KEEP MOVING, 15JAN

It’s fitting that I was always a person in motion, then I was stilled here and there by God to realize my salvation… So now, a year later – when I ponder and ask what’s next – God says “KEEP MOVING”…. YUP – keep moving and growing your faith…

A priceless piece of advice a good friend said was: “never stop learning the stories in the Bible.”

Yes, there is a whole Bible full of wisdom on how to live… Once we attain realization of Christ, once we are “Living as those made ALIVE in Christ” (Colossians 3), now it’s time to accept that we have been changed and go with it, and “put your money where your mouth is” by doing the Lord’s work great-commission-style, not just speaking the word but be a do-er of the word… AND (just like this road sign instructs us) KEEP MOVING… even if you change lanes…

As one studies the advice of how to be a Christian in Colossians, one will notice there is a BIG “IF”!!! One is: “holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation IF we continue in our faith, established and firm, and “do not move from the hope held out in the gospel.”

We are not saved and done and “good to go” to slip back to our old lives – BUT we should live to continue in our faith… Yes, after saving grace there is still work to be done! You and I “must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips” – yeah those little sinful ways that are dark spaces in our hearts have to be lighted by the new you… painful but it’s necessary to address them… And this is a life long task because “to err is human”… To accept a divine savior means we are to accept our human failings.

Scripture says we are to “clothe ‘ourselves’ with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another” – and this is not just forgiveness for the past but a daily forgiveness we should ask for our transgressions. Scripture says we are to “teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.” – wow, yeah I certainly can sing the praises of Amazing Grace – yeah sing it out – sing it loud – sing it clear!

We “do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” And we are to “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.” Yes thankfulness and wisdom and opportunist living is key… It is NOT a salvation for selfish living but salvation for servant living!!! And the tasks set before us are to be performed with glad hearts.

To KEEP MOVING still means we are to stay mindful… to keep checking our actions and words with how we are to follow the laws set by the Lord. It’s also a mission to support each other in LOVE, to keep a servant heart and remember that others are still moving too, pray God to make their journeys as fruitful as yours has been!

Amen

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Colossians 1:21-23

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.”

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Colossians 3:1-17 (NIV) Living as Those Made Alive in Christ

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

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 one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

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Colossians 4:2-6

Further Instructions: “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

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Blessed am I that I HAVE to rely on the HOLY SPIRIT fumes sometimes, because I KNOW it’s not running on fuel from my own tank…

Jesus is Our CUP Holder, 13-14Jan

Friends, friends bring us hugs… Friends lift us up, friends steady our cups. We need pray for God to fill our cups, and when we ache and when we feel empty, we have to rely often on others and we have to accept their grace, accept their help, AND accept their functioning arms as hugs from Jesus…and when we are full or have even just a little, we are best to share that with them too. When our cups were/are filled from God, then we know that source and we can share and then go back for more.

Friends will steady our cups, friends will help us find our lost cups, but it is US who need to tip them UP-right if they are sideways, or have a leak. Our cups won’t catch the holy flow from God IF we don’t actually hold them UP and take the lids off. And we need to drink.

The best place to safely put our cups is in the permanent cup holder of Jesus’s ARMS… Think about it, think about that shape, Jesus’s arms outstretched for giving a hug are the shape of the perfect cup holder… Slide your cup right into Jesus’s arms… Slide Jesus’s arms right into your heart. Steady your cup with your friends who are hugging you to health… Each hug a little hot glue to keep it stable, a little cement for the side, a cushion to absorb the shocks of life. Accept the help of those who truly support you.

When you physically feel a hug, where are those arms squeezing? Right around your heart… When you ache, the hug can let you take the pressure off your frame and rest your heart… Jesus hugs, Jesus wants you to rest your whole body in HIS arms and especially let Jesus support your heart from within in HIS hands.

When you cup is empty, or when it is full, tip your cup UP…. Take off the lid, don’t block the flow, don’t forget to drink. Hold onto it so that your cup is UP and not up-set. And you don’t own that cup, and you don’t get to choose the flavor it’s filled with (DON’T chug or spit it out)… the truth is that really GOD OWNS YOUR CUP and HE wants to fill it, and wants us to drink it, because HE wants to BE WITH US.

Immanuel, God with us – God gave us His ONLY begotten cup holder, so that we may live an eternal life with Him…

Drink up, God’s pouring!

 

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I can’t help but praise this morning, please don’t take this as a boast, but after rough last week I feel shined by God’s power buffer… Working out my rough spots can be painful…And we have to TRUST in God’s plan… Thanks God for the sunshine and Son-shine. Thanks for the fountain of PEACE.

SHINE, 11Jan

I am not supposed to draw attention to myself, but God seems to be doing that by sending hundreds of HIS children of God to support me… In return, God uses me to show what happens when you try to endlessly praise God… In return, God uses me to pour my overfilled cup back out and splash it about.

So much overflow of LOVE I feel… I can’t help but to SHINE because God is making me feel tremendous, to be an example of what happens in just one year of awakened life when you set your empty cup upright… and when you accept help of friends and strangers to help stabilize your cup… It’s the counseling and support of your earthly family that packs the solid support around your cup, once stabilized, you can finally catch what God has ALWAYS been doing, never ceasing, HE was ALWAYS flooding His LOVE to you… Now it’s up to YOU to catch it, and drink it in.

ALWAYS praise God… Because God sent Jesus to find your cup when it was lost, and sends others who want to share their cups with you. Soak up the LOVE.

In one awakening God had changed me and woke me to work for HIM.

I was NOT a writer and yet God has made me one this year to write HIS praises.

I was NOT a singer and yet God has made me one this year to sing HIS praises.

Oh, and I was NOT and I AM NOT a fashion model, but God is making me try to stay healthy and to feel beautiful…. Because HE wants to show how HE has HIS power over my life…

God forces me to use my gifted energy to PRAISE HIM and He polished me to SHINE… I shine His sparkle, not mine, in order to PRAISE HIM and ONLY HIM for ALL in ALL….

I am a child of God – and God is raising me because I’m drinking out of God’s Cup in me. I am just a vessel for HIS LOVE.

LORD, I pray to fulfill YOUR WILL… I pray to full-fill YOUR HOLY cup back up in return, oh MY LORD…

I Praise YOUR Name, Lord.

LORD I praise how You make me feel.

Jesus, I praise how You hold me up and fill my cup…

You SHINE!

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(LOL – that 333 is half a devil of a number and this is a devil of a piece with me being boastful of fitting into my wedding dress after so much weight lost – LOL – God forgive me!)

This writing was fluff-ish (balancing pagan therapy and God therapy) but God made me feel like it was unfinished for a few days and today triple sent the scripture to finish it and bring real meaning to the thought “don’t worry”… From Matthew 6… “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?” and today a friend in church stated EXACTLY what that scripture speaks to – this essay and that Matthew 6 scripture meaning quadruplicated in showing up.. plus the “do not worry” scripture #34 has quadruplicated too – with the pastor’s sermon today and a lunch conversation with the girls making it the theme of the week – cool God, cool!

So here is the “fluff” piece that addresses what I should address – that I need to address my issues with God – and listen… And TRUST!!! and I really really need to thank God for I feel I have been given all these wonderful things this year because I am the recipient of verse #33 “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

A Dress Inward, A Dress Outward, Address God, Dec28, JAN 09

So I posted a photo on Facebook of me re-fitting into my wedding dress to say how blessed I am – to have God focus me and reduce my weight burden over a course of one year, from a size 22 down to a 12… I had wanted to try on my wedding dress ever since I started losing weight, and yes it fit – 23 years later! I love the freedom of new things I could never do before – like run – like sprint to catch something – like climb a mountain if I wanted – gaining a life doesn’t hold me back attitude because I left my old arthritic knees behind with the old me! Health-wise I feel better than I did as a teenager and i certainly appreciate it more!

SO blessed… So much to PRAISE God for – a new life inside and out!!! God truly makes me feel beautiful inward and now beautiful outward too…

And then I put the dress away… that was nice but it was human fluff concern and not really what God was making me change my ways for – yes it was fun to dress – but as Matthew 6 states… “Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”

So I rolled the crinkly dress and veil and 15 foot train back up and put it back in the acid free box… Only God knows what I should do with this dress because it is strange to keep a dress in a box 23yrs or more, very few daughters want to wear their mother’s dresses – I paid more for dry cleaning it then I did for the material for the dress itself, as I sewed it with my two aunts help for less than $100… the “going away dress” material I also re-used for my daughter’s baptismal dress… functional and sweet…

Out of my vanity I aggravated my mom (which I should not have done) by making her delete all but one photo, I truly shouldn’t have done that, she wouldn’t have posted them – but still – I wanted control of what’s out there with my vain concern of how I look in this dress… Which is silly, why am I now MORE concerned at size 12 in how I look then when I was at size 22! Why do I act more like a teenager now then when I was a teenager with this new life?…. it’s strange that I let my inside inner thoughts fly free on the internet, but try to control my outer image…which is the least important part of what makes me me… it is something I need to address with God – and I do ask every time I catch myself looking in the mirror and marveling about this God-gifted weightloss – I pray I don’t become like the Greek God Narcissus – I can see the people who do fall into the trap of outer appearance obsessions… Gee, in the old days I just used to be happy if I matched my socks – silly – but perhaps I will get used to this new me…Same issue with wearing a new pair of fancy boots – I love the fact that I can dress up now… they were inexpensive and a gift but still pride in self is half praise and half waste – and yet God I think lets me have a little fun…

Yeah – that is the big concern – when I realized I was too boastful in my salvation I thought maybe I should become a nun – well that is not going to happen!!! but at least I need to worry less about dress – because to worry about “a dress” and how to dress is so less important then to “address” inward thoughts about how am I stand up to God’s law – and to ask forgiveness… To show a boast of pride that I fit in the dress (even though I feel it was God who changed me) is just as sinful as any other sin… And yet, one has to try to conform to community standards of expectations to give the appearance that you care enough about yourself – because they say if you don’t care about yourself then how will you care about my concerns… So, it’s good and fun to present yourself well… And I am in a re-balance of pride vs God’s wish that I show humility… God knows that I do want to praise all of HIS blessings gifted to me – just like ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

I also do not want to show pride that it was God-himself who showered me with all this affection and show pride that it was God-himself who caused my salvation. I wish to demonstrate His wide-spread power to focus on and change my heart and my body – while He also (at the same time) handles the WHOLE world of people. He has so much scope because He is GOD!!!

I acknowledge God as our greatest blessing, I hope all my excessive outward overflows of appreciation “a-dress-es” all my outward outflows of how beautiful God has made me feel…

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Matthew 6: 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

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Matthew 6 scriptures were duplicate (triplicate) comforting scripture for me this week… And they match this new writing and also an old one I didn’t finish, but will now and send later…

This one set of scripture; it’s my God therapy this week… It covers the doubts and stresses of life both real and ones that I cause… And certainly reminds me “If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of LIGHT”… We NEED God to see ourselves thru the day. I certainly do… It takes retreat into the heart at times, but that’s where you can hear God with less distractions…

Putting my Heart in Heaven, 09Jan

Putting my heart in Heaven is NOT a longing for death, instead it’s a living for life. Putting my heart into Jesus’s hands means Jesus being welcomed into my heart, and feeling HIM protecting my heart… Treasuring heaven is appreciating Jesus as a slice of heaven – to help focus me. And once inside my heart, Jesus makes good company inside our armor of God.

So, look to Matthew 6… Look to the promised future… if you have worry about this world – then looking how to get to heaven is the answer to protecting your heart… So to live a good life “store up for yourselves treasures in heaven…… For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

If you long for joy, and peace, it’s the same answer: put your heart in heaven!!! Treasures… the only jewels of the crown are the thorns Jesus bore in order to bear your burdens… And because YOU are in God’s company, shine your LIGHT… So that others know who gave you leave of your worries (even if you just compartmentalized them while God is working on them)…

Smile, and try to shine the peace…

Jesus, God with us, likes to shine like heaven on earth…

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Matthew 6 NIV [ Treasures in Heaven ]

19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!”

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Phases, 07JAN

Phases – life has phases…

Faces – life has faces too, just like the moon… Our faces…

The moon’s phases change but the moon’s face never does. The moon’s phases are dependent on the Sunlight… and so is our visualization of the moon’s face… The light from the Sun tracks the moon and allows US to see its beauty and ponder its meaning…

Our life phases and faces change… And we ever shine like the Sun when we become dependent on THE SON. We too are raised in the sky… this gifted LIGHT from the Son tracks us and allows our faces to shine in beauty. We pass thru our life phases while we ponder our meaning, but we need ONLY to look at the LIGHT to future guide our way… The LIGHT saves us from eternal darkness.

The moon’s orbit is 5 degrees offset different than the earth… It is never still and neither are we. It reminds us to move steady. Like the revolving earth and moon, we must move. Life phases move slowly but surely we are always moving and as long as we continue to move TOWARDS the LIGHT, then our lives will be bright and illuminated for all to see. With Jesus’s LIGHT in us and in us, others see our beauty and ponder life’s meaning… They will know we are blessed from the LIGHT. Perhaps they will catch on and gain the LIGHT too.

Yes, we ARE blessed, for we HAVE seen the LIGHT. And we FEEL the LIGHT… And we long to SHINE YOUR LIGHT, OH LORD…

Thanks, God for the Jesus LIGHT… Your beautiful Bright, Right, LIGHT…

Thank you God for choosing us – thank you for choosing me – to feel your LIGHT.

Amen

 

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Get Back to God’s Work, 06JAN

A silly God note, today those repeat “52” numbers repeated like fifteen times or more (it has slacked off to ONLY half dozen a day)… I think God flashes them like snowflakes to remind me to stop worrying and to instead “KNOW I AM GOD”… And to remind me to get back to doing God’s work rather than do God’s worrying…

Mark 6:25-34 says “seek first His Kingdom” – meaning ASK God first (just like duplicated theme in Psalm 4) and then actually listen to what He puts on your heart, and take His answer as the right plan of your action.

So, it wasn’t just silly repeat numbers but serious repeating stuff today… I missed a turn while driving today because I was worrying, and so instead pulled thru the mall… The same mall parking lot where I then realized was where I witnessed a God-incident with an old man nearly getting hit crossing the street, and saved just in the nick of time just five days ago… It’s again God’s duplicate reminder to me to stop stressing – stop wasting awareness time on something not worth worrying about – and “KNOW I AM GOD”… Stay AWAKE and AWARE for God. Get back to doing God’s work rather than do God’s worrying.

Just now I reheard two separate sermons and both preachers cautioned to watch out for false idols, people, promises and things where actions don’t jive with the actual bible teachings… in other words Stay AWAKE and AWARE for God to spot these false prophets…. And always check them against the Bible.

God is concerned with our relationship to HIM… One sermonist (our Pastor) talked about the sin of omission, reminding us: “don’t sin to avoid thinking of God….” Yeah – think about God – Ponder Him! So for me: Get back to doing God’s work rather than do God’s worrying!

One more duplicated scripture: John 1:1-10… Jesus is the gatekeeper and HE provides the SAFETY… With God we have direction, provisions and safety… Which brings joy…

God’s duplications for me are never expected but numerous and always appreciated… Comforting and blessing, giving understanding and knowledge of the direction in life to take when we ponder His Word…

God answers, He really does…. because you ask… sometimes in silly numbers, sometimes in snowflakes, and ALL the TIME in scriptures – and on our hearts…

So THANKS ALL of you who ponder and DO God’s work rather than do God’s worrying.

There is JOY and SAFETY in the LORD… And He WILL remind you of that, again and again…

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Psalm 4 (NIV) For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.

1 Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer. 2 How long will you people turn my glory into shame? How long will you love delusions and seek false gods? 3 Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. 4 Tremble and do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. 5 Offer the sacrifices of the righteous and trust in the Lord. 6 Many, Lord, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?” Let the light of your face shine on us. 7 Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound. 8 In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.

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Mark 6:25 Do Not Worry 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

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Awake and Aware, 01Jan

It’s the first day of the new year, I said just tonight that I wonder what God will make me write next?… because I haven’t written in a while and I don’t write to write… IT’S MUCH BETTER when He makes me write…

I’ve been busy so much, too much to write, especially at this busy Christmas time of year… my mind filled must as much as my hands, from Christmas, to an enjoyed trip up home but with my aunts sad passing, to a FULL week I’d hard work, too today…. today, NEW YEAR, I was first working as Cinderella, scrubbing… I spent a solid seven hours cleaning and cooking for a party tomorrow, only breaking to play some kitchen hockey with my son, to do an exercise workout and yeah to shower… it’s not ALL good on this day, but my workout lifted my spirits, and had escape time this afternoon as I went to see Star Wars with my daughter… and that was EPIC!!!

But it’s NOT Star Wars I’m writing about, although one certainly could write volumes about LIGHT and dark, good and evil, in the Star Wars films… It WAS an EPIC movie and the best movie since 1977, when I saw it as a seven year old… That WAS EPIC to see only my second real movie… See those words scroll and hear the roar of the crowd in that velvet-lined classic theatre, packed with kids for a free police benevolent society sponsored matinee – WOW… So to see those words scroll again and hear that music in this episode seven tonight (gee that’s allot of sevens), well, yeah, I got goosebumps…

BUT, that’s NOT what I want to write about… Indeed, I was so taken by watching this strong movie “the FORCE Awakens” with my daughter (who is double 7 at age 14 and saw the movie twice this week) because the female lead character is SO strong, such such a great role model… and I had to dilly-dally Facebook that praise while I was listening to the score during the end credits and quietly saying THANKS for an awesome escape time that was also cherished time with my first born… awesome… Awake… Aware….

Timing…  that is what i want to write about… Yes perfect time to dilly-dally by sitting and enjoying the music, epic classic Star Wars music…

We were freezing coming out of the theater – hopped into our car while watching an old feeble man crossing the parking lot… just saying to myself “What a curious man” and saying to myself: “I wonder why I noticed such a man, and where was he going?” just something that hit me… So we hop in the car, he starts crossing the sidewalk to the other side of the mall…. a lady in a truck barreling down the road…TOO FAST!!! I look left – The old man, I look right – she’s going WAY TOO FAST!!!! Horn – HORN – HORN….. my brain can’t catch up with my eyes, I just lay on the horn… God made her stop… God was the true FORCE in that moment… in that “Cary Grant catching the baby carriage in the Bishop’s wife movie” moment… I swear it was a miracle… MAYBE it was just a stupid careless lady waking up JUST in time… Maybe… SO CLOSE!!!! WHEW!!!

