Because GOD is great…

By Sodwana Bay

Verse of the Day – 1 Chronicles 16:24 MSG Sing to GOD, everyone and everything! Get out his salvation news every day! Publish his glory among the godless nations, his wonders to all races and religions. And why? Because GOD is great—well worth praising! No god or goddess comes close in honor. All the popular gods are stuff and nonsense, but GOD made the cosmos! Splendor and majesty flow out of him, strength and joy fill his place. 1 Chronicles 16:24 MSG Read on the Bible App


Jesus, the Messiah

By Sodwana Bay

With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death. Romans 8:2 MSG


Remember Her!

By Sodwana Bay

Jesus said these words, about a woman who touched his heart… Why not share them today… with someone who’s touched your heart? Your friend, who always seems to have the best advice… Your neighbor, who’s doing a great job raising her kids… That girl you work with, who will always tell you the truth, even when it’s hard… Your sister, who knows you better than anyone — and loves you anyway… Your mom, who will always be a part of you… Your daughter, who inspires you to become a parent who is worthy of her… Your wife, because you can never say, “I love you” too many times…


We’re only fooling ourselves

By Sodwana Bay

He won’t let us down… If we lay down our lives which is filled with sin – He can do His part and tip the bin. If our sin has been forgiven – already – why are we living sinful lives? Our debt have been paid in full!!! If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. If we claim that we’ve never sinned, we out-and-out contradict God—make a liar out of him. A claim like that only shows off our ignorance of God. 1 John 1:9 MSG


Ready to Go? Let’s Go.

By Sodwana Bay

Be ready for it! For I am ready . . . even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus—Acts 21:13 When we follow him, God will—sooner or later—ask us to do something we don’t want to do, to go someplace we don’t want to go. Maybe his “ask” will come through a nudge or as a thought in prayer. Maybe it will come as a prompt while reading Scripture. Maybe through the encouraging or challenging words of a friend. However it comes, it will come. After visiting Ephesus and Macedonia, the Apostle Paul got an “ask” from God the Holy Spirit to go on to Jerusalem (Acts 19:21). The Spirit warned him, however: if he went there, he’d be arrested. Paul’s friends begged him not to go. Paul answered: “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 21:13). For us to become the men we were created to become, for us to become the men the world needs us to become, we must act with the same boldness and confidence. Paul was bold and confident because he trusted two things: God’s in charge and God’s good. We must trust those too. For they allow us, like Paul, to trust one thing more: our affirmative answers to God’s “asks” are ultimately good for us, good for others, and good for God’s Kingdom . . . and will very likely become the proudest moments of our lives. Indeed, these “asks” lead us into the very adventures for which we were created. Okay, so what do we do? What do you feel God might be asking of you, right now? Is there anything you just know he’s prompting you, quietly, to do? If so, resolve to trust him. And today take a practical and measurable step—bold and confident—toward that thing.


Begin to Pull it All Together

By Sodwana Bay

. . . ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you—Luke 11:9 You can move, brother, into “an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you” (Ephesians 4:20-24 MSG). We can all be remade into new selves, true selves—but God won’t force change upon us. He wants us to ask and listen and learn and work with him. He wants us to do so continually, because he also won’t reveal those true selves all at once. Rather, he’ll teach. He’ll guide. And he’ll reveal identity iteratively, in a progression, in a process that builds on itself throughout our lives. How this actually happens will be different for each of us. We’re new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17). But, we’re unique creations too (1 Corinthians 12:14-26). So, when God gives us something, just for us, when he allows us to discover something about ourselves, we’ve got to treat those things with extraordinary care. We mustn’t allow them to be lost or forgotten in the rush and charge of life. We must collect and revisit them—so we can always have the best, most complete picture possible of who we really are and whom we’re really meant to become. Okay, so what do we do? Get a notebook or create a document, one dedicated to this purpose. Record what God’s revealed already. Recall moments when you just knew he was speaking—maybe a trusted friend pointed out something true about you; or the story of a particular person in the Bible stood out from all the rest; or you sensed God showing you something about yourself, in prayer. Collect and compile these things. Add more as you get more. Protect and preserve them, so you can return to them . . . and return and return and return. If these words impacted you today, send them on! Share them below: