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Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.   --1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 I’d like to point out a few key words in today’s verses… “give thanks in all circumstances.” It’s easy to give thanks to God and have a grateful heart when things are going well in your life. But the hard part is being thankful when life gets hard! I believe having a thankful response in all circumstances starts with having an appropriate perspective. It’s easy to become narrow in your outlook and forget the big picture. When we become so focused on ourselves and our problems, the problem usually ends up being a lot bigger than it should be. So today… I encourage you to take your eyes off your problems and, instead, look to God. Say a prayer of thanks to Him that He has created you and given you life… and look at today as a gift from God to start fresh. As it says in Lamentations, “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Most often, we can’t change our circumstances… but we can change our response to difficult times. If you allow every trial and tribulation to become an opportunity to thank God, He will always show up! When we come into the presence of God and sing praises to Him… He is always there! God inhabits the praises of His people and it can change your entire perspective on whatever it is you may be facing today. Having a thankful response in all circumstances starts with having an appropriate perspective.

The Scars of Our Salvation

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?”
Luke 24:40–41
The Bible tells us a great deal about the wonders and beauty of Heaven. It speaks of a place where no sin can enter, there is no night, and tears have been wiped away forever. Heaven will be completely perfect—except for one thing. The body of the Lord Jesus Christ, the worthy Lamb, still bears the marks of His suffering for us on the cross. The scars are not gone. Throughout eternity each time we see Jesus we will see the reminders that He died for us. When John saw the Lord in his vision of Heaven he wrote, “And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth” (Revelation 5:6).
The sacrifice of Jesus for our salvation provides a salvation for us that is free through His grace, but it was purchased at great cost. And the evidence of that payment is still visible today. Those of us who have been saved for many years face the danger of losing the awareness of how much our sins cost Jesus.
We speak of Jesus dying for the sins of the world, and He did, but what we need to remember is that His sacrifice was not general but very specific. It was my sin for which He paid. “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).

Today’s Growth Principle: 

Rejoice today in the love of Jesus that kept Him on the cross as a sacrifice for your sins.