Agape Love |

Agape Love |

Women of God

~Except For Grace~

I Choose Love…No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves. I Choose Joy… I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God. I Choose Peace… I will live forgiven. I will forgive so I may live. I Choose Patience… I will overlook the inconveniences of the world. Instead of cursing the one who takes my place, I’ll invite him to do so, Rather complain that the wait is to long, I will thank God for a moment to pray. Instead of clenching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage. I Choose Kindness… I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for that is how God has treated me. I Choose Goodness… I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I accuse. I choose goodness I Choose Faithfulness… Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My friends will not question my word. And my family will not question my love. I Choose Gentleness… Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice may it only be in praise. If I clench my fist, may it only be in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself. I Choose Self-Control… I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. I choose self-control. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek His grace. And then when this day is done I will place my head on my pillow and rest.

Getting Up Again

“…though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again…” Proverbs 24:16

I’ve always admired people who aren’t afraid to fail. You know the ones who don’t even consider defeat when they blow it; people who see a personal setback as just another goal to conquer.

I’m not always so courageous. In fact, I can be really hard on myself when I fail, and it doesn’t even have to be a biggie. You see, I have what I call a “meanie in me” who replays my mistakes over and over, reminding me of how badly I’ve disappointed someone, or how impatient I was with my husband, or how harsh I was with my kids, or all sorts of ways that I fell short that day.

But the greatest defeat comes when I allow a mistake, a bad decision, sin, or a broken relationship to convince me that I might as well give up. Perhaps you have also allowed failure to knock you down, tie you up with the ropes of regret and hold you hostage like I have.


Today’s key verse, Proverbs 24:16, has helped me release the regret, guilt, fear and shame that have weighed me down and held me back. Take a minute to read it now and notice how it says the righteous will fall. That is right. Even those of us who have received the gift of Christ’s righteousness and redemption will fall down. But we were never intended to stay down.

Instead of giving up Jesus empowers us to get up again.

In getting up, we can apologize and ask for forgiveness. In getting up, we can choose to try again with our kids, in our jobs, in our ministries, in our marriages, and in all of our mistakes. Because we trust that although we fall, God will help us up.

When we get up again failure can actually help us become the confident women God created us to be because it makes us stronger and better — when we go to God for help. Failure can stretch us to do more than we think we can and push us to try other methods of doing things when one way doesn’t work.

Yes, failure can be hurtful but it can also be beneficial. Failure produces wisdom when we ask for it and maturity when we learn from it.

The truth is, following Jesus is not about avoiding failures and being perfect. It’s about accepting our weaknesses and becoming more dependent on God’s perfect love and power at work in us. So the next time you fail to be the woman He calls you to be, or the woman you expect yourself to be, ask God to remind you of this truth.

We will sometimes fail to be who we want to be but we will get closer to who we are meant to be every time we fall and then choose to take God’s hand so we can get up again!

Lord, I’m so thankful for Your grace that reminds me there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Because my steps are established by You, Lord, I will believe that You delight in me even when I fail or fall. Today, I want to take Your hand and trust Your heart as You pull me back up again and use my failures to help me become the confident woman You created me to be. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

~Sometimes I feel overlook~

"After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart, he will do everything I want him to do." Acts 13:22

I'm sorry. I try not to complain very often. I do know that I am incredibly blessed to have a grocery store down the street and a washer and dryer to use when doing laundry. But sometimes I wake up on Monday mornings a little grumpy. Time to do it all again. I'll go buy food that gets eaten. I'll wash clothes that get dirty again. I'll sweep floors that just an hour later will be littered with crumbs.

Is there more to all this than just doing the tasks of everyday life?

Before I jumped into the normal routine this morning, I sat with Jesus. And this is what I found... some big truths by taking a little glance at David's life. Despite how other's saw him, his own propensity to sin, and his lack of position in his own family, David had the sweet reassurance of God and that was enough.

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

To his older brothers, he was a pest. To his father Jesse, he was just the youngest son. To on-lookers, he was just a shepherd boy. But to God, he was the one destined to be king. And not just any king. His lineage was the one from whom Jesus would come.

