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The Hope of a New Day

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    “… for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning great is your faithfulness.”

Lamentations 3:22-23

Have you ever watched the sun rise? Each day is truly a gift from God. Don’t take that for granted especially if you are waking up in a warm bed. Each day God gives us is a new space in time. He gives us this new space in time in which to live, to repent, if we haven’t the day before, a new space in time to start over, to try again, to get it right. With each new day there is hope of a break through, there is hope of restoration, reconciliation. We can start anew everyday, fresh because His mercies are new every day.

We can begin each new day with pouring out your heart to God. Express your anger, disappointments, your plea for help, your sadness, sorrow, repentance. Express your joy, your thanksgiving, be grateful, the Bible does say, “Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18. So right there if you are waking up and thanking God, you are doing God’s will.

We all have problems, we all carry them around with us. Reflect on the day before. Did you carry those problems into the new day? God asks us to give Him our burdens, Matthew 11:28-30, 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” To me without starting this new day and not recognizing whether or not I am still carrying my problems with me is like moving into a new house and bringing the garbage with you. God doesn’t want you to carry your problems. He wants them. God has given you this new day, this new time in space to give Him back your worries. We are human we tend to want to do things our way and in our time. But God’s ways aren’t our ways, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.” Isaiah 55:8 and everything in His time, “He has made everything beautiful in its time… ” Ecclesiastes 3:11. Those problems, the strongholds that challenge us everyday they may seem like they aren’t going away and they just shadow us day after day, give them to God, bring them to Him in prayer. God gives us enough grace and mercy for each day, not for the next day or the day after that, enough for today. We don’t have tomorrow, but God does go before us because He is omnipresent, eternal. And He does tell us not to take thought about tomorrow, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34

We are human and just when we say ,”Ok God it’s yours, we sometimes can take it right back by fretting and trying to figure out how to solve the problem, either through manipulation, stealing, cheating, lying, whatever to change the situation. So what does that look like? What does giving it to God look like? What does it look like to you? How can we not let a situation overcome us?

This is what it looks like to me. Turning that worry into prayer. Pray God’s word, pray His promises back to Him. We can let God speak to us by quieting our hearts and not get distracted. His words have power and authority. What a great resource! Maybe try to reach out to someone. Maybe there is someone you know who may be struggling too, ask them how you can pray for them. Is there an elderly person or a shut in that needs some company or something done for them? Reach out to them, bring them a home cooked meal or a dessert and spend some time with them. Offer to babysit for a friend or a single parent. Write a letter, a good old fashion letter with pen and paper or even a greeting card with encouragement and mail it. Research shows that not only helping others feels good, but we can reap the benefits by helping others. While we are doing God’s work, by helping and ministering to others, we are taking letting God take our problems and worries by getting our minds off our problems. In Galatians 6:2, the Bible tells us to carry each other’s burdens; “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

Sometimes it may be necessary to reach out to a counselor or therapist or a pastor for help. And that’s ok. God can use anyone and anything to help heal us. The struggle can be real and hard sometimes BUT with GOD… all things are possible, – Matthew 19:23-26. Watch the sunrise one day, get up early and begin your day pouring out your heart to God. There is HOPE. There is HOPE in each new day. Be encouraged.

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November 15, 2021 – Colossians 3:15

Memorize Monday – free coloring page, Colossians 3:15- “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.” God asks us to be thankful. If you want to know the will of God, be thankful. Yes God has more than that for us to do, but it’s a good place to start if you are looking to do God’s will. We were called to be thankful and the peace of God to rule in our hearts. There are many benefits to being thankful. Being thankful can improve mental and physical health. Having a heart of gratitude can foster empathy and allow us to be content with what we already have. For are you thankful for today? Share in the comments and if you find encouragement in the post, please like and share.

Colossians 3:15

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November 8, 2021 – Psalm 31:24

Memorize Monday, free coloring page – Psalm 31:24 -“Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.” The key word in this verse for me is HOPE. That is what the Kedge Anchor is about, hope. There is hope, Jesus is our only hope in this world. Hope gives encouragement. Anchor yourself in God’s word today, He will give you the strength you need if you place your hope in Him.

If today’s post has given you hope, please like and share. Perhaps you will be encouraging someone today.

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Do You Think About What You Think About?

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Why is it by three o’clock in the afternoon I can’t remember what I read in my devotional in the morning? I barely can remember what I ate for breakfast or dinner the night before. Has that thought ever crossed your mind, that you can’t remember what you read in your devotional? Is it just me? James 1:23-24 says, “For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror,  24 and after observing himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. Ok, if I get like that… please someone help me. If I can’t remember what I read in God’s word, I am not going to carry it out.

Do you ever think about what you are thinking about at any given moment? Have you ever traced your thoughts? I could be in the middle something like sweeping the floor then the next thing I know I am thinking about something that happened in the fourth grade. Has that happened to you? Sometimes that initial thought can change my mood and remind me of something that made me mad and then I get mad and irritable for the rest of the day. I found that happening a lot. So I stop and trace my thoughts, what was I thinking about prior to that angry thought? Most of the time it’s so unrelated. But isn’t that how the enemy likes to work? He throws out the fiery darts. Sometimes the innocent of thoughts that lead to the most angry thoughts and emotions. Subtle, huh? Sneaky right? That’s how the enemy likes to trip us up.

2 Corinthians 10:5 says, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” I know that can be hard sometimes. Thoughts can grab hold of us and fester and we can’t let go. But once again, that’s how the enemy works. Sometimes we are good at blocking out certain things, events, people. But sometimes unconsciously we aren’t even aware of our thoughts. There are times I have to stop myself from thinking about past events or people that have hurt me. Then I am either asking for forgiveness or forgiving someone and letting go of the hurt of old wounds.

So why is it by mid afternoon I’m thinking about what I read in my devotional? Is like a spiritual hunger? There have been times I have been so busy and so engulfed in what I am doing either my stomach reminds me it’s time to eat or if I am working with others, someone will ask “what’s for lunch?” Perhaps that thought about my morning devotional is a spiritual hunger pang, God gently reminding me of His presence. And what would it take to just stop for 5 minutes and give God a thank you, or simply opening a Bible app or listen to some worship and praise music? Maybe it’s just God tugging at my heart to let Him in for a tick and hear what He has to say.

Think about what you think about. Maybe start a journal to trace your thoughts. Take notes of what you read in your devotional. Share what you read and hear from God with someone, it will help you remember. Deuteronomy 11:18 “Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.” I guess those would be ways to take captive every thought.