Thought of the week June 28

Thought of the week comments for June7

This week I had the opportunity to exercise grace to my daughter. She was so excited about going to an event at church Friday night and spending some time with her friends. We had a falling out after school and I threatened to take away her Friday night activity. Her attitude surely did not warrant this privilege of spending time with her friends. After some time of cooling down, we sat on the couch and talked about what went wrong. She realized her attitude was not respectful and apologized up and down by writing her mom a love letter. She was doing everything possible to ask for forgiveness hoping it would relieve her of her consequence. At that moment, I had to make a decision. Do I stick to my word or do I extend grace. I decided to extend grace. It was a teachable moment for me to explain how God extends his grace when we ask for forgiveness. I asked her what she thought the meaning of grace was and she said it’s when God gives us second chances. As soon as I extended grace and told her she could participate in Friday night’s activity, she was overcome with great joy and excitement. She knew she didn’t deserve to attend and I believe she treasured this time with her friends more than a normal situation. Thank God we are saved by grace and don’t have to work for our salvation. Eph 2:8 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” Have you experienced God’s grace in your life lately? I bet if you have, it’s given you a fresh perspective of how much God loves and cares for you despite your sin. Do you need to extend grace to someone in your own life? When you do, it can be a time of pure joy like it was for me knowing that my daughter fully accepted it. Walk in God's grace today.

Thought of the week comments for May 9

Deliverance what a refreshing word! I bet those of you who are going through some tough situations, at times doubt you will ever experience delivarance. When we are in the midst of the storm, deliverance seems unattainable or far fetched. The Israelites felt the same way when they were enslaved by the Egyptians. However, God promised deliverance to Israel and he commanded Moses to deliver this message to his people. It didnt happen right away, in fact it took 40 years. God delivers us at the right moment and for the right time so that some lessons can be learned along the way. What are some lessons you are learning as you may be wandering through a desert at this time in your life? Remember before deliverance happens, there will always be a delay, difficulty, and a dead end. If you stay true to your faith in God during these phases, He promises deliverance in your life. Get ready if you are at a dead end, deliverance is right around the corner. Most importantly, give God all the glory when you experience His divine deliverance. Amen!!

Thought of the week comments for April 19

Do you want more courage in your life? I would venture to say most of us wish we had more courage to do or say the right thing, break that addictive habit, or conquer a fear in our life. This past weekend I attended the MOPS annual Leadership Summit. The topic was simple courage in the everyday. Many moms gave their personal testimony of developing courage in their own lives. Fear is what grips our heart and keeps us in a state of dysfunction. We have to make a choice between living in comfortable chains or unfamiliar freedom (spoken from our pastor this morning). Obtaining courage in our life only happens when we can break free from the comfortable chains that keep us in bondage. By the way, breaking free from our comfortable chains is almost humanly impossible. We are not smart, capable, or strong enough to completely break those chains. It is only by God's strength, power, and will are we able to be free from bondage and move into unfamiliar freedom. Courage at its best is recognizing the fear that is paralyzing you, and allowing God to strip that fear so you can move past it. It's called daily surrender!!

Thought of the week commens for March 28th

God is Faithful... How many times have you heard that saying? What do you think when you hear it? It's difficult to believe He is faithful, especially in the midst of suffering. 1 John 1:9 says "He is faithful and just." A just God is hard to understand when we are facing betrayal, rejection, hostile environments, suffering and loss. It's during these circumstances when the rubber meets the road and our faith in God either is either real or not. We sometimes can get confused because we think our faith in God is to prevent us from loss, shield us from harm, and protect us from disappointment. The writers of the Bible saw evidence of God's faithfulness not in their comfort level or circumstance but in God's CONSTANT companionship. God was with them throught the trials, fires, and aches of life. God's faithfulness is not a passport out of trouble in this world. HIs faithfulness is a promise of his presence in this world and in the world to come!! I know God is faithful when I have a peace that surpasses all understanding in the midst of my pain and suffering. Our faithfulness in God does not keep us free from pain and suffering, but it focuses our life on an eternal perspective. Heb 10:23 says "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful." In the midst of your suffering, rest on his CONSTANT companionship. This is what builds our faith in him!!

