Month: December 2023

He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Psalm 91:4

The beauty of the Psalms is that they have God at their center, not man. Psalm 91 is a hymn of trust. God jealously guards and protects His people.

My daughter loves chickens, and from her flock I learned that when danger approaches, chicks run to the hen, even those that are not hers, she fluffs her feathers and causally sits down as if nothing is bothering her, completely hiding the helpless beneath her wings. The chicks are as secure as if they never existed. To the predator they are invisible. God’s protection is like this!

Dwelling in the Psalms is a most comforting respite. Thousands of years ago, there were people that thought my same discouraged thoughts, felt bitter agony, feared the world they existed in, longed to see into the future, had only hope to cling to and in the midst of their struggles they found a Faithful Father. That Wonderful LORD is still the same for each of us today.

Love,

Gretchen

But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You the potter; we are all the work of Your hand. Isaiah. 64:8

Through many turns of events, the descendants of Abraham came to be residents of Egypt and then slaves. God’s covenant people were in bondage so they cried out! God heard their prayer and sent Moses to lead this people, who knew nothing of governing themselves or following anything but the absolute power of a pharaoh, out of their misery and into a life of complete peace and prosperity……Except, discontent and disobedience kept getting in the way.

Israel went from becoming the most powerful and influential nation on earth to scattered bands of refugees and immigrants. God sent prophets to remind these hard headed people of who they are and who He is, but years and years go by and it seems all hope is gone for this nation to come together again and bless all of mankind.

Isaiah prays a prayer of praise and petition. He praises God for who He is, and the nation He created, but expresses His desire that Heaven tear open and end all of the suffering. In reality, Isaiah knows this will not be the case. There will come a savior, a Prince of Peace, but He will come in God’s time. Until then, Isaiah leads a humble remembrance that we are made by God’s will. All we are and all we have is the work of His hand. He will not destroy what He poured the very best of all creation into.

When you feel there is no hope, focus on the warm, tender hands that formed every miraculous molecule of your being. You are fearfully and wonderfully made to be a vessel that can both receive and disperse the fulness of God’s love and power.

Have a Great Day,

Gretchen

Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Luke 18:16

The event of Jesus setting the disciples straight on the value of children is in all three Gospels. Woven into sloppy grins, sticky fingers and dirty little toes is the heart of a child. A heart that trusts with reckless abandon, loves with no reservation, and has a malleable attitude of giving and gratitude, gains God’s glory.

Pomposity, a behavior motivated by the impression that God is honored by our notice, has no place in the presence of the One who gave His life for ours.

Never out grow your inner child.

Happy December Weekend,

Gretchen

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

We are all sons and daughters of Adam. We woke up in this world one day, by no choice of our own, with a sinful nature. The human race is all very much the same in this manner. Adam did not arrive as we did. He arrived in the perfect likeness of God and chose to sin. Adam sinned, contaminated mankind and destined us to die. Jesus, the Son of God, died to eradicate death and return the human race to the image of God.

Grace is completely illogical! The good don’t sacrifice their lives for the bad. But because Jesus, loving and good, did so, anyone, the bad and sinful, who believes, can have all the glory of Heaven. Grace truly is amazing if you consider all it encapsulates: hope, family identity, inheritance, peace, freedom, justice, an advocate, a provider, AND eternal life.

The crucifixion was not just for one person, or one race, it was for everyone and anyone who believes.

Grace, the gift that keeps on giving.

Love,

Gretchen

Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be shaken. Psalm 55:22

Absalom was David’s third son but became first in line of succession. He waged an overthrow attempt against his father. David felt betrayed and overwhelmed at the inevitable fate of his son as a result of his evil. He just wanted to opt out of real life for a while.

This Psalm speaks the gut wrenching truths of the soul. It begins with a confession of anxiety and continues into a plea for God to disrupt the wicked, then concludes with an acknowledgement of faith and resolve.

The weight of the world was on David’s shoulders. If managing a kingdom weren’t enough, his family was a mess and he couldn’t to fix it. BUT, he remembers who hung the stars in the Heavens and gave the sun a song and so he does the only thing he can do. He throws his mental weight and stress onto the LORD because He alone shall, (not can, but shall) maintain all that David needs to fulfill his life’s responsibilities.

God is ready to be God. Let Him.

