Sola Gratia * By Grace Alone

O come let us sing praises unto our Lord!

Hello dear friends ~

While spending quiet time alone with my Lord

and looking into the Scriptures, I came to learn

something wonderful that I did not know.

In Latin, Sola Gratia means "by grace alone."

Isn't that wonderful!

As I read those words "by grace alone" I began to think about Paul.

"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee,

for my strength is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 2:9a) 

Believers are committed to the idea that we are saved by grace

"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) 

but sometimes forget that we must live by grace as well.

Sola Gratia ~ By grace alone.

What is grace? It is God's provision for our every need when we need it.

"And of his fullness have all we received and grace for grace." (John 1:16)

The superabundance of grace that has been displayed by God

toward mankind, especially believers.

"Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children

by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.

To the praise and glory of his grace wherein

he hath made us accepted in the beloved." (Ephesians 1:5-7) 

Sufficient grace, there is never a shortage of grace.

God is sufficient for our spiritual ministries (2Corinthians 3:4-6)

"And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward:

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves; but our

sufficiency is of God."

Our material needs (2Corinthians 9:8)

"And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; 

that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things,

may abound to every good work."

Our physical needs (2Corinthians 12:9)

"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee,

for my strength is made perfect in weakness."

If God is sufficient to save us, then surely He is sufficient to keep us

and strengthen us in our times of suffering.  

God's grace is a strengthening grace.

God permits us to become weak so that we might receive His strength.

It is a continual process in a believers life.

The weaker we are as His instrument the more dearly

God's grace shines forth.

O glory to God!

Dear friends ~ whenever you are going through suffering,

spend extra time in the Word of God; 

and you can be sure God will speak to you.

God gives us His promises, not an explanation, but His promises to live on.

"My grace is sufficient for thee."

Our feelings change, but God's promises never change.

Promises generate faith, and faith strengthens hope.

Paul claimed God's promises and drew on the grace that was offered to him.

God did not change Paul's situation by removing the affliction,

but rather He gave him the amount of grace that was needed when he needed it. 

********

"Our God is the God of all grace." (Peter 5:10)

and His throne is a "throne of grace." (Hebrews 4:16)

The Word of God is "the Word of His grace." (Acts 20:32)

and the promise is that "He giveth more grace." (James 4:6)

In every aspect of our lives God is adequate for every need that we have.

The promises are right at our fingertips found in the Scriptures.

 Our responsibility is to claim them and live by them.

Sola Gratia ~ by grace alone God will build our character

so that we are more like our Savior, and all for His glory.

Precious Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your grace.
Cause us to claim your promises
for our every day lives

Amen. 

Joy!

~ Debbie ~ 

 

God Deserves our Praise ~

 Hello my dear friends~

Let us give our Lord thanks. Why? Because He is God

and deserves our praise.

Here in the United States we will be celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow.

 Many of us will gather together with loved ones

enjoying the blessings of a delicious meal and sweet fellowship one with another.

But whether you are celebrating Thanksgiving Day or not

let us all bow our hearts and heads with gratitude 

for every good thing which the Lord has blessed us with.

 "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above,

and cometh down from the Father."

(James 1:17)

~

We have so much to be thankful for, surely the Lord is worthy of our praise.

As we desire to have deep and lasting joy,

it's important for us to develop and attitude of appreciation.

We must purpose in our hearts to be thankful for everything

and count our blessings throughout the beautiful days God affords us.

 "I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart."

(Psalm 9:1)

As we count our blessings, let us begin with what it cost Jesus

to have a relationship with us. 

Let us be grateful for the amazing  forgiveness that He gave us

pardoning your sins ~ past present and future.

Let us ponder in our hearts how great and wonderful God is;

who would never leave us or forsake us, but loves

protects and provides for our every need.

And let us not forget the wonderful plans God has for us

and all the loved ones He's given us to share our lives with.

 "Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous:

for praise is comely for the upright."

(Psalm 33:1) 

  Dear Friends ~ we have so much to be grateful for.

Surely the Lord is worthy of our praise.
Therefore, let us go through each day voicing our praise and appreciation.
There's no substitute for thanksgiving and praise to grow
our intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father.
He deserves our praise.

"I will be glad and rejoice in thee:
I will sing praise to thy name,
O thou most High."
Amen.

Be Thankful!
~ Debbie ~

Offering Our Praise with a Thankful Heart ~

" Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me:

and to him that ordereth his conversation aright

will I show the salvation of God."

(Psalm 50:23)

With Thanksgiving in the month of November (at least here in the U.S.)
our hearts are often turned towards giving thanks
for the many blessings that God bestows upon us;

daily we have the opportunity of honoring God with our sacrifice of thanksgiving

and offering up our praise for His glory.

We can purposefully look for reasons to be grateful

no matter what we may be facing in our every day lives.

God's Word tells us in Psalm 50, that when we offer up our praise to Him
 we are glorifying Him.

***

1 Thessalonians 5:16&18 also commands us to

"Rejoice evermore. In everything give thanks:

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

So often giving thanks may be the last thing we want to do.

We all face challenges that effect our lives~robbing us of our joy

and taking our focus away from God.

But if we look to the heavenly Father, and ask Him

to give us a thankful heart, He will.

Begin by offering praises to His Holy Name,

ponder on the ways He has helped you in the past

through difficult circumstances. 

Rejoice in His character, His love for you, and the salvation

He freely gives.

Write down the blessings you can think of

which are yours in Christ Jesus.