Why God? Why God is your timing SO exact? Was this coincidental? Was my dilly dallying timed to help the man? or just to watch YOU to save him? to watch you help the lady stop just in the nick of time? Yes YOUR timing also allows me to see it all play out and witness YOUR hand on the situation… I’m NOT a miracle worker, I am just an awake and aware lady, with a horn – there is no reason to believe I helped at all – but I am glad I laid on the horn anyway… A Subaru horn that I have used A LOT this year… Oh thank you God for making me need to write about your good GOD timing… I shuttered!!!! It was too fast to process anything but horn blowing, I said to my daughter: “WOW, we just saw the REAL FORCE awaken…” the FORCE of God… GOD IS all good, ALL the time… Thank you God for making me Awake and Aware… THANK YOU GOD for being the FORCE… THANK YOU for focusing your LIGHT on our world!

THANK YOU GOD for allowing me to process your goodness by looking straight up just now and quickly finding the Pleiades to pull my eyes to PRAISE… to write of how You are IN CONTROL, oh how that thought sustains me and causes me to BE STILL…

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU, GOD!

Awake and Aware… That’s the God worth writing about!!!

That’s the PRAISE… BE STILL and know GOD’S IN CONTROL!

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Putting Jesus’ Words into Action, 31DEC

Best advice for this new years? For us – it is to put Jesus’s words into action! But how? – But wow! – These commands are pretty tough! Love your enemy! & don’t judge others! & don’t be a hypocrite!

It’s not enough to simply JUST accept Jesus – but now we have to strive to be like HIM – yeah how EASY it is to be Angry Jesus overturning the money changing tables – but how TOUGH it is to be the forgiving non-judgmental Jesus – that IS going to be a lifetime of work!

Whew! – tall order for anyone to adhere to these commandments ALL the time! Perhaps as sinners we can try to ask for forgiveness AFTER we disobeyed one of these orders – perhaps we can ONLY do all preventative work pre-sinning IF we rely on the One and Only One who can help – Jesus… I will never be a perfect person and I will always be a sinner – so the BEST I CAN do is TRY – TRY to Love, TRY to be non-judgmental, and TRY to fix myself first before I try to fix everyone else… TRY TO TRY…

Building a firm foundation on God’s Word is the best precaution to live a solid life – it is spiritual preventative maintenance – just as LUKE 6 reminds us – and building building building our faith is what we are called to do this New Year – and every New DAY! We need to be scrapping the old work that keeps us sinning and we need to continually become NEW in Christ – that’s better than hodge-podge fixer-upper work! Start fresh – start fresh each day and not just because it is New Year’s Resolution time… Start each day fresh to TRY to do your BEST – strive actually to do God’s Best…

Blessed are those who TRY!

I will try – I feel blessed to be able to try – my work is cut out for me! Luckily I know the best Carpenter to be my role model!

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Luke 6 Love for Enemies

27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Judging Others

37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

39 He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.

41 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

A Tree and Its Fruit

43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

The Wise and Foolish Builders

46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

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Psalm 23 – Found Peace, 28DEC

I had penned this during my early wake up this morning, but waited to send to a friend… Got few more hours rest then heard about my Aunt passing away… I am glad my Aunt knew Jesus and was strong in her faith… She was chipper and she had Christmas… Last days at Christmas…  Well… GOD’S timing… sorrowful… But peaceful now for her… Sigh…

Not surprising that God wakes me up to shepherd me to songs (at times in the middle of the night) because I need them before I realize I need them… Before hearing about my Aunt’s passing I had been thinking about Psalm 23 and how nice it would be to have a song so that I could use to remember the words – then I just stumbled across this psalm 23 version by Michael Card… (I also came up with a little music of my own – but haven’t pursued my music writing – so many many things to do!!!)

I never listened to Michael Card’s music before this year (or hardly any more contemporary praise music) but I hear and feel his gentleness and his persuading personal praise when he sings just with a piano or guitar –  I hear it personally for real because I understand the praise and also that I connected directly with him… Faith is a gift that keeps on giving!

And one of my most peaceful feelings this Christmas, and there have been many,  was after being shepherded into his Christmas concert, as I sat for a little, maybe twenty minutes texting friends and said to myself: “that really did happen, this really is happening!”…. I utterly was in a state of not wanting – was so satisfied at that moment – the multitude of blessings on top of everything else – wow I got SO MUCH PEACE in return…

I figured out what the “stop your pondering, fall on your knees” song was, it’s called “To the Mystery”… But he played unplugged at the concert which I liked MUCH better than this album version… I am sure with Michael Card, I would love his LIVE performance any day so much better than any album version because I can see the praise in his face when he sings.

Here are both:
Watch “Michael Card – 05 To the Mystery – The Life – 1988 (lyrics)” on YouTube
https://youtu.be/wDi4tMU3Ss8

Watch “My Shepherd -Michael Card” on YouTube
https://youtu.be/kCdSYls5riU

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I was a little busy past couple of days, yeah – but I did have this draft written but not sent – so here’s my christmas eve devotion – another end of the year recap – I hope I am not repetitive but I have to praise praise praise as I sit here in the glow of this Christmas tree – I have so much re-pondering for the blessings of the year – so much AWE of God – I mean from God HIMSELF calling me to accept Jesus – to Holy Spiriting all the people, situations and tools into place – “knowing every hair on my head (Luke 12)” kind of guidance – to the adventures in travel, and of course of music… most importantly blessings of friends  – plus this forced writing of over 300 devotions/blogs forcing me to share the good news of Jesus for my own sanity of processing, which I never saw coming, and OH YEAH, lest I forget, this 55.5 lb weight-loss and a bursting feeling of health – yeah UNREAL – WILD…  If you asked me last year at this time what my wildest dreams were, they could not have been wild enough for this journey God has taken me on… thank you all for being part of the journey!

Now PLEASE I am trying NOT to boast but to praise – because I didn’t cause any of this, I just became an opportunist of blessings and God handled the rest… and trust me that I have had my share of heartaches this year too – we all do – I just don’t write about them in detail – but please know that the big and little devil attacks (sometimes massive ones) are being truly combated by God on my behalf, making many really obvious, and equipping me with Jesus to withstand and allowing me to learn life lessons… and oh yeah, that feeling of Jesus picking me up? WHEW, I cannot overstate the need for everyone to really seriously rely on Jesus – oh yeah the most powerful pick me up EVER – if you go back to read devotion # 254 Back in the Boat, 02SEP – whew – that was a rough chapter… Trust me that Jesus truly does save everyday – not just at the end of your life… and as I re-read #259 Settling Your Heart into Jesus’s Hands, 07Sept – yeah God KNEW I needed Jesus this whole year – we all need Jesus – and how fortunate I was to have the loving support of so many friends – which is sent from God too!

Tomorrow I go up home, will be a trip filled with joy and also stress as a family member is not doing well… either way it’s time to go home… either way it’s time to rely on Jesus for strength and serenity…

Here is my Christmas Eve devotion… THANK YOU ALL again for both supporting me and humoring me this year too:

Wildest Dreams, 24DEC

Christmas Eve – today is filled with peace and pondering (and a little last minute shopping and the anticipated blessings of being with my family and church family tonight). Yes, it’s CHRISTMAS EVE, so today is an extraordinary day for us, BUT an ordinary day for God – because like every other day THIS day really “IS the DAY that the LORD has made” and I am REALLY REALLY GLAD – and I AM REALLY REALLY GLAD TO REJOICE IN IT!!!

Every day this year was filled with pondering and praise – every morning was Christmas to me this year – I truly feel next year will be just as wild and wonderful…  I reread a piece where I spoke of entering the corporate open enrollment of Christianity at Christmas last year… how convenient for us to have Christmas EVERY year to reinforce this open enrollment! This year was SO filled with opportunities and gifts – every evening a multitude of treasured memories I held in my heart – what an amazing year – what an amazing gift of JOY everyday when I ponder the wondrous works of God… All from accepting Jesus only one year ago – seems like forever and seems like just yesterday… You know I used to double check myself those first months of “do I truly believe?”  yeah – I always checked out OK!  “I have decided to follow Jesus – no turning back” that is one of the new VBS songs for next summer – yup awesome year behind me, and ahead too!!!

At the Michael Card concert last week, he told us that many of the songs that come out of the bible come out of LUKE – and that likely Luke lived near or with John who was tasked by Jesus to become His mother Mary’s son at the crucifixion. So Luke got to speak to Mary and his writings detailed her recount of her life with Jesus… Michael Card sang and spoke of Mary being in AWE – “Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” – And he spoke about how we have to STOP our pondering we approach the cradle and WE should fall on our knees – yeah – accept and BE STILL and know that God is God…

It is not lost on me that I have musical bookends on my faith journey this treasured year with a whole library of music new and old to fill my head (and it is certainly nice to NOT have to close any chapters)… This treasured music journey was as intense if not more so then my writing – because where I couldn’t write ALL the time, I could still sing praise ALL the time!!!!  I sing waking up and I sing going to sleep… God wrote lyrically in my heart.. When I am stressed, I start singing to cover any thorns poking my ears – when I am happy, I start singing – and whistling is a gift…  This Christmas to Christmas year, started with “Come to the Cradle – come and find PEACE” – music plus sermons and scripture and more music (old and new, from Genesis to the Grateful dead and all types in between)… so to be able to speak to Michael Card HIMSELF one year later – truly I have to question: how does God make that happen? Do you ever wonder if God has it out for you too????  I KNOW GOD had it in for me and chased me down when I wasn’t looking – and not only filled my cup but gave me an overflowing “Flood” feeling which caused the need to step outside my normal faith circles and set up rain buckets to catch my overflowing faith.

The Michael Card song line to describe this year would be “For a thousand years the dreamers dreamt, and hoped to see His love, The Promise showed their wildest dreams Had simply not been wild enough.”

Mary accepted being “the handmaid of the Lord” Luke 1:38… She pondered the future, I do too…   I know Jesus came to us and so importantly He made the path so that the Holy Spirit can enter into us ALL… I am God’s handmaid… You are too…”I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.”

It’s Christmas – let us let the HOLY SPIRIT move us all together as we celebrate God’s ultimate gift to us… The best way to appreciate God is to appreciate sharing God with each other, because Jesus is “GOD WITH US” Immanuel… And to have us with God is God’s WILDEST DREAM!!!  That’s why waking up every day is like Christmas!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, thank you all for being my biggest blessing amplifiers this year!!! Thank you for sharing Jesus with me – and for letting the Spirit move you – it’s been a wild year – blessed blessed blessed…

Happy New Year!
Wild!

 

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Thank you faith friends on this journey with me, 24DEC

I wish for you all to have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and I have to thank you for your support this year…. Just now I saw that I had lost my baby Jesus foam figure that was hot-glue-gunned to my car… That figures, because I have lost about half a dozen decoration baby Jesus’s these last couple of years… But it’s ok, because I have back up foam Jesus babies that I made myself out of scraps… And THAT is Jesus in a nut shell, you have to bring him out and make the most of what you have to bring Him alive…

Most importantly I have to thank you all for the many blessings in knowing all YOU because YOU are the ones who have shined Jesus thru YOUR hearts to me and my family..

So today I am happy, but pensive and pondering all that this gift of Jesus means… I have to ponder the gift of a GOD’S sacrifice JUST to get to know me better and the gift that GOD wants to have us for eternity… Wow

I’m wondering like Mary during that first year with Jesus…  I have to wonder where this baby Jesus plans to go next… Just like the foam decoration that flew off to adventures unknown, how could I even predict where the real one in my heart will go in the future!!!… But with you all there I know we will be blessed!!

I am at AWE at where God has taken me this year alone… I praise and wonder and ponder but I don’t NEED to do anything BUT fall in my knees in AWE today…

MERRY CHRISTMAS GOD, your gift is us and we you…

MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!!! God bless you ALL!!! Thanks for shining Jesus to me!

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There are so many devotions that I re-read now as I am uploading them more rapidly to my wordpress blog and I say: “wow thanks God, thanks for making me write that..” this is definitely one of them… just in 10 minutes in front of microwave…

Give Christ at Christmas, 22Dec

Just got back from the dollar store and unlike every other store this clerk actually said “Merry Christmas”…WOW… now I don’t want to get her in trouble, because you know how politically correct these stores are trying to be – they don’t want to say MERRY CHRISTMAS, even though they ARE pushing red and green Christmas merchandise out the wazoo…  But even if the clerks are not supposed to say it, I know plenty of non-Christians who are NOT offended by someone wishing then the BEST of whichever holiday they celebrate… And saying happy holidays is perfectly fine to say as well, in my opinion, because that does not offend me.

So yes, it’s nice to hear Merry Christmas, and this year I REALLY mean it!  and to hear Christmas music in the stores is awesome, nobody faults you for singing along (except your own kids who are embarrassed to be with you regardless if you’re singing or not..)… Christmas music for Christians is a good excuse to celebrate faith without people thinking you’re overly weird or pushy…

You see a lot of signs these days to combat the politically correct push of the holiday season… the signs say “Keep Christ in Christmas”… I don’t know, it kind of sounds a little threatening… a little “bad cop-ish”… Like “Keep Christ in Christmas OR ELSE!”… I know it is for good intentions but remember I’m not the “bad cop”, I’m the “good cop”… so I think I would prefer a sign that instead said: “Give Christ for Christmas” … Yeah, that’s the sentiment I like!

When we GIVE Christ, it means we are giving to others the BEST of us… it means we are not keeping Christ for ourselves for our own salvation but we want to share HIM to help God’s action plan… because God wants to be with ALL of us.

So that sign you could leave up all year round because we should give Christ not JUST at Christmas, but every day. We give Christ by being Christ-like… there’s another sign floating around the internet that says “people can tell your faith not by your religion, but by your actions…” yup, that’s true because the best Christ-like behavior is to LOVE…

I bet you Christ would have walked around with Your OWN T-shirt that said “Smile, I LOVE you”… We should too… That’s the sign of the times, time to show our inner Jesus, it’s time to give out the LOVE…

Give Christ at Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, the happiest of holidays!

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The Old Peace, 21DEC
“maybe I must may be lost, right where I need to be…”

One of the best feelings in the world is when I realize that I am in a place right where I need to be – because I KNOW the Holy Spirit moved me there… moved me to do something that is not my privilege to know why – but the Holy Spirit works to enable God’s amazing plan for all of us – for us to have some impact on someone else EVERY DAY – to achieve the ultimate realization that God’s desire is to BE WITH US.

It’s OK if we don’t always know what that plan is – but recently when I saw that God’s plan also benefited me, I just had to accept and smile and feel warm… and at PEACE…

At Michael Card’s concert on Friday night it was just that – all the swirling of the many places I could have been – I was here taking my chances on passing a letter to Michael Card to thank him for the impact he has had on my life – I was not intending to wiggle my way into his concert – I hoped I could get a ticket and got there 2.5 hrs early for that chance – but I left it up to the Holy Spirit at that point – either way it was worth the try… to know I had tried – either way I had “prepared for rain” as in the Facing the Giants scene (The scene that I discuss in my pivotal awakening piece “Christmas Flood Dec17”)… either way I would just see what would happen and adjust my plans accordingly and adjust my peace of mind based on that… so to sit in the worshipful concert after actually walking in the door, chatting with Michael Card for fifteen minutes, you know I was at complete PEACE…. the “Old Peace” that comes once in a while – not a forced peace by pushing an agenda to get someplace like vacation planning – but a peace that comes when you could have easily had a heartache too IF you had put your hopes on results and not on the execution of a plan…

The song that replays in my head and out of my mouth from the concert is “El Shaddai” – even though I don’t really know the words… And the two images stuck in my mind are Michael and I chatting like old friends and also him lifting his hands while letting the Holy Spirit take him to where he was supposed to be – purposefully there to be lifting us – to sweetly sing Christmas carols with him (only 200 of us there as a full house in a tiny tiny church) is a caroling event that I will never forget – we were praising God by uplifting each other.

So the other song I have been listening to right now (over and over for about a week) for processing this swirl of life (both for praises and angst-dealing) is not a Michael Card song – but one penned by a 26yr old cancer-stricken man, Alec Wildey, and set to music and sung by an amazing pair of artists Mariusz Duda and Steve Wilson – “The Old Peace”…. I love lyrics that are interpretable to whichever situation you are in…

“maybe I must may be lost, right where I need to be…”
“But nothing is more perfect than the smell of harmony”

Because that PEACE feeling in the midst of chaos is what we are God-willed to look for… and how do we bring that about? It is up to us focusing on God – and it is not always knowing the right move at the right time – but trusting Him to put us where we are supposed to be… He will be the most efficient decider of our time… “maybe I must may be lost, right where I need to be…”

After Friday’s concert I was home and everyone was asleep – I felt guilty not being with them that evening and would try to make up the time – but I was pretty sure God wanted me at that concert – if not for me personally even though I got a lot out of it, then for some other purpose – but for me it was a chance to say thanks you for his “Come to the Cradle” song that was key to my awakening – and to witness to the organizing folks and other guests, and those I recounted my adventure to… Full witness to this year of amazing blessings that God has bestowed on me after I accepted this powerful salvation by accepting Jesus as my Savior.  It’s not JUST that I accepted Jesus as a savior for later, when I eventually die, but ACCEPT JESUS as a savior for RIGHT NOW – by taking HIM into my heart so that I carry God with me – because the peace bestowed by following Jesus every day is what God intends us to have!!!

Michael Card eloquently sang “Immanuel” – God with us – and he spoke about this being the pinnacle purpose of God – to “Be with us”.  Michael spoke about how God chased down Adam and Eve after they hid from him in the garden – and how God had to give the most sacrifice ever – to give his one and only Son Jesus to be GOD WITH US… not God when we are dead – but God with us everyday – to live the God way… to love the peace and strive for it always.

This acceptance of Jesus-driven peace means Jesus pulls me into the eye of the hurricane of life every time I turn to Him and tune HIM IN – daily – hourly – sometimes minute by minute – and He holds me up – and I keep moving forward for those I need to do God’s work for…

A friend also just now emailed me while I was writing about being at peace and happy.  She is being stretched thin and has limited time (5 kids, work, life, you name it) but with the best attitude… I couldn’t ask for a more perfect phrase cementing this feeling in my writing this morning – she says:
“I would like to do a lot more with them but there is no time. So I cherish the time we do get and I am happy with that.”

