Tag: Inspirational Christian Devotions

“God Keeps Me”

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“And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be,” Exodus 8:23

I really admire people who can or preserve their own products at home. I had a neighbor who does her own canning, and her strawberry preserves were really sweet. You didn’t need to add much of it to flavor whatever you were using it on. Delicious!

I think it’s an awesome thing to grow your own produce out of your own garden or to make your special homemade soup and such, and then store them for future use. Everything I have read about canning encourages me, but also frightens me a little bit. It encourages me because it gives the idea that this is something special I produced. Look how beautifully they are lined on the shelves for me to take down and use at will. But it also frightens me a bit because of the potential for bacterial growth if everything is not sterilized and handled correctly.

I know somebody out there who is an experienced canner is shaking their head at me right now. That’s okay, I’m not offended. But, you guys are awesome!

If you read through the book of Exodus, you will come across the story of the plagues. With that, you will also read about the hardness of Pharaoh’s heart each time a plague came. Even after dealing with an invasion of lice and flies, he still refused God. Some people have to learn lessons the hard way, I guess.  Ever been there?

As you continue reading, you will come to Exodus 8:22-23 where it says, “I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. And I will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign be.” This is what had me thinking about the ability to preserve and can one’s own stuff.

I am amazed at the keeping power of God. Thinking from a human perspective, how difficult would it be to keep flies and other plagues from entering a land adjacent to the one being afflicted for their wrong? This wasn’t a “bother-you-at-a-picnic-fly-issue.” This was a completely nasty situation!

Verse 21 really opens our eyes to the severity of the situation that God, through Moses, was warning Pharaoh of. “Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are.” – EWW! Flies all over the ground that you are stepping on – YUCK! I can imagine the difficulty of opening your mouth to speak to one another without a fly taking refuge on your tonsils – GROSS!  It is what God warned of, and it is what happened.

It was very intense, but through it all, God kept His people separated from that nasty situation (vs. 22).  He put a division between good and evil; between those who were for Him and those who were against Him. Those that were for God didn’t end up with flies in their mouths and in their land and in every other place and thing they weren’t supposed to be.  Can you feel your skin crawling at the thought of it all?

God is a keeper of them that put their trust in Him. Psalm 16:1 says, “Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.” There’s a lot of junk that goes on around us each and every day, but God has a special watch over them that belongs to Him. What seemed like an impossibility of not having any flies enter Goshen, God did it! “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?” (Jeremiah 32:37; emphasis mine).

There are a lot of things swarming around us every day. Whether it lands on us or not, God is my keeper in the midst of it all. Trust Him today! He is preserving you to take you off the shelf to use one day.  I may not be confident in my abilities to sterilize, keeping bacteria from entering in, but I don’t have to question God’s ability to properly preserve me. “CAN ME UP, LORD – AND KEEP ME!”

Copyright © Word For Life Says.com (Sharing any posts or lessons can only be done through the share buttons provided on this site from the original posts, lessons, and articles only. You can reblog from the original posts only using the reblog button provided, or share using the share buttons provided from these social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, etc., and they must be shared from the original posts only. All other repostings are prohibited. Posts and other items of interest found on this site MAY NOT BE COPIED AND PASTED, downloaded, uploaded, etc to another website or entity not listed (physical or electronic).  See COPYRIGHT PAGE for more details.

“When You Feel There Aren’t Enough Hours in a Day!”

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Image by fancycrave1 from Pixabay

Every day we are given is precious.  Every moment is a treasure from heaven.  God perfectly crafted our days in these 24 hours that cycle in and through our lives.  He fashioned each one precisely as a gift to get things done and rest and enjoy life as well.

With that being said, I must wonder why time seems so elusive to most of us?  Why aren’t we able to craftily work each section of the day for our good and still enjoy other pleasures of life that God endowed us with, things that bring the fulfillment of personal joy and happiness (ex. more family time, rest, and so on) that’s supposed to come with it?  Why do we bemoan the idea that there are just not enough hours in the day when God perfectly gave us all we need?

The problem is not with the design of days.  Nor will the problem be solved by adding more increments of time to the day.  The problem is us and how we prioritize and manage this gift of time that God has already given us.

In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul wrote that we are to redeem the time because the days are evil (Ephesians 5:16). Everyday opportunities abound to spend the hours of our lives in one way or another.  The choice is always ours on how we use it.  Let’s look at it this way, if we have been given a bunch of money to spend, hopefully, we would sit down and think carefully about how to get the most use out of it.  That same diligence should be applied to our management of time.

The hugest difference between money and time is this: for many, there are usually ways to replenish or re-earn funds to add to one’s finances if money is spent in a reckless fashion.  However, for time, that opportunity is not there.  Once time is gone – it’s gone!  Once the moment passes – it passes off the scene as a part of our personal history.  Therefore, we are encouraged to make the most of every second given.  And, although God’s grace, mercy, and faithfulness are new every morning – we are not promised the dawning of a new day.

So, whether it’s mundane, it’s a moment we won’t get back.  Treat it as the treasure it is.  If it seems trivial, remember in the scope of all the days given, it’s a time to be honored.  Even if it seems like the most basic of all days, keep in mind there is nothing basic about the gift of waking up again and being given the chance to make the most of the time you have been gifted with.

When you feel there aren’t enough hours in the day – treasure what you have and be determined to make the most out of what God did give you.  When we do, we can make a better impact for His kingdom and in the lives of those entrusted to our care.  Because no matter how smart our watches become it will always be up to us to make smart use of the time that registers there.

Inspiring Your Time:

“This is the beginning of a new day.  God has given me this day to use it as I will.  I can waste it – or use it for good, but what I do today is important, because I am exchanging a day of my life for it.” – W. Heartstill Wilson

Pray: “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” – Psalm 90:12

Pray: “LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.” – Psalm 39:4

“Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.” – Colossians 4:5

“Your Faith Speaks more than Your Words!”

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What people witness in your life resounds more than the words that are coming out of your mouth.  Evidence of belief; proof of faith is the visual representation that most want.  Many mistake others as not wanting what we have or not wanting the faith, yet they haven’t seen enough of it in action to provoke them to seek after what we say we have.

So, the old phrase still rings true today: “Seeing is believing.”  To a world lost, who have no hope, they look for a ring of hope they can grab onto to prevent them from drowning in the deep abyss of the darkness of this world.  They want a way out.  Many don’t want to sink deeper into despair, deeper into the unknown where there is no light to guide the way.  They want to see what you say you see.  They want to feel what you say you feel.  They want what you say you have but do they see it currently active in you to propel them from wanting it to actually seeking for it?

Your faith speaks louder than your words.  Paul told the church at Thessalonica, “Your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.” 1 Thessalonians 1:8.  If necessary I believe Paul would have testified on their behalf, he would have spoken up for them to assure others of their faith.  But, their faith was so active, their faith was so alive and in operation that he didn’t feel a need to speak at all.  Their faith did the talking for them.  Their faith is what people noticed, not the words they spoke from their mouths.

A lot of people do a lot of talking these days and sometimes it’s hard to decipher truth from fiction.  Jesus gave us a key that lines right up with what Paul wrote in his letter.  Jesus said, “Ye shall know them by their fruits,” Matthew 7:16.  If one comes upon a tree that has apples growing upon it then they are to assume it is an apple tree.  The same is true with a life of faith.  What they see coming out of you, or as Paul referred to as “gone out” is what matters the most.  You can say that you are an orange tree but if I see apples then I will classify you like an apple tree.  If you say that you have great faith but all I see is the opposite than I will not view you as having great faith.  I will mark you by what I see.

Your faith matters in this world.  More importantly, your faith on display matters to those around you so much that one should not have to speak up or testify for you, all they should be able to do is look at your faith in action and mark you as a person of faith.

“You Make a Difference to God!”

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God is after you, dear friend, in a good way.  He loves the masses, but the individual heart He wants to hold as His own.

There are so many things in our culture that can evoke an inferiority complex in people.  The barrage of advertisements that make one feel less than if they don’t have what others are offering.  The seemingly picture-perfect life displayed on the feeds of social media, causing a longing for what they appear to have, making one feel they don’t measure up to some invisible criteria.  The comparison factor of success that is too much alive in this world which causes many to believe they will never be what another is.

That’s good because God created you and me to be us!  The masses that come to Him don’t negate the fact that He wants the individual heart – He wants the individual life – He wants the individual you!  You make a difference to God!  You are important to God!

