Free to Run with Grace

We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. - 2 Corinthians 6:3

A thought made in the post “Build Each Other Up” is that there is no need to flaunt our knowledge to the detriment of someone else. Instead build up others. Be interested in finding their strengths and thinking of ways for them to receive the power God wants them to have.

Jesus came to earth and made the complex simple. Our growing faith can never be taken away or depleted. The Gospel message has a beautiful and refreshing simplicity about it that sets us free and never lets us down.  The complexities in life are made more user friendly so we can find greater efficiency in our daily walk.

Take inspiration from the song Control by Tenth Avenue North. God has the power to lift the weight that holds us down so we are free to run with grace.

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Limitless

Jesus replied, ‘What is impossible with men is possible with God’. - Luke 18:27

In the post “From Ordinary to Extraordinary” the point was made that through God’s power, the impossible is made possible.

Like an eagle in the sky, a mighty lion among beasts, or a servant who becomes king; God can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary. The one who can gather up the wind in His hand or wrap the waters in His cloak will make it possible.

Since we are nourished in His word, graced with His Spirit, and inspired by songs like Come Alive by Lauren Daigle, let us awaken to the potential for this day and believe that the possibilities God has written into our tomorrows are limitless.

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Keeping the Name of the Lord

The name of the Lord is a fortified tower;

   The righteous run to it and are safe.

One of my favorite takeaways from the study of Proverbs 18 and posted in “The Power Like a Strong Tower” is that our words have the power of life and death. By keeping the name of the Lord in our everyday living, we not only have power in our own life but also give power to those around us as we encourage them.

Keeping the name of the Lord shelters us like a fortified tower providing safety from the wind and high ground above the floods. As pointed out in the song Strong Tower by Kutless, keeping the name of the Lord provides strength when we are weak and courage if afraid. When the storms of life rage, the Lord is our strong tower and His mercy sets us free.

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Forgiven and Given

If you have anything against anyone, forgive them, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses. - Mark 11:25-26

In the post “The Door is Opened with Grace”, pointed out is that there is a way to be forgiven and given the key to the kingdom. One of God’s qualities is that the door is open to all with eyes ready to see Him. The door is open to anyone with ears that listen to the Gospel message and receive the gift of God’s mercy.

So accept, appreciate, and affirm all who are willing to receive grace. Remember … the cross meant to kill brings the victory and as pointed out in the song Forgiven by Crowder, there is freedom in His amazing grace. His arms are open to receive those who believe.

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Desire and Power

For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him. - Philippians 2:13

As pointed out in the post “We Call Upon Your Name”, All who call upon the name of the Lord receive the way to freedom and even victory over death.

This day with God, let us call upon His name and just like in the song One Desire by Hillsong have one request and that is to be devoted to His Way.

To obtain the power the Spirit offers, let us have one desire; to call upon the name of the Lord for all of our days. To desire to hear His Word, see Christ at work, and bring the Good News to others.

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Momentum for a Victorious Day

In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. - Ephesians 3:12

As written about in the post “Way to Freedom and Confidence”, victory in life is about taking that first step toward Jesus. Like the song One Step Away by Casting Crowns, it only takes one step so just go for it!

Take the opportunity to gain momentum with one step that leads to other steps. Before long you are gaining momentum for a victorious life; you are living with passion, loving completely, learning humbly, and living boldly.

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Great Value in Starting New

But Christ has shown me that what I once thought was valuable is worthless. Nothing is as wonderful as knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. - Philippians 3:7-8

Grace received because of Christ and the Holy Spirit in you adds great value to your life. It is worth more than anything in the world because you then start new with freedom, peace, and the courage needed to face any challenge as you step ahead.

This day will be amazing because with God, we can sincerely believe that each obstacle will be overcome and enthusiastically act upon each task until completion; celebrating progress throughout each day by praising Him.

As the song Holy Spirit by Francesca Battistelli recommends, welcome God’s Spirit inside. Be aware of God’s presence and experience the glory of His goodness.

