February 13, 2024

Happy Valentine’s Day–Lavish Love from the Single Girl

Hi Friend,

It’s been a minute since I wrote.  My church is in the middle of a 21-day Prayer and Fasting Challenge. The Holy Spirit is revealing so much.

Here are some revelations from the single girl on this Valentine’s Day. So many people make fun of Valentine’s Day as a big marketing gimmick after the Christmas holidays. Not me. I’m a sappy, hopeful romantic. I love LOVE.

Today I celebrate Valentine’s Day Eve, Galentine’s Day. In fact my Blessings Brokers team is meeting to strategize and plan.

I used to struggle with this holiday. It was tough, and I was envious.  A few years ago on Valentine’s Day I changed my perspective.

It was a cold night. I built a cozy fire. I was excited. I was ready. Sitting by the warm fire, it was time to write my Love Letter.  Opening my journal, the following is the Love Letter penned on those pages:

 Fairest Lord Jesus and Lover of My Soul,

Happy Valentine’s Day! Thank you for being my First Love, today and always.

Thank you, Lord,  for pointing out/revealing and healing my sin of idolatry… The idolatry I suffered for my Future Husband for years without even realizing it.

I had elevated the idea of a future husband much higher than I had elevated You as my Lord and Savior. My heart is changed. Please forgive me. 

Holy Spirit, I want to be content in my singleness. Help me.  I am Yours. You are mine.  I am at peace.

My Rock and My Redeemer, Gentle Healer, it is an honor to convey a portion of my immense love for You. No journal, no library can record all my love, dear Jesus.  Thank you for loving me. Every breath is for You, precious Lord.

How may I serve You more? On this Valentine’s Day, I recommit my life to You. It is You and You alone who I need. (Not the only man I desire, I admit).  Make me more of a vessel for You and Your Gospel. I want to be your courageous ambassador, Your spokesman who only utters worthy, not worthless words. (Jeremiah 15:19). May it be so. 

 “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”  (1 Samuel 3:10)

I Love You With My Whole Heart,                                                                                                                                                Danya, Your Daughter of  the King

Friend, I learned that God is the only one to fill our “soul holes.”

Since the Bible is God’s Love Letter to me, I had finally written my Love Letter to Jesus. That night transformed Valentine’s Day for me. Contentment came. Does discontentment still rear its ugly head sometimes? Sure. I’m a work in progress.

Friend, I encourage to write your love letter to Jesus. May we live every day as Valentine’s Day with Jesus.

I love love and celebrating Valentine’s Day. I love you, friend.

Reflect:

–Are you content in your circumstances? Please comment.

–How can you express your love for God more?

Renew:

“Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You. I will praise You as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.” –Psalm 63: 3-4 NIV

“‘My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.'” –John 15:12-13 NIV

“I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation. ” –Philippians 4:12 NIV

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” –1 Timothy 4:12 NIV.

Recharge:

–Have you written your Love Letter to Jesus yet? Today is a great day to start.

–The Bible is God’s Love Letter to us. Please read it daily. God loves you so much. You are loved, friend.

December 25, 2023

Christmas Miracles–Right on Time

Hi Friend! Merry Christmas. As many struggles as this year has had, it has given me a desire to marinate on the Jesus’ birth story with a fresh perspective. He was born in such a dark time, like now. I am in awe. Let’s explore together  studying these Matthew 1 and Luke 2 miracles.

You may have already known this, but I didn’t realize between the end of the Old Testament with Malachi to the beginning of the New Testament with Matthew and the story of Jesus, there was a 400-year gap of silence. Four hundred years of God not speaking through the prophets!

It may seem like God has been silent. May we be encouraged that when God speaks and acts, He’s right on time–not too late and not too early.

Buckle up. I packed a lot in this post. 🙂

1. Birth of Jesus Christ

A. Why Bethlehem? Luke 2:1-6; Prophesied 700+ years earlier in Micah 5:2-5–incredible.

B. Why Joseph? Luke 2:4, 16, 33. Matthew 2:13, 13:55-58. Not much is written about Joseph. We know from Matthew 13 that he was a carpenter and he and Mary had seven children. God chose him as the strong, gentle, silent, loyal leader and husband.

C. Why was there no room in the inn? Luke 2:   With all the people coming from the region to register for the Roman Census, all the inns were full. I can empathize with the Inn-Keeper. He was a busy business leader who was doing his best to accommodate Mary and Joseph with a cave/stable.

  • I love this The Inn-Keeper’s Perspective from Frederick Buechner’s  book Magnificent Defeat, “The Birth” chapter: “…So when the baby came I was not around, and I saw none of it…All your life long, you wait for your own True Love to come–our destiny, our heart’s desire…When he came, I missed him. ‘Pray for me, brothers and sisters. Pray for the Inn-Keeper. Pray for me, and for us all, my own true love.'”
  • How am I like the Inn Keeper? Why do I leave no room for Jesus?
  • What can I do to make more room for Jesus in my life, my schedule, my bank account?

