Today's Godly Reminder - Psalm 34:18

Have you been brokenhearted, recently or before? Here's the good news for the brokenhearted, God is near to you. He hears your disappointment and cries. He will wipe away your tears. He knows what you are going through. Surrender your broken heart to the Lord, and He will exchange it with a new one.

The Daily Grace - A Matter of Love

"Where intellect and emotion clash, the heart often has the greater wisdom," wrote the authors of A General Theory of Love. In the past, they say, people believed that the mind should rule the heart, but science has now discovered the opposite to be true. "Who we are and who we become depends, in part, on whom we love"

Those familiar with Scripture recognize this as an ancient truth, not a new discovery. The most important commandment God gave to His people gives the heart the prominent place. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength" (Deut. 6:5). Not until the gospels of Mark and Luke do we learn that Jesus added the word mind (Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27). So, what scientists are just now discovering, the Bible taught all along.

Those of us who follow Christ also know the importance of who we love. When we obey the greatest commandment and make God the object of our love, we can be assured of having a purpose that transcends anything we could imagine or our strength could achieve. When our desire for God dominates our hearts, our minds will stay focused on ways to serve Him, and our actions will further His kingdom on earth and in heaven. "Count as lost each day you have not used in loving God", as Brother Lawrence said. Spread the love today!

Today We Pray

Dear Lord, we long to make You the supreme desire of our heart. As You taught Your disciples to pray, so too we ask You to teach us how to love. Guide us today as we celebrate love.

You have commanded us to love one another, this I know without a doubt. And yet all day I am filled with judgments, with resentments, with anger that sneaks in and grabs me when I am not paying attention to You. I pray dear God, that You will soften my heart to my fellow humans, no matter how sinfully they may act, and leave the judging to You, as You have commanded.

Fill me with acceptance in place of judgment, sympathy in place of anger, faith in place of resentment. For my judgments and anger are the creatures of pride. May I do thy will this day, in the name of Christ I pray.

Amen

Today's Godly Reminder - Deuteronomy 6:5

To love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and strength is the greatest commandment of all. Since God is the author of love, we must also love Him completely. God sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to save us from our sins. And, that is the greatest gift of love that He did for us, amazing indeed! He sacrificed for us to be forgiven and free from unrighteousness. What an amazing love that the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords had shown to us. Invite God into your hearts now and feel His unconditional love for us.

The Daily Grace - Ice Flowers

Fifteen-year-old Wilson Bentley was captivated by the intricate beauty of snowflakes. He looked with fascination through an old microscope his mother had given him and made hundreds of sketches of their remarkable designs, but they melted too quickly to adequately capture their detail. Several years later, in 1885, he had an idea. He attached a bellows camera to the microscope and, after much trial and error, took his first picture of a snowflake. During his lifetime Bentley would capture 5,000 snowflake images and each one was a unique design. He described them a "tiny miracles of beauty" and "ice flowers".

No two snowflakes are alike, yet all come from the same source. So it is with followers of Christ. We all come from the same Creator and Redeemer, yet we are all different. In God's glorious plan He has chosen to bring a variety of people together into a unified whole, and He has gifted us in various ways. In describing the diversity of gifts to believers, Paul writes: "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work" (1 Cor. 12:4-6). Thank God for the unique contribution you can offer as you help and serve others. Each person is a unique expression of God's loving design.

Today We Pray

Dear God, You called Your church to be united in faith. By Your grace, You have given us new life in Jesus Christ, and by Your Spirit You have called us to proclaim his name throughout the nations. Awaken in me such a love for You and Your world that I may so boldly proclaim Jesus Christ by word and deed that all people may come to know him as Savior and follow Him as Lord.

Create and make in me a new and contrite heart. May I begin this season of fasting and remembrance of Your suffering, by truly lamenting my sins and acknowledging my wretchedness. I pray for the grace of Christ, that I may obtain of You, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness of all the sins of this life.

May the Passion of Christ be ever in my heart. May Your law and Your goodness guide my every thought, O Lord. And may the power of Your Holy Spirit flow through my words and my actions today, and always.

Amen

Today's Godly Reminder - Romans 12:2

As a Christian, let us be the salt and light into this world. We all know that the world is full of ungodly things. In this kind of environment, let us be the light that shine through them. Let Jesus be seen in our lives. Ask God to change the way you think. When He changed it, then you will know His will for you that is perfect.