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Thankful Thursday ~ Grace

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” ~ 2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV – emphasis mine)

It appears that I am thanking God for His grace the third time during our Thankful Thursday gathering (just know that because my permalink noted #3 😉 )…

I feel that grace is something that we can be thankful for more than once. It took me some years to really understand it (I still will not know the full scope of God’s grace until life everlasting). The dictionary defines grace several ways; my favorites are: 1) Unmerited Divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification (coming from God), 2) Mercy, Pardon.

I started reading Elaine Olsen’s book “Peace for the Journey“. The first chapter is about His amazing grace. One of the questions Elaine is posing got me thinking more deeply about grace: “Why is grace a ‘confrontational’ message?” Hm, good question; I don’t have an answer for that.

I only can share what I feel when it comes to God’s grace. I didn’t deserve it, but He freely gave it to me anyway. All I had to do is open up the gift and receive it with all my heart. Maybe for some it is so hard because nothing is required. We come as we are; no clean-up required. I guess we have to be way on the bottom (like I was) before we see that His grace indeed is amazing!!! His pardon comes from His heart, through Christ!

So this week (once again) I am thankful for His grace!!!

What are you thankful for this week? Please share with us by leaving your link to your thankful post below. Also, please pray for Elaine. Although she is battling cancer, she is encouraging others to look where grace is found, in the arms of Jesus.

Thank you for stopping by today. Remember: never tire of thanking Him for His grace. If you haven’t yet, check out this week’s giveaway here.

Thankful Thursday Participants

1. Jessica @ By Grace Alone
2. Amanda@ Confessions of a Wannabe Supermom
3. LaughingLady
4. Whidbey Woman
5. Tammy(simply a frugal mom)
6. Joshlin@Saving Moms Sanity
7. Rons Road 2 Recovery
8. Laurie @ Women Taking a Stand
9. bp
10. It Feels Like Chaos
11. Chris
12. Rocks @ Made to Worship
13. Joan @ Reflections		 14. Melanie @ Musings & Meanderings
15. Pam
16. Peta@7littleheads
17. Amy @ A Faithful Journey
18. Nicole
19. Cindy@Life is in the Details
20. Lynn (Spiritually Unequal Marriage)
21. Heather@Becoming A Titus 2 Woman
22. Bernice @ MY JOURNEY
23. mrsp31wannabe
24. Gragteful for my little cottage
25. Karen @ Hallelujah Anyhow
26. becky aka theRAV		 27. Noreen
28. K @ In The Lord’s Path
29. Mary
30. Finding The Inspiring
31. Maria @ The Bird House
32. Training Happy Hearts
33. Jennifer’s JoyRide
34. Hollie@Freckles&Faith
35. Misty@Not Just Any Road
36. Audra @ Rediscovering Domesticity (Tummy Time)
37. Toia @ Designer’s Original

Learn more about Thankful Thursday here.

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Living Fearlessly ~ God Disappointed?

“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” ~ Colossians 1:13-14 (ESV)

Do you feel that you have disappointed God? To be honest I do some days. The way how I treat others; not always in a way He would like me to. Some days I don’t live forgiven even though I am.

Will my actions deny me entrance to heaven. No, of course not. But still…

Before I continue with this week’s look at living fearlessly, let me share a quote from ‘Fearless‘:

“‘Cash in too many mercy checks, and sooner or later one is going to bounce!’ The devil loves this line of logic. If he can convince us that God’s grace has limited funds, we’ll draw the logical conclusion. The account is empty. God has locked the door to his throne room. Pound all you want; pray all you want. No access to God.’ ~ Max Lucado (emphasis mine)

You know, I fear that when (not if) I get to heaven, that our Lord would raise an eyebrow because I didn’t follow the path He has laid out for me. I am afraid that I miss something; I miss being compassionate to someone He has put in my path…Again, what if…

In his book, Max Lucado pointed out people that have messed up ‘big-time’ (Peter, David, the Samaritan woman). Guess what? God and Jesus restore them all, forgave their sins. All three of them received grace. And you know what? So are we: forgiven and received grace.

Do I want to mess up? No, I don’t. But in my human state I do. Looking at Peter, David, and the Samaritan women, I have good company. Peter denied Christ three time (Mark 14:66-72), David took another man’s wife (2 Samuel 11), the Samaritan woman had more than one husband (John 4:1-42). Where their sins greater than mine, or visa verse? This is not the point. All sins are the same in God’s eyes. I don’t have to fear to disappoint Him – He already knows that I will slip up. He has provided my way to heaven in Christ.

I think that Casting Crowns have hit the nail right on the head when they penned the song “Who am I”. I want to close my post with the bridge of the song:

“Not because of who I am,
But because of what you’ve done.
Not because of what I’ve done,
But because of who you are.”

Thank you for stopping by today. Remember: You are forgiven, so that you can live fearlessly; you will not disappoint God.

