Category: Confidence

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Peter – The Rock

Have you ever stopped to look at the life of Peter?

Strengths: Outdoorsman, Co-owner of a fishing fleet. Tough, outspoken. Born leader. Loyal, committed. Determined. Repentent. Teachable, Usable.

Weakness: overconfident, speak first think later. self-promoting. folds under pressure. proud.

Peter cut off a soldier’s ear in the Garden when they came to arrest Jesus. He denied Christ three times in the courtyard. He was one of the first to run to the tomb and find it empty but then he went back to the disciples, and they locked themselves in. Fearful.

50 days later he was in the upper room when the Holy Spirit filled the 120 with God’s power. He spoke boldly to the crowds, pointing out that they were the ones responsible for killing Jesus. But he preached forgiveness and over 3000 repented at the first preaching.

In Acts 4, Peter and John were arrested for preaching Jesus. No denial here. In fact, Peter spoke boldly to the religious leaders.

“Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and said to them, ‘Rulers of the people and you older leaders, 9 are you questioning us today about what we did to help this crippled man? Are you asking us what made him well? 10 We want all of you and all the people of Israel to know that this man was made well by the power of Jesus Christ from Nazareth. You nailed Jesus to a cross, but God raised him from death. This man was crippled, but he is now well. He is able to stand here before you because of the power of Jesus! 11 Jesus is ‘the stone that you builders thought was not important. But this stone has become the cornerstone.’

12 Jesus is the only one who can save people. His name is the only power in the world that has been given to save anyone. We must be saved through him!’” Acts 4:8-12 ERV

This man who had denied knowing Jesus to a servant girl now stood before the rulers and proclaimed openly that he was a follower of Christ.

“18 So the Jewish leaders called Peter and John in again. They told the apostles not to say anything or to teach anything in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “What do you think is right? What would God want? Should we obey you or God? 20 We cannot be quiet. We must tell people about what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:18-20 ERV

What made the difference in Peter?

The Holy Spirit! Jesus said they would receive power when the Holy Spirit baptized them. Power to be witnesses, power to be bold, power to heal the sick, power to preach!

Now let me ask you a question. Are there things in your past that you are ashamed of? Times that you feel you have failed, not just failed yourself or your family, but times that you have failed God? Those failures don’t disqualify you from service. They are stepping stones.

Stepping stones for service. If Peter hadn’t of failed, he still would have been self-confident, prideful and not felt he needed a Savior. He wouldn’t have been willing to yield his life to the Holy Spirit. He was willing to let go of his past and become a rock of determination.

We need to do the same. Take our past to the cross of Jesus, leave it there. Then let the Holy Spirit transform us in the same way He did Peter and the other disciples.

Thank you, Father, for changing my life from self-confident to God-confident. Thank you for seeing me as usable and trusting me with Your message of love and forgiveness!

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Even When, I Trust

All through Scripture we have the words “be not afraid, fear not, be anxious for nothing” and sometimes it seems it would be easier to climb Mt. Everest than to not be afraid.

Other than Jesus, I think the Apostle Paul in the New Testament and King David in the Old Testament probably encountered more fear-filled situations than anyone else in Scripture. Every town that Paul preached in broke out in a riot and had someone planning his death. King David was pursued by more armies than I can count, even his own son sought to murder him.

That makes these two experts in the “fear not” department.

While reading in the Psalms this morning I found these words.

“Have pity, God Most High! My enemies chase me all day. 2 Many of them are pursuing and attacking me, 3 but even when I am afraid, I keep on trusting you. 4 I praise your promises!
I trust you and am not afraid. No one can harm me.” Psalm 56:1-4 CEV

All day long, David was on the run. Armies by sheer number were greater than his band of 400 mighty men. ” even when I am afraid, I keep on trusting you.” His life was in literal danger and he made the determination to trust God even when he was afraid.

“When I pray, Lord God, my enemies will retreat, because I know for certain that you are with me. 10 I praise your promises! 11 I trust you and am not afraid. No one can harm me.

12 I will keep my promises to you, my God and bring you gifts. 13 You protected me from death and kept me from stumbling, so that I would please you and follow the light that leads to life.” Psalm 56:10-13 CEV

What are the enemies that are pursuing you?

Take a note from David’s playbook . “I know for certain that you are with me”!

I just heard someone say, “That’s all well and good Kristi but I’m not certain that God is always with me”. I’m glad you said that.

