Next Breath

We take each one of our breaths for granted
Just as every single beat of our heart
Pretending we live a life enchanted
Not realizing our next breath could be the final depart

Living to be free and in peace
Is far from what we achieve
The busyness of our lives never seems to cease
Then with that last breath everyone chooses to grieve

Reconnect with souls from the past
Because fear of your last breath becomes real
Now you cannot even remember the last time you asked
If they would like to come over for a meal

Then someones next breath becomes their last
Our hearts skip as we remember their smiles
When we look at the years they have gone by so fast
OH! if we only knew how we have all endured many trials

No matter if our next breath becomes our last
With Jesus that breath will be with a calm release
Though they will mourn they will accept we have passed
Though broken and hurt they will say with no regret ” Rest In Peace!”

It Is Finished!

The last words of Jesus are so profound and clear for our understanding. However, because of the complexity of our brokenness we just don’t get it. Jesus breathes His last breath and completes the first part of His sacrifice by saying “It is finished.” As we live our lives we act differently then what our Savior claims. We live walking on egg shells or focused on our past mistakes. Rarely do you find someone ready to be thankful or praising God for their past. Many of us want people to know what we have survived almost like wearing a badge of honor. These are the battles I have fought and look at how strong and cold hearted I have become. Look at how selfish this has made me! I know these feelings because this has been me in my solitude. Then Jesus has revealed to me what He meant by His statement.  I am here, breathing, smiling and walking only because of the sacrifice He made on that cross. I have received God’s mercy and favor so many times over.  When Jesus said it was finished, He meant that it was the beginning for us. The battle is not against the wrongs we don’t want to do, the battle is against believing we are worth God’s Love.  Scripture says that perfect Love (Christ) cast out fear and when we grab a hold of that truth we truly are being sanctified.  Jesus wants us so badly to be in love with Him as He is with us. That longing is being fulfilled in knowing that we have the righteousness of Christ in us because of the cross. He took all of our sins on and into Him and in return God gave us His righteousness.  We can live this life with the confidence of Champions because as Christ has said ” It is Finished!”  This wisdom is key in our walks. I learned as the Holy Spirit shared with me the other day. The reason the devil brings up our past failures, our bloopers reel, is because he has nothing new! Wow think about that even when you sin today, once it is finished it is in the past and becomes void when we repent and turn to Jesus. Amen and Amen to our One True Amazing, Awesome, Powerful, Loving, Graceful and All Knowing God! Selah!

One Love, One King, All Christ!

When the scales fall off, Leave them on the ground!

When Paul converted his life to follow Jesus he did it the moment the scales fell from his eyes and he could see.  He was no longer blind and with his renewed eyes looked at the World and each person differently. I do this often, the being blind part and out in the wilderness all alone.  That’s the lie I tell myself and when the Devil comes whispering and tempting I give in.  The temptations seem to flow with how we are feeling or do not want to feel.  The truth is Jesus is with us and the Holy Spirit is in us.  We have a Warrior King dwelling inside of us who will fight the good fight.  However, because the strongholds have been branded into our souls and minds we must seek refuge in our fortress of Christ.  We can’t expect to change over night or even in weeks or months, completely that is.  We can see the transformation happening and that is an amazing thing to be a part of in my own life.  I need to know the scales have fallen off and I need not pick them back up.  It is almost like I force myself to try and put them back on because when I can’t see I have all the excuses in the World of  why I “needed” to choose sin when in reality I wanted it! OUCH!  The importance of Jesus in our life is the mission He gives each of us to serve.  I believe what Paul learned in those three days was how much Jesus needed to get done on Earth.  When those scales fell off Paul took off and walked with Christ from then on.

Paul realized in this wisdom that he needed to focus all his energies on forgetting the past and looking to what lies ahead.  Those are big words considering he needed to forget being a murderer of the very thing he became, A Christian.  I am learning to not pre-judge or make assumptions of anyone, including the ones we do not like.  We don’t know what they are going through.  It is within our walk with Jesus and the Holy Spirit that we truly start to transform.  Jesus frees us and then the Spirit through us reaches out to all those in our path.  Paul says with conviction that there is no condemnation in those that are in Jesus Christ.  He can say this because he lived it and had the Holy Spirit with him.  Paul says to confess your thoughts and feelings before they can even become temptations.  When you have the eyes of your Heart open, the scales have no appeal! We do not want to be blind when we can truly see.  The whisper of the Holy Spirit speaks peace into us while the “Warrior King” deals with everything else.  The very moment we ask He(Jesus) says YES.  The moment the scales fall off , let them fall do not try and salvage any of the old ways of being blind to Christ!  Our past brings comfort which is not peace, Comfort leads us to laziness which then leads us to sin.  I am leaving the scales on the ground, IN JESUS NAME! I CHOOSE SIGHT, COME, HOLY SPIRIT, VISINE ME! Amen!

One Love, One King, All Christ!