God's Faithfulness Overcomes Sin ~ Lent 2015

God’s Faithfulness ~ Our Everlasting Hope!

LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You and praise Your name, for in perfect faithfulness

You have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1 NIV

During this season of reflection and renewal, join me in exploring God’s Faithfulness. Do you find strength for every circumstance in God’s Faithfulness? God IS Faithful!  God’s Faithfulness is our everlasting Hope! ~ Donna Oswalt

It seems to be a fact of life that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another law at work within me that is a war with my mind. This law wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 7:21-25 NLT

From the beginning when Adam and Eve sin, humanity’s nature begins its sinful journey that will finally end when Christ returns again and all believers will call the New Jerusalem their forever home. Until then, we struggle with carnal thoughts, earthly lust, and worldly cravings. The war with my mind tries to deceive the heart, to manipulate the will. These attitudes of sin, the sin that dwells in me finds itself in direct conflict with the spiritual laws of God. While the law itself exposes our sinful nature, it cannot offer new spiritual life.

While in Corinth during his third missionary journey, Paul writes Romans, a letter to the church in Rome, as a statement of faith. One of the main themes deals with sin, exposing the heart’s disobedience, examining the will’s rebellion. Paul confesses that he loves God and wants to do what is right; yet, he finds himself tempted by sin. Because of God’s faithfulness, Jesus Christ overcomes sin and offers us a spiritual rebirth. Through Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes to each of us, lives within us, and empowers our desire to be obedient to God’s laws. 

Lord, life gets tangled between spiritual darkness and spiritual obedience. The flesh is weak, easily held captive and powerless, hostage and rebellious. Jesus, You break the chains that bind my soul to sin. In my weakness, great is Your faithfulness. You are the living God, the Spirit that dwells in me. –dho

Focus Point: Through Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes to each of us, lives within us, and empowers our desire to be obedient to God’s laws.

All rights reserved; copyright 2015 by Donna Oswalt/Co-Founder of Mangrove Ministries/Christian blogger and author Breathing Room For My Soul (blog) Follow on Twitter @soulchat

For more information about this ministry visit ~

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“May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

3rd Sunday in Lent ~ Our Gift in God's Faithfulness

God’s Faithfulness ~ Our Everlasting Hope!

LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You and praise Your name, for in perfect faithfulness

You have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1 NIV

During this season of reflection and renewal, join me in exploring God’s Faithfulness. Do you find strength for every circumstance in God’s Faithfulness? God IS Faithful!  God’s Faithfulness is our everlasting Hope! ~ Donna Oswalt

But now God has shown us a different way of being [righteous] in His sight – not by obeying the law but by the way promised in the Scriptures long ago. We are made right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done. Romans 3:21-26 NLT

The Lord, the I AM, the same yesterday, today and forever is with us. This is what matters. This is our reason for confidence.

Elizabeth Elliot

In the Biblical temple, in the most holy place, the Holy of Holies, blood sacrifices for atonement are offered on the mercy seat which covers the Ark of the Covenant. God’s righteousness reveals itself anew through Jesus Christ, His faithful promise for everlasting life. With Christ’s blood sacrifice on the cross, He becomes the living “mercy seat”, the eternal “place of forgiveness”. Christ brings God’s righteousness to each of us.

Until Christ, only the most high priest could enter the Holy of Holies and only once a year. Now, Christ invites everyone into the Holy of Holies, into the presence of God – the prostitute, the thief, the murderer, and the unfaithful spouse, the habitual abuser, the child molester, and you, and me. This gift of Grace, this atonement, exceeds all darkness, all destructive habits, all disillusionment, all depraved indifference. Grace comes from the outstretched arms of unfailing love, reaching for all. With faith each one can accept this pure gift, undeserved and unmeasured Grace. 

Holy One, sin surrounds me, invades me, lives within me. Grace offers forgiveness and new beginnings. Infinite Righteousness, cover me, cleanse me, complete me. Great is Your faithfulness, great in goodness and generosity. –dho

Focus Point: Grace comes from the outstretched arms of unfailing love, reaching for all.

All rights reserved; copyright 2015 by Donna Oswalt/Co-Founder of Mangrove Ministries/Christian blogger and author Breathing Room For My Soul (blog) Follow on Twitter @soulchat

For more information about this ministry visit ~

MangroveMinistries.org

LIKE Mangrove Ministries on Facebook

“May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Complete Power, Absolute Faithfulness ~ Lent 2015

God’s Faithfulness ~ Our Everlasting Hope!

LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You and praise Your name, for in perfect faithfulness

You have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1 NIV

During this season of reflection and renewal, join me in exploring God’s Faithfulness. Do you find strength for every circumstance in God’s Faithfulness? God IS Faithful!  God’s Faithfulness is our everlasting Hope! ~ Donna Oswalt

photo:in Germany/T/McGirr

Then Job answered the LORD and said: “I know that You can do everything, and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. Job 42:1-6 NKJV

IF you can find time, read Job chapters 38-41 to fully grasp the magnitude of Almighty God. In these verses, God confronts Job’s arrogance with a series of questions that proclaim the complete power of God Almighty. God asks Job who and where and when did you create the world and all its glory? Have you and do you know and can you explain how all things work? These Scriptures expose the greatness of an all-powerful Creator. With great humility, Job responds that God’s power exceeds everything.

The story of Job invites us to witness human suffering up close. From great abundance to complete despair, Job struggles to understand his tragedies, but he misses the most important point. God is Sovereign! God asks us the same questions that He asks Job, and in reply, we must confess that God’s ways are higher, beyond our finite minds. Like Job, we should respond with awe and gratitude, “I've been talking about things far too wonderful for me!” 

