ONCE AGAIN (THANK YOU FOR THE CROSS)

Once again, I am humbled when I think how Jesus sacrificed for us on that cross. My tears, sometimes, would stream down on my cheeks because I'm awed by His sacrifice and the mighty deeds He had done for us.



And once again I look upon the cross where You died
I'm humbled by Your mercy and I'm broken inside
Once again I thank You
Once again I pour out my life

Jesus Christ, I think upon Your sacrifice
You became nothing, poured out to death
Many times I've wondered at Your gift of life
And I'm in that place once again

Now You are exalted to the highest place
King of the heavens, where one day I'll bow
But for now, I marvel at Your saving grace
And I'm full of praise once again
I'm full of praise once again

Thank You for the cross
Thank You for the cross
Thank You for the cross, my Friend

FILL YOUR MOUTH WITH LAUGHTER

(Taken from The Everyday Life Bible ; featuring notes by JoyceMeyer)

"Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy." Psalm 126:2

Psalm 126:2 speak of laughter and gladness. I once watched a Christian television talk show in which the participants were talking about a laughing revival that took place in various parts of the world at one time. Someone asked the host of the show if he thought it was of God.

"Does it offend your mind?" the host asked.
"Yes it does,"answered the person who had raised the question.
"Well, then " responded the host, "It is probably of God."

Have you ever noticed that Jesus offended people who were falsely religious? It sometimes seemed He did it on purpose. In Matthew 15:12 Jesus' disciples said to Him, "Do you know that the Pharisees were displeased and offended and indignant when they heard this saying?" Jesus' answer to them was: "Let them alone and disregard them; they are blind guides and teachers. And if a blind man leads a blind man , both will fall into a ditch." (Matthew 15:14) If we are going to follow God, we need to realize that our minds may not always understand everything He does. Stop checking with your mind and start asking if you bear witness in your spirit to what is happening. We often reject things and movements that are genuinely of God simply because we have never seen them and do not understand them.

We must guard against "Pharisee-ism" in our hearts and attitudes. If the truth were known, the church today is full of Pharisees. I used to be one of them, In fact, I was a chief Pharisee. I was rigid, legalistic, bofing, out to impress others, humorless, critical and judgmental. I was on my way to heaven but I was not enjoying the trip.

We need to stop being so rigid. Jesus was sent into this world, not to bind us up, but to set us free. We need to be free to laugh, enjoy life, love people and not be afraid to step out and try new things.

Now, I do not mean we are to go through trying to see how ridiculous we can act. I am not talking about weirdness and fanaticisim; I am talking about freedom and joy . I am talking about freely following the leading of the Holy Spirit. Go ahead, laugh a little. God will not be offended. He wants you to be joyful.

By: Joyce Meyer, Joyce Meyer Ministries

I STAND IN AWE OF YOU

Whenever I see God and feel His presence, I could stand in awe of Him. His majesty is too marvelous for words and His love is awesome. This is such a beautiful praise song that captures my adoration for our God.

CRACKS IN JARS

(Taken from Christian Women Today)

He handcrafted the clay baby cup with her name on it. It was beautifully glazed and I hardly wanted to let her use it. But he said, “Please use it, that’s why I made it.” And so we did. She loved her own cup with her own name on it!

Today the cup sits in her cupboard in her own kitchen. It is still beautifully glazed with her name on it. But the lines on it show where it was carefully glued back together. A clay pot is oh so sturdy yet oh so fragile!!

God calls us clay pots. And true to the name most of us sport cracks, carefully glued back together. We are oh so sturdy, yet oh so fragile. Why would God entrust clay pots with the light of His love? We try to fulfill His purposes but we get cracked and broken.

Yet His strategy is clear… He knows our weaknesses yet He chose clay pots anyway. He tells us why…

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Don’t be ashamed of the cracks in your life… don’t be afraid to show how God has mended you. This is the testimony to the watching world. Our God fixes broken pieces!

If you are broken today because of circumstances in your life, or because of choices you wish you had made differently, don’t stay in pieces on the floor. If you know you have disappointed God in your walk or in your talk tell Him you are sorry.

God will forgive you, pick you up and mend you. Changed lives, lives lived in the power of the Holy Spirit, demonstrate that it is His power at work in us. This is our hope…this is the hope we hold out to a needy world.

