A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 15:1 NIV

Think of all the moments and relationships that could have been refreshed if someone was willing to speak with kindness and gentleness.  Think of how many fights, quarrels and divorces that would not have happened if words and actions of grace had been heard and seen.  A gentle answer turns away wrath.  Imagine how many relationships could start to be healed if someone who is acquainted with God’s grace begins to act like it. A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.  God’s grace is his power in the human soul to live in the freedom of life that is known as love, joy and peace.  Today, choose to live your life in the freedom of his grace. Ask the Lord to penetrate the depth of your heart with the life of His grace.   Everything around you will begin a new journey when you are the image of His grace.  Your day will begin to refresh those who come in contact with you.  There will be no heartache because of your words of kindness, mercy and grace.  Enjoy!

But King David replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying the full price.  I will not take for the LORD what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.” 

1 Chronicles 21:24 NIV

When grace has been given, received and penetrated our soul, then faith becomes alive and it will have a great impact on all our relationships.  You see that God’s grace changes everything from what we believe about God to how we respond to those around us. But King David replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.  The Lord is not a religion, a set of standards or a belief system, He is life itself.  This being true means the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was not something to help us, but it was given so that we might know and have life as he is! Allowing his grace to live and express itself in us, gives us a life even with all its opportunities, the privilege of living with joy, kindness, patience and encouragement.  Today let the freedom of His grace live in your emotions and thoughts.  Those you meet will experience life through you as our Lord intended and you will have the sweet relief of experiencing life that is eternal.  Enjoy!

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed them into her home.  Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord's feet.  But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing.  She came to Jesus and said, "Lord, doesn't it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work?  Tell her to come and help me.  But the Lord said to her, "My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details!  There is only one thing worth being concerned about.  Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her."  Luke 10:38-42 NLT

Have you ever been described as easily distracted, easily worried and easily upset? Well, God’s grace in Jesus Christ can change all of that. Grace will let you discover a love that expresses itself in delighting in the Lord, it is known as worship.  Worship is that one thing that is needed to be discovered for a good and healthy attitude. Worship lives in praise, thanksgiving and joy, it therefore finds itself giving glory to God in whatever it does.  Without grace we experience the emotions of stress in all its forms. You are worried and upset over all these details!  Worshiping the Lord puts all the details of life in proper perspective.  Today let his grace live through you and let it be expressed through your attitudes, thoughts and your actions.  In a life of grace there is no grouchiness or stress.  Here you will experience his joy in all the minutiae of your life and again that is called grace.  Enjoy!

Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths.  You care for people and animals alike, O LORD.  How precious is your unfailing love, O GOD!  All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.  Psalm 36:6, 7 NLT

The magnificence of the grace that is given in Jesus the Christ is that it gives us a new nature, a refreshing view of life around us. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths.  We can see our world and the situations we find ourselves in, in a beautiful new way.  His grace gives us assurance that he is with us, completely aware of where we are and in that place we find a joy that goes beyond just believing. You care for people and animals alike, O LORD. How precious is your unfailing love O GOD!  Grace gives us the wonderful experience of knowing that we are truly loved.  All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.  Today let the grace of God put away your stress, anxiety and old habits of thinking that are less than a blessing to you or to others.  Enjoy the expressions of grace that are yours in Jesus the Christ and then give them away to everyone you meet.  Your family, work place, church and community will never be the same.  This day can be overwhelmed by His grace and you will be refreshed in how you feel and process what is around you. Enjoy!

Don't fool yourselves.  Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people - none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.  Some of you were once like that.  But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 NLT

There has never been a family, a community, a state or a nation that has become better when these sins are the habits of its people.  The sadness of our time is that our nation not only does these things but now calls them good an acceptable. Don’t fool yourselves.  None of these will inherit the kingdom of God. Some of you were once like that.  But there is a living truth that our Lord has provided in the midst of all this, it is called grace. You were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.  Grace is God's love in Jesus Christ to not only release us from habits that are filthy by nature, but to create a new nature that brings righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  (Romans 14:17, 18).  Righteousness is deliverance from the quilt and condemnation of our sin and deliverance from the power it has over us.  Peace is the living harmony of the Holy Spirit living in us. Joy is the results of God’s righteousness and peace.  Grace produces habits that have their foundation in God's love and in that place there is no moral rot.  Today let the life of his grace set you free from habits that do not bless you or anyone else.  In his grace you have been cleansed, made holy and made right with God as sons and daughters, so now let you behavior praise him. This life is now and forever yours because of his grace in you.  Enjoy!

