FoR My DoGGiE

JUST MY DOG

He is my other eyes that can see above

the clouds; my other ears that hear above

the winds. He is the part of me that can

reach out into the sea.

He has told me a thousand times over that

I am his reason for being: by the way he

rests against my leg; by the way he thumps

his tail at my smallest smile; by the way he

shows his hurt when I leave without taking him.

(I think it makes him sick with worry when he

is not along to care for me.)

When I am wrong, he is delighted to forgive.

When I am angry, he clowns to make me smile.

When I am happy, he is joy unbounded.

When I am a fool, he ignores it.

When I succeed, he brags.

Without him, I am only another man. With him,

I am all-powerful.

He is loyalty itself.

He has taught me the meaning of devotion.

With him, I know a secret comfort and a 

private peace. He has brought me understanding

where before I was ignorant.

His head on my knee can heal my human hurts.

His presence by my side is protection against

my fears of dark and unknown things.

He has promised to wait for me...

whenever...wherever--in case I need him. 

And I expect I will--as I always have.

He is just my dog

FoR YoU

ByE for NoW!!!

Hey Beautiful People!!

I just want to let you know that i will not be posting 

anything within the next week, i am going on an 

outreach to Mozambique until the 2nd of July.

Blog you all after that ;)

Lots and Lots of Jesus love: Jay * * *

Symbol Guide to understand a few posts

 = Ponder/Wrestle/Seek.

 = Don't let your brain get in the way.

 = See with your spiritual eyes.

 = Jesus' love, compassion.

 = Shocking! Did God/Jesus or the author really mean/say 

that?

 = Be of good cheer. It's okay.

Mission Possible

Mission Possible

We're in a battle brothers and sisters and we need to fight the good fight.

The battle is not for our salvation. If you have a personal relationship with Christ you've already been given salvation. And the battle isn't for the completed work of our sanctification. Jesus has promised to complete the work He began in us. We don't do it - we're branches and He is the vine. Apart from Jesus we can do nothing. 

So then, if Jesus does it all - saving us and sanctifying us - what is the battle about? What are we fighting for? 

The battle is letting Christ mature us (surrender) sooner rather than later, for the sake of the Kingdom. It's a spiritual battle to allow Christ to reign in us; to submit to who Christ is uniquely in each us for such a time as this. Jesus already won the War, but He desires to passionately love others through us now. His motivation and urgency is love.

The Mission

Soldiers in the middle of a high-intensity battle don't spend their time and energy focusing on themselves, for if they do, their mission is compromised and a fellow soldier may be wounded or killed. They are trained to focus on the mission. Satan's objective is to keep our hearts and eyes on ourselves and worldly desires to compromise The Mission. 

So, what is The Mission? The Mission is to love one another. We're called to love one another and those who don't know Jesus with Christ-like love (selfless, graceful, merciful, humble) and to spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Each of us in the body of Christ have been given gifts and talents and many of you are clear as well about an assignment God has given you - much like each soldier in the armed forces has a specific assignment. Our  Mission is to love God and love one another. Assignments are secondary. We can be frustrated and allow anxiety into our lives by focusing on assignments while not being clear and mature about The Mission. Keep your eyes and hearts on The Mission.

The Church isn't fighting well as a unit. We too often focus on our assignments at the expense of The Mission. We're not fighting for one another to the best of our ability. We often leave our wounded comrades behind while we take care of our assignments. Sometimes we don't even notice our hurting comrades, or we're afraid to enter in to their pain or messy circumstances. There are times we even rub our spiritual salt into their wounds. Often, we spend energy guarding our assignments so we can make sure we get our due credit. This is not the way to fight the good fight. If we're struggling to love our spiritual brothers and sisters in an attitude of humility and selflessness, then how do we love those outside the Faith? Our Mission is to love one another and those who don't know Jesus with passion, grace and mercy SO THAT the world can see and experience Christ-like love.

A bumper sticker says "Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven". True enough; but we could have much more impact for the Kingdom of God (The Mission) if, in humility, we demonstrated Jesus rather than parading our Christian slogans. They will know we are Christians by our love. God's power is made perfect (manifested) in our weakness. The more surrendered we are to each other and to God, the more The Mission is accomplished.

