But Jesus said, “Let her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a good work for Me.  For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always.  She has done what she could. She has come beforehand to anoint My body for burial.  Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.” Mark 14:6-9

For those who don’t remember, this story is about a woman who was so thankful for the difference Jesus made in her life, she took the equivalence of a years salary in the form of a rare perfume and poured it on Jesus’ feet, drying them with her hair. Jesus saw the significance of it because He knew what would happen to him. He knew she was anointing His body for the burial that would soon happen.

Today is a day we have called, Memorial Day. It is to honor the memory of those who sacrificed their lives for our country. What they did was an incredible selfless sacrifice and I for one am grateful to them and the families affected by their loss. Thank you from one who is grateful.

May we not forget all of our forefathers who gave their lives so that we could enjoy these freedoms. Never give up or give away something that someone else gave their lives so you could have it.

And thanks to God for giving us the freedoms we have. Not just in our nation, but in our lives. The Christians who gave their lives so that Word of God would remain in the earth. Those martyred for their faith whose blood cries out for justice.

Let’s take the time today to be thankful for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Jesus being the one who will forever continue changing lives and making an impact on our families.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

One man of you shall chase a thousand, for the Lord your God is He who fights for you, as He promised you. Joshua 23:10

As I was looking at my stats on Word Press this morning, I realized that this post makes 1000 for me. That’s only on Word Press, it doesn’t count for the year I took off to only post on Facebook. That’s a hurdle I never thought I’d reach. Why? Because I went from wanting to be recognized to only wanting Him to be recognized. I shifted my focus to who is in me instead of who I am.

So getting back to the scripture above, let me explain something. Joshua was a very old man and the people he had led into the promised land had been at rest in the land. He called everyone to him so he could remind them of what God had promised them and to remind them to follow the laws of God so that He could continue to bless them.

But this promise spoke of the strength God would give them, supernatural strength. You see when God fights for you, you’re never alone! One man will chase 1000. I don’t know about you but that’s a whole lot of men for one to chase. But when you realize who stands with you, nothing is impossible for you.

Jesus spoke of this in Luke 1:37 when he simply stated, “For with God, nothing will be impossible.” With. That doesn’t put it all on God, it puts you in the equation. We expect God to do it all by Himself, but God gave us the power and authority and He infuses you with supernatural strength to do what you normally couldn’t do.

So my friend, don’t be intimidated by what God has asked you to do. Remember He is in you and gives you the strength and the ability to do it. You weren’t meant to do it alone, you were meant to do it with Him.

Have a great weekend!

Love to you all!

Sandy G

The council members were astonished as they witnessed the bold courage of Peter and John, especially when they discovered that they were just ordinary men who had never had religious training. Then they began to understand the effect Jesus had on them simply by spending time with him. Acts 4:13 TPT

Have you ever met someone who looked ordinary, but when they opened their mouth you were shocked at the wisdom that came out of their mouth? The wow moment when you discover they never attended bible school but seem to know and have such a deep understanding of the Word? I have!

My grandmother, Ruth Smith,  would spend hours sitting in her chair with her bible in hand, reading and studying the word. Her academic achievements were minimal, but you’d never know it from speaking with her. She loved her Jesus. She was intimate with Him and was acquainted with His promises. If you dared ask her a question, everything in her would spill out onto you. If you were sick, she would quickly lay hands on you and pray for you.

I remember when I was about 4 years old, I suffered from all sorts of skin allergies and would have large sores on the inside of my elbows that would seep and scab. I was sitting on her lap and my older sister, Vickie was standing beside her. She had Vickie lay her hands on me and prayed healing onto my arms in Jesus’ name. Shortly after that they healed up and I never had a problem with that area again.

She didn’t just believe it, she demonstrated it. She went from ordinary to extraordinary because of the time she spent with God. Her inheritance was that all of her children and grandchildren were saved. She created extraordinary lovers of God because of what she carried. She didn’t just carry enough for herself, but she overflowed onto others.

