Are you a member of The Church of the Wandering Heart?

Remember how much you loved Jesus when you first asked Him to be the Lord of your life? How hungry you were for the Word? And how your heart longed to let everyone around you know how much God loves them?

What happened? What distracted you? What seemed more fun, more exciting, more profitable? What was the hurt that caused you to distance yourself from the One who loves you?

In the book of Revelation, God tells the church;  I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 

God wants hearts that are committed to Him. Hearts that are not enticed away by the flashy but worthless attractions of this world. Hearts that turn to Him when they are hurting, not blame Him for their troubles. 

The good news is that when we recognize our wandering heart, repent and return to God, there is no condemnation - only love and acceptance.

Dear One, return to your first love. 

He is waiting with open arms. 

Pray: Father, forgive my wandering heart. Restore to me the fire that once burned bright for you. Give me a hunger and thirst for your Word and a love for those around me that reflects your love for them. I am returning to you - my First Love. Amen

------------------------------------------------------- If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share it with your friends using the Facebook, Twitter and other share buttons below. Thanks!

Restoring Intimacy with God

 "Draw near to God and He 

will draw near to you..." 

James 4:8 (NKJV)

I read these words in my morning devotional...

"Sometimes, the reason we lack intimacy with God is that we're in hiding. We might be hiding because of sin in our lives that we don't want to give up. Often, we are hiding because of a distance we've allowed as a result of something difficult we're experiencing. We allow distance because we're questioning God's love, his goodness, or his trustworthiness."  (Debbie Causey - North Point Community Church)

We all long for intimacy with God and why at times He seems so far away. Could it be that we are the ones who have distanced ourselves from Him, all the while craving intimacy with our Heavenly Father?

At some point, we have to decide whether the sin we don't want to acknowledge, much less give up is worth the lack of connection we feel to God. We will have to decide if distancing ourselves from God (perhaps unknowingly because He didn't "perform" in the way we wanted Him to) is worth the aching of our hearts to be close to Him.

Intimacy with God is the cry of every Believer's heart, but it's seldom God who has stepped back. Today, let's search our hearts and see if there is something that we have allowed to come between us, something that needs to be ripped out at the root, so that we are once again free to enjoy intimacy with the One who loves us above all else.

The Father says if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us.

Take Him at His word.

------------------------------------------------------- 
If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share it with your friends using the Facebook, Twitter and other share buttons below. Thanks!

How to Bless your Future Generations

We all want to leave a lasting legacy to our children, grandchildren and beyond.

Money is quickly gone, houses get sold, businesses eventually fold,

but the legacy of what it looks like to live your life in step with God,

prayers that cover them in every situation, and

words of encouragement and wisdom from God's Word

will stay with them forever.

That kind of example - walking on obedience to His word,

loving God and loving the people He created - all the people,

will bring blessings untold to your descendants.

What greater legacy could you leave them?

------------------------------------------------------- 
If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share it with your friends using the Facebook, Twitter and other share buttons below. Thanks!

He Gets You!

Trusting God Paid Off!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways submit to him,

and he will make your paths straight.

(Proverbs 3:5-6)

Several years ago, we had a credit card with a $4000 outstanding balance. (Mostly due to an expensive surgery.) We were appalled and determined to get it paid off as quickly as possible. We cut back on everything. My husband took on extra jobs. I created custom items and sold them online. It was hard work, but we eventually got that card balance down to $400. We had taken Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University and they had encouraged us to cut up our credit card, but I was afraid. What if we needed another surgery? What if our car broke down? What if something happened to a family member in Ohio and I had to fly home suddenly? I held onto the card.

Then several things happened - 3 more surgeries, multiple car breakdowns and family members that needed some help. Suddenly that credit card balance was almost $12,000 dollars! Appalled was not the word for what we felt - more like ashamed and panicked, wondering how in the world we would be able to ever pay this off.  

Then I received a statement that said if we paid $300 a month for the next 3 years, we could pay the card off in that amount of time. We were struggling just to make the minimum payments, so I couldn't imagine how we could afford $300 a month, but I felt God prompting me to trust Him. 

Took a leap of faith, cut the card in half, framed it and hung it on the wall, trusting God to help us make the large payments to pay the card off in 3 years. This week we made the final payment on the card! God came through every month and to our amazement we never needed a credit card even once during that time. Even more amazing, our car did break down, but each time we had the money to pay for it and just about the time we were sick of making repairs to it, we were given a car!. We did face another surgery, but we worked through the hospital to pay off our part without putting it on the card and without interest. I even made several trips to Ohio to help my mom after open heart surgery and just to visit, but I didn't have to pay for the tickets.

Trusting God definitely PAID OFF!

Do you have overwhelming credit card debt? Why not take a leap of faith. Cut the cards up and ask God to help you pay them off. 

Do you have a story of how God helped you out financially in an amazing way? Please share it in the comments. I'd love to celebrate God's goodness with you.

------------------------------------------------------- 
If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share it with your friends using the Facebook, Twitter and other share buttons below. Thanks!