Shalom ! Hoping this day will bring you true Peace ! ...

I John 3: 1-2
Behold, what manner of Love The Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not.
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall se Him as He is.

As you go through your day, today, my prayer for you is this: that God our Creator and Redeemer, The Lord YHWH, The Most High -- El Elyon -- will impart to you His True Knowledge, so that by His Grace, you may be enabled by Him and empowered by Him, through His Holy Spirit -- Ruach ha Kodesh -- to accomplish all the good He has ordained for you to do. May The Lord fill you afresh with His Spirit's filling, so that you overflow with His Peace-filled-ness, to all with whom you come into contact, especially those who would seek to harm or distract or destroy you.

May the protective Right Hand of The Lord YHWH, His Hand of victory He uses in battle to completely disarm, confuse, defeat, and overcome His enemies, defend you against the enemy of The Lord God, who seeks to steal, to kill and to destroy.
But God, Who is rich in Mercy and Lovingkindness, has already accomplished the complete destruction of every plan of the enemy, through the finished work of willing, whole-hearted, true sacrifice, done by His only begotten Son, Yeshua our Messiah, the Anointed One of God our Father, on the Roman execution stake, on Golgotha, just outside the walls of the city of Yerushalayim (Jerusalem).

He is The Man of Peace. He made Peace between God and men (women included!). Hallelujah!

II Corinthians 5: 18-19 teaches "And all things are of God, Who hath reconciled us to Himself by Yeshua the Messiah, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation: To wit, that God was in Christ (Messiah Yeshua), reconciling the world (all people who would believe) unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses (transgressions committed against His law, teaching) unto them (not condemning them as guilty); and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

He has defeated death, sin, the devil (satan), and the power of fear, of sin, of the flesh, and of death, that were over us. In II Timothy 1: 7 God says to us "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of Love, and of a sound mind." But now we are in Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ)! ... "in" Him! He is our Life! He is able to deliver us from every form of trouble, suffering, deceit, affliction, guilt, and the effects of both iniquity and willful disobedience (sin). And He daily delivers us from much more than we realize. That is why we can, each day, thank Him for numerous blessings and ways He has protected us, provided for our needs, and even kept us alive. Many of us are only alive today because He has decided that that is what He wants. There may be no other reason to explain why we are still on earth. He has something "else" for us to do for Him. :o)

II Corinthians 5: 20-21 reminds us "Now then we (who believe on Messiah Yeshua as the Son of God and as the propitiation for our sins) are ambassadors for Christ (Messiah), as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's (Messiah's) stead, be ye reconciled to God. For He hath made Him to be sin (to carry our sin on His body) for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him."

All we need to do is:
cry out to Him for mercy,
agree with what His Word says we have done that transgresses God's law (His teaching and commands), admitting "I was wrong," and
asking Him if He would forgive us.

If I have broken one of God's commands, I have broken them all.
James 2: 10 shows us "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." "For all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God;" as it says in Romans 3: 23 (Shaul's / Paul's letter to the Roman believers)

I John 1: 9 shows us "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just (does the right thing) to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
His Mercy does endure for ever ! And Yeshua promised, while on earth, He will never forsake us ... ever !
Psalm 66: 18 shows us "If I regard (like, approve of) iniquity in my heart, The Lord Adonai will not hear me (my prayer request):" So, I must be sure I speak sincerely as I confess to God my Father what I have done wrong, choosing in my will to see it from His perspective. Then He will cleanse me from all unrighteousness.

My desire to please and honor Him is higher, as a believer in Yeshua (Jesus Christ), than my desire to do what I want. I cannot be my own boss. I do not know all things. He does! So I choose to agree with Him, because He knows all things, and is able only to do what is right and true and good (best). And God only chastises (corrects, punishes in order to bring back into line with His righteousness and with His holy standard of living) those He loves as His own children.