God will leave the ninety-nine sheep in the wilderness to go after that one which is lost because that one is special to Him (Luke 15:1-7).  That one is cared about by Him.  That one is loved by Him and He wants that one with Him because to God, they make a difference.  God finds joy in just that one heart that will turn to Him, repent, and enter into blessed fellowship with Him.

When the individual heart turns to God through our Lord Jesus Christ, it puts a smile on God’s face and makes the angels rejoice (Luke 15:10) because despite what the world tries to make us believe or feel, each one of us makes a difference to God.  You are valuable to God and He loves you more than you could ever know.

Inspiration:

“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”  – Psalm 139:14

“Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.” – Matthew 10:31

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” – Galatians 2:20

“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” – John 1:12

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” – Jeremiah 29:11

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” – Ephesians 2:10

You are uniquely loved by God.  You make a difference to God!

Photo: Pixabay/DreamPixer

“Love Without Hypocrisy!”

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Jesus loved us with sincere love.  Everything He did, right down to His death on the cross as a substitute for our wrongs, was motivated by love, real love.

Paul commanded, “Let love be without dissimulation,” (Rom. 12:9).  The word “dissimulation” deals with hypocrisy.  The church was to model Christ in the way that they loved people.  They are to have the purest and most sincere love that would compel people to want to know more about Christ.  They are to be pillars of love that the lost, broken and hurt can lean on and find strength.

One thing people can readily pick up on is fakeness.  Those that come to us and come to our buildings are looking for something real.  They have had enough of the phony stuff.  They have dealt with the pretenders of the world and they are not looking for that in us.  They are looking for something real.  They are looking for something pure.  They are looking for somebody to look at them as Christ would and feel nothing but love and compassion for them.

How many times has the Bible described Jesus as being “moved with compassion?”  That’s what sincere love does; it moves the heart.  It allows one to look beyond what they see to have a genuine concern for others.  This is what people are looking for.  This is what the church should be displaying.  The love of Christ is our greatest asset in drawing people to salvation.  After all, wasn’t it God who told Jeremiah, “With lovingkindness have I drawn thee,” (Jer. 31:3)?

Real love draws people.  Fake love pushes them away.  If we truly want to be like Christ then love on people sincerely.  Don’t give them what the world is already giving them; fake love.  Give them something genuine.  Give them something real.  Give them something that will bring them closer to God.  Give them real love!

“Don’t Touch That!”

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“. . . Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,” Philippians 3:13, KJV

When God created babies He created some of the most fascinating little creatures. They keep us entranced as we watch them toddle about. We are amused when they let go of the coffee table to take those first “Frankenstein” like steps. When you do the airplane to go them to eat, their little giggle and the banging on the highchair melts your heart. When they don’t feel well and the bottom lip begins to pout we race to bring them comfort. Or, when they sleep at night you can almost see an angelic glow of innocence radiating about them.

Yes, sir. They are quite fascinating, especially when it comes to dealing with their propensity for touching everything. This is the part that gets the parents hearts racing. We find ourselves continually saying, what seems to be fifty million times, “Don’t Touch That!”

Our hearts become frantic because often the thing they want to touch is very harmful to them. “Don’t touch that stove!” We know it’s hot and that they could get burned. “Don’t touch the cat the wrong way!” We know they could get scratched. “Don’t touch the plug!” They could get shocked. And, my favorite comes when we find them chewing on something that we didn’t give them and we yell, “What did you touch now!”

We do all that we can as parents to protect our children to see them grow up to be happy, healthy and successful. It’s a lot of our guidance through life that will see that they get there. But, it usually starts early on with a good, healthy dose of, “Don’t Touch That!”

Do you ever feel that God sometimes wants to yell down at us, “Don’t touch that?” I do. Especially when it comes to dealing with our past hurt, pains and regrets.

Our lives can go on peachy-keen and fine as rainbows when all of a sudden something triggers a twinge of regret. Then, we begin to ponder that regret until we are reliving the painful past. We let the guilt resurface when the Bible says, “He will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sin into the depths of the sea, “ (Micah 7:19, KJV). Yet, we sometimes try to resuscitate it and bringing it back to life.

God said, “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins,” (Isaiah 43:25, KJV). God puts them in a place where He doesn’t remember them; where He doesn’t acknowledge them anymore. But, when we feel that little niggle of doubt we start rehashing the past, touching it and not leaving it alone.

Go figure?