THAT is true on so many levels…
of being at peace, being where we think we need to be to work God’s plan, or be with who we need to be with…  peace will come when we consult God for our action plan…
and we can find PEACE when we cherish the time, and proportion it appropriately, for doing the best we can in the limited time we have…

I often say that when God gives a snow day you get to be where you are supposed to be and there is a peace – a world peace that is only caused by complete shut down of your little world and encourages nestling in for that feeling of peace… God-caused peace…

And God peace is just that – nestling into your mission and calling of working for God – nestling into letting Jesus lift you and letting the Holy Spirit move you – “maybe I must may be lost, right where I need to be…”

This is a daily – hourly- minute by minute achievement of PEACE.

I urge you all to try the Holy Spirit flow, which keeps JESUS alive in you so that God can work His plan – it brings such Old Peace…

God with us.

Amen.

——

Immanuel, Michael Card Lyrics

A sign shall be given a virgin will conceive
A human baby bearing undiminished deity
The glory of the nations a light for all to see
That hope for all who will embrace His warm reality

Immanuel our God is with us
And if God is with us who could stand against us
Our God is with us
Immanuel

For all those who live in the shadow of death
A glorious light has dawned
For all those who stumble in the darkness
Behold your light has come

Immanuel our God is with us
And if God is with us who could stand against us
Our God is with us
Immanuel

So what will be Your answer? Will You hear the call?
Of Him who did not spare His son but gave Him for us all
On earth there is no power there is no depth or height
That could ever separate us from the love of God in Christ

Immanuel our God is with us
And if God is with us who could stand against us
Our God is with us
Immanuel

Immanuel our God is with us
And if God is with us who could stand against us
Our God is with us
Immanuel

—————————-
The Old Peace
Mariusz Duda/Steve Wilson
poem by Alec Wildey,
https://youtu.be/AsghYYv0EKI

You could be wise
Spend in a lifetime
Under your tree
watchin’ apples fall from above
You could be lost
Still you see your hometown
Nothing in that moment matters more
Than the book in your hand
And I see impressions
and I see fingerprints footsteps
Tears in the rain
But nothing is more perfect than the smell of harmony
You got your solitude
And I got my peace
And nothing in that moment matters more
If only in just this one fragment together it grows
This tree… maybe I must may be lost
Right where I need to be…
And I see impressions
and I see fingerprints footsteps
Tears in the rain
But nothing is more perfect than the smell of harmony

———-

Postscript: dec25 – Well – imagine that!  Michael Card is coming BACK in February HERE! – earlier in that month he will in Asia then back over here – that’s a crazy trip… Cool Cool Cool!!! can’t wait to go!

---

Job 38 (NIV)

The Lord Speaks

38 Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said:

² “Who is this that obscures my plans
with words without knowledge?
³ Brace yourself like a man;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.

⁴ “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
Tell me, if you understand.
⁵ Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?
⁶ On what were its footings set,
or who laid its cornerstone—
⁷ while the morning stars sang together
and all the angels^[a] shouted for joy?

⁸ “Who shut up the sea behind doors
when it burst forth from the womb,
⁹ when I made the clouds its garment
and wrapped it in thick darkness,
¹⁰ when I fixed limits for it
and set its doors and bars in place,
¹¹ when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther;
here is where your proud waves halt’?

¹² “Have you ever given orders to the morning,
or shown the dawn its place,
¹³ that it might take the earth by the edges
and shake the wicked out of it?
¹⁴ The earth takes shape like clay under a seal;
its features stand out like those of a garment.
¹⁵ The wicked are denied their light,
and their upraised arm is broken.

¹⁶ “Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea
or walked in the recesses of the deep?
¹⁷ Have the gates of death been shown to you?
Have you seen the gates of the deepest darkness?
¹⁸ Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth?
Tell me, if you know all this.

¹⁹ “What is the way to the abode of light?
And where does darkness reside?
²⁰ Can you take them to their places?
Do you know the paths to their dwellings?
²¹ Surely you know, for you were already born!
You have lived so many years!

²² “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow
or seen the storehouses of the hail,
²³ which I reserve for times of trouble,
for days of war and battle?
²⁴ What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed,
or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth?
²⁵ Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain,
and a path for the thunderstorm,
²⁶ to water a land where no one lives,
an uninhabited desert,
²⁷ to satisfy a desolate wasteland
and make it sprout with grass?
²⁸ Does the rain have a father?
Who fathers the drops of dew?
²⁹ From whose womb comes the ice?
Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens
³⁰ when the waters become hard as stone,
when the surface of the deep is frozen?

³¹ “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades?
Can you loosen Orion’s belt?
³² Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons
or lead out the Bear^[d] with its cubs?
³³ Do you know the laws of the heavens?
Can you set up God’s dominion over the earth?

³⁴ “Can you raise your voice to the clouds
and cover yourself with a flood of water?
³⁵ Do you send the lightning bolts on their way?
Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’?
³⁶ Who gives the ibis wisdom
or gives the rooster understanding?
³⁷ Who has the wisdom to count the clouds?
Who can tip over the water jars of the heavens
³⁸ when the dust becomes hard
and the clods of earth stick together?

³⁹ “Do you hunt the prey for the lioness
and satisfy the hunger of the lions
⁴⁰ when they crouch in their dens
or lie in wait in a thicket?
⁴¹ Who provides food for the raven
when its young cry out to God
and wander about for lack of food?

 

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I was thanking one of the early folks that I was able to reach out to in faith discussion and this email blog came out, a conversation about God becomes thanking God for the LOVE………

God Tennis Anyone? 19DEC

This explosion of God in my head – one year ago this month…  had to get it out – and I was the one regulating my sharing… I let it come out piece by piece to a trickle of people whom I trusted – until I felt like I wasn’t going to be ridiculed for my thoughts – or thought of as weird ( I mean extra weird because I am already weird) – but honestly I really thought I was losing my mind – I think that is the real reason I had to step outside of my normal circle of friends and consult an outside voice (one who seemed so sure in his faith) to help me pray for discernment because I just didn’t know where these writings and thoughts were coming from – that was one year ago this month  – and to a confidant/pastor friend who became a one woman pep band for my early faith building…

Now I know that there are SO MANY people who are in the place mentally where I was and that is not always their fault – it just isn’t their time yet – but I do pray that more people can learn to open up – and I pray that we never ridicule them, that we encourage them…

 

Sharing faith whether you are a beginner or a seasoned pro is best really when it is like a tennis match… God says release and wait to hear the other person and then speak again and make it a conversation of God and not just a telling of God – my best interactions are were when others share their faith with me too – and the blessings of being in a church congregation is that you get a zone of friends where you can openly discuss and hash out your faith – I love that – I needed that – and now I am ready to be out in my zone of friends and beyond where others can come chat about their faith… and WOW God has given me some awesome opportunities to hear about other’s faith walks…  It’s exciting to work for God!!!

 

Although I know I am not supposed to worry about the future I sometimes think about that time, 25 yrs ago, when I was working the college alumnI donation calls – they give you a set of people who donated previously to get you “warmed up” and get your confidence established before they gave you the people who never donated to try to convince…  I see God doing that too – giving me (and us) easy low hanging fruit Christians who are “almost” there – these are the people who DO come to church and are just still searching for 100% whether they know it or not – and these are the ones who seek you for your advice – and then there are also those die hard non-believers – those folks you only hope to plant seeds of faith into before they fruit – and it’s not us who judges but God who does a hard sell to them – it’s supposed to be a planting of seeds in love from us so that God can come and do the watering – or in my case a Christmas Flood…  see it’s a tennis match between each person and God – God puts a miracle in your face – you have to say “oh that’s from God” – then God answers – and you lob a faithful hit back to God by accepting and attributing HIS miracles to HIM – and so forth – but the best thing about God is that He is an endless automatic tennis ball machine – He lobs endlessly – never ceasing to refill – He will lob at you FOREVER even if you don’t pick up the racket – it is YOUR CHOICE to pick up the racket – hit them back to God and you can have wordless grunts and screams if that helps you serve God – to get those faith thoughts back over the net – back so God can play your blessings back to you… even if you don’t win a point – even if you don’t get the point from God – your score is still LOVE…

 

Thanks for the LOVE God.

Endless LOVE

 

Amen

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Mind Blown… Michael Card… Mind Blown…, 18-19DEC

God blows my mind, constantly, but leaves just enough intact for me to write…

Mind Blown, Michael Card concert…

Michael Card coming at Christmas for a concert?… you know God has placed him on my radar screen this year… Hey, if your name is Mike or Michael, you were/are probably on God’s radar for me this year too… But I digress…

I didn’t have a ticket, no one from that church ever called me back after several tries, so I said WHY NOT just go down?!… And off I skedaddled from work because everyone was taking off early from the holiday party anyway, perfect timing…
1 hour trip from work, not too bad traffic, found a parking spot close… small church, giant tour bus parked in front.. I wasn’t worried that I didn’t have a ticket I figured the Holy Spirit was in charge now…take care of it or not  for me but I thought at  minimum  that perhaps I could slip a letter to him… I wrote and emailed Michael Card in March of this year… Never heard back… But here I could slip it physically into somebody’s hand who would get it in his hand…  BUT the rest I couldn’t have imagined, but God certainly has a great imagination…

Two hours early for the concert I thought maybe I could get a ticket or hear him practice so I walked up the steps, opened the door and he was immediately five feet in front of me!!!… they had just finished practice, so I waited patiently to chat because I KNEW at this moment that the Holy Spirit wanted me here!

Michael Card is in the category of one of my “cousins in Christ”, we talked like we had known each other for years… of course it’s not hard for me, I have an easy time stepping into a conversation, that’s a family trait…  and it wasn’t hard for him either,  as he patiently listened to my condensed  awakening story helped by  the lyrics of his “Come to the Cradle” song,  We chatted music, weight loss (he just doesn’t have a appetite and lost about ten pounds thus year), about blogs, and awakenings of course… you name it – we chatted bible – how the surprise in the Old Testament was how KIND God was and the surprise in the new Testament was how much a servant Jesus was/is… we chatted how I used to be ashamed  but I am NOT ashamed now of where I was in my faith… Michael quoted scripture “don’t put your lamp under a basket” Michael saw my before and after 55.5lb weight loss photos, and he said I glowed… And he said that will really resonate with people….  Holy Spirit activated this flood of Jesus spilling in and out…

We took a photo, he said grab a seat and I said “I don’t have a ticket I need to buy one” and he said “no you’re with me as a guest”…  no charge… I found out later it WAS a sold out show anyway so it’s a good thing – no it’s a GOD thing – that I didn’t have a ticket because I may have gotten deterred and not come if I had known it was sold out… Later I tried to pay the $20, but the pastor said no, that I was a guest. Sweet…

Well I was aghast with how God likes to blow my mind then allow me to sit and absorb all the delights that HE gives me… I was there 2 hours before the concert started which gave me time to integrate into the family of these wonderful believers. This church congregation has a few sites and three services – 1 English, 1 Latino and 1 Indonesian, the pastor says he has to go back to school  to learn the other languages to help facilitate their worship… Yeah, that’s dedication…

For 2 hours, Michael Card just mingled! He hopped around from person to person – and there were many excited kids running around… I chatted with “D”, with the former pastor and his wife, with “A”, her special needs brother “N” and their mom, with “J”, an awesome girl who has that wonderful extra chromosome which facilitates extra LOVE just like in my cousin, and with “L” sitting behind me, who lives in my hometown too and after the concert I chatted with so many others… it’s a family trait we just love people… I just don’t know anything other than making conversation… that’s what Michael Card did too he was so gracious before and after the performance…

So there are new lyrics for his Christmas version of “Come to the Cradle”… He told them to me in our 15 minute conversation, SO when I ran into him again as he was be-bopping around the room for 2 hours before the concert, I asked him “what were the lyrics again?” So he hopped up to the music stand and found me an extra copy and marked them up… I asked him to sign the paper for my friend “A”, who introduced me to Michael Card’s music including a presentation of “The Promise” — because that’s where I heard the first time the music speak to my heart… That’s how I REALLY heard the lyrics for REAL, Subaru-style… from the praise band on last year’s Christmas Festival CD that I copied, as gifts from the United Methodist women to out homebound… Must have listened to it a thousand times now, Subaru style… “Come to the cradle, come and find peace, alone in the cradle, simplicity sleeps”…I sang the song in my awakening as I was finding peace – but I did not realize then that I was “chosen” by God. God was trying to bring the Prince of Peace to me – and so I reached out for prayer to my generous guiding friends – and asked for prayers for discernment… fitting to the lyric: “So you were chosen, and called out for prayer”… YES, being called means God exploded in my head!!!!! Yes, I was called and I gladly thank God for the call…

The concert was amazing … it was so worshipful… it was precious because he was having trouble tuning brand new strings and said ‘ it’s okay to make mistakes, Christians are more apt to like you because you make mistakes.’
I knew it was going to be the most intimate Holy Spirit moving concert but when he started talking about song lyrics he wrote that says ‘give up your pondering… fall down on your knees…’ it brought tears to my eyes because  pondering is one of the major themes and words for this year. Oh how my pastor and I ponder… Pondering IS awesome but when you approach Jesus in the cradle and have to realize that Mary  gave birth  to the God who formed her – gave birth to her – well, you can’t figure that out – so just stop pondering!!! JUST accept God is God and there’s no way for us to understand it all…

He also sang a song written by Michael McDonald whom he sees in the grocery store on occasion in the Nashville area. He talked about how faith in the Old Testament means waiting and faith in the New Testament means following. And he so eloquently stated that “God with us” IS God’s ultimate goal… he recounted the Bible stories that essentially say God wants to walk with us… That is the ultimate goal of God, to be with us.

So the audience loved singing “El Shaddai”… then we finished by singing Christmas carols together as a congregation – it was the most worshipful …

On my way out the door I got my goodbye hug in and Michael told me he loves people, he could easily be a recluse instead and just sit in front of the TV flipping channels, but he loves people…

BLESSED…

Why does God like to explode my mind ??? God wants ALL of me… God wants all of you… God wants to “walk with us”!!!

BLESSED to have my mind blown, with no other explanation that God is God… No pondering needed…

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My Soul My Soul Must Sing, 17Dec

Worship is such a personal thing, worship with song is even more personal… Only God knows how HIS love touches our souls.

In all worship, Holy Spirit movings are taking place, but it’s how the receiver person tunes that in that changes. And not everyone is on the same wavelength…

Gregorian chanting probably was best understood by those chanting it, but who knows… So what did the probable peasant workers, helping the monks, think about it when they heard it?… Did they understand it? Did they get to talk to the monks who wrote it, and hear the monks salvation stories? probably not..  When they were hearing it, perhaps some found the pulsating repetitive incantations enchanting and moving but some likely did not… Like I said, worship is a personal thing based on what you’re thinking about… God calls us individually in His Own Special Way…

JUST as I stood on Easter Sunday, portraying the resurrected Jarius’ daughter, not many in the crowd knew my story was EXACTLY that story… Jesus took my hand and said “she is simply sleeping, arise!” and I awoke in salvation grace, I felt the hand of Jesus then and I still grab it today, I am ready to be a child of God forever…

This Christmas I will get to read Mary’s part, how awesome is that!!! I pray the HOLY SPIRIT to use me in worship there and everywhere to witness new life IN Christ… and everyday I worship everywhere… I have to, I have SO MUCH of God’s work to do, so I make sure I spiritually feed myself purposefully while praising my realization of His promised Son.

ONLY God knows our hearts and ONLY God can wake us up, we worship to payback the favor, we worship to witness, we worship to rest in Jesus’s arms while we recharge our strength, and we worship to lift others… God’s primary goal is to get us to increase HIS kingdom.

“My Soul My Soul Must Sing”, the lyrics of “Beautiful One” strikes my chord… The intense strumming of the praise band? I understand that deep in my soul, I know the loudness is not for everyone, but I feel it as worship because my soul my soul MUST sing. The lyrics call to me and the band’s intensity matches the explosion of God in my head this year…

Last night after our fitness workout at church, I snuck over to absorb the worship at the praise band’s practice night – this was a treat for me to pause in praise, even if stealthily, with a fellowship of believers. A quick mid-week recharge, time I barely have to spare but time I allow myself respite as an offering of thanks before I am again scooting off to life’s many duties… A moment of praise not in an actual worship service but just as powerful, because I am outside and able to sing really loudly and bee-bop dance without a congregation watching… My car praise is the same way, LOUD… Like I said, God explosions in my head come with music to match…. and I understand the worship from those in the band, is it a different kind of Gregorian Chant and I am a peasant worker appreciating it – I am appreciating that worship is amplified by the collective spirit… If a drummer boy’s humble offerings were amplified by his desire to please a baby Jesus, so are mine. His soul sung with rhythm, he felt every beat – so do I.

“My Soul My Soul Must Sing…”  Worship to me is NOT JUST corporate worship… But everyday thanking Jesus for my second chance to live now and my knowing that living forever is forever being able to witness… “It’s not a great hardship”, as an imagined Easter play would have Jarius’ daughter say, “worship is a way of life”…

“I must give my life to the one who had given it back to me. I have to surrender my desires and follow his teachings instead. It’s not been a terrible sacrifice. After all, if not for Him, I would have no life to give.” 

Thanks God, that I get to help others count their blessings… I feel that facilitating worship in others is God’s plan for me… It is not a great hardship… 

Merry Christmas God, and Happy Easter too!

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Thus was stuck in my drafts, I got the gift of an email last night with the right words to wrap this email up… to wrap my thoughts in swaddling clothes… Smiles….

Our choir director asked me to read the part for Mary in the Christmas eve service… WOW, and he has NO idea of what happened this year to me… I didn’t tell him yet… but I certainly will now… Actually he asked my son to read the child’s role too, my son is “thinking about it”…  I didn’t have to think AT ALL, I figure the HOLY SPIRIT had some hand in this, how could I say no??!!!! I am honored being belief … to “represent” for women who acknowledge Jesus born in them, wow…. Oh how I hope to help the HOLY SPIRIT wherever the wind takes me (just like the Genesis lyric, “Whose seen the wind not you or I, But when the ship moves she’s passing by. Between you and me, I really don’t think she knows where she’s going at all.”…  which mirrors conversations in the spring time about really not knowing where God is taking me on this journey… One year later with Jesus holding me up (no wonder God wanted to lighten Jesus’s load by my 55.5 lbs weight loss LOL), I am still enjoying the ride… Even with the rough spots this year, the light outweighs the dark, always…. I am EVER blessed…

I KNOW it will be the most hectic weekend for ALL of us, so let me take the quiet moment now to wish you ALL and your families a very MERRY CHRISTMAS, or as a friend put it, “a pensive reflection of the true meaning of advent”… Luckily for me Christmas will continue ALL year again next year, I just have that feeling…

Stay Hopeful, Feed your Inner Jesus, 15/18Dec

My bracelet has a black bead with Dead Sea mud in it to remind me to stay hopeful in life’s low points… I recently got to cradle a precious little ten week baby, he took ALL my blues away instantly…. so precious, so BLESSED to be entrusted with a child…
While I was holding him, I could feel him breathing, stretching, and I could feel all his tiny gut gurgles too!!!!  Even though he eventually cried and I didn’t know exactly what was wrong, I could understand that his cry was for attention.

