The Power of the Spoken Word

James is a great book in the New Testament. I enjoy how honest and forthright he is in his rightings to the church. All the things he speaks about are applicable here and now in today's world just as they were back in New Testament times.

In Chapter 3, James talks about taming the tongue. He says in verse 2 that a man who is never at fault has control over his entire body....that includes the tongue. He talks about the bit in the horses mouth and how it turns the large animal easily and the rudder on a ship, how it steers the massive vessel without any effort.Verse 5 references a spark in a forest and how it can set a whole fire.

Our tongues are truly powerful for being such small muscles. No other body part as nearly the influence. And what powers this small muscle? The brain, the heart, or is it a combination of both?

My mother used to say "Think before you speak! Your mouth moves faster than your brain can process." How true that we don't think about the residual effects of words spoken before we say them. At first it would be considered childlike abandon and then cruel, rude and immature.

Words can build men up, inspire them to succeed, lead them into battle, rule a nation, destroy a relationship, undermine a structure, determine life or death, soothe a soul, trigger a rebellion and so much more. One a one on one level, how do your words affect others? Are they kind words, thoughtful responses, Christ-like inspiration or are they abbrassive, course, undercutting and destructive. It can be simply how you say rather than what you say....anyone who has had a few conversations in their life time would know that.

Our tongues are what put Chrsit on the cross as the masses cried "crucify Him!!" and tongues announced the arrival of the baby Jesus in Bethlehem while shepherds came to Bethlehem searching for Him. Words parted the Red Sea, words sapped Samson's strength, Zechariah was struck dumb from speaking too much until he announced the name of his son...John the Baptist.

Verse 10 states that "Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing and this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?" We cannot talk nice and church like out of one side of our mouths and then curse the church or take the Lord's name in vain out of the other side. It just doesn't work that way.

So which side of the fence are you on and what words have you used today that have inspired, encouraged, affirmed and loved someone else. Even if it's someone who is hard to love! Jesus did not discriminate about who to love. As a matter of fact, those who were harder to love are the ones He showed love to the most.

Revealed

I spent the other night up at my church at the piano and singing. I felt that was the best place for me to be. One of my favorite songs in "His Eye in On the Sparrow" and as I sang the words, I was reminded that the author was feeling many of the same feelings I felt that night.

"Why should I feel discouraged?"
"Why should the shadows come?"
"Why should my heart be lonely and long for heaven and home?"
"Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise, when songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies."

All these things are the things I have been feeling and wondering and heavy with. Not just the lack of a mate, but rather the light to fuel my passions. The feeling of being out of place often overpowers my drive to live in the place where I am. I am often amazed at how awkward a space this is. I am constantly reminded of my place in the ever present pecking order here. I do long to be "home" someplace and I am sure that the only place that will ever be home to me, is heaven.

So the answer I was reminded of?

"My constant Friend is He."
"Let not your heart be troubled"; His tender word I hear. And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubt and fears. Tho' by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see, His Eye is on the Sparrow and I know He watches me.
"I should draw the closer to Him; because from care He sets me free. His Eye is on the Sparrow, and I know He watches me."

What a wonderful reminder of who we are and how He relates to us humanly, even though sometimes we may not think so.

Weary

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened. and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28

Sounds entriguing and it sounds like an escape from life itself! I sit here tonight writing this blog as if it were a "Dear Santa" letter. I'll hit the post button and know that no one will see it but I feel relief for having sent it.

If anyone is out there and reads this, I would like to know why my God is sometimes not enough. Perhaps it is the humaness of it all. Where is my "other half"? Worse yet is being in a relationship and feeling completely alone. Fighting for the two when there is more often only one. Perhaps it is the power of my mind. They say that what you think is then what you become. I believe that I can make myself miserable and yet I strongly dislike that position. I am a happy and outgoing or bubbly individual in nature. I love the outdoors and never drive with the windows closed. I need that fresh air and wind in my hair. I have a smile ready for anyone and love to laugh and hate to cry. Yet, more oft than not, I cry and don't laugh anymore.

I sit, in the evenings on my porch and listen to the wonders of creation as they drift away to greet another day. I lean back and look up at the awesome sky and cry within myself....Lord, how long until I am home someplace? Where am I supposed to be and how long until I get there? What are you waiting for me to do? What do I have to change?

I do have to laugh because I know that His timing is perfect but ...MAN! I'm getting restless and my heart is longing to be uninhibited. I have been told, more than once, that I don't know how to love. Perhaps that is true and this is how I am supposed to learn. I don't want my life to complete me, I just want more to look forward to at the end of the day and at the beginning of the day. Perhaps my lack of loving has reared its head at this point because I have avalanched enough lives with my own destruction.

Whatever the cause, Lord, I'm ready for it to begin a new. Can you rebuild the bridges I have blown apart? I know you can. Is that why you lay things so heavy on my heart? (Heavy and scary thoughts that I should revisit this oprtion of my life?)

I know, I know. Let go and let God. Well.....

I'm trying really really hard.

Life, Death, Renewal

Funny thing about death. When it happens, whether expected or unexpected, near or far, we have a moment when we look up and ask God "Why?". It is the process of life and as Christians we have hope and promise and even joy when we know that a loved one has gone on to be with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and His heavenly Father. Only God knows the day and time that we will leave this present earth. Only He knows where our hearts will be when it happens. For me, I am secure in knowing that when I pass away I will be heading home. A final place where there will be no more pain, whether physical, mental, emotional; no pain. I don't even have to pack a bag! No more living out of boxes and anticipating another move or change of job - nothing. I can hardly imagine what that alone will be like. At the same time, I must look at life as it is now and realize that I have an assignment, as a child of God, to share His love and radiate His light. How well do I accomplish that? Sometimes not so much!


I have a girlfriend who has been seeking the Lord for guidance in her life and took a step in a new direction without any kind of affirmation except trusting that she was doing the right thing. She followed the statement "Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1 We don't need to have a neon sign blinking to guarantee us of what the Lord wants us to do with our lives. Faith is not always, hardly ever, a tangible thing. but because she has been seeking and searching and staying in communication with her Heavenly Father about His will for her life and not her will for her life, she gets more and more radiant and beautiful. The peace and joy you see when you look at her are plain to see. "So in every thing gives thanks." No matter what.

So as I remember the life of one lost; one I don't know will be in heaven, I thank my God for the hope and promises I hold in my heart for my own life and the lives of those He has put around me who are also His children. I pray for those who will see us mourn and who are not saved and hopefully they will want to have the same hope. I pray for renewal of life as well as healing for those with hope.



Grieve with no fear for your God is near.

Walk Don't Run

How many different types of walking are there? Have you ever thought about it? I was reviewing a lesson for Sunday School and was considering a few things about walking. First, you never run before you walk and never walk before you crawl. So as babes in Christ we will be crawling. We must be felled to our knees before we can even begin walking again.Paul talks about walking in Ephesians.

