YOUR WORST DAYS ARE NEVER SO BAD THAT YOU ARE BEYOND THE REACH OF GOD'S GRACE. AND YOUR BEST DAYS ARE NEVER SO GOOD THAT YOU ARE BEYOND THE NEED OF GOD'S GRACE.

-PG 25 OUT OF DEVOTIONS FOR DATING COUPLES-

I once heard it said that GRACE, is getting what we don't deserve, and MERCY is not getting what we do deserve.

So often in life we strive. I am been fight with this very issue for the past few months. I feel I need to do this, and do that, and say yes to this, and yes to that, just so I can prove my worth to those around me. To show that I am valuable and worth being liked, loved, and appreciated. I have been so caught in this trap that I have forgotten that is not the approval of man that counts in life, it is the approval of God, and lets face it God see's and knows everything. God sees all the flaws, sins, and imperfections that I try so hard to keep covered up. No matter how "GOOD" I am or how "HOLY" I try to appear it will never be good enough outside of God's grace in my life. I will always need GRACE no matter how good I am. The good news though is that no matter how far I fall. I can mess up worse than anyother person I know, or worse than the worst criminal you can think of and God is there ready and wanting to give me his GRACE and waiting to tell me He LOVES me and for gives me. How very cool is that!

So to anyone who may read this, I want you to know that these thoughts are the thoughts of a woman who is still in the processof getting all of this. I still have a journey to go one in understanding and believing all of this in my heart. If you don't get it that is okay, it takes time, and trust me God has all the time in the world.

So I am house sitting for some friends while they are away, and I am using this time as a personal retreat after work is done for the day. It has been a while since I intentionally set time aside for me and God. As I was reading in my Bible last night I was struck by God's EXTRAVAGANT love for me, and all of us. Think about being loved by some one who loves without expecting anything in return, being loved unselfishly by some one. That is Jesus love for us. He gives all of His love and pours it out on us. He holds nothing back and He does so with no selfish motives.

How would my relationship with Jesus look if I loved Him back with that same extravagance? I am still processing that thought. I think that I would see every activity I do as an opportunity to sevre and love Him. Every person I visit a chance to love Jesus as I am with that person. Ever little task that I may or may not like doing as a chance to praise God.

How would our human relationships look if we loved with that same intense passion and extravagance? Well for one thing I wouldn't say I love you, only hoping to hear I love you back. I would say I love you over and over and over again to the people I love without wanting anything in return. I would love them even when I don't feel loved in return. I wouldn't hold back for fear of being rejected, and when rejected I would allow myself to feel the pain, but I would ask God for the strength to keep loving even when I don't think I can.

Love we all need it!

First Love

Originally I was thinking a lot about God being my first love, but then the word intentionallity came to mind over and over again. Maybe it has to do with being in the middle of a wonderful relationship.

Intentionality - wow that word keeps popping up all over the place. We talk about being intentional in our relationships. To develop good close friends that we can connect with on a heart level takes time and effort. We call the friends we are close to, and check in with them to see how they are doing, or if they need something. We make time for our friends. We make time for our relationships with our boyfriends/girlfriends/spouses. How often are we lookingat our weeks schedules trying to find an hour here or and hour there to spend with those that we love. Yet when it comes to our relationship with God we often let Him slip through the cracks. God gets the left over bread crumbs. I am probably the worst at this. I like leading a busy life, but often I am so busy that God gets the last few minutes as I am falling asleep and maybe the occasional grumble that I don't want to get out of bed in the morning. Yeah I have prep time for different ministries, but those times should not become my personal quiet times with God. God is always here waiting for me, wanting to communicate, to be close, and God is more than willing to put the work into building a long last relationship with me. So what am I will to do about it? That is the question I am thinking about lots these days.