“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

How has the Holy Spirit changed my life? I used to be very shy and introverted, especially around people I didn’t know. Even when we sang together as a family, I’d freeze up when it was my turn to introduce a song. I was good with singing, but not speaking.

When I was in high school, I failed speech class because I refused to get up in front of the class and speak. I was fine with the written part, but the speaking, not so much.  But when the Holy Spirit came on me at the age of 17, He changed my confidence from mine, to His. I was so aware of the fact that my space was no longer just mine, but infused with the very Spirit of God.

God knew we needed help, that’s why He sent the Holy Spirit. He knew we could never live a victorious life alone, or be His witnesses or do what He asks of us. When we surrender to allow Him habitation, He is eternally strong in us, making it possible for us to do impossible things and Him to get all the glory.

So what are you waiting for? Be the witness of His miracles. Be the witness of how He changed your life forever. Don’t keep it to yourself! There’s a whole world out there that needs to hear the good news. There’s a whole world that needs to be healed though you, set free through you. You are all He has to work with to do the amazing work in the earth.

Father, I will be whatever You need me to be today. May I not miss opportunities to share this joy, peace and strength with a sad, anxious and weak people. I will tell of Your life-changing plan for all mankind. I love You Lord! It’s in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Jesus said to all of his followers, “If you truly desire to be my disciple, you must disown your life completely, embrace my ‘cross’ as your own, and surrender to my ways.  For if you choose self-sacrifice, giving up your lives for my glory, you will embark on a discovery of more and more of true life. But if you choose to keep your lives for yourselves, you will lose what you try to keep.” Luke 9:23-24 TPT

As I read this, I remembered a game we used to play as kids called, ‘Follow the Leader”. There was one leader (usually the oldest sibling), and everyone had to follow her. If she climbed the stairs, you climbed the stairs. If she rolled down a hill, you rolled down a hill. This would only work with one leader.

If you’re confused here, let me explain. Jesus is the leader and we are to follow him. We follow by joining our lives to His, going where He leads us, doing what He did, saying what He said. He came to reveal to the world the love of the Father and that He longs to do life with them.

Some people assume that believing in Jesus gives them the right to live life the way they want, after all, they just wanted eternal life in heaven, they didn’t actually want to do anything. Well I hate to burst your bubble but part of being a Christian is to submit to His Lordship and that means surrender.

Surrender to His plans. Surrender all your old ways, your old hurts, your bitterness, anger and unforgiveness. But in exchange, He gives you His peace, joy, provision, healing and takes you on a journey that’s exciting and shows you things hidden from those who don’t want to really know Him. Relationship with God has perks. He shows you what life in the Spirit looks like. He backs you up with power and authority over all the power of the enemy.

No it’s not easy, but who wants easy? Easy is boring! Easy is comfortable. Easy has no challenges. Easy has no rewards. I want a life that’s exciting and productive, making God’s vision come to pass in the earth. His Kingdom has come and it’s in me. He wants His will to be done in the earth through you and me.

So surrender! Let it all go and dive into the deep pool of the unknown in tandem with the God who created you, who’s Spirit is in you. Listen as He speaks and calls you to take new territories and discover His master plan for you. Get ready for change!

Until Tomorrow

Surrendered,

Sandy G

Luke 18:11-24 tells a familiar story of the prodigal son who took his share of inheritance and squandered it on clubbing, drinking, drugs and gambling (that’s in todays terms of course). As our pastor read these verses yesterday morning, my mind went to my own story as I’m sure you have yours as well.

Verse 17-18 says:  But when he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!  I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;  I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.”’

He came to his senses! It was a wake-up moment! I’ve seen this happen in my own life and my children’s life. I’ve watched countless people come to the altar, weeping as they came to their senses and returned to the loving embrace of the Father.

I don’t care how hopeless it looks, I don’t care how far they’ve gone from God, what sin has touched their lives, if you keep believing, if you keep calling their spirits back to God, they will come to their senses. You may not know where they are, but God does and He’s pursing them.

This last portion has always made me cry: So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.  And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’  But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;  and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;  for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’ And they began to celebrate.

I hear the Father say, “It’s time to celebrate! It’s time to party! I see you coming down the road. Nothing can separate you from my love. I won’t hold your past against you. I won’t give it a second thought. When you return, I’ll show you what plans I have for you and they won’t look anything like the way it used to be. I’ll give you a new identity and the authority you need to get the job done.”

Happy Travels!