This doesn't work unless our desires and passions are for The Mission. If our energy, time, and resources are more focused on what we can get from one another (marriage, employment, Christian service, etc.), or from the world (cars, houses, blessings, etc.) we end up being distracted from The Mission and that is what satan is up to. Keeping our eyes on The Mission helps us love each other with encouragement in the midst of the battle. Sports teams that suffer from individualism implode on themselves and rarely reach the pinnacle of their sport, even with great talent. Many a team have reached the greatest heights with few superstars simply by deferring to one another and playing as a team. As we  honestly surrender our lives to Jesus our hearts are changed and our desires are changed toward love and the Kingdom and less about ourselves.

If you're not experiencing that deep and passionate desire for the Kingdom, and you want it, be honest about it with yourself and with God. Then, ask God to give you His desires. Be persistent. He wants to know that you really want Him and his desires. Wait and be ready to receive. You'll begin to experience the abundant life Jesus promised - a life filled with Him and loving in Him.

The Weapons We Fight With

The Weapons We Fight With

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.2 Corinthians 10:4

What are the weapons of the world?

The world fights with with weapons crafted for worldly battles. Victory in the world is defined by winning; beating the competition; dog-eat-dog. The most obvious example is the business world. But more subtle and destructive to our souls are demonic spiritual weapons: self-interest, pride, greed, control, anger, jealousy, power, justice, religion. Maybe you've not thought of these as weapons, but the enemy uses them skillfully and deceives us into using them as well. 

It's important to understand that as our relationship with Christ matures the enemy has to get more creative and subtle in ways to deceive us. More and more he uses our "righteousness" against us by deceiving us into believing that good and righteous thoughts, acts and virtues are more important than people. Good and righteous thoughts, acts and virtues are important! That's the point. What the enemy does is twist the truth and try to make us believe they are the most important. When we begin believing this, our righteousness begins to turn into religion and not love. Love is selfless.

Our defensive stance

Some view Ephesians 6 (putting on our armor) as our weapons. I believe the Apostle Paul is describing a defensive posture. Notice how often he exhorts us to stand or put something on:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. Ephesians 6:10-18

Scripture assures us of our identity in Christ: we're born again, we're a new creation in Christ Jesus, the old has gone the new is here, we are now seated with Christ in the heavenly realms, etc., etc. Over and over God is telling uswe are not of this world. We are spiritual beings living in an earthly tent. We are still tempted to live out of that old flesh nature but, nonetheless, we are new in the Spirit of Christ. Believing who we are in Christ  and standing in it firmly is not passive. It's an active, powerful and protective stance.

What are our weapons?

Our weapons are offensive and powerful. They're offensive in that they demolish the enemies weapons. See our weapons compared to the enemy's:

Worldly Weapons	Weapons in Christ
Self-interest / Entitlement	Selflessness / The last shall be first
Idolatry (possessions, people, position first)	Love God, trust God first
Pride	Humility
Greed	Giving / Trust
Control	Trust / Freedom
Revenge	Forgiveness
Jealousy	Trusting God's love
Fear	Faith
Power	Submission / Lay life down
Justice	Grace / Mercy / Forgiveness
Religion	Relationship
Confusion / Deception (focus is on stuff or inward)	Seeking God / Confession (focus on God - get in the light)
Judgment	Kindness
Saving face	Humiliation
Guilt / Condemnation	Confession / Accept grace
Rejection / Abandonment	God's unconditional love

Does this look like a list you or I would come up with if we were going to battle? Submission? Humiliation? Forgiveness? Confession? It looks curiously...passive, but these are the weapons our Lord Jesus used to defeat Satan. Note: Jesus was never guilty of anything, but he felt guilt and condemnation.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Hebrews 4:15

These weapons will give us victory as well. When we actively employ them they demolish strongholds and bring freedom. The key is being alert to the temptations to use worldly weapons, and choosing our weapons instead. Now, we can't do this. Apart from Christ we can do nothing. We need Christ in us to do it which means asking Him to do it in us and being willing when he says "submit", or "let it go", or "forgive", etc. Our battle is not fighting with our might to do the right thing. Our battle is in surrendering to Jesus who lives in us. This is the narrow road that Jesus modeled for us. It's very important that we know experientially, deep in our being, our identity in Christ. When we choose to fight with worldly weapons we demonstrate unbelief in Christ in us. The basis of all sin, including shame, retaliation, hatred, control, greed, entitlement, idolatry, fear and pride is unbelief.

