Category Archives: FORGIVENESS

Monday Mrng Musings V

“How is it that some can accept as simple FACT that GOD Loves them?” Why Can’t I?

My Struggle is Real! More so on some days than on others…

The reasons we create in our minds for which God loves us can be a stone tied around our spirit and become a barrier to entering His Presence with boldness and confidence. (Ephesians 3:12)

I have more to say… tomorrow? The Cyclone in my mind is spinning this morning. Give me a day – or two – let’s see if it begins to make enough sense to share. But in the meantime,

Whatcha think??

Do YOU Know this struggle?

Share with us!

It’s NOT Blind Love…

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It’s HIS Choice!

We’re afraid. We think we need to Hide

…From HIM

So often we want to, we try to

We think we might be able to – HIDE

We think (hope) He doesn’t know

We think if He knew He’d make us leave

Pssst… Guess What… He already knows!

EVERYTHING about you

And He Loves You!

Not – “Anyway…”

Not – “In Spite of…”

Not – “Unless you…”

Or – “Until…”

Not – “_____…” #FillInTheBlank

He Simply Loves You!! Period

”The One Who Knows You Best

…LOVES YOU MOST”

There IS NO Need to Hide!

There is no PLACE to hide!

#ItReallyIsJustThatSimple!

1 John 4:10

DEEPER GRACE XIV

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GRACE

Will reach into the gutter to
find you if that is what
needs to be done.

“He brought me out of a horrible pit, out of the
miry clay. He set my feet upon a rock
He established my goings.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭40:2‬ ‭ASV‬‬

DEEPER GRACE XII

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GRACE is His GIFT
Let GRATITUDE be
Your ATTITUDE

C8AE2100-5C81-4063-B4A2-C0779B357616

GRATITUDE’n GRACE
are the Best Ways to
reorganize our
memories

“Let this same attitude, purpose and mind be
in YOU which was in Christ Jesus!”
Philippians 2:5

For the JOY…

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img_4147-1 Who, for the JOY set before Him, endured the Cross
Hebrews 12:10

Almost 30 years ago, I was lying in a hospital surgery room for the specific purpose of donating my left kidney to my then – 18 year old son. A few years later, on Easter morning, sitting in a Sunday School Young Married Class, I wrote this poem: FORSAKEN? The failure of my son’s kidneys and subsequent transplant process taught me an important and very personal lesson about why GOD allowed his Son to be nailed to that tree.

It’s easy to hear or read or even memorize John 3:16, “For GOD so LOVED the WORLD He gave…” and accept the truth of it. After all, He was dying for all mankind! But these next two phrases take it to a whole different, very personal level:

“*I* was on His Mind, when He was on The Cross.” and:
“If I was the ONLY person on earth, Christ would have died for ME!”

I was awake before 5am this morning in order to pick up my friend and take him to his appointment for surgery. When I met him 3 years ago, he explained he was an agnostic. He accepted the thought of “something or someone being in charge,” but he also acknowledged serious doubts of ever being able to know who or what that could be. (An atheist makes the claim “There is nothing or no one in charge, it all just came to be.”) In spite of our declared differences, we made a connection. Later, he commented to me… “Jim, you give me a lot to think about.” Months later, he began describing himself as a “praying agnostic with an open mind.” My daughter has since said: “Dad, you and Ronnie are good for each other.”

This morning, as we neared the surgery center, I posed this Query to him: “So, let me ask you, what are your current thoughts about this JESUS Guy?” He said he has accepted the historical truth that Jesus walked this earth, and died on The Cross, but he’s not sure what that means to him today.

As we sat in the parking lot, I told him; “Scripture says ‘For the JOY set before Him, He endured The Cross.’ Ronnie, I’ve come to realize that I AM THE JOY, FOR WHICH JESUS ENDURED THE CROSS! The possibility of having a personal relationship with ME brought Him a Joy that surpassed the agony.”

It was not the Son’s obedience to the will of His Father that brought Him Joy. It was not finally gaining victory over His arch enemy, Satan that made Him want to dance with Joy. It was not the possibility of finishing His work on earth and finally going home. Jesus was looking forward some 2000+ years into the future to the possibility of having an ongoing, growing relationship with JIM CATLETT! It’s TRUE, *I* was on His mind as He drew His last breath and declared: “IT IS FINISHED!”

Pssst… He wants me to tell you… YOU were on His mind, too!

I can in no way compare the kidney transplant surgery my son and I experienced to the absolute agony of Christ’s Death. But the fact that I gave life to him (again) has connected my son and I in a way we did not have before. The morning after the surgery, as I agonizingly lay in bed and watched My Son bounce into the room with a new color in his face and a brightness to his eyes that he had not had for 10 years, my JOY knew no limits. He grabbed the crossbar of the bed next to me, swung across and plopped down on the bed with a huge grin. Today, almost 30 years later, he still has that part of me living in him, doing its job!.

Today, I have CHRIST living in me. Simply because God Loved Me enough to offer me the Gift of His Son’s Death. And… I said “YES!”

He makes YOU the same offer!!
Have you given an answer?

DEEPER GRACE VII

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The GRACE-ful Flow of Forgiveness

I can Forgive Others Because
I am Forgiven – By Him!

Garbage disposals only work because water flows in and through.
If there is no flow the pipes gets clogged.

Allow His GRACE to flow through you!
Into the lives of Others!

God’s Love Letter

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God’s been writing this Love Letter to me for almost 10 years. It’s changed how I view Him. I’ve shared parts of it on this blog. This video portrays my journey.

This is not ‘my’ video, but I LuvIt!