I want to be that for those around me. Not just my family, but my coworkers, people in my marketplace. How about you? The time you spend with God fills you to the overflow so that everyone you come into contact with is changed by the power of God in you. Don’t be a hoarder! Don’t settle for sitting on what’s in you and keeping it to yourself. You were meant to be a vessel to be poured out of onto others.

I’m so excited for you. You’re about to discover that God uses ordinary people to make extraordinary changes in the earth. Be that today.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

By living in God, love has been brought to its full expression in us so that we may fearlessly face the day of judgment, because all that Jesus now is, so are we in this world. 1 John 4:17 TPT

What do you think he meant when he said, “By living in God”? Do you think it’s possible that’s what Paul meant when he made the statement, “Christ in me the hope of glory”? Or what about John 14:10 when Jesus said, “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.”

John wrote this after Jesus had died and been resurrected and was seated with the Father. He wrote it after the Holy Spirit was poured out on us, the believers. Yet he said, “all that Jesus now is, so are we in this world.”

Perhaps we need to rethink our position. We are in the world but not of the world. Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world. Do we truly believe that Love (God) is in us? If so, why are we not living on the earth as He is living in heaven? If all authority was given to us, we seem to have been deceived or perhaps we’ve just misplaced it.

Surely God wouldn’t have a plan for signs and wonders to follow us and take away that power when we need it the most. Surely He wouldn’t say He’d provide for us out of His riches in glory than become stingy and go back on His promise.

Absolutely not! God cannot lie! What He said He will do, what He promised He will fulfill. My dear child of God, know your identity. You are truly a force to be reckoned with because the very life of God dwells in those who dare believe. And what did Jesus say about those who believe? “All things are possible to them who believe.”

We need to make the shift from head knowledge to heart relationship. We can’t just know about God, we must be in relationship with Him. The more we seek Him, the more we find Him if we seek Him with all our heart. That’s heart, not head!

Father I believe You are in me and I am in You. This exchange we have is full of new mercies, new grace and such an immense love that it’s hard to describe. Thank You for being present in every situation in my life. I surrender to you completely. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

Then Delilah pouted, “How can you tell me, ‘I love you,’ when you don’t share your secrets with me? You’ve made fun of me three times now, and you still haven’t told me what makes you so strong!”  She tormented him with her nagging day after day until he was sick to death of it.

Finally, Samson shared his secret with her. “My hair has never been cut,” he confessed, “for I was dedicated to God as a Nazirite from birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as anyone else.” Judges 16:15-17

I believe the most grievous thing a woman can do to a man is to exploit his weaknesses. We know why Delilah did it to Samson, but why do we do it? If you’ll allow me, I’ll walk you through a very eye-opening truth God has begun to reveal to me in my study on covenants.

Covenants were created to eliminate weaknesses. Until we see our need, we will never covenant with someone because in our minds, we’re good the way we are. But once the weakness is known, we realize we’re doomed without help. It’s how most of us came to know and covenant with Jesus.

We’ve always heard the saying, ‘opposites attract’, right? Why do you think that is? It’s because the other person is good in areas we are not and we appreciate those strengths in them. If we married someone just like us, there would be no benefit to us simply because we’re too much alike.

In the old days, a farmer and a warrior would covenant together simply because the warrior couldn’t grow food and the farmer couldn’t defend his crops. The benefit for each was that the farmer would feed the starving warrior, and the warrior would defend the farmers property so no one would steal from him.

Let’s just say the farmer had a wife and she began saying to him, “Why can’t you be more like our strong warrior neighbor? I think it’s sexy when a man takes up his sword and fights.”

So lets say that the farmer decides he wants to please his wife so instead of planting one year, he learns how to use a sword and look sexy to his wife. First he would have no crops to harvest because he had wasted the time learning to do what his covenant partner had already said he would do. So now he can’t feed his covenant partner, he hasn’t enough to feed his own family, he looks stupid wielding a sword because that’s not what he is good at and his wife is disappointed with the outcome.

Covenants are made to eliminate weaknesses, not to focus on them! Truth be told, we all have a tendency to focus on the bad, not the good. To see the weakness and not the strength. We devalue because we’ve lost sight of the value.

