Tuesday, April 28, 2015

"Take - Two"

Hello Dear friends ~ 
This is "Take - Two"
from our anniversary get-away.
Some of you had asked me to share more photo's,
so why not.
I wanted to share with you some unusual captions.
For what ever reason, I was intrigued
with some of what I am going to share.


We saw these dead juniper trees at
Arches National Park.
That was the prominent tree there,
so we saw many dead ones.
They seemed lonely to me :(
as if to be reaching out for something.
Sounds strange I know.
The park would use these dead branches as fencing. 
I thought it was a terrific way to use them up.


Then there was Dead Horse Point,
This was a State Park, and gorgeous!
There is a legend for this point
that I thought was quite interesting.
~
"According to one legend, the point was once used for a corral
for wild mustangs roaming the mesa.
Cowboys rounded up these horses, herded them across
the narrow neck of land and onto the point.
The neck, which is only 30 yards wide,
was then fenced off with branches and brush,
creating a natural corral surrounded by precipitous cliffs.
Cowboys then chose the horses they wanted
and for reasons unknown, left the other horses corralled
on the waterless point where they died of thirst
within view of the Colorado River, 2,000 feet below."
~ Taken from the brochure ~
If this is true, how sad!


Then there was, as I called it, "The Land of Castles."
My husband and I both enjoyed this area
for different reasons.
He loved the way the color of the soil went from
a rust color to a soft white color.
Like the "little girl" in me,
I loved how they reminded me of castles.
These rock formations made me think
of a village with castles of all shapes and sizes
and little pathways connecting the village together.
I could imagine life taking place there
with little people scurrying about dressed in their mid evil cloths. 
But ~ the only life seen were those on the hiking trail. :)


And how about "We Three Kings."
This rock formation made me think of the 
three wise men traveling together so they could
 worship the baby Jesus, our Savior.
Look at them, their all in a row, one following the other.


This rock made me think of how great our God is!
This is a pretty good sized rock
as you can see with the people standing at the base of it.
They look quite small.
In our eyes that rock is huge 
~ yet ~
it is nothing compared to the greatness of our God.
When I saw this rock, Psalm 147:5 came to my mind.
"Great is our Lord, and of great power;
his understanding is infinite." 
How small we really are in this
BIG WIDE WORLD of God's,
and He holds it all in the palm of His hand.

Speaking of greatness, look how steep
those steps were on one of our hiking trails!
Had I been short I would have had to skip the hike. :(
Notice I have my winter jacket on!!
But O boy was it ever fun!


Now for dessert! Oh ~ did  I say dessert?
Doesn't this "Collapsed Dome" look like
mint and chocolate ice cream?
So here was this Collapsed Dome right in the 
center of the Canyon Lands where the soil
was a rich rusty color, yet it stood out from all the rest.
It was different, didn't even go with the rest of the area.
God's handy work!
Only He could create this kind of beauty.

~~~***~~~

"Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard,
that the everlasting God, the Lord, the creator
of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?
there is no searching of his understanding."
(Isaiah 40:28)

~~~***~~~

Oh Heavenly father, 
Your beauty surrounds us,
and every where we look, we see Your handy work.
May we praise Your Holy Name,
and give you our thanks for it all.
Amen.

Be Blessed
~ Debbie ~

I'm joining Stephanie's party at
Roses of Inspiration 

Sunday, April 26, 2015

Grace and Reflections for a Women's Heart # 7

~ A Look Into Proverbs ~

"For the Lord giveth wisdom:
out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding."
(Proverbs 2:6)

~~~***~~~

Proverbs contains the very wisdom of God
given to show us the value
of living prudently ~ or to be cautious


~ Righteousness can be ours ~

"He that followeth after righteousness and mercy
findeth life, righteousness, and honor."
(Proverbs 21:21)

~~~***~~~

What ever we seek in life, we tend to find it.
It may be personal happiness,
financial gain, popularity, frivolities 
or even others greater than these.
According to Matthew 6:33 we are to seek after righteousness
and everything else we desire will be added to us.
***
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God,
and his righteousness;
and all these things shall be added unto you."

~~~***~~~

Jesus describes in His Word that true and vital
righteousness begins internally ~ in the heart.
Our Christian character should flow from within.
It is from a heart that seeks
"first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness."
We should turn to Him first, fill our thoughts
with His desires, so as to take His character
for the pattern of our lives. We should choose to serve and obey
Him in everything. We should hunger and thirst
after righteousness.
***
"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst
after righteousness,
for they shall be filled."
(Matthew 5:6)


Years ago I heard these words from a Pastor;
What ever you want in your spiritual life
you can have it. Your spiritual growth depends
on the choices you make."
I have never forgotten those wise words. 
I remember telling my daughters
when they were young;
"Every moment of every day we have choices to make.
You can choose to do right or wrong,
but the choice is yours.
Our choices can either hurt or harm us."

