“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” – John 14:27 (NLT)
Joy and Peace are gifts of grace already given to each and every one of us… Receiving, embracing and allowing those gifts to shape us however, is a choice. And when we make the choice to see our lives through the lens of those gifts, we begin to recognize how truly present God is with us every day.
“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NLT)
As I read and prayed on these words this morning, God reminded me of the depth of this fundamental truth; that when we embrace the true nature of the Love He freely offers and seek to share that Love in all that we do, we clear the way for God’s peace and joy to overwhelm all those things in our lives that pull us down.
Dear Lord; Happy Saturday Father!
Today Father, I choose.
I choose to embrace the day that You have given me;
To rebuke those voices that try to steal my peace,
And remind them that I’m Your Beloved Child.
To view the world through eyes of faith,
Eagerly seeking Your hand in everything around me.
To love with abandon,
And to allow myself to accept the love of others.
To revel in the beauty of this world You’ve made,
And to bring that sense of wonder to everything I do.
To be grateful for all You’ve blessed me with,
And to share those gifts with others.
To remind those close to me how very much I love them,
And to honor them through my actions.
Today Lord, I make a choice.
I choose peace.
I choose joy.
I choose You.
For it’s in Your name I pray,
Amen.
~Phather Phil
Pin ItThis morning I wanted to share the great devotional message I read in the Joyce Meyer reading plan I’m following on YouVersion…
“Living with Contentment and Satisfaction
The Bible says that godliness accompanied with contentment is great and abundant gain. What I take from that is, a godly person who is content is in the very best place he can possibly be.
Joy doesn’t come from having your circumstances in order and under control; it comes from what’s in your heart. For example, the world is full of people who have what they think they want, and they’re still not happy. In fact, some of the most unhappy people in the world are people who seem to “have it all.”
Contentment is not about fame or being well-known, how much money you have, your position at work or your social circle. It’s not found in your level of education or what side of the tracks you were born on. Contentment is a heart attitude.
There’s nobody happier than a truly thankful person, a truly content person. The word content means ‘being satisfied to the point where nothing disturbs you no matter what’s going on, but not satisfied to the point that you never want any change.’
We all want to see things get better. But where you are right this minute doesn’t have to disturb you. You can choose to believe that God is working and things are changing, and you will see the result of it in due time.
Life is all about the choices we make, so choose contentment and satisfaction every single day of your life. You won’t go wrong when you do.
Prayer Starter: God, I want to be content and satisfied with where I am, right here, right now. Give me the strength to choose to be content every single day.”
I choose to believe God has all my situations well in hand, and that He’ll lead me where He wants me to go… I choose contentment through Him.
I’ve been chewing on some advice given in my Daily Devotional reading from the “Joyce Meyer: Promises for Your Everyday Life – A Daily Devotional” Reading Plan on YouVersion.com…
“…
God wants His children to have some fun. The Bible says a merry heart does good like medicine. I think we all need a healthy dose of laughter every day – many times during the day. You just can’t overdose on joy!
I encourage you to deliberately look for something to smile or laugh about every day, and be sure to share a smile or a laugh with someone else and brighten their day too!
Prayer Starter: Lord, Your Word says that a cheerful heart is like good medicine. Thank You for helping me to find the joy and fun in life!”
I think in many cases, we allow the trials, struggles and worldly requirements placed on us each day to detract from seeking the joys God places all around us. It’s important for us to remember that while we’re certainly going to have difficulties in our lives, God very much wants us to fully delight in the peace and joy He offers us as well.
Hi, I’m Phil Malmstrom, a.k.a. Phather Phil. I’m self-employed, father of two wonderful young men, an ordained minister who delights in spreading Jesus’ Message of Hope and Love, a science-fiction junkie, an aspiring photographer and above all that one of God’s Children who rejoices in His Blessings each day. 