Satan's plan is really very simple - no matter how many ways or forms he uses, his  weapon against the believer is always a lie or a deception/distortion of our identity in Christ. To the unbeliever it's a lie or a deception/distortion of the truth of Christ. His objective is to appeal to the flesh. If he can deceive us that we are unlovable, forsaken, forgotten, or entitled, we can easily choose worldly weapons rather than divine spiritual weapons. This is what the apostle Paul was describing about taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. It's an active, moment by moment, discerning of whether a thought is from the Holy Spirit, or the devil, or our flesh.

As we allow Jesus to have His way in us, painful as it is (crucifying the flesh hurts), we begin to discover our true selves and the joy of Christ (not the same as happiness). We begin living in and with Christ, participating in the Kingdom, and winning the battles that are the most important.

Victory in Christ,Jay :)

GeT ReaDy, GeT SeT, WaiT!?

Get Ready, Get Set, Wait

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

1 Peter 1:13

Prepare

There are many scripture references encouraging us to prepare, being prepared, getting ready, or being ready. Likewise for references to wait or waiting. There are more references to these two virtues than the vast majority of other topics, including references to money, which are mentioned quite often.

But, on the contrary, as the Scripture says, What eye has not seen and ear has not heard and has not entered into the heart of man, [all that] God has prepared (made and keeps ready) for those who love Him [[a]who hold Him in affectionate reverence, promptly obeying Him and gratefully recognizing the benefits He has bestowed]. 1 Corinthians 2:9 (Amplified Bible)

In My Father's house there are many dwelling places (homes). If it were not so, I would have told you; for I am going away to prepare a place for you. John 14:2 (Amplified Bible)

[Prompted] by faith Noah, being forewarned by God concerning events of which as yet there was no visible sign, took heed and diligently and reverently constructed and prepared an ark for the deliverance of his own family. Hebrews 11:7 (Amplified Bible)

From the beginning God prepared for us. He knew each one of us before we were born. He prepared a way back to relationship with Him; He has prepared, in advance, good works for us to do; Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us. We too often think of preparing as way to get something we want – to consume. Ponder the kind of preparation God and our Lord Jesus are doing. It is all about you and me – preparations to receive us, to love us, and to provide for us. God and Jesus model for us what preparation is in the Kingdom of God: a virtue of serving.

Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.Matthew20:26-28

Since we are a new creation - alive in Christ and dead to the principles of this world, we are called to a new way of preparation that is other-focused. We need a paradigm shift - more accurately, a renewed mind from the futility of our thinking that life on this planet is about us. Our life is not our own. We were bought with a price - a sacrifice prepared in advance. Our preparation needs to be directed outward: preparing to love, preparing to give, preparing to serve, preparing to encourage, preparing to give the reason for our hope, and preparing to be with God and our Lord Jesus in our real world one day.

We are also called to prepare for jobs and careers, relationships, etc., but not simply as means to get something we want or, more dangerously, we believe we deserve (entitlement). This is not freedom in Christ and eventually can lead us into idolatry and bondage.  We prepare, in all things, to have an impact in the lives of others for the sake of Christ and the Kingdom.

Single men and women desiring to be married: prepare your minds and hearts to serve, not be served. 

Husbands and wives: prepare your minds and hearts to serve, not be served. 

Employers and employees: prepare your minds and hearts to serve, not be served.

Pastors and congregations: prepare your minds and hearts to serve, not be served.

All Christians: prepare your minds and hearts to serve the world, not to be served by the world.

Prepare as God and our Lord Jesus prepare for us.

Wait

For [even the whole] creation (all nature) waits expectantly and longs earnestly for God's sons to be made known [waits for the revealing, the disclosing of their sonship]. Romans 8:19 (Amplified Bible)

God has been persistent in telling me to wait or be patient. It's been an ongoing theme and, at most times, a thorn in my side. I remember the last time He asked me to be patient was through a prayer time with some others. I was in a very good place with God and just I laughed out loud! It just hit me as being very funny because it seemed like that was always His reply to me. I simply laughed and embraced it.

Waiting, like preparing, is a virtue. They go hand-in-hand. We are conditioned, especially in the industrialized world, that waiting is unacceptable, passive, or even weak. But waiting, in the Kingdom of God, is hard work. It requires faith, trust, perseverance, obedience, and self-control.

