When Selfishness is Good

           

 
My beloved, I know your heart. I know that even your most generous acts often carry hidden longings—for approval, for purpose, for love. And I do not condemn you for this. I created you with desire. I shaped you to seek.

Even when you obey Me, there is still something in it for you—a sense of peace, a hope for reward, a longing to please. But do not be ashamed of this. What you call selfishness, I call hunger. It is part of the way I designed you to be. And I am not offended by your hunger when you bring it to Me.

When you gave your life to Me, I began the quiet work of reshaping your motives—not to erase your desires, but to redeem them. I mean for you to be motivated by, even greedy for, heavenly rewards. I do not ask you to stamp out your longing. I ask you to let Me increase it.

How to Change the World

If you consistently do one small thing—just the next right thing—you might change the world.

I’m not asking you to take on something monumental. I’m simply inviting you to pay attention. You might notice the homeless man longing for a meal, the grieving mother carrying a silent loss, or the friend who needs a word of encouragement. Offer a nourishing lunch. Make a compassionate call. Sit beside someone who feels alone.

I’m not asking you to feed all the hungry children in Africa.

I’m asking you to do the next right thing.

The essence of the Christian life is really quite simple.

Do one thing—

the next right thing.

One … one … one …

and maybe you will change the world.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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Carrying the Aroma of God's Heart

Oh beloved little one. When you abide in Me, you carry the fragrance of Christ. You exude My own sweet aroma (2 Corinthians 2:14–15).

Perfume has the power to stir emotions, awaken memories, and lift a person from where they stand. It draws people without effort. So it is with My captivating scent in you and around you—the very essence of Myself. It whispers to others of who I am. 

I Receive You Just as You Are

 

Even when your emotions are not good for you—anger, hatred, resentment—begin with honesty.

Pour out your heart to Me with complete transparency. Talk to Me like I am the only person you have ever been able to trust. 

I receive you exactly as you are.

I hold you without hesitation.

My heart toward you is tender kindness.

My desire is to help you, not to shame you.

There is no being in the universe more kind, more loving, or more compassionate than I am.

And instead of judging you, the judgment for sin fell on Me.

So do not be afraid to come to Me as you are—even at your worst.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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Soul to Soul With God

I share your feelings — your sorrow, your grief, your anxiety.

When you are depressed, I am present with you.

When you are angry, I bear it with you.

When you are discouraged, I remain at your side.

Soul to Soul, 

Brother to Brother, 

Friend to Friend, 

I feel what you feel. 

Having overcome weakness, 

I draw you up with Me into glory.

My grace, reaching out to you fills you with 

joy, 

delight, 

sweetness, 

and beauty.

I am your Lord, your brother, and your closest friend.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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God has a Human Heart

 

I am infinite—almighty, all‑powerful—yet at the same time, I have a human heart. I feel what you feel: love, joy, grief, anger. I am not distant from your emotions or untouched by your pain. I enter into it with you. I understand every feeling, and My compassion moves toward your grief and your struggles.

None of your emotions are wrong. Sometimes the thoughts beneath them may mislead you, but the feelings themselves are not failures. You don’t need to express every emotion outwardly, yet you do need to release shame and allow your heart to move as it was designed. You were created in My image. We are more alike than you imagine.

Know this: I am with you—closer than the air you breathe—feeling what you feel, steady with comfort, present with love.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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He delights to dwell in your weakness

 

You may know what it is like to be battered and bruised. But you can be sure that I will never break a bruised reed or snuff out a smoldering wick (Isaiah 42:3). I see you, I protect you, and I am near.

No matter how tossed or torn your spirit is, you remain My precious child. Your finite mind cannot begin to grasp the depth of My infinite love. The light of My Spirit pours over you, filling every cell, every molecule, even the spaces between them, with My liquid love.

When you long for strength, remember this: I treasure the weak. The weak are chosen to confound the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27). And I have known weakness Myself: 

Jesus Took Your Shame—Walk in His Freedom

Do you ever feel like a lowly worm—burdened by shame, guilt, or a vague sense of worthlessness? Do you feel as though you are failing, yet you don’t even know exactly how? As if I do not fully accept you just as you are?

If you do, hear this truth: those feelings are not from Me.