Thought of the week comments for March 21st

It's the first week of Spring. Wow dont you just love it!! As I am driving through our city, I cant help but notice the bright green hills. The winter barren trees are starting to bud. Beautiful, colorful lillies will soon be in bloom. Spring is a time for rebirth, regrowth, and a chance to get out and feel the warm sun after a long cold winter. For many of us, we feel we have been in a winter season for a long time, but its encouraging to know we don't stay there forever!!I love the parable of the sower. If we sow our seeds on good soil, at the proper time we will bear good fruit. However, WE must go through the winter season first so our soil is ready to bear good fruit. God wants us to bear good fruit in our lives, but its up to us where we scatter our seeds (on good soil or bad soil). Spring time is a testimony to our winter season. Have you planted your seeds (life) on good soil (God's word)? If so, get ready your Spring will be in full bloom. When we plant our lives on the word of God during the winter season, we are guaranteed to have regrowth and rebirth take root in our lives. Staying grounded in Him during the rough winter season will be the difference of good fruit in our lives. Happy Spring!!

Thought of the week comments for March 6

How many of you have heard the saying, "let go and let God"? Easier said than done right!! It's hard to let go because it's in our nature to take control of our life. It's uncomfortable to hand things over, we feel out of control when we do this. I know for myself, I am such a control freak so this is not an easy task for me. God has been pruning many areas in my life which has caused me to be on my knees and let go. I am seeing marriages heal because a spouse has chosen to let go of their control and put the marriage in God's hands. Regardless if they feel bitter, angry, or hurt, they are allowing God to be the healer instead of throwing in the towel. Life isnt easy and it takes work to let go and let God!! Sometimes God gets us to a point where we have no choice but to let go and let God. I believe in times like this he is testing our perseverance to see if we truly trust in him. James 1:3 says, "because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." If we are in a situation where we are forced to let go, try to look at the bigger picture. God wants to mature our faith so the next time life gets rocky, it is easier to put our trust in him. Life really is less stressful when we can come to a point of letting go and letting God!!

Thought of the week for Feb 21st.

How many of you have listened the song by Mandisa "He is with you"? Every time I hear the song I am moved!! Here are some of her lyrics that stand out in my mind. "He is with you when your faith is dead", "He is with you in the ICU when you dont even know what to do", "He is with you when your hearts are stone". Besides the fact she has a beautiful voice, her message gives us assurance and comfort that our God is with us when we feel dead inside, hopeless when we see a loved one sick or suffer, or just feel plain stuck in life. Matt 28:11 says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Do you need to feel God's presence in your life right now? His word promises us that when we call upon him for hope, healing, and love, "He is with us." There is just something about God's character that lets us deeply know He loves and cares for us when we are hurt, afraid, or dont know which way to go. I challenge you this week to find something in your life that demonstrates, "He is with you."

Thought of the week for Feb. 6th

If you havent had the chance to see the movie The book of Eli, I encourage you to do so. There was a saying in the movie that struck my thoughts I would like to share with you this week. I'm not sure if the words are verbatim so please excuse me. At various parts in the movie, Eli kept saying, "keep your eye on the path, dont stray from the path." You have to see the movie to really get a sense of what he was saying. The message I took was its so easy to allow outside circumstances distract us from continuing on your God given path. God gives us opportunities to choose our path in life, are we willing to choose the right one?? I believe most of us want to choose the right path, but lets face the truth, in this world it is easy to get distracted!! Eli was committed to carry out the vision God had given him until the very end, through thick and thin. He literally "walked by faith, not by sight." Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." I believe a faith that says, I'm not sure how this is going to work out but I'm going to continue to press on and leave it in God's hands, is what allows us to stay focused on our God given path. Is there something in your life you need to exercise a greater faith so you can continue to march on the right path? Eli was a great example for all of us to stay focused on God's truth (the bible), so we don't allow ourselves to get distracted from walking the right path.