Personalize God's promises found in the Word,

and ask the Spirit of God to show forth His Truth

as you seek to exalt Him throughout your day.

 

"O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise

to the rock of our salvation."

(Psalm 95:1)

As you sing unto the Lord and consider the many blessings

the Father has given you, you will certainly find 

your heart to be full of thanks and praise~not only for what
 God HAS done for you, but what He WILL do for you.

Set your heart to worship God, and honor Him

with your sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving.

Dear friends~let there be praise upon our lips as we joyfully go about our every day lives 
acknowledging our Holy, Righteous and Great God,
giving thanks in all things with a grateful heart to the glory of God.
Have a glorious day!

**********

Heavenly Father~

With Your grace we offer up to You
our praise and thanksgiving.

Amen.

Be Grateful!

~ Debbie ~

  

The Enchanting Rose Teacup/Mug Exchange ~

 My dear Stephanie over at The Enchanting Rose 

is having her Link Up Party tomorrow for her 9th Teacup/Mug Exchange

and this is the time in which we share and reveal

who we were partnered with. 
Stephanie, thank you once again for your endless efforts
and love that you pour out for these exchanges to come together.
Your beauty shines forth to the glory of God. 

~

My beautifully wrapped box didn't come through the Postal Service,

but instead I had the joy of receiving it hand delivered

right to my front door ~ in person ~ from my lovely daughter.

To my surprise and shock it was Stephanie who had my name.

As Stephanie placed this beautifully wrapped box in my hands

I thought she was inviting me to a Tea Party.
As I was reading the words "Lady Debbie, you are cordially invited to a tea party"

Stephanie could see that I had a  puzzled look upon my face;

noticing that I didn't know it was her gifting to me she finally had to say,

"Mom, I have you."

'Why that's not possible, I'm your mother.'

What an honor it was that my sweet and gentle spirited daughter

had my name, for I would have never in a million years

thought she would ever grace me with her loveliness 

by gifting ME with a tea cup in one of her exchanges.
I didn't even want to open this beautiful box
as it was a gift with-in its self.
I held it for the longest time on my lap
 admiring the beauty and love that she put into the packaging.

When I finally opened up the box my heart was overjoyed!

Everything went together so beautifully

beginning with this adorable card.

Isn't she lovely?

Her dress is a dainty handkerchief ~

Tender words hand written to her mother with love ~

My gorgeous tea cup graced with Forget-me-nots ~

* Rosina fine bone china made in England *
Be still my heart!

Stephanie put such love and detail into matching everything up with the teacup.

My designed tin filled with English breakfast black tea & fine raspberry tea ~

And another lovely tin filled with Cranberry Blood Orange 

black loose leaf tea; the aroma and flavor is quite amazing
not bold at all~

Stephanie made me one of her mug rugs, two teacup coasters and a tea wallet
that gracefully go together with my teacup. 

Look how lovely everything looks together ~

A beautiful assortment of cards she lovingly

enhanced with her embellishments

along with a magnet made with her graceful hands ~

Just days after Stephanie delivered my box
I  headed for Arizona where I would spend the month of October
helping my mother with some of her needs.
Now that I am home again I have enjoyed some quiet time sitting by the fire
with a cup of tea, a cookie or two and my darling
little bird book that was also a part of my gift.

~

I want to share with you a little glimpse into this darling vintage book about birds
that the author uses for teaching purposes
in a child's life guided by the Scriptures.

On the inside of this book there is a date hand written

Dec. 7th 1874

My new book will grace our coffee table 

for those times when I sit with a cup of tea;

I shall then rest with a short story 
filling my thoughts with goodness.
~
"So ends my tale dear children, and now, as you must be up early in the morning,
I wish you to have your tea, and go to bed soon.
~ Imagine that, "tea" was their choice of drink ~ 
One little word I must say before you go. You have heard
me tell of these pretty, glad, gleesome creatures, which live
from day to day upon the bounty of Providence
and know no care or thought for the morrow. 
Their bright colours, and happy motions, and beauteous songs,
have delighted you, and you have felt pleased and interested in them.
No wonder, my loves, they are made to be pleasing as well as useful,
and they are made to teach us many things. 
One lesson which we are to learn from them, and never to forget,
is taught us by our Saviour, who says to us,
'Behold the birds of the air, which sow not, neither do they
reap nor gather into barns, yet our heavenly Father feedeth them:
are ye not much better than they?'
O yes! you have an immortal soul to be saved, and an everlasting
life to live, and you are of more value than many Sparrows.
Learn then from the birds to trust your heavenly Father's care, 
and come to him to be made good and happy; saying to him,
'my Father, be thou the guide of my youth.'
God bless you, my darlings, good night."
Isn't that beautiful?

In this photo you see all the loveliness that Stephanie so graciously packed 

inside of my hand delivered box with all it's
beautiful hues of blue.
Since this was her Fall Exchange she was so sweet and added 
some fall decor in my box as well ~

Are those the sweetest little pumpkins ever!

~
My package was over the top brimming with love
and beauty that my dear daughter so graciously
gifted me with.
Truly, my heart was blessed and I was greatly honored.

Thank you, Dear Stephanie!
You certainly know how to bless your mother's heart.

**********

I had the joy of gifting a teacup to a dear lady I have come

to know and love here in our Blogging community.
Linda gifted me with a gorgeous tea cup in one of the past exchanges
and I have been blessed with her friendship ever since.

This is what I gifted Linda with who Blogs over at My Sew What Blog
Linda also has a beautiful Etsy Shoppe you may want to visit.