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

This is some of my favorite verses in the Word of God, Imitate God, WOW!!! What is commonly known as faith in Jesus the Christ is the life of a new nature that his grace gives to our character.  If sexual immorality, impurity, greed, obscene stories, foolish talk and course jokes were so outstanding, we would have stayed in them and rejected the life of his grace.  In the grace of Jesus the Christ we can actually live as a new creation that has no remorse as it re-birthed our values, our thinking, our emotions and our attitudes towards God, family, friends and co-workers. Imitate God, therefore in everything you do because you are his dear children. Today celebrate the nature you have in his grace to live with the emotions of thankfulness to God.  Here, you and everyone around you will experience a goodness in relationships with the Lord and each other. As you live in his grace, no one around you will be annoyed, including you.  Kindness and grace will just be who you are.  Enjoy!

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.  He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation.  

Colossians 1:15 NLT

If a man or a woman would want to know what God is like, they only need to look at Jesus the Christ.  “Christ is the visible image of the invisible God” which means what God promised he has brought to pass in his son.  The good news is that God loves us and has demonstrated it visibly through Jesus Christ.  In the grace of Christ we have been given eternal life (the joy of knowing ther LORD) for our journey with our family, our friends and those we work with.  We can see that the nature of the gospel is to recreate the character of God in our lives and this is accomplished through his grace through faith.  The life of his grace lets those around us see the beauty of the nature of God through our lives. To know Jesus Christ by His grace can change everything. Today let yourself experience the life of grace in how you see your opportunities.  Be willing to let your decisions and goals be visible expressions of the results of his grace in your life.  May your family and friends be blessed with the attitudes of Christ through you.  Enjoy!

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 gentleness, 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 can be seen as 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.  I will not take for the LORD an offering that costs me nothing. Those you meet will experience life through you as our Lord intended and you will have the joy 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, which brings joy and peace.  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. Work can be accomplished in the attitude of Worship! 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 (behavior) 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.which gives us a life without regret. 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!

For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.  Galatians 5:13 NLT

We are a nation that is all about freedom.  For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. Yet as a nation we seem to be losing our freedom and becoming enslaved to actions, attitudes and emotions that are destructive to our families, our neighborhoods, our cities and even our nation. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature.  It isn’t just alcohol, drugs and all forms of immorality but also violence in attitude and actions. What is ironic is the more someone asserts his or her self-centered so called freedom, the more he or she becomes enslaved to their own sin. Look at what is called freedom today, abortion, civil unrest, verbal hate and swearing and slander beyond messure. But there is a prescription for freedom, it is the grace of God found in Jesus Christ. So if the Son of God sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36 NIV. This freedom of grace is not a belief system; it is a life that penetrates the very foundation of our emotions and thoughts, it is called a new creation. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.  Today enjoy your freedom of grace that has been given to you through Jesus the Christ. Let your day be free in grace so that you know your old habits and addiction are no longer a definition of who you are or were. Your freedom in Christ will bless you and bring enjoyment to everyone around you.  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 in Jesus Christ 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, your church 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 in Jesus the Christ is the freedom to confess our sin and to live without sin as the director of our thoughts and emotions.  When we are living in grace we will always find our joy in God and knowing 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!