Saturday's Stop and Reflect ~ Psalms 1

This Week's Scripture July 29 - August 4, 2012




Nuggets of Reflection:

• God hand-picked us to be His chosen generation.
• We are His own special people.
• We must always proclaim His praises. Through and by the blood of Jesus, God was able to call us out of darkness and into the marvelous light.
• Remember who you are in God's eyes and don't allow the devil try to tell you anything different..
• God called us by name to partake in His Kingdom blessings.

Psalms 1

Blessed is the man Who walks
not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree planted by the
rivers of water, that brings forth its
fruit in its season, whose leaf also

shall not wither; And whatever he does
shall prosper. The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the
wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly
shall not stand in the judgment,

Nor sinners in the congregation
of the righteous. For the Lord knows
the way of the righteous, But the
way of the ungodly shall perish.

Feel Free Friday ~ BELIEVE who you are in Jesus

Well, you made it to Friday!! Hallelujah....Whoop whoop!! If you had one of those weeks where wish that Calgon would just take you away, well I pray and hope next week will be better.



Today's Feel Free Friday is short and sweet. And that is, Feel Free to BELIEVE!! Believe who God said you are in Christ Jesus. Believe that He called you by name. BELIEVE that He hand-picked you to be part of a chosen generation. BELIEVE that you are royalty.....a royal priesthood.



BELIEVE that you are a member of a holy nation. BELIEVE you are special to Him. And BELIEVE you are fearfully and wonderfully made. God doesn't make mistakes. Therefore, Him choosing you to partake in the blessings of His Heavenly Kingdom...is not!!

Quench Your Thirst Thursday ~ We Have Overcome!!

I love Quench Your Thirst Thursday!! I love singing and listening songs that lift up the name of Jesus and express the excellence and goodness of God. Not only can you sing the words, You can pray the words. God is so awesome and so amazing. Because God is so many things...Our Protector....Our Healer....Our Rock.....Our fortess, we don't have to see the end of our situation to know that We Have Overcome! If God is for us, who can be against us?



And since we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and His special people, we have every authority in the name of Jesus to proclaim His praises and declare that WE HAVE OVERCOME!! So without further ado, today's song for Quench Your Thirst Thursday is "We Have Overcome," by Israel Houghton and New Breed. Enjoy!!








We Have Overcome
Thanks be to GOD
Who always causes us to triumph in this day
Thanks be to GOD who always causes us to win, Yeah!
Thanks be to GOD
Who always causes us to triumph in this day
Thanks be to GOD, Thanks be to GOD

(Chorus)
We have overcome
Halleluiah, Halleluiah
We have overcome
By the power of your name
Jesus you're the one
Halleluiah, Halleluiah

The one who made a way for
us to triumph in this day


We have the victory
Everything will be
Alright, alright

Picture by: Nike Musing via Toia on Pinterest

Wisdom Word Wednesday ~ Praise

Happy Hump Day!! You are "Amost there!!"....one of my favorite songs from "The Princess and the Frog. Today, Wisdom Word Wednesday is about being wise enough to PRAISE. "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;" (1 Peter 2:9).



The first part of this scripture not only tells you that were chosen by God and who you are in Christ Jesus, but why. And that reason is to proclaim the PRAISES of God who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Before accepting Jesus into our hearts, we were blind, trapped in utter darkness. When we came to our senses long enough to realize that we cannot do anything without Jesus and needed Him so desperately, the blinders were lifted. We began to see the light. We became FREE to SEE the truth in the name of Jesus.  Just knowing that is enough to give God the praise!!



Praise means giving the offering of grateful homage in words or song, as an act of worship. I love to God in words and in song. Praises to God is a way we can express His excellence and goodness. As we grow in our praise and worship in God, we will begin to experience more of God's kingdom power in His presence.



Praises is, also, a simple way to tell God.."Thank You!". Thank you for sacrificing Your Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for my sins. Thank You, God for calling me by name and adopting me into Your family. Thank You, God for being my all in all. So, go ahead and give God the praises for all that He has done for you and for what He has planned in your life. Hallelujah in the name of Jesus!!

Tuesday's Prayer ~ Thank You Heavenly Father

My Dearest Heavenly Father,


Oh, how blessed am I to have You as the head of my life. You are the author and finisher of faith. I put my trust in You. I live, move, and have my being in You, oh Lord. Please continue to show and teach me Your ways. I pray that you order my footsteps in the way you will have me to go. When I am down, You pick me up. When I am weak, You give me joy to renew my strength. When I am in despair, You are my comforter. When I don't know what to do, You are my Wonderful Counselor. You are all these things to me and more. Knowing that I have all these divine atrributes in You, there is no way You will ever steer me wrong. You steer me out of my messes to be a message. And I thank You Father in the name of Jesus.


You know everything about me; And yet, You saw fit to choose me to be part of Your royal priesthood and Your holy nation. I am part of Your own special people. Thank You, God for seeing me worthy enough to have called me by name. I ask for forgiveness for all the times I have not live up to Your standards. I aim live a life that is pleasing in Your sight. I know I am a work in progress. So, continue to work on me in the name of Jesus.


