Reflections on God's Word

by Victoria Robinson

Shadows can be either beautiful or scary. I get great enjoyment when the trees bring shadows into the windows of my home. When the season changes to autumn I love the rustling of the trees in the wind and the dappling of light as it shifts and sways. For some reason this brings comfort to my heart. However, I do not want my heavenly Father to possess the same qualities. That would be terrifying! Not knowing when the shadows would move and what in the world could be lurking in them.

Fortunately, the Word of God shows us that our heavenly Father does not change like shifting shadows. The apostle James describes God as, “the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” Our heavenly Father is totally trustworthy. In fact, in the book of Hebrews we read the wonderful words, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Just like the shadow of trees brings me comfort, knowing that our Lord never changes gives me even greater comfort.

Girlfriends, what shadows are lurking in your life? Is it the regret of your past? The stress of your present life? The fear of your future? If you are dealing with any of these dreaded shadows, then you need to embrace the comfort of your heavenly Father found in His unchanging Word. The Word of God is soothing to our hearts in times of distress. It does not shift or change like a shadow. The apostle Peter wrote a beautiful quote from the book of Isaiah, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.”

Dearest girlfriends, when we see shifting shadows in our life, lets us place our trust in the unchanging truth of our heavenly Father.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ~ James 1:17 NIV 

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. ~ Hebrews 13:8 NKJV 

For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” … ~ 1 Peter 1:23-25 NIV

by Victoria Robinson

In the beginning … ahhh those famous first words recorded in the book of Genesis. Beginnings so often start with a sense of great hope and wonderment. This was the fresh starts of all fresh starts. A blank canvas with limitless possibilities. Girlfriends, don’t you just love a fresh start? A chance to begin anew with no past mistakes. There are times when we just need to start over.

Spiritually speaking, a new beginning is found in the book of John. That new beginning is found in putting our faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The apostle Paul spoke of this transforming faith in the book of Titus. he said, “… a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time …” Acknowledging that a new life is only possible through Jesus Christ is the only way to have a fresh start. In fact, Jesus said to a man named Nicodemus, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” Born again—let’s start over! If this is your desire, click on this Heaven link and learn more. Heaven

If you already have a relationship with Jesus Christ then you surely know what a wonderful feeling it is to be able to “wipe the slate clean” and start over. King David came to a place in his life when he desperately needed to start over. Troubles surrounded him due to his disintegration into a sinful life. The enemy of his soul had enticed him to indulge in lustfully gazing upon a beautiful woman named Bathsheba. This led to sleeping with her apart from marriage as set forth in the Word of God. Once it becomes known to him that Bathsheba is pregnant, we see the actions of a desperate man. So panicked by his circumstances that he engaged in a murderous plot to kill Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah. If ever a person needed to start over it was King David.

The good news is David repented and turned his heart back to the Lord. David’s fresh start resulted in the Lord speaking these kind words about him after his departure from this world, “… walk before Me as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and in uprightness …”

King David whose life was ravaged by his sinful choices, but who got a fresh start from the heavenly Father, has been memorialized by the Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus.  He wrote, “David was truly a man after God’s own heart.”

This is an encouraging story when we reach a point in our life where we need a new beginning. If that is where you are today, then praying the very words King David prayed after he repented are appropriate. In the book of Psalms David wrote, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”

Near the end of Lamentations, a book of poetry written to lament the destruction of Jerusalem, the prophet Jeremiah makes a plea to the Lord. He says, “Bring us back to you! Give us a fresh start.” What a wonderful way to cry out to the Lord when we have a remorseful heart and want to start over!

Dearest girlfriends, let us turn our hearts towards our heavenly Father and receive a new beginning.

by Victoria Robinson

Who of us does not want to know someone’s name we can mention and all of a sudden wonderful things start happening? A great job, a table at a fine restaurant, better seating, etc. The common phrase, “Just mention my name.”, takes on a whole new meaning when looked at in the light of the Word of God. It is in the name of Jesus that wonderful things can happen. Jesus himself told us to mention His name when we pray.

It is because of the name of Jesus we can have confidence when bringing request to our heavenly Father. The apostle Luke tells a great story of healing, “It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.”

Mentioning His name also involves trust. The psalmist said, “Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Girlfriends, that is a powerful statement. Because we have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ our prayers are transformed from “Hope He hears me.” to “I know He hears me!”

Dearest girlfriends, let us pray with total trust and confidence and expect great things to happen—just mention His name!

by Victoria Robinson

There are two ways one can go from sinner to saint instantly. The first way can be demonstrated at funerals everywhere. It is amazing how when a person of ill repute dies, they are instantly spoken of as if they lived the most saintly life possible. I suppose this comes from the fear of speaking evil of the dead. An interesting example of this is found in the eulogy David gave King Saul. He said, “Saul and Jonathan— in life they were loved and gracious …” It is easy to understand why he spoke these beautiful words concerning his dear loyal friend Jonathan who was like a brother to him. However, including Saul in this sentiment baffles the mind. Remember, it was Saul who became David’s enemy and tried to kill him more than once. David’s motive does not appear to be fear, but rather he had always shown respect for Saul out of reverence to the Lord. He was obeying a command given in the book of Exodus which states, “Do not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.”

The second way to obtain instant sainthood is much easier and a lot less painful. That is to allow the shed blood of Jesus to wash away your sins. Our Lord actually chooses to have selective memory concerning our sins. He has told us, “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins.” A common misconception is what a saint really is. A saint is one who has a covenant relationship with God through Jesus Christ. There is death involved in becoming a saint, not mortal death, but spiritual death.