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

Even how he was anointed to be the future king is such a telling story. In 1 Samuel 16, God tells Samuel that He has rejected Saul as king and chosen one of Jesse's sons to be the replacement. Think of the list of qualifications that must have run through Samuel's head as he pondered which of Jesse's sons would be qualified for such a position: tall, smart, articulate, brave, groomed, well mannered, regal, a natural born leader. "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not consider his outward appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. (meaning Saul who had these qualities.) The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (vs 7).

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

Next Samuel has Jesse line all of his sons up before him. All of them were to be looked at. Yet Jesse doesn't call David in from tending sheep. Was this an oversight? An assumption? A judgment call? A necessity? A deliberate choice?

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

Samuel passes on each of Jesse's sons and then asks, "Are these all the sons you have?"

I imagine Jesse with a quizzical expression replying, "There is still the youngest but he is tending sheep." Surely one who spends his time taking care of animals is not the one to take care of a nation.

Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.

As soon as Samuel saw him, he knew he was the one. David was anointed to become king. But he was not immediately ushered to the throne. It was years before David would be recognized by the world. So, where did he go after being anointed as king? To a refining school? A government academy? Military training? Nope.

He went back out into the fields and continued to shepherd his flock. A king doing lowly tasks. A king whose character was being refined in the fields of everyday life to prepare him for his calling.

How like us. In the midst of smelly laundry, dirty dishes, snotty noses, misplaced keys, overdue library books, bills, and that birthday gift that still needs to be mailed to grandma - there is training there. There is character building. There is attitude shaping. There is soul defining. There is heart grounding. All which must take place for us to become what God intends.
Ever feel overlooked by the world? Take heart sister - we are handpic ked by God.

I am not just doing tasks. I am building a legacy. I am shaping God's kingdom. I am in the process of not only discovering my calling but that of my family as well. And I don't know about you, but it sure does make me look at my everyday tasks, even the smelly laundry in a whole different light.

Dear Lord, thank You that even when I feel overlooked, I can rest in the fact that I am handpicked by You. Help me to live my life for an audience of One. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

~Am I ok?~

“Am I okay?”  Oh how I’ve asked this question.  Oh, how I find myself asking it still.  It really is quite the universal question.  This is my prayer for us as we question if we’re okay, “I pray that the eyes of our heart may be enlightened in order that we may know the hope to which He’s called us.”
We are loved.  We are treasured.  We are His.  We have been called to rest in this hope. 
There’s something universal in all women that unites us, maybe like nothing else: It's a need we all have…to know that we’re o.k.
Maybe you need to know this, today. Maybe you need someone to understand you or relate to your pain. Maybe you need to feel normal, like you aren’t the only one in the world that struggles with being a wife, mom, friend, or believer. Maybe you need what all women need – the feeling of being seen, heard and valued. If so, you have company. We all feel like that, sometimes.
Above everyone else, Jesus promises us the strength of His everlasting empathy, support and love.
Psalm 147:5 says, “Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.” This verse ministers to me, as it reminds me that Jesus is vast enough to meet our need to be o.k., no matter what our situation.
Take comfort in His love, my friend. Lean back into His strong arms of understanding. Rest well, for you are o.k.

~If we only knew~

Here is my prayer , May we catch even the slightest glimpse of the tender mercy of our Jesus.  For one drop of His mercy realized is better than an ocean of the world’s comfort.
The marriage situation that seems impossible.
The finances that never balance.
The hope so deferred it makes the heart sick.
The anxiety over a child bent on a wayward path.
The diet you are sick of.
The broken promises of friend.
The lack of true friends.
The constant messiness always distracting the peace you want in your home.
The impatience and frustration and anger and disappointment in losing it once again.
If only we knew how deeply Jesus understands, cares, and feels for us.  If only we could see the wonder of His love.  The skies He paints, the flowers He blooms, the world He arranges just for us.
If only we knew to open our hands and catch the drops of His tender mercy.  If only we knew how to stop clinching our fists feeling the weight of trying to fix it all ourselves.
If only we knew to stop in the midst of it all and whisper, “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.”
Just a whispered breath formed in the wholeness of His name carries all the power and mercy and wisdom and grace we need to handle what we face.
If only we knew.
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are- yet was without sin.  Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need,” (Hebrews 4: 15-16).

