Preparing for JOY...Putting Jesus Christ First!

Ladies,

Have you found your JOY this Christmas? Are you still searching for it? Is it lost in the hustle and bustle? I would like to give you three ways to keep your joy and focus on Jesus Christ this season.

1) Prayer: Spend time talking to God and learn to listen to His voice. Philippians 4:6-7 states, "Don't worry about anything, instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." and I Thessalonians 5:17 says "Never stop praying." Cultivate a mind that talks to God and then sits quietly and listens for Him to speak.

2) Praise: 1 Chronicles 16:34 "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His faithful love endures forever." In 2 Chronicles 20 we read about King Jehoshaphat of Judah who learned of 3 vast armies coming to do battle against his nation. He took this to God in prayer, the word from the Lord in vs.15 was do not be afraid, the battle belongs to the Lord and in vs.21 "Give thanks to the Lord", at the very moment they started praising God, the armies started fighting each other. God won the victory for them. They praised God and saw the victory. Give thanks to God. Our gratitude makes our theology real and practical every day. Cultivate a heart of praise and thanksgiving.

3)Practice: Count your blessings. Bring your requests to God in prayer. Praise God for His Presence and Power at work in your life. Trust God in the midst of your circumstances. Keep your eyes on Jesus Christ not the obstacles. Your God is bigger than any obstacle. We serve a BIG GOD!! Philippians 4:8 says for us to "Fix our thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise."

Persevere in the practice of prayer, praise and practice. Put Jesus Christ first and Jesus will fill you with JOY! This would be the greatest gift you could give to Jesus Christ for His birthday, the gift of yourself and time with Him.

"The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust Him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I bust out in songs of thanksgiving."
Psalm 28:7

"Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with My victorious right hand."
Isaiah 41;10

In Christ Love,
Melody

Go deep with God!

Hi Ladies,

Do you sometimes see other women going deeper with God, excited about their faith no matter what is going on in their lives, and feel jealous? You don't have to be jealous. You can go deeper with God too! It is not just for a few women or men. This deep relationship with God is for everyone.

In I Corinthians 2:9-10, "That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, 'No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him.' But it was to us that God revealed these things by His Spirit. For His Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets."

Go deep with God. Break away from the shore and go deeper. What do you need to let go of to allow God to do His work in you? There are hard times and challenges each day. First PRAY, talk to God honestly and thankfully and listen to God. Then dig into His Word and find out the Truth of who God is. His Word is your sword and His love letter to you. God's Word sets us free. Trust God, He is in control. Hear God's message to you. Continue to praise God daily. "The Sovereign Lord is my strength!" Habakkuk 3:19. "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever. Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others He has redeemed you from your enemies." Psalm 107:1-2. Receive God's Truth to you. Hang onto the hope that will not fail.

My surrender plus God's Holy Spirit is enough. "Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in Him!...The Lord hears His people when they call to Him for help." Psalm 34:5, 17. Our strength comes from a deep relationship with God. Graduate from spoon feeding. Go deeper with God. Get radical. Trust God. He will not let you down.

This is my prayer for the ladies of Apex Baptist Church. That you will jump into the deep waters and go deeper. Hallelujah!!

In Christ Love,
Melody

Security

Ladies,

I hope you have read some of the blogs about being a SECURE Woman in Jesus Christ. A Secure Woman is Saved from Herself, Entitled to Truth, Clothed with Intention, Upended by Grace, Rebounded by Love, and Exceptional in Life. What will you do with this?

Who or what will you look to for Security? The world can not give you security. Whatever the world offers only makes you want more. Another person can not meet all your needs. They will let you down at some point. The only One who can give you security is Jesus Christ. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. Take Jesus at His Word and trust Him. He will deliver you from bondage and insecurity.

Victory or Defeat resides in the mind. Let the Holy Spirit transform your mind with the Word of God. Empty out the junk and put off the old. Put on the new in Jesus Christ. Fill your mind with the Word. And stand on the promises in God's Word. Don't immerce yourself in religious life. Take God at His Word and immerce yourself in a relationship with the One who will never let you down, Jesus Christ.

