latest GOOD NEWS DAILY – August 23

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name,He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” John 14:26

When a beautiful sister-in-Christ encouraged me to consider several Bible verses in relation to a particularly challenging struggle – one which I have met on and off for years – I wasn’t in the least surprised. I knew the verses well. I had studied them a zillion times. I had heard them preached a zillion times. I had written about them a zillion times. And I had used them a zillion times to minister to others. It’s not as though my friend was saying anything new to me!

But what I needed was the REMINDER to apply those verses to my life and to live by the truth of them. And the Spirit of God had used my sister-in-Christ to REMIND me of what I needed to hear and do.

Reading the Bible and learning to live by it is not a one-time deal. It’s a lifetime deal. It’s to be at the foundation of our very way of life once we receive Jesus Christ as Lord.

And reading the Bible day by day, meditating on it day by day, talking with others about it, ministering to others with it, being ministered to with it, hearing it preached, all of this can be used to REMIND us how to live according to the Lord’s ways.

If you haven’t already done so, I so very much encourage you to make a commitment to read the Bible daily – and to meditate on it, talk about it, and, most importantly, live by it!

IF YOU NEED HELP BEGINNING OR PRESSING ON IN A FOREVER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT AT 843-338-2219 OR lara@GoodNews.love

love & blessings,

lara

“”Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:37

“Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.” Mt. 5:7

““For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Mt. 6:14-15

“I’m going to love them no matter how they treat me,” I thought one morning regarding some people who had done some hurtful stuff toward me.

Wow. Incredible. Unbelievable. Me? Saying I would LOVE people who had HURT me? No way. Impossible. I’m sensitive, and when I hurt, I really hurt. So the idea of loving people who have hurt me, well, that’s not an idea I would be capable of coming up with on my own. Nor is it anything I could possibly do on my own! Human nature anyway is NOT to love the people who hurt us, right?

Friend, following Jesus isn’t about human nature and what our flesh wants to do and can and can’t do. It’s about following JESUS and learning to live according to HIS ways NOT ours! That means when people hurt us, we need to LOVE, FORGIVE, and BE MERCIFUL. We need to GET RID OF bitterness, hurt, pride, judgment, condemnation, vengeance, rage, anger, gossip, etc. We need to TURN AWAY FROM OUR SINS and turn to THE LORD AND THE BIBLE.

The Lord may lead us to stay with someone hurting us or in a situation with people hurting us, etc., or He may lead us to walk away, but whether we stay or go according to His will, we still need to choose the way of HIS LOVE, HIS MERCY, HIS GRACE, and HIS FORGIVENESS. For HIS GLORY. AMEN!

365 BLESSINGS is a devotional book the Lord has led me to publish piece by piece even as I’m writing it rather than waiting until it’s in print to share it. Please join me & be blessed as I write my latest book…!

If you’re reading 365 Blessings day by day, you may notice I skipped #112. My mistake! Right in the midst of working on my little book along with all the other blessed opportunities I have in ministry day by day, I accidentally skipped #112. It’s not about the numbers, though, is it? Our lives are to be about the Lord, and so is this little book being written for Him and for those He leads to read it. So please enjoy today’s entry of 365 Blessings…!

Blessing 113

“Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.” James 1:12

“Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” James 1:12 KJV

Who will receive the crown of life? Those who love Him! I’ve always focused it seems on the endurance of temptation in this verse, but the Spirit of the Lord who lives inside His followers brought to my attention as I looked at this verse to write about it the blessing of His promise of the crown of life. Loving the Lord is His greatest command, and His command comes with this promise. Is it merely a crown as one would wear on one’s head? I think not. Is it not the “crown” of everlasting life? Of being forever with Jesus? Oh, I think so! Those who believe in Jesus as Lord, those who love Jesus as Lord, those who follow Jesus as Lord, we have the promise of forever and ever in the presence of the Lord. Yes, forever! We are crowned, are we not, with eternal life with Christ? Oh, glory to the Lord, yes, glory to God, AMEN!

“Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you; but rejoice inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings, that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.” 1 Peter 4:12-13

“In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 1:6-9

I’m going through a hard, hard time again – for the umpteenth time through the years. Sometimes my life feels like it’s been relentlessly challenging. Relentless struggles. Nothing compared to other people’s hard stories, but hard, hard, hard for me. Something is different this time around, however, and it bears telling.

I was just writing out a little prayer to my Father in heaven when I realized during this particular season of struggle, I have a greater love, a deeper trust in Christ, a deeper faith in God, a true belief in His love for me, a heart filled with thanksgiving, none of the icky self-pity, a much more significant crying out to Jesus, a stronger connection to my sisters in Christ, more vulnerability in that I don’t have the hard, prideful, wall around me to “protect” myself, and probably more. Change. Lots and lots of change and growth. And, in the midst of it all, praising the Lord forever would never be enough.

Why do I share this with you? The Lord can do beautiful, wonderful, powerful, albeit hard-to-the-flesh things in the midst of our trials. He can work on us. He can work through us. He can refine us. Grow us. Transform us. Conform us to Himself. Purify us. Make us more like Himself, yes.

Thank you, dear Lord, for carrying us through our trials when we are surrendered to you. Thank you for working on our hearts and lives. Thank you for doing what you desire in us and through us. Thank you for teaching us your ways. Thank you for not allowing us to remain the same. Thank you for using us to bring glory to your name. AMEN!

Press on, friend, if you’re in the battle. Press on if your trials are great. Press on if you feel the struggle will never end. Press on following Jesus. The way, He is. The truth, He is. The life, He is. Follow Him! Let us follow Him together, AMEN!

“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6

Let us serve Him with love, joy, praise, and thanksgiving in our hearts, and let us purify our hearts when we find we are not. And, if we find we are not serving Him at all or regularly, let’s make the commitment this very day to love and serve the Lord Jesus Christ now and forever, AMEN!

LATEST MINISTRY UPDATE & PRAYER REQUEST

For any of you who dig deep into the Bible and are familiar with the battles of the Bible – including the spiritual ones – then you would likely not be surprised how fiery and ferocious are the spiritual battles I face as I press on in being on the road for Jesus with my little crew of special needs streets ministry doggies doing streets ministry and writing & publishing Gospel tracts, devotionals, and books.

The enemy – the devil – can’t stand seeing God’s followers follow Him most especially it seems when they’re working hard to help build the Lord’s Kingdom of followers. The enemy comes at me regularly, but periodically he attacks me so viciously it seems impossible I can carry on. This usually happens when I have a big writing project or have just begun sharing the Gospel in a new location. So I am not entirely surprised since I recently returned to New York City for another season of streets ministry here and am doing lots of writing with one special project included that the devil is coming at me especially hard.

I know my victory is in, through, and for the Lord Jesus Christ, and I would be so very thankful to know some especially strong prayer warriors are warring in prayer for me, this ministry, and the doggies.

love & blessings,

lara