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV

There is not a religion in the world that gives any soul rest; in fact all of them pile on burdens, guilt and condemnation. Their picture of god is harsh at best and always willing to find fault with you.  But the grace of God found in and through Jesus Christ has nothing to do with religion. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give your rest… for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  His grace has no stress, no weariness and no condemnation of any kind. Grace can heal brokenness, anxiety and feelings of judgment of ourselves and others.  The grace of Jesus the Christ is always open for our life every moment of every day, you will find rest for your souls. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Today may you experience the full pleasure of his grace for you.  Wherever you may be, allow his grace to embrace you so that you may know emotions and thoughts of gentleness and you will find rest and blessing.  His life, his goodness and his joy are now yours because of his grace forever.  Enjoy!

May those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me, O Lord, the LORD Almighty; may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me. 

Psalm 69:6 NIV

Thinking about ourselves first seems to be what is common to us naturally.  But what is natural to grace is the awareness of others in our emotions, our thinking and our desires that wants to inspire them.  The living gift of grace changes what is common to us naturally so that we are now aware of the impact our words, our tones, our expressions and even our desires have on those who are around us. May those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me, O Lord. No one is put to shame when attitudes of grace are heard and seen.  Today, rejoice knowing the impact you have on your family, your friends, your co-workers and even those who do not like you because of the power of our Lord’s grace in you. O LORD Almighty; may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me. Your attitude and actions can rekindle hope and bring about a joy that is absolutely renewing.  Ask the Lord to let the life of his grace have its way in you and you will have an awesome day.  Enjoy!

If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.  But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer.  Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me.  Psalm 66:18-20 NLT

Grace is God’s gift to us so that sin no longer has the power to destroy our emotions, our intellect or our relationships.  Unconfessed sin brings about a condemnation concerning ourselves and others. In that condition our desires, our goals and our hopes that would be expressed through prayer are not listened to by our Lord. If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.  The beauty of grace is the freedom to live without sin as the director of our heart.  When we are living in grace we will always find He paid attention to our prayer. But God did listen! He paid attention to my prayer.  Today may his grace bring to you the joy of praise, the joy of thanksgiving and even the joy of delighting in the Lord.  Let his love overwhelm you in how you see yourself and it will naturally flow through you to everyone around you. Praise God, who did not ignore my prayer or withdraw his unfailing love from me.  This is a very good new day; our Lord loves the words of your prayer. Enjoy!

Even children are known by the way they act, whether their conduct is pure, and whether it is right.  Proverbs 20:11 NLT

What we call character is what either builds or destroys relationships.  Character is more than just a family name; it is the definition of our life. Even children are known by the way they act.  Wounded emotions can take individuals down roads to adultery, divorce, drunkenness, slander, unforgivness and survival modes of every kind.  Here families are injured and broken, businesses fail and communities are in disarray.  God’s grace given in Jesus Christ is much more than saving someone so that they may go to heaven someday.  Grace creates a new nature through the Holy Spirit, it is described as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control in Galatians 5:22, 23 NLT. Today let yourself experience the life of God’s grace given to you through Jesus the Christ.  His character is now yours, right now in the place where you find yourself.  His blessing is now yours and you can be the blessing of God to your family, your business, your neighborhood and your community. Get your will involved in His grace and you will have a character that will bring about a good day. Even children are known by the way they act, whether their conduct is pure and whether it is right.  Enjoy!

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself.  He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ's blood on the cross.  This includes you who were once far away from God.  You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions.  Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body.  Colossians 1:20-22 NLT

Many times through our life we will hear someone say, "If God is so good why does he let bad things happen?"  Well, bad things happen because that is the nature of sin in which our world exists. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions.  It is while we are in this condition that God poured out his grace for us through the blood of Jesus the Christ on the cross. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body.  Grace brings us to life so that we may have the faith to trust, enjoy and love God and be a blessing to each other. Grace by nature encourages, trusts and blesses, therefore relationships are strengthened and refreshed. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. Today may you be willing to be renewed in how you feel and think because of the grace of God that has been given to you. Do not let your old habits from your old nature have any place to express themselves through you on this day.  May your very presence bring peace to all who come in contact with you.  For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself.  Enjoy!

Kind words are like honey – sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.

Proverbs 16:24 NLT

Words, what overwhelming power they have. Think of how many broken relationships have taken place because of words and tones that had nothing to do with kindness.  How many still feel wounded because someone said something that overwhelmed them with grief.  What is so amazing about God’s grace is the new creation it brings to our thinking, which changes our words and tones into blessings. Kind words are like honey – sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.  Would you like your emotions to feel better, then ask God to pour out his grace upon you through Jesus Christ.  You will find a joy coming from you that sounds like - Kind words are like honey – sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.  Today let this grace be expressed through you and you will experience a joy that you had only dreamed of.  The souls of men and women around you are waiting for this blessing.  Enjoy!