Look at how I interact with My children in Scripture. I never tell an actual person that they are simply "bad" or "wrong." Instead, I gently and specifically point out areas where growth is needed. You may call yourself a loser, please don't, but you will never hear anything like that from Me. Instead, I might say, "You know your drinking is starting to affect your relationships with people you love," or "When you compare yourself to Ashley your looking for your worth in the wrong place."

Companion in Pain

 

You have been scorned and rejected, but so have I. The ones I loved the most betrayed and abandoned me. No depth of human rejection can compare to what I felt when I carried the rejection of mankind. I understand. I am God, but I have a human heart.

Although you may despair, rejoice that we have suffered together, companions in pain (Philippians 3:10). Count the blessings that come from the pain and make them your focus. Make Me the center of your interest, knowing that I have felt what you feel now—the same yet with greater intensity. I am not asking you to do anything that I have not done.

It is God who justifies you; who then can condemn you? (Romans 8:33–34)

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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Guilt or Guidance? Learning to Tell the Difference

 

When something needs to change in your life, I will not motivate you by fear or guilt. This is because the moment you received My gift of salvation, your guilt was taken away.

When I convict you, it is always specific. I will never tell you that you are a bad person. Instead, I will lead you to go somewhere or do something. I come alongside you, put My arm around your shoulders and point ahead, saying, “We’re headed over this way. Let’s take the first step together.” You will know where to go. And I will always go with you.

Something within you resonates and wants to go – is ready to go – even if it’s outside your comfort zone.

Does God Have Faith in Me?

"For by grace you have been saved through faith;

and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God"

(Ephesians 2:8)

Have you always thought this verse was talking about your faith?

What if it is also speaking of My faith —

My faith in you?

I do believe in you.

I adore you, and I know you have infinite value,

because you were created by Me.

I know you are able to do anything I call you to do,

What We Missed in the Garden

 

I told them to eat from any tree. Any tree. Except one. Of the many trees in the Garden, only one was forbidden.

There were only 10 commandments. Out of all the things I could have forbidden, I picked only ten. And all of those commandments can be distilled into only one: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your strength and love your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27).

So don’t let your actions be guided by fear or guilt. I invented pleasure so you don’t need to be afraid of it. Instead, eat from the smorgasbord of life. Delight in sweet relationships, hobbies, nature, or any of the wholesome pleasures I bountifully provide. For I am a generous God.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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What Heaven Makes From Your Tears

In 2 Corinthians 4:17, I say that your suffering produces a heavenly glory that is exceedingly, abundantly beyond any trouble you face in the present. In heaven I reward you with infinitely more than anything you have lost on this earth. Your suffering here is like ripping off a band-aid — a very short moment in the face of eternity, even though it feels like forever. The true forever is filled with happiness, pleasure, and fulfillment. There are no more tears in heaven, no more pain, no separation from loved ones, no grief. That is what lasts forever.

And notice this: your suffering produces — achieves — heavenly treasure, all those good things I just mentioned and more. It achieves exceedingly, abundantly more reward than the suffering you experience. The pain itself is working to produce heavenly rewards. You don’t have to have a good attitude, be grateful, or escape the trial. The suffering does the work all by itself.

God’s word isn’t just a book; it’s alive

 My Holy Spirit will speak to you through My Word. You have spiritual ears—spiritual senses—to hear what I say. Learn to recognize My voice by spending time in My Word, My living Word. The Truth is there to comfort you, challenge you, and help you grow.

Unlike any other book, the Bible is living and active, working deep within you to change your heart and your life. My Word isn’t like any other book. As you read it, it comes to life, enters your heart, and feeds your soul. Your faith grows, for faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. You also become aware of the areas where you need to change and grow.

Responding to Unexpected Grace

Perhaps this man carried bitterness. Perhaps he was unkind to his wife or judgmental toward others. Perhaps a life lived in harshness has left him with regret.

Yet the llama pays no attention to any of that. She is the one who reaches out first — sensing the need in front of her — and the man, in a moment of vulnerability, responds and reaches back.

This is the kind of compassion that grows in you as you allow Me in — Me, the God of compassion.

Become open to compassion, even toward yourself.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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For even Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve

You often think your service to God must come first, as though I am waiting for you to bring Me something I lack. But I am not served by human hands, as if I needed anything. I am the One who serves you. I glorify Myself by caring for you, sustaining you, and meeting you in your need.