Babies, they remind us that we ALWAYS should “stay hopeful” for their whole lives are in front of them… And we should stay hopeful because our MOST precious Christmas baby is born IN US. We are to know Jesus first as a baby, LOVE HIM, then know Him as a grown man to lead us to eternal life. Jesus is at full ready – to comfort us whenever we ask – but IF we are to take full advantage of knowing and understanding Him in order to be feeling comfort from HIM, well then FIRST WE NEED TO RAISE HIM!!!

If we are just guessing why baby Jesus is crying, then we need to ask Jesus directly and our heavenly Father to help us understand…  Christmas baby Jesus is just like every other baby, and HE will cry…. even though we don’t always know exactly what’s wrong, baby Jesus cries for our attention…

Baby Jesus is hungry for our LOVE and TRUST…

Good God knows I have been blessed with raising a son and a daughter in real life, and now this Christ child growing “in me” actually grew me because I grew HIM.

I was asked to read the part of Mary in our church’s Christmas eve service…. How blessed to portray the woman entrusted with birthing God… How blessed to have God entrust MY salvation to Jesus. How blessed to feed myself on HIS word to nourish my inner Jesus AND the outer Child of God that I am.

While we ourselves become more childlike in appreciation of God, we must devote time to understand how God works in us for God’s greater glory, not ours. We should remember to be thankful we are along for the ride, Jesus is driving…

Jesus is born in us, let us feed HIM forever…. Precious, BLESSED to be entrusted with Jesus…

Mary – Christ – Mother and Child – MERRY CHRISTMAS to us ALL.
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Scripture Lesson (Reader – A Mother)
“And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” – Luke 1:26-3
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Second Lesson – MY child will read:
– Poetry by Sara Moores Campbell

Give us the spirit of the child.

Give us the child who lives within – the child who trusts, the child who imagines, the child who sings, the child who receives without reservation, the child who gives without judgement.

Give us a child’s eyes, that we may receive the beauty and freshness of this day like a sunrise.

Give us a child’s ears, that we may hear the music of mythical times.

Give us a child’s heart, that we may be filled with wonder and delight.

Give us a child’s faith, that we may be cured of our cynicism.

Give us the spirit of the child, who is not afraid to need, who is not afraid to love. Amen.

– Poetry by Sara Moores Campbell

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MERRY CHRISTMAS LORD, 15DEC

Merry Christmas Lord,
Thanks only to YOU.
Merry Christmas Lord,
My best gift was YOU.
Merry Christmas Lord,
You will never leave me,
nor I YOU.
Jesus is OUR glue.
Merry Christmas Lord,
Like the full moon,
You and I will shine on thru.
MERRY CHRISTMAS LORD,
From ME to YOU.

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A Very MERRY Subaru CHRISTMAS, 14DEC

I’m so pleased that as a result of being too cheap to get my windshield gasket replaced that I have created a great platform for my craftiness… I am NOT an artist but I’m definitely a hot glue gun crafter… so I thought of this decoration instantly for Christmas… A foam nativity plus three dollar store wreaths of leaves and flowers that I cut up…  a Subaru nativity scene…

I cannot be more pleased as I am this year to display baby Jesus on the outside of my car – because He came to me on the inside of my car!!! He took the driver’s seat and drove me to salvation. My car remains an important tabernacle to me, but it’s just a tool, it’s just a car, but I love it….

I kept losing the baby Jesus’s from multiple foam craft nativity scenes over the years…. they would just disappear then just show up in random places… one even stuck to my arm while I was sleeping… and so I even had to craft new babies to make those sets complete…  and of course, because I am a thinkerer, I contemplate “WHY?” why that happened… Yes, I see where my faith WAS and where it is NOW…  those little baby Jesus’s kept trying to sneak in to my heart but I had my brain firmly against it… it’s not lost on me that others are like that too, all year round they lose that little baby Jesus’s meaning… So, when my brain opened and my Christmas Flood (dec17writing) occurred,  no hot glue gun was needed to make Jesus stick… And he remains there because Jesus is the glue that keeps me whole….

Eternally stronger then the hot glued foam baby on my car racing down the highway at 73.5 miles an hour (I mean 65) this real divine baby Jesus will stick with me – in my heart – forever. I will keep him in my heart and have Christmas everyday…. Last year I wanted to be Mary, now this Christmas I AM – I’m here – stronger than ever – more at peace then ever – and ever more ready to face the world’s new challenges in the new year with now grown-up Jesus holding me up by my heart and by my hand.

One last decoration for my car will be to string the lights on the roof, yup, I borrowed a special converter box for the car lighter – not only for the glue gun, but for these lights…. It takes a special converter for displaying God’s LOVE too….that converter is called Jesus – Emmanuel – God with us…  Yes, God sent the biggest and brightest star of all when HE gave us Jesus…and HE IS FREE!!!  But WE need to choose to PLUG HIM IN… Unplug the security barriers, and insead plug Jesus into our hearts, only then will HIS LIGHT shine most brightly thru us.

MERRY CHRISTMAS to and from God’s Subaru… Subaru means “to unite”…

Praying that JESUS ALWAYS shines HIS LIGHT through our hearts, our words, our eyes and our smiles!

Amen

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GOD WITH US, 11DEC2015
I awoke from a car nap (usually I am driving but I needed a break)… A ten minute nap, Subaru-style… I awoke to see 3 faint stars, I focused on the most faint… Wow, I realized instantly it was the Pleiades… Wow, how does that happen??? That’s my Subaru logo, It’s a special constellation I write about all the time… It’s visible only as six stars (although there are hundreds)… I sometimes feel to be the seventh of the mythical seven sisters that the stars are associated with…. Yeah God? So how DOES that happen that I wake up and YOU logistically have me perfectly zero-ed in on the faint tiniest but BEST set of stars??

It’s God with us… Yup… It’s us attributing life’s little gifts that make us smile to God because all good things come from God…

God’s best gift? Emmanuel…. JESUS!!!

I was singing “Emmanuel” in a Christmas song yesterday and thinking, “Umm, I don’t remember the right translation for Emmanuel….oops!! God knows I am not perfect… I googled it, of course…  OH YEAH, Emmanuel means “GOD WITH US”…  We know God sent Jesus to us because He loves us – but why? God sent Jesus to be human while still being God – to live, die, and rise – to forgive our sins – and give us eternal life with God… Plus, Jesus had to leave to let the Holy Spirit come as “Another” part of God… It’s logistically amazing how Jesus got here… to be with ALL of us… We are made by the stardust materials made by God, so it makes sense that it is Jesus holding us together when we feel content or upset… God with us… God with us gives a more content feeling than the content feeling of sipping a cup of tea with a friend like I had today, more content than the peace that I had sitting and absorbing praise band music last night, more content than waking up from a Subaru- nap… Jesus IN us, Jesus WITH us….. Yes, ETERNAL contentment…

I wondered, while watching the Pleiades, about Jesus coming to forgive our sins… I ask forgiveness for mine, but I wondered how do we atone (how do I atone) for sins that we DON’T EVEN KNOW we committed or when were just sinfully complacent??? God often answers me with a shooting star (dozens this year)… so yeah, a nice short steak I saw just now was certainly appreciated, God…. It’s God with us… I know we can’t atone what we don’t remember, but who can? JESUS… That’s why God IS with us, that’s Emmanuel, that’s Jesus coming, living, dying on a star-shaped cross, then rising to atone us ALL, It’s God’s logistics… Amazing huh? But perfectly logical for God… God knows our sins and forgives even what we can’t forgive in ourselves.

The fire of a shooting star burns out, but it’s really the fire of God we want to look for… to sustain us… THAT fire burns eternal because of where we keep it, where we stoke it…. THAT FIRE IS IN OUR HEARTS…

My son recently noticed the stars too, when we were outside the city lights – they were intensely bright and numerous. I told him about that shooting star, and he asked if I made a wish… I didn’t, but I will now – AND I will tell my wish to you… I wish for you and everyone to follow their God-given star to find Jesus for forgiveness, for contentment, for eternal life. But may I suggest to all that they DON’T just look up to the skies for that one star, like the Wiseman did, because it’s not there… THAT star you won’t see by looking up, but instead you will see the star when you LOOK IN… God’s logistics put those bright stars INSIDE our hearts… Look for Jesus there, internally, you will find HIM, you can feed him, you will feel HIM grow, and you will want to share HIM – always!

If you can’t see or feel the fire yet, or if it needs re-stoking in your heart, then my wish is for you to walk by faith not just by star-sight… Read of God’s wishes in scripture,… I wish for you to seek others who shine their Jesus lights openly…. Open your hearts and “release your guilt and breathe”…  Sharing Jesus with others lets oxygen into your own fire…

Jesus is the promised Emmanuel…..
God IS with us….

IT’S CHRISTMAS EVERYDAY IN OUR HEARTS!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

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Transformation, 08 DEC and Tom Petty, 08DEC
Most of the time I am struck with a thought that I can’t get out of my head until I write it… sometimes I acknowledge it and say “Not now God”, but that haunts me…. sometimes I want to write… and sometimes I HAVE to write, no choice.  Not to begrudge the moment, but I say “OK God, I will write this quickly and then I have to get up, get moving and onto my earthly duties”, of which we all have plenty…  sometimes I get lost in my writing and go off on a tangent  that I didn’t want and have to reel it in.  Often I feel the need to split jumbled thoughts to write but the truth is that God layers them in to work in concert…I appreciate the encouragements of my co-workers for God who want to help people find saving grace, and I too want to be one – forever to serve… With a music therapy flood of Tom Petty Songs at the same time as flooded thoughts I wrote separate pieces – but I send them out together… and these ones were not quick – olus I sometimes get trapped in editing ugh…

When I feel God forces me to write, it sometimes interferes with earthly life – it’s just the time factor is a problem – not the thoughts themselves – it is God who knows best how I struggle to process this explosion of God in my head – and  I can’t get them all out and down – I just have to move on sometimes… God knows that – and like today instead He simply sends music to just accompany my thoughts – so I DON’T have to write it out – I can just sing along with that child of God who is singing on my wavelength of understanding God, like today it is Tom Petty…

OK God, for this writing I definitely appreciate your guidance… I WILL be STILLED enough to get these pieces out  – I will be still and pause and praise You when you force me to write and I appreciate the time you penciled in so that I get to work on my thoughts, YOU are guiding me to “something good coming” just like Tom Petty sings…

Devotion #1

Transformation, 08DEC

This is an encouragement to my fellow faith workers – please keep working – keep planting those seeds of faith…. Don’t lose hope when some people don’t get it…  It especially hurts if they can’t even see the transformation in you as something that comes from God… Some people are blind or simply doubt…  Yes folks, real spiritual and physical attributes truly change people when they give their lives over to Jesus. Not everyone can understand that…  or they simply don’t believe it happens…  Some folks DON’T want to acknowledge that changes might happen to them as well – and don’t realize that they need to use their OWN FREE WILL to make those changes – oh yeah, they are scared – they don’t want to give up their limited understanding of their lives – they are just hold on grasping their earthy desires and sinful ways.

God’s plan might scare some, but I know many many people who DO take the final plunge into Naaman’s river – they accept Jesus fully and have been completely transformed…  and those who don’t? well… yeah, it’s a shame – and honestly I have to say that I think that it is NOT always their fault that they don’t understand transformations.

Jesus encourages faith workers, He said if you are not welcomed into a house then shake the sand off your shoes and move (Luke 9:5) and in Revelation it is stated that not everyone will be saved by the time of Jesus at the second coming…. So I send this note today to my fellow worker bees of Christ, to encourage them – they are doing a great job so far – and let’s keep working – and don’t get upset that everyone is not yet where we are…  we do what work we can – we try to be efficient to work God’s plan.  We are trying to wake up as many people as possible to the saving grace of Jesus, but we have to start at square one with some folks – square two might be to at least get them to acknowledge adherence to the Ten Commandments – or maybe because we too sin so much just over the ten commandments we too have to let folks know God is a forgiving God. We DO have a lot of God’s work to do as His hands and feet while we are here on Earth, don’t we??? So, put your sandals on my faith co-workers, let’s keep moving…)

Although many may have seen our changes they don’t want to acknowledge that it was God that changed us. Is it because they are afraid they would get pulled that way too?. .. Are they just are blind or not tuned in?… Are they are standing on a different wavelength??? Maybe…   Eventually we hope that God shakes their wave, increases the frequency of His faith guiding strikes and He knocks then down to another wavelength, until they find that salvation transformation… Sometimes that will never happen because they grip too tight to their current lives… God has many rooms in HIS house, therefore He has many waves of salvation…. we can only pray some people catch a wave at some point.

I have a sweet friends and they might NEVER understand what happened to me in the way I think they could … They won’t comprehend the way Jesus-mediated transformations occur. And even though I try to explain, they can’t get it, BUT that’s OK… Yes we will remind folks, but He our Lord is the only One who will convince folks to take up Jesus and grow Him in their heart. Accepting Jesus causes spillways of goodness into the rest of our lives… Some see it, some don’t… So my faith friends – keep working…  At the bare minimum, God has ALWAYS has given us our smiles… even those who DON’T know smiles are from God can still smile back…

So yes, there are many waves of God’s works – individually tuned to each person – these tunes sound so sweet when you are part of God’s almighty band… With a Salvation acknowledgement comes a wondrous transformation… It’s a Jesus “pick me up” for sure.

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Devotion #2

Music Therapy – Tom Petty – Something Good Coming – Somewhere Under Heaven – Saving Grace

So – yeah – God put that thought of understanding Jesus transformation in my head – that other people are on different wavelengths of Jesus’s light, and I wanted to encourage the workers out there…  So, while writing I listened to all these Tom Petty songs – because music is an awesome way to focus me – and so I am pleased to hear them as embellishments to God’s scriptures – they are interpretations of God’s children that speak to me….  “I am just a singer in God’s Rock of Ages band” to modify that great Moody Blues line…

So – for music therapy here is my “the director’s cut” description of my Transformations devotion – three songs: Something Good Coming – Somewhere Under Heaven – Saving Grace…  I acknowledge them as God-focusing songs to me, but I didn’t want to clutter the writing above, so in post script let me explain them on my wavelength, which may be so different in wavelength then most people’s…

With a Salvation acknowledgement comes a wondrous transformation… It’s a Jesus “pick me up” for sure…

“Something Good Coming” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – yep, “somethin’ good comin’ ” is SALVATION in God’s house  – I know how it feels and I know I need to stay in this “God state of mind” (Thanks Billy Joel) which enables me to continually appreciate that all things are from God – yes, and I will “ride the river” and I will stay focused on God even though honestly there ARE distracting pulls (I know you must have them too because I certainly do) — but Jesus wants me to “HOLD ON”  and I will!!!!  I KNOW  “Somethin’ good comin’ ” Tom sings “I know it will –  And I’m in for the long run – Wherever it goes – Ridin’ the river – Wherever it goes” –  – – I truly wish everyone understood that holding onto their faith is the best part of saving grace… I LOVE riding this river. I am just happy there is a river!!!

“Somewhere Under Heaven” – Tom Petty – This is so easy for me to see that Tom is singing about me, after I DID give my whole life over… Jesus pulled me into the eye of a hurricane of life; there I find rest in HIS arms!!! There is another “Eye of the Hurricane” Paul Simon song too, that I have written about as well… Tom sings about people like me, because I hit an understanding that when Jesus holds me (and I trust in Jesus’ arms) then sometimes He just lets me DANCE in delight (another song is “I will delight in the Love of the Lord…”), I don’t just get lost in his loving arms, I get to dance in the rain…  Tom sings “In the eye of a hurricane, Little Jenny would dance in the rain”…. Yeah, it’s me… “smell the earth and sky – and off her mind would go….” Yeah – that’s me…It’s not hard for me to feel that lyric.. and this one too, where God says “Hold on to what LOVE you find. You’re gonna need all you can get”… THAT, my friends, is what we ALL have to do – that is the LOVE of Jesus…. Don’t let go… Another song pertains here too, Genesis “You’re Own Special Way”… Yes, I have written about that being me too, many times Jesus has been pulling me up, out of the water, when I grab and hold on to HIS hand… “Don’t let go”

“Saving Grace” Tom Petty – The lyric is about running to find the saving Grace and knowing that “there’s a corner of the floor – They’re telling you is yours – You’re confident but not really sure – And it’s hard to say who you are these days – but you run on anyway – don’t you baby? You keep running for another place – to find that saving grace”…  Yes, it was clear that I stopped running and found Jesus by virtue of God’s saving grace – and I wish others would find and accept that too – all us working with Christ…. but it’s in God’s timing for them to acknowledge that they HAVE saving grace. They are on their own wavelengths and we can only shake those waves and pray they wake up to hold onto their faith – God says only a few get thru – when we see those that are on the tipping point of acknowledging their saving grace it is exciting to see their transformations – but we are not responsible for that – we are just seed planters – and God will do the rest…  but yeah – I want to help God out and tell of HIS Good Works…

Smiles God, thanks for the songs, thanks Jesus for the lift – thanks for the Jesus pick me up and thanks for the dance – I will dance in this Christmas Flood everyday if I can – I will dance “somewhere under heaven”

 

——-

“Something Good Coming” Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

https://youtu.be/rSvlJe1mwlw

I’m watching the water

Watching the coast

Suddenly I know

What I want the most

And I want to tell you

Still I hold back

I need some time

Get my life on track

I know that look on your face

But there’s somethin’ lucky about this place

And there’s somethin’ good comin’

For you and me

Somethin’ good comin’

There has to be

And I’m thinking ’bout mama

And about the kids

And the way we lived

And the things we did

How she never had a chance

Never caught a break

And how we pay for our big mistakes

I know so well the look on your face

And there’s somethin’ lucky about this place

There’s somethin’ good comin’

Just over the hill

Somethin’ good comin’

I know it will

And I’m in for the long run

Wherever it goes

Ridin’ the river

Wherever it goes

And I’m an honest man

Work’s all I know

You take that away

Don’t know where to go

And I know that look that’s on your face

There’s somethin’ lucky about this place

There’s somethin’ good comin’

For you and me

Somethin’ good comin’

There has to be

————–

“Somewhere Under Heaven” Tom Petty

https://youtu.be/hqp6euOfd6E

Jenny’s father was a working man
He worked hard to be his best
In the middle of the afternoon
He would give little Jenny a kiss

Somewhere under Heaven
In the eye of a hurricane
Little Jenny would dance in the rain

In the afternoon thunderstorms
The Sun’s shadow’s movin’ slow
She could smell the earth and sky
And off her mind would go

Somewhere under Heaven
In a field of sugarcane
Little Jenny would dance in the rain

One day you’re gonna fall in love
One day you’re gonna pay the rent
Hold on to what love you find
You’re gonna need all you can get

Somewhere under Heaven
In the eye of a hurricane
Little Jenny would dance in the rain

Somewhere under Heaven
Somewhere under Heaven

——————
“Saving Grace” Tom Petty

https://youtu.be/vPYFWnzjIy0

I’m passing sleeping cities
Fading by degrees
Not believing all I see to be so

I’m flyin’ over backyards
Country homes and ranches
Watching life between the branches below

And it’s hard to say
Who you are these days
But you run on anyway
Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace

I’m moving on alone over ground that no one owns
Past statues that atone for my sins
There’s a guard on every door
And a drink on every floor
Overflowing with a thousand amens

And it’s hard to say
Who you are these days
But you run on anyway
Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace
Don’t you baby?