“A virgin will have a baby boy, and he will be called Immanuel,” which means “God is with us.” Matthew 1:23 CEV

He came to be with us and when he went back to heaven the Holy Spirit came to live in us and be God’s representative in our lives.

“But I tell you I am going to do what is best for you. This is why I am going away. The Holy Spirit cannot come to help you until I leave. But after I am gone, I will send the Spirit to you.” John 16:7 CEV

Sad to say but one of the biggest fears today is that of not having enough. Not enough money to pay our bills, not enough time, not enough food, not enough health, not enough peace.

” Don’t fall in love with money. Be satisfied with what you have. The Lord has promised that he will not leave us or desert us.” Hebrews 13:5 CEV

Jesus said. “ A thief comes only to rob, kill, and destroy. I came so everyone would have life, and have it fully.” John 10:10 CEV

“You, Lord, are my shepherd. I will never be in need.” Psalm 23:1 CEV

Is there something that has you fear-filled today? Say with King David and with me, “Even when, I will trust”!

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He Loved Us First

As we near the end of this month I will take a couple more days of sharing with you about God’s love. Of course, that’s really what I do each day – I really find nothing in the Bible that doesn’t focus on God’s love because God is love.

Even when the Bible gives us correction, it comes from God’s heart; He corrects us because He loves us – but that’s for another day.

“My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.

11-12 My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!

13-16 This is how we know we’re living steadily and deeply in him, and he in us: He’s given us life from his life, from his very own Spirit. Also, we’ve seen for ourselves and continue to state openly that the Father sent his Son as Savior of the world. Everyone who confesses that Jesus is God’s Son participates continuously in an intimate relationship with God. We know it so well, we’ve embraced it heart and soul, this love that comes from God.

To Love, to Be Loved

17-18 God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ’s. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.

19 We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.

20-21 If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.” I John 4:7-21 MSG

God’s love for us is unconditional. He loved us before we knew Him. His amazing love sets us free from fear – free for the daily attacks and free from fear of eternity!

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My God is the Lord Almighty

This morning, I will be sharing something I wrote a few years back. The Lord brought this to my attention, and it struck a chord in my heart. I trust it will for you too.

For years I have had a wonderful fascination with clouds. I’m not sure when it began or why, but I know I have taken hundreds, if not thousands, of photos with nothing but clouds.

When we left the Big Sky Country of Montana and moved back to Arizona eleven years ago, I was concerned that I wouldn’t have a view where I could enjoy the clouds. I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered the path of my morning walk took me to wide open space with an unrestricted view of the sky.

Then when we moved from Rio Rico to Queen Valley our porch faces the mountain and again I have an unobstructed view of the desert landscape and sky.

I didn’t have that while we were in Florida last week. Yes, the full sky view was gorgeous while we were at the beach but that was only momentary. So, coming home and seeing the big, beautiful, fluffy white clouds was a welcoming site. It was also a vivid reminder of the Father’s hand of protection.

“21 The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night. 22 And the Lord did not remove the pillar of cloud or pillar of fire from its place in front of the people.” Exodus 13:21-22 NLT

When the Israelites left Egypt, the Bible tells us the Lord guided them with a cloud by day and fire by night. This cloud shaded them from the scorching sun and the fire pillar kept them warm at night. The cloud also rested between them and their pursuers when they crossed the Red Sea.

Protection and direction.

My thoughts center on that when I see a cloud of this magnitude. I’m captured by the greatness of our God who promises to be our shield and our defense. I don’t like cloudless skies.

The Bible tells us about another cloud – a cloud we should all be looking for.

“16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. 17 Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. 18 So encourage each other with these words.” I Thessalonians 4:16-18 NLT

When the Lord returns to gather the believers and take them to heaven, He will come in the clouds! Dave used to tease me and tell me that I would probably be photographing clouds on the day of the Lord’s return. I really can’t imagine anything more wonderful!

As I stare at those cloud-filled skies my heart is at peace, I am comforted by a sense of my Father’s presence. “Where are you leading me today, Lord? I don’t want to miss out on anything you have planned for me.”

My God is the Lord Almighty and He leads me on a right path.

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Being First

You all know that we just returned from spending the week in Daytona. The big question of the week was “who will be first”.

There were practice races, qualifying races, and then the main event. There were races for the ARCA cars, Trucks, Xfinity cars and the Cup Cars. Each series would have a winner. In fact, the car to cross the finish line first wasn’t always the one who took home the trophy. There were two races where the winners were disqualified, and another car and driver were given credit for the win.

