Luke 7:47

"She was forgiven many, many sins, and so she is very, very grateful. If the forgiveness is minimal the gratitude is minimal." MSG

Sometimes the bigger the screw up the harder it is to forgive ourselves. We are our worst critic when it comes to messing up big time. Then when we surrender to God and allow him to cleanse us and forgive us, we experience His perfect grace. With Gods forgiveness we realize how big our screw ups were and how big His grace is. To be forgiven of the big things often makes us more grateful for the grace of God. If we are "good" in our minds and God forgives us, we tend to brush it off as no big deal cause the sin to us is not huge. God loves to show us how much he loves us no matter the mistakes and screw ups we have made. When we feel as though God could never love us or forgive what we have done...he steps in with his unfailing love and erases our slate. Then we experience the true gratitude that comes with forgiveness.

Matthew 6:25

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"

As the holiday season approaches so does the stress. The need to get things done, gifts bought, decorations up, tasks done that need to be finished, etc....that I feel we lose sight of the season. This is the season of the most miraculous birth that ever took place. Not just a birth of a child but our Saviour. We lose so much of our lives to worry...then when we are at times worry free we worry that we should be worried about something..I read somewhere that psychologists use reverse psychology when dealing with anxiety...they tell their patients to pick a certain time of day to designate to worrying...instead of worrying all the time..they can only worry for that period of time. This supposedly frees the mind to focus on more important things. This allows for proper focus on tasks that deserve our full attention. Same goes for this holiday...instead of worrying excessively about how to get everything done, making everyone happy, and all other daily stressors...remember that Jesus was born...God was planning our salvation and carrying out the plan to save us..So take time...set back and reflect on what is a joyous time of year and thank God for saving us and being the maker of our future. He is in control so cast all worries on him and enjoy the season.

Isaiah 61:10-11

"I will sing for joy in God, explode in praise from deep in my soul. He dressed me up in a suit of salvation, he outfitted me in a robe of rigteousness, as a bridegroom who puts on a tuxedo and a bride a jeweled tiara. For the Earth bursts with spring wildflowers, and as a garden cascades with blossoms, so the Master, God, brings righteousness into full bloom and puts praise on display for nations." MSG

I was reading this scripture today and often times if I have trouble understanding it specifically I will look at other versions such as The Message. I really liked this interpretation.
It pretty much says that God doesn't do anything halfway....He likes to show off =) He likes beautiful things and to transform ugly into beauty. When we see drab, dirty, filthy garments...He takes those away and clothes us with beautiful robes of righteousness and salvation...How great is that? And if thats not enough he shows it off to the entire world. He doesn't do anything halfway.
This also made me realize that in everything we do we need to go all out...don't become lazy...but do everything with everything we have and make it shine so people will know God is behind it.

Starting Over

Nothing like getting a second chance....a do-over...or simply a fresh start..  In Lamenations 3:21-23 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have Hope: Because the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."
God tells us he is faithful to us...he never leaves..in him we have hope and his compassion is new every morning!! He gives us second chances =) Another way I look at this too is letting go of things that are hindering your life...sometimes we need to just start over..what ends up happening is when we give up those things...new things are able to come into our lives that are far better than the other.

Psalm 27:4-5

"One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me and set me high on a rock.

If we draw near to God and dwell in his presence he will keep us safe...He will rescue us in our time of troubles and set us on high...How great is that =) Love this verse

“You must make a decision that you are going to move on. It wont happen automatically. You will have to rise up and say, ‘I don’t care how hard this is, I don’t care how disappointed I am, I’m not going to let this get the best of me. I’m moving on with my life.”
― Joel Osteen
 Probably one of the hardest yet very true realities. There are a lot of times in our lives when we have to just move on...let things go that are hindering our lives and trust that God is in control no matter the situation. We cant make people act a certain way, cause a situation to turn out the way we planned, or make the sunrise for that matter....we just have to trust that God knows whats best and can do all things. When we realize this...then we open the door for good things that God has for us. So even though it may be a lil rough right now...ur blessing is right around the corner =)

"I encourage you to believe for things that are so big that they take God’s favor, blessings and divine intervention to make them a reality." Joel Osteen

I love that Joel is so encouraging. We often times don't believe that God will do the little stuff in our lives let alone the things we feel are unreachable. But believing that God can and will do the impossible takes FAITH. If we have faith that he will move mountains God will move mountains. I am more excited today than ever that those mountains will be moved in the areas of my life. I have had to let a lot of things goooo....and in letting those things go I can allow God to move in those areas. Those things were hindering Gods best for my life. Now I can start anew and allow God fulfill the desires he has placed in my heart! =))