He starts in Ephesians 2:1-11. He is referring to the "old" walk. That is, the way we lived before we became children of God. It sort of reminds me of a rags to riches kind of thing. We are walking, but maybe not that gracefully and then we have Christ come into our lives and we see now what it means to walk in grace:) When our new life begins, we are to start a whole new walk and after we get up off our knees to begin our new walk, it should be at a different pace and on a different path than the previous walk. Also, notice that he always refers to our travels as Christs' followers as walks and not marathons!

What happens when we walk rather than run? Do you see more and hear more? How does it affect you differently? You probably aren't out of breath or anything from walking and you can take your time and even appreciate what you encounter along the way. You can contemplate your steps before each one lands, you can think quietly, you can get to your destination at a steady pace.There are several different types of walks...humanly speaking. We have the walk that bounces along, the sauntering walk, the purposeful walk, and the childlike walk. The list goes on.

So how do you "walk" your Christian walk? I would say that sometimes I even stumble along. Only by the grace of god go I.

Dancing!

A very dear friend of mine sent me the following rhetoric. I love to hear how others break down what they hear from God and what they see in the Scriptures. I think about how often I don't listen to what I truly know to be the truth and how I struggle sometimes to find my way and then something like this comes along, whether in email, snail mail or general conversation with one another, and I feel so much better knowing that we all cover the same ground, just in a different way.

Dancing With God

When I meditated on the word Guidance, I kept seeing "dance" at the end of the word. I remember reading that doing God's will is a lot like dancing. When two people try to lead, nothing feels right. The movement doesn't flow with the music, and everything is quite uncomfortable and jerky. When one person realizes that, and lets the other lead, both bodies begin to flow with the music. One gives gentle cues, perhaps with a nudge to the back or by pressing Lightly in one direction or another. It's as if two become one body, moving beautifully. The dance takes surrender, willingness, and attentiveness from one person and gentle guidance and skill from the other. My eyes drew back to the word Guidance. When I saw "G": I thought of God, followed by "u" and "i". "God, "u" and "i" dance." God, you, and I dance. As I lowered my head, I became willing to trust that I would get guidance about my life. Once again, I became willing to let God lead. My prayer for you today is that God's blessings and mercies are upon you on this day and everyday. May you abide in God, as God abides in you. Dance together with God, trusting God to lead and to guide you through each season of your life.

Drifters

Hebrews 2:1-4 Paul tells us to pay attention to what we have heard and not to forget what we have heard. I got thinking about what I have heard and whether or not I retain the information or if I just dismiss it. When we dismiss what we have heard, we have more possiblilty or a larger guarantee that we will slip into the old ways or backslide.


So I started thinking about what I have heard myself that I am not "hearing"? These are the things that realize about myself and need to be willing to change;


1. I am prideful. I do not always do things for the glory of God. My life should be a radiant reflection of God and everything I do should be done only for His glory and not for human recognition, appreciation or satisfaction.


2. I can be arrogant. I know that I'm not any better of a person than anyone else, but I do tend to react in that way and the emotion is in the deepest part of my heart. God knows my core and when I really sit and evaluate my reations to things and people and why I react the way I do, often times it is because I am both prideful and arrogant. This combination will not allow me to ask forgiveness or even to grant forgiveness. It will cloud my judgement and smudge my testimony. A deadly combination!


.3 I am selfish. The first two will create an outcome that will only allow for this conclusion. Selfishness is the act of being centered on self and looking at the result of your efforts and how they directly affect you. Also, it shows a severe lack of servanthood. Christ showed the ultimate in servitude. Washing the disciples feet, laying His life down for us, allowing Himself to be covered in all our sins and lowering Himself to our level of existence from His own high position. When is the last time you thought about how truly self-centered and selfish you are? Do you even realize that you are?


4. I am discontent. Paul states that we should be content no matter what condition we find ourselves. No matter what we have, how much, how little, how healthy, how busy, etc. I always am looking for more and better. Not “things”, but just that life would be more or better. That desire creates discontentment.

5. I will mumble! I know that this falls under discontentment, but I thought that it sometimes overpowers me to the point that it needs it’s own category! I will mumble and grumble about things that I have no right to grumble about! Rather than talking to God and giving Him all the worries and choices, I take them and run to another human or twist them around inside me so much that they start to eat me.

Life can change in an instant! My faith is still there and still alive and well. Sometimes I wander away and forget what it is that I have learned, but I am a work in progress. As long as I remain willing to listen to Him and let Him mold me, I’ll be in good shape. Are you setting sail, or are you a drifter? What have you heard that the Holy Spirit is challenging you about?

How Well?

One of my favorite hymns to sing as well as to listen to is "It is Well With My Soul". Without ever having known the circumstances behind this hymn, I loved it. Then I heard the story that is attatched to the words.

The article below is a copy of a wonderful rendidtion of this tale. The link is as follows and has additional Bible Study attatched to it. I hope whoever would read this would take the time to look at the study. http://www.biblestudycharts.com/A_Daily_Hymn.html
This hymn was written by a Chicago lawyer, Horatio G. Spafford. You might think to write a worship song titled,'It is well with my soul', you would indeed have to be a rich, successful Chicago lawyer. But the words,"When sorrows like sea billows roll ... It is well with my soul”, were not written during the happiest period of Spafford's life. On the contrary, they came from a man who had suffered almost unimaginable personal tragedy.Horatio G. Spafford and his wife, Anna, were pretty well-known in 1860’s Chicago. And this was not just because of Horatio's legal career and business endeavors.

The Spaffords were also prominent supporters and close friends of D.L. Moody, the famous preacher. In 1870, however, things started to go wrong. The Spaffords' only son was killed by scarlet fever at the age of four. A year later, it was fire rather than fever that struck. Horatio had invested heavily in real estate on the shores of Lake Michigan. In 1871, every one of these holdings was wiped out by the great Chicago Fire.

Aware of the toll that these disasters had taken on the family, Horatio decided to take his wife and four daughters on a holiday to England. And, not only did they need the rest -- DL Moody needed the help. He was traveling around Britain on one of his great evangelistic campaigns. Horatio and Anna planned to join Moody in late 1873. And so, the Spaffords traveled to New York in November, from where they were to catch the French steamer 'Ville de Havre' across the Atlantic. Yet just before they set sail, a last-minute business development forced Horatio to delay. Not wanting to ruin the family holiday, Spafford persuaded his family to go as planned. He would follow on later.

With this decided, Anna and her four daughters sailed East to Europe while Spafford returned West to Chicago. Just nine days later, Spafford received a telegram from his wife in Wales. It read: "Saved alone."On November 2nd 1873, the 'Ville de Havre' had collided with 'The Lochearn', an English vessel. It sank in only 12 minutes, claiming the lives of 226 people. Anna Spafford had stood bravely on the deck, with her daughters Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta clinging desperately to her. Her last memory had been of her baby being torn violently from her arms by the force of the waters. Anna was only saved from the fate of her daughters by a plank which floated beneath her unconscious body and propped her up. When the survivors of the wreck had been rescued, Mrs. Spafford's first reaction was one of complete despair.