You’re rolling up the carpet
Of your father’s two-room mansion
No headroom for expansion no more
And there’s a corner of the floor
They’re telling you is yours
You’re confident but not really sure

And it’s hard to say
Who you are these days
But you run on anyway
Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace

Don’t you baby?

You keep running for another place
To find that saving grace

Don’t you baby?

 

312B

It’s Christmas time to “Come and Find Peace” 06DEC
……
It’s an annual anniversary this evening of me hearing a song that moved me beyond belief just ONLY one year ago… “Come to the Cradle”…”come and find peace”… I should say that it moved me INTO belief!

I found my PEACE with Jesus by acquiring him into my brain and grew Him in my heart. He WAS already seeded there, an immaculate birth only God could have made in me. God KNEW, Jesus grew. It was my time, so Jesus shined.

This Christmas gift of Jesus coming to me as a baby, I have surely treasured,  I have shared, and I have grown…. I have grown Jesus ALL year, and now my gift this year is FROM ME to HIM, a gift of my LIFE.

It’s true, I did keep my mystical musical merry-go-round of Christmas ALL year… And I had JOY to the Lord… On top of “Come to the Cradle”, I now have layered many new songs all year… Including “All in All” because truly God is EVERYTHING to me. And there is nothing like hearing old songs that are like new to my reborn ears…. And now, a newest song lyric, Holy Spirited to a friend who has the God-gift to write it all down and layer it with mystical music…. “Oh Jesus we give you OUR lives” … I have sang it a hundred times this week in TRUTH!!! I hear it strike a chord for all of us who have come to Christ, with a reminder of “humble hearts”, especially at Christmas…

Being proud of Jesus in us is NOT the message here… Being humbled – that WE NEED JESUS – IS THE MESSAGE…
5 “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. ”

In due time I will be lifted by God’s hand from my sinful ways… EVERYDAY my Father asks me to recommit myself to Jesus, ever day he sends signs, guiding me by FAITH and LIGHT. God knows how to emotionally remind me that I am nothing without Him, I am everything for HIM.

I get to teach Sunday school today about how God humbled a mighty king, by taking his mind away, made him an animal, then restored him (Daniel 4, KING NEBUCHADNEZZAR ). He was lifted when he recommitted to God.

In due time we can all be lifted by God’s hand… EVERYDAY our Father asks us to recommit to Jesus, everyday He sends signs, guiding by FAITH and LIGHT.

Be humble, be filled with Christ, BE STILL. Come and find PEACE.

I begin this new gifted day today, praising…
My devotion today to my Lord, fittingly is with Psalm “52”:
“But I am like an olive tree
flourishing in the house of God;
I trust in God’s unfailing love
for ever and ever.
9 For what you have done I will always praise you
in the presence of your faithful people.
And I will hope in your name,
for your name is good.”

Amen… I truly believe…

 

312A

“52”, 06DEC

“52, why God?”

I have written about God and silly numbers before, but the last few days have been ridiculous… I have stumbled upon or caught the eye of that number “52” probably TEN TIMES everyday for the last few days…whew…. The time shines at the 52 minute mark about five times a day, the temperature shows 52, a video stops at the 52 mark, the mileage on my car stops with a 52, my phone battery hits 52% just as look up, obviously my house number is 52, my late cousin’s age 52, Santa’s autograph book yesterday had a random giant 52 written by a child above his name… Lest you think I am going crazy, can YOU EVEN imagine how I feel??? I am staggered by God overwhelming me…. My analytical mind coupled with my melted heart explodes this Christmas…. And the reason???  I think God is trying to distract ME from ME. And he does this in fun ways (oh the joys of the last week!!!), I am distracted from anxiety-riddled ways and therefore fortified in clear, sober and necessary discussions… And yes, with the number 52, He is trying to humble me, reminding me that ALL my joy flows from HIM!

But honestly I don’t know…

God requests that we gently humble ourselves… Trust me, minor humbling is better than major humbling…  It’s better that I just trip in my new shoes, both in my faith shoes and on my feet, then to fall hard… God says “pay attention!!!”… “Stay on task”. God is conditioning and commissioning me…

I know God is reminding me all this thru my trials, my thorns…. He says: “I got this…. Remember?” Psalm 46 reminds me to be like a river….  “God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day”.

Yes, like HE reminds me,  And I plead to you all: let God remind YOU TOO who is in charge: “7 Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”  1st Peter 5.

“Be still and KNOW I AM GOD.”…. Psalm 46…. God STILL knows how to STILL me, to emotionally and physically remind me that I am nothing without Him, I need to be everything for HIM.

This week He sends “52” to me, next week it will be something new, God likes to mix it up… God repeats himself until I get the message. The message is “I woke you (like Jarius’ daughter) now DON’T fall asleep!!!”… God says you are young now but you are rapidly growing into an elder not because you must but because you ARE willing (1Peter 5)… Elders must take their roles seriously, “NOT lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock”.
——
Scriptures:

1 Peter 5New International Version (NIV)

To the Elders and the Flock
5 To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2 Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

5 In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud    but shows favor to the humble.”
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11 To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Final Greetings
12 With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.

13 She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. 14 Greet one another with a kiss of love.

Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

—–
Psalm 46
For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth. A song.

1 God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.[c]
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
7 The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
8 Come and see what the Lord has done,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease
to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
he burns the shields[d] with fire.
10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
11 The Lord Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.

——-
Psalm 52
For the director of music

1 Why do you boast of evil, you mighty hero?
Why do you boast all day long,
you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God?
2 You who practice deceit,
your tongue plots destruction;
it is like a sharpened razor.
3 You love evil rather than good,
falsehood rather than speaking the truth.[c]
4 You love every harmful word,
you deceitful tongue!
5 Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin:
He will snatch you up and pluck you from your tent;
he will uproot you from the land of the living.
6 The righteous will see and fear;
they will laugh at you, saying,
7 “Here now is the man
who did not make God his stronghold
but trusted in his great wealth
and grew strong by destroying others!”
8 But I am like an olive tree
flourishing in the house of God;
I trust in God’s unfailing love
for ever and ever.
9 For what you have done I will always praise you
in the presence of your faithful people.
And I will hope in your name,
for your name is good.

311

Tiny Tim, 05DEC

Surely we worry – even though Philippians 4:6 states that we should “Not worry but pray”… “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

Surely I DO trust in the Lord – surely I DO pray and I DO listen and I DO petition and I DO accept and I DO give great thanksgiving to God everyday… I say “I DO” like a bride of the church to Jesus…  And I DO know that I have been saved for eternity by His death and resurrection and keep Him alive in and thru my heart.

And yet…  Anxious…  Worry… Yeah how can we be expected to not be anxious?  That is a tough one – we are anxious – and often that does motivate us… It’s human nature and that is one sin I cannot yet shake…  but I am working on it… God knows, I truly am.

God wants us to praise Him – He is the founder of our feast – our maker -our Father – and we are such lucky children that we were gifted Jesus in our own flesh – and we get to carry Him always and we get to  understand that HE LOVES US!

Psalm 91 is recited in the 1951 Scrooge/ A Christmas Carol by the family of Tiny Tim – who had such hope and petition – and yet mourned his death – surely they also thought the Lord would rescue Tiny Tim – I think that Tiny Tim never doubted his salvation and he was to be delivered to a better place – rescued into Heaven – “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.  He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.  With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

So,  I know the prayer of Psalm 91 DOESN’T mean that I will NEVER enter a state of harm here on Earth – because we are all frail humans and at the mercy of humans. We are at the whim of our earth…  I have seen so many many good souls who are struck down here on Earth – but I know that God’s purpose and plan is NOT ours to understand.  Wasn’t even Jesus struck down in his prime? Yes, He was… And Tiny Tim reminds us with his sweet demeanor that God rescued him from tormenting himself about his situation – God gave him a cheery disposition – and Tiny Tim had acknowledgement of HIS purpose –  to remind us – he stated that perhaps he was the way he was so “everyone could KNOW THE ONE that made the lame walk and the blind see.” Tim used himself to teach about God…

We can NOT use our troubles and trials as an excuse to be angry with God – or think that He is not listening… we have to GIVE God thanks because He DOES listen and we DO have life with purpose to live here on Earth – and someday He will bring us the best everlasting life… We are to keep Christmas EVERYDAY here on Earth – and remember to stay in Christ always and keep working the Spirit of Christ within us and SHINE HIS LIGHT thru us – no matter how we feel  – no matter what – God purposes us to rise above ourselves and be with Him.

SURELY God will certainly keep us forever… We will feast in Christ – “Christ – mas” means Christ feast – and he will grow in us always and give us Peace.

God Bless Us – Everyone

 ————————–

Psalm 91 NIV

1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

3 Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
5 You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
8 You will only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High your dwelling,
10 no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;
12 they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”

310

God is Beautiful, 04Dec
I can see photosynthesis working in a Christmas way.

I can see Christmas working God’s WAY.

I can set myself right into the plants thylakoid stacks and dance around with the protons and electrons… I am happy blessed to have glimpsed the natural beauty of life by scientific exploration…. How elegant it all works in miniature, harvesting light into energy….

I can appreciate it all without understanding all the complexity.

I can appreciate God’s plan complexity without understanding all the details.

I can follow God’s LIGHT…

A glittery cross scatters light like music to my eyes…
The promises of life everlasting swirl…

Light intensifies…
Light internalizes energy…

How elegant the world works in silent concert for wholeness…
How beautiful it is displayed for us to appreciate….

Light scatters and dances…
Light spills into and out of our souls…
Light splits into rainbow promises…
We can feel the rainbow…

The LIGHT energizes and makes us WHOLE…
The LIGHT internalizes and makes us smile…

God is beautiful…

309

Revelation in Music Therapy – Patchwork Quilt Bible, 03DEC

Ah – my Music therapy became a great bible lesson today – the whole book of Revelation in song!

I have never read the whole Revelation chapter – but it sounds fabulously complex as a song – it’s Genesis – 1970’s – “Supper’s Ready” – I really really love how the music changes over the course of  – and I really really love the image of being in the bride of Christ – my blue eyes are ready for HIS…

Of course reading the scripture is key – and there is so much to understand in it… it will take me a while to tease it all out of the song – but yeah – end times is going to be some crazy unreal set of events – whenever it happens!  (and actually I hear that Revelation events might be ongoing, hmmm…).

I am not embarrassed to say that I have not read everything in the Bible – and certainly God has brought me to a place where He will feed scripture to me – even in song – so I wrote this statement for God – thanking Him for making me His patchwork quilt:

I am a patchwork quilt of Bible understanding – God makes a warm blanket out of me even though my bible knowledge looks to be a patchwork quilt made of a multitude of bible scraps… God’s WORD is sewn delicately and strongly together into my heart by God’s gentle hands…

——————————–

Here’s the whole book of Revelation – so complex – I love that at the end Jesus will come for his Bride, the church:

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation+1&version=NIV

12 “Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

——————————-

 

Here is part of the Genesis song:

https://youtu.be/szJq1lwnkNw

Supper’s Ready – Genesis

[I. Lovers’ Leap]

Walking across the sitting-room, I turn the television off.

Sitting beside you, I look into your eyes.

As the sound of motor cars fades in the night time,

I swear I saw your face change… it didn’t seem quite right.

…And it’s “hello babe, with your guardian eyes so blue.

Hey my baby – don’t you know our love is true.”

 

Coming closer with our eyes, a distance falls around our bodies.

Out in the garden, the moon seems very bright,

Six saintly shrouded men move across the lawn slowly.

The seventh walks in front… with a cross held high in hand.

…And it’s “hey babe, your Supper’s waiting for you.

Hey my baby, don’t you know our love is true.”

 

I’ve been so far from here,

Far from your warm arms.

It’s good to feel you again,

It’s been a long long time. Hasn’t it?

308

LOVE COURAGEOUSLY, 03Dec
It’s clear that being a child of God not only gives you the youthfulness to see God as a wonderment, but it also gives you the strength to use God as YOUR guide and NOT rely on YOUR own understanding of the world….

With these mass shootings in the last few days, and even small sins and everything in between, we know forever in history that some of the world’s people are and have been convoluted and imperfect… Sadly, this is NOT new but better publicized and certainly more immediate in our minds… today we see more weapons of mass destruction as opposed to simply pouring boiling oil over the castle walls… poisoning ones neighbor, or even sending atomic bombs to kill innocent lives…

God is a courage builder… It’s up to us to progress… to progress into practicing PEACE… to commit to a path to move our anger into teaching, reaching and love, just like Jesus did. Jesus came into a tumultuous world and it remained that way when he ascended… It’s up to us now. It really is…

The recent mass shootings… Oh the anger is all around us and sometimes even worse is the complacency of ignorance… Evil begets more evil… when anger becomes retaliation it is used as an excuse by many to produce more anger… It’s a never ending cycle. The world does not owe anyone a place in it. The world does not owe anyone peace. The world going against you does not mean or give you the right to go against it. You must accept and improve your lot in life, but not at the expense of other lives… Oh how we sinfully forget that as a society.

But how do we not become complacent Lord and how do we not perpetuate that sin of hate?

LOVE, Jesus said LOVE courageously… How? How to love your enemies? How to love yourself? No matter what  – the advice has to be put into practice. Love comes from God – all love.

The bible says the way to love is to forgive… You can’t find forgiveness from God without forgiving others. And yes, it’s hard to forgive or understand mass shootings, it’s hard to live in a weird world where brother kills brother… But God never promised you a garden here on earth, rose or otherwise… God promised us an eternal life if you can find your way, narrow but sure…

Jesus was angry too!!! Was it because so many sinners were complacent?, perhaps not angry THAT they sinned, but angry because they had NO remorse and didn’t want to change?…. Status quo?… Jesus did not hate them but He did petition His Father’s forgiveness for ALL of them.

The world has too many pockets of status quo, of ignorance and want, of complacency…. People sometimes say that other people’s problems are not theirs to worry about – but honestly they are, because other people’s problems are God’s problems…  and God’s problems are our problems too….

The world doesn’t function as one whole being and therefore it’s not surprising that the world does not want to change… But YOU can change, you can buck the trend of hate, you can LOVE.

Love courageously, LOVE to live up to God’s challenge…

If God gave up HIS son for US, we could help God by not killing the rest of his children… Learning to live with all of God’s children…

And we could take on some of God’s problems by taking on some of the world’s problems and making a difference in it. We can make a difference, rely not on your own understanding  but ask God where to put you to work.

How to love your enemy? God ONLY knows….
Help them Oh Lord, help them, help us stop the violence…
But more immediately Lord, help us learn how to not be complacent with the people’s problems in the world, and please teach us how to Live to Forgive just like your son…
….and please guide us children, oh Father, as we learn how to LOVE courageously… walking by faith not by sight… We are courageous for YOU because we have YOU in us. We love because you love.

Amen

307

Yes, My Elf on the Shelf, There is a Real Jesus, 30 NOV

It’s quite often that I bump into a conversation about God and Jesus – and tonight I have to pause to tell you that I got to share the REAL meaning of Christmas with one of the most important people in my life – my son. My son IS my elf on the shelf – my director of activities, my wisdom-speaking genius – the most thoughtful kid ever known to man. He is my baby – he and my daughter are my joys – they are why I work, why I have life insurance, why I lost weight, why I am up out of bed before anyone and why I go to bed well after everyone – they are my purpose, they make me a mom blessed to raise them.

And tonight, over a conversation about an elf on the shelf, I witnessed a miracle and told of a miracle…

SO – elf – my elf is adorable, 11 years old, a thinker – a gentle and sensitive soul… he can explain a bible lesson to me better than anyone after hearing it just once – he takes it to his heart – he truly believes in Jesus and God. But as any eleven year old – he still needs training – he still needs guidance – he is still a product of our society – robbing children of their child-like wonder and making them grow up too fast. Blessedly my elf wanted to clean (yeah unheard of) the living room area so that we could start our Christ-mas village and especially cute is how he set up the nativity scene because he wanted his robotic dinosaur to be looking at the baby Jesus. He patiently waited for me to get off the phone – and sure, it was a very important phone call, but he was waiting and he is much more important than anything else swirling in my life right now. So yes, I shut my phone off and refocused all my attention to him – I only have my little ones for a few more years – and I need to focus on them – my plans are secondary…. God will put me where HE wants me, and not where he doesn’t, and I am not sad at lost opportunities because God’s plans are MUCH better than mine.

So, my adorable elf paused after setting the baby Jesus into the manger scene and then he asked the age old question – “Mom, people say Santa is your parents – and people say your parents move the elf on the shelf” – pause – pregnant poignant pause – what is mom going to say?  I replied “Well… what do YOU think?”  He answers that “I think Santa is God and Jesus and the presents drop from heaven” – pregnant pause – but I of course feel blessedly empowered to explain this: “Well, that is a great thought, but why did God send Jesus to us? – it wasn’t for toys and presents – so why is Jesus God’s present to us? ” – my son says “to give us forgiveness for our sins” – “Yes, but why did Jesus have to forgive us” – “Ummm…” – it is now that I know my mission everyday is to teach why – “Jesus was a gift from God to us – to forgive us from our sins so that …., why?” – “Ummm…” – “Jesus wants us to have ETERNAL —-” – “LIFE!” … Yes! – I knew that bible lesson was in that 11 year old head somewhere – and I hope and pray it stays in his heart and grows there – “Jesus came to save US by forgiveness to give US ETERNAL LIFE with God in Heaven” – silence – pause – thinking – processing… And absorbing ones faith takes time – takes repetition – takes teaching but most importantly reaching and nourishing conversations….

