Category: Grace

Tethered to Grace for this Race!

Posted on by Evangeline

 

Tethered to Grace

Recently, a loved one was telling me how tough it was being connected to a dialysis machine in their home every night.  While he was thankful for the technology that allowed him to do the treatments at home, he felt as if he was tethered to something that greatly limited his mobility. He didn’t like that feeling.

His experience caused me to do some introspection regarding what was setting boundaries/limitations for me, but on a mental and spiritual level rather than physical. Thinking through some things that were holding me back became a good lesson for me. And it helped me make a key decision:

I want my heart tethered to Grace!

Being tethered to God’s grace will mean that I am never without hope because He is always with me. And as His daughter due to the finished work of Christ on the cross, I am identified as His beloved. Due to the outpouring of His grace,

  • I am accepted in the Beloved.  (Ephesians 1:6)
  • He is well pleased with me because I am in (joined with) Christ. (Romans 8:1)
  • There is great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. (Hebrews 6:18)
  • Hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. (Hebrews 6:19)

Hope is a result of accepting God’s grace. So yes, I want to always be tethered to grace so that I can gladly be tied to the anchor for our souls! It won’t act to limit me in a negative way.

Believe You Can Reign Devotional

 

Helping others see their way to the grace of God is something I love doing. To  tighten your heart’s ties to Grace and to increase your hope for victory over your life’s circumstances, check out my latest book, Believe You Can Reign In Life, a 31-day devotional.

(Bonus–It’s on sale through this weekend!) Sale ends 9/27/21.

 

 

 

 

 

Being tethered to God's grace will mean that I am never without hope because He is always with me. Click To Tweet

I’m Back! Did You Miss Me?

Posted on by Evangeline

Did you miss me

 

HEY! Did you miss me? 🙂

I’ve been MIA from this blog and other social media for quite some time. My husband, Freeman, had major surgery in early May 2021 and I needed to be an attentive care giver while he recovered. So I decided to give myself a “grace break” from most things that had nothing to do with his recovery. It was the best thing I could have done for myself. There was no guilt or self-condemnation about being gone from here as I focused on helping my man have the best healing experience. I knew you would understand and possibly even pray for me when you noticed that nothing new was showing up in this space.

Freeman is doing well now! He has recently been cleared to return to work and I feel a release to return to what I do for others.

Has there ever been a time when you felt the need to take a break from important things in your life so that you could focus on something even more important? Was it difficult or easy to navigate a “grace break” during that trying experience?

I’d love to hear from you in the comments section below, even if it’s simply a friendly “Hello”.

I hope all is well with you.

You Can Smell the Fragrance of Victory

Posted on by Evangeline

This is a revised article about the fragrance of victory I shared a few years ago. I hope it encourages you and that you’ll expect to triumph in your circumstances!

“Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.”  2 Corinthians 2:14 [NKJV]

fragrance of victory

The first part of that scripture, has been one that I’ve believed in and stood on through multiple and various struggles. I frequently have to remind myself of my victory in Christ so that I don’t concentrate on the problem and sink into a pit of despair about my circumstances. I depend on that verse because it contains the word “always.” “Always” means without exception, on every occasion, continuously. When I have consistently put my trust/faith/belief in that victory supplied by Jesus to every believer, I have always see its manifestation.

 

The Fragrance of Knowing Him

But only today did the second half of that verse stand out to me—“through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.” Occasionally, I’ve had the privilege to teach Bible study class at my church about the unmerited, unearned favor (grace) of God. Having done so has opened my eyes to an entirely different way of looking at things! Now it’s easier to see that knowing more about Jesus’ perfect and complete work on the cross multiplies the manifestation of His grace in my life (2 Peter 1:2). His grace does not depend on our efforts/works.  It is dependent upon our believing that His grace is for us and that His grace gives us continuous victory. We did not do anything to acquire grace because Jesus did it all. Knowing Him imparts a beautiful fragrance to our lives because increased knowledge about JESUS multiplies grace and peace.

To know Him — His love, His strength, His sacrifice, His work —  is to know victory, and it smells good!

Do you smell the sweet fragrance of victory in the midst of your troubling circumstances?

SPEAK UP and Tell Hell NO!

