AMAZING GRACE

1. Amazing grace! How sweet the sound

That saved a wretch like me!

I once was lost, but now am found;

Was blind, but now I see.

2. ’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,

And grace my fears relieved;

How precious did that grace appear

The hour I first believed.

3. Through many dangers, toils and snares,

I have already come;

’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,

And grace will lead me home.

4. The Lord has promised good to me,

His Word my hope secures;

He will my Shield and Portion be,

As long as life endures.

5. Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,

And mortal life shall cease,

I shall possess, within the veil,

A life of joy and peace.

6. The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,

The sun forbear to shine;

But God, who called me here below,

Will be forever mine.

7. When we’ve been there ten thousand years,

Bright shining as the sun,

We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise

Than when we’d first begun.

Dearest Ladies,

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!!!!

We are halfway into the week! So, that means we are halfway to the end of the week! Friday is just days away! Yay! Hooray! Congrats on your progress and productivity!!!

My sweetest sisters, you all are every shade of wonderful. You're brilliant blue, you're priceless purple, you're outstanding orange, you're radiant red, you're young-at-heart yellow, you're gracious green, and you're incredible indigo! Thanks for coloring my life with your wonder!

If you're feeling disgusted today, engage in something that you enjoy. By all means, hold on. If you're feeling irritated, slow down and relax. If you feel like giving up, take a break but don't quit. If you feel overwhelmed, take a deep breath and PRAY!!!! We are emotional beings. Sometimes our emotions stay in check and sometimes a barrage of emotions seek to flood our senses and shipwreck our hope, determination, and iron will. When frustration and emotional responses roll in like a flood, run to higher ground. Run to our Rock. Fall on Him. The Lord is a solid rock; all other ground is sinking sand. Hold firmly to our Rock til the storm passes. Hope BIG! Desperate times call for desperate measures....

......I went to charge my cell phone. I connected the phone to the charger and took off to complete my chores. A couple hours later, I returned to retrieve my phone and make a call. I soon discovered that my phone was still dead. I felt slightly irritated. A quick troubleshoot revealed that my phone was indeed connected to the charger but the charger was not connected to the wall electrical socket. Ugh!!!!! Geez!!! Oh my!!!! *  *  *Ladies, I venture to believe that several of us are plugged into activities, groups, and people that we believe are charging us but they are NOT. Sometime we can be plugged in for so long that it looks like we are charging but yet we feel lifeless, drained, and uncharged.

 Sometimes we change: our needs change, our interests changes or perhaps our availability changes. And, other times groups and people change. I encourage you to take inventory of your 'connections.' Please make sure that you are NOT connected just to be connected and uncharged. Please make sure that your connections are REALLY charging you and helping change you for the better. Simplistically speaking, EVERY relationship that we share and EVERY person in our inner circle meets a need for us. Make sure your needs are getting met. Your needs are just as important as the next person's. We MUST regularly care for ourselves in this regard.

Up above, I posted the lyrics to Amazing Grace! I hope you took a second to read them. If not, please read over the lyrics to this timeless, classic hymn. I will give you a moment......

Sisters, I want to hone in on some very, very important truths that are nestled in the first, third, and fourth stanzas of Amazing Grace. The first truth is simply this: we are saved right now ONLY because of God's grace! And secondly, ALL that we are and ALL that we have at this moment is ONLY because of God's grace. Sisters, I submit to you that our entire existence is predicated on God's grace. We are alive because of God's grace. We are saved by God's grace. We are redeemed and restored by God's grace. We are survivors of divorce by God's grace. We are awesome single parents because of God's grace. We are well because of God's grace. Our kiddos are well because of God's grace. ALL that we are is because of God's grace. And, ALL that we possess is because of God's amazing grace.

The lyricist asserts that it is by grace that we were saved. It is by grace ALONE that we were transformed from being bearers of spiritual darkness to bearers of God's holy light. It is because of grace that we were once lost and are now found. It is because of grace that we were once blind but now see.

Does not stanza three cause your throat to tighten and your eyes to water? I can barely read it let alone hear it sung without the waterworks beginning. This particular stanza allows the realization of the impact of God's grace to hit us right between the eyes. There is an absolute, very strong correlation between the Believer's triumphs and victories AND God's grace!!!!

Sisters, there is NO earthly way that we could have endured countless dangers, toils, and snares without God. There is NO earthly way that we could have survived marital decay, separation, divorce, and the painful aftermath without God. We are survivors and thrivers because of God's grace. There have been many, many times that we thought we had surely come to the end of road, that we couldn't go on another step. BUT, we have walked further and we will walk farther still. Because of grace, we have safely and soundly ventured into 2017. By grace, we can continue to live until God calls us home.

There is no shortage of encouragement in stanza four. Ladies, we are reminded that God has promised GOOD to us! Whoaaaaa! Wow! How awesome! God is great! So many others promise us difficulty and disgust BUT, the Lord promises us GOOD! What a blessing! Thank you JESUS for your good promises!!!!!!

Sisters, we must keep our hope secured in God. The Lord is our shield and portion FOREVER. We can always count on God to provide for us. In fact, it much easier to live when we REALLY understand that God is the reason that we are who we are and that we have what we have. When we rely on our efforts and abilities instead of God's then we have to struggle to figure things out. Self-reliance makes us struggle even harder to make everything work! Relax and TRUST GOD!

YOU cannot give yourself life.
YOU cannot wake yourself up in the morning.
YOU cannot make your heart beat.
YOU cannot make your lungs breathe.
YOU cannot make your ears hear.
YOU cannot make your eyes see.
YOU cannot make your muscles work.
YOU cannot make your stomach digest food.
YOU cannot make yourself exist and function properly.

Sooooooo, quit stressing and worrying about your existence and provision. God will provide for you and yours. We all are living, surviving, and thriving BY HIS GRACE.

We were not smart enough, clever enough, cute enough, sexy enough, rich enough, wise enough, nor witty enough to survive all of life's dangers, toils, and snare on our own. We survived because of God. We keep surviving because of God. We are still going because God wants us here AND He wants us to keep going. Live well today!! Ladies, God's grace is better than a blank check. He has paved and paid your way. Embrace the journey!

Love and blessings

Hugs