I pray that each of you have a blessed week drawing close to Him and say so long to insecurity.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

Exceptional in Life

Hi Ladies,

I hope that each of you had a wonderful 4th of July and celebrated the freedom that we have in our country. And most importantly that you were able to celebrate your freedom in Christ Jesus as a secure woman. Say so long to your insecurities and live in security.

Over the last few months we have talked about what a secure woman is.

A Secure Woman is...
Saved from Herself
Entitled to Truth
Clothed with Intention
Upended by Grace
Rebounded by Love
Exceptional in Life

Today we talk about the last e: Exceptional in Life. We all have a need for significance, to feel special, to feel needed. As a child of God, a daughter of the King we are called to be different. God has a purpose for each of our lives. "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago." Ephesians 2:10. We can only have this new life by accepting Jesus Christ as Savior. Sin separates us from a holy God. Jesus came and died on the cross to save us from our sins. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.

Without Jesus we can't live this exceptional life. Without Jesus we would be just like everyone else. Be exceptional in Christ Jesus. Let Christ overrun you, not the cultural of today. Determine to put off the old nature and "put on your new nature, created to be like God - truly righteous and holy." Ephesians 4:24. "This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Choose to be exceptional in life. Bring fame to the name of Jesus Christ. Take God at His Word. Read The Word, Believe the Word, and Live the Word. God knew what He was doing when He created you woman. Be Exceptional in Life. Live a secure life in Jesus Christ.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

Rebounded by Love

Ladies,

Have you been Upended by Grace this week? I hope so. You can take God at His Word and believe that He extends His Grace to you as His dearly loved child. Jesus Christ paid the price at the cross. Believe and accept that you are His dearly loved child Rebound in His Love and live as a Secure Woman of God.

Remember that A Secure Woman is...
Saved from Herself
Entitled to Truth
Clothed with Intention
Upended by Grace
Rebounded by Love
Exceptional in Life

Today we are going to talk about being Rebounded by Love and what this means to you and me. Everything comes back to love. "For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16 To live as a secure woman of God we have to believe that God loves us and that we are forgiven and that God extends His grace to us. When we believe this, we can rebound and extend love, forgiveness, and grace to other people.

If you are living in insecurity, and your heart is calloused and hardened, fall at the feet of Jesus and believe. Believe that He died for your sins, that He loves you, and wants to bring healing in your heart. Believe and accept that you are loved unwaverinly as God's dearly loved chilc and let His love permeate your life and change you, then let this rebound in you to extend to others.

My prayer for each of you is that "your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called and that you will live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ." Ephesians 1:18 and 5:1 So let your heart be flooded with love and let it Rebound in your life to others.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

Upended by Grace

Hi Ladies,

I am praying that each of you are looking to God and living out His calling on your life. We are meant to live in security not doubt and confusion.

Remember that A Secure Woman is...
Saved from Herself
Entitled to Truth
Clothed with Intention
Upended by Grace
Rebounded by Love
Exceptional in Life

Today we are looking at U: Upended By Grace. God extends grace to each of us through Jesus Christ's death on the cross. Jesus Christ gave a gift that we don't deserve and that we can't pay for. It is a free "gift received at Christ's expense" extended to each person who believes. "God saved you by His grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God." Ephesians 2:8.

Trust that God's grace is enough and live in the security of His love and forgiveness. Choose to believe God and take Him at His Word. "Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise." Hebrews 10:23. Let His Grace upend your life. Walk, think, and feel like a secure woman.

Believe that you have been forgiven for the sins that you have repented of, then extend grace to others. Don't let offenses build up or unforgiveness control your life. Beth Moore said, "unforgiveness acts like a giant tapeworm that eats us alive, nutrients and all." Forgive and release others from having this power over your life. We can forgive others because we have been forgiven.