How disappointing that must have been!

Don’t we love being first?

It is such an honor – being the first to get a phone call or text with really important news – getting the first piece of cake on your birthday – the first dance at your wedding – the first lick of an ice cream cone – the first ride on a motorcycle – the first kiss… I could go on and on.

The Lord also desires to be first.

“Jesus answered, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and most important command.” Matthew 22:37-38 ERV

This isn’t an egotistical desire. No, God wants us to place Him first because He knows the great plan that He has for our lives. His plans are for our good.

He knows that when we lose focus and become distracted by other things we will be like Peter, in yesterday’s verses, looking at the waves and feeling the wind and we will begin to sink.

However, when we seek the Lord first, when we make Him first place in our lives, He fills us with joy, hope, peace, and faith, a true abundant life.

“ Don’t worry and ask yourselves, “Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?” 32 Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows you need all of these. 33 But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well.” Matthew 6:31-33 CEV

When we make the Lord our first love we will never be disqualified; He always causes us to triumph.

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At Work in Us

“ With God’s power working in us, he can do much, much more than anything we can ask or think of.” Ephesians 3:20 ERV

At home this morning, with my favorite coffee cup in hand, I continue to focus on the mighty, never-ending, precious love of God.

Reading in Matthew, chapter 14, I was reminded of the account of John the Baptist’ death. The ruler, Herod, was bothered greatly by the reports and miracles of Jesus’ ministry. He made comment that he believed John the Baptist had come back to life.

You see, he had beheaded John the Baptist out of purely selfish motives. He knew John was a man of God but ordered his death anyway and now he felt John had come back from the grave.

Jesus dearly loved his cousin and was grieving his death. Jesus told his disciples he was going into the desert to be alone. But the crowd found out about it and got to the place before He did.

“ When He got out of the boat, He saw many people. He had loving-pity for them and healed those who were sick.” Matthew 14:14 NLV

Not only did Jesus heal the sick, He fed the hungry with five loaves and two fish.

“ He told the people to sit down on the grass. Then He took the five loaves of bread and two fish. He looked up to heaven and gave thanks. He broke the loaves in pieces and gave them to His followers. The followers gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were filled. They picked up twelve baskets full of pieces of bread and fish after the people were finished eating.” Matthew 14:19-20 NLV

It was the loving compassion of our heavenly Father that moved through Jesus to heal the sick and it was also His loving-compassion that provided food for their bodies. Jesus, in his grief, didn’t stop His work of showing out the love of God.

“ God is able to do much more than we ask or think through His power working in us.” Ephesians 3:20 NLV

But Jesus’ day wasn’t over. He told the disciples to go back to the other side of the lake, sent the people away and then spent time alone with the Father in prayer (the thing He had intended to do from the beginning).

“ After He had sent them away, He went up the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone.” Matthew 14:23 NLV

The disciples encountered a storm on the lake and were in fear of the boat sinking. Jesus had prayed all night and just before the light of day, the Bible says, He came walking on the water.

The disciples were afraid and thought they had seen a ghost. Jesus called out to them, “Don’t be afraid”. That’s when Peter spoke up, “Lord, if it’s You let me come out to You”. Jesus said, “Come on out Peter”.

Peter started walking on the water to Jesus (according to the power of God) but when he saw the waves and felt the wind he took his eyes off Jesus, entered into fear again, and began to sink. Jesus lifted him up and they walked to the boat.

Jesus question to Peter was “why did you doubt”. I think He asks the same question of us on so many occasions.

“ Those in the boat worshiped Jesus. They said, “For sure, You are the Son of God!” Matthew 14:33 NLV

This is what the Apostle Paul wanted us to see and understand. The power of God working in us and that power was/is activated by God’s love for us. We need to understand that.

“I pray that because of the riches of His shining-greatness, He will make you strong with power in your hearts through the Holy Spirit. 17 I pray that Christ may live in your hearts by faith. I pray that you will be filled with love. 18 I pray that you will be able to understand how wide and how long and how high and how deep His love is. 19 I pray that you will know the love of Christ. His love goes beyond anything we can understand. I pray that you will be filled with God Himself.

20 God is able to do much more than we ask or think through His power working in us.” Ephesians 3:16-20 CEV

And I pray that for each of us – may we be strong in the love of God and be filled with Him, so that His power will be working through us!

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Incomparable & Absolutely Amazing

Once again, my heart is overwhelmed as I sit here this morning thinking about the unconditional, everlasting, unfailing love of God!