2. The Shepherds and the Angels

A. Why Shepherds as the first witnesses?  Luke 2: 8-14. Prophesied in Micah 4:8. Shepherds  were humble, lowly, outcasts. It’s fitting that they would be the first witnesses of His birth.  Jesus is also our Great Shepherd.

B. Why Swaddling cloths? Luke 2:7, 12.  Swaddling cloths were wrapped around sheep paws to cover the blemishes. It’s beautifully that Jesus as our Sacrificial Lamb was wrapped in those swaddling cloths.

C. Why Suddenly? Luke 2: 13. When God calls, He often does miracles suddenly. We respond suddenly and with haste. (Luke 1: 39, Luke 4:39, Acts 2:2)

  1. What  miracles has God performed suddenly in your life or in the Bible?
  2. How can I respond “suddenly” like the shepherds and tell everyone what God has done?

3. The Wise Men—Matthew 2: 1-12

A. Why them? Well-respected, well-educated members of society.

B. Why did they wait to see Jesus? It was almost two years since Jesus birth. Traveled about 1000 miles to see him at home in Nazareth.

C. Why gold, frankincense and myrrh?

  1. Read “We Three Kings” lyrics–Gold for a King; Frankincense for a High Priest/Deity; Myrrh for Sacrifice as embalming fluid to symbolize His death.
  2. What meaningful gifts can I give my loved ones? Can I give to Jesus? My heart.

D. Why did they go back home a different way? To protect Jesus from being killed by Herod.

4. Jesus Presented at the Temple–Luke 2:22-38

A. Why were there two turtledoves? Luke 2:24. A sacrificial offering for his birth.  “Twelve Days of Christmas” are all symbolic of our “True Love”–Jesus.

B. Why Simeon? Luke 2:25. Only time he is mentioned. Approx. 112 years old. Devout and righteous. The Holy Spirit prophesied through him to them. God loves to do extraordinary through the ordinary.

C. Why Anna? Luke 2:36-38. Only time she is mentioned. She was approximately 104 years old. A prophetess who prayed and fasted day and night.

  1. What set Anna and Simeon apart? A. Available to be used by God; B. Attuned to the Holy Spirit; C. Agile; D. Humble.
  2. How can God use me, an ordinary person, to do the extraordinary, like Anna and Simeon?

May we reflect on the miracles of this Christmas like never before. For an added blessing, please enjoy this Christmas Pilot episode of The Chosen called “The Shepherd.” Notice how bright the Christmas Star was to guide the shepherds to Jesus.

Merry Christmas, friends!

December 19, 2023

Lord, What Do You Want For Your Birthday?

December is a month for some significant birthdays in my life. My precious Mom’s birthday was on December 6th.  The birthday of one of my Godly mentors is December 26th.

Oftentimes, I ask a simple question to those we love before their birthday: “What do you want for your birthday?” If you are like me, I just want to ensure my loved one is honored in the most meaningful way. Isn’t that what we want for our birthdays…to  know we are loved and cherished?

The most significant person in my life, really in this world, celebrates His birth each December 25th. Isn’t it wonderful that we all adorn our homes in Christmas finery and decorate the inside and outside with bright lights in honor of His birthday?  We bake treats, buy gifts and send cards to our most significant loved ones , friends, and coworkers (and even strangers), and go above and beyond to volunteer and do “random acts of kindness” this time a year. Why? Perhaps it truly is all part of His birthday celebration, honoring the Light Of  The World (John 8:12).

However you may feel about Him, one fact is irrefutable. History sets its time stamp of demarcation with Jesus’ birth—BC, “Before Christ”, and AD, “Anno Domini,” Latin for “In the Year of Our Lord.”   Even the Old Testament prophesied Jesus’ birth (especially in the book of Isaiah) at least 700 years before He was born! Isn’t it fitting that we give Him our best as we celebrate His birthday?

When I was growing up, we baked a birthday cake for Christmas Day and sang “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. I will always remember those sweet memories.

So, in this December 2023 AD, in the year of our Lord,  I  encourage you to ask Him a simple question:

“Lord, What Do You Want For Your Birthday?”

Then listen…

Could His birthday gift be:

–to reconcile with your loved one…

–to rake the yard of and sit with an elderly neighbor…

–to babysit for a worn-out married couple to have a date night…

–to share your testimony and love of Jesus with your co-worker…

You can almost hear His still, small voice, can’t you?

“Your Heart, Dear One. That’s all I want. Your Heart.”

Reflect:

  • How will this Christmas, Jesus’ birthday celebration, be different from years past?
  • How can we listen and act more intentionally after asking the question, “Lord, what do You want for your birthday?”

Renew:

  • “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” –Colossians 3:23
  • “I am sending Him—who is my very heart—back to you.” –Philemon 1:12.
  • “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the Truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply from the heart.” –1 Peter 1: 22

Recharge:

  • After asking, seeking, and listening, what intentional actions in your life have you been prompted to take?
  • Consider baking a birthday cake on Christmas Day and singing “Happy Birthday” to Jesus. Let’s party!
  • Please leave a comment.
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