Hope for Today will inspire you to live a life connected to Christ by empowering you to fall in love with Jesus through personal spiritual growth. Teaching you the power of your identity and authority in Christ. Encouraging you in your inheritance as an ambassador for the kingdom of God!
Author: Terese
Terese is a wife, mother, sister, aunt and friend. Best of all a daughter of the King! Terese is a Bible study teacher and speaker. One of her passions is investing in the lives of other women and encouraging them in their identity and authority in Christ. Terese is a life long student of God's grace.
Follow her on and Instagram @terese_belme_author
Pulling one from the archives with a little make over. Originally posted July 2013.
I’m old school when it comes to reading. Whenever possible I like holding a book in my hands, feeling its weight and turning the page with a sense of satisfaction as I read on. And I must admit the cover will either draw me in and captivate me into reading more or cause me to not give the book a second glance. Yes, in some instances I do judge a book by its cover.
Many times we can look at situations in our life and see only the negative. Somehow we’ve taken our eyes off of God above and placed our vision firmly in front of us. We fall into the trap of judging our circumstance by its prickly, misshapen and unappealing exterior. On the outside perhaps this ‘book’ has been passed over many times seemingly discarded and worthless.
Let me ask you, what if this time God has chosen you to read this ‘book’ acquainting yourself with the characters and their story and sharing His love with them? This ‘book’ is most likely not your normal genre of choice. But what if you choose not to read and you miss a plethora of blessings and opportunities? What if you were chosen for such a time as this?
What if we loved like Jesus?
And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?
Only God could have taken a dream He placed into my momma heart so many years ago and spoken it into existence by the very one the dream is for.
Have you heard We Are Messengers? This song is not new but I discovered it not long ago. Yesterday was one of those particularly hard days. Not only was I emotionally spent it was a busy day requiring my focused attention. A day where I knew my adrenals were not stress free nor happy. To top it off, my phone was about to ring its last [at least it made it past the proverbial two year mark] and this had me inserting a trip to the phone store of life. Thankfully Holy Spirit kept me from falling down the rabbit hole of self-pity.
Even as I sat on the edge of that rabbit hole, asking God many ‘why’ questions He still chose to be gracious and kind to me as He always is.
Toward the end of the day my son called to check in on me. We talked for and hour and a half. And like many of our conversations my son asks deep theological questions. Questions I have yet to answer for myself. My son is at a crossroads in many areas in his life. We talked about God placing a passion for good work inside us and when that passion comes alive it comes alive! At the end of our conversation my son said something that I told him I would not have expected to hear in a million years. He said, and I paraphrase, “Sometimes I think about throwing in the towel and becoming a Youth Pastor [he also stated no disrespect to YP’s] I think about Ed and Rhonda [the retired Children’s Pastors at our former church] and how they got to teach kids about the Bible. ” I responded, “Did you just say you think about becoming a Youth Pastor?”, and immediately started laughing. Stick with me. I said, “You don’t understand.” To which he responded, “I don’t like the sound of this.” I then went on to tell him that since he was a little guy I always felt he would become a Youth Pastor. And then there was the time after church one Sunday years ago when he ran across the church lawn with his ‘sword’ in hand and his ‘cape’ around his shoulders shouting, “Leviticus Charge!” I told him that Leviticus means, “he the Lord called.”
This morning as I sat down to spend time with God, brushing off the dust of yesterday, I decided to listen to “Everything Comes Alive” and was immediately filled with hope. This song reminds me of God’s goodness. We say God is a good, good Father. Why? Because in His grace, mercy and compassion He gives us gifts that fill us with hope and joy and perseverance even though He doesn’t ever have too. Only God could have taken a dream He placed into my momma heart so many years ago and spoken it into existence by the very one the dream is for.
How has God been good to you? I would love to hear your stories in the comments!
When my mom opened the door her heart sank. She knew the only reason these men stood in front of her was as bearers of sad news.