The apostle Paul knew a thing or two about past regrets. (After all, he did seek to imprison and kill those who claimed Christ until Jesus knocked him off his beast). He also knew that it was behind him now. He doesn’t live back there anymore and to continually go back to it would stunt his future growth.

With a resolve to teach others this important truth he penned the words, “Forgetting those things which are behind.”

It’s time to leave it alone. Stop touching it! Put it down and don’t pick it up again! Stop pondering it! Stop reliving it! It’s in the past!

Now is the time to start, “reaching forth unto those things which are before.” It’s time to start looking forward to where God is taking you, not where you have been! Who doesn’t want something better to look forward to?

Babies are still learning not to touch everything they see. I think it’s time to take our cue from them. Things in the past are harmful to us if we continually fiddle with it. Leave it alone and stop touching it!

Make it a great day today. Start looking ahead instead of behind and see where God can take you!

Copyright © Word For Life Says.com (Sharing any posts or lessons can only be done through the share buttons provided on this site from the original posts, lessons, and articles only. You can reblog from the original posts only using the reblog button provided, or share using the share buttons provided from these social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, etc., and they must be shared from the original posts only. All other repostings are prohibited. Posts and other items of interest found on this site MAY NOT BE COPIED AND PASTED, downloaded, uploaded, etc to another website or entity not listed (physical or electronic).  See COPYRIGHT PAGE for more details.

“The Lord is in His Holy Temple!”

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“But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him,” Habakkuk 2:20

Through the many tragedies that unfold in this life and the unrest of wars and what appears to be the advancement of evil, we are left with this assurance, God is still in control. Not only is He still in control, but He remains in His proper seat of authority, ruling in His holy temple.

Sometimes it can be hard to wrap one’s mind around this concept when we see terrible things happening in the land. When our eyes witness children hurting and mothers left without any hope, it becomes hard to view the world through another possibility. When we see fathers in despair, feeling helpless to lead and feed their families. When we see evil trying to claw its way to the top, we are reminded in the Word that through it all, God is still there, never to be moved or usurped, never to be replaced or shaken from His seat of power and supremacy.

Oh, we watch the world as men set the idols of their hearts up. We watch as we see them deepen their dependency on the things that will never satisfy the hungering soul. But through it all, we look to His Majesty. The King is on the throne. O earth, be still before Him and honor His presence.

This is a comfort to the soul who cannot find comfort anywhere else. Is this not a blessed place to be? For if one found comfort among the false and depraved, would they not also think as other men? Take comfort, O soul, in your God who is always present. The head of all principality and power still bears the crown obtained for the salvation and deliverance of mankind. He that holds that holy scepter, and Himself is the Scepter that rises out of Israel (Num. 24:17), remains in control, and is worthy of your trust and honor.

O earth, “Be silence before Him.” O false ways, your arrogance will one day bow before Him, and you will not be able to utter a word against His rule. “The LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment” (Ps. 9:7).

Therefore, be at peace, he that trusts in the rule of his sovereign King. Allow your soul this holy rest for, “The LORD is King forever and ever…” (Ps. 10:16a). And for all the rest, hush and quiet your ways before Him before it is too late, for “the heathen are perished out of his land,” (Ps. 10:16b). But, “the LORD is in His holy temple” forever to reign.

“The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all,” Psalm 103:19

Copyright © Word For Life Says.com (Sharing any posts or lessons can only be done through the share buttons provided on this site from the original posts, lessons, and articles only. You can reblog from the original posts only using the reblog button provided, or share using the share buttons provided from these social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, etc., and they must be shared from the original posts only. All other repostings are prohibited. Posts and other items of interest found on this site MAY NOT BE COPIED AND PASTED, downloaded, uploaded, etc to another website or entity not listed (physical or electronic).  See COPYRIGHT PAGE for more details. 

“Prosperity Belongs to God”

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“The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build,”
Nehemiah 2:20

You have felt that burden in your heart or that niggling of the mind.  The pull or the call to step out in faith to take on a new project, yet the enemy has thrown disturbing thoughts your way thinking to frustrate what God is pulling you to do.

Nehemiah felt such a burden from God.  He received word that the people in Jerusalem were in distress and the walls were broken and the gates burned, (Neh. 1:3).  What could he possibly do all the way in Shushan?  The Bible tells us he fasted and prayed and confessed the wrongs of his people before God, (Neh. 1:4).  Then, God gave an opportunity for King Artaxerxes to take notice of his plight and support the project that had burdened his heart.