Then she heard a voice speak to her, "You were spared for a purpose." And she immediately recalled the words of a friend, "It's easy to be grateful and good when you have so much, but take care that you are not a fair-weather friend to God."Upon hearing the terrible news, Horatio Spafford boarded the next ship out of New York to join his bereaved wife. Bertha Spafford (the fifth daughter of Horatio and Anna born later) explained that during her father's voyage, the captain of the ship had called him to the bridge. "A careful reckoning has been made", he said, "and I believe we are now passing the place where the de Havre was wrecked. The water is three miles deep." Horatio then returned to his cabin and penned the lyrics of his great hymn.The words which Spafford wrote that day come from 2 Kings 4:26. They echo the response of the Shunammite woman to the sudden death of her only child. Though we are told "her soul is vexed within her", she still maintains that 'It is well." And Spafford's song reveals a man whose trust in the Lord is as unwavering as hers was.

It would be very difficult for any of us to predict how we would react under circumstances similar to those experienced by the Spaffords. But we do know that the God who sustained them would also be with us.No matter what circumstances overtake us may we be able to say with Horatio Spafford...

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,When sorrows like sea billows roll;Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,It is well, it is well with my soul.Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,Let this blest assurance control,That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,And hath shed His own blood for my soul!It is well ... with my soul!It is well, it is well, with my soul.

So I ask you, how well is it with your soul? What personal tragedy do you have going on right now that would justify you turning away froma Lord and Master who has every hair on your head counted? What purpose are you being preserved for? What heavy or hurting heart will you be able to comfort because it is a reflection of your own? It may be something as tragic as divorce, death, sickness or a unexplainable as loneliness.

Take heart! Draw your strength from the Lord.

Sunrise and Sunset

I am thinking about the night before Christ rose from the dead and the Resurrection Day. I wonder if the sunset of that evening prior to His resurrection is clipped in a scrapbook by God. What did the sky look like that evening? Was there a glorious mixture of purples for royalty, reds for the shed blood and sleek white clouds to show the upcoming pure cleansing which would then prevail from that day forward? Were the birds quiet that evening and the olive trees still against the sky? What did the sea of Galilee look like that evening? Were the tides low and the waves quiet ripples or were the seas crashing against the shore line in eager anticipation to feel Christs feet on their shores again?

And what of the sunrise on that glorious morning? The women had gone down to the tomb very early in the morning. ( Luke 24 ) I wonder if the sun had even come over the horizon yet. What time of the day did Christ rise from the dead? Was He out of the tomb as soon as the days had changed from one to the next or did He wait for a glimpse of daylight and the symphony of renewal that the Creation would pulse with upon His resurrection? How brightly did the sun shine that morning than it ever did before? The birds must have been singing, the insects and butterflies flitting around, the squirrels chittering, the fish leaping and the trees waving. No one must have noticed the change in nature that day as they tried to understand that Christ had done just what He had said He was going to do....Risen from the dead!

Review the story again with a new outlook. Put yourself in the shoes of the believers of that time and consider what you may have thought. This is a story that needs consideration every day of our Christian walks. Reminding us that He is the reason we have hope and joy!

Thank you Jesus for the new life you have given me and the day to celebrate each year your Resurrection!!

This Little Light

I heard this let of verses read the other night and when I actually thought about the way the words were presented, the literal meaning changed from the preconceived translation I had always had. The verses I am referring to are Luke 11:33-36. We have heard that “the eyes are the windows of the soul” but why is that true? This will prove that there is Scriptural foundation for that quote. Luke is quoting Jesus here, who is saying; “No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead he puts it on its stand so that those who come in may see the light. Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you.”

Have you ever been some place where the darkness is practically palpable? Standing on a country road in the middle of the night with no streetlights, or on a farm that is a good distance from anywhere else? What happens when you turn on a light or you have only one light one, like the dusk to dawn light on the side of the barn? The light reaches far out into the darkness. It’s fingers touching further than you realize and chasing away the shadows. The light Jesus is referring to in this verse is His light that is inside of us when we believe on Him. Christians are distinctive because they have a glow about them and there is no way to cover that light.

Secondly, Jesus says that the eyes are the lamp of the body. The eyes are a channel into the soul. Not a mirror of what the soul is, but a funnel that will determine what your soul is. So if you spend time watching violence, giving dirty looks, looking at questionable magazines, surfing wrongful sights in the internet or watching TV shows that would make your mother blush, all these things are things that feed your soul. Luke continues to write that if what you observe with your eyes is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if what you observe is bad, than you will feed the darkness. Think about what you do that interrupts your communication with God. How much quiet time to do spend with Him? I don’t mean that the kids are an interruption, either. I mean things that you voluntarily put in your own way. TV, computer, I-pod, whatever it may be. It is extremely crucial that we protect ourselves from what come in through our channels; our eyes and our ears.

Develop your light and let others see it shine. You’ll be surprised at how well received the joyous light of Jesus is received and how many moths you may draw to your flame.

In Like a Lion

February is the shortest month of the year but it seems to last forever!! Then, as we emerge on the other side, March awaits us in all its raging glory! The winds blow, the snow falls, the mud swallows up anything brave enough to cross its threshold, the icicles hang sideways and the birds sing mightily. Crazy!

As I venture out for my morning walk on this mild March morning, I am reminded of what Paul said about “putting off the old man” (Ephesians 4:22-24) and also how he himself struggled with doing what he didn’t want to do (Romans 7:14-25).

Just as the seasons battle year after year, so we battle constantly over the sin nature. Our sin nature, or old self, is powerful, terrifying and sometimes immense. Sounds like it’s hopeless, doesn’t it? Our “new man”, the person we are with the help and saving grace of God is radiant, steadfast and enduring. We should hold godly characteristics like kindness, gentleness and humility. II Corinthians 5:21 says “God made Him (Christ) who had no sin, to be sin for us so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” To be sin…Christ had never had a mean thought, never talked back to His parents, never stole anything, never kicked the dog, never was vengeful to anyone, been jealous or envious or anything! Then He became all that sin is. It’s ugly, full of guilt, hateful, angry, dirty and lost. Think about what your core self feels like when you knowingly have done something wrong. Now multilply that not only by all the things you have done in your own life, but what about all the people you know and all the people who have lived and died since Christ was on the earth.

It is incomprehensible what that must have been like for Christ and yet we take this gift of salvation and eternal life for granted.

Take some time this month of March to evaluate your growth and your battle. Is the Lamb of God winning that battle over the “old man”? Have you surrendered the battle to Christ to let Him fight for you?