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Bad Blogger – Sam I am…

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” ~ Colossians 3:16 (ESV)

I apologize for the inconvenience I have caused Bloggers in regards of Thankful Thursday. It was brought to my attention that the rotation has caused some confusion of all participants.

I hope to clear up the confusion to post a schedule for who is hosting Thankful Thursdays for the remaining of 2009 (you can also now find it in my sidebar):

Lynn at Spiritual Unequal Marriage – May, July and October 2009
Laurie at Women Taking a Stand – June, September, and December 2009
Iris at Grace Alone – August, and November 2009

Again, I apologize for all the confusion over the last months…BTW – I hope to share some exciting news with you all soon 🙂

Thank you for stopping by today — be blessed today and always…

grace_iris1

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Thankful Thursday ~ Random

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever! ~ Psalm 30:11-12 (ESV ~emphasis mine)

Wow – Thanksgiving is already next week. Hm…where did this year go?

Before I share my random list with you today, I would like you to know that I will not be hosting Thankful Thursday next week. You might wonder “why not?”. Oh, I have my reason 😛 …I will be still sharing my grateful heart with you next week, but I am participating in Heather’s “Giving Thanks on Thanksgiving 08”. I hope you will join us next week at Heather’s place. Regular Thankful Thursday will be back after Thanksgiving 😛 …

So, here is my list for this week…

  • I am thankful that I am loved by the King of kings. He loved me so much that He gave His one and only Son to die for me…

  • I am thankful for my beloved. I am so glad that he puts up with my clumsiness. Can you believe that I spilled coffee all over him? Well, I did. I think I am sometimes too much in a hurry — note to self “slow down”…

  • I am thankful for showers. Not only do they get me clean, but it is my favorite time of prayer…

  • I am thankful for a brand new Bible study by Beth Moore. I am very excited about it, because it has individual video lessons. The study is about the book of Esther. I am currently reading the Scripture passages. I am planning to do the study in January. Maybe a blog-study in Spring of 2009. But only God knows if that will happen…

  • I am thankful for a wonderful project the Lord has put on my heart. Most of you know that I am doing some digital scrapping (when I have time – hm – not so much lately). Anyway, I am working on a Faithbook – A-Z. I plan on having in professionally printed. The best part: my beloved is excited with me 😛 . I might share some pages here on my blog over the next several months…

  • I am thankful that next week is Thanksgiving — I only have to work 3 days next week – YEAH (can you see my jiggy dance 😆 ) …

  • And last but not least, I am thankful that one of my co-workers is back at work. That means that my work-load will get lighter – hopefully…

What are you thankful for this week? Please do share with us in leaving your link below…Before you ‘run’ off, would you do me a favor? It is Denise’s birthday – I hope you have some time to stop by her blog to wish her a wonderful birthday 🙂 ?

Thanks for stopping by. Remember: You are beautiful, you are loved and you are His. If I don’t ‘see’ you next – Have a blessed Thanksgiving.

Thankful Thursday Participants

1. Diane@Partners in Prayer for Our Prodigals
2. Melanie
3. Laurie Ann
4. Denise
5. Tracey @ Cheese and Whine
6. Lynn – Spiritually Unequal Marriage
7. Mary
8. forever n ever n always
9. A Homekeepers Journey~Mrs.B
10. lambofHisflock
11. saleslady371
12. Susanne
13. Charlotte
14. Angie
15. Kathy – Mom of Many
16. Megan – A Sanctuary Sought
17. Newlyweds
18. Susie
19. Alicia, The Snowflake
20. mom2my9
21. Bonnie
22. Patricia@TypingOne-Handed		 23. Jennifer
24. Lisa
25. Tracy @ Seed Thoughts
26. Rita
27. Are You For Real? (How To Pray During A Season Of Testing)
28. Raye Ann > Heart of the Home
29. denaka
30. Debbies Digest
31. Alicia @ More Than Words
32. Mariposa
33. It\’s All About Him!
34. Lisa@BlessedwithGrace
35. Heather @ Dear Diary
36. Stef–thankful that He Reigns
37. Lori ~ Simple Life at Home
38. Lisa @ Oh Boy…Oh Boy…Oh Boy
39. Christy
40. Carrie
41. Michele
42. Leanne from Canada
43. Denise @ Teacups & Time
44. Kris@onthevine		 45. LaDonna
46. Christin
47. Heather @ From Tiny To Teen
48. In the Masters Hands
49. Laurie @ womentakingastand
50. micey
51. Tara @ it runneth over
52. Melissa Multitaskingmama
53. Willnette
54. cheryl
55. Samantha@Mama\’s aMusings
56. Southern Jewel
57. Sherry
58. Anastasia
59. Donetta at a life uncommon
60. Lea
61. Jane Anne @Gravity of Motion
62. Heather @ Not a DIY Life
63. Jen–Scraps&Snippets
64. Cathy of Mommy Motivation
65. heidi@Sacred&Profane

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