Lord, I constantly talk about things I do not understand, worry about situations I cannot control, try to plan my future without even grasping my present life. Expose my pride and weariness, my doubt and anxiety, my self-righteousness. Great is Your faithfulness. –dho

Focus Point: God is Sovereign!

All rights reserved; copyright 2015 by Donna Oswalt/Co-Founder of Mangrove Ministries/Christian blogger and author Breathing Room For My Soul (blog) Follow on Twitter @soulchat

For more information about this ministry visit ~

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“May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Divine Protection ~ Lent 2015

God’s Faithfulness ~ Our Everlasting Hope!

LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You and praise Your name, for in perfect faithfulness

You have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1 NIV

During this season of reflection and renewal, join me in exploring God’s Faithfulness. Do you find strength for every circumstance in God’s Faithfulness? God IS Faithful!  God’s Faithfulness is our everlasting Hope! ~ Donna Oswalt

photo: in Germany/T.McGirr

He will shield you with His wings. He will shelter you with His feathers. His faithful promises are your armor and protection. Psalm 91:4 NLT

God’s faithfulness provides safe shelter for His own. Whether the metaphor refers to feathers of angels or eagles or hens (see Matthew 23:37), trusting in this living God becomes a shield for the fearful, the forgotten, the desperate, the dying, the wounded, the weary. The world reeks of danger and uncertainty, but we find our refuge, our safe place in the embrace of God Almighty.

Whether the context is Moses reminding the Israelites or Jesus grieving over Jerusalem or the world churning its chaos, God longs to sit in the inner sanctuary, to have communion and fellowship with those who seek Him. So come to a place of safety, a place of Divine Protection, a place of unfailing love. 

El Shaddai, You are my safe place, my port in life’s storms, my retreat from daily struggles, my shelter from Satan’s lies. Great is Your faithfulness; be my salvation. - dho

Focus Point: The world reeks of danger and uncertainty, but we find our refuge, our safe place in the embrace of God Almighty.

All rights reserved; copyright 2015 by Donna Oswalt/Co-Founder of Mangrove Ministries/Christian blogger and author Breathing Room For My Soul (blog) Follow on Twitter @soulchat

For more information about this ministry visit ~

MangroveMinistries.org

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“May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Faithful in Judgement ~ Lent 2015

God’s Faithfulness ~ Our Everlasting Hope!

LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You and praise Your name, for in perfect faithfulness

You have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1 NIV

During this season of reflection and renewal, join me in exploring God’s Faithfulness. Do you find strength for every circumstance in God’s Faithfulness? God IS Faithful!  God’s Faithfulness is our everlasting Hope! ~ Donna Oswalt

photo: in Germany/T.McGirr

All who believe in God’s Son have eternal life. Those who don’t believe the Son will never experience eternal life, but the wrath of God remains upon them. John 3:36 NLT

No one likes to talk about God’s judgment preferring to focus only on God’s love and goodness; yet, God cannot be compartmentalized into categories. Throughout both the Old and New Testaments, God remains unchanging, always faithful and true, full of mystery and majesty. His sovereignty and power span infinity. God’s faithfulness enters the world through Jesus Christ, His Son, not to judge the world, but to save the world. (John 3:17) God’s promise of Perfect Love brings life, real life, right now!

God’s most extravagant gift of love, His Son, brings new hope to old wounds, compassionate arms for old regrets, gentle smiles for the abused, tender hearts toward the outcasts, healing for the spiritually blind. God’s judgment reveals our true heart, our weakness, our shortsightedness, our stubbornness, our desire to walk on the edge. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more. (John 3:19) Choose Light!  

Holy One, my heart overflows to think of such Perfect Love. I do want to walk in the light but confess, sometimes, I find myself dangerously near the shadows. Open my heart and ears and eyes that I can see others as You see them. Great is Your faithfulness, immense in light and love. - dho

Focus Point: God’s faithfulness enters the world through Jesus Christ, His Son, not to judge the world, but to save the world.

All rights reserved; copyright 2015 by Donna Oswalt/Co-Founder of Mangrove Ministries/Christian blogger and author Breathing Room For My Soul (blog) Follow on Twitter @soulchat

For more information about this ministry visit ~

MangroveMinistries.org

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“May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Faithful to Forgive ~ Lent 2015

God’s Faithfulness ~ Our Everlasting Hope!

LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You and praise Your name, for in perfect faithfulness

You have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1 NIV

During this season of reflection and renewal, join me in exploring God’s Faithfulness. Do you find strength for every circumstance in God’s Faithfulness? God IS Faithful!  God’s Faithfulness is our everlasting Hope! ~ Donna Oswalt

photo: in Germany/T.McGirr

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

1 John 1:9 NASB

Multiple times in the Old Testament, passages describe God as “slow to anger and abounding in love”. A vast contrast exists between God, being in perfect righteousness, and mankind, struggling with persistent unrighteousness. In His patient, faithful goodness, God continues to reach for us, to shine His Light in the darkness of sin. In this place of longing, God waits. He waits for us.

Sadly, either ignorance or arrogance maintains the barrier between us and God, because even without confession God already knows. To confess our sins means we “agree” or “acknowledge” with God that we are imperfect, that we are unrighteous. God, faithful to forgive, is waiting. 

Lord, the world applauds wanting more, self-focused thinking, looking important. It is so easy to slip into the darkness. You are the faithful Light that constantly shines showing me the way back to You. Forgive me for listening more to the lies of the world than to You. Great is Your faithfulness. – dho

Focus Point: God, faithful to forgive, is waiting.

All rights reserved; copyright 2015 by Donna Oswalt/Co-Founder of Mangrove Ministries/Christian blogger and author Breathing Room For My Soul (blog) Follow on Twitter @soulchat

For more information about this ministry visit ~

MangroveMinistries.org

LIKE Mangrove Ministries on Facebook

“May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”