“So Mom – what about the elf on the shelf? – can you tell me if parents move him?”… Ok – time to come clean – I know that it is important to tell the truth and I say “Yes – your parents move your elf” – silence – pause – thinking – processing..… our elf on the shelf was not intended to be that – he is a GREEN elf – an ornament from the 40’s? 50’s? well before this myth started and I was not too pleased to hear the hoopla about it (sorry folks who have fun – but it’s quite a feat to generate even more work for yourself due to a successful movie) – yeah I wasn’t going to buy into it… but my then 9 year old wide-eyed and precious boy discovers this ornament in the box and declares that we have an elf on the shelf – and thank you God he didn’t know that the elf was supposed to be moved every day because neither did I – whew! and then the following year, after he was safely whisked away to Santa’s land at the end of the season, my then ten year old waited patiently for his return… Ummm… where did he go?… Ummm – where is “Hider”? – lost – hmmm… now what?  Yikes, oh dear – and I looked and I looked – and “Hider” was in such the safest spot – that he was so safe that I forgot where he was… rats… crushed hopes for a patient young soul… So my son writes “Hider” a note – about how he is the best hider in the world and how much he loves him – sigh… mom has failed – mom, who never wanted this myth perpetrated, is now caught in the middle of a sad boy longing for his elf… sigh… So tonight – tonight I came clean – I answered truthfully a natural progression of an eleven year old’s questioning… Probably the most important conversation about God that I have had this year – reinforcing that God sent Jesus to be real – to be real for each and every one of us – he wants Jesus in our own hearts to grow us to God – to remind us that we are HIS children… So next question – my son went to go ask his Father the tough next question – “Do you really have Santa’s phone number?” – I paused – I was in peace that I came clean about the elf and that I also shared the Good News!!! – AND THEN I SAW THIS RANDOM TIN CAN – and I don’t know why I picked it up –  I felt something draw me to that can – and poof – there he was!!! “Hider” – our elf – over two years LOST – LOST I tell you – and poof – within three minutes of sharing Jesus – of knocking that elf myth down a notch – there he was – hidden in that can for two years… my son hugs “Hider” and says “I am going to put him in the nativity – he is going to watch baby Jesus for us” – yeah – oh my tears – “YES MY Elf on the Shelf, there is a REAL Jesus.” There is no better blessing than to witness Jesus being born every day in people – especially your own children…

See, I think knowing Jesus is often born in us in stages – we get only enough understanding each time so that each individual can process at that very moment… And so yeah – Jesus is this miracle gift – I understand this in JOY and tonight in tears, when I was stilled by God… I thank you Lord for YOUR hand on my life and in my thoughts – on my family – guiding me every day is a miracle because God IS REAL – Jesus is REAL – the Holy Spirit alive and well – trust me – I know this – I just do – I really really do…

Jesus came to save YOU – to save us – in order to reach us into God’s eternal life – in order for US to reach the others… We want to be REACHING the others – near and far – we have more work to do – and our Father wants us to work at it – and He will reward us with a God-sighting WOW moment when we see His hand at work – it’s not silly- it’s just God watching me and knowing – thanks God… See, I talked about Jesus’s purpose – we all are Jesus’s purpose.

Thank you God for reaching me today – I long to work for YOU always…

Your loving child,

Me

306

I Surrender, 29NOV

Well, I have a lot that happened this long thanksgiving weekend that would normally spin my brain ten-fold! That coupled with a lot already going on in my life, it would have normally led to therapy writing, but I actually DON’T have to write about ANY of it to process it now, and I don’t need to process over a cup of tea, or anything else… BECAUSE in ONE moment it was processed ALL INSTANTLY. INSTANTLY by surrendering it ALL to God.

Yes, when I sang the praise song “I Surrender”, EVERYTHING was lifted, released, and processed…poof…. Truthfully nothing was solved, nothing disappeared, I still have to take the actions to solve the issues, but EVERY stressful angst dissipated and I felt God’s LOVE as I sang that song. I swayed in the music with eyes closed… I felt satisfied in God’s grace.

Jesus grew in my heart as a baby.

Jesus crossed me into eternal life.

Jesus crossed me into PEACE.

I surrendered ALL at that moment to YOU my Lord, the big YOU.

Thank You God, You gave me PEACE!

I wouldn’t tell you ALL of the details of my angst anyway – not only because it would take too many pages, but because my myriad of joys and angst are unique to me and yours are unique to you. But I KNOW, ALL in ALL, God wanted to take care of those issues for me in one swoop. And God wants to take care of them ALL for YOU too. And not JUST my past, not just your past, but ALL of our future too! Dreams and stresses, bliss and blisters…

Yes, God does and will send Jesus into your heart to absorb all your worries, joys, questions, pondering thoughts, and tears…

Surrender it all.

Praise His gift of BLESSED PEACE.

Praise Jesus for changing you, growing in you, as you lay down your own rights… Jesus lays down His own life for yours…

Praise and pause to surrender…. trust me on this… you will admire God’s gifted PEACE. You will want to surrender more and more!

Thanks God for your gift of our Prince of PEACE

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Surrender, Lincoln Brewster:

“I’m giving You my heart, all that is within
I lay it all down, for the sake of You my King

I’m giving You my dreams, laying down my rights

I’m giving up my pride, for the promise of new life

And I surrender all to You, all to You

And I surrender all to You, all to You

“I’m singing You this song, I’m waiting at the cross

And all the world holds dear, I count it all as loss

“For the sake of knowing You,

for the glory of Your name

To know the lasting joy, even sharing in Your pain

And I surrender it all to you, all to You…”

305

Honesty, 28NOV

Honestly I want to be clear that my intentions are JUST to praise what God has done and spread HIS GOOD NEWS… I have nothing to prove to people, that’s not why I want to tell them about my spiritual growth… I was raised to be thankful and honestly I bubble, I can’t help it….. And I try to be humble, but honestly I have to find that balance of humility and just EXPLODING with excitement.

I pray I don’t come off as boastful… People say it’s ok how I am, but I just don’t want to be like the Genesis song “mad man moon” and fly too high with wings of my own from excitement and lose focus… That’s not what God wants. He wants focus… He wants me tethered, because I can’t reach others unless I am seen as down to earth, as one of the fellow travelers to the garden. So sure, l have felt more dancing on the water with Jesus than sinking without Him this year, especially after recovering after a surprising set of devilish trials (doubt, doubt, and doubt) but maybe it’s weird but it’s just me…. Yes, i have heard previously awakened folks tell me I would encounter many trials and I did, and I do, and I pause to praise God for His “own special way of holding my hand” (another Genesis song) thru them… I think God has allowed me this feeling of dancing in my heart to sustain me, to constantly remind me that my smile (our smiles) come ALWAYS from HIM shining thru… And to NEVER want to let go of HIS hand. And since I can still look at my life from an outsider point of view, I know I have such tremendous trials ahead of me…

And before those rough times come my way, I can see how God found this window of opportunity to wake me up into HIS service…. He is continually cementing me strongly into wanting to share share share….

So, I thought I really want to tell my Facebook and friends world about my spiritual writing in the more public forum of blogging. – I am going to share at the 1 year anniversary of my first diatribe writing in mid December.

See I think I became bold (in this still safe blogging manner) for processing AND for teaching… Because those are not mutually exclusive… You don’t have to understand and have processed everything before you can speak about you and your relationship with God… I mean if I hadn’t spoken, questioned and processed out loud, I surely never would be where I am now… and I know God does position me in my friend groups because my friends ARE protecting me from being too loud – too questioning – too processing… I know that God is working THRU them… and yet I know when it is right for me to stretch my wings a bit wider – I don’t think God minds (yet) – because I am trying to stretch ONLY with Jesus holding me up – Jesus will make my heart light and fly – I know – it’s the truth…

God will remind me to stay humble if I don’t…

304

The Bishop’s Daughter, 25NOV

It’s one month to Christmas day… Wow… It’s just about two weeks until I boldly release a new blog at my one year anniversary with one year of chronologically-posted awakening writings… With my amazement of how Jesus was born in me and still grows, I hope you can understand my self-reflective writings… I try also to write reach-out writings, but there are more reach-in writings that I have to still get out, there’s more marveling at the angels that surround me, those “perfecting saints”, as my pastor would say, who touch my life and bless it….

I have written about many of my favorite movies (Miracle on 34th Street, all the Christmas Carol versions, the Song of Bernadette) and this Christmas movie about becoming mindful, “The Bishop’s Wife”. Cary Grant is an angel called to help a misguided Bishop (David Niven), and as an angel he steps into all the roles that the Bishop should have been doing if he was being mindful of his God-sanctioned roles in life. These including guiding a widow over how she spends her money for a wasteful cathedral, guiding a lost professor, and of course the main segment of the storyline, he stepped into the role of making the bishop’s wife feel happy, adventurous, worthy of gifts, worthy of love. How the Bishop eventually wakes up and deals with this is a key lesson. How the angel deals with his jealousy of a mortal man’s richness is a key lesson. How the wife and daughter accept the generous benefits of this angel (not knowing he is an angel) and accept it with grace is a true lesson for me. I have so much from so many.

The Bishop’s daughter is also named Debbie – hmmm…. Angel Cary Grant is teaching her confidence (snowball fighting… Debbie’s love SNOW) as well as sound biblical stories… His fatherly role enables him to teach and help her process the immense blessings of God, and I need that too, we all need that… Any chance to process God’s great gifts, especially with other faithful souls is a blessing…

The biblical story that our angel recounts is that of David fighting the goliath…. GOD gave him the strength that he didn’t know he had, and David thanked God by writing Psalm 23, “The Lord is my Shepherd”… The bishop also overheard this story, he also needed to know that he has SO MUCH because of God…. “I shall not want”

When am I the daughter? All the time… “HE restoreth my soul”… A friend made me breakfast and snacks for work yesterday after a girls night-out sleepover at her house. Another friend is allowing my adventurous spirit to come out in safe, mind clearing and so satisfying motorcycle rides. Another friend shined my shoes, another friend shined my car and is helping me look for Christmas deals.

And scripturally I am the Bishop’s daughter – I have been feeding on spiritual milk… Just today hearing two pastors of mine recounting two stories of gaining strength FROM God, which fortified my heart. First the story in Daniel where three strong souls withstood an actual furnace fire, and the son of God stood strong with them and they not only survived but were witnessed by a king who learned who the real God was. Pastor’s message was that our challenges are testing God… He can overcome even the worst of Satan’s pulls… God will stand with us thru the fires of our lives… We just need to grab for His hand… We CAN reach and we CAN teach that God is the one keeping us alive and at PEACE… Hold on…

A second sermon by my other pastor fortified my heart with the armor of GOD by recounting the story of Mary having been chosen by God. I too am a great child of God chosen for HIS purpose. Mary had to be accepting of the challenge of growing Christ in her, and raising him as God’s son…. God needed her and she accepted God’s challenge, we all SHOULD… we all should accept those challenges in us because we know our strength is from God trying to grow us. I know where God is trying to grow ME right now, I know God will fortify me, and restoreth my soul. It is clear for me that as a daughter, as a child of God, I can play the snowball fights of life… my angels will take care of me! And I can be filled and not want – over and over again – because the Lord restoreth my soul… Surely my angels will take care of me! And I can reach for God in the fires of life and I will NOT perish… my angels will take care of me! And I can accept challenges, I can be bold especially when I accept God’s help and His values to fortify me. While I am graced to be the Bishop’s daughter always (and sometimes the Bishop’s wife, and the Bishop too), I REALLY realize now that I am ALSO tasked by God to become the Angel too… and I have many many children to teach, many professors and bishops to help…. God needs my help… I accept the challenge, boldly… God is with me. And so are HIS angels.

Thank you Lord, You are my shepherd.

——————–

Psalm 23 King James Version (KJV)

23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

303

Potluck Angels, 24NOV

It never ceases to amaze me how small efforts on my part are amplified by God to make amazing things happen…

I didn’t think we would have a ton of people for our work thanksgiving potluck, which I organize each year, but I always say it’s just that, luck, and whoever comes comes, even if it is just two of us eating pie… So ten minutes before the event I rush in late from parent teacher conference and here’s five items plus two great dear friends (who appreciate all I try to do for our 120 work family) and they brought sandwich fixings, cold cuts, awesome, it so made my day… Even if it was a small gathering we would appreciate our work thanksgiving together…

AND THEN…. it was the scene from “The Bishop’s Wife” movie… It was synergy… It made my heart go from a smile to a gush… Cary Grant, movie angel, makes things happen… ANGELS create blessings, make miracles, bring perfection of God’s love together… SYNERGY… In the movie scene, the choir boys are supposed to be gathering for practice, a special rehearsal for the bishop (David Niven) and his wife (Loretta Young), and there are just two boys and the priest is sad to disappoint his special guests… And the angel (Cary Grant) says, “well we don’t have to be disappointed”, he promptly chats with the two boys and gets them to start singing… And as these two pure tones lift, more individual boys start filtering in… One by one adding their voices, the room fills with angelic harmonies, purest of graceful singing, and the Bishop’s wife beams in delight….

That was me, beaming today…. that’s what happened at lunch, to lunch, within ten minutes of those first few generous souls, the room amplified with more and more people and dishes to pass, thirty maybe forty maybe fifty… All these sharing souls filtered in to amplify lunch, amplify laughter, amplify thanksgiving… And there was even extra goodies for those who had not brought anything… They were welcomed in to share the excess… Amplified excess – luck – lunch – LOVE.

Faith in good things and in good people amplifies faith… Faith in accepting and appreciating the bountiful harvest amplifies the meaning of thanksgiving… And we can pour it out to others…

I feel to be the Bishop’s wife SO MUCH because the angels have been coming non-stop to me this year and always… I have been blessed down to the nooks and crannies of my soul… satisfied by saintly angels, my cup overflows, and they fill it up instantly… The bottle of God fills my cup and satisfies… It’s just like in another scene of the Bishop’s Wife, where angel Cary Grant enables the Professor’s wine bottle to always stay full no matter how much the professor (Monty Woolley) pours out into his cup… Our movie angel also helps the professor discover amazing abilities he always had but didn’t realize… That’s our angels too… That’s my angels daily… They luck me up, they fill my pot of gold so I can redistribute blessings to so many more, they make me realize the abilities I have and make me want to share them.

Yes I can amplify God’s gifts – you can amplify God’s gifts – you will want to share, and that will make you smile!

I have Faith in all, especially these “Potluck angels”, because they are no luck at all… They are amplified in thanksgiving… They are amplified in LOVE. And they make me SMILE!!!

302

Grounded Grace, 23NOV

Being a child of God – so many of my prayerful, peaceful times and mystical feelings come from living the words of such soul-searching praise songs…

I LOVE this particular song: “I will delight in the law of the Lord, I will meditate day and night, and like a tree firmly planted I’ll be – grounded in the Word…” (words are based on Psalm 1). Just the other night I sang it to myself during my yoga workout because I forgot my mat and grabbed VBS material which happened to be a patchwork quilt tree trunk i had sowed (haha an appropriate autocorrect for sewed)  – So, I sang the song while stretching on the tree and also while standing in yoga tree pose…

Soul-searching songs and soul-shining songs… that song is both because it reminds us to “delight in the law of the Lord” and search in our souls for where we don’t follow God’s law (yet)… AND it reminds all of us to delight because these blessings flow so very abundantly from God. HE fills our cups and makes our souls shine with the LIGHT of JESUS – especially when we decide to pour from our cup into others …

Yesterday was a prime example of recognizing blessings – an outpouring of gifts to me – all filling my cup… First, I was sitting with many many friends in the first church service, holding hands with a soul sister “L” while we were coming up to the pew. Later, a church member donated $25 towards pizza for our new children’s living nativity party… then a Subaru-friend researched and bought me new windshield wiper blades… So many blessings the Lord poured out… and on top of all that  my neighbor cut down a giant tree for me in my yard encroaching the wires (this same neighbor previously raked and bagged my leaves out of neighborly friendliness). Just like the wayward tree, God’s does gentle pruning in us too – and He urges our souls to be grateful with His blessings, to be satisfied with Him… and to focus on bringing this satisfaction to other by sharing His Ways.

SO many faith friends, to whom I reached out, also had reached back to comfort me… yes I am blessed. I am grateful. I am satisfied with grounded GRACE. “And like a tree firmly planted I’ll be, grounded in your Word”.

I REALLY REALLY appreciated the blessing of being able to sit thru THREE services yesterday… a diverse richness – traditional with a “bell choir” – contemporary with an “electrified choir” – and the special needs service with the “unfiltered choir”… nice – all three were blessed… Of course my great Sunday School kids are always ready to teach ME lessons too – bouncing 5-8 year olds… We started with using the train engines toys as a perfect segue into our story – a scripture from Daniel – These three God-strengthened and obedient men were thrown into a fire so hot (just like the train engine’s furnace) BUT they did not perish and when the King (who had built a giant gold false idol statue) saw them and also saw the Son of God standing in the fire WITH them – WOW – the King knew that their God was the real God and God had saved them!!! The faith of these men was so strong that they were willing to go into the fire because they knew that God was a faithful God – and that I know is the truth! Our Pastor also preached the same themed story this week, so eloquently he shared that when we are IN THE FIRE – it is ALSO a test for God and this is EXACTLY when we will see and feel Jesus the most, and where others will witness how God was the most faithful to us. Yes – I can attest to that – I can feel HIM the most when I burn for HIM and have Him in my heart – Jesus will be there for our fires! Jesus is here with me right now in mine and I grip his hand so tightly, with a warming joy.

During my singing of a beautiful song at the second service, I clasped my own hands and wow I felt like there was a extra strong hand inside my grip… you know when you someone else hold your hand it feels different than when you hold your own hand?… Yeah, I truly have to say, humbly, that it was like Jesus’s muscles holding my hand tight. Wow… Jesus ALWAYS finds a way to me in the fires of my life.

