Thankful Thirty – Love and Trust the Omni God

I like to know the answers. I want to understand. I’m a student.

When I’m confused I try to figure things out.

And that works most of the time . . . but it doesn’t work with God. Living by faith means He is beyond my understanding.

I used to struggle with that. I was sure my faith gave me answers. I was quick to say, “My God is…”

Then He reminded me—He is not who I say He is, but who He says He is.

The Great I AM! Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, Redeemer, Spirit, Love and so much more. Forever without end.

Omni…

Omni is a Latin prefix that means all or everything. Omni God.

God’s love is:

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods. His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords. His faithful love endures forever. Psalm 136:1–3

“Love is omni-inclusive, progressively exquisite, understanding and compassionately attuned to other than self.” ~R. Buckminster Fuller

God’s power is:

For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. Romans 1:20

For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. Colossians 1:16–17

God’s knowledge is:

He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them. Psalm 147:4

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. Psalm 139:1

God’s presence is:

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the one to whom we are accountable. Hebrews 4:13

Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord. Jeremiah 23:24

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; He will neither fail you nor abandon you. Deuteronomy 31:8

God all-loving, all-knowing, ever-present, all-powerful . . . omni-God. All you and I will ever need. Greater than our understanding. Great enough to meet our every need now and forever.

Quotes about our All and Everything God

“Our God is at home with the rolling spheres, And at home with broken hearts.” ~M. P. Ferguson

“You can’t analyze God. He is too awesome, too big, too mysterious. I know now, Lord, why you utter no answer. You Yourself are the answer.” ~C.S.Lewis

“God does not come to us in nicely defined, rationally explained, thought categories. God does not fit Himself into our theological text books. The Hebrew God breaks all the rules. He is near, yet transcendent; clothed in human form, yet holy; more terrifying than can be imagined, yet compassionate; invisible, yet revealed; judging, yet merciful; sovereign, yet humble. No matter where you look, God breaks the molds.” ~Skip Moen

“Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress. Psalm 46:10–11
Father, I fall before You . . . breathless and overwhelmed. I see You through eyes of faith and You are OMNI and I realize how small I am. I am humbled. And full of thanks . . . that You would love me. You are all and everything yet You care about each of us. You are vast and intimate. You are beyond my understanding and worthy of my complete trust. Father, forgive me for spending so many years trying to make You fit into my limited knowledge. I’m so sorry. You are awesome. I anticipate that day I will see You face to face. All because of Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.
Photo Credit – LibreStock.com

Thankful Thirty – An Iota is Important to the End

11 / 10 / 157 / 7 / 16

You’ve heard the saying, “I could care less.” That should really be said, “I couldn’t care less.”

If you’re a little older you remember the saying, “I don’t give a care.”

And if you’re even older you may remember the saying, “I don’t care one iota.”

What’s an iota?

An iota is the ninth letter of the Greek alphabet, translated as “i.” (During the Roman and Byzantine eras, the iota, now mute, was sometimes still written as a normal letter but was often simply left out. Wickipedia)

Why am I thankful for the iota?

Because it was important to Jesus.

“For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” Matthew 5:18(ESV)

The verse before says:

“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.” v. 17

And those after:

^“So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!” v. 19–20

Every iota of the Law matters. Our obedience matters. But that’s not the part I like or even the part I’m thankful for because I can’t come close to righteously obeying God’s Law.

But Jesus did…

I’m thankful for the iota because it reminds me that Jesus obeyed every detail of the Law perfectly . . . down to the very last iota. And He did it for you and me. He obeyed every iota of the Law so that through His death and resurrection we are covered by His righteousness. We are covered by His perfection.