Kingly restraint

I enjoy good stories! Whether the transference is real or imagined, a good storyteller captivates me. My father was an excellent storyteller. He had the right balance of detail and pleasure that you could almost see, hear and smell what was occurring. The Bible is full of so many wonderful stories and the Old Testament really built you up for the climax of Christ in the New Testament. The authors predict, recount and track many facts. Some stories are joyous; some exceed suffering and anguish, while others have a surprise ending.

One such story is the story of David. In a segment of his life, before he was king but after the incident with Goliath, Saul was out hunting David down. I think Saul may have been manic or something because he had such opposites. He would love David one minute and hate him the next. Saul’s son was David’s best friend, Jonathan and Saul’s daughter was David’s wife!

In I Samuel 23 the story begins with Saul pursuing David. It’s really a little humorous to me that David is out there running from place to place with about 600 men and yet Saul can’t find him. Paul can’t find him because God didn’t want Saul to find him. The details of this story are interesting as David goes to the city of Keilah to fight off the Philistines and save the people of Keilah. This was a walled city and when Saul found out that David and his men were there, he headed right out to try and find him. Well, God told David that Saul was coming after him so he fled to the mountains and when Saul found out that he was in the mountains, he took 3000 of his men and went after him there! (Here comes the humorous end of this story!!) Saul and David chased each other around the mountain until David and his men finally hid in a large cave. While they were hiding in the back of this deep cave, Saul walked in the cave and decided to relieve himself. What would you have done? David had 600 hundred men and they were all in that cave! Saul was in a compromising position and they could have eliminated him without any trouble at all. Did they? No they did not! David snuck up behind him and cut a piece off of Saul’s robe and then waited until Saul walked out of the cave and was a distance away before he showed himself and proved that he could have eliminated him without any trouble but chose not to. After all this time of Saul threatening David and the steady chase and David’s life being constantly challenged, it must have taken quite a large amount of restraint NOT to have killed him. But David was eager to follow the leading of God in his life. David did not always follow the right path but he was striving at this point to do just that. What do you struggle to restrain a reaction to? Is it an act of passion? Is it an act of anger? Is it a quick word or sharp look? Perhaps it is even a vengeful plan rather than waiting for God to perform His own vengeance.

David knew that he was continuing to please God in Psalm 41:11 “The Lord is pleased with me because my enemies do not triumph.”

Staying Power of Salvation!

An interesting debate rears its ugly head sporadically in our congregation and it disturbs me on many levels. We have debated that there is a possibility that one could loose their salvation. Now, don’t run from the room with your arms above your head in a panic!!

I believe, right up front, that you cannot loose your salvation. If you have made a true confession of sin and asked for forgiveness and asked Christ to live in your heart, you are saved! I don’t see anywhere in the Scriptures where it states that Jesus died on the cross for us but….

In John 3:16, “God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son that whoever believes on Him will not die but have eternal life.” No stipulations there.

John 6:40 “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life.”

John 6:47 “I tell you the truth, he who believes has eternal life.”

John 8:12 “…I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 8:34-36 “Jesus replied ‘I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’” Meaning that if you believe that Jesus can make you feel free and have hope about life and your future, you will be a member of the family of God and a member of the family is always a member of the family. No matter what you say or do, you are always a member of your earthly family. We get one mother and one father and they are ours for life.

John 10:28 “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.”

If the power of salvation were so feeble, it would not be strong enough to sanctify (or set apart) an unsaved spouse and make children of a Christian parent ‘holy’ by association. I Corinthians 7:14

Romans 10:9-14 Confess and believe and you are saved. Simple and yet so very powerful!

I could go on but I think I’ve made my point. Many of us have continued to make mistakes after we became Christians and some of our mistakes (sins) are big. Sometimes it can be hard to stay where we want to be and doing what we want to be doing because Satan has always been really good at convincing us otherwise. Paul talked about this and it is a comfort to me that even Paul had trouble with this. It doesn’t give us license to do wrong, but we have to be real about it and know that being saved doesn’t make us perfect or set us up on a pedestal where nothing can get to us. We just have the power within us to quantify our earthly life and guarantee our eternal destination. We have been given the Holy Spirit to guide us, as Christians, and to help us and even to pray for us when we cannot pray ourselves. (Romans 8:26-27)

So I encourage you to dwell on the joy and peace inside your heart that is a wonderful treasure and seek out ways to share it with those around you rather than dwelling on the legalities that humans tend to cloud a picture with. You have a strength inside you that parted the Red Sea, if you have believed in Jesus! What more power could you ask for and how much stronger a staying power could we ask for.

Faith of Babes

I enjoy reading Matthew, Mark, Luke and John because they are written by 4 different men and are a description of many of the same events along the same time line. Even so, there are just slight changes or additions in detail. John spends time recounting the highest number of miracles that Jesus performed in his effort to define the character of Jesus while Luke has a much more personal rendition of Jesus’ life.

We are celebrating Easter, or Resurrection Day as my mother accurately calls it, early this year. As I watch the children prepare and the parents groom them for the upcoming festivities, I think about when Jesus was blessing the children on His way to Jerusalem. There are 3 renditions 0f this event and each one is just slightly different. They are found in Matthew 19:13-15, Mark 10:13-16, and Luke 18:15-17.

All three say that the people were bringing the very small children to Jesus so He could pray for them and the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, “ let the little children come to me for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth anyone who will not accept the kingdom of God like a little child will not enter it.”

How does a child accept something new and exciting that they can’t see? They listen with rapt attention and sense of intrigue. They trust the deliverer of this explanation intrinsically! Think about when a child is told about the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus for the first time and the wide-eyed amazement that accompanies the excitement, anticipation and vision of this unknown new marvel! Children trust us to be telling them the honest truth and they have no reason to doubt us. So rather than give us excuses or rational about why they don’t think they should believe us, they gobble up the details and it becomes, then, a thread in their lives. At what point does skepticism overtake our innocent acceptance this clouding our clarity of thought? It is so simple a story and so simple a request for us to believe and be grateful for the precious gift of salvation. What a sermon it would be if we went as children, to sit at the feet of the teacher and learn what new and exciting things he had to share!

Can you tap into your child-like faith?!

Defying Devastation

We all have inconsequential, insignificant events that are threaded to our emotional core. We are to have Godly characteristics. I don’t recall that Christ was depressed, anxious or fearful. He was sad but not depressed – two very different things. He was never devastated – a great buzz word today. The innumerable situations that He navigated couldn’t parallel our daily experiences. He lived life as a human and experienced human events so that we would acknowledge, in our humanity, that He could relate to our conditions and situations. The level of tranquility that He lived 30+ years with as well as the joy, peace and serenity that He conveyed without a word; these are the things that pay tribute to His character.

So why is it that we react with repugnant behavior to these life situations when, dwelling within us, is the very same stalwart character that propelled Christ through to His eternal home? I believe we have a choice and we make the choice several times through the day. We are encompassed and indwelled by both Satan and the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit battles to protect us from the inside out against the prevailing evil that marauds us.