The year was 1968. Two men, dressed in their Army uniforms came to our front door. One was an officer the other a chaplain. When my mom opened the door her heart sank. She knew the only reason these men stood in front of her was as bearers of sad news. She immediately thought that my brother, who was eighteen and had been drafted after he graduated from high school and sent to Vietnam, had been killed in combat. But these somber men who carried the news of a soldier’s death had the wrong house. Sadly, our neighbors son was the soldier not coming home.
My mom, devout in her religion, prayed three times a day everyday for my brother until he came home safely but not unscathed. He told us many stories with too many close calls. Stories of how he ought to have died but miraculously survived.
Maybe you’ve heard the expression prayer changes things. I believe prayer does change things but more than that I believe prayer changes the atmosphere around us. Prayer is a very real weapon that can stop the enemy dead in his tracks. Prayer infiltrates the unseen world like a stealth bomber causing ripples in the air not seen by the human eye and shakes up the constant warfare going on around us.
The Apostle Paul was a prayer warrior and an intercessor. He considered it an honor and a joy to pray for others. He knew the power of prayer and reminded others he was praying for them consistently. Paul’s discipleship heart was that all believers know and follow God’s will for their life. Asking God to fill them with His knowledge through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. So he prayed.
Maybe you don’t have anyone praying for you or perhaps you are a part of multiple prayer circles. I want to encourage you that I am praying for you asking God to fill you with His spiritual knowledge and wisdom drawing you closer to Him day by day. I am praying you will hear Him and desire to be obedient to what He tells you and what He shows you.
Prayer is our authority in Christ. Prayer changes things. Prayer changes the atmosphere.
#bestealth
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Don’t even think about following the bread crumb trail of evil—you’ll end up with worse than bread crumbs.
Life really can be simple but our human nature is to convolute our life by attempting to take control rather than surrender all to Him. And I am grateful in His grace He chooses to continue to teach me how to simplify my life.
Fearing the Lord is honoring Him. Following His guidance. Speaking words that encourage and brighten the life of others. Troubling thoughts that are given to Jesus and asking for Him to replace them with His thoughts about our identity in Him. Actions that cause others to take notice that there is something wonderfully different about you!
Shunning evil is turning aside from it. Don’t even think about following the bread crumb trail of evil—you’ll end up with worse than bread crumbs. This doesn’t mean we turn away from the evil being committed around us and around the world, no, rather in those instances we ask God how can we be a part of the change for His kingdom.
I love the word nourishment! It makes me think of satisfaction. God is our satisfaction in all areas of our life. Another reason to stay connected to Him daily for His nourishment to flow to us non-stop! Truly, the choice is ours it didn’t stop when we chose Jesus to be our Lord and Savior. Everyday we have the opportunity to choose Jesus. Not for salvation purposes [that choice is one time] but to choose Him daily for His wisdom, guidance, knowledge on how to live life.
Fear, shun, nourish. I pray you choose all three today and every day!
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Over the years she had lovingly spent time writing her memoir. She wanted to tell her story of survival so others could know and experience the hope she had in Jesus. She was close to finishing [I had been praying for God’s miraculous healing on earth to be the final chapter she would write before being published] when my sweet friend went home to be with Jesus after a short illness.
For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
Matthew 6:14.
The last time I saw my friend was when I went to walk her two beloved Goldens that were feeling a bit stir crazy because their momma hadn’t been able to take them to the park. I sat and talked with my friend for a few minutes and at the time she didn’t know the full extent of what was going on with her health except that her body was railing against her. My friend had the gift of prophecy which she knew and embraced. She also had the gift of evangelism and I’m not sure she realized that. She had no filter when it came to telling others about Jesus and why they ought to put their faith and trust in Him!
As I read Matthew 6:14 I thought about my friend which led me to think about how truly short life on earth is [none of us know when God will call us home]. I wondered, did my friend have any regrets? Were there people she had always meant to forgive or say sorry to and thought, ‘Oh, I’ll do that tomorrow?’ I don’t know the answers to these questions but I do know there is no time like the present.