There are no words to adequately express what causes my heart to swell and my eyes to tear as I sit in the quiet knowing I am surrounded by His matchless love.

So, I will let God’s word speak for me.

“…I am the Lord God. I am merciful and very patient with my people. I show great love, and I can be trusted.” Exodus 34:6 CEV

“Lord God of heaven, you are great and fearsome. And you faithfully keep your promises to everyone who loves you and obeys your commands.” Nehemiah 1:5 CEV

“But I will sing about your strength, my God, and I will celebrate because of your love. You are my fortress, my place of protection in times of trouble.” Psalm 59:16 CEV

“Praise the God of all gods. God‘s love never fails.” Psalm 136:2 CeV

“The Lord your God wins victory after victory and is always with you. He celebrates and sings because of you, and he will refresh your life with his love.” Zephaniah 3:17 CEV

“God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die.” John 3:16 CEV

” …God loves you and has chosen you to be his very own people. I pray that God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you and will bless you with peace!” Romans 1:7 CEV

“I have died, but Christ lives in me. And I now live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me.” Galatians 2:20 CEV

“But God was merciful! We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much he made us alive with Christ, and God‘s gift of undeserved grace is what saves you.” Ephesians 2:4-5 CEV

“I am sure that nothing can separate us from God’s love—not life or death, not angels or spirits, not the present or the future, 39 and not powers above or powers below. Nothing in all creation can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord!” Romans 8:38-39 CEV

There is a praise song I sometimes sing and it is bubbling in my heart right now, “Reckless Love of God”. The chorus goes something like this:

“Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God
Oh, it chases me down, fights ’til I’m found, leaves the ninety-nine
And I couldn’t earn it, I don’t deserve it, still You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God”

Don’t let circumstances, worry, fear or doubt steal the peace that God gives. We are wrapped in His arms, held there by His never-ending, unconditional, everlasting love!

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Love Forgives, Love Forgets

I’m not sure how many little hearts there are in this Valentine but let’s use it as an example. Not 490, for sure but just imagine each one of them is an expression of forgiveness.

Peter asked Jesus about forgiveness. Obviously, someone had offended Peter and he wanted to know how often he had to forgive.

“Then Peter came to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, how many times may my brother sin against me and I forgive him, up to seven times?’ 22 Jesus said to him, ‘I tell you, not seven times but seventy times seven! ‘” Matthew 18:21-22 NLV

Seven is a very significant number in the Bible. It is the number of completion so I’m sure that Peter must have thought that forgiving 7 times would be more than enough.

Jesus told Peter that seven wasn’t enough. He needed to forgive the offender as much as 70×7, or 490 times. Jesus wasn’t referring to the actual number of 490 and when offended for the 491st time Peter no longer had to forgive. Instead, it did not matter how great the offence, forgiveness was still required.

Let’s take that number, 490, and apply it literally. With 24 hours in a day, that would mean that we must be willing to forgive about 20 times an hour or once every 3 minutes. Seriously?!

Oh Lord, do you really expect us to forgive that often? His answer is yes!

We are to live a life where forgiveness is abundant. Jesus even prayed to forgive those who were responsible for crucifying him.

“Then Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them. They do not know what they are doing.’” Luke 23:34 NLV

It was a part of everything He did. When Jesus was teaching his disciples to pray he included forgiving and forgiveness in that model prayer. You remember he said, “Forgive our sins, just as we have forgiven those who did wrong to us.” Matthew 6:12 ERV

Now for all of you who might be tempted to keep track and start counting we have been given teaching on that too.

“ Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. 5 Love is not rude, it is not selfish, and it cannot be made angry easily. Love does not remember wrongs done against it. 6 Love is never happy when others do wrong, but it is always happy with the truth. 7 Love never gives up on people. It never stops trusting, never loses hope, and never quits.” I Cor. 13:4-7 ERV

I’m so glad that I didn’t write this. I sometimes rationalize and make excuses for not being more forgiving, but God removes all that. I am so glad He does because if I could justify my lack of forgiveness, He certainly would have reason to in judging me for my actions.

Thank you Lord that you don’t! Thank you that You freely give your forgiveness to all of us. Lord, we desire to be more like you. Remind us of the 490 so that we can see just how much You are willing to forgive us each day. Your love never gives up on us. We want to be like you.