Quotes – Covered by Jesus’ Righteousness

“It is not good for us to trust in our merits, in our virtues or our righteousness; but only in God’s free pardon, as given us through faith in Jesus Christ.” ~John Wycliffe

We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. Romans 3:22

“God revealed Himself through the Law, which pointed to Christ as its end and goal, commanded the obedience that comes from faith, increased transgressions, and shut the mouths of all humans because no one has performed the righteousness of the Law so as not to need a substitute.” ~John Piper

I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with Himself depends on faith. Philippians 3:9

“Man approaches God most nearly when he is in one sense least like God. For what can be more unlike than fullness and need, sovereignty and humility, righteousness and penitence, limitless power and a cry for help?” ~C.S. Lewis

So, stop today and thank God for the iota. For Jesus who kept the Law perfectly for you, and for the Father who sees you covered by His Son’s righteousness.

Father, Thank you! You know that no matter how hard your children try we are unable to keep Your Law perfectly. We try and we fail. And You made a way. You gave us the Way, Jesus . . . who kept Your Law with perfection as a substitute for our imperfection. Jesus, who suffered our punishment. Jesus, who died our death. Father, the tiniest detail is important to You. So important that You took care of each one for us. Thank You. We love You. We thank You. In Jesus name. Amen.

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Thankful Thirty – Equipped by God and for God

11 / 6 / 157 / 7 / 16

“I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast!
And when I run I feel his pleasure.” ~Eric Liddell

That is not me. God did not make me fast. I was the kid picked last for every team, but…

I am equipped.

I’m equipped for His plans and purposes for me. And you are too.

You are perfectly designed, custom made by God and for God. And every day you are being equipped by Him and for Him.

“You weren’t an accident. You weren’t mass produced. You aren’t an assembly-line product. You were deliberately planned, specifically gifted, and lovingly positioned on the earth by the Master Craftsman.”
~Max Lucado

I’m not a runner. It’s funny. I never believed I was a writer either. I avoided writing whenever possible. The whole outline, sentence structure, paragraph formal writing thing . . . well, just ask my English teachers. Nope. Not equipped for that either.

I’m a talker. (Thankfully, I’m a listener too, but that’s another post.) In recent years I’ve learned that talkers make pretty good bloggers. Bloggers write like they talk. They share their hearts. They write their passions.

And my passion is Jesus. Not formal churchy religion part, but the love, grace, and mercy . . . the person. Jesus, the One who pieced me together after I was completely broken. The One who never stopped loving me when I stood at the tree and believed the lie. I have blessings to shout. Not stuff blessings.

Love blessings. Grace blessings. Mercy blessings.

Lasting blessings.

I’ve always been an equipped talker. Just ask my dad. Whew. My poor parents. The thing that amazes me is how I’m now equipped with a story. Not a story about me. But one of a Savior.

I love how we are each equipped with gifts and abilities, yes . . . but also with stories. Unique experiences good and bad, successes and failures, joys and sorrows, hurts and healing each part equipping us to share truth. Our truth. But more than that.

His truth.

Truth that never leaves us alone. On the mountaintop or in the pit. He’s there with us. Celebrating or reaching out. He’s beside us as our stories are written.

Author Rick Yancey wrote:

“God doesn’t call the equipped, son. God equips the called. And you have been called.”

We’ve been called and with every day we are being equipped for God’s plans and purposes for us. Plans of love. Plans of a future filled with hope. Even the disasters can be turned around by Him. Because He is with us and we are with Him every equipping can be used for Him.

Take a close look at your story today. How has God used it to equip you for this time and place? How can you use His equipping for His glory?

Now may the God of peace—
    who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great Shepherd of the sheep,
    and ratified an eternal covenant with His blood—
may he equip you with all you need
    for doing His will.
May He produce in you,
    through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to Him.
    All glory to Him forever and ever! Amen.
Hebrews 13:20–21

Father, thank you for equipping me for Your plans and purposes for me. Thank you for caring about each of us personally. Forgive me for the times I think of You as distant or uninvolved. Your promises tell me you are always with me. Always active. Always equipping. Help me to do Your will with joy and thanksgiving. Help me to use my story to bring glory to You. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

Faith ‘n Friends Blog Hop

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Knowing + Doing = Blessing

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Thankful Thirty – Celebrating Jesus Every Day from A to Z

11 / 1 / 157 / 7 / 16

“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” ~Gilbert K. Chesterton

I didn’t take part in the Write 31 Days in October. We were launching Faith ‘n Friends and my plate was more than full. But this month I want to celebrate Thanksgiving everyday. So I’m going to do a 30 day writing project.

