Friends

I am very privileged and blessed to have so many wonderful friends.  I've had an active weekend with different groups of friends.  I had the joy of celebrating with friends who were celebrating 5 years of marriage.  I spent time with a new group of friends in Chappel Hill--these are friends that I won't see very often.  As I think back over the years I've had an incredible group of friends.  I looked over pictures with fond memories of how special these people are to me.

Friendships run deep.  They minister to us in a special way.  Consider Job's three friends in Job 2:10-12 When Job’s three friends, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite, heard about all the troubles that had come upon him, they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him. When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads.

His friends felt his pain and mourned with him.  Proverbs 17:17 says A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.  True friends love you enough to weep with you, to dance for joy with you and have the courage to rebuke you when you need it.  I'm grateful that I have friends that will come along side me when I am in a rut or about to make a bad choice and will confront me.  I like how it is described in
Ecclessiates 4:10 If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!

Look at Luke 5- the story of the paralytic.  Take the time to read the story.  The paralytic had friends that were determined to get him to see Jesus so that he would be healed.  When they could not get into the house where Jesus was they took there friend to the roof and lowered him down  verse 20 says, When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” What dedicated friends!
Thank you Lord for giving me so many wonderful friends!  Lord I pray you would bless each one of my friends with your super natural power and authority as they begin their work week!

Living A Life of ALL

ALL--very small word in the english language but used quite a bit.  Depending on which translation you use, each one has the word all over four thousand times--some almost five thousand.  That's a lot!   I realize we are all educated but thought I would just reference the meaning.  All is a word that is used as a quantifier; representing something in its entirety.  Simple enough but God chose to use it over four thousand times in His Word.
First thing that comes to mind for me is Deteronomy 6:5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.   God's command is to love Him with every fiber of our being.  It's a significant command and Jesus quoted it in Matthew 22:37.  And in Mark 12:30 He goes a step further, Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

As my walls have started coming down that I built many years ago I can now see that I was not loving the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind and strength.   You can only do this by humbly submitting every area of your life over to Christ.  This is includes past hurt and pain.  Only then can He truly do His best work in you.  Ezekial 36:26 says  I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.   I'm counting on God to do this for me.  I no longer want the heart of stone.

One of my favorite chapters in Psalm is 51--verse 10 says, Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

I pray that you would choose to live a life of ALL today by giving Christ all your heart, mind, soul and strength.