Share Your Pain and Sorrow

TRUST IN ME AT ALL TIMES.

I know the pain and sorrow you are feeling, and I want you to pour out your heart in My Presence.

You need to release all those emotions in a safe place.

Demonstrate your trust in Me by opening your heart to Me; as you do so, I promise to keep you safe.

Remember that I am a Man of sorrows, fully acquainted with grief.

Because of all I suffered, I can empathize with you and share your pain.

As you pour out your emotions in My Presence, your heavy burden grows lighter.

You no longer carry your sorrows alone.

You release them to Me, and I then relieve and refresh your soul.

Moreover, as your heavy heart grows lighter, you are freed to learn more of Me: who I really am.

Come to Me and get to know Me in ever-increasing depth and breadth.

You will find that I am indeed a Refuge—a safe place flooded with eternal Love.

Linger a while in My Presence, letting My Love soak into your soul.

From " Jesus Lives " by Sarah Young

Stay Strong! !

"Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us."
- PSALM 62:8 NKJV

"Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe."
- PROVERBS 29:25

"He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him."
- ISAIAH 53:3 NASB

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.]"
-MATTHEW 11:28 AMP

No Matter What You Suffer

I KNOW FULL WELL THE THOUGHTS AND ATTITUDES OF YOUR HEART, SO IT IS WISE TO BE HONEST WITH ME.

When your heart overflows with Love and Joy, I rejoice with you and delight in you.

When you are rebellious and ungrateful, I continue to love you perfectly—even though your behavior is unacceptable.

The more you believe in Me—who I am and what I have done—the better your attitude will be.

When you are feeling ungrateful, you need to focus on the goal of your faith: the salvation of your soul.

No matter what you suffer in this life, your soul is absolutely secure.

You have an eternity of inexpressively wondrous Life reserved for you in heaven.

This glorious inheritance has been credited to your account ever since you trusted Me as your Savior-God.

As you ponder the wonders of your soul's salvation, you become free—free to receive Joy beyond description and full of Glory!

From " Jesus Lives " by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!

"For the word of God is living and active.
Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. HEBREWS 4:12

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 PETER 1:8–9

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. PSALM 107:1

I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. JOHN 10:28

No Room for Fear

FEARFULNESS IS A FORM OF BONDAGE.

I died on the cross for you so that you would not be a slave to fear.

When I see My children continuing to live in bondage to fear, I am grieved.

My sacrifice was not only to provide forgiveness of sins but also to open the way to My Father's heart.

Now that you trust Me as Savior, you are the recipient of perfect Love—My Love, Abba's Love.

This perfect Love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment (and there is no punishment for My followers).

People are born into the world in spiritual bondage, including bondage to fear.

Because you inhabit both a fallen world and a fallen body, it isn't easy to break free from fearfulness.

However, the Spirit of adoption can help you in this struggle, enabling you to see yourself as you truly are: a much-loved child of God!

The Spirit frees you to cry out, "Abba, Father," believing you are His precious, adopted child.

In the presence of a loving, strong father even the most frightened child eventually calms down.

You have a perfectly loving, infinitely strong Father, so bring your fears freely to Him.

Let Him hold you close to His Abba-heart, where you know you are safe.

Open your heart to receive vast quantities of His Love.

The more of this Love you hold in your heart, the less room there is for fear.

From " Jesus Lives " by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!

"Receive Our Love in full measure! For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father."
- ROMANS 8:15

"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment."
- 1 JOHN 4:18

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."
- 2 CORINTHIANS 3:17

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love."
-JOHN 15

You Need Only Ask

I AM TRAINING YOU TO HOLD IN YOUR HEART A DUAL FOCUS: MY CONTINUAL PRESENCE AND THE HOPE OF HEAVEN.

You'll find no deeper comfort than knowing I am with you always, both here on earth and throughout eternity in heaven.

You have known this great truth in your head for many years.

However, your heart is fickle and tends to chase after other gods.

Only as My Spirit helps you can you grasp the awesomeness of My Presence with you forever.

So trust Me to do in you what you could never do for yourself.

I am indeed with you—watching over you wherever you are, wherever you go.

Simply accept My Presence with you as reality: the deepest Reality.

Build your life on this absolute truth, which is like building your house on a rock.

Your heart and mind will wander away from Me, but My Spirit within can remind you to return.

You need only to ask the Holy Spirit to help you in this way.

He delights in being your Helper.

Rejoice, for I am with you not only in this life but in the life to come.

Let the promise of heaven flood your heart with My eternal Presence!

From " Jesus Lives " by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!

"I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you."
-GENESIS 28:15

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
-MATTHEW 7:24

"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you." 
- JOHN 14:16–17 NASB

"In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."
-JOHN 14:2–3

Ask Me to Lead You

YOUR AWARENESS OF YOUR DEEP NEED FOR ME IS A PROFOUND STRENGTH.