Praising Him

Today I am looking back over this past week and thanking God for the amazing things He has done for me. He's supplied my needs in ways only He could and has answered prayer and went beyond that which I prayed for. I praise Him for His wonderful love and mercy that He shows me inspite of how very much I fail Him. He is truly an... awesome God and even when life isn't going our way. He is still so good and does all things well.

~Embracing Who I Am~ by Lysa TerKeurst

"Ten years ago I sat in a seminar listening to a very organized mom talking about how she parented her kids. She was amazing. A super-mom in my eyes. I held up my feeble efforts with my three toddlers and determined I stunk as a mother. I thought that maybe if I went home and imitated her, I could enter into the world of super moms. I mentally listed out what I discerned must be her secret to success and set about to be just like her. But it didn’t take long to become absolutely miserable. I mentally beat myself up for not having what it obviously took to be a great mom. What was wrong with me? I begged God to make me just like her- that really good Mom. And then one day in Bible study I read the story of Mary, the teenage mother of Jesus. My heart beat fast as I realized she didn’t meet the standard of super mom I’d set for myself. Somehow, just as she was, God chose her to be Jesus’ mother. And the only qualification that she seemed to have was her willingness. I made the choice to try and let go of all those expectations I had for myself as a mom. I let go of the comparisons to other moms. I laid down the measuring stick of perfection. And I simply bowed my head and gave God my willingness. Nothing more. Slowly, I started to see my own unique qualities as a mom instead of always focusing on the places I felt I fell so short. I may not be the most organized mom, but I’m a fun mom willing to drop my to do list in the name of spontaneity. I may not do sit down devotions with my kids every morning, but I’m good at helping my kids see God working in situations all throughout our days. I may not sew a lick, but I know where to find an alterationist that is the bomb. I may not always keep my cool in the everyday aggravations of life, but throw something big at me and somehow I’ll be the most calm person in the room. Sure, I have a lot of room for growth in my mothering. God and I work on things daily. But over the past ten years I’ve learned how to embrace who I am and the beauty of living fully as me. And while I still fall short at times, I’ve finally learned that being fully me is so much better than an imitation version of someone else. I have the exact qualities God knew my kids would need in a mother. So, each day I hold up my willingness and ask God to make me the best version of me I can be. Have you ever struggled with this? Whether it’s in the arena of motherhood or your workplace or one of the many places we unfairly compare ourselves to others- realize your great qualities and be fully you."

~Lysa TerKeurst~

~Trust Me With Your Isaac~

"For every Abraham who dares
to kiss the foreign field

where glory for a moment grasped
is for a lifetime tilled

The voice of God speaks not but once
but 'til the traveler hears

Abraham! Abraham !
Bring your Isaac here!

Bring not the blemished sacrifice.
What lovest thou the most? 

Look not into the distance, 
 you'll find your Isaac close.

I hear the tearing of your heart,
 torn between two loves,
the one your vision can behold,
 the other hid above.

Do you trust me, Abraham
 with your gravest fear?
Will you pry your fingers loose
and bring your Isaac here?

Have I not made you promises?
 Hold them tight instead
I am the Lover of your soul,  
the Lifter of your head.

Believe Me, O my Abraham
when blinded by the cost.
Arrange the wooded altar
and count your gains but loss.

Let the tears wash clean your blinded eyes,
 until unveiled you see,
the ram caught in the thicket
there to set your Isaac free.

Perhaps I'll send him down the mount
to walk right by your side,
no longer in your iron grasp,
but safer still in Mine.

Or I may wrap him in the wind
and sweep him from your sight
to better things beyond your reach,
believe with all your might.

Look up, beloved Abraham,
 Can you count the stars?
Multitudes will stand to reap
from one dear friend of God.

Pass the test, my faithful one;
 Bow to Me as Lord.
Trust Me with your Isaac.
See, I am your great Reward."