Check out the new "Daily Bible Booster!" A mini-devo (Mon thru Fri) with a brief comment, Bible verse and prayer to start your day!
A Tough and Tender God!
A Hurting
Word...
Web sites can get pretty wild, and if you surf long enough, you're sure to bump into a few that are far-out! I recently found a Web site of a Christian man looking for a wife. He had gone into a great, detailed dissertation to describe, in a "prayer request," this perfect wife he was hoping to find. Never saw such a list in all my life, and if I were an unmarried girl, I'd run! I wish him success...but I do know that no perfect girls like that live in MY part of the country! Now if you know one or you ARE one, don't write me...for I'm not about to give you HIS address!
Ever make a list of the qualities you'd like to have in the God you've chosen to serve? If I were to list only two, they'd be much like the ones I chose for a partner here on earth. I found him...and whether he chose me or I chose him will be a debatable subject the rest of our married lives! But there's Another who chose me LONG before I ever chose Him! Someone "tough and tender" who compares with no one on earth. The longer I serve Him and the longer I love Him, the more tough and tender He becomes. Come with me to the Well and let's all discover our "tough and tender" God!
A Helping Word...or
Two!
A Tough and Tender God Who Forgives Our Sins!
He's tough--our God demands holiness and righteousness. He will not tolerate sin or deception. His standards are high. His commandments are hard. His boundaries are straight and narrow...We need a God like that, but can we LOVE a God like that?
We sure can...for the "tough" One is also the "tender" One--even as He deals with our sins. He knows we cannot meet the high qualifications on the list. And in His loving mercy, He sent a Savior, One who could forgive us our sins, place us in right standing with the Father, covering us with His own righteousness. We are "accepted in the beloved" because of the work of HIS Beloved Son! He'll keep working on us, conforming us into the image of His Son. He's tough and He'll make us tow the line--but He's also tender--and that's the kind of God I choose to serve, how about you!
A Tough and Tender God Who Forgets Our Failures!
He's tough--our God knows how to confront us with our wrongdoings. He knows how to handle us when we fall--and how to forget when we fail and 'fess up! He pulls no punches about what we've done, but He pulls us up on our feet to start again--and that's tough! We need a God like that, but can we LOVE a God like that?
We sure can...for the "tough" One is also a "tender" One--even in our failures. He sees our repentant hearts, He knows our broken spirits--and He doesn't "break a bruised reed." He will lovingly restore us and renew our fellowship with Himself. He's a God of the Second Chance--ask Peter! He's a tender Lord who doesn't beat us when we're down. He picks us up, dusts us off, washes, cleanses, and puts us back on the path again. What a God--that's the kind of God I choose to serve, how about you!
A Tough and Tender God Who Fulfills His Word!
He's tough--our God knows each commandment we break, each law we ignore and each consequence we must pay. His Word must be fulfilled. His Words are hard ones--it's not easy to turn the other cheek, to forgive when we're wronged, to love when we're hated, to show grace when we've been hurt. That's diametrically opposed to the values and lifestyles of this world--and it's tough--but He demands it! We need a God like that, but can we LOVE a God like that?
We sure can...for the "tough" One is also the "tender" One--even in His Word. The same Word of God that reveals His law also reveals His grace. The same Word that convicts also cleanses. The same Word that corrects also comforts. We can depend on His Word to wash whatever needs washing; to bind up whatever's broken. He will fulfill His wonderful Word. What a God--that's the kind of God I choose to serve, how about you!
He's tough and He's tender. He forgives our sins but makes us walk the line; He forgets our failures but makes us get up and try again. He fulfils His Word but makes us heed it even when it's hard. If there were a thousand gods from which I could choose, there's only One who could be to me everything I want and everything I need. And that's the Lord I serve, the Lord I worship, and the Lord for whom I live. A tough and tender Shepherd--that's my Lord. Is He yours?
"Lord, of all the fathers and husbands in this world, however dear, they do not compare with You. I need to know the "tough" side of a perfect Heavenly Father; I also need His "tender" side too. And You are both to me. Thank You, God, for being everything I want and everything I need--even for THIS week! In Jesus' Name, Amen.
My "Prayer Request"
Here is a poem I wrote ten years before meeting my "tough 'n tender" husband!
God heard and answered my prayer! Hope you enjoy the poem!
A place to enjoy other devotionals!
I'm blessed with a wonderful "virtual web family," many
close friends who not only help to keep me sane and smiling, but write wonderful
devotionals. Enjoy their spiritual insights--and their sites as
well!
Note: As of 11/30/15, sites will no longer be checked for dead links. Please contact owner at peggiesplace.com due to tremendous amount of links.
Celebrating God's goodness . . .. . . 16 million and more!
Note: Counter keeps a running total of "hits" (which include images and people "hitting" any page or pages), erroneously identified by me as "page views" for the
entire site. --It jogs around the world and around the clock--to find
YOU!
This Christian home has been visited a zillion times
since December 26, 1995! Well, not quite, but there HAS been a houseful--and
STILL room for one more--YOU! The Christian Counter scans the entire site--and there's plenty of chocolate for everyone--so enjoy!
Most of the music playing at Peggie's Place originates from Songs of Praise.
Additional (previously named) original source for some midis: Gilberto Barreto.
Visit this great Web site to hear beautiful tunes by many talented artists. CDs are available.
All Scriptures on this website, including all applications, etc., are from the King James Version of The Holy Bible, public domain, unless otherwise noted.
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Please note that while I strongly adhere to major tenets of the
evangelical Christian faith, I may not personally agree with every specific doctrinal belief set forth in other
Christian pages.
A safety tip: Internet links and material may include other links and/or material which do not reflect my views or yours, Christian or otherwise. Please choose wisely and use with discretion! And if you find an ugly spider hiding in a dark corner,
you may smash it with a broom--I hate offensive stuff too!
A Hurting
Word...