Triumphant Joy

You are leading me here God
To triumphant joy,
To the triumphant joy of the lovers of God,
Who see Your smile
Feel your Presence
Know you are exceedingly good.

You are leading me here...to triumphant joy
Not just joy...but triumphant joy,
Where I know all is well
Because You are big and I am exceedingly loved!

Your truth leads me here, Father...
When I really believe that I am loved...
And that You are who You say You are...

The triumphant joy of the lovers of God
Who sing and shout Your praises....
Release joy into the atmosphere...

And the joy turns into a weapon of God
Exposing the snare,
The trap, the lie, the empty promises of the enemy
And the plans that the enemy built to destroy...
Crumble...
And the great glory of the Lord is released!

Going forth in triumphant joy...
Joy, our secret weapon...

Let's release it today!

The Grace Shadow vs the Shadow of Condemnation

Dear friend,

Are you sitting under the grace shadow
Or are you sitting under the shadow of condemnation?

Under the grace shadow,
There is life, acceptance, extravagant love, hope, restoration.
This shadow transforms, encourages, strengthens,
Yes, under this shadow,
You see God as joyful, happy, smiling, good...

What a contrast to the shadow of condemnation.
The shadow of condemnation reveals a God who is angry, upset, mad, hard to please...
This shadow highlights your failure
Reminding you of how you have tried, but failed.
This shadow constantly points an accusing finger at your sin
This shadow moans with striving, and disguises itself with "religion."

The grace shadow is the gift that the Father wants to give you.
He gave His Son to make a way
For you to be free from the power of sin, the condemnation, the accusations and guilt.
He provided the grace shadow with His suffering love
So you could be righteous...
Not because of anything righteous you have done,
But because of what He has done as He made a way for you on the cross.

Yes, the grace shadow
Shouts the good news of the gospel,
The good news of His finished work,
 The good news of the One who loves you completely.

Thank you Father for your grace shadow!

The Dark and Cloudy Day Promise

Jesus,
Such a Good Shepherd...
How magnificently You care and tend Your flock.

You promise me today, that You, Yourself...
Will search for those who were scattered on that dark and cloudy day.
That You, Yourself,
Will find that one who wandered away from the flock on that dark and cloudy day,
That day when...
Their eyes were blinded to Your smile,
Their ears were closed to Your song,
That dark and cloudy day when the lie from the enemy was believed...

You promise me that,
You will search,
You will find,
You will bring them safely home!

You don't say, "Maybe" or "If they co-operate."
You don't make conditions that if I do this... then You will rescue.
You say,
I will search, I will find, I will bring them safely home!

You promise to rescue them from the one who is enslaving them,
You promise to heal their injuries, strengthening them.
You promise to,
Nourish them in the green pastures,
Refresh them with Your still waters,
Heal the wounds that caused their hearts to turn.
Tenderly care for this dear one, and bring them to peace.

Jesus, You are peace.
There is peace in your tender care,
Peace in Your shepherding love,
Peace in Your constant Presence,
Peace in Your promises...
That you are the Good Shepherd...
And You will find...rescue...bring them safely home...restored,,,and blessed...

Ezekiel 34

In His Arms

Father,
I want to snuggle up and wrap myself in Your limitless...
Your limitless grace
Your limitless peace,
Your limitless wisdom
Your limitless joy
Your limitless love
Your limitless power and strength
Your limitless comfort and encouragement
Your limitless provision and protection...
Snuggle up in You...breathe You in...
Until my spirit convinces my soul, my mind and emotions
Of the Truth
Of Your limitless, abundant, overflowing, extravagant, immeasurable magnificent love.



Father God,
It is an exquisite pleasure to gaze upon Your face.
You allow me to come near,
You open up Your arms of embrace
Wanting me, desiring me, accepting me.
You make a way for me to come near
Even when I am in my dirty rags
You beckon me to come
With your poured out blood
You provide a way for me to come..be cleansed, transformed, made whole, restored....
No other God
Allows this closeness, this nearness,
No other God
Smiles upon me with intense desire of love...even in "my mess"
What an exquisite  and eternal pleasure it is
Gazing upon my Savior, my God, my Beloved,
Gazing upon the face of the One who loves me completely!

Limitless

There is no limit to the ability of my God
To restore, transform, rebuild and remake...

He looks at those dry bones...and breathes life into them.

He sees the seemingly worthless slag
With the apparent mixture of copper, dirt, and lead
And He creates a sparkling treasure.

He surveys the uncleared wilderness
And restores it to purpose, direction, soundness of mind, and vision.

He is well acquainted with that parched desert,
And inhabits it with streams and flourishing trees and plants.

Is there any limit to what He can transform.
What He can create?

Not for a God who is limitless in His power, His strength, His love, His goodness!

He is a God...
Who makes all things possible...beyond our wildest dreams!!!

He Makes the Desert Bloom

What is your desert, child of God?
You know...
That difficulty in life which you inwardly plead,"If only."

Maybe its an illness, symptom, pain or impairment
That you have been dealing with...
Praying and waiting for health to return...

Maybe its that job that you go to every day, which you dread...

Maybe its that difficult person in your life,
At work, in your family, even a spouse...
That brings drama and chaos to your every day...

Maybe its the boredom of every day...
Or unfulfilled promises, delayed hopes and dreams...

Maybe its the longings and desire for that prayer to be answered,
For prodigals to come home,
For provision to come,
For answers and solutions to booming problems...

Whatever your desert is, my friend,
The Father says, "I want to make your desert blossom!"

Yes, it is possible...for your desert to blossom,
For these are the words of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

Has He ever failed to keep a promise?

"Ok, how God?" you question repetitively, "Can my desert blossom?"

My friend, the answer is fixing your gaze upon the One who wants to bless you in this way.
Fix your eyes on Jesus,
On His goodness, His greatness, His kindness, His suffering love.
He poured out His life and shed His blood,
Like a lamb marching to the slaughter room,
Your Jesus marched to the cross,
To bear the brutality of the all the guilt, shame,
To break the power of the curse, condemnation and sin that the enemy intended to destroy you with.

Yes, Your Jesus did this for you, my friend so that in the midst of the desert of life...
You could experience blossoms of hope, peace and joy.
He has a "garden of the Lord" for your desert,
A garden of His presence, His peace, His joy, His strength.

Fix your eyes on your Beloved...
In the midst...
Contemplate His goodness, His faithfulness, His kindness...
And soon... very soon...
You will begin to see the beauty of the everyday, the hidden treasures,
The grace that has been surrounding you all along...
And before you know it...
Joy and gladness will be heard in your garden,
Lovely songs of thanksgiving will fill the air...
And suddenly,
You will realize that your desert is no longer a desert,
But a garden of the Lord!!!

Isaiah 51:3

Patient Lover of God

You are becoming, dear one,
A patient lover of God,
As you patiently wait
For your prayers to be answered,
As you patiently wait for your dreams and the longings of your heart to be fulfilled...

You are becoming a patient lover of God
You are getting practice in trusting His faithfulness, His goodness, His promise,
You are getting practice in believing...
Believing He is good all the time...
Even now...as you wait...

But one day...very soon...
Patient lover of God...
You will watch in awe and wonder,
In triumph, and with much joy and shouting...
You will watch that stronghold topple,
Topple...fall...
And the new will be issued in...
The longing and desire of your heart,
The answer to your prayer...

And you will be an experienced lover of God,
Continuing to declare...
His goodness, His kindness, His faithfulness!!!