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,       2 Peter 1:2

Do you want to live in more grace and peace? The more understanding you have of God, the more you will see increase in grace and peace. I don’t know about you, but I could use more of that in my life.

I’ve always heard that grace is the undeserved, unearned favor of God and I believe that is one aspect we need to see. However, like most things, we limit our thinking based on our knowledge and I believe that God wants us to know Him in ALL of His fullness. God is a very big God, don’t you agree?

As I was listening to a message by Graham Cooke, he gave the most compelling interpretation of the word grace, I’ve ever heard:

“Grace is the empowering presence of God that enables you to become the person that He sees when He looks at you.”

Isn’t that awesome? If I can’t see myself as God sees me, I will never allow Him to do through me what He intends to do in the earth. If I go by my own knowledge of me, it will stop me from moving forward because I know that in myself I’m incapable.

This reminds me of the story of almost every person in the Bible who was called on to do something great. God had to change the knowledge they had into His knowledge of who they were. He did it in various ways, but He called them who He saw they were. Gideon was called, “Mighty man of valor” when in his own mind he was the least of the least of the least.

If we don’t know how God sees us, how will we ever do great exploits for Him? Think about it. You weren’t just made in His image and likeness, He deposited His Spirit in you so that in every weak area of your life, He can be your strength. He never asked you to do it in your own strength. No, He said, “My strength is made perfect in your weakness.” It’s all about Him. The more we know who He is, the better we know who we are.

Father, You said that if I know the truth, it will set me free. I believe that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and He lives in and through me. I step out of the way. I surrender all my insufficiencies for You. I’m so excited! You who began this good work in me, You are faithful to complete it. All glory is Yours in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Remember the prophecy God gave in Hosea:

And: “In the place where they were told, ‘You are nobody,’ this will be the very place where they will be renamed ‘Children of the living God.’ ” Romans 9:25-26 TPT

Oh Father, my Father, I’m so thankful You redeemed me and called me Your own. It wasn’t for nothing that You gave Your only son to purchase me out of a life of slavery into the Kingdom of Your dear Son. I will never feel worthy yet You call me worthy. I will never understand Your plan, yet You have one that includes me.

I owe You so much and all I have to offer You is my life. Not a part of me, but all of me. I give You my hands to help give to others. I give You my arms to hold and hug others for You. I give You my feet so that I can go where You direct me. I give You my heart so that I can love others as You love me. I give you my voice so I can sing Your praises and talk of Your goodness wherever I go.

Thank You for this week and for changing my perspective so that I can see others through Your lenses. I pray for each person who comes across these posts. May they be encouraged and strengthened to run the race You’ve set before them and to finish well so that they can hear You say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of the Lord.”

It’s in Jesus’ precious name, Amen

Until Monday,

Sandy G

Then he added, “Now you should go and study the meaning of the verse:

For I have come to invite the outcasts of society and sinners, not those who think they are already on the right path.” Matthew 9:13 TPT

I love how God uses anyone at anytime if we’re willing. Last weekend I attended a womans conference where I volunteered to help with the registration table. During a lull, a resident in her 90’s approached the table. She had what appeared to be a cleft pallet and very few teeth in the front of her mouth. My first thought was, “Oh, I bet she’s going to be hard to understand.”

But she wasn’t really. You could tell she’d worked hard on her speech so people could understand her. It became immediately evident how much she loved her Savior. It truly made it impossible not to listen. She began to tell how 30 years ago she showed up at this Christian Retreat Center and they took her in, cleaned her up and gave her a job. By the time she got to the part where her ex-con husband put her face through a plate glass window, her facial trama became clear.

She never complained or asked for money. She never let her present scars or handicap stop her. She still had vision as she shared her desire to find a way to go into womens prisons and speak out of experience to a field ripe for harvest. An evangelist at 93 still burning with passion for Jesus.

When she finished I had a sobering thought; here was a woman at least 30 years my senior, unafraid and unashamed of her past or present circumstances. She was the woman at the well, whose life was so transformed by Jesus and she couldn’t stop telling about him.

It jarred me awake from my slumber. It was as if God Himself blew on the dying embers of my tired heart and said, wake up! Souls are hanging in the balance. As I’ve blown on you, breathe on others. There’s work to be done.

Be surrendered and willing to be used of God anywhere and anytime. At your worst, your best and anything in between. Go and be His disciples in your market place, your jobs and tell them you met a man who changed your life forever.