It’s the ones we are closest to that bug us the most. Why? Because our focus has gotten off track. Don’t lose sight of the value your spouse brings to the relationship. Don’t allow the foxes to steal the love and appreciation for the strengths he brings. To honor, you must treat as extraordinary. Make him your super-hero and watch how he sees himself change.

Your spouse will only measure up to who you think and say he is. If you can’t see his value, someone else will and they will tell him. Make a decision to be the only one who sees his value and constantly tells him what he’s worth to God and to you. If you can’t see him the way God does, you will never convey that image to him.

Focus on the good and diminish the bad. It takes work and effort, but truth be told, you will get what you set your sights on.

Be Blessed Today!

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

You must catch the troubling foxes, those sly little foxes that hinder our relationship. For they raid our budding vineyard of love to ruin what I’ve planted within you. Will you catch them and remove them for me? We will do it together. Song of Songs 2:16 TPT

Just another verse that proves how God loves to do life with us. He knew there would be little troubling things that would try to creep in and hinder our relationship. They raid the vineyard of love to ruin what I’ve planted in you.

What is hindering your togetherness? Personally, I get easily distracted. My mind goes at a rate of speed that I can’t even keep up with at times. I know I’m not alone in this so let me share this with you, I have taught myself how to ‘be still’ in Gods presence. It was not easy and it took time and discipline. It continues to prove difficult. If it were easy, everyone would do it.

How did I do it?

1. I made a decision to do it. I knew it would cost me sleep, so I started going to bed early so that when I woke up, I would be alert.
2. I kept a clock in the room so I wouldn’t be late in getting ready for work
3. The only thing I took was my bible, my journal and my pen.
4. I would read, sit and think about what I read and ask questions.
5. I wrote down my verse and questions and as the answer came or the Lord began to speak to me, I wrote what I heard.

Why did I do it?

1. I wanted Him to know that I value my time with Him as much as He values my time with Him.
2. I wasn’t satisfied with what I got from a man or woman on Sunday morning. I knew God longed for relationship with me and I wanted to know who lived in me.
3. I understood that Christ in me is my hope of glory. That word glory means power and I was tired of being a powerless Christian when He said I would do greater works then He did.
4. Psalm 27:8 TPT says why for me: Lord, when you said to me, “Seek my face,” my inner being responded, “I’m seeking your face with all my heart.”
5. I want to know His Word in such a way that no one push me off that rock or steal the Word from my heart.

The promise that we will do it together is the most beautiful promise made. I don’t want to do life alone, and with God, I’m never alone. He won’t leave me or forsake me. His heart is so toward me that when I call on Him He answers me. I’ve never come out of His presence where He hasn’t changed something in my life. He said He would show me things I don’t know and He never disappoints.

You too can experience life together with God. He longs for you. Read the verse again, He wants nothing to hinder your relationship that you will do together with Him. Make the decision to know Him, to seek Him with all your heart.

It’s going to be a great journey together!

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy

Forever I will lift up my soul into your presence, Lord.
Be there for me, God, for I keep trusting in you.
Don’t allow my foes to gloat over me or
the shame of defeat to overtake me.
For how could anyone be disgraced
when he has entwined his heart with you?
But they will all be defeated and ashamed
when they harm the innocent.
Lord, direct me throughout my journey
so I can experience your plans for my life.
Reveal the life-paths that are pleasing to you.
Escort me along the way; take me by the hand and teach me.
For you are the God of my increasing salvation;
I have wrapped my heart into yours! Psalm 25:1-5 TPT

Every word, Lord. It’s as if David stepped into my time, grabbed my thoughts and penned them so that I could once again read and remember. Because You are with me and will never leave or forsake me, You are indeed my escort on this journey of life.

Forgive me for the moments I thought it was all about me. Sometimes the un-renewed portion of my mind seems to think it can still control me. I submit and surrender even that to You. I don’t ever want a second to pass that I’m not fully aware of You and be available for You to use me to help someone else.

I have wrapped my heart into Yours forever!