And I was so blessed to stay for the third service (a hat trick) – I so ENJOY singing with these delightful special needs and brain-injured folks!!! I get a chance every couple of months to sit thru their wonderful service – that just makes my day. The woman on my right wanted me to sit with her and she loves to check the colors of all my jewelry and clothes and shoes – and the woman on my left moved up to sit with me – she wanted me to hold her coat and then put her coat on later because she was cold – she HELD my hand and gave hugs and hugs… it reminds me that even though I am away from home and my extended family in their tough times, that we ARE family for these folks because their family is very distant.. these folks are my substitute aunts and uncles who need hand holding – they are my cousins in Christ….these are ALL of our children of God… musically mystical songs came from the woman to my left – who sang the songs before they came – Christmas songs too – that was a true and sweet witness of God taking care of everyone filling their cups with songs of spirit and blessed spilling of excess spirit out into our cups – songs as spontaneous excitement for her and she knew the right words too – more than just memory filler, those songs came, most importantly, directly from her HEART… Oh I was so blessed to share with those children of God…. They lifted my SPIRIT…

I will delight in being a Child of God too…

Grounded in the Word…

Grounded in Grace…

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Psalm 1 NIV

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Jeremiah 17

Aleph

Beth

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I Will Delight (In the Law of the Lord)

Words and Music by Walt Hurrah and John A. Schreiner

I will delight in the law of the Lord

I will meditate day and night

Then, like a tree firmly planted, I’ll be rounded in Your Word

Blessed is the one Who follows the way of the Lord

Blessed is the one

Satisfied Oh, so satisfied

Satisfied

301

Mountain Climbing by Faith, 21NOV

So God has moved mountains for me this year, and in actuality moved them for my whole life…. he has dissolved so many that I didn’t even know a mountain was ever in front of me, because He was making them into flat plains (Zechariah 4)… He did this BECAUSE I was determined to climb them… and I certainly appreciate that God!… Because I always wondered why You Lord made SO many things easy for me in my life.. Did I really have it that easy? Or is it that you made me equal to my challenges? Or that so far you made my challenges equal to me? So God, I never ever doubt that You made me, I never doubt God that You gave me my skill set. Even a dear atheist friend calls me a force of nature… Yup, I have to agree with him, I am a force of nature, because we ALL are forces of nature, because we are ALL made FROM GOD – we are made from the dust and HE called to work the soil that we are made from. Yes we are made from the dust but we are so complex – we have been made in the most unique and God-caring way… God knows every hair on our heads… He molds us like the gentle potter He is. “O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand.” Isaiah 64:8

God knows He wants to use ME for HIS WILL – He is a potter and i am clay – He will smooth out my imperfections or He will break me and use my dust again for His purpose (Jeremiah 18).

God knows me and my mountains…

This awakening year God moved me. In addition to the continuous easy to climb plains, God also brought at least three mountains directly TO ME this year… He moved me, awoke me and made my vision clear to see the mountains were already standing there, waiting, and I wasn’t climbing… God can’t make my mountains into plains if I don’t even acknowledge their existence. And now I acknowledge… Acknowledge I did and started my climb…

First my FAITH – I acknowledged it was not right and I started to climb… First I was allowed to take my car and drive partially up the mountain, second I was able to climb by foot and by sight AND by sound, and then for the final summit I had to climb by FAITH…. FAITH and FAITH alone. I was not blindfolded but blinded by the glorious LIGHT OF JESUS. I had to take the final leap of faith by FAITH.

Second, a mountain of physical health… I didn’t realize I had the power in me all along. I just didn’t know I was capable of this, God made this migration to healthy eating an easy climb, a mountain into a plain because I started climbing with His willpower. I started climbing and have reduced 25% of my body weight… 25, a blessed number…

Third, a mountain I am choosing to climb NOW, because it won’t move… I will tell you later what it is, after I see where I am going… But know it’s a mountain that impacts my happiness which impacts everything else. I am surprised but ready to climb along a completely different route that I didn’t expect. First…. it’s time to FIRST crawl out of the cave below; just to get up to the base of the mountain. This cave I didn’t know I was in, and how to get out? BUT Jesus lit my way and there is that mountain, standing in my way, plain as day, right in front of me.

I now stand at the base of this next mountain, and I question: “God, is this REALLY the mountain I scale next?” “Yes my child. It’s time to scale” – “Yes my child, first drive, then start out on foot and climb. Climb first by sight then by faith… look and listen to ME, I will call YOU. I AM here and when you are blinded by the dark AND blinded in the LIGHT. You won’t know where you are going until you get there, but that’s ok because I AM there. My child, walk by faith and this mountain will crumble too. I will bring you thru safe because I LOVE YOU. This mountain will crumble under your feet but you will be safe. I have you safely IN MY ARMS.”

I have to believe that Jesus will catch me for my new leaps of faith because He already caught me on my biggest jump. He is in me, He will carry me, I have to HOLD ON, life’s a bumpy ride.

Thanks Jesus for lighting my way. I cling to your cross to climb. I have your hand in mine now. Dip me into the water when I fail, lift me up when I reach.

It’s time I climb.

I will be fine.
God’s LIGHT will shine.

Jesus’s LIGHT is forever mine.

300

Thanksgiving Grace, 19NOV

I missed seeing my homeless friend Mike, he went somewhere else for a couple weeks but I guess it didn’t work out and so he is back at his original spot. I was pleased that perhaps he found a good spot for the winter to stay warm but I also missed him, of course you also would enjoy rolling down your window to hear “Good morning, Gorgeous, how’s things?”

Well I was happy to see him yesterday… talked to him for a second until the red light changed… “Good morning gorgeous” he said and asked how I was doing and how my family was doing and I said please pray for my family and he made the sign of a cross… I did too… it was a instant way to share in caring prayer, a silent prayer that was oh so meaningful… there’s a Bible story about the Widow’s Mite and giving everything she could to help… Mike didn’t have much but he shares the most important thing… a fun personality, a love of life, encouragement, and a smile… and today a shared prayer – his purpose is to uplift the world just be being himself. Those attributes are worth more than any gold or diamonds….

WE think of the homeless population far off and tucked away…. Mike’s stuff is semi-hidden, tucked away.. I saw the edge of a tarp from my car when I went to dump my paper recycling at a church next door, so I slipped over for a photo just cuz he wasn’t there… but I thought I’d like to share with you how the other half lives.

Sunny disposition was graced on him… he appreciates what he does have not what he doesn’t. And oh how the people have been donating and donating all this stuff that you see. I appreciate that he has a suit hung up in a tree. he knows how to take care of his stuff it’s just a little bit unorganized but then again so is my car!!! You would totally believe that I lived in my car!!!

So it is a travesty in America that we have not figured out how to help ALL the homeless… granted many of them DON’T want to go into the system, they don’t want to be constrained, they want their freedom… and honestly, in this area, they can live day today out in the open because we DO have good weather here. They can experience freedom even if they don’t know where their food will come from.

So, this Thanksgiving week I’m thinking about all those who are out in the open… and perhaps their purpose is to keep reminding US of our graced lives. This year the hoopla has been on not taking in refugees and about red cups without the right symbols… Wake up people, life us but about people fighting over these topics, but about honestly just getting down to business, taking care of what needs to be taken care of, and giving thanks…

Think globally, act locally… reach out and figure out what we can do… if nothing else, people like Mike remind others to stay thankful, to smile. It’s important to keep important issues out in the open, in the light.

So I give thanks this thanksgiving week for Mike. I give thanks for the true treasures of life – the priceless time I have, and the abundance of grace that we ALL have received.

299

Rainbow Cup, 19NOV

Just saw a beautiful subtle rainbow, it’s not raining just misty, not really sunny… So delicate but so real… It came as I was talking to God – wondering…. I have pondered and pondered…. “Lord”, I said, “I know prayer is the best first and last option… I know you move mountains but I don’t know always which mountain to pray to you to move for me, and when to move it… but  i know that YOU know, Lord, you will take care of me….” And then i caught glimpse of the rainbow…

And the next praise song i heard was “Just to be with you… Here’s my cup Lord fill it up…. I’m face to the ground… I’ve come to the end of me – you made a way for me…” yes, God gave this timely rainbow, a path to follow…

God gives the Sun thru rain, Son thru pain, smiles thru tears…

He gives us ALL a promise that He will take care of us in the most important way…. “nothing compares to knowing you Lord”…. Yeah, even through tough times God still finds how to make smiles thru tears.

God puts rain in my cup, today the rain was in the form of a rainbow… His promise eternally refilled…

Thanks for listening God… Thanks for being God…

298

Daniel, 16NOV

Currently, this sermon and Sunday school series on the book of Daniel has been really \ good for me, bible education with “new to me” scriptures that I get to learn and teach…( it’s not lost on me that Daniel decided to be purposeful with his eating vegetables instead of the kings food and was much more fit… as my last year has blessed me with fitness).

Daniel reminds us, reminds me to keep praying to God for answers…. Daniel interpreted the king’s dream and God can help me interpret my own… Even and especially when my dream is filled with fears….

I know I rush God sometimes and ask HIM for things out of frustration instead of praise, and yet HE knows my prayers of “wordless groans” he knows my dreams…. Even in my joys I worry that I have escapism into God’s loving arms, sometimes my praises masking my fears. And yet I know as jumbled as my mind can be – God is solid, understanding, and forgiving. And in God I find PEACE.

BE STILL AND KNOW I AM GOD… We need to “still” ourselves and LISTEN… And that will always be where we gain strength…

God twinkling in heartaches

inside dreams means He is ALIVE and working on our way to light.

Open my eyes Lord…

Your Grace IS sufficient… Lord guide us, guide me, I trust YOU.

Thanks for listening God…

297

Thou Shall Not Covet, 15NOV

I am up, 2:30am… Why Lord?

I need sleep, I slept all five hours really well, so if I write this all out, will you let me go back to sleep, Lord?

I will write this backlogged thought… My great sin right now is a basic one – a ten commandments basic one: “Thou shall not covet”…

See, my old greatest sin used to be NOT believing in Jesus as the Son of God (minor point, huh? oops). But now, I know am truly NEW in CHRIST, just like 2nd Corinthians states, and I know I am blessed to have been made new… I do feel new, I am new, I am SO different… But there are many NOT so different aspects of my life, still rough spots to iron out, hmmmm…

So God had been taking care of a lot of those things that started changing life for me for the better – God changed them in rapid fashion – and God always would like to hear some appreciation Hallelujahs from me to praise HIM, so YES, Lord, “Thank You and Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah”)….

The things that changed were rapid – but now in my accelerated time frame of expectations, I am not sure if I am allowed to say “what’s next God?” Am I allowed to make a laundry list of improvements I would like to see? What’s the next moving mountain, Lord? Do I push God? Do I let it be? Do I instead try to change me and not the situation? Am I simply being impatient? Am I asking too many questions because this is ALL new to me???

“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 NLT”

God wants me to focus on HIM, of course, and we all desire Jesus to grow in the most intense way in our hearts, so why should I want even the slightest bit more? I know God wants us HAPPY, happy enough to do HIS work – and He wants us content. So I ask Lord, why am I still tinged with jealousy and want for even more than you already gave me? There are small scale wants and large scale wants… I want more sleep, sure, but that’s small scale – no biggie – and I know I might catch a nap later today after church… But large scale wants? are we allowed to want? Hmmmm…. !!!!

See I know it is NOT always jealousy over things… NO, for me it’s coveting the LIFE THAT I THINK I COULD HAVE… !!!! God gives real commandments warning about jealousy. I don’t have a quick fool-proof answer or solution for this perplexing issue of how not to be jealous, but I do know I want to be content – But perhaps God doesn’t ALWAYS want me to be content, otherwise how would I’ve stayed motivated? I don’t know the answers here –  And just like when we put on a sweater when we are cold, we seek out others when we are lonely, and we strive to be the best we can be… perhaps God says “OK, I will give you free will enough to motivate you to improve your lot in life as long as you are doing it for the right reasons… TO PLEASE ME…”

His Grace IS sufficient and it’s my job to show and to tell others that too… And if you improve your lot in life enough to help that cause, perhaps God says OK… Good works won’t get you into heaven, so since we are IN already (we hope), it’s time to spend time instead working the rest of HIS WILL – which is spreading the Good News, and improving the lot of the masses.

So I ask you Lord… if I strive for my desired plan and I pursue it, am I a sinner? Well, yeah, I am already a sinner; we all are sinners… that’s why Jesus came!!! But OK, but do I become an even GREATER sinner then?… So can I pick and choose my sin?

I don’t especially expect any answers here Lord… I don’t have wisdom that deep, but I do appreciate Your PEACE when you give it to me… So, I will try to be at peace at being a sinner, and I will use this burning sin question of mine  to depend on Jesus even more…. I WILL depend on asking YOU each time I become jealous of what I THINK I could be and what I THINK I deserve… If I decide to improve “my lot in life”, I will pray to ask “am I doing it soulfully for You and YOUR ultimate goal? Or am I doing it solely for me?”

I pray Lord, that sometimes we can get our goals to align, just like stars… I will pray to contribute greater to further YOUR will… and if it pleases YOU, then please make our desires mutual… Please let Us agree sometimes…

I LOVE you Lord, You know I do.

Thanks, and let’s get some more sleep, ok? Thanks for the chat, Lord… You rest up too ok?

PEACE

LOVE,

Your growing child.

296

It’s 5:45am, what am I doing up so early on a Saturday? God says my Grace is sufficient for you and so is seven hours sleep, you got solid sleep, now wake up and let’s write….

The stars are so faint here in the offcast of city lights, but the planets shine… It was Venus who called me outside this crisp November morning, to see how it aligns with Mars and Jupiter… Perfect, straight and sharp…

And then I turn to see the Pleiades…. They are SO faint but I can find them. They are mini, they look like a mini dipper with half a handle… They twinkle…. Oh how faint they are and yet my eyes catch them twinkle as bright as a Christmas tree. My eyes have seen their light. Mine eyes have seen THE light. I know God blessed me and kindles a great FIRE in me for Him. I am YOUR child God, please shine me where I can do the most good for you.

God wants me and wants you to see HIS twinkle… The twinkling of God working in all things…

Ah, thanks God, that’s what you me to write about today…. I just wrote that twinkling part while leaning against my Subaru with its Pleiades logo of six stars, as I fancy being the seventh sister… And yes, I fancy that I personally twinkle with a different light, the LIGHT of Jesus shining thru my soul… I write to let you know that God loves YOU… That is a warmth I pray you all know. The warmth of Jesus in your heart and the clarity of Jesus in your mind.

Twinkling, 14NOV

God twinkling… God can come with the full force of nature, but God likes to make things twinkle, dabbling extra sparkles in all our lives. God puts the twinkle in our sight. God puts the twinkle in our eye. God loves us.

God shows us glimmers of hope when someone is awakening to the concept that they are worthy of God’s graces, they start to twinkle. God brings joy and peace to sorrow, brings LOVE and understanding, brings healing and hope, and brings salvation with forgiveness. We ARE forgiven when we forgive others and forgive ourselves. We have God in us to twinkle. We can shed light on others and give them hope. We can be the spark to light or relight the realization that God wants them to shine.

Staring at the stars, even when the city lights are too bright, you can watch the twinkle. Not only do we gaze upon this glorious display of light orchestrated and piercing the dark to reach our souls, we get to see the stars twinkle subtle and focussed… Light generated so long ago still being moved thru the universe, we are seeing the past because these stars are so far away. We see twinkles of explosive fires too faint to hear and feel with our other senses, but it is truly dazzling to our eyes… It will draw our focus.

We can focus, we can see twinkling in our favorite uplifting friends, they shimmer, they shine, their cups overflow with sparkles. Their smiles and their kindness kindles hope.

We can focus, we can try to see the twinkling still left in those down and out people when we look long enough and deep enough. We can tease apart thorns in jaded and frustrated folks and ask God to send some HOLY SPIRIT wind their way to light a FIRE to burn away some thorns. We can pray for them to stoke the FIRE of Jesus in their own hearts.

God wants me to show the FIRE in my soul, He wants me to focus the fire on His plan, He wants me to urge you to look for yours…

Because you are made of God’s Spirit, He can make you twinkle. He wants you to focus on your fire then get ready to shine.

If you have shined and burnt bright, keep your embers going, you now have the most intense heart, you have the most intense heat to light others.

Jesus burns bright, follow the internal LIGHT…

God loves YOU…

Jesus saves YOU…

Jesus brings YOU home forever…

God IS forever…

Twinkle…

295

BE THE CHURCH, 12NOV

VBS scriptures still ring true…. Today as I put away 4-month-old VBS material I remembered that God provides, heals, forgives, gives eternal life, and comforts us…. But this is NOT JUST for us, He comforts us so that we can comfort others….

Initially my phone autocorrected to “He churches us so that we can comfort others…. And yeah, that’s true, God puts us in churches to help others. He “churches us” by surrounding us with HIS fellow children to help us and for us to help them.. “Be the church”…. I am NOT talking about the building but about church the faith community…. God wants us “churched” because as saved souls we are tasked to disciple all nations… Every week our blessed pastor always says “Go out and BE THE CHURCH.” And he means it! It’s because out there is where WE are needed, it’s where Jesus is needed! Our churching is not always for us to be fed, but for us to multiply the feeding… just like Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes… Turns out that the ones being fed by us will feed us back too. We are blessed always by sharing HIS LOVE.

See the bigger church in Jesus’s frame of mind is not the building at all, the church is the people under the steeple and outside the walls….

It is easier to BE THE CHURCH when you ALSO allow yourself to “be churched” by God. Unless you allow God to place you where you are supposed to be in HIS plan, it’s going to feel like fighting an uphill battle (you know ultimately God will win anyway)… once you feel comforted, once you feel searched, churched, and saved by God, then it’s time to go and be the church yourself… You were saved for God and HIS glory, not yours… It would behoove you to tell others of God’s power to provide, heal, comfort, forgive, and give eternal life…. Likely, you are already doing this! And you likely don’t have to reach much further then using your own God-given skills, and if you are questioning how to help God, well just ask Him… I betcha HE already knows what skills HE wants you to use. At minimum, it’s not a stretch to be your own witness to how God has blessed you… Yes, others will be able to see the genuine God-workings in you.

Being THE CHURCH also means feeding the masses, feeding their souls and taking the time and opportunity to heal wounds… And trying not to inflict new wounds… And yet we are human, we make mistakes. Well, God wants you to “go and sin no more”… God can help you on all this, because God is ALIVE and working on YOU. Perhaps others seeing you repair your human brokenness will be inspired to ask God to work on their brokenness too.

Jesus and the whole church as His bride, will come together, and oh – that will be the most glorious sound ever, I betcha ALL the bells will ring then. Grab your flowers… Hear the bells…

Remember that God loves YOU so very very much.

