Broken dreams

There are so many things that can and do go wrong in this life—so many broken dreams, so many visions that do not come to pass, so many things that just do not work out the way you so desperately wanted them to. Yet through all the broken dreams, your visions that do not come to pass, the things that don't work out as you had hoped they would, I am there with you. I hold in My hand greater dreams than you've ever dreamed of, more beautiful visions than you've ever seen, and greater things than you've ever hoped for. Your heart has not imagined the fantastic things I have in store for you who love Me, for you who stick it out through thick and thin.

Wheels of progress

There are cycles in life—times in which everything seems to go well, and times when things seem to go badly. I want you to learn to hold on to Me through each phase of the cycle.
Problems cause you to exercise your faith as you rise up to meet them, and that brings the next phase of the cycle: You call on Me for help, and you fight and you win and you make progress. It's like a wheel as it turns: As the top goes down, the bottom comes around to the top and the wheel carries you forward.
Each time you face a new test, you must fight once again. You take up the challenge, call on Me for help, and once again overcome and make more progress. More tests bring more victories. But if at any time you don't seek Me for the solution and fight through to victory, you stop the cycle. You remain at the low point and there is no forward motion; you go nowhere.
So don't look at the low points in your life as defeats, but as opportunities to make forward progress. I know it's often difficult to go through these cycles, but you must in order to keep moving forward, so keep at it!

Choices

The feelings and emotions you experience are a direct result of the choices you make, the thoughts you choose to think, the times you choose to be unselfish, the times you put yourself in another person's place and allow your heart to be broken and moved with compassion and love.
Feelings of love, unity and happiness are My rewards. They are given to you according to your choices and your decisions—how you have determined by your own free will to act and give and respond and sacrifice and understand.

As constant as the sun

The happiness of the spirit is far above the happiness of the flesh, for the happiness of the spirit is something you will always have with you. It is something that will never end. The loneliest nights or the darkest clouds can't take it away from you.
The happiness of the flesh is temporal and a fleeting feeling.—It comes and goes with your mood, with your surroundings, with the physical things that you see, touch and feel. But the happiness of the spirit comes from knowing that I am your Savior, and that I care.
The happiness that I give is as constant as the sun. When the sun sets at night and disappears beneath the horizon, do you worry that it has left forever? Do you say to another, "There is no more sun in our lives"? No, it is constant, always there. Though the night comes and you cannot see the sun, you never doubt its existence, nor that it will rise the next morning. So is the happiness of spirit—though ever-present, the night comes and you lose sight of it. That is the time to trust and rest until morning, until it comes into sight again.

Loving thoughts

When others fail you or make seeming mistakes, instead of blowing up in anger and frustration, say, "I pray for these and I love these. I want to help them and make it easy for them." Think thoughts of love toward those who frustrate you. Pray for them.
As you think these thoughts of love and pray these prayers of love, so will the love in your heart be able to permeate your spirit and overcome the pride and selfishness.

All is forgiven

If you were to stand before Me now, you would be so engulfed and overwhelmed by My love, that all the hurts and the pain and the misunderstandings of the past and the present would completely vanish. So great is My love for you that there is no room for sorrow or condemnation. If you were standing before Me, you would feel only total acceptance and total love, because you would know that all is forgiven. There is no fear with Me. I wash away all fear, and there is no fear in My love.
Even though you are still in human flesh, trust that My love for you is no less than when you shall arrive Here and stand before Me. I am no less distant now, and you are every bit as much in My presence. You are just as much forgiven and there is nothing held against you. You are My dear one, My beloved.

Greater than the ocean

My eye has been upon you since before you were formed in the womb. I have been with you every step of the way. I have watched you. I have loved you. I have cared for you. You have never been out of My sight.
How I long to pour My love upon you! How I long to draw you to My bosom! If you will take time with Me in prayer, and listen to My voice in your heart and through My Word, I will show you My great, great love for you—love which is greater than the ocean, which stretches further than the horizon, which the whole universe with all its stars and galaxies cannot contain, which reaches out of understanding into infinity and eternity.

Enjoy being you!

Enjoy being you, because you are wonderful! Enjoy being you, because you are full of life! Enjoy being you, because you have so much to pour out to others. Enjoy being you, and enjoy My life that I have given you.
Please accept and trust that these Words are with love from My heart personally to you. I love you, and I pray for you, that not only will your faith fail not, but that your faith will grow—your faith in Me and in yourself. I love you.

Magic words

“I’m sorry” can put an end to almost any argument or other problem between people. You may still feel somewhat justified in your position, but if you can at least say you’re sorry for having gotten into an argument and having let whatever it was come between you, you’ll be on the path to reconciliation. Being quick to apologize is one of the smartest things you can do.
Saying you are sorry isn’t always easy. It takes a strong, concerned person to be able to admit being wrong, yet many people consider this a sign of weakness. I’m not talking about having an excuse-me-for-living attitude, where you apologize for everything you do. That is a sign of weak character. But when you get into an argument or make a mistake and have the sense to recognize and admit that you were wrong and apologize, that’s a sign of strength in My book.
There is, however, one word that takes the healing magic out of “I’m sorry.” When you add “but,” it means you’re intent on pressing your point until the other person sees things your way. That’s not the way to overcome differences! Saying “I’m sorry” requires humility, but if you can say it and mean it, it works magic!