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Find Your Treasure

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. - Matthew 6:21

What God gives is a plan for life that is a treasure and the more you lose ourselves in this plan, the more passion we will have.

An idea pointed out in the post “Peace and True Life” is to find treasure as you gather positive thoughts, pictures, and sounds desired by the Spirit. These diamonds in the rough will fuel your actions revealing to those around you that you are a part of a group that follows Christ.

Some ideas that might help with our attitude and thought life is to start the day with uplifting positive music. Your thoughts will have a better chance to get in the right frame of mind as you take on the challenges of the day. If yesterday was a rough one, find a treasure like this song called Diamonds by Hawk Nelson to get the momentum going in the right direction.

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Fired Up

His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not. - Jeremiah 20:9

As explained in the post “Released from the Law but Bound to Christ”, we are free from the demands of the law because Christ has given us a new Way that allows us to do some amazing things for God together.

Our past is wiped clean and there is power to fulfill our purpose for the future. I tell you what – that should get us fired up just as in this song Soul on Fire by Third Day.

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Free Indeed

Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. - 2 Peter 3:18

Explained in the post “From Death to Life” is how the pattern of sin and death was broken by the free gift of Christ. The grace of God and the gift of righteousness reigns in life eternal. There’s no better deal in the world. To me, it makes good sense to take it.

Everyone needs God’s grace. Once received, one can gain wisdom to live the way life is meant to be lived. As the main point given to us in the song Dear Younger Me by MercyMe, our tomorrows can be better than our yesterdays and today can be amazing because our growing faith can never be taken away or depleted. The Gospel message has a beautiful and refreshing simplicity about it that sets us free and never let us down.

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The Place of Grace

Let us, then, feel very sure that we can come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we can receive mercy and grace to help us when we need it. - Hebrews 4:16

The main point as written in the post “The Greatest Sacrifice Ever” is that God’s Plan for us makes it much easier today because of what Jesus Christ did on the Cross for our eternal victory.

We can be a great person but without Christ, the victory is out of reach. I remember watching the NFL induction ceremony when Brett Favre was inducted into the Hall of Fame. With all his greatness, few people know that he is leader in one negative stat. As a quarterback, he had the most interceptions.

We all make mistakes but we can turn mistakes into a victory if we take in the lessons learned. Because of the grace of God, blessings can be received even from our past mistakes. Take inspiration from today’s video: Your Grace Is Enough by Matt Maher and believe you have all you need to build for an amazing future.

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Discover The Blessings

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God. - Romans 8:26-27

Life is not always easy and we sometimes question why bad things happen to us but even in our weakest moments our faith helps us to step ahead. As pointed out in the post “Step Ahead With The Spirit” we have available to us a power that can take on whatever comes our way.

The Spirit helps us even in our weakest moments to solve problems at work, at home, and wherever we are. The key to fulfilling the mission God has for us is knowing how to live life by applying the intangibles of faith into the tangibles of good deeds.

As emphasized in the song Blessings by Laura Story, have faith that even in your weakest moments that there is a greater strength inside that is at work to provide blessings for your future.

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Clear Way To Our Victory

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. - Ephesians 2:8

In the post “Discover the Freedom In Christ”, Paul reemphasized the importance of Christ in our heart for there is great power in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. His death on the Cross and resurrection became the clear way to our victory. 

This day with God, take in the Word to fortify. Remain optimistic because with God, we are highly favored and as pointed out in the song My Victory by Crowder, the Cross which was meant to kill became our victory and makes us live again.

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Time to Do Something

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. - James 1:22-24

As pointed out in the post “Made Free In Christ”, the Holy Spirit became available for all who believe in Christ; giving strength, guidance, and power do something. With freedom comes the responsibility to make the right choices and apply our faith as the Spirit councils our daily activities.

This day with God, let us look through the prism of God’s principles. Let us listen to music that inspires, let us observe people who live according to God’s principles, and let us seek better ways to share with others the lessons learned.

