I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
Finding Rest in God
Can you remember the last time you drank cold water after being outside in the hot sun? Or maybe diving into a lake in the middle of summer? It feels good to be refreshed physically, and all of us have different ideas about how to get refreshed.
God’s Word tells us that God is like a Shepherd who takes care of us. He protects us from harm and He makes sure we’re nourished.
One of the jobs of a shepherd is to provide the sheep with refreshment. This is why the writer of Psalm 23 says the Lord leads him into quiet places and lush spaces. Those things were refreshing to his soul.
Have you checked on your own soul lately?
Sometimes when we haven’t been refreshed by God, we end up living in a hurry. We keep our souls and minds busy going from one thing to the next. We become anxious. After long enough, we begin to think there might be something wrong with us.
In John 10:11, Jesus says that He is the Good Shepherd, and we are His sheep. This means that Jesus provides the right path that we should walk, spiritual protection and guidance through prayer, and also spiritual refreshment for our soul. When we spend time with Jesus, part of His job is to refresh us.
But in order to do that, we have to follow Him into those quiet spaces. We have to leave the noise and notifications of the world behind us and learn the slow pace of Jesus. We don’t have to hurry in our time with Him.
When we learn to quiet our souls by removing distractions, we can begin to enjoy simply being with Jesus. When we learn to enjoy Jesus, then He will do His job of refreshing our souls that are parched and weary without Him.
So take some time today without distractions and spend time with Jesus. If you find that difficult, that is an indicator that your soul isn’t used to resting. Your life will be so much healthier and satisfying if you make it a daily habit to be refreshed by God.
Always Faithful
Every season of life has ups and downs, positive and negative situations. On top of that, there are spiritual powers in this world that are trying to get us to lose hope.
In the midst of difficult seasons, or even persecution, it can be easy to forget that God is still present with us. He does not abandon us in the midst of suffering. Rather, He strengthens us and walks with us through the pain.
The church in Thessalonica experienced a very similar situation. As they were praying for the gospel to spread across their region, they encountered suffering and opposition. Paul writes to the members of these churches to not only encourage them, but to remind them of God’s character.
"But the Lord is faithful, he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one."
2 Thessalonians 3:3
Paul tells them first that the Lord is faithful. This means that God doesn’t change—He is consistent in His character. If He was good and merciful yesterday, He will be good and merciful again today....
“And David consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds, and with every leader. And David said unto all the congregation of Israel, If it seem good unto you, and that it be of the LORD our God, let us send abroad unto our brethren every where, that are left in all the land of Israel, and with them also to the priests and Levites which are in their cities and suburbs, that they may gather themselves unto us: and let us bring again the ark of our God to us: for we enquired not at it in the days of Saul. And all the congregation said that they would do so: for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. So David gathered all Israel together, from Shihor of Egypt even unto the entering of Hemath, to bring the ark of God from Kirjath-jearim. And David went up, and all Israel, to Baalah, that is, to Kirjath-jearim, which belonged to Judah, to bring up thence the ark of God the LORD, that dwelleth between the cherubims, whose name is called on it. And they carried the ark of ...
There is More
There are plenty of things we can see: trees, stars, mountains, oceans, people, penguins, our best friend's smile, elephants, skyscrapers, coffee beans, sunsets, and tulips, to name a few.
God created all those things. He made the natural world, as well as the laws that govern it.
But there are also things we cannot see: behind the breath of the wind, beyond the depths of the universe, beneath the foundations of love. Through Christ, all things were created—in heaven and on earth, both visible and invisible (Colossians 1:16).
And while our mortal eyes might not be able to see the wind or infrared light or the Spirit of God, we still experience their effects. Because there’s more than what meets the eye. There’s more beyond this life.
Paul’s friends, the Corinthians, were experiencing great hardship. They were being hunted and persecuted because of what they believed about Jesus—that He was the long-awaited Messiah. Some were even facing death. But Paul encouraged them to ...