~~~***~~~

If I want it, I can have a close walk with God, or NOT.
If I want to do God's will I can choose to, or NOT.
If I want to grow spiritually I can, or NOT.
If I want a good marriage I can have it, or NOT.
If I want to change my bad habit's
and destructive patterns I can, or NOT.
The choice is up to us.

~~~***~~~

What is important to you?
People, things, places, goals and other desires
will compete for priority.
It is easy to move God to the side lines
and take Him out of first place in our lives
if we don't actively choose to give Him first place
in every area of our lives.

~~~***~~~

We are to keep ourselves pure, draw close to God,
and He will draw close to us.
***
"Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.
Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts,
ye double minded."
(James 4:8)
***
If we do not choose to fill our lives with God,
we will fill it with something else.
It's easy to get trapped in the snare of excuses
and live in bondage rather than risk it all on Jesus.


How can we draw near to God and choose righteousness?
James chapter 4 verses 8 through 10 instructs us wisely;
Submit to God (verse 7) see your need of forgiveness,
and be willing to follow Him.
Resist the devil (verse 7) don't allow him to entice
and tempt you.
Cleanse your hands and purify your hearts (verse8)
that is, lead a pure life. Be cleansed from sin,
replacing it with God's purity.
Who wouldn't want His purity?
Weeping over our sin (verse 9) there needs to be sorrow
over our sins. I love Psalm 51 for this ~
David was sorry for his sin.
Are we sorry enough to STOP sinning against
a Holy and Righteous God?
Humble ourselves (verse 10) one of the hardest things for us to do
is to "humble" ourselves before God.
When we do, He will lift us up.  (1Peter 5:6)

~~~***~~~

It all begins with a seeking heart.
If we choose to put God's will
and God's righteousness first in our lives,
He will take care of everything else for us.
What a testimony of Christ living in us
when we choose first,
His righteousness.

~~~***~~~

Draw us unto Thee, Heavenly father.
May we hunger and thirst after Your righteousness
in every area of our lives.
Remind us, Holy Spirit,
that consequences surround each choice
that we make.
Amen.

Praising my Jesus!
~ Debbie ~ 

I'm joining Stephanie's party at
Roses of Inspiration 
And JES at
The Art of Home Making Mondays 
 

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

All Creation Glorifies God

Hello!
  Dear gracious and faithful followers,
both my husband and I 
would like to thank you for your
sweet and precious Anniversary wishes
that you sent our way.
Our hearts were blessed by your love and kindness.
 For some of you, welcome as new followers,
and thank you for your wishes too.

~~~***~~~

All creation glorifies God!
For our wedding Anniversary, my husband and I
took a few days and spent time
surrounded by God's amazing beauty
in some National Parks.
As we visited these parks in all their beauty,
scripture as well as certain hymns
would fall upon my heart and mind ~
you couldn't help but sing praises
to God, the Creator, with joy in your heart.

This rock formation looks like two kissing,
why she even has hair on her head and a bow on her dress

We were awe struck as we either
drove or hiked through the masses
of rock formations.
Such uniqueness with every bend 
we would come around.
"To God be the glory" 
would come forth from our lips time after time,
 it was just amazing!
We took close to 1000 pictures
and I would love to share just a small glimpse
of our beautiful get-away with you.

~~~***~~~

We started in Moab Utah on a cold and snowy day.
We thought we were heading 
into warmer weather, but God who controls
the weather treated us to some snow, hail, rain,
thunderstorms, cold winds and then some
warmth and sunshine on our last day.
Oh how easy it would have been to grumble,
but instead we saw the goodness of God.