Arriving in the area of Jerusalem with letters from the king should have made things easy for Nehemiah.  But, the plain and simple truth is there are those who don’t want to see God’s people blessed.  There are those who don’t want to see God’s people prosper and favored.  This is what Nehemiah faced.  Nehemiah 2:10 tells us this of his enemies, “They were deeply disturbed that a man came to seek the well-being of the children of Israel.”

As soon as the work began and they took steps toward the goal of their heart, their enemies laughed at them and despised them and put accusations against them, (Neh. 2:19).  But, Nehemiah’s response was one of total faith and reliance upon God.  He said, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build,” (Neh. 2:20).

Know this, anytime God lays a burden on your heart to do something for Him, there will always be enemies that try to stop the plan of God in you.  Sometimes it could even be just our own doubts and insecurities about our own ability to get the job done.  But, if God called you to it, He will see you through it.  Prosperity belongs to God!  All He has ever asked us to do is to step out in faith and do the work and depend on Him to increase it and cause it to grow.  No human on this earth has any say so about what God is doing in your life!

Be blessed, my friends, as you move where God is leading you!

Copyright © Word For Life Says.com (Sharing any posts or lessons can only be done through the share buttons provided on this site from the original posts, lessons, and articles only. You can reblog from the original posts only using the reblog button provided, or share using the share buttons provided from these social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest, etc., and they must be shared from the original posts only. All other repostings are prohibited. Posts and other items of interest found on this site MAY NOT BE COPIED AND PASTED, downloaded, uploaded, etc to another website or entity not listed (physical or electronic).  See COPYRIGHT PAGE for more details.

“490 Acts of Love!”

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“Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven,”
Matthew 18:22

Gulp!  Yes, forgiveness in any form can be a hard pill to swallow.  But, let me ask you this.  How many times has God ever said no to us whenever we sought healing and restoration for the wrongs we have done?  Exactly, He hasn’t!

Forgiveness, much like love, is nothing to be played with.  It is not a lip service to please others rather, it is a heart service to the Lord.  It is, in a sense, showing to others the same grace and mercy that God showed toward us.

Immediately following this verse, so that there were no misconceptions about the seriousness of this point that He was making, Jesus sealed it with a story of one who showed mercy and offered forgiveness and one who didn’t:

 “Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.

 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.

 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.

But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.

 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.

 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.

 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:

 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?

And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.

So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.” – Matthew 18:23-25

The seriousness of it all really comes to light when Jesus opens up the parable and comparing it to the kingdom of heaven.  Now, why did He go and do that?  Because the story He is about to tell so resembles what occurs in the spiritual realm that it would be easy for the people to relate to.

What would happen if today God sat down and “took account” of all the wrongs we have done?  What would it be like if we stood before Him unable to pay what we owe?  We were there!  Jesus knew the predicament that humanity was in.  He knew that man could never get himself out of the debt of sin, so here He stresses grace, mercy and compassion on those who don’t deserve it.

How often have we withheld those three precious gifts from another because our feelings were hurt?  Believe it or not, it’s the same thing.  We may not have choked out a man, demanding retribution, but if we are withholding the same mercies that God showed us then we are choking that man or woman spiritually and emotionally.

“But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses,” (Matthew 6:15).  God will not allow us to act like that unjust servant.  Love has compelled Him to shower us with love, at all cost to save us, just so that He could forgive us and restore us.  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life,” (John 3:16).

It was an act of love.  An act of love that we now have the responsibility to pay it forward to another.  No, people may not deserve it.  But, then again, neither did we.  It was only through the eyes of a merciful God that we are given another chance.

Tell me, who in your life deserves that second or third or whatever the number may be, chance today?  Forgiveness IS NOT EASY!  But, it is an “Act of Love.”

490, of course, is not a definite number.  It’s a symbol that we are to be unlimited in our willingness to forgive the offence of others against us.  It is the same love; the same “Act of Love” that God showed us.  We have been loved to the point of forgiveness and we called to love in the same way.

The Bible tells us, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,” (Romans 5:8, KJV).  I guarantee, if we were to look at ourselves, we could not fathom how many times our accounts would have gone unpaid had it not been for the blood of Christ.  More than 490 times?  But, thank God, He acted in love to save to us!