So embrace security in Jesus Christ and live your life in victory Upended by Grace. Grace is the only thing that we can keep and give away all at the same time. This is your right as a daughter of the King, to live in security. Let God's Grace upend your life this week.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

A Secure Woman is Clothed with Intention

Dear Ladies,

Have you been believing God and living as a Secure Woman Entitled to Truth? Don't let the enemy steal Truth from you. Believe God and begin to walk in this security Clothed With Intention.

A Secure Woman is...
Saved from Herself
Entitled to Truth
Clothed with Intention
Upended by Grace
Rebounded by Love
Exceptional in Life

Today we will talk about being Clothed With Intention. We need to get intentional about putting off the old nature and putting on the new. Proverbs 31:25 says that "She is clothed with strength and dignity and she laughs without fear of the future." Make a decision with your mind to walk in security and then your actions will follow your mind and will. Then our hearts will know it and believe it. Walk in the security that Christ Jesus died on the cross to give you.

We are corrupted by our old nature that continualy wants to rule our lives. Renew your mind daily in the Truth of God's Word. Respond how a secure woman would act. "Put on your new nature, created to be like God-truly righteous and holy." Ephesians 4:24. Let your emotions collide with what you know to be Truth from God's Word. As this collision happens then change and transformation will take place in your life and you can live as a secure woman saved from herself, entitled to truth, and clothed with intention. Not self-centered, but looking out for the interests of others as God's love overflows in your life.

Be intentional in your walk with God. Spend time with Him in His Word and in Prayer. God wants to spend time with you. God is passionate about a relationship with you.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

A Secure Woman is Entitled to Truth

Dear Ladies,

I hope that you have made the decision to walk in freedom as a secure women in Jesus Christ saved from yourself. Have you begun to get rid of the old and put on the new? as Ephesians 4:31-32 tells us.

A Secure Woman is...
Saved from Herself
Entitled to Truth
Clothed with Intention
Upended by Grace
Rebounded by Love
Exceptional in Life

Tonight we will look at the second letter E - Entitled to Truth. As a child of God you are entitled to Truth. The enemy wants you to believe his lies and live in insecurity. This does not mean that you are separated from God's love because nothing can separate us from God's love according to Romans 8:38-39. But when you live believing the enemy's lies you are not living in the freedom and security that God has for you.

Addictions fuel our insecurities and keep us from an intimate relationship with God. Whatever your addiction is it takes God's Truth to defeat it. The longer we live apart from God, the harder your heart becomes and it is harder to hear the Holy Spirit speaking to you.

Ephesians 4:18-19 says that "they are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more."

Addictions can be physical such as alcohol or drugs, but can also be emothional when we allow our insecurities to control our thinking. The longer we give into our addictions the harder your heart becomes and the harder it is to turn away from them. Addictions are fueled by deceit and it takes more and more as the addiction grows. The only thing that can break this cycle is God's Truth.

And as a believer in God, saved by the blood of Jesus Christ, you can take God at His Word. "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Ephesians 4:22-24. His Word is Truth and you are Entitled to Truth. Believing God's Truth enables you to live in freedom and security. So dig into God's Truth and believe It. Then take God at His Word and live in Security. My prayer for each of you is that you will take this leap of faith and walk in the Truth you are entitled to.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

A Secure Woman is Saved From Herself

Good Evening Ladies,

Are you living in Insecurity or Security?

A Secure Woman is Saved from Herself
Entitled to Truth
Clothed with Intention
Upended by Grace
Rebounded by Love
Exceptional in Life

Today we are going to talk about the S: A Secure Woman is Saved from Herself. You may ask "why do I need to be saved from myself?" The human mind is twisted by inordinate self. This means that the human mind focuses excessively on self. Everything in life curves back to us. We see this in the selfishness of people around us and in our own lives. We want to think that the world revolves around me. This brings insecurity into our lives when our needs or expectations are not met. Our minds become "full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against Him." (Ephesians 4:18) A life full of self is insecure because everyone else is focused on self not them.

After we give our hearts to God and let Him be Lord of our lives we can be saved from ourself. When we are fueled by the Holy Spirit everything looks vertical to God and out. Life is not about us. "Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God - truly righteous and holy." (Ephesians 4:23-24). Everything curves toward God.