Posted on by Evangeline
Faith Speaks
Photo courtesy of Microsoft Images

Most people find it easy to say “Hell No”. It slips off the tongue without even thinking about it. But there’s a time when saying “Hell No” is not cursing/cussing. It’s the time when you need to get the minions of Hell off your back and repudiate their authority within your circumstances.

I’ve learned the importance of feeling comfortable/bold to tell someone, “No.” If I don’t say “No” to the things I don’t want or to the things that could unnecessarily consume a lot of my time and energy, I get frustrated, stressed, and regretful that I ever allowed the “thing” into my life. I’ve learned it’s okay to say, “No.” That one little word is a complete sentence— it does not require an explanation to follow it.

Learning to tell Hell “No” is crucially important. The best way to do so is by using the Word of God to frame your responses to the things Hell sends your way. Anything that Hell sends is of the Curse. Those things are not what God wants for us to experience. Jesus died to redeem us from the Curse so that we could have a life filled with God’s good and perfect gifts. This means that He freed believers from the punishments and dominion of the Mosaic Law (curse) at the price of his vicarious death. He suffered in our place. He satisfied the requirement of our eternal death so that we wouldn’t have to. Because of Him, we are free to live in the abundance of God’s grace. Grace is God’s favor; it’s His goodwill, blessing, and preferential treatment toward us.

Which category do you think infertility, sickness, disease, poverty, dysfunctional relationships, etc., would fall in— Grace or Curse?

grace or curse - tell hell no

How would you frame your response of “No” to those thoughts and circumstances that Hell sends your way? Jesus gave us the best examples of how to do it. His reply to Satan’s tactics always incorporated what God had spoken through His written words (Matthew 4:4-10). Jesus also gave instruction to not remain silent in the midst of trying times. He said that we are to speak to the mountain (Mark 11:23). The “mountain” is that thing that has raised its ugly head from the pit of Hell and is attempting to sabotage or block God’s good plan for our lives.

Speak up and tell Hell, “No!” Speak up using the Word of God and your praises to Him to silence the enemy and make him impotent in your life (Psalm 8:2).

After all, if you don’t do it, who will?

How We Weather a Storm

Posted on by Evangeline

Winter is usually not too cold in central Arizona. But this year’s winter has been decidedly different. Most of the plants in our front yard took a hard hit from below-freezing temperatures a few weeks ago. Take a look at this 7 foot tall victim:

dead plant jpg

If you look near the bottom of this plant, you can see that it had been a large and rather lush green bush before the freeze.  But now, because it did not have what it takes inside the bush to keep it from reacting to the extremely cold desert temperatures, it appears to be close to death. Major pruning will be required to bring it back to its once verdant and healthy state.

But just 10 feet away, in the same freezing temperatures, sat this pot of flowers:

flowers-pretty jpg

These flowers emerged victorious! They weathered the storm VERY well—something inside of them kept them strong and almost non-reactive to the harsh circumstances.

Our lives can be the same way. We can weather the storms of life and come out damaged, messed up and not having anything that looks appealing about us. BUT, if we have something inside of us, or should I say Someone inside of us, we can weather the storms of life and come out victorious, looking unscathed and healthy, like these flowers did. We can continue flourishing and give others joy through the beauty within us.

We’re blessed to have a God and Savior who loves us and puts His Holy Spirit in us to aid us in all our times of need. It is He who enables us to weather the storm and yet flourish so that others will see that His exceptional love, attention, and grace are just what they need in their lives.

Focus Friday

Posted on by Evangeline

Focus on the following scripture throughout the day. It’s God’s Word and it’s what He desires us to believe. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak this Word to yourself throughout the day. Personalize it by putting your name in it!

“…and great grace was upon them all; neither was there any among them that lacked.”

~Acts 4: 33,34~

God's goodness displayed in rainbow
Photo courtesy of Microsoft Images

Thankful in the Midst of Infertility?

Posted on by Evangeline

When you’re facing the difficult struggle of infertility, what is there to be thankful for?

Photo courtesy of Dreamstime.com | Ctulu8

It’s so easy to get caught up in all that’s going wrong, the disappointment that comes month after month, the emotional drain of it all, the possible health scares, the financial toll and the marital problems that tend to stealthily creep in. But this Thanksgiving week, make a DECISION to look for the things in life you can be thankful for.