Christ never allowed Satan to derail Him. Think how intense the evil power of Satan must have been when he was permitted to tempt Christ in the wilderness. Talk about a stressful situation!! Christ used the enduring words of His Father to ward off Satan. How well do we do that?
Just declaring protection from Satan by virtue of the very name of Jesus Christ, will provide you an awesome level of power. When things start to get to me, I try to remember a favorite quote. “In light of eternity, how important is it?” Not that it always works, but I try. So I challenge you to choose your team daily, even hourly if need be, and draw strength from the sustaining and benevolent Captain who guards your heart!

Pressing Presidential Candidates

Presently, we are entertaining the onslaught of presidential candidates in our homes, whether we prefer to do so or not. They solicit our votes through visual and mental manipulation, trying to convince us of their worthiness. It seems to me, the more they try to convey their worth and the other candidates flaws, the more I am sadly convinced we have no candidate who is qualified or worthy of my vote and that no matter what I do, say or listen to, my vote will be just as influential and sure whether I am educated in my selection or whether I walk in the booth and throw a dart at the board.

We’ve come a long way from the selection of our first few presidents to this cutthroat, money mongering game of slander and charades.

On February 22, 1863, a Reverend George Richards from the First Congregational Church in Litchfield, Connecticut, preached a sermon commemorating George Washington’s birth. Now, those of you who are history buffs will note that this sermon came 64 years after Washington’s death. Also, as noted in this speech, it would have been Washington’s 131st birthday. That being said, the speech was done in general memory and not as any specific mile marker. What a credit to the life of this first official leader.

This speech starts out with Exodus 16:4 “In very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to show in thee My power and that My name may be declared throughout all the earth.” He goes on to say “God attains His own ends by His own instruments.” George Richards continues to say later in the speech how God had developed Washington’s character to be exactly what He needed for th3e job at hand. He lists many parts of his character. “Conjoined to those antagonist forces was a judgment as sounds, as fair, as even-balance as often falls to the lot of man. Glad of light from any quarter, patient to hear and weigh contradictory opinions, slow to arrive at a decision, watchful against the bias of pride, prejudice, self-interest, his conclusions, perhaps, were as nearly infallible as can be expected of mere human reason.”

How many Presidents have we had that you would say that about? How many candidates in the running seem to carry these qualities, at least in part?

He worked his way up and earned monumental respect from his elders and colleagues and yet maintained a steadfast humility paralleled with his ability to lead. He was “the direct opposite of the timid, groveling, time-serving, self-seeking demagogue of which there were wanting examples then, as there have not been since.” (It seems to me that our candidates fit into the later description rather that the afore mentioned.) To read the rest of this speech, go to www.wallbuilders.com . This is a site on American Heritage.

We need men and women to lead this country with wisdom and humility. There is not any lack of reference in Proverbs that would lead us to a different conclusion. When did we decide to sit back and let everyone else decide what is best for us? This country is hanging off the balance beam just short of an eternal plunge into the dark realm of socialism. Who will save us from ourselves once we destroy ourselves when we, at present, are the only country who ever sticks their nose in to make a place better when it doesn’t even concern us?! Will you continue to sit quietly by and allow this country that started with such great leadership, strength and foresight crumble to a mass of dust and rubble?

Joy, Joy , Joy!

Let’s talk about joy today! What kind of things give you joy? First time you see a child smile, a puppy, waves crashing on the beach, business success, growth of a stock you’ve purchased, perhaps the simplicity of a flower blooming or the scent of spring on a late winter breeze. For me it is assorted simple things. I do love to be victorious and feel accomplishment, but true joy is a combination of emotions, I think. I call home in the Ohio Valley, so winter lasts long enough here, though not nearly as long as some of you may experience. I was chatting with my mother, who lives in Charlotte, NC, and she shared with me how beautiful her daffodils are right now. I was excited that I had discovered my bulbs just starting to poke their heads up through the crust of snow! My heart jumped for joy as I bent down to get a closer view of the essence of spring! The definition of joy is “an emotion evoked by well-being, success or good fortune; gladness or delight;”
Nehemiah 8 has a verse that we hear very often. Take a moment and read this whole chapter. The preceding history is that, in short, Nehemiah, who was an exile of Jerusalem, heard what condition the city was in after the war and prayed and asked God for direction and to clear a path for him. So, as a cupbearer for the King Artaxerxes, which was not the most glamorous of jobs, he begged the king to let him go back to rebuild his city of Jerusalem. What a testimony he gave to this king! So the king sent him off to accomplish this and Nehemiah gathered together the people, who had not only a broken city but their lives were shattered, and began with worship and the reading of the Word before they began rebuilding the city itself. Phew! So from this chunk of history we pull one line – Like from Martin Luther Kings’ speech we pull “I have a dream….”

Nehemiah 8:10 "The people were weeping from hearing God’s word read to them and Nehemiah said “God is happy today. This is a great day! Don’t mourn, for the joy of the Lord is our strength.” Have you ever really thought about what that verse is saying? The actual joy of the Lord is our strength. His joy in us is what powers us and gives us the force to sustain and grow and make a difference. Like a child who seeks to find the joy in their parents’ eyes, we should be seeking to find pleasure in our Lord’s eyes. And the strength that He gives us through His joy will be a strength that grows our faith into faith that can move mountains.

The pure joy He has in us shows such unconditional love for us that we should never doubt our capabilities through Christ. He will never fail us but will always lift us up for His glory.

Ancient Chinese Proverb

The definition of a ‘proverb’ is a short, wise, easy-to-learn saying that calls a person to action.
“You reap what you sow” for example should put us in mind of what we are doing to prevent us from reaping unsavory ends later on.

Dr. Charles Stanley has a saying along these lines that I enjoy where he says, “We reap what we sow, more than we sow, and later than we sow it.”
Proverbs 1:7a states “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” Once we acknowledge that God is King, Creator, Father and saviour, we are getting smarter already! Fear of God is not trepidation but rather respect for His power and authority over our lives. God made it so simple for us to be His children. By believing in Jesus Christ as our Saviour and Redeemer, admitting that we sin or make bad choices, we then become a child of the King. This fear of God and His awesome power crosses over to our obedience and submission to Him. Kind of funny, though, it’s as if Solomon is saying “If you believe you’re getting smarter already!”God’s wisdom will give us power to discern, be compassionate, make good decisions, encourage others and be able to communicate with Him more efficiently.

