abundant life

The Palette We Are Given

/ pastorpete51 / 7 Comments

The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). John 10:10 Amp

It is true that life is short, but a morbid contemplation of how quickly it passes misses the point of why we are alive. God created each of us to be artists and the hours we are given are the colors He chose for us to use. Yes, some folks have been given far brighter hues than us, but don’t let that discourage you. Their daisy chain may only need robin’s egg blue for the sky and white and yellow for its petals, but your sunset, will demand all those darker shades, that God has dabbed on your palette. Every morning God hands each of us a blank canvas and places a brush in our hands. So, let’s begin today with flair, sketch out a design of doing and plan a portrait of praise. The colors we have, whether shocking and stark or gentle and subdued can all be brushed on to His glory. For He is the great Master Artist and He has painted us into existence and included us in His design to give Him praise forever!

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Abounding

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Therefore my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord… 1 Corinthians 15:58

Always Abounding

When we feel overwhelmed
Abounding in peace
When we are grieving
Abounding in comfort
When exhausted
Abounding in His strength
When I am ashamed
Abounding in forgiveness
When sick
Abounding in His healing
When I am afraid
Abounding in His courage
Or alone
Abounding in His presence
And His promise
To be with us always
And that in Christ
I can do all things!



“We ask you to give us a steadfast living faith, a firm trust, a holy hope, a perfect love, so that we may serve you with all our life and strength to the very end. Amen!” Amish Prayers compiled by Beverly Lewis

Today is Not a Dry Run!

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Redeeming the time, because the days are evil       Ephesians 5:16 KJV

Quite a few years ago I had a friend whose favorite saying was, “Today is not a dry run.” It reminded me of when we visited Mystic Seaport in Connecticut. There we walked through the old shipyard where whaling ships were once built. We were shown how piece by piece the ancient ships were built; mostly by hand. In our Christian walk we sometimes think of ourselves as being in God’s shipyard; where He is slowly fashioning us and preparing us for the day when He will launch us on our maiden voyage. But in his letter to the Ephesian church Paul the apostle tells us something very different:

Redeeming the time, because the days are evil       Ephesians 5:16 KJV

Or as Toula’s mother tells her in the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding; “I gave you life so you could live!”

God has created us to live! In fact Jesus gave His own life so that we could live forever and forever includes today! Our moments and hours today are not just valuable because they are preparing us for the future. The greatest treasure we have is the moment we are living right now! Nothing will ever taste better than today’s Daily Bread. God’s plan for us isn’t that we would be safely locked inside a glass case for others to admire us, but that we would launch out into unknown seas, with our eyes on the North Star of His will. Today is not a dry run, We were made for more than the shipyard. God himself has built us to sail through both calm seas and storms. If Jesus is our pilot then He will guide us home.

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