God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.  2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV

When God makes all grace abound something brand new takes place within the soul of our emotions. In that place we find ourselves refreshed so that we are actually abounding (being fruitful) in good works. These good works will bring joy and appear as gifts of encouragement, kindness, and the meeting of physical needs.  God's grace allows us the freedom to live this way twenty four seven, Wow!  Talk about being blessed, how about actually living in a place, no matter where we are found, that grace is given and expressed through us.    Today let yourself become overwhelmed with his grace and you will abound in every good work.  God's grace just makes a good day and allows you to see with new eyes as well as hear with new ears.  Feel free to have tones in your voice and expressions from your face that cause others to desire the grace that you have experienced. Enjoy!

Imitate God, therefore in everything you do because you are his dear children. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity or greed among you.  Such sins have no place among God’s people.  Obscene stories, foolish talk, and course jokes – these are not for you.  Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.  Ephesians 5:1,3, 4 NLT

What is commonly called salvation in Jesus Christ is the transformation that his grace gives to our character. Imitate God, therefore in everything you do because you are his dear children.  If the iniquities listed here in God’s Word were somehow renewing to our nature, we would have stayed in them and would have had no interest in the life of his grace.  In the grace of Jesus Christ we can experience a refreshing nature, we would recognize it as thanksgiving in our thinking, our emotions and our attitudes towards God, family, friends and co-workers. Imitate God therefore in everything you do… let there be thankfulness to God.  Today allow yourself to celebrate the life you have in his grace, that joyful attitude of thanksgiving.   You and everyone around you will experience a delight in relationships with the Lord and each other. As you imitate God in the life of his grace, no one around you will be irritated, hurt or ashamed.   Your day will be just down right refreshing when your heart is filled with thanksgiving.  Enjoy!

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.  Psalm 63:1, 3 NIV

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you. There may be moments in our life when we can be in a great throng of people and yet feel drained and alone.  It is as if we are in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  There in that place we discover emotions that never give any life, they only seem to exhaust whatever we thought we had.  We name them as hopelessness, despair, sadness and depression.  But right in that moment our God offers his grace which is water for our soul.  It is his love that quenches all our thirsts and brings hope, joy, refreshment and an abundance of kindness. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. That is why his grace is called amazing and overwhelming.  This would be a great way to start a new day!  So allow yourself to desire the life of his love and grace.  Let your lips glorify Him and you will experience thanksgiving and rejoicing in the depth of your soul.  Enjoy!

Repent, all of you who forget me, or I will tear you apart, and no one will help you.  But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me.  If you keep to my path, I will reveal to you the salvation of God.  Psalm 50:22, 23 NLT

Sin has no desire for God or his path; it lives only for self, there is no thanksgiving within it.  If left to itself, it will tear apart the individual, the family, the community and a nation.  Yet, in this place God’s grace can be found. Repent, all of you who forget me… Here in his grace an invitation is given without limit or condemnation. But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me.  His grace makes us new which changes everything, giving a life that is actually thankful to the Lord and esteems others as more important than ourselves.  Living in the grace of Jesus the Christ renews us, our family, our community and even our nation.  It is a life, a salvation of no regret. Today may you actually desire to give thanks to our Lord as you consider your ways.  Let yourself find many varied ways in giving thanks for the life you have. There is no remorse, no brokenness or tearing apart in the grace of our Lord.  Enjoy!

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  Colossians 3:12,13 NIV

Have you ever wondered what God really thinks or feels about you?  Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved.  That is an eternal definition of God’s thoughts and what he feels about you.  Therefore, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  God's grace lets us clothe ourselves with new clothes, which impact our thoughts, our desires, our hopes and of all things our emotions. In fact, these clothes will bless everyone around us and bring a desire to Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.  What is wonderful about these clothes is that they are a gift from the Lord and they are wrapped in grace.  Today enjoy what the Lord has provided for you to wear through his grace – compassion, kindness, humility gentleness and patience.  These are wonderful emotions that will clothe your heart and you will find that what he has given you to wear is a perfect fit.  Joy and praise will come very naturally to you and these clothes never get old or wear out.  Enjoy!