You will notice in the scriptures that many references to waiting are paired with words like expectantly, or eagerly, or with hope. Waiting, as a Christian, is active not passive. In waiting we prepare, we pray, we seek, we listen, we respond.

For in [this] hope we were saved. But hope [the object of] which is seen is not hope. For how can one hope for what he already sees? But if we hope for what is still unseen by us, we wait for it with patience and composure. Romans 8:24-26 (Amplified Bible)

Composure denotes peacefulness and steadfastness, not anxiety or stress. Waiting transforms us if we embrace it. If instead we constantly choose to resist, complain, and control, we forfeit growing up - gaining maturity. We stay on milk and never move on to the meat of our faith. Patience is fruit of the Spirit. We can't make fruit. Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. Our participation is surrendering our will to the will of God in Christ. This is hard work - definitely not weak or passive!

Begin to embrace waiting as a virtue that leads to being more like Jesus, and less about the object of your waiting. As opportunities arise to be patient or to wait, ask Jesus to be courage, self-control, and obedience in you. And ask Him how you are to prepare while you wait.

Is RoManCe FoR ReaL?

Is Romance for Real?

Romance isn't simply sex-appeal.

True romance are the characteristics of Christ in a man flowing out toward the woman and the characteristics of Christ flowing out of the woman toward the man. Characteristics such as sacrifice, selflessness, submission, humility, attentiveness and respect. What gets you choked up in a good love story? Usually, it's these ingredients and they are all characteristics of God and Jesus and how they romance (love) us. I understand and embrace the man/woman attraction and "chemistry" – it's good, but romance isn't sex-appeal. 

Part of the reason there are so many marriage break-ups and empty marriages within the body of Christ is that one or the other or both people really don't know, deep inside them, the romantic love of God for them.If this were so, they would be able, through Christ in them, to love one another out of an overflow of God's love. Their hearts would motivated and animated with love for the other person because of what is going on inside them and not about "what's in it for me".

Jesus Christ and his Bride (The Church) is the original romance novel! The passages in scripture about men loving their wives as Christ loves the Church (selfless, sacrificial, courageous, humble), and wives respecting and honoring their husbands are very romantic, even irresistible (hmmm...sounds like Jesus). These are not meant to be arduous "tasks" that we're just supposed to do because God says so. They ARE arduous tasks if we don't know (heart, not head) the love of God. When we finally trust God's love and embrace our masculinity and femininity we are more joyful than if we don't because we are following God's design.

Stop believing that idea of romance being simply sex-appeal and believe instead in the Romancer of your heart. When you allow God, through Jesus Christ, to romance you, you will be able to love and receive love, including masculine and feminine sexuality, in freedom. This is not to imply you won't get hurt, or rejected, or marginalized, or at times humiliated. Jesus did. What the love of God will do is transform your life into a life of joy and freedom even while enduring the pain and wounds of life. For what is impossible for man, is possible with God.

WhAT doEs YoUR LettER SaY?

What Does Your Letter Say?

Christ has written a letter on your heart.

You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 2 Corinthians 3:2-3

What an amazing thing. Just as Jesus, God incarnate, was the letter of God, the perfect representation of God, you are a letter of Christ. Jesus lives in you. This is fact if you believe who He is and have received Him.

What kind of letter are you for others to read? A love letter? A letter of resignation? A letter that's lost in the mail?

Maybe you're indifferent or you've given up, or lost hope.  Maybe church has let you down. Don't confuse imperfect human love with God's love. When you accept Jesus as Savior and Lord it's done. He is in you and He isn't going to leave you. You may walk away, but He doesn't. It's His promise. God's love is passionate, committed, and irrevocable.

Be honest with yourself and with God about your failures and sin. Confess, repent, and receive God's forgiveness. Believe it and do not believe satan's lie to the contrary. Be honest about others failures and how they have sinned against you. Take their sin against you to the cross. Don't deny your pain but forgive them, from the heart. You must forgive, maybe over and over until you're free. This is a spiritual transaction. Don't be worried about your feelings. They change later.

