Rejoice

God_heart_love

2 Corinthians 3:4

Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.

St. Paul knew the love of God through the risen Christ. The God of legalism and punishment was the God Saul believed in before he was transformed by Unconditional Love and Mercy into Paul…the man who then believed in a God of grace and forgiveness. His encounter with Christ came when he was least “worthy”…when he was persecuting Christians. In His life…Jesus showed us how to love perfectly…loving despite being persecuted and finally hung on a cross…and then still loving while hanging there…forgiving those who had crucified Him. This is the reality of who God is. There is no fear in those who know God…for God is love (1 John 4:8). It is the risen Christ who gives us this confidence! Rejoice and be glad!

Listen to the song of the day “My Lord and My God” by clicking HERE

All my songs available for sampling and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available for purchase at www.BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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Let It Shine

candle_waves_light

Matthew 5:14-15

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house.”

It doesn’t matter what you’ve done in the past, what your outer appearance is or how you feel. You have a light inside of you that emanates from your Maker…a light that is a reflection of your Creator. Remember…you are made in God’s image. Your unique light was meant to shine God’s light into the darkness of the world to bring hope, compassion, mercy, forgiveness and justice. How will you shine your light this day…this year…the rest of your life? It starts now…or in any next moment. You don’t have to have it all together or pass any “worthiness” test to shine your light! Your light is like none other! Don’t waste any more time with excuses. Start your grand adventure. You are the light of the world!

Listen to the song of the day “May I Be Light” by clicking HERE

All my songs available to sample and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available to purchase at www.BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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Let Go and Live

let_go

Matthew 5:3

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Our culture says: “Happy are you who are rich in possessions, power and prestige for yours is the kingdom of this world.” Jesus says, “Happy are you who are attached to nothing…for yours is the kingdom of heaven…right now!” The fullness of God’s love and abundant grace is available in each moment to those who are open to receiving. Like a mustard seed God’s kingdom is growing right now and will not be stopped. Why not be a part of this beautiful process? Quite frankly, if you are not going with the flow of this process you are living in a delusion that will never satisfy your soul. The bible says that Jesus taught His followers to pray to God, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). For God’s kingdom (a place of peace, compassion and justice) to come “on earth”…we will have to cooperate in this great evolving Love story. Give us the grace, O God, to let go of our attachments to things that will not last…so we can experience the everlasting joy of your riches which have no end.

Listen to the song of the day “Breathe On Me” by clicking HERE

All my songs available to sample and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available to purchase from www.BillTonnisMusic by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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True Love

ThomasMerton_2

“The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. If in loving them we do not love what they are, but only their potential likeness to ourselves, then we do not love them: we only love the reflection of ourselves we find in them”

– Thomas Merton, No Man Is and Island

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Be Free

Bird_free_sky

Psalm 146:6-7

The maker of heaven and earth, the seas and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever, secures justice for the oppressed, gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free.

What is holding you captive? God wants to set us free from whatever is oppressing us…whatever has us in bondage…whatever fixation is blocking us from God’s free-flowing, unconditional love. God wants to feed us where we are hungry and set us free. But are we open to receiving this freedom? We must first surrender our ego’s desire to be first. Ask yourself: What in my life is my top priority? Is it God? If it is then it will also be Love because “God is love” (1 John 4:8). And if my top priority is love…then it will also be the love of all creation. Am I loving God with all my heart, mind and soul while also loving my neighbor and myself? Nothing is more important than this according to Jesus (Matthew 22:36-39). Loving God…free me from what is oppressing me and then open me to being Your instrument in freeing others from oppression and feeding those who are hungry!

