Blessings

Luke 1:28

New International Version (NIV)

²⁸ The angel went to her and said, 
“Greetings, you who are highly favored! 
The Lord is with you.”

This week of bazaar events has me stepping back and looking at how blessed that I am. Not only with the event in Colorado, but the every day headlines can be overwhelming. The rarity of the times is on us and yet when I look around there is so much to be thankful for.
  Sunday I shared on the face book group page that it was "Shout Out Sunday". An opportunity to share how awesome God has been in your life. Several of you posted and shared about His goodness, grace and mercy. So what makes one so blessed and "highly favored"?
  Simply learning to love God with your everything and looking to Him for all your needs. As a child of God who believes in the Lord Jesus as their Savior, you are automatically adopted into the "highly favored" group of the family. Even when it feels that the rug has been pulled out from under you and your world is spinning out of control... you are favored.
  We all have something to be thankful for and praise Him for. If you only have the breath in your lungs, that's enough to praise Him. I want to encourage you today to begin to praise Him for His goodness to you and all that He has done for you.  It will revive your soul and give you a fresh perspective on any situation. We are only carnal living in a sinful world, learning to understand the spirit realm that is so far beyond what we can ever imagine. Keep in mind that as you praise Him and call on His name the enemy must flee.

^{Numbers 10:9
When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you, sound a blast on the trumpets. Then you will be remembered by the LORD your God and rescued from your enemies.}

^{Genesis 49:25
because of your father’s God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the skies above, blessings of the deep springs below, blessings of the breast and womb.}

2 Corinthians 13

The Message

 ^1-4Well, this is my third visit coming up. Remember the Scripture that says, "A matter becomes clear after two or three witnesses give evidence"? On my second visit I warned that bunch that keeps sinning over and over in the same old ways that when I came back I wouldn't go easy on them. Now, preparing for the third, I'm saying it again from a distance. If you haven't changed your ways by the time I get there, look out. You who have been demanding proof that Christ speaks through me will get more than you bargained for. You'll get the full force of Christ, don't think you won't. He was sheer weakness and humiliation when he was killed on the cross, but oh, he's alive now—in the mighty power of God! We weren't much to look at, either, when we were humiliated among you, but when we deal with you this next time, we'll be alive in Christ, strengthened by God.

 ^5-9Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don't drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it. I hope the test won't show that we have failed. But if it comes to that, we'd rather the test showed our failure than yours. We're rooting for the truth to win out in you. We couldn't possibly do otherwise.

   We don't just put up with our limitations; we celebrate them, and then go on to celebrate every strength, every triumph of the truth in you. We pray hard that it will all come together in your lives.

 ¹⁰I'm writing this to you now so that when I come I won't have to say another word on the subject. The authority the Master gave me is for putting people together, not taking them apart. I want to get on with it, and not have to spend time on reprimands.

 ^11-13And that's about it, friends. Be cheerful. Keep things in good repair. Keep your spirits up. Think in harmony. Be agreeable. Do all that, and the God of love and peace will be with you for sure. Greet one another with a holy embrace. All the brothers and sisters here say hello.

 ¹⁴The amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, the extravagant love of God, the intimate friendship of the Holy Spirit, be with all of you.

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