What If? #2

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Way Back in May, 2014, when the movie “What if – God’s NOT Dead” was in theaters, I posted “7 What Ifs“. You can read them HERE.

This summer’s theme for the pastoral staff at New Life Church has been The Lord’s Prayer. You can listen/view their sharing HERE. They’re addressing it phrase by phrase. I’m finding it to be illuminating, challenging, thought – provoking and even life-changing.

The past two weeks have been amazing as they have unwrapped :

“Forgive us our debts as / we forgive our debtors“.

Perhaps, partly because of this series, or perhaps just because God tends to work in my life by “asking me a Q, lets me ponder it for awhile, then helps me find His answer“ I’ve been thinking a lot about this What If:

“WHAT HAPPENS BETWEEN ME AND GOD IF I DIE WITH UN-FORGIVENESS?”

Perhaps a better, corresponding Q might be this one that was #1 on the original list of
“7 What Ifs” (U did go there and read them, right??)

“What if we are ALREADY as forgiven (by God) as we will ever be?”

How would the knowledge and belief of that change my life? But first, can that even be true? Can it be possible that God provided (complete) forgiveness through the sacrifice of His Son at the cross? Remember – the last words of Jesus were “It Is Finished!” I’m not sure I’ve ever fully understood what He meant by that.

In the past 26 months or so since I posted that first list of 7, it seems like I’m learning more and more about how God’s GRACE and how He views me because of it. As I’ve learned more about how God sees me, It’s changed how I see Him. Perhaps the most important is how it’s changing how I see others. It’s challenged some long-held beliefs I grew up with, ~~argued~~ ~~about~~ discussed by the hour, and related to God and others by.

Lately, as I write new posts on this writing thingy I’ve been doing for the past 3 years or so, I’m seeing more and more how “themes” are fitting together. In the next few days, weeks, (who-knows) I want to look back and see how this thought fits into my musings:

“Because I am completely forgiven by God,
I can therefore choose to walk in forgiveness with ‘YOU’“

In the meantime, I would LOVE it if you would chime in with your comments, thoughts, Q’s and yes, even your musings. Argue with me about it if you want!! We’ll learn together.

P.S. Join my “Tribe” – click on the “Follow” button and type in Ur email

THE BATTLE GROUND

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“There is a war between guilt and GRACE!”

The other day, as I walked into our bedroom, I noticed these words written on the notepad next to the dual recliner where my WW sits. They come from the song by Matthew West, “GRACE WINS“

Lately, I’ve been pondering the effects of GRACE in my life. I’m beginning to realize that I have greatly undervalued what GRACE DID, what GRACE does, what God wants GRACE to do in, for and through me.

Matthew West continues his song with these words; “GRACE WINS!! Every Time!! For the woman at the well, GRACE WINS!! For the beggar on the street, GRACE WINS!! For the prodigal son, GRACE WINS!!“

This morning’s “Daily Verse” from “YouVersion” was Psalms 139:23,24

‭‭“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” ‭NLT‬‬

This morning, I’m saddened to think how many times I’ve prayed that from a place of guilt and shame, standing (or kneeling, as the case may be) before God but seeing him as my Judge. It makes me want to run away. Sometimes I do.

This is not the prayer of a guilty man waiting to hear sentence passed for his guilt and shame. It’s the Q posed by the prodigal son to his Faithful Father at the breakfast table the morning after the party as they enjoy steaks leftover from the fattened calf and eggs the servants gathered that morning from the free-range hens in the yard. (Luke 15:11-32)

It’s the Q from the heart of a recovering, wandering son who has once again been embraced by “Abba-Daddy”

Let me see if I can put this in my own words as I picture myself sitting at that table:

“Dad, I came back yesterday because I knew you are a man of compassion. All my life I’ve seen how you treat your servants. You’ve always treated the men and women who work for you better than most of my friends were treated by their fathers.

Last month, I remembered that about you. Someday, maybe I’ll tell you where I was and what I was doing when I remembered, but I think I’d rather just forget about it. But let me simply say that I woke up in the blackest, darkest hole of my life.

Then I remembered!

YOU!

Dad, I came back to be your servant. I came back to sweep the dung out of your stables. I came back to clean the hen house on my hands and knees. I came back to…

YOU!!

NEVER in my wildest thoughts did I think I would come back and be your son!! I fully expected to grovel. I fully expected to spend the rest of my days trying to pay penance for the way I hurt you. But you… You!!! Dad, You put the family robe around my shoulders. You embraced me!! You put your ring on my finger. You brought out the finest wine, and Oh! Wow!! This steak…!!!

Dad, (by the way, it feels strange to call you ‘Dad’)… Let me take this moment to ask you, from the depth my heart, with all the gratitude I can manage; “Teach me. This morning, Dad, search my heart; test me and show me my hurtful ways. Daddy, I want to spend the rest my life letting you teach me how to be your son.”

THAT is the war between guilt and GRACE. The battle in my life between guilt and GRACE is fought at the gateway to the homestead. Because of my guilt, I hesitate to respond when He calls. The Father beckons me forward. I hesitate. The Father says: “Come, my son, all is ready. For you. I’ve been waiting. For you. Too often, I’ve turned away. In shame. “I’ve been watching every day. For you. But… I’ve done all can can do. For you. Unless you come home. The Choice is yours. I chose you, but I cannot make that choice FOR you.”

BECAUSE OF MY GRACE, THE DOOR IS WIDE OPEN FOR YOU, MY SON! COME HOME!!

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https://itreallyisjustthatsimple.com/50shadesofgrace