tests – Beth Jones, International Speaker & Author

Do you need a reset button?

Source: http://jarche.com/2009/04/push-the-reset-button/

This morning I woke up much later than usual, which threw my day off. Then Ray and I had some “intense domestic fellowship,” as our friends Don and Gala dub marriage conflicts, over something stupid (usually arguments between married couples are!).

As I sat in my sunroom having coffee with God, I prayed, “God, I need a reset button for this morning. I need a reset button for my life.”

Do you ever feel that way? The good news is that with Jesus, you have “a reset button.”

He exchanged His life for yours, His perfection for your sins, His healing for your sickness, His heavenly riches for your poverty of spirit (and finances), His eternal promises and hope for your discouraging trials and tests, His joy for your tears, His beauty for your ashes.

I haven’t had a perfect life. In fact, I’ve been through so much in my life that a TV researcher interviewing me for a possible TV segment last year said, “Beth, you’ve been through so much in your life that it could easily be made into 3 movies.”

If I had a reset button for my life, I’d do a lot of things differently. But all I have is the present-today. That’s all you have, too. And through Christ we can have a reset button right this moment.

Whatever you’re going through, God is there. He loves you. He has a good plan for your life. (Jeremiah 29:11)

If you’ve messed up, ask His forgiveness. (1 John 1:9)

If you need healing, Jesus is the Healer. (Psalm 107:20)

If you don’t know what to do, pray for wisdom and direction. (James 1:5-6)

If you feel discouraged, there is always hope with Christ. (Romans 5:2-7)

If you need a miracle, nothing is impossible with God. (Matthew 19:26)

If you have a dream in your heart, God has more for you than you can even think or imagine. (Ephesians 3:20, The Message)

Remember, with God there is a reset button for today.

*******

Promises In The Dark: One Woman’s Search
for Authentic Love by Beth Jones

Had a hard life? Going through trials and tests which seem overwhelming? I relate. Read the story of my childhood sexual and physical abuse, 3 abortions, and adulterous affairs and the healing and hope I found through Jesus Christ in my book, Promises In The Dark: One Woman’s Search for Authentic Love, by clicking here. Available for sale at BethJones.net, Amazon for your Kindle, and Barnes & Noble for Your Nook.

June 1, 2015 by Beth Jones

Image courtesy of [potowizard] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Blog, Faith, Homeschooling, Marriage, Parenting, prayer, Writing

In the fire

Image courtesy of [potowizard] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

My husband Ray is a paramedic by profession, having worked in the emergency field for over 27 years. He’s also worked as a Navy corps medic, SWAT team medic, policeman, police chief, firefighter, and a fire chief.

Other than his military career and his current paramedic job, I never liked him doing these dangerous jobs, especially after I saw the movies Ladder 49 and Fireproof, where firemen are horribly burned or die on the job.

Years after the fact, Ray also told me some of his “closest moment” horror stories, like nearly being electrocuted to death by an electrical fence, falling down several feet through unstable floors in a burning house, and almost being killed by explosions. I don’t think to this day he’s ever told his mother these stories (she’d freak out!). God’s mighty hand always has been upon him, protecting and preserving his life.

Fire is like an animal; it’s wild and unpredictable. It doesn’t always behave the way it is expected to, which is why it’s so dangerous. Its heat is intense (up to 1200 degrees Fahrenheit for house fires). It consumes everything in its path.

This morning in my quiet time with God, I read Isaiah 43:1-2 NKJV, which mentions fire, and I wanted to share it with you:

But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.

Maybe that’s you. You’re in the fire. You wonder why all these things are happening to you. How much more can you take? Where is God?

I have been in the fire lately, too. It’s not easy or fun.

But there is hope. God is with you. He will strengthen and help you. He also has a purpose for the fire, which I share about in today’s video below.

Just Click here to see the video, In The Fire.

January 31, 2014 by Beth Jones