I’d love to have you join me. You can add your links here in comments if you’d like me to share your posts on social media. I also have a Thankful Thirty – Group Pinterest Board that I’d love to have you join.

You don’t have to write every day to participate. Just add your gratitude posts as you write them. I just want to lift the Lord high for all He does.

Quotes about Thanking God

We thank you, O God! We give thanks because you are near. People everywhere tell of your wonderful deeds. Psalm 75:1

O Lord, who lends me life, lend me a heart replete with thankfulness. William Shakespeare

Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim His greatness. Let the whole world know what He has done. Psalm 105:1

“A state of mind that sees God in everything is evidence of growth in grace and a thankful heart.” ~Charles G. Finney

Give thanks to theLord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever. Psalm 107:1

“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” ~William Arthur Ward

I will give repeated thanks to the Lord, praising Him to everyone. Psalm 109:30

“We would worry less if we praised more. Thanksgiving is the enemy of discontent and dissatisfaction.”
~H.A. Ironside

Give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20

“Thankfulness is the quickest path to joy.” ~Jefferson Bethke

The twenty-four elders sitting on their thrones before God fell with their faces to the ground and worshiped him. They sang, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Revelations 7:11–12

“We pray for the big things and forget to give thanks for the ordinary, small (and yet really not small) gifts.” ~Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Thankful Thirty – Celebrating Jesus Every Day from A to Z

Please join me on this month-long journey as I look at spiritual blessings from A to Z. Blessings like Freedom, Victory, and Courage. Can you guess a blessing that starts with X, Y, and Z.

Follow along, or better yet… subscribe so you don’t miss a post. And don’t forget to let me know if you’d like to join the Thankful Thirty – Group Pinterest Board.

Let’s celebrate our great and gracious Savior with daily thanks and praise for the next 30 days.

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10 of the Best Ways to Start Your Day Positively

8 / 31 / 154 / 15 / 18

The schools in our area started a couple of weeks ago. For many of you school will start this week or next. With new routines and adapting to differing schedules . . . I thought it might be a good idea to share my favorite tips for beginning each day in ways that offer less stress and more happiness.

Do you wake up in the morning with a groan wishing you could stay in bed a few more hours?

If you’re a morning person you may be doing many of these things already. I’d like to be a morning person, an afternoon person, and an evening person . . . at least with my attitude.

This ten-step plan helps. It promises to give more energy and an improved attitude.

10 of the Best Ways to Start Your Day Positively

1) Turn your alarm off gently – Don’t throw it across the room. Then remind yourself…

This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it! Psalm 118:24

2) Pull the covers up over your head – No kidding. It’s a really great way to stretch, get your blood moving, and it will be easier on your back when you make your bed. Get ready to face the day.

“Success is due to our stretching to the challenges of life. Failure comes when we shrink from them.” ~John C. Maxwell

[Tweet “If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed. “]

3) Make your bed – Right away. It is so much harder to come back to it later, and you’re standing right there anyway!

“If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.” ~U.S. Navy Adm. William H. McCraven quote to graduates of his alma mater.

4) Brush your teeth – Think through your day with a plan to speak only positive kind words.

“Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.” ~Kahlil Gibran

5) Take a bath or shower – Use the time to repent of sins from the previous day, and watch as the Lord washes them down the drain. Praise Him for the gift of forgiveness.

But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. Romans 5:15

6) Get dressed – In the outfit you laid out the night before, with all of its accessories as well, to save on time and frustration . . . while you get dressed imagine that you are putting on the armor of God.

Belt of Truth. Breastplate of Righteousness. Shield of Faith. Helmet of Salvation. Sword of the Spirit. Ephesians 6:13-18

7) Eat breakfast – I am often guilty of grabbing a cup of coffee and running out the door. But I recently discovered if you add baking mix to your oatmeal it makes a muffin.