People who think they don't need Me are in serious trouble, because they rely on their own insufficient abilities.

I am training you to depend on Me—your Strength.

Living in a fallen world can weigh you down.

However, as you keep looking to Me, I make your feet like the feet of a deer.

I lighten your load so much that you hardly notice the jagged rocks beneath your feet or the steepness of your ascent.

Before you know it, you are on the high places— with Me!

You need to remember that I am Sovereign.

I will not help you go along a path that is not My choice for you.

So it's vital to commit your way to Me, asking Me to lead you each step of the way.

This is how you collaborate with Me as I enable you to go on the heights.

From " Jesus Lives " by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!

"The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights."
-HABAKKUK 3:19

"Though youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly, Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary."
- ISAIAH 40:30–31 NASB

"Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass."
-PSALM 37:5 NKJV

With You Each Step

I WANT TO MAKE YOUR LIFE A GLORIOUS ADVENTURE, BUT YOU MUST SEEK TO KNOW ME IN GREATER DEPTH AND BREADTH INSTEAD OF STRIVING FOR A SAFE LIFESTYLE.

I know how ambivalent your heart is in all of this: You long for the adventure that a life abandoned to Me can be, and at the same time, you cling to old ways because change frightens you.

Though you feel safest when your life is predictable and things seem to be under control, I want you to break free and discover the adventures I have planned for you.

The greatest adventure of all is knowing Me abundantly: discovering how wide and long and high and deep is My Love for you.

The power of My vast Love can feel overwhelming.

That is why many people choose to limit their knowledge of Me, keeping Me at a distance.

How this grieves Me!

People settle for mediocrity because it feels more comfortable.

Meanwhile, they continue to battle fear.

Only My Love is strong enough to break the hold that fear has on you.

A predictable lifestyle may feel safer, but it can shield you from what you need most of all—Me!

When unexpected events shake up your routines, rejoice.

This is exactly what you need to wake you up and point you toward Me.

Recognize that you are on the threshold of a new adventure, and that I will be with you each step of the way.

As we venture out together, cling tightly to My hand.

The more you abandon yourself to Me, the more exuberantly you can experience My Love.

From "Jesus Lives" by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!

"And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ."
- EPHESIANS 3:17–18

"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."
- 1 JOHN 4:18

"My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me."
- PSALM 63:8

Shut Off Fear

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding."
(Proverbs 3:5, NIV)

Lean on Him

Are you facing a situation that seems like it has no logical solution?

Sometimes we have to turn our minds off, stop trying to figure it all out, stop overanalyzing, and stop researching everything.

When you don't see the answer in the natural realm, it's time to stop leaning on your own understanding and choose to trust God.

Sometimes our minds can be a distraction to our "inner sensor" or that place inside where God speaks to our hearts.

Our minds can allow fear and dread to distract us from what God is trying to tell us.

That's why the scripture says that we can't lean on our own understanding.

We have to take time to shut off the distractions, shut off fear, and listen to what's going on inside of us.

That's where faith rises up.

That's where all of the sudden, you'll feel a spark of hope even when things look impossible.

Today, no matter what it looks like in the natural, choose to lean on Him.

Trust that He has favor in store for your future.

Trust that something good is about to happen.

Trust Him because He alone can take you to new levels in every area of your life!

A Prayer for Today
"Father, today I choose to lean on You. I choose to trust that You are working on my behalf. I won't put my confidence in what I see, but I will trust in Your Word which remains true forever in Jesus' name.
Amen."

Stay Strong

Trials

Happy Ash Wednesday, All!!

A perfect time to begin something new!!

Stay Strong!

"COME TO ME WITH THE DIFFICULTIES THAT ARE WEIGHING YOU DOWN.

Even though there is no relief in sight, your troubles are actually light and momentary—from an eternal perspective.

Your problems feel so heavy because you have given them too much power.

Each time you focus on them and forget about Me, you empower them a bit more.

Even small objects placed very close to your eyes can obscure most of the vista before you.

I want you to put your troubles down long enough to view the vast expanse of Life that is spread out before you—all the way into eternity!

The best way to lay your problems down is:

Bring them to Me.

Unburden yourself by pouring out your heart to Me, for I am your Refuge.

As you release your woes to Me (even temporarily), your vision improves and you can see Me more clearly.

Linger with Me while My Light shines powerfully into your heart.

This Light illuminates the knowledge of the Majesty and Glory revealed in My Face.

This is the eternal Glory that outweighs all your troubles."

Excerpt From "Jesus Lives" by Sarah Young

Stay Strong!

"Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all."
-  2 CORINTHIANS 4:17

"Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. Selah."
PSALM 62:8