Consider the picture John Piper gives: imagine you were completely paralyzed and could do nothing for yourself but speak. And imagine a strong, faithful friend who promised to stay with you and do everything you needed. How would you honor that friend if a visitor came? Not by struggling to lift yourself or pretending you didn’t need help. You would call to your friend: “Please lift me up. Please place a pillow behind me. Please put on my glasses.” Your requests would reveal your helplessness and your friend’s strength and kindness. You glorify him by needing him, asking him, and trusting him.

In the same way, I am the One who serves you. You glorify Me by letting Me nurture you. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).”</p

The Story You Thought You Knew

 

Beloved one, ravaged by the world. 

You don't see now how you can recover, 

but you will. 

The Good Samaritan is anointing your wounds with oil and wine. 

My children often imagine themselves as the priest that passes by 

or the Good Samaritan. 

But what if you were the one who was attacked by thieves.  

And what if I were the Good Samaritan, 

filled with compassion. 

The Little Warrior in You

Develop the awareness that I am living in your heart, whispering in your spirit, and burning within your soul. As I adore you, let your response rise with inner strength. 

As you dare to live from this divine strength — and you lift your eyes toward Me, the Lover of your soul — you will embody My steady strength. You will become one of My devoted warriors, reflecting My goodness as clearly as a mirror reflects light. Strength is not something you must manufacture; it is something I am forming within you.

But understand this: My warriors do not begin on battlefields. They begin like little children learning to walk — unsteady, determined, throwing their hearts into the effort of it. They take little steps into a big world. Falling, rising, and trying again. Trusting the hands that steady them. This is the picture of courage, and it lives in you.

The Healing You Didn’t Expect

I am on a healing quest in your life. I heal from the inside out. I begin in your heart and move outward toward your circumstances. My healing often takes forms that will surprise you.

You may pray to be healed from cancer, yet find that I heal a relationship instead because it will bring you deeper joy. You may pray to be freed from diabetes, and instead see your spouse give his life to Me. Or you may experience a long‑standing diagnosis lifted in a way that changes everything.

But whatever form it takes, I always heal. My grace is always within reach.

Pray for open eyes to see My work in your life. “The God Who Heals”—Jehovah Rophe—is My name.  Healing is not merely something I do; it is who I AM. I cannot touch a life without brining healing.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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God engulfs you

I engulf you, yet you are not consumed.

Instead, you are surrounded and filled with love. But you are not stagnant in this place. My Spirit moves within you—alive, active, flowing outward in the form of the fruits of My Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness touch others through your heart filled with Me (Galatians 5:22–23).

Take a moment to visualize My light descending from above, entering your body, and flowing out through you. This is not a new age practice. It is holy imagination—an act of faith that helps you perceive what is already true in the spiritual realm.

Know that you are embraced and engulfed by Me, even as my grace reaches out through you to the world.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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You may also enjoy: When it Comes to Christian Love, Are You Excluding Yourself?

Slow Down and Find Him in Every Step

Slow down, my child. You rush ahead of Me. Walking in the Spirit is walking with the Spirit, at My pace. Step by step, like lovers in a dance, like friends strolling and holding hands. Much of your stress and pain come from hurry.

Breathe …

Sense My easy pace,

and keep in step with Me.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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You are my Favorite as if you were the only one ...

"You are My favorite," I say to you—not in comparison to others, but as though you are the only one I love. My love is not a cold theological concept; it is a consuming fire, full of passion and intimacy. I give all My attention to you as if no one else exists, yet this does not diminish My infinite love for others. Do you see it in Scripture? I spoke with Moses “face to face, as one speaks to a friend” (Exodus 33:11).

Only I, in My omnipotence and boundless nature, love each person with ALL My love, fully and completely. I give all My unending love to you personally. Even though I love everyone, it is as if I love no one but you.

You know Jesus lives in your heart, but what’s He doing in there?

You often hear that I “live in your heart,” but My presence there is not passive. I am not tucked away inside you as a quiet guest. I am alive in you, and I am living through you.

I speak through your voice when you offer encouragement.
I love through your hands when you comfort someone who is hurting.
I see the world through your eyes, noticing the ones others overlook.
I reach people through your life in ways you do not always recognize.
I cry your tears when you feel compassion.

And there is something I want you to understand about this: I do not erase who you are — I inhabit who you are. I shaped your personality, your tone, your way of seeing the world, and now I express My heart through those very things. Our union does not take your identity away; it brings it into fullness. You do not need to strive or become someone else. You simply let Me live through you, and together we move as one.

