Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY TUESDAY!

I pray all is well with everyone, and you're enjoying your day. I'm doing well, still a little tired from Sunday's event. It was non-stop work the entire week before the event, as usual. I was scheduled to work yesterday, but my body said no way! I was so tired; I slept until at 3pm, and could've slept much longer. The event itself was wonderful! I thank God for all of the people that came out to help me, they gave their all. The event was perfect; I couldn't have imagined a better setup. The food, atmosphere, decor, music, and guest were all divine. I thank God for moving through me, and my family and friends, as only He could've orchestrated. I've been so excited about it since Sunday, and it couldn’t have been better. I want to thank everyone that came out to support me, and I love all of you. I would also like to wish a happy birthday to Dwight, and all of the other May birthday's I may have missed. Have a wonderful day!

Today's scriptures are about our cleansing through Christ. We're growing everyday, because of our Salvation through Christ. Though his death, we're made into new creatures, and washed of all unrighteousness. When we confess and repent of our sins, it's like taking a shower for our souls. We're washed thoroughly, and everyday, our Souls get cleaner and cleaner. Just imagine a Scientist finding a 2000-year-old artifact, the first thing they’ll need to do is clean it up, but avoid damaging it. It may take years, but they take their time cleaning and restoring everyday, until it's in a perfect condition. It may not be perfect to you and me, but it is to the person that determines how beautiful it should be. Some of us would look at that artifact, and think "wow that's an old piece of metal", but a history major my think, "Wow that's the most beautiful piece of art I've ever seen". That's similar to the way God works on us. He's cleansing us everyday, and in His eyes, we're a perfect work of art. We start out dirty from years of sin, heartache and pain, and He slowly washes and renews us, until we're perfect. Not the world’s idea of perfect, but His. Other people may look at us as if we're a mess, but who are they to judge? Our personal status, bank account, careers, etc. has nothing to do with how God is cleansing us from the inside out. Even we don't see it sometimes, because we could be very hard on ourselves because of our failures, because we think we should be doing better than we are in life. We build up these goals and compare ourselves to other people without any guidance from God, and we become upset and angry when we fail. In all actuality, we're not in complete control of our growth, God is. We're supposed to seek ye first the kingdom of God, which plants the seeds, and it’s up to Him to grow and nurture it. The enemy will have us believe that we're unworthy of God's cleansing, because we're just too filthy, that's why it's important for us to let go and let God. I know for me, I'm learning how to let go of my inhibition, and allow God to lead, because I'm the type of person that always wants to be in control. I'm very independent and self-sufficient, and I'm really hard on myself. I always say, I'm my worst critic, I want all or nothing, and that's not the way God works. Everything works together in His perfect timing, including our cleansing. I used to smoke cigarettes, and I tried to quit three times before I actually stopped. The last time I tried, I prayed and asked for God's strength, but the first two times, I had made it up in my mind that I didn't want to smoke anymore. It wasn't about me, I wasn't in control of that, but as soon as I relinquished the control to God, I stopped cold turkey, and get sick whenever I'm around cigarette smoke, so I know through Him, I’ll never pick it up again. Continue to work on bettering yourself, however pray and ask for God's discernment when doing so, because He's in control of the cleansing department. Things that may seem like our flaws may very well be our strengths in His eyes. Don't be so hard on yourself, because if you "Cast your cares on the Lord", put in your best efforts to change, and repent often, God will take care of the rest, that's what He does. Even if you stumble, that's all a part of His divine plan for your life as well. He loves you more than you could ever imagine, just pray and ask for wisdom. I'm going to leave you with my favorite prayer, "God grant me the serenity to change the things I can, accept the things I cannot, and the wisdom to know the difference". This is the most important attitude to have in life, humble yourself enough to allow God to be in control, don't let Jesus' death be in vain when it comes to your life. If you haven't accepted Him as your Lord and Savior, I'm urging you to do that right now. My favorite verse today is: I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me. (Jeremiah 33:8)

ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2454971&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=5131179&ct=6959705

I love you!