We stayed in a warm and cozy cabin ~ sat on the heater
of the van after every wet and cold hike ~
played in the water puddles and sang in the rain ~
praising God in it all!
We chose to see the beauty in the weather, and we certainly did!
The wet weather made everything
come alive with vibrant colors.

~~~***~~~

Dead Horse Point, with the low clouds
snow/hail and thunderstorms 
was breathtaking!



The flowers and trees were vivid in color.


The rocks and arches displayed their beauty with the rain showers.
















The mountains with fresh snow off in the distance
made the canyon lands all the more glorious.


The cloud cover allowed us to photo areas
that would have otherwise been washed out.


Bryce Canyon

And while hiking these were the words of my husband,
"well at least were not sweating."
Boy was he right there!
Actually, by the time we reached our cozy cabin
I was chilled to the bone.
Awww... warmth in a hot bubble bath...

 Part of the hiking trail around the rim of Bryce Canyon


Steep switch-backs as part of the hiking trail.
The switch backs were stacked like stairs
because of how steep it was.
Quite amazing!

I was reminded of Psalm 148
where all creation is to praise God.
We were surrounded by God's glory
and we couldn't help but praise His Holy Name!

~~~***~~~

"Let them praise the name of the Lord:
for his name alone is excellent;
his glory is above the earth and the heaven."
Amen.

To God be the Glory!
~ Debbie ~ 


Looks like the remains of a heart

I'm joining the party with Stephanie at
Roses of Inspiration 


Tuesday, April 14, 2015

My Steady Man


  April 16th will be the wedding Anniversary
of my husband and me, 36 years in celebration!
~
A very dear friend gifted me with the book
"Created to be his Help Meet" By Debi Pearl, 10 years ago.
God used Debi's book to teach me
many valuable lessons,
and by God's grace changes (for the good)
took place in my life as a wife.

~~~***~~~

I'm not real sure why ~ but I felt compelled
to pull that book off my bookshelf
and skim through it just the other day.
I was drawn to the chapter that speaks on having
"wisdom to understand your man"
( Co-authored by Rebekah (Pearl) Anast )
"A wise woman learns to adapt to her husband"
~
In this chapter, Rebekah speaks about three kinds of men:
Mr Command Man ~ Mr Visionary ~ Mr Steady
"Most men are a little of all three,
but tend to be dominant in one.
And all the training and experiences of life
will never successfully make a man
into a different type of man."


Isn't God awesome in His creation!
My husband was created by God,
in the likeness of God and for His glory.
(Genesis 1:26)
My husband is who he is because that's how God created him.
Man was created in the image of God ~ therefore ~
"God is dominant - command man a sovereign
and all-powerful God. He is also visionary
omniscient and desirous of 
carrying out his plans. And, 
God is steady the same yesterday and today and forever,
our faithful High Priest."


My husband is the "steady man"
and wow! He is just that!
Thursday we will celebrate 36 years together
as a married couple,
and my steady man is basically the same
"yesterday and today."

~~~***~~~

I began pondering on our 36 years together
keeping in the back of my mind
what Rebekah said in that particular chapter;
"As we identify our husband we will be able to
see where we have been a curse 
or a blessing to him."
Those are thought provoking words.
Ten years ago when I read those words
for the first time, I examined myself and asked God
to reveal to me the areas in my life
where I may have been a curse to my husband.
And as we all know, when we ask, God begins to reveal.

~~~***~~~

Now, 10 years later as I read these words again,
I look back to where God began to change
me so as to be more of a blessing than a curse.
I ponder...and ask myself,
"Have I grown through the grace of God
into a woman my husband would find lovely?
Am I a blessing or am I a curse?
~
I would encourage you to reflect on your own marriage
(those who are married)
and between you, God and your husband,
search and ask the question,
Am I a blessing or a curse?
Then let God's abundant love flow through you.

~~~***~~~

A wise woman learns to adapt to her husband.
We live in a world where selfishness reigns,
"it's all about me."
How can one adapt if one is all about self?
Some women really believe they can change 
their husbands in order to have their own selfish ways.
~
My husband is who he is,
not what I want him to be.
I married who this man is ~
who the God of the universe created him to be,
and it's not my business to change him.
The secret is not to try to change 
the man God gave you as your spouse
but to receive him with acceptance
and help bring out the best of his God-given personality.
~
In the beginning years of our marriage
I thought I could change my husband
in some areas ~ but now after 36 years
I have come to realize and accept 
that he is very much a steady man
who is " the same yesterday and today."
My place as his "help meet" is learning to adapt,
not wanting to control but giving the controls
over to God, and trusting in His promises. 
~
"Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord,
and whose hope the Lord is.
For he shall be like the tree
planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out
her roots by the river, and shall not see
when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green."
(Jeremiah 17:7-8a)


My Dear husband has been divinely designed by God,
and in the grace of our marriage, walking beside him,
honoring him and adapting to who he is,
is exactly what God would have me to do as his "help meet."
(Genesis 2:18)
~
I desire for my husband to be the one God made him to be
without getting in the way;
Steady as a rock ~ gentle ~ caring ~ providing ~ understanding ~
 a man of peace and safety ~
one who doesn't make quick and hasty decisions ~
one who avoids controversy ~ doesn't find fault or gossip ~
and a man who will be faithful
until the day God calls him home.


