Wake up my Heart!

Scripture of the Day: Hebrews 3:13 13  But encourage one another daily,   as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. Love this verse! I love the whole message, but my brain focuses on that capital T in “today!”  I’m no scholar, and have not done any research, but to me the reason for “Today” is because it was written to be timeless. Today is the whole realm here on this earth until Jesus comes back again. We need to think about “Today,” everyday – because there is sin knocking on the door every day. Until Jesus is ruling this world, deceit is something we will continue to see all too often. Notice the words above, “But encourage one another daily…so that none of you may be hardened.” Can you imagine this “Today” if we did that? If every day we encouraged our brothers and sisters in Christ (or really everyone), instead of putting them down, or envying what they have, or judging what they say? If we purposefully ...

Scripture of the day: John 3:16-17 16  “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.   17  God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. Christmas these days seems to be all about gifts – both and receiving them. But do we often focus on the right type of gift? I read a devotion a few years ago that discussed taking a baby Jesus from a nativity and wrapping it as a gift, then placing it underneath the tree. The wrapping and the recipient were varied, so it was a surprise each year when the baby Jesus was unveiled. But the point was made –Jesus was a gift. He was “given” to the world because God loved us so much he wanted us to be with Him in eternity. The point in receiving this gift in the form of a material present is to remember what the true gift of Christmas really is. Let us remember that, even though Christmas ...

Note: This week will continue my "Christmas in July" theme. My posts have been written following the weekly advent theme of hope, peace, joy, and love (in no particular order here). Last week's posts were on peace and joy, this week's will focus on hope and love. Scripture of the Day: Isaiah 42:1-4 1  “Here is my servant whom I have chosen,      the one I love, in whom I delight;   I will put my Spirit on him,        and he will proclaim justice to the nations. 2  He will not quarrel or cry out;      no one will hear his voice in the streets. 3  A bruised reed he will not break,      and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory. 4       In his name the nations will put their hope.” I love the Scripture above because Isaiah wrote those verses about Jesus, long before he was on this Earth. He wrote them out ...

Scripture of the Day: Luke 2: 10-11 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” Note: my church is putting together an advent devotional, so this is a little bit of “Christmas in July” if you will – with the focus being advent. The four weeks of advent describe exactly how I think of Jesus. Jesus is our hope. Jesus is our love. Jesus is our joy. Jesus is our peace. Now that we feel all warm and fuzzy, let us delve into this concept of Jesus as the joy of the world! Joy is a positive word in and of itself. The word “great” can even be used in its definition. So the fact that the angel said “great joy” should tell us something! The birth of Jesus isn’t just good news. It isn’t even just great news. It is the best news that has ever been! What adds even another level to that “good news of great joy” is that it is not mea...