Insecurity itself is a form of pride. We are so focused on self that it feeds the insecurity. But when we look to God and believe what God says about us we are freed from the insecurity. Life is not all about us, but it is about bringing glory to God. We are set free. Security frees us to not think about ourself all the time, but to live as a secure woman in God becoming all that He has called us to be.

My prayer for each of you is "that from His glorious, ulimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him, that your roots will grow down in to God's love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God." (Ephesians 3:16-19). And that you will put off the old nature and put on the new nature and be a Secure Woman Saved from Herself.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

Are you living out your calling as "A Secure Woman"?

Hi Ladies,

On April 24th our church hosted a live simiulcast, "So Long Insecurity", with Bible teacher Beth Moore. There were about 220 women present, including many high school girls, from 27 different churches. If you were one of these women I know that you were blessed, but I also pray tht your life was changed.

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing the key points that Beth Moore taught that day on our Women's Ministry Blog Site. Check it out each week as we review the acronym, Security. We are meant to live secure and satisfied lives in Christ Jesus.

In Ephesians 4:1 we are told that each of us is called "to lead a life worthy of your calling for you have been called by God." The enemy wants to hold us in bondage and insecurity that keeps us from fulfilling our calling as a new creation in Christ Jesus. Victory or defeat resides in the mind. So "throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God - truly righteous and holy." Ephesians 4:22-24.

A Secure Woman is: 1. Saved from herself. 2. Entitled to truth. 3. Clothed with intention. 4. Upended by grace. 5. Rebounded by love. 6. Exceptional in life.

Take God at His Word. Spend time with Him in prayer, not just talking, but listening. Saturate yourself in Scripture. Don't be satisfied with the same old defeat. Take a leap of faith. You can live as a Secure Woman in Christ Jesus today.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

So Long Insecurities

Hi Ladies,

Are you ready to tell your insecurity so long? Come join us on Saturday, April 24, and hear Beth Moore share God's Truth on letting go of your insecurities. We all deal with insecurity of some kind. We need to realize and believe that God created each of us and made us special. God is passionate about you. He loves you. God will not leave you. He wants a relationship with you. And each of us can have that relationship by believing in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, the only way to bring us into relaionship with God. He died for your sins and He can make you a new creation.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but shall have everlasting life."

In Christ Jesus we who come to Him can have new life and become a new creation in Him. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

See you on Saturday!

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

Spring Fling

Good Morning Ladies,

Guess what I woke up thinking about this morning? How to get the ice into glasses on the tables at Spring Fling! Yes, today is Spring Fling! I think we are all ready for a Spring Fling day! It seems like winter days have been here forever with the cold weather. But God set seasons in motion and spring will come. Our theme at Spring Fling this year is "Same Girl...Different Generations". Ladies, no matter what our age we all have some things in commom. One of those things is that God loves us. God is passionate about a relationship with you. Exodus 34:14.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt

Are you time challenged?

Ladies,

Are you like me and seem to be time challenged? By time challenged I mean does it seem that time just gets away and you don't know where it went. This week has been that way for me. On Monday and Tuesday nights I was answering emails and when I got through I thought it had been just an hour and it had been over two. I think that I try to put too much in the 24 hours of each day. But I know that God is Sovereign and He knows exactly how many hours should be in a day. God said 24 hours are in a day. And He created our bodies to need rest. So if God is perfect and right then it has to be me trying to put too much into the time allotted. How do we decide what should be pushed off the plate and what should be left? That is a hard decision for someone who hates to say no. I think what God is teaching me though is to bring all my decisions to Him and to talk to Him about them. I want everything in my life to count for God. So I am trying to ask myself two questions: How will this affect eternity and will it bring glory to God? I want that to be my goal in life, To bring glory and honor in all I do and say to my God and to build His kingdom. Have you examined your days lately, are they overflowing? Join me in bringing them to God and letting Him order your days.

In Christ Love,
Melody Merritt


Don't forget to purchase your Spring Fling ticket by March 1st!! You don't want to miss the fun.