“ You were spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were not free from the power of your sinful self. But God gave you new life together with Christ. He forgave all our sins. 14 Because we broke God’s laws, we owed a debt—a debt that listed all the rules we failed to follow. But God forgave us of that debt. He took it away and nailed it to the cross.” Colossians 2:13-14 ERV

Thank you, Lord, that You quit counting. Thank you that You forgave all!

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The Gift of Protection

At first this may not seem like a message of love, but it is! This goes back to the words we’ve been focused on from the 23rd Psalm.

“You prepare a table (a banquet table) for me in the presence of my enemies”.

God’s love provides us with protection. The following verses are from the end of the book of Joshua. Joshua had led the Israelites into the Promised Land. They had taken many cities, and the Lord had brought them victorious through many battles. They had walked through the valley of the shadow of death on more than one occasion and that’s the whole point. They walked through – they didn’t stop there; they didn’t camp there – they walked through.

Now look at these words.

“The Lord gave the Israelites the land he had promised their ancestors, and they captured it and settled in it. 44 There still were enemies around Israel, but the Lord kept his promise to let his people live in peace. And whenever the Israelites did have to go to war, no enemy could defeat them. The Lord always helped Israel win. 45 The Lord promised to do many good things for Israel, and he kept his promise every time.” Joshua 21: 43-45 CEV

The Lord promised to do many good things for Israel and He kept his promise every time!

He has also promised to do many good things for you and me. And guess what, He will keep his promise every time.

“ For as many as are the promises of God, in Christ they are [all answered] “Yes.” So through Him we say our “Amen” to the glory of God.” II Corinthians 1:20 AMP

All of God’s promises are answered with a yes to those of us who are in Christ. We are God’s children and He hasn’t made any promise to us that He isn’t willing to keep.

“You who love the Lord, hate evil; He protects the souls of His godly ones (believers), He rescues them from the hand of the wicked.” Psalm 97:10 AMP

He can’t lie and what’s just as important, He doesn’t want to.

“My dear brothers and sisters, don’t be fooled about this. 17 Everything good comes from God. Every perfect gift is from him. These good gifts come down from the Father who made all the lights in the sky. But God never changes like the shadows from those lights. He is always the same. 18 God decided to give us life through the true message he sent to us. He wanted us to be the most important of all that he created.” James 1:16-18 ERV

Now that’s worth a big shout. What an amazing gift of love – Someone who fights our battles! He keeps His promise, every time.

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How Great Is God’s Love?

From that moment in the garden when Adam sinned, God the Father put His plan in place to restore us.

“But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. 16 And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. 17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:15-17 NLT

God’s love for us is so great that He gave His Only Son as the way for us to have eternal life with Him.

We look back to Christ’s crucifixion on the cross and we thank God for what He did to restore us in our relationship with Him. Those in the Old Testament looked forward to the promise that there would be a Savior to come.

David’s writings in the Psalms were filled with praise for God’s faithfulness and love. He was writing about that same hard-to-understand, incomparable love of God that the Apostle Paul wrote about in Ephesians.

“The Lord’s Wonderful Love

1 With all my heart I praise the Lord, and with all that I am I praise his holy name!
2 With all my heart I praise the Lord! I will never forget how kind he has been. 3 The Lord forgives our sins, heals us when we are sick, 4  and protects us from death.
His kindness and love are a crown on our heads. 5 Each day that we live, he provides for our needs and gives us the strength of a young eagle.

6 For all who are mistreated, the Lord brings justice. 7 He taught his Law to Moses
and showed all Israel what he could do.

8 The Lord is merciful! He is kind and patient, and his love never fails. 9 The Lord won’t always be angry and point out our sins; 10 he doesn’t punish us as our sins deserve. 11 How great is God’s love for all who worship him? Greater than the distance between heaven and earth! 12 How far has the Lord taken our sins from us? Farther than the distance from east to west!

13 Just as parents are kind to their children, the Lord is kind to all who worship him, 14 because he knows we are made of dust. 15 We humans are like grass or wild flowers that quickly bloom. 16 But a scorching wind blows, and they quickly wither to be forever forgotten.

17 The Lord is always kind to those who worship him, and he keeps his promises to their descendants 18 who faithfully obey him.” Psalm 103:1-18 CEV

If you grew up thinking that God was writing down all your faults and frailties so that He could condemn you this Psalm should be a daily read. Yes, He knows our faults and our failings, but He has chosen to forgive them and forget them.

This Psalm answers the question in today’s title. How Great is God’s Love? Greater than the distance between heaven and earth!

Let His love embrace you!

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