Thursday, July 18, 2013

God Rejoices In You

Hey Friend,

Do you ever get so worn down that you just need a good ole dose of lovin'?  And, not the kind of love that says, "I'll love you when..." or "I'll love you if...".

Let me share with you a birthday card that always sits on the table beside me where I do my writing.  It was given to me by a wonderful friend who knows I struggle at times with truly believing that God loves me...period.  No strings attached.

It reads:  God Rejoices In You

The Lord your God is with you...He will take great delight in you.  He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.  (Zephaniah 3:17)

(The cover of the card is filled with sparkly pink cupcakes with candles in them- how girly and yummy is that?)

Inside it goes on:  Not once upon a time, but all of the time...God rejoices in your life.  He believes in you...watches over you...and tenderly keeps you in His constant care.

You are valued and loved, not only by those who know you, but by the one who created you!  Happy Birthday! (thank you DaySpring cards).

I love the word "delight"!  When was the last time someone truly delighted in you?  Not for what you did or accomplished, but simply because you were you?
We are human and we put conditions on our love for people.  Everyone we know, including our closest family, will forsake us at some point in our lives.  Not so with God.  He is capable of pure unconditional love.

I am a very emotional and "feelings" oriented person.  I admit I have struggled with a vision of God who is emotional to the point that he would gush over me with love, delight and singing.  I can picture Jesus doing that...after all he was the one who sought after lost sheep and performed compassionate miracles of healing.  He was tender and loving toward little children. But God?

He's capable of plagues and who has not heard of "the wrath of God"?  But, Jesus says it himself in John 14:9. "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father."  Jesus is God in human flesh - fully human, yet fully God.  When I look at Jesus, I am staring straight into the eyes of my Heavenly Father. 

This is the God who so loved me, that he sent His only Son to the cross because He couldn't bear to live without Me...God sent his own son so that He could adopt me, little old me, as His very own child. 

Instead, you received God's Spirit when he adopted you as his own children.  Now we call him, "Abba, Father."  (Romans 8:15)

Abba translated means "Daddy".  Because of what Christ did for me, I can now call God, Daddy.  I've always wanted to be "Daddy's little girl", and because of what Christ did for me, I now am.  The bond is forever and nothing can ever separate me from my Daddy.  I am worthy! I am loved unconditionally!

"...Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."  (Romans 8:39)

Have you ever stood beneath a mountain waterfall?  I have, and it is the most wonderful feeling having the pure, fresh, life giving water gushing over you.  The water has no end...it just keeps on coming...drenching me, enveloping me, soaking me...

That's how I envision God's great love for me.  A love without end.  I invite you, if you never have, to accept God's offer of adoption.  It doesn't have to be all flowery and profound, but a simple prayer that invites Christ to come into your heart and be the Lord of your life.  A prayer that says, "I accept your act of unconditional love, by which Jesus took my sins upon himself so that I will never have to be separated from you, my Abba Daddy."

Then run and fall into the arms of your Father, your Abba, your Daddy and let him rejoice over you with singing.  Let him delight in You!

Love,

Bev

16 comments:

  1. Zephaniah 3:17 is one of my favorites! Thanks for helping me slow down and think about it again today.

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  2. Kristin,
    This is one verse I could meditate on all day long! It never gets old for me! Thanks for stopping by. Blessings, Bev

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  3. Oh dear friend! I simply want to rest here for a while. I too love the word delight and love thinking about how he delights in me. Me? Why me? But He does and this bring such amazing comfort. I loved when my son recently shared how he is delightful. Just out of the blue (I could write about that next week!). He isn't a Christ follower but oh how I know God delights in him.
    As you share about standing underneath a waterfall, I can't help but to think about this coming Sunday and being baptized. I've got goosebumps!
    Love you girl. (((hugs)))
    Beth

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    1. Beth,
      I will be thinking about you and praying for you as you are baptized...what a celebration!! So wish I could be there with you. Just soak in His delight in YOU!!
      Love and ((hugs))
      Bev

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  4. Just beautiful, Bev, as always! Heart-healing, delight-giving words. Thank you!

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    1. Thanks, Kristen, for your constant encouragement - you keep me going some days!! Love, Bev

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  5. Such a good message! A few months ago I got a birthday card in the mail from a friend. It wasn't my birthday but she thought the message in the card was perfect anyway. I was so blessed! And God loves me so much more! Blessings to you! Love, Rachael @ Inking the Heart

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  6. Rachael,
    Our good friends give us a glimpse into God's great love for us! You are blessed to have such a good friend and if our friends can love us that much, how much more can our Father in Heaven love us!! Blessings girl, Bev

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  7. Such a good read Bev! I could not agree more the visual of picturing Jesus is so much easier than picturing God gushing over us. The analogy of the mountain waterfall is such a beautiful image; portraying such a powerful message. I will rest on this today; "Then run and fall into the arms of your Father, your Abba, your Daddy and let him rejoice over you with singing." Blessings friend~Jenny

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    1. Jenny,
      Hope that you have enjoyed resting in the arms of your Abba today and feeling his love gush over you?! Thanks for stopping by! Blessings back to you, Bev

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  8. Bev, your words were what my heart so needed today...thank you! I have always had a hard time "accepting" love...I give it well (at least I try to!) but struggle receiving it. And I'm very much like you...wondering how God could possibly delight in me. Thank you for the beautiful reminder that He really does pour a waterfall of love over me. Happy Tuesday to you, sweet sister! :)

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    1. God DOES delight in you and would have you receive, receive, receive his wondrous love! We'll work on the receiving as well as the giving of love together dear sister. Always, Bev

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  9. Dear Bev
    There was a time when I battled with the same thing. Our Pappa blessed me with a little book by Wayne Jacobsen, He Loves Me. After I read that, I just knew how much I was loved! I even downloaded it later on for free from the Internet and every time I started doubting, I just re-read certain chapters of the book. I don't have that problem anymore.
    Blessings XX
    Mia

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    1. Mia,
      What a wonderful book to have been given. I will have to check that out! It's great to have something so precious to turn to when the doubts start creeping in! Blessings sister, Bev XX

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  10. Love the waterfall analogy. And doesn't the Bible say that Jesus' voice is like the sound of rushing water? Chills!

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    1. Jane,
      I could listen to the sound of rushing water and stand beneath it all day long...like Jesus it is so inviting! Thanks for sharing! Blessings, Bev

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