In God's time and in His way
He is refining me into the wife He wants me to be.
36 years, and God is still, ever so gently,
dipping me in that refining pot
skimming off the uglies
so that I will come forth as gold.
Oh to be the work of His masterpiece 
bringing glory to His Holy Name.
~
The desire of my heart, with grace,
is to be a woman who honors, obeys and loves Jesus,
by honoring my husband.
(Titus 2:3-5)

" God is the Master at making heavenly marriages"
I have been blessed with a dear loving and faithful husband,
and give all my praise to the glory of God!
~
To my Dear husband,
thank you for being the "Steady" man 
God has designed and called you to be.
Happy Anniversary with love
~

Our Precious Heavenly father,
as women, teach us the truths of Your Word
that we might be gracious and lovely,
 as the wives You have called us to be.
Help us to love, honor and cherish our husbands,
giving You all the praise and glory.
Amen.

Be Lovely
~ Debbie ~ 

I'm joining with Stephanie at
Roses of Inspiration

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Grace and Reflections for a Woman's Heart #7 and my Blog Anniversary winner

As promised, today is the day that I will reveal
the gracious winner for my one year blog Anniversary.
At the end of this post you will "meet " her
and find another little surprise
that happened before my one year was reached. 

~ A Look Into Proverbs ~

"For the Lord giveth wisdom:
out of his mouth
cometh knowledge and understanding."
(Proverbs 2:6)

~~~***~~~

Proverbs contains the very wisdom of God
given to show us the value
of living prudently ~ or to be cautious


 "But the path of the just is as a shining light,
that shineth more and more unto the perfect day."
(Proverbs 4:18)

~~~***~~~
I love this verse! Why?
Because it is a wonderful promise for the believer.
God has ordained that we walk in His ways,
be obedient to His will
 bringing about our path to grow brighter and brighter.

~~~***~~~

The way of the righteous is light.
When we choose to walk in the light
our ways are safe and pleasant.
Christ is our way and He is the light.
Those who choose to walk in His ways and with the just,
will allow the Word of God to guide their feet.
~
"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet,
and a light unto my path."
(Psalm 119:105)


 This is such a great verse to hide in our hearts.
God's Word becomes a light to our paths
as we walk obediently in His ways.
We can have the confidence
that when it seems like our path appears dark,
God's Word, that we have hidden in our hearts,
will guide us every step of the way.

~~~***~~~

As we walk in God's ways He begins changing us
little by little, day by day
into the likeness of Jesus Christ.
~
"But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass
the glory of the Lord,
are changed into the same image
from glory to glory,
as even by the Spirit of the Lord."
(2 Corinthians 3:18)
~
Another beautiful promise!
When we put our faith in Jesus,
our spiritual nature changes to mirror God.
Not by anything we have done or could do,
but by the transforming Light.

~~~***~~~

We are a work in progress, all through the
work of the Spirit and by the grace of God.
We so need God's grace in our daily lives, don't we?
The spirit of the light is our guide
as we strive to walk obediently in God's ways.
~
Because we live in a fallen world
it's easy for us to stumble, fall and make mistakes.
But praise God, 
our personal failures are God's amazing grace to us.
~
I'm speaking for myself here ~
but time after time I have gone before the throne of grace
having to ask for forgiveness for failing my Almighty God.
In my own words, like Paul,
I do the things that I don't want to do,
and I don't do the things that I would like.
Frustrating!
 God's grace is abundant,
 but it doesn't give me the freedom to sin.
~
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
(1 John 1:9)

~~~***~~~

Through God's love grace and mercy
He never gives up on us.
He picks us back up when we fall
and leads us in the right direction,
continuing to change us into the likeness of Himself.


O the joy which is the pleasure of walking
down the path of the just ~
knowing we are a work in progress ~
pressing towards the Light ~
and reaching our goal at that  perfect day.
Glory to God in the Highest!

~~~***~~~

How have you experienced God's grace
in your spiritual walk with Him?
God pours His goodness and grace upon us ~
Because He loves us dearly.

 ~~~***~~~

Our Precious Heavenly Father,
as we graciously follow after Thee
in our walk with You,
teach us to walk righteously
as You light our way by Your Spirit
and through the scriptures.
Keep us close to Thee.
Amen.

~~~***~~~

Now the Give~Away
First I must thank each and everyone of you
for being such "gracious" followers!
Where would I be in this beautiful community
of blogging if it were not for you? 
The Lord has graced me with ladies from all 
over the globe and I appreciate you.
One year ago I would have never dreamed
I would have become involved in a community
of such love and grace
from ladies as precious as you!
~
I wished it were possible to gift each one of you
with a thank-you love gift
but that is not possible. :(
However ~
I have two love gifts going out to two lovely ladies.
Let me explain ~
Between God and I, 
I have been praying for months that
my Google followers would reach 100
either on or before April 2, but I wanted followers 
to find me because God led them to this blog, His blog.
Just two days before my one year party
God sent my 100th graceful follower,
someone I had not seen in our community.
She was all new to me. :)
That's God!!
~
Now for the revealing...
I had Stephanie draw the name out of a beautiful crystal bowl
since she was the BIRTHDAY girl.
Her lovely fingers pulled out


Congratulations Celestina
for winning the gift for my blog anniversary.
You may visit Celestina over at
Southern Day Dreams 
~
My 100th graceful follower was Kim over at
Sarah Lizzies 

 

Celestina's  gift                                                   Kim's gift
Much love to you all!

Joy!
~ Debbie ~

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

A Day at the Zoo

A couple of weeks ago my three grandsons
~ my oldest daughters three boys ~
had the week off for Spring Break.
I had the joy and privilege  in joining up
with them and spending the day at the zoo.
It was a warm sunny day as we strolled
along the paths enjoying God's Creation
in the beauty of His Creatures.
~
"For every creature of God is good."
( 1 Timothy 4:4a) 
~
My favorite of God's creatures is the penguin ~
I love Penguins!
But I didn't get to see them as they were
hiding in their little caves,
all I could see was the belly of one in hiding.
Maybe next time?



"Even every one that is called by my name;
for I have created him for my glory.
I have formed him; yea,
I have made him."
(Isaiah 43:7) 
~ All creation was made by God
and we were created for His glory ~


My beautiful daughter ~ Dawn

"Lift up your eyes on high,
and behold who hath created these things."
( Isaiah 40:26)



" All things were made through Him,
and without Him nothing was made that was made."
(John 1:3)

Look at that precious face!

Yes, God made the snakes :)


If you look closely it looks like the fish is kissing my grandson

And the underwater life



And He made my precious grandsons :)
My handsome boy's!

"So God created man in His own image;
in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them."
(Genesis 1:27)

~~~***~~~

God's purposeful creation of the heavens and the earth
extends also to those He created in His image.
Our lives have purpose and meaning
because we are the handiwork of the creator - God who
"fearfully and wonderfully"
created us and fashioned our days before
they came to pass. (Psalm 139:14-16)
Not only are we physically created in God's image
to represent Him on the earth (Genesis 1:26-27)
we are spiritually created in Christ
when we are born again (John 3:3-8)
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creation; old things have passed away;
behold all things have become new.
(2 Corinthians 5:17)

I have a feeling some sand went home with these boys :)

"For of Him and through Him and to Him
                                      are all things, to whom be glory for-ever. Amen."
(Romans 11:36) 

This Gamma had a delightful day!
Gamma loves you boys!

~~~***~~~

You O God, are the creator
 of the heavens and the earth.
Thank you for the life You have blessed us with,
and may we delight in You,
as You surround us with Your glory.
Amen.

Joy!
~ Debbie ~

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Let us Rejoice!

Easter ~ Resurrection Sunday is my favorite
most blessed Holiday celebration.
My heart rejoices over what Christ
did for me on the cross.
What He did for me ~ He will do for you.
Last year my heart was bent towards
Mary Magdalene, and her love compassion and devotion
as she watched the Crucifixion of her Savior.
He is Worthy  was that Easter post
should you desire to read it.


This year I have pondered many times on
the two thieves beside Jesus on the cross.
( Luke 23:32-43)
~
The Crucifixion was gruesome.
 Jesus was stripped of His garments,
brutally beaten, spit on, pushed and slapped in the face.
 His hands and feet nailed to the cross,
which I might add, that He had to carry
until he collapsed under the weight of it,
was mocked by those at the cross, such as,
Jewish accusers, brutal Roman soldiers,
a crowd who called for Jesus' Crucifixion
and a mixture of secret and curious on lookers.


And yet ~ listen to Jesus in verse 34 of chapter 23
"Then said Jesus,
Father forgive them; for they know not what they do."
Utterly amazing!
Jesus' statement of forgiveness reveals the depth
of His love and grace for them and all humanity.
"But I say unto you,
love your enemies, bless them that curse you,
and do good to them that hate you,
and pray for them which despitefully use you
and persecute you.
( Matthew 5:44)