Now you're clean. Do you want to experience meaning and purpose and abundant life as God intends it for you? Do you desire to be the letter God created you to be? Ask God for a deeper revelation of His love for you. Ask again and again. He will deepen your love and intimacy. It's His will. Ask Him to reveal to you who you are in the Kingdom – you're unique identity in the Body of Christ. What letter of Christ am I?  Ask, seek, knock. He will show you.

If you're not in church, go. Get connected and participate. A great deal of your letter is written and read within the Body of Christ. Don't forsake meeting together.

KnoWinG GoD

Introducing Your Heavenly Father God is not distant and angry as many of the renaissance paintings portrayed Him, but is loving, kind and gentle. In fact, He is the nicest person in the universe.

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God Has Been Misrepresented To Us Over the centuries there have been many misconceptions about God and His true nature. He has been misrepresented to us by legalistic religious leaders and angry earthly fathers who have, by their lifestyles, distorted His true image.

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God is Love The bible says that God is love. Pure love. And He wants to lavish His love on you. He is not looking for more servants to add to His Kingdom but more children to fill His house. He wants to be in relationship with you, not because you deserve it but just because He made you, and is "head over heels" in love with you. It is our hope that after visiting this website, you might have a better understanding of His heart for you.

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God's Original Intent  It was God's original plan in the Garden of Eden that Adam and Eve would live all the days of their lives in the presence of a loving Father, and would in turn reflect His love to their children. It was the Father's hope that each generation would grow up in the light of His love never knowing a day of rejection or pain.

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Love Cannot Be Forced However, love is not something that can be forced so God gave Adam and Eve the privilege of a free will. They had the freedom to trust God and stay in the garden or disobey Him and leave. In Genesis we read that the latter happened and as a result of their choice to become independent, they became separated from God.

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Broken Relationships As a result of Adam and Eve's actions, a new deadly disease called 'sin' infected humanity. The world that God originally intended to be perfect and full of love, was now wrought with pain and suffering because of the consequences of sin. Hurting people tend to hurt others, which is a legacy that has been passed on from generation to generation.

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Understanding Our Need For Love Since God created us for love, we are born with a great expectation to be loved and accepted. It is a scientific fact that babies who are not shown loving touch in the first few months of their lives can be physically and emotionally affected for the rest of their lives.

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We All Have A Love Deficit Unfortunately our parents could only express the love that they had first received from their parents. As a result, many of us have grown up with love deficits in our hearts. While we may know we are missing something, we might not be able to identify the emptiness that resides in the deepest part of our being.

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Filling The Void All we know is that we need to try and fill the emptiness somehow. Some try to fill this void in relationships, others in performance and success. And others seek to dull the emptiness with addictions. No matter what we do, if we do not encounter the real thing, we will always be left with a feeling of emptiness and unfulfillment.

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Having A Personal Relationship With GodThere is only one place where we will find the true love and acceptance that we are looking for and that is in a personal relationship with God. We were all born with a God sized "hole in our soul" that can only be filled by God Himself. Many of us have tried to fill this void with other things, but it is like putting a square peg in a round hole...it just doesn't fit.

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The Good News The good news is that God wants to be in a relationship with us more than we want to be in a relationship with Him. The One who knew us before we were conceived (Jeremiah 1:4) and knit us together in our mother's womb (Psalm 139:13) wants to be our Father. While we are His offspring by creation, His desire is that we might become His children through redemption.

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Finding Our Way HomeWhile we were still estranged, God the Father made a way for us to come home by sending His only son, Jesus Christ, to earth two thousand years ago to take care of the "sin" issue that had kept us separated. In obedience to His Father, Jesus bore upon Himself the weight of our sin, nailing it to the cross so that we could be born into His wonderful family.

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Jesus Is The Way To The Father His resurrection from the dead signalled the victory that would allow many sons and daughters to come into glory! In John 14:6, Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me". Our access to the Father is through Jesus alone. His sacrifice was the one and only price that could be paid for our redemption and restoration into the family of His wonderful Father. If we receive God's gift of His Son Jesus Christ, we receive the right to become children of God!

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Would You Like To Receive This Gift? If you would like to accept this gift (eternal life in relationship with God), Jesus Christ has secured it for you. All you need to do is to tell God that you want to be saved. You are saved by believing, and the words below might help you express your thoughts to God. It's not these exact words that will save you, but the attitude of your heart towards God.

