I Choose Today

I Choose Today...

I Choose Today: To Be Seen and Loved

Molinda Hern November 23, 2024

“God can’t use me—I’ve done so many bad things! How could a holy God ever love and accept me?” Does that sound familiar? I know it does for me. I’ve had those same thoughts and conversations with others over the years. It’s easy to believe the lie that our past disqualifies us from God’s love and purpose. But the truth is, God sees us differently. There’s a man in the Bible whose story reminds me of this. His name was Zacchaeus. By common standards, Zacchaeus was a sinner—a man who had made choices that earned him wealth at the expense of others. Though he was rich, he was despised, isolated, and deeply empty. Then one day, Jesus came to town. And everything changed. While Zacchaeus climbed a tree to catch a glimpse of Him, Jesus stopped, looked up, and called him by name. Instead of seeing Zacchaeus for what he had done, Jesus saw him for who he was. With compassion and love, Jesus invited Himself into Zacchaeus’s life. That encounter turned everything around. Zacchaeus went from being a man weighed down by sin to someone transformed by grace. This story reminds us of an incredible truth: Jesus didn’t come

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I Choose Today to Embrace the Gift of Peace

Molinda Hern November 21, 2024

Life brings storms—unexpected and often overwhelming challenges that touch every single one of us. No one is exempt from hardship. I’ve faced my share of storms, some while leaning fully into the peace of God, and others while striving in my own strength to find inner calm. The difference between those experiences is profound. The peace of God—a peace that surpasses all human understanding—is the only way I’ve truly been able to navigate life’s storms with strength and clarity. The Bible mentions peace more than 400 times, emphasizing how vital it is in our relationship with God. It isn’t just the absence of trouble but a deep, abiding calm rooted in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Here are a few promises from scripture that remind us of the peace God offers: • Philippians 4:7 (ESV): “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” • John 14:27 (ESV): “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” • Isaiah 26:3 (ESV): “You keep him in perfect

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I Choose Today Trust Over Understanding

Molinda Hern November 19, 2024

One day, I was at an event where a woman had a medical emergency. She needed immediate attention from the emergency responders who had just arrived. As they were setting up their equipment, a young boy stepped in, trying to understand what was happening. He began asking questions of the people around the woman who were trying to aid her while waiting for the emergency response. This boy even asked questions of the woman herself, who was semi-unresponsive. Finally, a member of his family came to guide him away so the professionals could handle the situation, as they knew what to do. While the boy only wanted to understand, he was actually in the way of those who could help the woman in distress. Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.” In other words, we need to stop trying to understand, step out of the way, and trust God in our lives. True trust in God means choosing to rely not on our limited human understanding but on the deeper, Spirit-given insight He provides. The Holy Spirit offers us understanding that aligns with God’s wisdom, guiding us in ways

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I Choose Today to be an Affirmer

Molinda Hern November 14, 2024

I have been reading a book with a friend called Balcony People, by Joyce Landorf Heatherley. In the book she talks about two types of people: evaluators and the affirmers. The evaluators are “people who either broke our spirits by their critical or judgmental evaluations. The affirmers are those who “healed us by their loving perceptive affirmations.” When I read these descriptions of evaluators and affirmers, my mind went right to the people who have been evaluators. Those people and the things that they said that crushed my spirit by their critical perceptive things they said to me or how they treated me. Those memories came quickly, with no effort on remembering them. The affirmers took a little more thought. But you know what? The affirmers were there too. The people who came alongside me to breathe life and love into me. Those who helped me recognize my worth and that I could heal. They walked with me on my healing journey. I believe God brings affirmers in our lives to walk with us, to encourage us in our faith, and to come alongside our healing and life’s journeys. I praise God for all the affirmers in my life past,

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I Choose Today to Nurture My God-Given Gifts

Molinda Hern November 12, 2024

In Romans 12, we learn that the unique gifts God gives us reflect different facets of Christ’s character. Christ is the embodiment of all these gifts, and we, as His body, represent parts of Him. Romans 12:4-5 reminds us, “Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.” Each of us has a unique role, and together we form a complete picture of His love and purpose. To fulfill this purpose, we must first recognize the gifts God has placed in us. We need to cultivate and use these gifts to bring Him glory, growing them through discipline and commitment. God has given each of us a “bent” toward certain gifts, but it’s our responsibility to nurture and develop them into maturity so they can be used fully for His kingdom. I recently learned something that blew my mind—the manna God provided to the Israelites in the wilderness wasn’t fully made bread; it was a seed. Numbers 11:7-8 (NLT) tells us, “The manna looked like small coriander seeds, and it was pale yellow like gum

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