~~~***~~~

As believers that is quite the act to follow.
It requires such an unnatural response that 
obeying it proves who belongs to God. 
The law did not teach hatred for ones enemies.
~
"If thou meet thine enemy's ox or his ass going astray,
thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.
If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee
lying under his burden,
and wouldest forbear to help him,
thou shalt surely help with him."
(Exodus 23:4&5) 


Jesus defined our enemies as those who curse us,
hate us and exploit us selfishly.
Since a believers love is an act of the will,
and not simply an emotion,
God has the right to command us to love our enemies.
~
"For if, when we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son,
much more being reconciled,
we shall be saved by his life."
(Romans 5:10) 
God would have us to show this love by blessing
those who curse us, doing good to them and praying for them.
Have you ever noticed that when you pray for someone
you'd rather not ~ you find it easier to love them?
Prayer has a way of taking the poison out
of our heart attitudes
and we begin to love them as Christ would have us to. 
That puts our love in action
and we become more Christ~like.


 While on the cross Jesus loved His enemies,
those who hated Him, persecuted Him,
beat Him, spit on Him and hung Him there to die.
His love ~ so great ~ for you and me!
That is what causes me to ponder on the two
"malefactors" who were crucified with Jesus.
~
"Then there were the two thieves crucified with him,
one on the right hand,
and another on the left."
(Matthew 27:38)
~
It was providential that Jesus was crucified
between two thieves, for this gave both of them
access to the Savior.
Both of these men could read Pilate's superscription
"THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS"
and both of these men could watch Jesus
as He graciously gave His life
for the sins of the world. 


The one thief imitated the mockery
of the religious leaders.
"And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him,
saying, if thou be the Christ, save thyself and us."
(Luke 23:39)
Now the other thief acted completely different.
"But the other answering rebuked him saying,
Dost not thou fear God,
seeing thou art in the same condemnation.
And we indeed justly;
for we receive the due reward of our deeds
but this man hath done nothing amiss."
(Luke 23:40&41)


This "malefactor" reasoned,
if this man is indeed the Christ, and if He has a kingdom,
and if He has saved others,
then could He not meet my greatest need
which is salvation from sin.
As this thief spoke out in verses 40&41
it had to have taken courage.
~
It took faith for this man to trust a dying King.
Jesus is dying, yet this mans faith is great!   
This man had obstacles to overcome.
I find his faith astounding!
"And he said unto Jesus, Lord,
remember me when thou comest into Thy kingdom."
And Jesus said unto him,
"Verily I say unto thee,
today shalt thou be with me in paradise."
(Luke 23:42&43)


O the emotion that floods my soul
as I write this.
Here this man calls out to Jesus ~ the King ~
and asks Jesus to "remember him."
This man was saved wholly by grace;
it was the glorious gift of God.
"For by grace are ye saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves;
it is the gift of God;
not of works, lest any man should boast."
(Ephesians 2:8 9)


This man did not deserve it and he could not earn it.
By grace through faith this man
trusted in the Savior for his salvation.
His salvation was personal and secure,
guaranteed by the word of Jesus Christ.
~
Does that not cause us to rejoice?!
We, like the two thieves, have that same opportunity
of calling upon the name of the Lord for our salvation.
One "malefactor" mocked Jesus and rejected Him,
the other received Christ as his own personal Savior,
and is now with Jesus in paradise.

~~~***~~~

How about you?
If you have not received God's love, grace and mercy,
will you receive or reject Him?
Behold the Lamb of God!   
His love grace and mercy are His glory! 
Amen

Let us Rejoice!
~ Debbie ~ 


I'm joining the party with

Stephanie at "Roses of Inspiration"
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