If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.  John 7:37, 38 NIV

There was a time in my life when I know I became thirsty. If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.  It was after I had grown up into a young man, finished my time in the Marine Corp and had come back from Viet Nam. The thought came to me – “what is life for, what is its goal?”  I had no problem believing in God because it says – “In God We Trust” on our money.  So I asked this God on our money to please do something with my life and he began to do something in me that would change and renew me forever. If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.  By his grace he renewed my faith to trust again in Jesus the Christ and I have never been the same.  Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from with him. This living water flowed, which I discovered was the Holy Spirit producing a new character within me, which looked like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and of all things self-control.  Today enjoy being thirsty for our Lord and his grace. The life that is eternal will be yours even through your opportunities.  As the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow naturally from within and through you.  This will give you a life that will bless you and bring inspiration to those around you.  Enjoy!

You are the light of the world – like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.  In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.  Matthew 5:14, 16 NLT

God’s grace in Jesus Christ really changes things.  You are the light of the world – like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.  Wow, now that is a change.  In Jesus the Christ a new life is given to us which produces wonderful results. Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. The illustration of the life of grace here is seen as light, light that can be seen in all directions like a city on a hill.  But this light is also now our character which is the character of grace.  The life of his grace produces a new nature in us to “let” this new life be lived and seen in the midst of all our opportunities. Let your good deeds shine, they will refresh families, neighborhoods and communities. Today may you find that what you are “letting” is like a light shining on a hilltop, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Enjoy!

Don't fool yourselves.  Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people - none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God.  Some of you were once like that.  But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.   1 Corinthians 6:9-11 NLT.

The nature of sin will produce results that are catastrophic to relationships. There has never been a family, a community, a state or a nation that has become refreshed when these sins are the habits of its people.  Therefore the promise of grace was given. God’s grace is offered to remove sin's power and give us a new nature that will be a pleasure to relationships. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.  Grace is the power of God's love in Jesus the Christ to release us from habits that are hurtful by our own natural nature. You were cleansed, you were made holy, you were made right with God.  Grace produces a new life that has its foundation in God's love, where there will never be any regret or shame.  Today allow the life of his grace to set you free from habits that do not bless you or anyone else. This new nature is now and forever yours because of his grace given to you in Jesus Christ.  Enjoy!

Is there a conflict, then, between God’s law and God’s promises?  Absolutely not!  If the law could give us new life, we could be made right with God by obeying it.  But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ.  Galatians 3:21, 22 NLT

Let’s start with a question: Is there a conflict, then, between God’s law and God’s promises?  The answer that is given is: Absolutely not!  What is so amazing about God’s promises is that they give something to us that we cannot ever accomplish by our own efforts. If the law could give us new life, we could be made right with God by obeying it. But new life is given through what God promised his grace would do through Jesus the Christ.  But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ., God’s grace gives us the freedom to see clearly the difference between our new life and being a prisoner to our sinful life. Today enjoy being refreshed in who you are because of the promises in Jesus Christ.  His grace lets you choose what direction your thoughts and emotions will go. We now know why we sing – “Amazing grace that saved a wretch like me.” Enjoy!

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the LORD.  They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, “The LORD is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.  Psalm 92:12-15 NIV

What an interesting journey life is.  We can hardly wait to grow up and become an adult. Then one day we look up and we are seniors, Wow!  I have a sign above my fireplace that says – “Old age is coming at a really bad time!”  I find it humorous that it has taken me so long to understand righteousness.  Listen to the impact of grace on a man or woman –They will still bear fruit in old age; They will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, “The LORD is upright, he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him.”  I love this, that God’s grace in Jesus the Christ produces His righteousness in us, which is the deliverance from the penalty of our own sin along with the deliverance of its power over us.  Now how cool is that kind of grace? Grace reveals to us that the joy of the LORD is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). Today may you be refreshed by the promise of grace in your life.  You are meant to be the expressions, of the attitude of God's love to everyone around you. What you say and do in the grace of our Lord can bring a beautiful delight to everyone you meet and at the same time make your day brand new. The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green.  Enjoy!

The LORD does not look at the things man looks at.  Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7 NIV

There is always a feeling of refreshment in our life when we experience joy and describe it as feeling it with all our heart.  This is not meant to be an academic statement; it is something that touches the very fiber of our being. The LORD looks at the heart.  The life of God's grace is that it takes our belief in the Lord from the academic into a relationship that reaches the very soul of who we are.   God’s grace impacts our heart like nothing else can (the LORD looks at the heart).  In grace our thoughts along with our emotions become alive with the desire to express love, joy and kindness.  Here our marriage, our children and our relationships have the great possibility of being refreshed in ways that cause everyone to rejoice and give thanks to the Lord.  Today enjoy this life of his grace.  Be willing to allow your heart be refreshed in his grace and peace.  May he then give to you the desires of your heart as you delight yourself in him (Psalm 37:4).  In this place you will find no regret or sorrow.  Enjoy!