Drop the grudge

Holding a grudge does no one any good. A grudge affects everyone involved negatively, and the longer it’s held the more damage it causes. The good news, however, is that it’s never too late to set things straight.
It may not seem so at times, but most people don’t want to go through life hurting others. Grudges are often the results of misunderstandings. It’s such a waste when people are alienated from each other for months or years, all over some misunderstanding that could have been sorted out much quicker if even one of the parties had shown a bit more love and understanding.
It takes a big person to be humble enough to be the first to let go of a grudge. Humble yourself before Me, first of all, and ask Me to remove the cancer by bringing you to the point of truly forgiving the other person in your heart. Do this and I will not only answer your prayer, but also give you the grace needed to humble yourself and ask that person to forgive you for harboring animosity.

Love or hypocrisy?

When you show love and consideration to people you don’t feel particularly drawn to or think deserve it, you’re giving them My love, which goes beyond human love. In fact, this is an even greater manifestation of My love than when you show love to someone you feel close to. This is not being hypocritical or false. To the contrary, it’s fulfilling My commandment to love your neighbor as yourself. You’re acting on My Word, and you’re letting My love move you to do something good.
Even though you may not particularly like someone, that shouldn’t hold you back from loving that person with My love. No one is too bad for Me or beyond the reach of My love, and I want you to help convey that to others. Even though you may not feel that way about them, I do. By showing them love and understanding, you’re giving them My true love.
When you can show loving kindness without partiality, you become a better channel for My love to flow through.
Not only will I bless the ones you show love and consideration to, but I will also bless you. As you continue to give My love, no matter how you feel, love will come back to you. You’ll also have a feeling of fulfillment in being My messenger of love and in doing My will. By giving love freely, you’ll reap more of My love and the fruits of love.

Joint account

What if someone told you, “You just won a million dollars! It’s being deposited in your bank account today!” You would be elated! You’d be so happy, you’d run around telling everyone, and then you’d plan how to spend the money. You’d think of all the comfort and enjoyment this money would bring you, and how you could use some of it to help others.
Well, did you know that you have much more than that at your disposal? When you received Me as your Savior, I added your name to My own account with the Bank of Heaven. Now what’s Mine is yours! You have unlimited spiritual resources that could make your life better in every way—more than enough for you and others, no matter how much you give away—and that’s the point. “Freely you have received, freely give” (Matthew 10:8).
How do you get these blessings?—By withdrawing from our account in the Bank of Heaven. Just come to Me in prayer. Draw on My love, peace, solutions, supply, satisfaction, and much, much more. Then pass the blessings on to others. This is the surest way to make and keep friends—by giving them the true riches, heavenly gifts that will never pass away.

Make time for people

It’s easy to be a good person, but still be wrapped up in your own little world. After all, you already have more work and other responsibilities than you feel you can keep up with. It’s no surprise that there’s so little time for reaching out to others.
When I was on earth, I was also a busy man, especially during My public ministry. I had only about three and a half years to accomplish My mission, but I still took time for people—even some who others thought weren’t worth My time. I let the children come to Me. I talked with the Samaritan woman at the well. I noticed Zacchaeus up in the tree and asked to spend the evening with him in his house. I also took time to personally encourage a thousand others—conversations so numerous and seemingly everyday that they didn’t make it into the Gospels, yet each had a big impact on someone’s life. If I could take the time to stop and show a little love and kindness and understanding to those around Me, you can too.
As you show love in the little things, I will pour more of My love into you, so you will have more to give and more to enjoy. You’ll find this “extra” giving of yourself is really no sacrifice at all. I will more than make it up to you in added inspiration and other blessings, and so will those you make time for.

Failure is opportunity

History is full of stories of people who were either blind to their faults and mistakes or refused to acknowledge them, and their pride was their downfall. How different things could have turned out if they would have been humble enough to admit when they were wrong.
What about you? Do you hide your mistakes? Or do you take the courageous path of owning up to them? Believe Me, most people will respect you more if you do. Sure, some people may rub it in or try to use your humbling for their own advantage, but that’s their problem and does not indicate a weakness in your own character.
In the long run, character determines your worth. It’s not the easy successes that prove your mettle, but how you pick yourself up after a fall and try again. By acknowledging and going on in spite of your failures, you’ll also inspire others to not give up.
Failure is a step forward when you learn from it. Failure prepares the way for success by causing you to look hard at your plans and methods. If all those who eventually succeeded at what they set out to do had stopped at the first failure, you’d still be back in the Stone Age! Aren’t you glad others took advantage of their failures? Won’t you do the same?

Embrace change

Are you set in your ways, or do you embrace new ideas? Do you welcome suggestions from others? Are you open to learning and trying new things? Are you willing to change things if someone else finds a better way?
It’s often easier to keep doing things the old way than it is to change, or at least it can seem so at first. Change takes time and effort, but good changes are worth it in the long run. You shouldn’t resist change, but you shouldn’t go to the other extreme either of changing things just for the sake of change.
Some things never change—My love for you and My basic commandments and promises in the Bible—but in other areas I delight in change. Situations change. People change. You change! I don’t like things to stagnate. I like innovation and progress, and I want you to as well. Be flexible. Flow with the new and move with Me, and you’ll be much easier for Me and others to work with.
How do you know whether or not a certain change would be beneficial? The surest way is to ask Me. Get My stamp of approval. I can help you recognize opportunities for positive change and spare you from missteps. If a new idea has My blessing, your efforts will be rewarded as you act on it.