Healthy Fear

The definition of a "proverb" is a "short, wise, easy-to-learn saying that calls a person to action." Remember the last part in particular because that is the key. It is not just a saying we add to the end of an email or hang on our refrigerator because it makes us feel good. An ancient Chinese proverb is a saying they have passed down through generations that inspire and teach and mold their students in the mental concepts and restraints of their traditions.
We, as Christians have the book of Proverbs at our disposal. Pretty special that we were all given the ancient Biblical Proverbs to choose to live by and let mold us. One everyone seems to know whether saved or not, "You reap what you sow." I love Dr. Charles Stanley's version of that saying. He says "We reap what we sow, more than we sow, later than we sow it." How true that is. For some of us, it may make us anxious about what we've sown in the past andhow we haven't seen the results of that yet!
Another one I love is Proverbs 1:7a. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge..." Once we acknowledge that God is King, Creator, Father and Saviour, well, we are getting smarter already! Fear of God is not trepidation but rather a level of respect for His power and authority over our lives. Just like you have fear of a parent (or hopefully at least their authority to change your priviledges). God made it so simple for us to be His children. By believing in Jesus Christ as our Saviour...someone who was willing to pay the ultimate price of laying down His life for each of us...admitting to Him that we are sinners (that we aren't perfect in any way), we can then accept His ultimate gift of eternal life. He paid the price for our sins because He loves us that much. All He asks in return is that you acknowledge His sacrifice and ask Him to forgive you for the mistakes you've made. He wants to walk beside you, give you strength, live in your heart in Spirit and help you make better choices. This fear of God and His awesome power crosses over to our obedience and submission to Him. Kind of funny, though, that Solomon is saying.."You're getting smarter already!"
God's wisdom will give us power to discern, be compassionate, make good decisions, encourage other and be able to communicate with Him more efficiently. He wants to help us, guide us, empower us, encourage us. The regeneration of each new day, original in and of it's own is a gift that so many of us take for granted.
What a plethra of gifts are given to us and all we have to do is believe!

T is for Talents

Luke 19:11-27

Talents. Aaahh, yes. Used to be that talents meant a measure of money. One talent was equal to $1000 in today’s money. Pretty impressive when you stop to think about it! I wonder if I can talk my boss into giving me a $1000 to take care of next time he goes away?! Anyway, today we will look at talents as abilities. Everyone has some sort of talent. Some people can cook, some can clean, some can organize, some can sing, some are great listeners, others mechanical geniuses and still others have fiscal abilities. The list is extensive. Our talents are as different as our DNA. Sadly, I was away from the church for awhile and had turned my back on Jesus. My talents were not being used to even the most remote portion of their abilities. So I was the last servant in this parable. However, as the tap on my shoulder grew more persistent, I finally looked to my Saviour again to deliver me from myself. The more conscientious an effort I make to surrender to Him and be in His will, the more talents I discover I have! If Christ were to return today, I am confident that I would be closer to “a good and faithful servant” than I have ever been before. So many people I can in contact with say “I don’t know what the Lord wants me to do.” Yet, they don’t try to do anything. It’s almost as if they are waiting for a bolt of lighting to come down or a pillar of smoke to lead the way. The disciples certainly didn’t sit and wait in a dark room for direction. They went out and told people about Christ and if the Holy Spirit directed them in a different direction while they were ministering, they followed that leading. He can’t lead you somewhere if you aren’t walking anywhere. So start trying the doors and see which one opens for you.
Are you burying your talents or are you allowing the Holy Spirit to develop them for the betterment of the Body of Christ?

Many times He speaks softly so we need to be quiet to hear.

For body and Soul

We had an interesting study at our Wednesday night service. We talked about contamination of the spirit. It is one of those things that you know can happen but you don’t really think about it in depth until someone comes along and stops your thoughts and wakes you up. So we talked briefly about what kind of things contaminate the spirit. If you contaminate your body you contaminate your spirit. I find it interesting that we don’t tend to want to admit that. There are many things that contaminate our bodies. Drinking, smoking, drugs, eating foods that aren’t good for us, drinking soda and sugary beverages and then we see the emergence of habits that create poor situations. Gambling, watching shows on TV that question Christian morals and values, sitting on the computer rather than some form of exercise, hatred, jealousy, envy, discontentment, etc. There are so many things we could look at. Some are mild and some more severe, to be sure. What are you contaminating your spirit with?
Contamination doesn’t affect just your body or your spirit. It affects all the people you come in contact with. You alone in the Body of Christ are not alone. The things you battle every day effect the rest of the Body you come in contact with. You may not see it that way but it does. Perhaps you feel alone in your daily battles. Feeling alone is a powerful emotion, however, if you are part of the body of Christ and allow heartache and loneliness to dominate your thoughts, then you are contaminating yourself, which, as part of the Body of Christ, contaminates the rest of the body. You have rendered yourself damaged or perhaps even useless at this point. If your finger gets gangrene, it can’t be used like it used to be used. The body continues on with its regular processes and daily rituals but perhaps just not as well as it did before. It may be a small thing that you have a problem with and you think it doesn’t affect anyone but you. However, in the long run, someone has seen you as an example or has looked at you and you weren’t even conscious that they were and you have inadvertently effected their view of you and the Body of Christ. So, as a contaminated member of the \body of Christ you have withdrawn your talents and abilities or at least limited them. It may be as small as someone saw you outside of church and that is their impression now of you and your church family.
We talked about being imitators of God. How truly important that is. Take a look in Colossians 3:1-14. These verses are describing the things that will contaminate the spirit and then at the end of the verses it says what to put on to protect you and make yourself stronger. “…and have put on the new self, which is renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator…..Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against each other.”
For the much more difficult habits we all have that affect our physical beings, and then in turn also our spirits, we return once again to the art of submission. True relinquishing of our old selves to our new selves. Romans 8:9-12 It is amazing what Christ did for us. It would seem easy for us to switch our lives from old to new. It’s not that hard to live the old way, is it? Realizing that it is a battle everyday to live a righteous life. Joining life on the good side. No one ever said it was supposed to be easy, but I will tell you this. The faster you learn to give it all to Him, the easier you will sleep at night and the easier it will be to overcome your trials. “….but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master…” What a wonderful thought.

Are you going to make the Body stronger? What battle will you choose to fight?

By Your Fruits...

Let's take a walk in my garden. I love that the Scriptures reference the growing and nurturing of things. It gives me so much joy when I garden and have much to enjoy from my efforts. I pick flowers to bring into the house or work, pick fruit and vegetables for my own nourishment as well as friends and family. Also, I enjoy watching the life that lives in my garden. There are insects, birds, spiders, moles and mice, rabbits - just all kinds of things! So as I tend this portion of land which has been made my responsibility, I want to be sure that I am a good steward of the land. I want to have the items in my garden thrive and live a healthy life. When they don't, I feel there is something that I have missed or not done very well. It can certainly be frustrating. One such plant is an Apricot tree. It's been in the ground now for 5 years and looks just beautiful for a dwarf fruit tree. However, it produces nothing! So I ask myself, how long should I wait on this tree to bear fruit? What is the limit of it occupying valuable space in lieu of something I am sure will be more productive? I have fertilized and pruned and watched for disease and insect infestation religiously and still...as if in complete disregard for my love and efforts, this tree relinquishes not even one fruit!
This tree puts me in mind of Luke 13:1-9. Jesus is trying to show the crowd that our heavenly Father will not be patient with us forever. He walks through the garden watching the performance of each plant and evaluating the harvest. Our heavenly Father, also evaluates the performance of the plants (us). They review together the performance of the material and Jesus Christ mediates for us. We must recognize the restraint that it takes for us to be given a second, third or more chance rather than just being cut down for a lack of performance. Some plants perform so slowly it takes more than a lifetime for them to bloom - like the Century Plant. How many of us are on the edge of being a beautiful fruit tree with no fruit? Are you content with staying in one place and at one stage of growth or are you ready to grow and produce fruit? Our Lord wants for you to be fruitful. Ask Him to show you what He wants for you to do. He has a plan for your life and all you need to do is ask Him to show you what the plan is. He will gladly show you and provide the necessary nourishment for you to continue to grow. What a wonderful gift that is.