We can come up with ideas that can help everyone live better lives. God created us be His hands and feet. Just like in the song Do Something by Matthew West, let us build on what God has done yesterday and let us dream big dreams for tomorrow.

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Regain Your Edge

This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. - Psalm 118:24

Within the post “Christ In Our Heart” were some thoughts as Paul tells the Galatians that God would take care of them. There was no need to be enslaved by idols because by accepting Christ as Savior, they would be set free. This same power is available to us today.

During troubling or confusing times, understand that you are highly favored in God’s eye. This favor changes everything so if your thoughts are going in the wrong direction, you can regain your edge for a great day by thinking of what good things are going your way.

This will build momentum so that you stay on track today. Here is a song called Free by Dara Maclean to help you remain optimistic and confident that God will step in to change everything for the better and help you regain your edge as you step ahead today.

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One In Christ

Two are better than one because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! - Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

I can remember years ago when the Bible study group I was a part of started a prayer chain. We prayed for each other and the group began to grow tremendously. It was a group of Christian singles just starting their careers. We would attend church together, have Bible Study together, and meet for social events together.

I look back on that group now and many friendships were formed. I’ve kept in contract with them and several couples are now missionaries around the world.  There were even a few marriages from that group.

We can display oneness with other believers in Christ today. Our faith in Christ gives us the freedom we need and we have the opportunity to tap into our individual skills and talents for His glory. As you go about your day today, remember that you are never alone and that God has given other Christians to help us along the journey. How Great is Our God by Chris Tomlin!

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One Mind and One Voice

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. - Romans 15:5-6

The post “Through His Diverse People” has some thoughts about Christianity and how it is like a relay race. We all help each other out with our unique abilities for God’s purposes.

A diverse group of people has an advantage because with one mind and one voice, they have the opportunity to pull together with various ideas and skill sets. Each day can be amazing when we fix problems together.

This song by Miranda Lambert talks about the pluses of All Kinds of Kinds.

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Who Can Be Against Us

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God be with us, who can be against us? - Romans 8:31

In the post “When Life Falls Apart”, shared were thoughts after reading Joshua 7 and how Joshua gained a great victory at Jericho but then found out that past victories do not guarantee future victories. He had a soldier that disobeyed a command and this caused God to turn away from the Israelites.

The result was a defeat at the next battle. Back in the day of Joshua, atonement was the death of the soldier and his whole family. In current times, we have the luxury of a much easier way because through Jesus, God has smoothed out the path so that returning back to Him is much easier. All we have to do is be humble, accept Jesus in our heart, and let God provide the power. Then there is a freedom and we can get the most out of life.

Everyone needs God's grace. Once received, one can gain wisdom to live the way life is meant to be lived. As the main point given to us in the song Dear Younger Me by MercyMe, our tomorrows can be better than our yesterdays and today can be amazing because our growing faith can never be taken away or depleted. The gospel message has a beautiful and refreshing simplicity about it that sets us free and never let us down.

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Freed

Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, "Go, throw yourself into the sea," and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. – Mark 11:23

Some great lessons are learned after studying Joshua 3. As shared in the post, “How Amazing is God”, with Him on our side, things will be set up to make the impossible possible. What is difficult for us, is easy for God. The gift of Christ on the Cross has freed us so we are not held back and like this song by Jesus Culture, we can Break Every Chain.

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Freedom Found by Laying Burdens Down

In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness. - Titus 2:7

In the post “Freedom is Found”, the dominant theme is the importance of maintaining integrity. Freedom is found when we are honest with ourselves and lay our burdens down at the Cross.

Because of Cross, there is a freedom. A freedom that helps us live, give, and love. A freedom that will speak and teach; laying out a clear path that others can follow.

This day with God, Ask Him to examine your heart and mind. Freedom will be found if you lay your burdens down at the Cross. Just be honest with yourself as pointed out in this song: If We’re Honest – Francesca Battistelli.

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