Faith

When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! (Matthew 8:10 NKJV)

What an honor it is to impress Jesus with your faith. But faith means believing in Jesus beyond human reason. Are you keeping your faith separate from your struggles in life? Invite Him in. Rituals and obligation do not amaze Jesus. Instead, it's trusting Jesus with your problems, asking for His help, and believing He will provide.

Before the Throne

For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:15, 16 NKJV)

If there are areas in your life that you are struggling with, bring them to the throne of God. He doesn't want you to stay away from talking to him because you feel like you are failing in your Christian walk. This verse says that he understands our struggles. Whatever your struggle is today, bring it to God to receive mercy and grace. He is a loving father who wants to cleanse, purify, and help us to become more like Jesus. You may be asking “how do I take my cares to the Lord”? Simply talk to him through prayer, he is listening. I usually enter the throne of God on my knees with my eyes closed and then talk to him about all my concerns, believing he cares for me and wants to help me.

Renewed

"and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him," (Colossians 3:10 NKJV)

We are forgiven of our sins and because of this we are free from our old ways. We no longer need to be chained to guilt or behave immorally. Instead, allow yourself to be renewed and refreshed. Learn the heart of God by reading the Bible today and putting into action the teachings of Christ. It is with Him you will find freedom.

Filled with Grief

"I am troubled, I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long."
(Psalms 38:6 NKJV)

David was filled with grief and so too are we vulnerable to depression. It's a difficult mindset to escape once you allow those inward thoughts to take hold. Take heart and realize this...God has a plan for your happiness. Your happiness will be sustained not by circumstances, but by His enduring love for you. Once you realize the depth of His love, your inwardly thoughts will turn outwardly towards loving others.

Healing a broken heart - is there hope? There is.

Is there hope for healing a broken heart? Something or someone has just broken your heart. You were caught off-guard by a betrayal, a shocking behavior, or loss of a loved one. Suddenly you are feeling like you’ve lost all hope . . . you can feel a physical aching in your chest that leaves you wounded and scarred. How can you ever hope to recover or discover what steps will end this suffering?

We all know that emotions are a vital part of the way we are made. Yet we can’t understand why it takes so long to heal from emotional injuries. We would never prematurely remove a cast or sutures until the broken bone or skin was fully restored. We must realize complete emotional healing requires time. The book of Psalms offers great comfort when experiencing long-term emotions like sadness, fear, and grief. “He heals the brokenhearted, binding up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3).

Healing a Broken Heart – The key is trust
Our human tendency is to avoid painful situations, even burying them. Can we ever trust those who hurt us so deeply? There are steps to healing a broken heart.

Release – “. . . First forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against . . .” (Mark 11:25).

Refocus – “. . . By [God’s] mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope” (Ephesians 3:20).

Receive – “[God] comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us” (2 Corinthians 1:4).

Become like children

Think for a moment what it means to become like little children in our relationship with God. Children spend countless hours being fed, clothed, taught, sheltered, protected and cared for by their parents. Wrapped in parents’ arms, children are carried when they are weak, protected when they are scared and kept warm when it is cold. As babies, they are constantly in the arms of the parent and dependent upon them for every thing. When they become toddlers, they run to a father or mother’s arms when they get hurt, desperately seeking relief from the pain. Children in the arms of a loving father or mother trust them with every area of their lives.

Have you been spending time in the arms of your heavenly father allowing him to read you bible stories and show you special pictures in his book? Have you been rocked to sleep lately in the arms of your heavenly daddy, as he sings over you beautiful songs like He's Got The Whole World In His Hands? When was the last time that you just snuggled up to God in prayer and talked to him about everything that is happening in your life?

Spend some quality time in the arms of your heavenly dad today, just you and him talking, singing, dancing, learning or just doing whatever. Everyday, God desires that we would come to him like little children because we are his children.

 

Matthew 8:2-4

² And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them ³ and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Gossip

Why is gossip so bad?

"If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless." (James 1:26 ESV)

What comes out of your mouth shows what is in your heart. Gossip, criticism, flattery, lies, and profanity are not only "word" problems but "heart" problems as well.

"Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets,
 but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered." (Proverbs 11:13 ESV)

Gossips make poor friends. Gossips are demolition experts, trying to tear others down, while trustworthy people build others up.

"They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,.." (Romans 1:29-30 ESV)

God catalogs gossip with such sins as greed, hate, envy and murder.

"Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not." (1 Timothy 5:13 ESV)

Gossiping often grows out of idleness. If you have nothing better to do than sit around talking about other people, you wind up saying things you later regret.

"The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
  they go down into the inner parts of the body." (Proverbs 18:8 ESV)

Gossip hurts others. It also destroys your credibility if the gossip proves false.

How do I stop gossip?

"For lack of wood the fire goes out,
  and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases." (Proverbs 26:20 ESV)

Stop the chain of gossip with you! When you hear gossip, you can do something about it--you can decide not to spread it any further.

"then you shall inquire and make search and ask diligently. And behold, if it be true and certain that such an abomination has been done among you," (Deuteronomy 13:14 ESV)

If you are concerned about something you've heard, you must look carefully into the matter without assuming what you have been told is true. Go to the source and get the facts straight.

“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12 ESV)

The Golden Rule can also be applied to your speech--"Talk about others in the same way you would like them to talk about you."

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." (Ephesians 4:29 ESV)

It's really true--what you spend most of your time thinking about is what you end up doing. When you're tempted to complain, train yourself instead to pray. When you're tempted to gossip, compliment or encourage someone instead.

"And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:17 ESV)

If you think you may be about to gossip, ask yourself, "Does the person I'm talking to need to know this? Is it true, accurate, and helpful?"

"For whoever desires to love life
  and see good days,
 let him keep his tongue from evil
  and his lips from speaking deceit;"
 

(1 Peter 3:10 ESV)