Eternal Encouragement

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by His grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word. – (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17, NIV)

We pray that the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father will comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say. God loved us and gave us through His grace a wonderful hope and comfort that has no end. – (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17, ERV)

May Jesus himself and God our Father, who reached out in love and surprised you with gifts of unending help and confidence, put a fresh heart in you, invigorate your work, enliven your speech. – (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17, MSG)

The encouragement that Paul sent to the church through this letter, is still meant to be the same for us today. As we hope in Him, God shows us His love through Jesus and provides us with encouragement and strength in all that we do and say. His comfort continues throughout each new day, as hope in Him knows no end. Daily, we can receive the gifts that He offers as He grows our confidence in Him, for it is through Him that we find wonderful hope and unending comfort. May we ever seek the Lord to place a new heart in us to invigorate what we do and enliven what we say in ways that point people to the goodness of God.

The Lord, Jesus Christ,

And God our Father;

Grant us the good gifts,

To love each other.

Fresh hope to strengthen,

As we rise each day;

His encouragement,

That shows us His way.

May all that we say,

And all that we do;

Show Your gracious love,

And guide hearts to You.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You loved us first, and that You strengthen us and grant us hope through Your unending goodness and grace. Forgive us for the times that we have neglected to seek You or have somehow ignored Your help that was right in front of us. Teach us to trust You more, so that we would seek You to lead us in Your love and to guide us in Your goodness through all that we say and do. Show us how to love those around us in tangible ways that make Your heart known. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we intentionally seek You to lead us in Your love as You flood us with Your hope, encouragement and strength. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. – Colossians 2:6-7

Overflowing Gratitude

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. – (Colossians 2:6-7, NIV)

You accepted Jesus Christ as Lord, so continue to live in Him. You must depend on Christ only, drawing life and strength from Him. Just as you were taught the truth, continue to grow stronger in your understanding of it. And never stop giving thanks to God. – (Colossians 2:6-7, ERV)

Now that you have welcomed the Anointed One, Jesus the Lord, into your lives, continue to journey with Him and allow Him to shape your lives. Let your roots grow down deeply in Him, and let Him build you up on a firm foundation. Be strong in the faith, just as you were taught, and always spill over with thankfulness. – (Colossians 2:6-7, VOICE)

This is an ongoing, lifelong process that makes all of the difference in how our lives are lived. When we remain rooted in Christ, He strengthens our faith and reminds us of all that we have to be thankful for. Yesterday, as I was pulling into the parking lot where I coach high school gymnastics, I received a call from the specialist who had performed the biopsy on my lip. From the start, I could tell her tone was somber, so I took a deep breath and listened to the news she was sharing with me. The results were worse than she had anticipated, as aggressive carcinoma cells were found in the muscle, nerves and tissue from the punch sample. She said that normally the surgical process she had previously anticipated for me would be scheduled out in January, but due to the nature of the findings, it will be made a high priority and the schedulers will orchestrate a time as soon as possible. This is not exactly the news I had hoped or prayed for, but I needed to get into the gym and coach my girls. It was only after practice, when I called my husband, walked the dogs (prayerfully), and then spoke with my sisters and best friend, that I was able to breathe more easily and feel the familiar foundation of faith rise up. Being reminded of the beautiful community I am in floods my heart with gratitude. I am thankful that the spot was discovered before it spread further, that I have family and friends that support and encourage me, and that the success rate of treating this sort of cancer at this stage is outstanding. Additionally, I am grateful for sweet, smart dogs that seem to sense the need for snuggles. Currently, I have a gentle giant curled up and snoring softly on my lap. May we ever journey with Jesus through every twist and turn that life brings, for He is faithful to strengthen us and supply all that we need.

Give thanks to the Lord,

For He is the good;

That strengthens, supports,

Makes love understood.

He pours out His grace,

Holds us up gently;

Embraces our heart,

And makes our fears flee.

He brings alongside,

Kind community;

Equips, empowers,

Grants His eyes to see.

