Isn’t that a beautiful picture? This flower is just like the daisies my wife and I have in front of our house. As the sun rises, they begin open. As the day progresses, they open further and further until their pedals are fully extended outward. It’s almost like they are saying, “Come on in. I want more of this!” Then they begin to close as the sun sets and are fully closed by nightfall.
Shouldn’t we learn from my daisies and only open up to the light of the Son and close to the darkness of our enemy? Your daily success as a believer is based upon who you listen to throughout your day. I hope you’re spending time listening to Jesus in His Word and then meditating upon what He said throughout your day today. If not, darkness can creep in and ruin your day.
Decide right now to act like my daisies and chose to open yourself only to the Son, the one who can best meet your needs for love, security and meaning in life.
S“E”t Free Nowww

I’m still paying the price this afternoon for the choice to eat pancakes this morning. They tasted awesome going down, but they don’t taste so great throughout my day again and again.
I knew during the holidays that my eating choices would not be the best and had planned for it. Yet, here I am ten days into 2014 and I’m still saying to myself, “Just this once. It won’t hurt. I’ll get back to eating right this afternoon.”
I’m paying the price for that just once more attitude. I knew I should have substituted fruit or cottage cheese, both of which I love, for the pancakes. But I thought, “I want them and just this one time won’t be a big deal.”
It’s the same with the sinful behaviors the Spirit wants to remove from our lives to draw us closer to Jesus. We want to do them and tell ourselves, “Just once more and I’ll quit.” Right. We forget that it’s this “just once more” attitude that provides the heartburn for the rest of our day.
We must keep up our shields of faith at all times. The choices we make in the morning, could come back to adversely affect us in the afternoon. Ben Carson once said, “The person who has the most to do with what happens to you in life is you. Nobody else gets to determine that except you.” So choose to exercise the truths the Spirit of God has given you in the Word of God today.
Set Fre“E” Nowww

“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness,” writes the author of Lamentations. Did you catch that? The author of the book was one singing a bummer song; and yet, in the midst of that song was hope. The love radiating from His Lord was a forever thing. His God came each and every day to rescue those who mess up. Despite the lousy situation, His God faithfully gave him the love and mercy he needed every morning!
That is indeed good news! Each day is a new door to walk through. Each door is the process of getting closer to the One we say we love and need. And with each door that pops up before us, we have three options to take. We can retreat, standstill, or go through it. One is bad, one leaves you wanting and the other is the ability to experience your Jesus.
Retreat means you’re handling life your way by not going where Jesus wants you, which only brings negative consequences. Standing still is where you’re using your biblical tools to walk with Christ, but you’ve stopped going forward and you’re missing out on what Jesus has for you, today.
No, the best option is to go through the door Jesus has put before you. Each day can be a new adventure with Jesus. Could you mess up? Yup, but there is mercy waiting on the other side. Could you be taking the walk alone? Yup, but there is love waiting for you on the other side. Your God is faithful. Keep walking with the Spirit through each door Jesus places before you.
Set Free Now“W”w

Beautiful picture, huh? I’d have missed it if I had let fatigue stop me. I’d been up and going non-stop since before the crack of dawn when I got home. I plopped down into my easy chair when the thought entered my brain, “Do I have time to talk with my Jesus before my next appointment?”
I decided to pull myself out of my chair and hit the road. Oh, I’m so glad I did. The picture doesn’t do the colors justice. And yet, what if I had let fatigue get in the way? I would have missed a wonderful talk with Jesus and His signature on the day if I’d stayed in my chair with its warm arms around me telling me how comfortable I was and why would I want to leave.
Don’t let life or the fatigue of life keep you from walking with and enjoying Jesus. If you stop and think about it. Isn’t that one of the reasons you came to faith in Him in the first place?
“S”et Free Nowww

You’ve got to love Peter. He’s so like you and me. He asks Jesus, with chest all puffed out, “How many times do I need to forgive someone who’s hurt me? Seven times?” He thought he was being very magnanimous.
Jesus deflated Peter’s chest when He said, “Peter, my friend, you’ve got it all wrong. Not seven times, but seventy times seven times.” Peter had already forgotten what Jesus had taught him on this subject. “Forgive men when they sin against you, and your heavenly Father will also forgive you. If you don’t, watch out. He won’t forgive yours.”
Forgiveness is not an option for healthy believers. It’s an ongoing freedom tool. Forgiveness brings cleansing (1 John 1:9). Cleansing brings healing. Healing brings wholeness. So if you want to be whole again because someone’s hurt you, pick up your forgiveness tool. If doesn’t matter whether they ask you for it or not! If you want your pain to fester and become infected, which only hurts you, don’t forgive them. If you want wholeness, forgive.
Biblical forgiveness (see Chapter 11 of More Than a Sunday Faith) brings back what you’re after – peace. Don’t let others’ hurts continue to hurt you. Stay clean. Be whole. Constantly keep on giving and getting forgiveness.
Set Free N“O”www