.

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If you let him. The water of the Servant comes only when we confess that we are dirty. Only when we confess that we are caked with filth, that we have walked forbidden trails and followed the wrong paths...

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We will never be cleansed until we confess we are dirty. We will never be pure until we admit we are filthy. And we will never be able to wash the feet of those who have hurt us until we allow Jesus, the one we have hurt, to wash ours.

A Gentle Thunder

PART TWO: of Six

Hebrews 4:15- Our high priest is able to understand our weaknesses. When he lived on earth, he was tempted in every way that we are, but he did not sin.

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J.B. Phillips translates Hebrews 4:15: For we have no superhuman High Priest to whom our weaknesses are unintelligible - he himself has shared fully in all our experience of temptation, except that he never sinned.

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It's as if he knows that we will say to God...: "God, it's easy for you up there. You don't know how hard it is from down here." So he boldly proclaims Jesus' ability to understand. Look at the wording agian.

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He himself. Not an angel. Not an ambassador. Not an emissary, but Jesus himself.

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Shared fully. Not partially. Not nearly. Not to a large degree. Entirely! Jesus shared fully.

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In all our experience. Every hurt. Each ache. All the stresses and all the strians. No exceptions. No substitutes. Why? So he could sympathize with our weaknesses.

In the Eye of the Storm

PART ONE: of Six

I walked along the beach today

And found a lonely shell

Scratched

By seas and

Sands of time.

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I, too, am a lonely shell.

Hold ME close

And you will hear

The ocean ROAR.