A Friend called Grace

Tears dripped off of her crimson face
She covered her head tried to hide the shame
Caught and condemned now she can’t get away
Just a pawn in the hands of a Pharisee game
The noise and the rage of the frenzy grew
As they struggled for the power in an ageless feud
And as she softly cried they again reviewed
The obvious fate of this ill repute
Then a voice of His love ended all debate
When His words of a hope sent the crowd away
The hand that flung the stars in space
Lifted her face and she heard Him say


CHORUS
Let me introduce you to a friend called grace
Doesn’t care about your past or your many mistakes
He’ll cover your sins in a warm embrace
Let me introduce you to a friend
A friend called Grace


VERSE
The courtroom crowd grew quiet and still
As the White Robed Judge called truth appeared
As the ring of the gavel brought a fierce debate
The players of eternity decided my fate
In the light of truth all could clearly see
The facts made the trial mere formality
And my accusers stood with faded breath
Confident conviction would end in death
But from the Blood Stained Cross to the witness stand
Walked a man with a hope in His nail scared hand
The words that He spoke brought me sweet release
He whispered I’m a friend that you need to meet

CHORUS

BRIDGE
If you’re tired of the guilt and the sleepless nights
Runnin’ from the shame of a wasted life
Someone is standing with an open hand
Waiting there to give you a second chance

CHORUS
Let me introduce you to a friend called grace
Doesn’t care about your past or your many mistakes
He’ll cover your sins in a warm embrace
Let me introduce you to a friend

The boys at Petra can still play and sing pretty well. Enjoy!

Proverbs 4:5-8

New Living Translation

5. Get wisdom; develop good judgment. Don't forget my words or turn away from them.

6. Don't turn your back on wisdom, for she will protect you. Love her, and she will guard you.

7. Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment.

8. If you prize wisdom, she will make you great. Embrace her, and she will honor you.

My Heart belongs to HIM

"My Heart belongs to Him" by Mylon Lefevre and Broken Heart

My mind has been a battlefield where many wars were fought,
My soul has been a marketplace where other sold and bought,
Through the lonely, wasted years, there's one who knew my hidden fears and noticed the unnoticed tears,
Now my heart belongs to him.
So I gave my heart to Jesus because he set me free from sin,
That's just how he frees us when we really let him in,
So I welcome all the changes that his holiness arranges,
'Cause my heart belongs to him.

No one's ever touched my heart the way the Jesus did,
No one knew the place to start, find the pain I'd hid,
Love can see where friends are blind,
Lovers leave, love stays behind,
God is love; his love is mine,
So my heart belongs to him.

So I gave my heart to Jesus 'cause he set me free from sin,
That's just how he frees us when we really let him in,
So I welcome all the changes that his holiness arranges,
'Cause my heart belongs to him.

Oh, my heart belongs, (my heart belongs)
Hey, (my heart belongs)
My heart belongs to Jesus, (my heart belongs to him, my heart belongs)
I give my heart to him, (my heart belongs, my heart belongs)
Because he gave his love to me, (my heart belongs to him)
Hey, (my heart belongs, my heart belongs to him)

The Gift of God

I was reading this morning in the Gospel of John and this verse caught my eye.

Joh 4:10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.

"If thou knewest the gift of God and who it is..."

My New Living Translation says it this way, "If you only knew the gift God has for you and who I am..."

According to Strong's concordance and Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of N.T. Words the word "gift" is the greek word "dorea" which "denotes a free gift, stressing its gratuitous character."

If you only knew (see, perceive, recognize) the gratuitously free gift of God and who I am...

So, what is the gift of God?

Is it salvation?

Yes and No.

The gift of God is a person. Jesus is the gift.

He is Living Water. He is the Bread of Life. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. He is the Wisdom of God.

He said, "Lady, if you only knew the gift of God and that it is standing right in front of you, you would ask me and never be thirsty"

Sometimes, we trivialize the gift in our churches by saying it's just being saved from hell, like it's just a ticket to heaven or something. The gift is so much more than just avoiding hell.

It's Christ in us, the hope of glory.

The gift is "all things pertaining to life and godliness"

In Christ, God gave us All good gifts, and "all" means ALL!

We have everything we need in HIM.

Know Him. Know the gift.

Spurgeon on Wisdom

"Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom." -Charles Spurgeon

Gratitude

Gratitude. The state of being grateful which is being appreciative of benefits received. We have certainly received benefits. We take so many for granted.

Think about Hurricane Sandy and the value of the electric company to those without power in the last couple weeks. We need electricity for so many things...lights, refrigeration, heat, tv, internet, charging cell phones, etc. Yet, people complain all the time about the power bill. I've done it. I'm not saying you can't wish it were lower, but we should be grateful to get so much in exchange for so little. Think about all the benefits you receive from electricity. It's really a great trade.

There's a saying, "you don't know what you've got til it's gone." Those people on the east coast are learning that lesson.

We have to change our thinking, shift our focus. We need more gratitude in our lives, our families, our churches and our society. In fact, scripture tells us that we no longer have to wonder "what is God's will for my life?", but rather, we fulfill God's will with gratitude.

(1Th 5:18) In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.