Dearest girlfriends, I pray if you are not a saint, you will invite Jesus Christ to wash away your sins today. Click here to learn more.  Heaven

by Victoria Robinson

I would never consider leaving the door to my house unlocked, yet that is what I sometimes allow to happen spiritually. Through the carelessness of sin I allow the “thief” to come right in and take what he wants. Sometimes I even hold the door open for him so he can carry my possessions away. That is a sad thought!

When you sin it is like giving Satan a key to your life. The apostle Paul gave us a clear example of this when he said, “… don’t sin by letting anger gain control over you. Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a mighty foothold to the Devil.” Think of it this way—when someone knocks on your door, do you open it just a little thinking if you do not want them in, you can keep them out? Certainly not! That would be foolish because if their foot could get wedged in, this would give them leverage to push the door open and come right in.

When I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart I not only received the free gift of eternal life, but I received the key to lock the “thief” out. The thief of course is Satan. My sin unlocks the door for him to come pillage my life. Dearest girlfriends, let us stay alert and lock the door so the thief cannot steal from us.

by Victoria Robinson

Don’t you just love being waited on at a restaurant or store by someone who is smiling and being attentive to your every need. Hmmm … sounds a lot like the greatest servant of all time, our Lord and Savior! In the book of Matthew He describes his true heart of service as, “… the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Girlfriends, do you serve with a smile or do you sometimes find yourself complaining? It is so easy to allow the enemy to plant the seeds in our hearts of self-centered desires which is the opposite of our Lord and Savior. This in turn grows into weeds of complaining and discontent. It is necessary to take these seeds out of our hearts immediately and allow our Lord and Savior’s attitude of “service with a smile” to permeate our hearts.

The only way we can serve with a smile is to serve in the strength God provides. This then will bring glory to God as it says in the book of First Peter, “If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.”

Dearest girlfriends, I pray we would serve with a smile as we rely on the strength of our heavenly Father and bring glory to Him.

by Victoria Robinson

In a prayer for his people, King Solomon prayed they would take it to heart when they sinned. Great admonition for us all. Taking it to heart would be to have a change of heart which would be to repent. There cannot be recovery from sin unless we take to heart the wrongs we have committed. King Solomon asked God to forgive them because they were His people. If you have accepted Jesus Christ into your heart, then you are His and can expect restoration from your sins once you have taken them to heart.

King Solomon’s father, King David had committed some grievous sins during his reign. One as we know was to have an affair with Bathsheba, who by the way was Solomon’s mother. The second sin occurred when David tried to cover up his affair by murdering Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband. At first, David did not acknowledge his sin, but when he did, the painful restoration process began. Yes girlfriends, I did say painful. That is because all sin has repercussions. The mercy of God is a mystery which cannot be totally explained, but He has made it clear He will show mercy on whom He chooses to show mercy. Therefore, we should never presume upon the mercy of our heavenly Father understanding He will always treat us fairly.

Dearest girlfriends, I pray we would take to heart the wrongs we have committed and marvel at the wondrous restoration our heavenly Father will bring about in our lives.

by Victoria Robinson

An undeserved life cuts both ways. On the one hand sometimes we get what we do not deserve, such as God’s generous mercy. All of us who have received the forgiveness of our sins through Jesus Christ have received the ultimate undeserved mercy there is. Though sometimes we get what we do not deserve as in the case of Joseph who was sold into slavery and then imprisoned. The mercy is easy to accept while undeserved hardship is not.

Though it is sad to say, no life is entirely free of undeserved hardships. What is most important is how we handle these situations. Girlfriends,  I wish I could say these hardships are never ordained by our heavenly Father, but that is not the truth. Our unjust sufferings are just one way our heavenly Father helps us to follow in His Son’s steps. Jesus suffered unjustly so that you and I could spend eternity in a place called heaven. That, sweet girlfriends, is how we should look at undeserved hardships. In other words, like Jesus, we should focus not on the pain, but on the beauty of our heavenly Father’s greater plan and the comfort our suffering will bring others. As in the case of Joseph, his entire family was rescued from starvation. Yes, I know, even his wicked brothers who meant to harm him. Yet in his godliness Joseph told his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”

Dearest girlfriends, as difficult as it is let us embrace the undeserved life we are living, both in the good times and bad.

• Afterthoughts …

If you have not received the free gift of eternal life, please click here:  Heaven

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. ~ Hebrews 2:9 NIV

by  Victoria Robinson

When you receive income, does your heart ever sing, “Cha-ching!”? It is always exciting to see money or goods coming into our possession. The bigger the check—the bigger the excitement! Perhaps you work hard and earn a large wage. On the other hand, perhaps you work hard and earn minimum wage. Either way the Word of God gives us the principle that it is honorable to work, regardless of the amount of income. However one must admit it can be frustrating to work just as hard as someone else and see them rake in way more cash. I am not talking about jealousy,  just saying plainly life does not always seem fair. Though there is work we can all do that pays a fair wage for every employee. That would be working in the kingdom of God.  All such labor has an eternal cha-ching! Not meaning we can earn our way into heaven, for that is a gracious gift given freely to all who call on the name of Jesus Christ.

Moses took an eternal viewpoint when he understood his reward was yet to come. Jesus told us storing up eternal rewards was more important than earthly rewards. Girlfriends, our motives should be pure, but there is nothing wrong with our hearts singing cha-ching when we store up treasures in heaven.

Dearest girlfriends, I pray we would work harder for our heavenly “paychecks” than our earthly paychecks.