Jude 1:2 ” Mercy, peace, and love be yours in abundance.”

On this first day of 2016,  I pray this scripture over you and yours.  May the Lord’s compassion be ever evident in your life…may you discover true peace that is only brought about by God’s tender mercy,  granting you deliverance and freedom from sin…and may His unconditional love shine brightly on you as you journey ahead in this new year.  God loves you!

II Peter 2:20 ” If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.”

So why do Believers fall away…even after experiencing the saving grace and mercy of Jesus?  Is the pull of the world too strong, or is their confidence in this new-found faith too frail?  Has the self-centered human nature triumphed over  the newly gained eternal perspective?  And why does Peter tell us they are worse off than before they knew Jesus…could it be that they may spend eternity lamenting their decision?

Isaiah 9:6 ” For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Jesus the Messiah has come to earth for you and me this Christmas Day. He offers mercy and love, peace and comfort, salvation and eternal life in place of the pain, loss, and hopelessness that may be in your life today.  Allow Him to come into your life and change you from the inside out…taking all the negatives and transforming them into hope for the future. A Blessed Christmas to all of you!

Isaiah 7:14 ” Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”

Isaiah’s prophetic word to King Ahaz came in 734BC…but the words are true still today.   God isn’t some far off Deity…gazing casually and unconcerned  towards earth.  God isn’t some unreachable quest, sought by only a chosen few on set times.  No, God is with us at this very moment…God is with you and me and all who believe in Jesus Christ His Son.  God is truly with you…He is real and right there residing inside your heart.

Genesis 1:26 ” Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness’…”

We are the only creatures on earth that the Lord created  like Him.  When someone looks at you…they should see the Father. When they look in your eyes, they should see Jesus smiling back.   The old adage is so true here –  a apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.  You are like your Father, and your Father is in you.

I Chronicles 16: 31 ” Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord reigns! “

All authority, dominion and power belongs to God. His throne is established from everlasting to everlasting… His glory displayed for all.   Let the heavens  and earth shout for joy, for the Lord reigns!

John 9: 35-38 ” Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when He found him, He said, ‘Do you believe in the Son Of Man?’ ‘Who is He, Sir?’ the man asked. ‘Tell me so that I may believe in Him!’ Jesus said, ‘You have now seen Him; in fact He is the one speaking with you.’ Then the man said, ‘Lord, I believe.’ And he worshiped Him. “

The beggar had been born blind, but Jesus had healed him of his physical blindness.  But now we find Jesus seeking out the beggar again to offer him something far more important… something with eternal consequences.  Jesus was asking the man to put his faith and trust in Him, and thus to be then healed of his spiritual blindness.

Lamentations 5: 19 ” You, O Lord, reign forever; Your throne endures from generation to generation.”

Over the course of time, kingdoms rise and fall.  Mighty Rulers are in power, and then fade from history.  But God’s all-powerful throne is established forever, His Kingdom permanently fixed and rooted from everlasting to everlasting.

I Corinthians 15: 10 ” But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect…”

Every time you discount the work of the Lord in your life…every time you treat with insignificance the miraculous things He’s done in and through you…you are maligning God.  In effect you’re saying to the Lord, ” Your unearned favor towards me means nothing .”  So today, think about just how far the Lord has brought you, and then thank Him…for you are who you are today because of Him.

Proverbs 21: 23 ” He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.”

You may know someone…it might even be yourself that’s developed this fateful disease know as Foot in Mouth.  Some people are so affected,  that the only time their foot comes out of their mouth – is to change socks!  It takes wisdom and discipline not to just blurt out anything that comes to mind.  It takes us thinking before we speak…is this appropriate?…is this kind?…will I regret saying this tomorrow?  So much trouble and misery could be avoided if we’d just learn to think before we opened our mouth.