Day 16 intentionally...peace

In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.~Psalm 4:8

"...that by believing you may have life in his name."

Jesus and Thomas


"24 Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”


26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”


The Purpose of This Book


30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."
~John 20:24-31

A blessed and joyful Easter to you!  Our Savior is alive!

upon Him...

Friday. 

"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed."~Isaiah 53:5

He will...

 ²² “‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. ²³ On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it; it will produce branches and bear fruit and become a splendid cedar. Birds of every kind will nest in it; they will find shelter in the shade of its branches. ²⁴ All the trees of the forest will know that I the LORD bring down the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish.

   “‘I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.’”

Ezekiel 17:22-24

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He can and will, let us trust in Him, for His goodness is holy, just and mercy filled.  It is about Him and not about us.  We take the focus off of ourselves and place it on our Heavenly Father and by His grace, we see all that matters is Him and our relationship with Him, our Savior, Jesus Christ.  God became a man, born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, facing all of the temptations of man, His creation, was nailed to a cross and died.  And the earth became black.  But the story doesn't end there.  3 days later, Jesus rose from the grave, defeated death fulfilling the prophecy of a savior for mankind, for all those who would believe and accept Him.  And our hope today is found in Him.  God became a man, that there would be a perfect sacrifice for His children.  Not the blood of a lamb or bull was shed at Calvary but the perfect holy blood of our Creator in a man's body for men stained by sin.  The one and only perfect sacrifice that would cover the sin permanently for those who believe.  There is nothing that can make one worthy enough or righteous enough to deserve this gift of eternal life with the Creator.  Simply put, it is a gift from a Father to His sons and daughters, whom He loves and extends grace to.  He desires a relationship with us.  He desires to love us and bring us a peace that surpasses all understanding.  Can we believe we are anything but sinful people in need of a savior, even the best of us?  Can we be so prideful that we believe we can do this thing called life on our own?  Can we believe that we don't have a Creator who loves us unconditionally, who knit us together in our mother's womb and knows every hair on our head?  Can we harden our hearts so much that we deny the awesome creation around us and the amazing intricate details of the human body, mind and personality and believe that there was anything but a Creator?  Can we believe we are not deserving of the love of our Creator, the One who knows our innermost thoughts, desires, fears, hurts, joys?  Could you step out with just the smallest mustard seed of faith and believe that He is there, waiting at the door, waiting to be let in and be reconciled back to His child, you?  He will help.

 3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 
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⁸ But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. ⁹ The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance...

 11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.[b] That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
~2 Peter 3:3-5, 8-9, 11-13



5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin.
 8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
1 John 1:5-10

If you confess with your mouth you are a sinner and believe Jesus died on the cross to bear your sins and rose again and is alive and you want Him to save you, He is just and might to forgive your sins and all unrighteousness that you might begin to live a life with Him.  He will save you and you will have the promise of eternity with your Creator.  You will have new life, be reborn spiritually, as you were once dead in sin.  Will you trust Him?  


I have...and I would never turn back.  His love heals, His love endures, His love grows, His love promises a hope and a future.  It doesn't promise a perfect, pain-free, trouble free life, but it does promise a helper, His Holy Spirit to guide and lead you, to comfort you, to strengthen you and to bring you peace in the calm and in the storms.


God loves you, no matter what!  (A great lesson from Vacation Bible School we shouted out all week!)  

Praying for you, 

His lovingkindness in the morning...

A quick good morning :)

The Lord has been doing such amazing things in our home, which I will share when I have a moment but the result- our boys are home and we are homeschooling again!  An amazing answer to prayer and I am humbled by HIS grace!

Our oldest praying for our day...I'm humbled by His grace

From a devotional this morning...how we should always arise to our day... God bless you dear ones, in His name...

"Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning,

For in You do I trust;

Cause me to know the way in which I should walk, 

For I lift up my soul to You." ~Psalm 143:8

Are you beginning this day with Him leading it?

His love notes...

Psalm 121 (NIV)

A song of ascents.

1 I lift up my eyes to the hills—
where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The LORD will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
8 the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.

What a beautiful psalm this is, blessings from our Lord!

A dear friend always refers to sweet things from our Lord as "love notes" from Him. Yesterday, after some time together at the store, hubby, the boys and I were sitting in the car as I fed the baby before our ride home. A thunderstorm passed by and just as amazing as that, we look over to see the most beautiful rainbow. The colors became more vibrant as we watched it grow into a full arch and then adding to His precious love note a second rainbow appeared over the first. It wasn't as bright as the first but it was most surely there. Staring at it I truly realized what a gift I was seeing. There in front of me was God's creation, pure and simple. It wasn't anything painted or created by a man, but the true colors as created by our most precious Father, vibrant, alive and real. The boys spoke of how it was created and yes, we do know why it was happening but we discussed that God is a God of order and He blesses us by inviting us to know the "why's" of certain things. This rainbow wasn't just a "scientific" happening, it was a sign from our Lord He created for Noah thousands of years ago... and for us today...a precious love note of His awesomeness...

Praying you'll look at all of His creation around you today...the sweet smiles or even crying eyes of your little ones, the hands of your hubby, the voice of your neighbor, the bird singing above, the simple blade of grass growing underfoot, the moment of quiet, fragrance of the blooming flower...see the love notes He has created for you, His awesome love, grace and goodness...