Things aren’t forever,

Pain’s temporary;

But our hope in Him,

Lasts eternally.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You are our strength, our hope and our help. Thank You that You are our reason to give thanks. Forgive us for the times that we allow our circumstances to temporarily blind us to the truth of Your love and grace that gets us through all things. Teach us to trust You more each day, and flood us to overflowing with Your goodness and love. Show us how to love those around us in ways that strengthen and encourage, making Your heart abundantly clear to all. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we give You thanks for who You are and how You love us so well. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. – Colossians 3:15

Receive to be Rooted

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. – (Colossians 2:6-7, NIV)

You accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, so continue to live following Him. You must depend on Christ only, drawing life and strength from Him. Just as you were taught the truth, continue to grow stronger in your understanding of it. And never stop giving thanks to God. – (Colossians 2:6-7, ERV)

In the same way you received Jesus our Lord and Messiah by faith, continue your journey of faith, progressing further into your union with Him! Your spiritual roots go deeply into His life as you are continually infused with strength, encouraged in every way. For you are established in the faith you have absorbed and enriched your devotion to Him! – (Colossians 2:6-7, TPT)

When we choose Christ, we must continue to live in Him. This transpires as we seek Him, depend on Him, and allow Him to be our life and strength. We grow stronger in faith and understanding, which leads us to continually give Him thanks. In this season of intentional gratitude, may we ever recognize all that God has done, and allow our lives to overflow with our thanks to Him through living lives of love.

Just as we received,

Jesus Christ as Lord;

May we continue,

By grace He affords.

As we choose press on,

Our faith further grows;

We are established,

While love overflows.

Through goodness and grace,

May our roots grow deep;

Rooted in His love,

Strengthened as we seek.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that as we receive all that You freely offer, You strengthen and grow our faith. Thank You that in You, we have countless reasons to give thanks. Forgive us for losing sight of an eternal perspective, as our eyes get diverted by the troubles of the times. Teach us to fix our eyes on You, the Author and perfecter of our faith. Show us how to seek You to lead us in love and strengthen us to live out Your love with all whom we meet. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we seek, receive, trust and grow in Your goodness and love. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

…And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. – Ephesians 3:17-18

Grow As We Go With Thanks

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. – (Colossians 2:6-7, NIV)

You accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, so continue to live following Him. You must depend on Christ only, drawing life and strength from Him. Just as you were taught the truth, continue to grow stronger in your understanding of it. And never stop giving thanks to God. – (Colossians 2:6-7, ERV)

My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live in Him. You’re deeply rooted in Him. You’re well-constructed upon Him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you’ve been taught. School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving. – (Colossians 2:6-7, MSG)

 

We are charged to continue to grow in our faith, however, as we do, we are meant to live in Christ in such a way that our lives are a reflection of our faith, overflowing with thankfulness. As we lean into Christ, we grow as we go. In other words, we are not called to stay stagnant and remain in the same space where we began, but rather as we establish roots in Him, we are meant to move forward in obedience, living and loving as we were designed to do, giving God thanks every step of the way. The more we know God and move forward into the life that He has called us to lead, the deeper our sense of gratitude for who God is and how He loves.

 

We each have been called,

In faith, to move on;

Use what we’ve received,

Rise up and respond.

To live out our faith,

And love well with grace;

Continue to grow,

As we run our race.

Each step that we take,

May we choose to praise;

God for His goodness,

Throughout all our days.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that You love us and call us to move forward in our faith. Thank You that we grow as we go. Thank You that You strengthen and equip us to be and do all that You lead us to, as we seek You. Forgive us for the times that we have neglected to move forward or step out in the direction to which You were drawing us. Teach us to trust You to provide all that we need to keep moving forward. Show us how to love those around us well, so that goodness, grace and gratitude will be evident to all. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we press on in all that You ask of us, ever giving You thanks for who You are and how You love. Amen.

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. – 1 Thessalonians 1:3