I refuse to be defeated by satan's tactics. Everytime the devil tries to break me down, I will stand in the name of Jesus. I will cry out Your name. You will incline Your ear to me and answer me in the midst of my troubles. There is no one like You, oh God. You are the King of kings and the Lord of lords. You are Hosanna in the Highest. A thousand tongues are not remotely enought to give You all the praise, honor, and glory due to You. Because You are an awesome and mighty God. You will reign forever. And I consider it to be an honor and privilege to be part of Your Heavenly Kingdom. I give You all the praise, all the glory in the mighty name, of Your Son, my Saviour, Jesus. Amen.

Manic Monday ~ Chosen and Called

First, let me start by saying, "Happy Manic Monday!". My monday has been a bit crazy or should I say a little bit.........manic. But, it's funny how the devil tries to distract you or send big potholes your way just to get you all rattled up on the inside. However, I am here to tell the devil he cannot rattle God's children. We have the peace of God living on the inside of us. And because of God's peace, we have every authority in the name of Jesus to crush satan like a soda can.  "And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen," (Romans 16:20).    Amen to that!!


Now moving on, this week's theme is based on 1 Peter 2:9, "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light". If by any chance you are experiencing an identity crisis as far as knowing who you are to God, this is one of many scriptures you should read on daily basis.  We are going to fous on two words: CHOSEN and CALLED.




chosen ~ [greek word: eklektos; #1588] - to pick, gather; the word designates one picked out among the larger group for special service and privileges.


We have been chosen, hand-picked, by God to be part of a generation that is of a royal priesthood, a holy nation populated with His own special people. In additon to that, we were chosen to be recipients of God's unmerited favor. Hallelujah! We were, also, chosen to be represenatives of Jesus Christ and to be a reflection of God's glory.



"For you are a holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth." (Deuteronomy 7:6)


Holy doesn't mean we are perfect or better than anyone else. It means that because we made the divine choice to enter into a personal relationship with God, He has set us apart for His very own purpose. We are His holy nation that is supposed to stand out from the world, whereas people can see that there is something different about us. And the more we reflect God's glory and the love of Jesus in our hearts, the more other people will become curious on a how (they, too) can become a citizen of a holy nation. Amen and Amen!!



called ~ [greek word:kaleo; Strong's #2564] - to invite or to summon, and is especially used of God's call to participate in the blessings of the kingdom.


From this definition, I understand that not only has God chose us, but He CALLED us to participate in the blessings of His kingdom. Three of those many blessings are being free from bondage (darkness), walking in the light of freedom and receiving a new life through the blood of Jesus. God called us from death to life. Another great thing is that since we have been called out of darkness, we are no longer slaves to sin, but slaves of righteousness. Sin has no more authority in our lives by the power of the Holy Spirit and in the name of Jesus!! Can I please get a "Hallelujah!" on that one.



"Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:11)



"But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness." (Romans 6:17-18)



We have only began to scratch the surface of our theme for this week. I cannot wait to see what God has in store for us and how He plans to bless us in His holy and matchless word. Amen.

Scriptures References to 1 Peter 2:9
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to [His] purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified," (Romans 8:28-30).

"God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.", (1 Corinthians 1:9).

"In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,"(Ephesians 1:11).

"But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ,"(2 Thessalonians 2:13-14).

"And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance,"(Hebrews 9:15).

Sunday's Scripture Reading ~ 1 Peter 2:9

It's time for another Sunday Scripture Reading. As always, I hoped and prayed that everyone had a great weekend. Yesterday, a few girlfriends and I celebrated a dear friend's, more like a sister's, birthday. We went to Outback Steakhouse. By the way, they make a mean potato soup. Delicious!! We had a blast. We laughed until our stomach hurts. It's a blessing that we can get together and have fun. We love doing life together. Happy Birthday, Francesca!! Love ya!!




 Happy Birthday, Fran, Fran!!



This is the scrumptuous potato soup. Mmmm...Mmmm...good!!


Now, as for today's scripture reading, our theme for the week will be based on 1 Peter 2:9.




"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;" (1 Peter 2:9)


It's a blessing to know that God chose me way before I even thought about chosing Him to be my Heavenly Father by accepting His only Son, Jesus, to be my personal Saviour. Isn't that something?? God said so Himself, when He said, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you,...," (Jeremiah 1:5). Then on top of that, God informed me that I was royalty, an heiress to the throne.


All I can say is WOW!! And give Him the praise!! So, if you are ready to dig a little deeper this week, well then away we go in the name of Jesus!!

Other Bible Translations for 1 Peter 2:9
"But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light." (nlt)


"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." (niv)


"But you are the chosen race, the King's priests, the holy nation, God's own people, chosen to proclaim the wonderful acts of God, who called you out of darkness into his own marvelous light." (gnt)



"But you are God’s chosen and special people. You are a group of royal priests and a holy nation. God has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Now you must tell all the wonderful things that he has done." (cev)


"But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a dedicated nation, God’s own purchased, special people, that you may set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfections of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (amp)