Was your cup filled today? If the words of God had special meaning for you, please share your reflections in the comments section at the end of each post. We would love to hear Christ's impact on you.

“For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”  5:9-11 (ESV)   In chapter 5 of 1 Thessalonians, Paul continues his teaching of Eschatology (the study of end-time events, such as the Rapture, the Second coming of Jesus, the Tribulation, the Great White Throne Judgment, an

“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—   that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, be

Merciful Father, On this Thanksgiving Day, we have much to be thankful for and all by Your hand. We thank you for sending your only begotten Son on a mission of redemption, saving Your people from their sins. We thank you for your mercy and your grace, without which we would be condemned. We thank you for your patience with your sinful, rebellious people. We thank You for loving us despite that very same nature and for rejoining us believers in a living relationship with You

“The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’”(Luke 16:22-24 ESV) There is a story about a reporter speaking to three men. First, a Jewish man. The rep

“The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1:15-16 ESV) The Oxford dictionary defines mercy as: compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven wit

Heavenly Father, We come before You with hearts that recognize our need for Your grace. We do not deserve Your kindness, yet You pour it out freely. Teach us to receive Your grace with humility and gratitude. Help us to understand that Your grace is sufficient for every weakness and every challenge we face. Lord, grant us the grace to trust You more deeply when life feels uncertain. When doubts arise, remind us of Your promises and the steadfast love You have shown through C

“Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” (1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 ESV) We’ve already established in Chapters 1 and 2 that Paul really loved the Thessalonian believers; as a matter of fact, he ends Cha

“And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”   (2:14-15 ESV) Paul starts off Chapter 2 with some interesting information about his intended readers. First, even though this letter is addressed to the church at Colossae, it was also intended to be s

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love, he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption t

“Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.” (Proverbs 19:11 ESV) Very early this morning, before the sun even thought to rise, I was pulling up to a stop sign along with another car. As the car reached the intersection first, I waited for the driver to proceed through the intersection before I went. As the car passed through my headlights, I saw the driver give me an unpleasant gesture with one finger raised as he sped off. My heart

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing,   give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV) God spoke to Abraham, Moses, the prophets, and others. Before Christ, the Spirit of God dwelt with His creation in the Tabernacle and the Temple. Then God came to earth in the flesh, in the incarnation. God not only dwelt with, but shook hands, hugged, and ate with His creation. That is a pretty amazing fact. The fact tha

“I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of

Our God and Father, I come before You with an inspired heart full of amazement and gratitude. You are the Creator of all things, the Giver of life, and the Light that never fades. From Your love comes all things. I worship You for Your holiness, a righteousness that cannot be measured or fully comprehended. I glorify You for Your mercy, which never runs dry and is new every single day, and for Your love that reaches deeper than my failures and continues despite my rebellion.

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.. I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.” (Philemon vv. 3-6 ESV)  As we discussed in the introduction to this very personal letter from the Apostle Pau

“Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.” (Romans 14:10-13 E

“ and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you,” ( 1 Thessalonians 3:12 ESV) When Christ came in the incarnation, he was hated. Herod hated Him and wanted the Messiah dead. All through the Bible, hate rears its ugly head and is put down by the power of God. Today hate runs rampant. I have never seen so much hate in my lifetime, and it has increased exponentially in the last decade. We see it between the political parties,

“ At that time Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, “Sun, stand still at Gibeon, and moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set for about a whole day. There has been no day like it before or

“And it shall come to pass in that day, declares the Lord of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off your neck, and I will burst your bonds, and foreigners shall no more make a servant of him. 9  But they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.” (Jeremiah 30:8-9 ESV) This passage from Jeremiah 30 is a reminder that God keeps His promises. God is not a liar; He is all righteous, so when God said He would do something, His will wou

“  Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” (Matthew 6:27 ESV)  God's provision for His children is a source of reassurance. He knows every animal in creation and provides for them. Not one of them will die without His permission. Christ's words in Matthew 10:29, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your