Until Tomorrow,

Sandy G

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. Romans 8:26-28 MSG

We’ve all been there, the place where words escape us and all we can do is cry or sit silently in a quiet room trying to make sense of what just happened. Disappointment, regret, grief, fear all sweeping through us like a wrecking ball, leaving rubble and dust clouds in our space.

We can no longer see clearly. We check our pulse to see if we’re still alive. We cry out, “Father! I feel so alone yet I know You are with me. What just happened here? My picture perfect dreams just shattered before my eyes. I don’t get it but I know You do and according to Your Word, everything will work out for my good and Your glory. I choose to trust You in this mess.”

For you it could be a death, a broken marriage, the loss of a loved one, a miscarriage, a betrayal, loss of a job, your inability to meet your bills. Whatever it is today, remind God of His promises and ask Him for a new song. Worship Him in the middle of what you’re facing and watch things shift.

Surrender it to Him and watch as He rebuilds your loss into something more beautiful than you could imagine. He understands your confusion. He has felt your pain. He understands your grief and He wants to take the mess and change it into something new. Will you trust Him?

“I surrender all. I surrender all. All to thee my blessed Savior, I surrender all.”

Until Tomorrow

Sandy G

All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don’t see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy. Romans 8:22-25 MSG

I sense in my spirit that there are many people all around the world who are pregnant with promises. Don’t abort your promise just because you’re tired of waiting. Don’t be discouraged or down-hearted because it’s taking so long! Don’t let your mind convince you that you heard wrong because you haven’t delivered yet.

I was recently thinking of my own discomfort in pregnancy. I’ve never been so sick for so long. It wasn’t just in the morning, it was all day long. I wasn’t just sick for 3 months, I was heaving on the delivery table. It was so bad at one point that I began vomiting blood at which point the doctor told my husband to count how many times in the next half hour and call him back. 37 times in 30 minutes. I was too weak to get off the bathroom floor.

But when I delivered my promise and held that beautiful black haired girl in my arms, all of the misery of my pregnancy fell to the background and I entered into my new role as mother. What I had carried on the inside, I now carried on the outside for everyone to see.

I heard the Spirit whisper, “It’s time. You heard me as I told you to get ready. You listened as I instructed you and poured into you what you needed to fulfill your assignment. It’s time for delivery of the message I’ve placed inside of you. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.”

My friend, we are nothing more than carriers of the oil of the Holy Spirit. As He fills us up, He will cause what is in us to spill over onto others. Some of us have been bursting at the seams. We’ve been enlarged to the point of overflow, but soon what you carry on the inside will be evident on the outside. Get ready for signs, wonders and miracles to follow you as this next great move of God comes from His pregnant people.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:19

This verse holds so much excitement and promise, but it also raises questions; Is this it? Where do I go from here? The uncertainty sometimes leaves us wondering if somehow, someway we missed it.

This word uncertain means to be unsure of something. Also, uncertain things are undecided, unknown, or doubtful in some way.  If you’re certain of something, you’re sure of it. When you’re uncertain, you just don’t know.

But the one thing God says is this; See, I am doing a new thing! That tells me I will see it. But here’s one place I won’t see it; in the old. I can never expect the new thing to look like the old thing. When God says see, He intends for me to look for it, expect it, perceive it.

When I read a verse, I ask God to show me new things that I didn’t know before. Guess what? If you ask, you will receive it. Don’t ever look at scripture as you always have, ask God for new eyes that lead you into a deeper desire for intimacy and knowledge of His nature.

And my dear sweet friends who are always asking for the old, STOP! God wants to expose the power that’s in you to the world. He wants to reveal His true sons and daughters, those who have allowed His Spirit free access to walk in power and demonstration. Just as Jesus was, so will we be in the world.

New things surprise us. New things make us smile, they’re exciting, they’re amazing. God wants to lavish His gifts on us so that we in turn can be a conduit to the lost. When He said, “I will pour out blessings you don’t have room to receive!” He really meant that.

Imagine yourself sitting at the feet of Jesus as He tells you what’s in store for you. Wouldn’t you want it all? You wouldn’t settle for just His love-although that in itself is overwhelming. But He has so much more for you! Don’t walk away with a taste when He has a table prepared for you that contains everything you’ll ever need and more.

Sweet, sweet Father. You never disappoint! When I’m weary, You give me strength. When I’m sad, You give me joy. When I’m in the middle of turmoil, You bring me peace. There is nothing I could ever face where You are not beside me, leading and guiding, pouring out blessings I don’t have room for. I’m so excited. I watching for the new because I perceive it’s just around the next corner. It’s in Jesus’ name and always for Your glory, Amen.