" All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty." Proverbs 14:23

Sand, Pebbles and Boulders

I have a love-hate relationship with Paul the Apostle! More love really and not really hate but rather conviction. In this area of surrender and submission there are, no doubt, many challenges. We create some of the challenges in our minds but no matter how they get there, they exist. I sit, mentally, several times through my day and close my eyes, picture my stones on the table, take my arms, like a child who doesn't want something that's been put in front of them, and push those stones away. Sometimes they all go and sometimes one tries to stay behind. My stones are all different sizes, too. Some are the size of sand and can be blown across the table while others are like pebbles and push easily and still others are boulders in my life. They match the size of my challenge. As a woman, I love to be given affection. Hugs, stroking of the hair, holding hands, linking arms, arm around my shoulders - you women know what I mean. We all long for that physical touch. Perhaps we can put some of the blame on society that we just don't reach out to each other any more. When is the last time that someone really REALLY hugged you and you could feel in your bones that they truly had emotion attatched to that embrace? Kids hugs are always the best, I think.....
For me though, that is my largest stone. Not hugs, but rather releasing to those physical desires when in a dating relationship. Ephesians 5 starts out with telling us to "be imitators of God." What a thought! To imitate the Almighty God that created us, the earth and everything in it! Where do you even begin? When I was a child, I thought imitating people was so much fun! Children imitate their parents and teachers with both good and bad behaviors and habits. Eventually those imitations become who they are as an adult. Now that I am an adult, those imitations have become part of the thread of my very being.
Verse 3 states "there must not be even a HINT of sexual immorality, or any kind of impurity..." How difficult it is sometimes to keep ourselves in check. Not even a hint. Not any kind of regular American girl and certainly not myself. Pure, honest and humble. Not exactly the words I would use to describe the average successful professional woman in my society. Is it possible to live up to that description? Is that why we are asked to be "imitators"? Was it because Christ hoped that we would live our Christian lives shooting for the goal of imitating our heavenly Father rather than running helter skelter? Have you stopped to think about what a hint of sexual immorality in this day and age would be? Would it be any different today than it was in Paul's day?
So this is the boulder in the garden that is my life. Pray for me as I will pray for you. Only with His strength can we overcome our daily - sometimes hourly - challenges. Keep pushing with all your might...

Eye On the Sparrow

“His Eye is On the Sparrow” Don’t you ever wonder why Christ used some of the acronyms that He did? I love this song. What a wonderful interpretation of the verses in Matthew and Luke! The bird itself is a bit of a nuisance! They steal nests, hog the bird feeders, even kill the other birds babies! Maybe that’s the whole point. As I watch my feeder this morning, full of birds I don’t want to see, on of which is the Sparrow and the other the Grackle, I wonder.
That little English Sparrow. How many others fall into that same detestable and undesirable category and yet Christ loves us all just the same. Man and beast. The Sparrow, the woman at the well, Mary Magdalene, Zaccheus and even Paul! Paul and what and who he was before he was awakened by the Holy Spirit! Amazing that God knew and cared about every hair on Paul’s head even while he was slaughtering believers! God was working a plan to take that passion that Paul had for killing Christians and turn it into a passion for spreading the word to further points of the region. In my own life, I am not any more worthy of Christs’ love and compassion and saving grace than Paul and yet I feel His arms supporting me when I am weak, His love empowering me, and His light shining through me to reach people I would never consider reaching out to. If His eye is on the Sparrow, how much more does He care about you and I whom He created for the solitary purpose of worshipping and glorifying Him?
Read Matthew 10:27-31 and Luke 12:3-7. Consider that these verses are referring to the reverent fear of god that we should develop if we don’t already have it. The blink of an eye…if He were a vengeful God He might snuff us out one by one for a mean thought or snide look let alone the entourage of despicable behavior we display daily. How hurtful it must be to such a perfect and loving God to see His creation turn their back on Him after all He has done for us. Remember, though, the wonderful and restoratative truth that He loves us unconditionally. No regrets. Rather He takes rpide in knowing everything about you. Your thoughts, your dreams, your heartaches and even when a hair falls from your head! Return the favor to someone today.

“Be kinder than necessary to everyone because everyone is fighting some kind of battle.” (unknown)

The Power of the Mustard Seed

As a gardener, I tend to deal with seeds, as one might imagine. I don’t know how many of you still grow anything from seed, but it is truly an amazing process. Seeds come in every shape ad size you can imagine! Think first about large seeds. Perhaps an avocado pit, or even a Black Walnut. All can recreate themselves, given the right conditions. Now, look at a smaller seed. Consider a bean seed, or a poppy seed or, even smaller yet, yes, the mustard seed.
Some seeds take forever to frow and need just the perfect light, warmth and moisture. Still others seem to germinate lying on top of the ground. Do you think that we are like the seeds with the way we grow in our faith and walk in Christ Jesus?
Matthew 13:31-32 Here we have the mustard seed. One of the tiniest seeds, and in the right environment grows a plant 5-6 foot tall. Our faith starts out the same way – just a speck is all it takes to get us believing. “Believe with all your heart.” As we allow ourselves to be nurtured by the Holy Spirit through reading the Word, studying, and talking to God, we grow. The trials and victories in our lives make us stand stronger and our roots push deeper. Those we encourage and teach lean on us and perch in our branches like birds in a tree, looking for a little support and protection as they themselves grow. The mustard plant then produces seeds of its own at the right time in its life. Those seeds can fall onto the surrounding rocks, or in the fertile ground beside the original plant or even be carried by a bird or the wind to another place where they will germinate and grow.
I came to this realization one day while watching the wrens sitting on the dried tops of my Echinacea in the garden. They were jostling the frozen heads and the seeds were falling out allover and then they picked some out themselves and ate them or carried them off, dropping some as they went. How interesting it is how nature takes care of itself whether we pay attention or not. How nice it was to see God in my garden today.