1/3 Cup Oatmeal
1 Tbsp Baking Mix – like Bisquick
Cover with Milk
Mix and add flavor of your choice.
(1/3 banana, 2 tsp. peanut butter or Nutella, blueberries, nuts, etc.)
Microwave for 1 minute.
YUM!

8) Carry Scripture with you – Grab your Bible, download an app on your phone, or print verses on cards. A great way to memorize your favorite verses while you’re stuck in a line or traffic.

I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:11

9) Listen to praise music – There are many music choices and radio stations that vie for our attention but my day is better when I begin with praise and worship, singing along, and making a “joyful noise” to the King of kings.

Shout to the Lord, all the earth; break out in praise and sing for joy! Psalm 98:4

10) Arrive at your destination with a fresh outlook and a cleansed attitude – Woo Hoo!

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

Would you consider becoming my accountability buddy?

Working together to start our days positively carrying His truth and kindness with us to work, school, and maybe even blessing the people with whom we live.

“Welcome every morning with a smile. Look on the new day as another special gift from your Creator, another golden opportunity…” ~Og Mandino

This is the day the Lord has made. Rejoice!

So start your day positively!

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This is Important – Christians are Wrong If…

3 / 26 / 158 / 22 / 17

I had one of those moments recently when I realized Christians are wrong when…

We say it right, but do it wrong.

What’s it?

Obedience.

Why do you obey God? Okay, maybe a better question is why do you try to obey God?

To please Him?
To earn His favor?
To look good at church?
To feel good about yourself?
So “it will go well for you?”
All of the above?

God promises it will go well for those who obey Him, but that should not be our motive.

Why?

Because everything on that list of reasons are ME focused!

As I read in Deuteronomy the other day, the following words practically jumped off the page:

“I have taught you all the laws, as the Lord my God told me to do. Obey them in the land that you are about to invade and occupy. Obey them faithfully, and this will show the people of other nations how wise you are. When they hear of all these laws, they will say, ‘What wisdom and understanding this great nation has!’

“No other nation, no matter how great, has a god who is so near when they need Him as the Lord our God is to us. He answers us whenever we call for help. No other nation, no matter how great, has laws so just as those that I have taught you today. Deuteronomy 4:5–8

We are not supposed to obey to show who we are . . . we are to obey to show who God is.

Not to show that we are good, but to show that He is good and loving.

Not to show that we are better than those who don’t obey, but to show that His ways are best. Commands that tell us to treat others with respect, compassion, and love.

Not to show that what the Bible says is right, but to show that God’s commands are perfect. Commands that show His perfect love has the power to change hearts and lives.

[Tweet “We don’t obey to show who we are . . . we obey to show who God is.”]

Based on the Deuteronomy verses above, considered “Law,” obeying shows who God is. That He gives wisdom and understanding and is near and just.

Obedience glorifies God!

It’s not about you. It’s not about me. It’s not about theology or doctrine.

It’s about God. It’s about glorifying the One who loves you so much He died to show you.

Friends we need to take ourselves out of the equation. If we could begin to obey God to show His love, if we could lead with our hearts, if we could obey out of love to show love . . . it would change everything.

No more judgmental pride.

No more obeying to be accepted.

Simply . . . coming to Jesus.

“Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke and put it on you, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit; and you will find rest. Matthew 11:28–29

Jesus said, “Let the children come to me and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

Then going where He leads with obedience.

It’s not about us, about rules, about judgment, about fitting in or doing it right.

It’s about doing everything with great love.

His love!

Showing we love Him by loving others. Showing His love and reflecting His glory—that is obedience.

Friend, any other reason for obedience is just wrong.

“Do you feel loved by God because you believe He makes much of you, or because you believe He frees you and empowers you to enjoy making much of Him?” ~John Piper

Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere,I have not stopped thanking God for you. Ephesians 1:15–16

“To do even the most humbling tasks to the glory of God takes the Almighty God Incarnate working in us.” Oswald Chambers”

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