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A prayer to accept or reaffirm your relationship with Jesus Christ:Father, I'm coming home. Please make me your child. I turn from my sin. I accept your forgiveness made possible through Jesus Christ by his death and resurrection. I place my faith and trust in Jesus alone. I receive him as my Savior and Lord. I want to follow and serve you. Let today be the beginning of my new journey as your child and a member of your family. Thank you for making a way for me to come home. In Jesus name I pray Amen.

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Your New Relationship With GodAs you begin your new life as God's child, you will have the privilege of getting to know Him as your Father. You are now part of His incredible family! By faith in Jesus Christ, you can be assured of the following truths... 1.You Are God's Child - John 1:12-13 12 But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God’s children, to those who believe in his name: 13 who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (WEB) 2. God Loves You - 1 John 3:1 Behold, how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! For this cause the world doesn’t know us, because it didn’t know him. (WEB) 3. You Have The Assurance Of Eternal Life - John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. (WEB) 4. He Put His Holy Spirit In You - 2 Corinthians 1:21-21 21 Now he who establishes us with you in Christ, and anointed us, is God; 22 who also sealed us, and gave us the down payment of the Spirit in our hearts. (WEB) 5. You Can Talk Directly To God - Matthew 7:7-11 7 “Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. 8 For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or who is there among you, who, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, who will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (WEB) 6. Nothing Will Ever Separate You From His Love - Romans 8:38-39 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (WEB) Steps To Help You In Your Walk With God 1. Get a Bible and read it each day. 2. Begin to cultivate "talking to God" in prayer each day. 3. Go to a church that believes and teaches the Bible. 4. Share your decision with a close friend

An Intimate Message From God To You.

My Child, You may not know me, but I know everything about you.  Psalm 139:1 I know when you sit down and when you rise up.  Psalm 139:2 I am familiar with all your ways.  Psalm 139:3 Even the very hairs on your head are numbered.  Matthew 10:29-31 For you were made in my image.  Genesis 1:27 In me you live and move and have your being. Acts 17:28 For you are my offspring.  Acts 17:28 I knew you even before you were conceived.  Jeremiah 1:4-5 I chose you when I planned creation.  Ephesians 1:11-12 You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book.  Psalm 139:15-16 I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live.  Acts 17:26 You are fearfully and wonderfully made.  Psalm 139:14 I knit you together in your mother's womb.  Psalm 139:13 And brought you forth on the day you were born.  Psalm 71:6 I have been misrepresented by those who don't know me. John 8:41-44 I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love.  1 John 4:16 And it is my desire to lavish my love on you.  1 John 3:1 Simply because you are my child and I am your Father.  1 John 3:1 I offer you more than your earthly father ever could.  Matthew 7:11 For I am the perfect father.  Matthew 5:48 Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand.  James 1:17 For I am your provider and I meet all your needs.  Matthew 6:31-33 My plan for your future has always been filled with hope.  Jeremiah 29:11 Because I love you with an everlasting love.  Jeremiah 31:3 My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. Psalms 139:17-18 And I rejoice over you with singing.  Zephaniah 3:17 I will never stop doing good to you.  Jeremiah 32:40 For you are my treasured possession.  Exodus 19:5 I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul.  Jeremiah 32:41 And I want to show you great and marvelous things.  Jeremiah 33:3 If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me.  Deuteronomy 4:29 Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart.  Psalm 37:4 For it is I who gave you those desires.  Philippians 2:13 I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine.  Ephesians 3:20 For I am your greatest encourager.  2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles.  2 Corinthians 1:3-4 When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you.  Psalm 34:18 As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart.  Isaiah 40:11 One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes.  Revelation 21:3-4 And I'll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth. Revelation 21:3-4 I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus. John 17:23 For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed.  John 17:26 He is the exact representation of my being.  Hebrews 1:3 He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you.  Romans 8:31 And to tell you that I am not counting your sins. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled.  2 Corinthians 5:18-19 His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you.  1 John 4:10 I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love.  Romans 8:31-32 If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me.  1 John 2:23 And nothing will ever separate you from my love again. Romans 8:38-39 Come home and I'll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. Luke 15:7 I have always been Father, and will always be Father. Ephesians 3:14-15 My question is… Will you be my child?  John 1:12-13 I am waiting for you.  Luke 15:11-32 Love, Your DadAlmighty God