Start by remembering that God is with you. If you’ve asked Jesus into your heart, He has promised to never leave you and to bless you with his unfailing grace. Continue to rest in knowing that God is for you and not against you (Romans 8:31). Be thankful that He has given so many examples of women who overcame infertility along with promises in the Bible that relate to your fertility. Thank Him that you can count on Him to make good on those promises (Isaiah 55:11).  Even during the moments when you doubt  His ability, willingness, and timing, stand firm in being thankful that  He still loves you. Believe that He loves you unconditionally, just as much as He loves Jesus (John 17:23).

Be thankful that there is nothing too hard for God, not even infertility (Genesis 18:14)!

Loved by a Cross-Eyed God

Posted on by Evangeline

For the last 6 weeks I’ve been teaching at my church about God’s Favor in our lives. It has been a transformative time as I have learned more about being accepted by God purely by what Jesus did on the cross and not by my efforts/works. Here’s one of the props I’ve used in the class:

I know, it looks ridiculous, but when God gave me the idea, I knew it would be effective in getting this point across…

Did you know that God is “cross-eyed?” He sees the believer only through the finished work of Jesus on the cross.What Jesus did on that cross on our behalf was so important. At the cross is where He established our value to Him. It’s where we find assurance of both His love and His desire to bless us with His unearned favor/grace.

Do you know how God sees YOU? Well, He’s “cross-eyed” all the time so when He looks at you, He ‘s still looking through the lens or filter of the cross.  No matter what you’ve done or are doing at this moment, if you’re a believer in Jesus, God’s viewpoint of  you is always through Jesus’ shed blood and complete work on the cross. That’s why He can love you unconditionally, the same way He loves Jesus (John 17:23), because He sees you clothed in Jesus’ righteousness, fully and eternally cleansed of any sin because of His sacrifice on the cross.

God’s blessing, healing, delivering and prospering believers is all because of Jesus’ perfect obedience/efforts/work at the cross. There’s nothing we can do to earn His love and there’s nothing we can do to lose it. As the old hymn goes, “Jesus paid it all!”

Being loved by a “cross-eyed” God is the best way to be loved! Can you think of any better way to be loved?

*****************************

Cover of "Unmerited Favor"
Cover of Unmerited Favor

 

If you’d like to study more about Jesus’ finished work and His favor to us, our resource text for the class has been Unmerited Favor by Joseph Prince. I highly recommend it!

Focus Friday

Posted on by Evangeline

 

Focus on the following promise throughout the day. God said it and it’s what He desires. Believe it is true for you because God’s Word is Truth. Speak the Word continually and expect God to do what He has said!

“And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.”  ~~2 Corinthians 9:8 NLT

Remember Simba

Posted on by Evangeline

I am a huge fan of the Lion King movie. When it was first released on DVD, my children and I watched it over and over again. We saw the Lion King parade at Disneyland, and my daughter and I have seen the musical play. All of the characters in this story are so personable. They each remind me of someone I know.

The main character in the story is Simba, a young lion trying to find his way. He has a loving father, Mufasa, who gives him guidance and teaches him what it’s  like to be a king. When Mufasa dies, Simba thinks it’s his fault because he believes the lie uncle told him.  Fortunately, before Simba gets too far off course, a wise baboon (Rafiki) comes into his life.

Rafiki reminds Simba who he is. He tells him to remember what Mufasa taught him about being a king. I love the scene where Rafiki tells Simba to look in the pond. Simba sees only his own reflection—his weaknesses, his ineptness, his missteps. But Rafiki tells him to “look harder.” When Simba looks again, he sees the reflection of his father, Mufasa, and all of his strength, abilities, and wisdom.

We are much like Simba, believing the lies of the devil and focusing only on our problems and our weaknesses. We too need to be reminded of who we are in Christ. The bible tells us we are Priests and Kings. Fortunately, the Holy Spirit is with us to remind us of the strength, abilities, and wisdom we have because of Jesus.

We are indeed victorious Kings in life when we believe that Jesus’ power resides in us. We are able to have favor-filled lives as we focus on Him and believe that all He provided for us is already ours.