Since Yeshua purchased me with His Blood He shed in my place on the Roman execution stake, I belong to God, the Father Almighty. And Yeshua is my Lord, Saviour, Redeemer, and best Friend, even my Advocate before The Father. He intercedes for me continually in Heaven, right now. He made me. He knows me better than anyone else could. And He loves me more than anyone else ever could. And He will always allow only what will do me good, or what He can turn to produce good, in my life, as long as I work with Him, and let Him work out His Will, His way in me.

My part is to respond to what He allows with the kind of humble, meek (yielding my rights to having things my way), and loving attitude of my spirit and soul that He will enable me to have, by His Grace (confident in His faithfulness and generosity that He has already demonstrated while on earth). It is only possible to do this if I am already born again, of His Spirit, by Grace, through believing trust (some call it faith). He helps me respond in the right way, then, in bad situations, if I am willing to allow Him to live His Life through me.

Galatians 2: 20 reminds me "I am crucified with Christ (Messiah Yeshua): nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ (Messiah) liveth in me: and the Life which I now live in the flesh (in this body, on earth) I live by the Faith of The Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for me."

Life can get really hurtful, very painful, full of what seems to be unfair suffering, or mistreatment, or worse -- as our brothers and sisters in Christ in other areas of the world have found is happening to them, for their belief and trusting faith in Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) -- being persecuted for choosing to be aligned with Yeshua, God's Son.

But all evil in the world is a result of sin, and most people will reject God and His beloved Son, Yeshua, in truth. Therefore, I must realize that God will do whatever it takes to turn mens' hearts to Himself, and He will draw them to His Heart, by any means that He knows will get their attention and work (succeed). He knows best.

If my suffering will cause someone else to see The Truth, then God will use it for good. If I am blameless (having confessed all my sins, thus far), and am choosing each day to live with a heart that understands what He wants me to do, to the best of my ability, and if I am choosing to do that (be a doer of The Word, and not a hearer only -- from James 1: 22), then my life will produce the most fruit for His Kingdom.

Fruit, for a follower of Yeshua (Jesus Christ), is the souls I have let Him win into His Kingdom. Good fruit is produced as a result of my right actions, done with a right attitude, at the right time and directed (led) by the Right Person -- Yeshua the Messiah. Good works are a result of believing what God has taught me, and doing it, also. But though I may do many good works, for the right reasons, all I can bring with me into God's eternal Kingdom, when I die or Yeshua calls me up into the clouds, one day, is "fruit." (souls)
He will bring souls into His Kingdom as I humble myself, and see myself as He sees me, completely dependent upon Him for everything. And when I line up my life with His plans for my life, I show I am His. In John 15: 14 and 15, Yeshua says "Ye are My friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. ... I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you."
And in John 15: 9 and 10, Yeshua says "As The Father hath loved Me, so have I loved you: continue ye in My Love. If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My Love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His Love."
John 13: 17 shows us Yeshua saying "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them."

Am I following Yeshua's example of how to live? Am I forgiving those who trespass against me (and by that, against Him) before they ask me to? Am I asking God to forgive them, because they did not realize what they were doing wrong, by what they did to me? Am I taking account of what I have done wrong to others, today? Am I examining my own conscience each night, before lying down to sleep? Am I excusing my own sinful attitude, while accusing others of doing wrong to me? Am I willing to look at my life situation through the eyes of (using The Word of) God? If so, then God can work with me, and mold me into the vessel of honor He designed me to become, for His glory. This will bring me Joy.

Wow! If you made it through this, and are still "with me," you are a "keeper." Sorry -- speaking as a former fisher-woman. Grew up fishing pretty regularly, on lakes in Texas, as well as mountain streams in both New Mexico and southern Colorado. My daddy grew up on a farm, so he was familiar with fishing. My mom knew how to fish, living on a farm while growing up, also. So, we had fun, while we learned how to "keep" only the ones big enough to eat (the good ones). Life seems to be about fishing for the ones God wants us to help Him catch. But He wants to reward them, not us, by sharing the inheritance He gave His Son ... with the ones He has "delivered" from the lake (of fire). He sure paints some graphic paintings, with His words!

... stay tuned..., more later ...