Thought of the week comments for Jan 25th

If you live in Southern California you witnessed the horrendous weather we had last week. Storm after storm, day after day. I never thought there would be an end to the rainfall. Then, finally yesterday the sun came out and we all awakened to the beautiful snow capped mountains. Isn't this a picture of our life sometimes. At moments, our lives feel like there will never be an end to the cloudy, stormy days. We anticipate the day when the storm will end and we see sunlight piercing through the clouds. A brighter day is on the horizon!! If you are currently in a stormy season in your life, think about the rewards that happen after a storm. A brighter and greener landscape, clearer and fresher air, beautiful snow capped mountains, vibrant colored spring flowers. It's difficult to see the outcome of our storms, but when we put our faith and belief in God, his hand is upon us. He tells us in his word, Galations 6:9 "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up." If we give up and lose sight of our faith and hope, we will never reap the rewards God intends for us. Anticipate what you will reap, but while in the storm, look for those wonderful truths and lessons to be learned.

Thought of the week comments for Jan 17th

Life is precious!! The other night, my husband was out of town and I decided to take my kids to dinner. As we were driving to our location, we witnessed a motorcycle accident that had just happened. I drove upon cars that were stopped on the side of the road and we couldn’t figure out what was happening because there were no emergency vehicles at the scene yet. I looked over to my left, and there was a young man who crashed his motorcycle into a tree. He was laying on the ground and he looked lifeless. There were people around him and one man had his hand on his body and it looked like he was praying for this young man’s life. It looked as if this young man had lost his life right at the scene. Oh my heart just became sick at this sight. I immediately pulled my car over, my kids were pretty shook up and we prayed for this young mans life. It's been 3 days now since this accident and I can’t get this picture out of my mind. I keep thinking, one minute this man had breath of life and the next minute his life was gone. When we see situations like this, it makes us stop and think about how every moment we live is precious. Make every second count because you never know when it's your last breath. I love the words of Jesus in John 10:10, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." Are you making every moment count and living your life to the fullest? If not, how can you start living life to your fullest? Do you need to repair a relationship, start working towards your dreams and goals, spending quality time with those who are closest to you, saying "I love you" to a loved one? Do it today because life is too precious to waste another moment.

Thought of the week comments for Jan 10th

My husband has a great saying he continually reminds me of. "Is your glass half full or half empty?" I love it when he reminds of these words because too many times I can be focused on what I don't have, as opposed to what God has given me as tremendous blessings. The other day I took my kids for a walk down to the park. As we were walking, my two older kids were riding their bicycles in front of me and my little one was behind me in the wagon singing her favorite Barnie tune, "I love you, You love me, we're a happy family ...." It was such a precious moment! As I watched my son's little head bobbing in his big bicycle helmet, my daughter trying to ride her new beach cruiser bike, and listening to the sweet little voice of my two year old, I paused and said, "Thank you God for giving me these precious, healthy, kids who so many times I take for granted." You see it's easy to forget our lives are filled with many half full glasses. We just have to look for it. In each moment we have a choice to make. Are we going to look at our situation as half empty or half full?Look at the blessings surrounding you everyday and take your hick-ups as opportunities. This is looking at life as the glass half full instead of half empty. What can you do today to look at your glass as half full instead of half empty? Please share your thoughts I would love to hear.

thought of the week for jan 3rd

It's a new year are you ready? As I was at the gym today trying out new pieces of equipment, I was quickly reminded of the fact when we choose to try new things in life, we become more confident and grow in areas we never thought we could learn. It's easy to get into a rut and do the same things over and over again. That's what we call a comfortable lifestyle. When we take a risk and try something new, our lives become richer and better. Are you willing to step out of your comfort zone and try something new this year? How about trying a new food (my kids need this one), a new routine, a new workout, find a new friend, do a task differently. I bet when you have accomplished something new, you will feel more proud and confident in who you are. Happy New Year to you all!!