You have heard that it was said, "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:43-44

These words encourage us to go in a totally different direction than our natural nature. When we try to do this with our natural abilities, often our emotions become exhausted and our thinking fatigued. God's grace (his love expressed and given without condemnation) in our lives gives us the freedom to not take offense so easily and to not feel that we are being criticized every time someone disagrees with us. Being overwhelmed by his grace then allows us the joy of refreshing others, even when they do not deserve it. On this new day that has never been may you enjoy the freedom of his grace that allows you to encourage, bless and give to those in situations that are less than outstanding? Your emotions will be renewed and you will have a smile right down to your soul.

Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded. 1 John 3:21-23

It is amazing to think of the struggles we go through along our journey when we feel condemnation. Here we can see again the power of God's love that gives us no condemnation in our heart, soul or mind. Grace gives us the confidence and joy of a relationship with the Lord that is secure, good and refreshing as each new day comes. Living overwhelmed by his grace brings praise and gladness to our relationships and to our work. On this new day, let his grace continue to overwhelm you and you will experience a confidence in your life that will blow your hair back. Those around you will begin to feel as if life is new again and you will be refreshed. Enjoy!

Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to like God - truly righteous and holy. Ephesians 4:21-24

Here we see what God's grace has revealed and given to us along our journey. Sin, our old nature, is corrupted and desires its own way and freely gives deception, which never blesses any relationship. Marriages, neighborhoods, the work place, and our communities are in trouble not because of God's grace, but because of our sinful nature. Grace gives us the freedom of a new nature, created without condemnation, cursing, lying or self-centeredness. In God's grace we find ourselves being refreshed each day in how we feel and think. On this new day, may you find great joy in knowing that his grace gives you the freedom to celebrate your life in the truth of God's love for you. Praise and thanksgiving will come naturally and you will see your journey with the eyes and ears of God. You will like this day.

He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful. 1Corinthians 1:8,9 Sometimes along our journey through life we feel a whole lot less than strong and we sure do not feel blameless in as to what our Lord is thinking of us. The good news here is that his grace makes the difference along the journey. Learning the joy of being overwhelmed by his grace (life without the feelings of condemnation) gives us that freedom even in how we feel and think through the storms of life. His faith and grace in you are as sure as the ground you stand on. This being true, you can have the enjoyment of peace and thanksgiving along your journey. On this new day, look up, praise and give thanks before the day even gets started. His grace will give you refreshment, hope and gladness of heart. His grace today will give you what direction you are to head in and how to take each step. Relax, smile and be ready to have your socks blessed off. You will have a God story for all to see.

For the LORD takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation. Let the saints rejoice in this honor and sing for joy on their beds. Psalm 149:4,5

All of life seems to change when we feel that those around us are delighted with who we are and what we are doing. Our emotions, our values and even our sorrows seem to have a better view of things when delighting is the feelings and expressions of those around us. Well, grace is always about delighting because in grace there is no condemnation about us or anyone else. Grace lets us know for certain that our Lord delights in us because we are in Jesus the Christ. With this attitude all things become new and we begin to experience life in all its fullness. The Word of God calls this freedom. This freedom brings a real joy to our soul which causes rejoicing, which brings about singing. On this new day, go ahead and let your freedom in who you are because of the love of Jesus the Christ bring about a joy in your attitude which will make you want to sing. If you allow it, it will start this morning in your bed. What a great way to start a day. Enjoy!  

God's law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God's wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us a right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:20,21 NLT

Here we can see the tug of war that goes on along our journey. Sin is always self-serving and expresses itself in many ways, such as lust, bitterness, anger, resentment, criticism, all of which bring tension to our relationships in the home, work place and community. Grace gives a great freedom of expression of kindness, encouragement, joy, blessing and praise because of God's love given without condemnation. As we enjoy being overwhelmed by his grace, we can see, hear and respond along our journey so that God is glorified, others are refreshed and we are blessed. On this new day, may you enjoy that life that is called eternal through Jesus the Christ. Relax, smile, look up and give thanks to the Lord. You will see, hear and respond in such a way, that you will feel as though your hair got blown back, it is just what a life of grace does.

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Psalm 100:1,2

What a great way to start a new day. The journey through life has so much noise, distractions, stress, worry, broken relationships and at times even anxiety that it is good to take a deep breath each morning concerning the joy that is ours because of the grace of Jesus the Christ. Here we have words such as "shout for joy, worship the LORD with gladness, joyful songs." Something happens to each one of us when we pause along our way to take time to be thankful for the life we have at the moment. These moments can give us such a refreshment that we can see and hear the details of our journey in a new way. On this new day, may you enjoy the Lord and find yourself filled with gladness for the freedom that has been given in his grace. May your continence be refreshed and may all those who meet you see and hear what it is to delight in the Lord and therefore be able to rejoice in the journey. Your smile and expressions from your heart will be contagious.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:1-3,14

It is amazing the joy that comes to our lives when someone of high standing or someone we really respect stops and takes the time to notice us, encourage us and have conversation with us. On that day our lives are refreshed and we usually tell someone about that moment. How refreshing is it that Jesus the Christ, the eternal one who we know as God knows our name! He became flesh and made his dwelling among us, full of grace and truth that we might know the joy of being loved without condemnation and the freedom of a new nature in him. On this new day, ponder anew that he knows your name, enjoys who you are and loves having a conversation with you. His grace will blow your hair back and you will find a real reason to rejoice on this day. You might even find yourself being mouthy, expressing encouragement and joy to others.

I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ. 1 Corinthians 10:33 NLT

Here is a good question that should be asked on some kind of regular basis – “Who do you imitate?” The answer tells us in what direction we are faced on that day. God so loved that he gave, and he gave with joy and compassion to those, who at the time did not ask nor seem to want what he was. Even on the cross, with his flesh ripped, exhausted from beatings, carrying the cross and a crown of thorns on his head, he responds to the situation this way – “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Luke 22:34. There is a freedom in the life and grace of Christ that many are missing along their journey. Grace relieves and blesses our life with the desire to see others refreshed so that they too may experience the grace of God in Jesus the Christ. On this new day may you blow the hair back on others as they see, hear and experience grace and kindness through you. This might be a good day for someone to imitate you. Enjoy!

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Jesus Christ. Philippians 4:6,7 NLT

When I think of worry, I wonder where it comes from and why we let it into our lives. It does not seem to accomplish anything, it only takes. It removes sleep, it removes joy, it removes good attitudes and it removes peace. The beauty of our Lord’s grace is that it removes worry, now how cool it that? In this reality, peace comes into the room along with its cousin joy and our emotions and our thinking become refreshed. On this new day, let his grace lead you into his presence with thanksgiving and his peace will absolutely delight you. Joy and praise will bring refreshment to your soul and you will experience in real time the beauty and life of God’s love for you. Enjoy!