God has given us the beautiful gifts of confession, repentance and forgiveness. Jesus is faithful to show us the sin and unforgiveness in our life and Holy Spirit is always ready to help us confess, repent and forgive.
If there are others you need to forgive or if you need to say sorry or if you need to confess and repent—don’t wait until tomorrow because tomorrow may never come.
Even in death on earth my friend leaves a ‘no filter’ unashamed legacy of loving and following Jesus.
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“Dad,” I said, “I want to go to Teller School. I want to learn how to become a bank teller. This school teaches all the basics of becoming a bank teller and they even help with finding a job! The only thing stopping me is the cost and I don’t have the amount needed.”
My parents were depression aged kids, they grew up in an era in our country where a large percentage of people lost their jobs overnight, businesses closed and money was tight. When my grandparents immigrated to America from Italy they landed in Rhode Island and bought a farm that included the upper end of a lake. My dad and uncles worked hard on their farm and had a milk delivery business. My dad use to tell us stories of how he was still delivering milk by cart and buggy, sharing the road with new fangled automobiles, during the early part of the twentieth century. His savings account was cash ‘hidden’ in between the mattress. For the longest time he didn’t trust banks, likely a carry over mentality from the Great Depression. Asking to borrow money took a huge leap of faith on my part!
I’d like to say that because I was the youngest of five and the only girl, his sweetie and thought I had him wrapped around my pinkie was persuasion enough for him to say yes.
I’d like to say that because I was the youngest of five and the only girl, his sweetie and thought I had him wrapped around my pinkie, was persuasion enough for him to say yes. Okay, that may have been part of the reason but as I reflect back I believe my dad saw the value in investing in what would turn into a career of three different jobs within the industry of finance using the skills I learned at the Institute for Teller Training. And, I paid every penny back!
Leap of faith. We hear others say, “I took a leap of faith and applied for that job, asked that person out for coffee,” or whatever else requires a leap of faith. I can’t recall ever hearing someone say, “I took a leap of faith and believed in Jesus!” But Jesus is exactly where faith comes from. It is His gift to us. As we continue to surrender ourselves to him He continually renews and grows our faith so we can know what He prefers. Faith is God’s divine persuasion which guides us to make choices that help us live inside His perfect will for our life.
May God’s divine persuasion grow exponentially within you as you continue to stay connected to Him and you begin to live the abundant life in all areas that Christ came to give you.
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“Hey!,” was the text I sent to my best friend recently. She responded, “Hey, how are you? Do you have a few minutes to chat?” And this started an actual verbal conversation about life and catching up with each other.
Since my best friend and I are, well, best friends, we use a casual form of greeting one another. But, how would you feel if you knew that the way others greet you or you them carried more than simply the words of the greeting?
Paul was in the habit of greeting others with, “The grace of the Lord be with you, or the grace and peace of God be with you.” Whenever I read Paul’s greeting there is a certain amount of joy found in his words. I often wonder did all ancient Israelites greet one another this way? Was it a cultural thing at the time? Or, was this something Paul and a few others practiced?
Paul spoke the truth of God’s word and actually delivered the gift of a blessing through his greeting. The Greek word for grace is Charis and it is God’s favor and kindness brought to us through Jesus. It is God extending Himself and bestowing a blessing on His creation by the nearness of His presence.
Peace is God’s gift of wholeness when all essential parts are joined together. This reminds me of our wholeness in mind, body and spirit joined together in harmony with Holy Spirit as we continue to seek Him, read Him, learn about and from Him.
Could it be God’s gift of wholeness through His peace contains healing? That these two words that are not oft spoken in greeting in our current culture could be the beginning of healing?
What would our world, our spheres of influence, our communities look like if we chose to greet others in peace and grace? Would colors seem a bit brighter? Would traffic seem a bit lighter? Would our days seem a bit less laden because we speak the truth of God’s favor, kindness, blessing and wholeness to each other.
Today I say to you grace and peace in the name of Jesus. May you experience His wholeness in all that you are and all that you do. May the blessing of the nearness of His presence cause you to want to be even closer to Him.
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