Tag: Blessings

Magnify

I will MAGNIFY HIM with thanksgiving.

I know we are traveling through a difficult passage of life right now, there is a lot of scary, and negative news out there. It may feel like God is far away. I ask you to answer this question for yourself, is God big or small to you?

I will magnify Him with thanksgiving.

In our lives it’s very easy to get focused on all of the things that are not going our way and if we are not careful they can consume us to believe that nothing is going our way. And we begin to question, doubt, and distance ourselves from God.

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2:12-16‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

It can start out very simply, and very quickly escalate us into feeling as though our whole life is a mess, and we lose our lights. I will keep this thought short and sweet to remind you to look at the life around you and notice what you do have rather than what you don’t, be thankful to God, take time to consider what He has done for you up to this point and do your best to be thankful for Him…

Even in our trials we can be thankful…actually we are told we can have joy and glory in them, because God is making us stronger!

“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
‭‭James‬ ‭1:2-8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭5:1-5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

MAGNIFY HIM

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭29:11-13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Make a list of what you are thankful for, if you have heard the song count your blessings, think of it! Each one of us have been blessed in different ways, it will do us no good to compare our blessings with the blessings of others because then that can make you envious, and ungrateful for the life that God has given you!

“A sound heart is life to the body, But envy is rottenness to the bones.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭14:30‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Count YOUR blessings and you will find that God is nearer to you than you realized! He loves YOU so much, let His love motivate you each day, to be a worker for Him, to learn to be self less, and Magnify Him and praise Him for what he has done for YOU each and every day.

“I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together. I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing. Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. Who is the man who desires life, And loves many days, that he may see good? Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears, And delivers them out of all their troubles. The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all. He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned. The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34:1-22‬ ‭NKJV‬‬


The God of peace shall be with you….

I feel like this is our extended New Years Eve,

So I will just say it

Happy New Year!

Here is to life, and to being real about it all!

We made it back home from our annual trip to Cold Bay, Alaska It’s really a blessing, and I’m so thankful that we have the ability to go to this place every year and do what we do! I hope that everyone has a place that they can go, to take a little break, change pace, think, reflect, and most importantly be in nature, take part in God’s creation, which is really amazing!

Have you ever felt like you just wanted a break to change your pace?

The Holidays are coming up,

And the real new year is coming up as well,

How many of us are actually thinking about our New Years resolutions (maybe, not yet, too early, I know)

We gotta get through those indulgent holidays first, I know!

Your probably wondering where I’m going with these thoughts, well so am I,

When I started this blog I wrote that this was my way of reflection, decompressing my thoughts, so I’m actually just writing what is in my head right now, as I sit on another plane, heading to another place, another break from reality I guess you can call it!

Not because I dislike my reality, I actually really love my life, but this hasn’t always been true for me…I have surely had my struggles, and by no means do I have the perfect life.

But let me share something with you,We all know what Phillipians 4:13 says,

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:13‬ ‭KJV‬‬

We read this and we are empowered, aren’t we,

ALL THINGS!

CHRIST,

WHO STRENGTHENS US!

Really amazing to think about isn’t it?

I strongly believe that Christ does strengthen us, and that he can help us overcome SO MUCH!

But in context this actually is talking about lifestyle, and being content no matter what because we have CHRIST, and no matter what, he has got our back, whether we are in the storms of life, or full of joy, whether we are rich or poor, hurting or happy.

Philippians 4:4-14

Rejoice in the Lord always:

Again I will say, rejoice!

Let your forbearing spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

And the peace of God,

Which surpasses all comprehension,

Shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally brethren,

Whatever is true,

Whatever is honorable,

Whatever is right,

Whatever is pure,

Whatever is lovely,

Whatever is of good repute,

If there is any excellence and if anything is worthy of praise,

Let your mind dwell on these things.

The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me,

Practice these things;

And the God of peace shall be with you.

But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly,

That now at last you have revived your concern for me;

Indeed you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity.

Not that I speak from want;

For I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.

I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity;

In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both having abundance and suffering need.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Nevertheless you have done well to share with me in my affliction.

Philippians 4:4-14

So as I sit here in flight, reflecting, thankful, and rejoicing in the blessings that God has given me, I am also so very thankful for the struggles as well because they have taught me so much, they have helped me grow,

Those reality breaks, they don’t have to wait until the New Year, or the trip, sometimes we just need to stop breathe, and think, what am I doing and why am I hurting, and give in to Gods Guidance, and Christ’s strength.

PAUSE,

You are never too far gone for God to work with you,

Content in all circumstances means that, whether life is going great, or life is difficult you have the Creator on your side wanting to help fix you!

And sometimes it hurts, sometimes it’s hard, but it’s only because he knows how much you deserve, and he wants to give you more! But sometimes we get so stubborn in our ways thinking life can’t get better and we shouldn’t feel content regardless of the circumstances, when it’s good we feel guilty, when it’s hard we feel hopeless, and we feel like we need to have all the answers rather than just trust the process!

So with all that being said,

I get stubborn too,

I think life is something I need to handle all on my own,

I think well I’m already this far in, I can’t stop now, I can’t turn around….

That’s why I say take a break to look at your life, where is the first place you take your computer when it’s broken, well I’m sure if you knew the designer personally you would take it straight to him, but most likely your either gonna read the manual it came with, or your gonna take it to someone who has, and has studied it and knows how to fix it.

We are not computers but we have a designer a Creator, we also have a manual (Gods word, the Bible) and we also have people who have put in the time and effort to read and work on themselves through that manual, and speaking from experience myself, I know it works!

I’m learning to be less stubborn in my ways, and more dependent on God, more trusting of Him, and content in every circumstance, because it is true that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!

“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then ye are my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

‭‭John‬ ‭8:31-32‬ ‭KJV‬‬

His work always leaves me so in Awe!!

“Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭46:8-11‬ ‭KJV‬

“My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭62:5-8‬ ‭KJV‬‬

“Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

‭‭John‬ ‭8:12‬ ‭KJV‬‬

“And He *said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. [ But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” ]”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭17:20-21‬ ‭NASB‬‬

“Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they launched out. But as they were sailing along He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger. They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm. And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?””

‭‭Luke‬ ‭8:22-25‬ ‭NASB‬‬

“Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you.

These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.””

‭‭John‬ ‭16:22, 33‬ ‭NASB‬‬

As always if there was ever anything that you could get from taking the time to read my blog my prayer for this always is that you would take the time to desire the Truth in your life, we are are capable of being stronger than we think, which is exactly why Christ came to die for us, I pray you would find a Bible and read it and learn about that! And the love that He has for us!

May God bless you and you be able to find what it means to be content in all circumstances! And what it means to be able to do all things through Christ who strengthens you ❤️

With love,

Beverly