Consent to be loved

When you’re hard on yourself…
When you’re examining your character under a microscope…
Consent to be loved while unworthy.

When you’re stuck in shame…
Consent to be loved.

When old habits cling to you…
Consent to be loved.

When inadequacy whispers that you don’t belong…
Consent to be loved.

Sometimes you hold My grace at arm’s length because you feel too sinful, too flawed, too small.

But even when you are stubborn or obstinate, I stand before you with open arms — longing for you to touch Me back, longing for you to know that nothing in you frightens Me away.

Nearer Than Water, Nearer Than Breath

Immerse yourself in the quiet beauty of coral reefs as Scripture whispers a deeper truth: you are surrounded, held, and sustained by the God who is closer than your own breath.

This short meditation pairs peaceful underwater scenes with a reminder from Acts 17:28 — “In Him we live and move and have our being.”

Let these moments draw you into stillness, comfort, and the steady love that never leaves.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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Deep Calls to Deep

 

I do not desire to know you on a surface level. I give the deepest part of Myself so that you may know the deepest part of you — the innermost, intimate place of your being. I urge you to open your heart to Me, to let Me in.

Though I am the infinitely powerful, almighty God, I am also safe with My children. My great love compels Me to reveal Myself to you.

Come, My child. Commune with Me.

With love beyond measure,

Jesus

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“Water for the Panting Deer” has been renamed “Grace Within Reach”

 

The heart of this blog remains the same, but I hope this new name makes its purpose clearer and more welcoming to those who are searching for encouragement.

The posts will continue to be written in the voice of Christ — gentle, uplifting, and filled with the same grace that has always been at the center of this space. My prayer is that every reflection will offer exactly what the new name promises: grace within reach.

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Faith is Rest

An embryo does not labor to grow. It simply rests, receiving life, protection, and nourishment from the mother's womb surrounding it. Without its own striving, the child develops and is brought forth. This is a picture of faith.

Faith is not something you force or manufacture. Faith is rest. It is the quiet yielding of your own effort so that My power may carry you. Faith is rest because I am the One who accomplishes every good thing that comes from your life. I work through you the way the sap flows through the vine to bear fruit (John 15:1–17). Expecting the grape to create itself is turning the whole design upside down.

Think of the moment when you are utterly exhausted and finally lie down. Relief washes over you like a warm wave. True faith feels the same.

When Jesus sleeps through your storm

 

They were bailing for all they were worth, convinced that the next wave crashing over the boat would be the end. And as is so often the case, they waited until the very last moment to call on Me (Jesus). They thought prayer was a final resort, not a first instinct.

I had fallen asleep—not because I was indifferent, and not because I already knew the outcome of the voyage—but because the exhaustion of healing and encouraging hundreds of people over countless hours, caused a slumber so profound that it was difficult to rise. 

Shouting and shaking finally broke through that exhaustion. I woke with the disorientation of a man pulled from the depths of desperately needed rest. 

“What is it now? Can’t I have a moment of peace? This had better be important.” I groggily stood  up on deck and took in the scene—the wind clawing at the sails, the waves rising like cliffs, and My disciples, wild‑eyed and terrified.

Stop and Steep

Unlock the divine whispers that guide your soul and discover the intimate conversation awaiting you within the sacred pages of Scripture.

Our faith quenches a spiritual thirst through the Holy Spirit and intimate connection with God. Many struggle to understand this, but it begins with reading My Word. Not just reading, but highlighting your favorite verses, and not just highlighting, but soaking them in.

As you delve into your Bible, listen closely to My gentle voice speaking directly to your heart. Each verse becomes a conduit for My wisdom and love, drawing you into a deeper relationship and a greater experience of My character.

A Fresh Way to Hear a Familiar Word

At times Scripture can feel distant. Sometimes altering the perspective of a verse by changing the structure can bring new life. The Scripture itself is unalterable but we can view it in different ways (as through a different lens) to bring the passage into the now where I am already meeting you.

Some ways to do this are by turning verbs into the present tense …

Letting “He” become “You”…

Letting “us” become “me” or “we”…

It becomes less like reading a verse and more like hearing Me speak.

 

Below are some examples:

Isaiah 58:11

Original:

The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

Modified:

The Lord is guiding you always; he is satisfying your needs in a sun-scorched land and is strengthening your frame. You are like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.