Have a Wonderful Day,

Gretchen

The Heavens are Yours, and yours also, the earth; you founded the world and all that is in it. Psalm 89:11

Ethan the Ezrahite, this Psalm’s composer, was one of David’s song leaders. Imagine King David, and all of Jerusalem having amazing worship led by appointed leaders like Ethan. I hope Heaven has a highlight reel when I get there. I’m sure this Psalm will be on the playlist.

God as creator of everything is the rightful owner. He is all and has all, yet He gave all for you and I. These lyrics are a lengthy story of God, our faithful covenant keeper, powerful protector and all seeing, all knowing, perfect judge.

In times of great need, whether it is perseverance, faith, protection, comfort…….there is absolute assurance in knowing who God is and who isn’t god. He is the ONLY One, True, Good, Good Father.

Happy Wednesday,

Gretchen

Through Him you believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and glorified Him, and so your faith and hope are in God. I Peter 1:21

At the time Peter wrote this letter the church is 35 years old and Paul has just been martyred. Nero has declared war on Christianity and by his example the torture and persecution of Christians reached across the entire Roman Empire. It was brutal. Silas was tasked to carry this letter to the many churches Paul established, filled with Peter’s love and encouragement to remember hope is found only in the Resurrection of Jesus. Peter felt with great certainty that he and his wife would soon be martyred for their commitment to the perpetuation of the Gospel, but their salvation was sealed by Christ’s ultimate sacrifice, so they had comfort rather than terror.

Peter was a front row witness to Jesus’ miracles, the crucifixion, the empty tomb, Christ’s fellowship before the ascension, the ascension AND Pentecost. Of course his hope was in the Savior he knew personally, but this letter is a testimony to those who had not seen and heard as Peter had.

It was not silver and gold, man’s most precious commodity, that secured eternal life, but the very thing that flows through a body and sustains life. That most wonderful gift was blood, Jesus’ blood, given to ransom and redeem our souls. Peter saw it in living color and wants us to know with total assurance that it is true.

Love,

Gretchen

“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” John 3:9

Jesus had just made the Pharisees very angry by speaking of eternal life and being in the presence of Abraham in Heaven, thus discrediting their arguments that Jesus cannot be the Son of God. They picked up stones to kill Him but it was not yet time. As He was leaving He healed a man blind since birth. Wow, Jesus is fleeing death threats and stops to help the helpless!

It was traditional thought that bad things happened to bad people, so if you were suffering you obviously had a secret sin that needed to be confessed and atoned. Jesus put this assumption to rest. Suffering is a result of the downfall of the human race, but particular people are not targeted. God is NOT petty or vengeful.

God seeks to bring good from bad. This man’s blindness led to a face to face encounter with Jesus. Not only were his eyes were open but his heart was too, and he believed.

To believe through despair that God is Good is an act of great faith. Seek the face of Jesus. All you need is found there.

Love,

Gretchen

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8

The Christian converts of Jerusalem felt their city would soon be capital of the entire world, for Jesus was to return, establish His Kingdom and rule with justice and peace.  The reality was, their city would soon be obliterated from the face of the earth for the rest of their lifetime. The faith of the early church was going to be tested and stretched as Rome did its worst.

Hebrews is the last epistle written. Paul writes, only a few years before the destruction of David’s City, not knowing the future, but knowing His LORD.

Aside from John’s account of the empty tomb, there are no words in scripture that give me more hope than these.  Before the world was created Jesus was there and as man fell short of the perfect image of God there was a plan of redemption and restoration. Today, I am a sinner saved by grace because everything He’s ever done for anyone else (as scripture tells),  He will do for me and you, all because our Eternal Savior loves.

You are loved,

Gretchen

The past of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. Proverbs 4:18

Solomon, the second son of King David and Bathsheba, is the primary author of the book of Proverbs. He was an intellectual, business man, botanist, zoologist, politician, poet and moral preacher. Kings came from the ends of the earth to hear him and “pick his brain.’ But for all his fame and fortune, Solomon held the pursuit of wisdom in the absolute highest esteem. He wrote his writing as a practical guide to the ethical standards that God designed and set throughout the entire Biblical story.

Proverbs chapter 4 speaks to the value of seeking wisdom, but verse 18 likens righteous wisdom to the rising sun of each new day. It continues to grow brighter and brighter until it eradicates all darkness, a darkness that causes failure and defeat.

The quest for wisdom makes very logical sense, and keeps you walking in the Sonshine.

Have a Great Weekend Eve,

Gretchen