Withdraw to Lonely Places

Where do you live? Are you in a small town where everyone knows everyone else, big city where familiarity and neighborly behavior is considered quaint and the energy emitted by the constant flow propels you forward almost effortlessly? Are you in a house, an apartment, a mobile home or perhaps even a motel? We talk about a quiet place in your garden. Perhaps you don’t have the same luxuries that some of us may have with yards to plant in and places of our own to retreat to. Perhaps your quiet place is a public park or perhaps your garden is the Ficus tree or Peace Lily someone gave you as a housewarming gift. Wherever it is, whatever it is, I encourage you to make it as quiet as possible. How comfortable are you in the quiet where you can hear all your thoughts? Walk away from your computer. On second thought, shut it down. Now turn off the cell phone, the radio, the I-pod, the TV, microwave, ceiling fan…. whatever you’ve got on to distract your mind…shut it all down. It's like a little Yoga-size but with Jesus! Feel how much pressure is relieved from your body when all the humming and buzzing is eliminated. You just won’t realize how much mental congestion you surround yourself with until it is all eliminated. Now sit in the silence for 5 minutes. Just start with 5 minutes. A bit disconcerting until you acclimate to it, isn’t it?
Christ retreated to a quiet place whenever He needed to recharge and talk to His heavenly Father. It is noted several times how He retreated to mountains or to places of solitude. The definition of solitude is “the state of being alone; seclusion.” or “a lonely, unfrequented place” from Webster’s Dictionary. It is more and more difficult for us to set ourselves off to in place of solitude for any amount of time but oh, how imperative it is!

Check these references and read the situations surrounding them, as time permits.

John 6:15
Luke 22:39-46
Luke 6:12
Luke 5:16


Take time to be quiet and restore your soul.

Another Note On Surrender

Let me start out today with just another thought about surrender. If you have taken the time to let go of some of your life yesterday, I applaud you. Surely you feel lighter today, too. He takes care of everything if we let Him and when we leave it to Him. Paul is a great example of this and so is Esther. What an outstanding woman! How strong she was and how I wonder, that if put to the test, would I perform as well? No matter what the cost was going to be, she surrendered her will to live out what God’s will was. So what does it take to fully surrender – or to begin to surrender? Let’s go to the book of Proverbs 2:1-15.
Solomon was the last man that God gave wisdom to in such great measures and in these verses we can see a glimpse of that insight and wisdom. This passage sets us up with several action words that take us from the inception of surrender to its final release and clarity. He starts with “Accept my words”. The very first step in surrender. It sounds just so very simple when you read the words. Are they sinking in? Basics…”Though shalt not covet…” hmmmm. “Love thy neighbor as thyself”... Boy, that stings! Here’s one that gets tougher to do in this modern day…”Wives submit to your husbands”. Not very ‘woman’s rights’ sounding, huh? Another topic for another day. To continue in Proverbs, after we accept His words, He wants us to call out, cry aloud, look, search, store up, and then we will understand and find! What a collection of activity that will catapult you to your goal and into the pure joy of His presence.
Nature operates at His command. The tides come up and then recede, the sun rises and sets, the flowers bloom and the birds awaken the world each new day without grudge, remorse or apology. Something to consider.

The Art of Submission

Good Morning! No matter what time of day it is, I welcome you. As I am enjoying a bit of warmer day today, I am also aware of the winter closing in on me. It's kind of a lonely place in a way. The garden, that is. Everything is sleeping and getting ready for the big kick off in a few months! I like to read Psalms when I get a little down or discouraged or even lonely. “Psalms is divided into 5 books…It teaches us so much about God’s eternal love and care for us and how we should trust Him even in the day to day experiences of life.” Quoted from a footnote in my NIV Life Application Bible, which I got for myself during the Women in Missions retreat this past year. You can say, “Yeah, I know. Trust Him with everything.” How many times have you heard it? How often do you APPLY it is the real question! You can say how you have tried and you can even say that you DO trust Him with everything. However, also keep in mind that “He knows the secrets of the heart.” Psalm 44:21b
I would like to challenge you to begin looking for the point of surrender in your heart. To give you a visual, go to your most quiet place and lie down. Not on your back, but on your belly. Face down, hands outstretched, open your heart and let everything go.

Which Servant Are You?

And so we begin! We begin this journey not in any particular month or on any specific day, but we begin it just the same as I am writing it. This is Day one. Grab a cup of tea, come sit by the window with me. Last evening was a full moon. A full moon near the end of January! Pretty chilly – 4 degrees – but the temperatures dropped so quickly that it even caught the ice by surprise! Everything was covered this morning with “hoar frost”, as they call it here in Ohio. As the sun just started pushing over the rooftops, it glistened and then seemingly in fear of being caught, disappeared and it was as though it had never existed at all. The winter garden begged to be explored. The frumpy sparrow sat, all puffed up, waiting for the bird feeder to be filled and so I grabbed my coffee can of bird food and my camera and set out for a closer look. I am always struck with awe and wonder at the individual creation of each new day. Not one is ever the same!
What new things have you permitted your Heavenly Father to bless you with today? Have you looked? I say permitted because there are blessings in abundance every day if only we take the time to ask for them, look for them and thank Him for them.
Each new day is a gift that has been given to us to see what we are going to do with it. Read the Tale of the Talents today, found in Matthew 25:14-30. Which servant are you?

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God and The Garden
Devotional

I have had a moment of “Eureka”! When I am physically at my slowest, my brain works overtime and I am overflowing with ideas. This evening, at the end of a frigid 2-mile walk with my two faithful companions, I realized that I could begin a woman’s devotional of my own! It was as if the Lord spoke to me in an audible voice and suddenly I felt empowered and filled with joy and inspiration! We will see how long it lasts, of course, since all great inspirations start out with a burst of energy and then we get into it and the time it takes to create the actual project is a lot like work! I have to laugh at myself. Anyway, the idea began as a beautiful book that is full of color pictures of God’s creation and embedded with God’s inspiring Word.
There is a point, I think, in everyone’s life when they are growing or about to grow and they feel stuck. Wrapped up tight and even strangled by your own skin! That is the point from which I begin this book. I will warn you that I am far from a finished work in this Creators hand and I don’t apologize for it because whatever joy, pain, anguish, stumbling blocks, friendships or growth I may experience is where the Holy Spirit meets me and I share with you.
My title; “God and The Garden”, combines my two passions; my love of Jesus Christ and my love of gardening. Trade has blessed me blessed with the responsibility of creating spaces for people to really enjoy and partake in God’s creation. Sometimes I even have the privilege of introducing the two and seeing childlike joy born! It is important that I listen to people and what they may or may not be saying with regard to their homes. I create unique, individualized spaces for people to reconnect with God and their inner child by building their spaces with plant accents and surroundings.
Now, as we begin, please note that our invitation to explore the Creation has never been withdrawn. Our Lord desires that we find a quiet place to meet Him and have a chat. A time when we can pour out our hearts and listen to His hearts desires for us.Take my hand and let’s go sit in the garden together. Find your quiet nook and let the peacefulness of His Creation wash away your wordly dust. Listen to the birds, the peeper frogs, crickets, a squirrel chirping away and take a deep breath of the sweetness of the garden air. Sit with me and let’s see where He takes us and how He would like to speak to your heart.