Listen to the song of the day “God’s Love Is All You Need” by clicking HERE

All my songs available to sample and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available to purchase through www.BillTonnisMusic.com by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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Heaven Starts Now

Coffee_clouds_sky

Mark 12:34

“You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

Jesus had just explained to a man questioning Him that the greatest commandment was to love God with all your soul, mind and strength…and to love your neighbor as yourself. When Jesus saw that the man believed this in his heart…He told him that he was “not far from the kingdom of God.” For many people this type of statement just goes in one ear and out the other! Many Christians only view the “kingdom of God” as meaning a future destination and reward that they call “heaven.” But clearly this is not what Jesus was usually talking about! He often spoke of the “kingdom of God” being “at hand” as well as “proclaiming” the “kingdom of God.” God’s kingdom breaks into the present when you love God and love your neighbor as yourself. And then “it’s heaven all the way to heaven”…as St. Catherine of Siena is alleged to have said. God’s love for each of us is eternal. You don’t have to earn it! Allow this Infinite Love to warm your heart. Now…let’s take part in making God’s kingdom come today.

Listen to the song of the day “Love God” by clicking HERE

All my songs available for download and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available for purchase by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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Open Your Heart

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Psalm 25:4-5

Make known to me your ways, Lord; teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior.

There is no pre-set path for us. God gives us a free will to do as we please. It’s the only way we can experience love. It’s a choice. The Creator of all things loves all things and yearns that each of us would come to know this Love and be transformed by it. The One who loved us into existence wants to be intimately close to us in each moment of our lives…to encourage…to inspire…to take part in our struggles…to be with us in our joys and our sorrows…to embrace us in good times and in bad. Take a moment to be thankful and to invite God into your heart as you take the next step in your spiritual journey toward wholeness and your true self.

Listen to the song of the day “Give Praise and Thanks” by clicking HERE

All my songs available for download and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available for purchase by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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I Give All

sunflower

Mark 12:17

So Jesus said to them, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”

So…just what does belong to God? Everything! Everything we are and will be…our very being…it all belongs to God. We could do nothing without each breath God grants us…as well as all the gifts and talents God has planted in us. God even gives us eternal life! It’s all gift. Amazing (mind-boggling) grace! What seems beyond belief becomes believable when you follow the path of Jesus who showed us that dying leads to new life that has no end. How do you repay such extravagant, unearned, unconditional love poured out to each of us? You return to God what belongs to God in the way you live your life; the choices you make; the causes you support; the things you buy; the way you vote; the way you treat others with mercy and compassion; the ways you share your gifts and talents; the way you live each precious moment.

Listen to the song of the day “Glorify You with Me” by clicking HERE

All my songs available for download and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available for purchase by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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Shine

sunlight_forest

Psalm 112:1, 4

Happy those who fear the Lord, who greatly delight in God’s commands. They shine through the darkness, a light for the upright; they are gracious, merciful, and just.

We are all looking for happiness…but happiness is not something you search for and find. It is a by-product of the spiritual journey through which you come to know Love and share Love. Only then can you actually live as your “true self.” Fear of the Lord is not being afraid of God but being in awe of such an unconditionally loving Creator…so that in each moment you delight in being truly present to God in yourself, in others and in all of creation. Be present to the One who loves you unconditionally…the Source of all life. Let go of your rambling thoughts and constant judgments and simply allow the Divine Presence to fill you. It’s only then that you will begin to reflect the same compassionate Light to the world. Awaken to your part in God’s unfolding love story. Jesus gives us the ultimate example.

Listen to the song of the day “May I Be Light” by clicking HERE

All my songs available for download and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available for purchase by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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Nothing Shall I Want

Peace_scene

Psalm 149:4

For the Lord takes delight in his people, honors the poor with victory.

While the consumeristic culture honors the rich with victory…not so with God. While society urges us to add more to our lives…amass more and more wealth, power and prestige…the inner spirit urges us to do the opposite. The spiritual journey is a constant subtraction…a taking away of things that vie for our attention…so that in the end there is nothing separating us from God. This is why some people at life’s end have no trouble passing quietly into eternal life…while others fight in bitter anguish. They don’t know how to let go of all the stuff of the world. This is why the poor…or those who have no attachment to material possessions, power or prestige (the “poor in spirit”)…are many times further along in their spiritual journeys. They have had no other option but to turn to God for help in their struggles. What is blocking your path from the victory of oneness with God?

Listen to the song of the day “God’s Love Is All You Need” by clicking HERE

All my songs available for download and purchase by clicking HERE

CD’s available for purchase by clicking HERE

Remember…God loves you!

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