Father God, Thank you that You use cracked pots to demonstrate Your love and power. Forgive me today for the guilt trips and the pity parties and help me to tap into the power that changes lives. Thank you that You put Your Spirit in me so that Your amazing power can be visible! Shine through my cracks today, Lord so that others can see who You are. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Questions: Do you need to change your thinking and accept the cracks in your life as the very places Jesus can shine through? Invite Him into those places today.

WHO IS LIKE THE LORD

Who is like the Lord? No one and there's no one like the Lord our God. Sang by Israel Houghton and The New Breed, this is just an clip of the whole song/video.



If our God is for us
Who can be against us
He will keep His promise
There's nobody like Him

What can separate us
From the love of Jesus
He will keep His promise
There's nobody like Him
Nobody like Him

Lord we declare
Who can compare
Who would even dare
Say there is no like You.

WORTHY IS THE LAMB

The Lamb, Jesus Christ, became a sacrifice for our sins. Worthy is His deeds and worthy to be praised. So, let us shout out our gratitude to Jesus who was slain to redeem us from the pit of hell. Rendered by Darlene Zschech and Hillsong, this praise song exclaims how worthy He is.

YOUR GRACE IS ENOUGH

We sing this song in our church and it reminds me of what St. Paul said in 2nd Corinthians 12:9 "And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. "

This song is titled, "Your Grace Is Enough" is rendered by one of my favorite Christian artists, Chris Tomlin. Whenever I hear or sing this song, I am always healed of the stinging "thorn" in my flesh.

IT'S TIME TO GET AWAY

(Taken from the devotional "The Word for You Today " of the Living Word Ministries)

"Come aside....and rest a while." Mark 6:31

The Book of Luke records: "He departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowd sought Him and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from leaving them; but He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent." (Luke 4:42-43) Examine the life of Christ; the control He exercised, the criticism He evoked, and the communion He enjoyed with God, then follow His example.

Jesus said "No" to good things so that He could say "Yes" to the right things. That's not easy. God may want you to leave where you are, but you are staying. Or He may want you to stay but you're leaving. How can you know? Get away from the crowd and meet with Jesus in a deserted place. This word "deserted" does not mean desolate, just quiet--a quiet place to think, to pray, to hear from God, to refuel and re-chart your course. Hell hates to see you stop.

In contemporary society, the Devil majors in three things; noise, hurry and crowds. If he can keep us engaged in "muchness" and "manyness", he will be satisfied. He implants taxi meters in our brains. We hear the relentless tick, tick, tick, tellling us to hurry, hurry, hurry, time is money, resulting in this roaring blur called human race. But Jesus stands against the tide saying, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavily laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28) Will you come? Will you follow the One who often "withdrew....into the wilderness, and prayed?" (Luke 5:16) A thousand voices will tell you not to. Ignore them. Go to Jesus and enjoy His presence.

I COULD SING OF YOUR LOVE FOREVER

Sung by Hillsong, this praise song acknowledges the love of God. Truly enough, we, His children could sing of the love, compassion and mercy He has richly given us---forever.



Over the mountains and the sea,
Your river runs with love for me,
And I will open up my heart
And let the Healer set me free.
I'm happy to be in the truth,
And I will daily lift my hands
For I will always sing of when
Your love came down.

I could sing of Your love forever

Oh, I feel like dancing,
But it's foolishness I know.
But, when the world has seen the light,
They will dance with joy like we're dancing now.

SHOUT TO THE LORD

A powerful praise song that encourages me and lifts my spirits up ; strengthening me as I raise my voice to praise the Lord Jesus. Here, sang by a trio of Darlene Zschech, Ron Kenoly and Alvin Slaughter.




My Jesus, My Savior,
Lord, there is none like You;
All of my days
I want to praise
the wonders of Your mighty love.

My comfort, my shelter,
Tower of refuge and strength;
let every breath, all that I am
never cease to worship You.

Shout to the Lord, all the earth,
let us sing
power and majesty, praise to the King;
mountains bow down and the seas will roar
at the sound of Your name.
I sing for joy at the work of Your hands,
forever I'll love You, forever I'll stand,
nothing compares to the promise I have in You

YOU'RE WORTHY OF MY PRAISE

One of my favorite praise songs which sometimes makes me cry for I am awed by the holiness of our God. He is our Lord whose power, wisdom and love are infinite. We worship because He is holy, mighty and worthy of our praise