It’s with all my love,

Sandy

So we are convinced that every detail of our lives is continually woven together to fit into God’s perfect plan of bringing good into our lives, for we are his lovers who have been called to fulfill his designed purpose. Romans 8:28 TPT

I keep reading this over and over and over again. There’s something soothing about this verse just knowing we are His lovers, called to fulfill His designed purpose. Each detail fitting together to complete a masterpiece.

Here are a few highlights that came to me this morning:

1. Convinced. To be completely certain about something; firm in ones belief with regard to a particular cause or issue. No room for doubt.
2. Detail. Assign to undertake a particular task.
3. Woven. Make (a complex story or pattern) from a number of interconnected elements.
4. Fulfill. Bring to completion or reality, achieve or realize (something desired, promised or predicted).
5. Purpose. Have as one’s intention or objective.

I don’t pretend to know what Gods plans are for my future, but I know He has already seen it, for He goes before me. I may not see the completed bride of Christ but I know it’s in process and I’m a very small cell in a very large bride.

I can rest in the assurance that every tiny detail is something God’s already made a place for in my life. It’s a part of the process I’m in for He who began a good work in me is faithful to complete it.

Because He loves me I can trust Him. Because He knows the plan, I will simply wait to hear His directions and be excited to see the finished project. My spirit connected to His Spirit, surrendered to His plan. Resting in the arms of my lover.

Sweet Holy Spirit. Sweet Heavenly Dove. Stay right here with me, filling me with Your love. And for these blessings, I lift my heart in praise. Without a doubt I know that I have been revived when I leave this place. But I’m not really leaving, for where I am, there You are.

‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ Jeremiah 33:3

I just get down right excited when I get a glimpse of a deeper revelation of a word I thought I knew all about. When I’m just reading along, minding my own business and my teacher says, “Go back and read that again.” I know that when I show up to class with expectations, I’m always guaranteed to learn something new.

I would have loved to be in the room as the disciples began to write the things they remembered that Jesus said. To watch the ‘light’ come on as they saw prophesy after prophesy from the old testament come to pass through what He said and did in the earth.

I’m learning that there were times in my life where I’d experienced things that I thought were a mistake, yet years down the road the Holy Spirit would reveal the significance it had and how He used it to get me to the place I ended up today.

I have began asking God, “What’s in it for me? What’s in this promise? What’s in this verse? What’s in this trial? Help me get through this well, to finish well so that I can help others with it.” I’m not asking for selfish reasons. I truly want to know what He has purposed for me in this.

Instead of focusing on the problem you’re going through, I challenge you to do the same. “Father, I want to learn through this, I want my faith to grow stronger. Deepen my trust in You. Let me gain Your perspective in this situation. Help my light to shine so that it may show others the way to You.”

To Him who has all the answers and waits for us to ask, be glory and honor forever, Amen.

A thief has only one thing in mind—he wants to steal, slaughter, and destroy. But I have come to give you everything in abundance,  more than you expect—life in its fullness until you overflow! John 10:10

There are so many times I’ve expected something, and been disappointed because the thing that happened, didn’t happen the way I thought it would. I see hands going up everywhere, “Tha’ts me! That’s me!” Well my friend, you are NOT alone!

It’s like stopping at a fast food drive thru, place your order, pick it up, only to get to work and find they had given you the wrong thing. Your mouth was watering in anticipation only to find they missed the mark!

Let me just give you a bit of encouragement today; Jesus never misses the mark! In fact if you think you received something from the Lord and it didn’t spill over, somebody’s been double dipping! Remember what Jesus said in John 10:10 that a thief does? Steals, slaughters and destroys. So if part of your blessing is missing or seems a bit off, recognize who’s responsible and demand your stuff back!

God is Provider, not according to our riches, but according to His. When you think of God you must not think with your tiny thinking.

Isaiah 55:8-9 says it as only God can; “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”

Don’t settle for what you think is a blessing. Be thankful and expect more, because if it’s not overflowing, it’s not God. Don’t be tricked into accepting the little when God is an over the top kind of God. He’s opulent. He’s magnificent. His gifts are beyond amazing. They don’t satisfy for a minute, they satisfy eternally.

Until Tomorrow!

Sandy