————-

PS… although you can witness and feel God’s love anywhere, I truly do believe it would behoove you to be in a physical church building-setting too (maybe a couple) with church people to help you be “churched”… because even though God works on you independently, having a net already set up will catch you both from falls and from overreaching leaps…. Personally when I started falling into Jesus’s arms and started tossing and tumbling in initial confusion, I turned to people who were already waiting with the net… My personal net wasn’t always in the worship service, but in front of the copy machine, in front of a repair shop, pushing a baby in a stroller, in discussions over sweet potato fries, in email chats, and even that day when I reached to my pastor it wasn’t over breaking bread and wine but pizza and birch beer…. So yes, “be churched” because Jesus can take care of you best with HIS woven net of family. Weave in for strength, then reach out to catch more fish. And those fish will continue to strengthen the net for all. I am ever BLESSED to be in GOD’S net.

293

Media Christian – I am a Christian as a direct result of media…. Media Resources were/are preveniently conveniently placed so that I could realized how Jesus mediated God’s Grace…

Here is my devotion (I feel this amplification to my first “real” Christmas starting in me…):

Media Christian, 10Nov

Media at my fingertips, easy, accessible, freely shared…

Media of recorded sermons, God opened my ears,

Media of recorded music, God opened my heart,

Media of prevenient Facebook faith friends, God opened my eyes…

Media of biblical scholarly websites, God opened my brain…

Media-enabled email conversations, God opened my soul…

Media-enabled writing….

 

Writing

Writing

Writing…

 

Writing God…

Writing from my heart,

Writing to my brain,

Writing to warm my soul,

Writing to touch YOUR soul…

Media enabled God sharing thru email…

Media enabled God sharing thru blogs….

Media enabled God sharing Salvation thru one’s internalized Jesus…

Media Christian…

 

Christ a Media-tor for God.

Media me Jesus, mediate me…

 

ME-D-I-A Christian spelled out = Me, Debbie, I Am Christian

ME-D-I-A-T-O-R CHRIST = Me, Debbie, I Am Telling Of Risen Christ

292

Soften Your Heart and Thrive, 07 NOV

“Women saved thru childbearing”… Paul could mean so many things in 1st Timothy, I can’t read Greek or Hebrew for my own slant, and I KNOW the customs of the time were very DIFFERENT…. But what does this Jesus baby (now a growing child) in my heart say to me TODAY about being saved thru childbirth?

Soften and Thrive, 07 NOV

In 1st Timothy, Apostle Paul wants this for women: “9 I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, 10 but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.”

Before we jump down Paul’s throat for such expectations of women being silent (and I highly doubt they were) at that ancient time and i am NOT going to go into those discussions in this piece, let’s also look at what Paul wants for men: “8 Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.”

Well, sure, what’s the chance of that? Men without anger? Even Jesus had anger towards men… Anger and strife is human… But anger towards God? No…. See Paul may have desired what God desires, men to be praising (regardless of thorns in their sides) and NOT take anger WITH GOD for one’s lot in life… Paul urges the raising ones hands in praise and surrendered belief that Jesus took the judgment consequences for us all. Men (ALL OF US these days) are to have no dispute with God – settle your anger, forgive each other, soften your heart to feel Jesus’s compassion and weep with HIS tears, just like the song states…

When we think of childbearing for women, we see (and I certainly felt) the giving of one’s whole body for the baby. Not just carrying the strain but physically and mentally, hormonally and nutritionally, all aspects of childbearing changes the whole body. Women saved thru childbirth also means that it is US bearing Jesus into and thru our hearts. (note: to read when Jesus was being born in me please see writing # 7, Christmas Eve Labor, 24 Dec)… I so felt this amazing change in my heart – and so bore Jesus thru my physical, mental, hormonal, and nutritional states… In body and spirit, Jesus was born anew in me from the seeds God placed into me, which he carefully watered. Then he sent the HOLY SPIRIT to DRIVE all the players into position – so that when HE flooded me with a Christmas Flood (writing #2, Christmas Flood), I was ready to give birth – with spiritual doctors and nursemaids aplenty… A baby Jesus, that i could no longer deny, was being born at the proper time in my life – at time when i was emotionally ready to raise and grow this child. I pray you have born or will bear Jesus when you are ready. Bearing Mary’s tears at the death of her son and weeping Jesus’s tears at his crucifixion will cleanse your soul.

Trust me that adorning oneself with a baby Jesus is beauty – not from gold or pearls or fancy clothes… Oh, there is no greater beauty then that which can been visualized when Jesus’s smile is on your face…

After childbearing, life-calling is not done… there is child-raising, Of course Jesus is not going to feed himself, he was a baby – He and all babies need to be cared for – nurtured, taught, and fed. A women’s work is not done at childbirth – NEVER done when all the world are God’s children. Truly BOTH men and women can begin this journey of raising God’s children in TODAY’S customs… Once born, Jesus in ALL men and women needs proper spiritual nutrition – less junk – more of a healthy diet that we can feed into our temple bodies and minds… Jesus will eek by with all our non-nutritive ways – but he will THRIVE when we feed him right. Because of Jesus’ growth we will THRIVE as well…

Babies (and especially baby Jesus) will soften your heart – babies will kick you mentally into surviving and thriving because you have to give yourself to raise them – and when you can compassionately give of yourself – the baby will grow and thrive… Yes, YOU can grow Jesus and not begrudge the situation – you can thrive because Jesus grows in you. You can weep with Jesus’s tears for compassion for the world when yours dry up – and YES Jesus’s Godly tears will fill your cup – from the inside. I hold my cup up, Lord, fill me up….

Soften your heart and Thrive…..

Amen

—————————————————–

“Soften my heart, Lord Soften my heart From all indifference Set me apart To feel your compassion To weep with your tears Come soften my heart, O Lord Soften my heart” Graham Kendrick

——————————————-

1 Timothy 2 (NIV)

Instructions on Worship

2 I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time. 7 And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a true and faithful teacher of the Gentiles.

8 Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing. 9 I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, 10 but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.

11 A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. 15 But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.

291 Clarity of mind, balance of life…, 04 Nov

1John 4:4, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”

So, yes I am ever blessed…. I had a sweet motorcycle ride today… only the fourth in my life, two when I was 18yrs old as a gullible college teen finding her new way in a big big world, and two recently, 28 yrs later, now established, now found, now assured of my place in the world, but trying to rise above…

It’s a balance between faith that you won’t get hurt and the thrill of life on the edge… And I mean that for BOTH riding the bike and loving life… Honestly, I knew and trusted the safe care of my wonderful generous friend (who knew I just needed to clear my mind that day)… I felt very little fear… I was likely more safe on that bike than some other thrill situations I could have put myself in… I was being taken care of the best I could be, and we rode a sweet fifteen minutes thru beautiful fall foliage over back roads, past flowing water, into the valleys, and warmed by the Sun… Yes, I went from initially gripping tightly for my life to soon feeling the balance. I was nestled on this massive (and new) Harley and my fear dissipated… but as ALWAYS my respect remained for I was being held in the balance of life by both the bike and by the firm hands of God’s faithfulness…. I do respectfully fear the Lord, I trust in HIM, and because of that, I found how (both in life and on the bike) I was able to loosen my gripping fear of death, relax and enjoyed the ride…. Life is for enjoying the ride…

With God, we will overcome. We will overcome this world and the evil ways of torment because God blesses our journeys when we walk with HIM… We have the One who overcame in our souls – that’s Jesus… Yes it is… Yes HE is… He is right there, homegrown in our hearts, ready to lead us home.

Clarity of mind and balance of life…We pray: Clarify for us, oh Lord, the path… Clarify your WILL… so that we can loosen our fear of this world and walk in line with your LIGHT. Clear the fog from our lines of sight Lord, to see ourselves – actually so that we can see YOU in us. To balance us Lord, we need YOU ahead of our steps, we need to rest our fears in YOUR precious gentle hands. We need to hear YOUR voice inside, please quiet the clamor… Oh our precious Lord, rise us above this world… when we overcome fear to find peace IN YOU, then we will know we are made OF YOU…

I will wait on YOU, Lord, and trust in your WILL. I will return myself back to YOU, and then I will be balanced and whole.

Amen

 

290 Fasting, #2, 01NOV

So, a couple friends asked me about fasting…. My.cousin in (a strong fit 70 yr old) told me that when you do yoga you should fast twice a month… So, I do it for BOTH health and spiritual reasons… And it really does help remind you NOT to do mindless eating… To be conscious on all thoughts… Last time I fasted (Sunday after Halloween excesses), I mindlessly grabbed and nibbled on something small not out of hunger but out of mindlessness and then a second later said, “WAIT! I am fasting today”…. And it clued me in that I wasn’t as focused as I thought… That subconscious emotionally eating happens in a flash.. Emotional eating is both for stress and for rewarding… Like I said before, I didn’t hate myself or my body, I just didn’t realize the damage I was doing mindlessly… now I realize to “treat my body like a temple”…. the real reason that I have a mind, that I exist, and I am happy is because of God’s graces. I rewarded myself with ice cream and snacks, sugared drinks just as much if not more than when I would do negative stress eating… Had a nearly a pint of ice cream after shoveling snow last year as a reward… That mindless arm to mouth motion… So yeah even now I am not perfect under control for mindless eating, but at least THIS time I grabbed a healthier option… This time I mindlessly ate a pack of tasty mustard… Free at the stores, and gives a feeling of a treat… A great tool when you feel that stress…

When you autonomously eat and act, you are not clued into the life you were gifted to have… When you break the fast, you should do it purposefully – this time I broke my fast by gratefully sitting with my family for dinner. I eat purposefully all the time now… Filling my body with good healthy stuff, and purposefully a treat on occasion, especially this birthday/Halloween week. So, you all know me… it’s not over the top for me to jump for joy in my life… The joy and praise I have is for GOD giving me the gift of a NEW LIFE, life is for living, life is for mindfulness, life is for praising…

Smiles…

(I could post a photo of the difference that nine months makes…. If one could have a baby in nine months, then one could certainly change your WHOLE life in nine months too! and God did that for me – thank you Lord!)

290 Fasting, 01NOV

Why am I fasting today? Um, I am not sure…. But it’s a combo of things…. Fasting from food to remember God, yes it’s a very valid reason, but honestly I can easily fast nowadays, so hmmm just doesn’t seem I have done enough sacrifice to serve the ALL in ALL magnitude of our majestic God, to feel the sacrifice of HIS son… I hope my fast is not diluted in meaning when also I fast from food for diet health because I certainly overdid the sugar treats this birthday and Halloween week (not excessive but still)…..

Yeah, probably the real reason I am fasting today is to simply to remind myself that I have been blessed to hunger for the Word instead of food… and that 100% is what factored into fifty pounds weight loss(to date), I just changed everything… Since I don’t hunger for food, now I get to place just the right body nourishing foods into my temple for God. So healthy food nourishes, therefore I think I need a better fast to focus on HIM in a way that helps me remember withdrawal and lacking and the suffering Jesus had… Maybe, just for one day, I should stay away from feeling happy for myself? Or maybe I should not internalize so many compliments I’m getting lately both for my writing and for my improved health? Maybe I should not be so proud of myself? Maybe I need to sacrifice doing things I enjoy? Hmmmm… Fasting from critique? Fasting from judgment? Fasting from self righteous thoughts? Do I need that? Yeah, I need to withdraw from feeding my head… I wonder if I need to witness that I am truly giving up something, that I am really sacrificing… What should it be, Lord??? How?….

Maybe I also need to fast from self pity, anger, frustration at my situation and other people’s situations…. WAIT…. NO…. Maybe withdrawal from stress is NOT what I should fast, but instead add extra prayer about it all…it’s really about asking Jesus to hold hands in stress AND in JOY… And of course what if these events are NOT for me to control? What if these are affirmations and challenges FROM God? From and through other people, who go out of their way to do or say complimentary things…. So yes, I have been blessed from God working in them… And they want to encourage me… Hmmmmm…. THIS complicates things because I can NOT fast from the works of people… Even if i escape the world, those people still would be there working to bless all I hold dear… Maybe just maybe… What if I’m not supposed to fast from feelings at all? Maybe am I supposed to feel ALL those feelings and use them ALL to remember that God is the one who will help me through the feelings, good and bad… Elation and sorrow… ALL in ALL…

Yes, God is the one who brings rich blessings… So to be enriched by others, joy and strife, it’s a gift, I am comforted and blessed to feel every feeling… praising HIS works… Today, I remember it’s God in me to do HIS works. I am made from God in spirit and flesh, HE wants all of me to work on FIRE for HIM. From dust (stardust) I came, and to dust I will return… Fire burns longest from solid fuel sources, and Jesus-fuel will never cease burning… GRACE has brought me safe thus far and Grace will bring me home…

Fasting or not, it’s God’s saving plan.. I’ll think about TODAY and EVERYDAY….

God’s AMAZING GRACE. God focuses everything and anything for HIS plan in my life…

I will NEVER fast from God

289

The Moon, 31OCT

If you have read my writing, you will know that the moon is following me. (Or am I following the moon?) And why did God place the one moon (with such a pondering face shape on it) JUST SO for me to fascinate about this year? NO, the moon IS the same beauty it has always been, I am the one who is DIFFERENT…

I woke up thankfully after a full eight hours needed rest, I rarely wake up to write at 230 am anymore, I know now that God was then telling me to wake up to talk to him and write it out. And now I talk to him comfortably, never ceasing, all day long, even when I say “OH GOD this is wrong for me to say or do”…. So I write this devotion now “just to write”, this Saturday morning, rested before an exciting day ahead…. no angst or bounding geyser ready to blow, I write in the peace and warmth of appreciating what I appreciate now.

So this moon…. it’s right perfectly there smack dab in my sight, photo attached. Lying here at 5am, I just woke up, tipped my head up and there’s that blinding bright moon looking at me… just like I saw outside last night coming home… just like always, tracking me. The moon gets my attention like no other, the Pleiades I have to search for, but not this moon!!! I notice it before I look for it…. I hear every song lyric about the moon sing special to my ears. So many many songs, no wonder that after I awoke with the help of music that I STILL have such an awesome soundtrack running thru my head… And alas, when the moon is gone for a few days I miss it, I truly do. I feel BLESSED to track it by sight and when it’s gone there is a void.

And that’s what I think I am supposed to write about this morning, the moon I notice fresh and new now, just like I newly notice Jesus now…

Jesus has ALWAYS been there for me, I just didn’t see HIM, i wasn’t looking either and I certainly didn’t track him… but HE WAS THERE… I am awake now and my appreciation is amplified SO MUCH. Jesus waited ever so patiently for me to notice HIS saving arms. God worked and worked HIS system shifting and blowing all the pieces together again and again – but I had to realize when it was my time to grab on to Jesus’s hand. Maybe I wasn’t sinking in the water because I was already embedded in the water – swimming sometimes, but often floating the dead man’s float, until I realized the presence of Jesus – He was patiently waiting for God to drift me His way. Jesus was in the ready postion, waiting to wake me.

So – now it is important for ALL of us to remember to walk by faith.  ALL who are now up and out of the water are now needing to stay ready…  We walk by FAITH and NOT by sight… We walk with Jesus. We need to close our eyes to suggestive distractions, and faithfully let Jesus lead.

Unlike the moon which clouds out of sight, Jesus can be IN sight and IN mind always, we have to stay awake, we only have to feel for Him in the dark.

So yeah, I see that moon this morning… and forever I will know that God sees me in times of comfort and conflict. I know God sends that moon for warm fuzzys and for stern warnings… Don’t stop noticing that moon! Don’t stop noticing God’s gifts! DON’T try to float on gifted grace that is not generated by your own self… DON’T try to take your own wings and fly so high (like in the”Mad Man Moon” Genesis song) and get so far away from Jesus’s grip…. DON’T go thru life on your own power. Hold Jesus’s hand, ALWAYS.

You are ALIVE because of God’s grace.

You are AWAKE because of Jesus’s death and return trip to and from earth to take you along WITH HIM.

You are SAVED to realize that you are saved THRU Jesus.

KEEP NOTICING…

KEEP THANKING GOD…

KEEP FEELING THE HOLY SPIRIT GUIDANCE…

KEEP NOTICING YOU ARE ALIVE IN JESUS…

KEEP JESUS ALIVE IN YOU…

288 Today, 27OCT

New to me scriptures are powerful and sweet… Just like, but on a smaller scale of course, new to me songs from my favorite artists… They are sweet treats…. And scripture from powerful teachers of God’s ways are gifts for salvation realization…

These Hebrews scriptures talk about “TODAY”, what are we going to do today? If you hear from God TODAY in any way then don’t harden your heart to it. I truly feel this means ANY sign from God… This means EVERYTHING… for everything good is from HIM. “12 For the word of God is alive and active”. …. “it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight….”

And although we look past TODAY to the future and our future rest that HIS work will bring in us, we must first work on TODAY for the blessings of all of God’s wishes for the collective WHOLE. Our work is to LOVE, to count blessings, to encourage others, to not tear down, to NOT harden our hearts when things don’t go our way… And don’t get pulled into sinful ways just because it’s a more attractive or easy path, just don’t do it…

“7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.”” “we are HIS house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.”

TODAY is the day to work towards our Lord’s goal of being in HIS house, it is then He will give us rest, eternal peace…

Amen and have a great TODAY !!!

LOVE YOU ALL!!!

———-

Hebrews 3 (NIV)

Jesus Greater Than Moses

3 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. 3 Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. 4 For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. 5 “Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house,” bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. 6 But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.

Warning Against Unbelief

7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness, 9 where your ancestors tested and tried me, though for forty years they saw what I did. 10 That is why I was angry with that generation; I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.’ 11 So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’ ”

12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. 14 We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. 15 As has just been said:

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” 16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.

—-

Hebrews 4

A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God

4 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed. 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,

“So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’” And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day God rested from all his works.” 5 And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.”

6 Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go in because of their disobedience, 7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted:

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.

12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

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PS – when this all started for me, I was so amazed and confused at why God was in my head so much – every single day (and privately I really thought I was going mentally ill)… And a friend said maybe I was in the movie “Groundhog Day”… well I think this scripture helps me remember that this year-long repeating “Groundhog Day” is actually called TODAY… and TODAY is another great day to praise God

TODAY was created to turn hearts towards God – TODAY was and is needed because there are so many who need it – to appreciate it – to find God in Today to find Rest in Tomorrow…

PRAISE EVERYDAY!

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A near midnight writing – minutes before my birthday – sitting and pondering around the campfire…

Believe, a Belief-Blessed Birthday, 24OCT

Well, Maureen O’hara has now passed away, beautiful lady, beautiful transformation in my all time favorite movie… Miracle on 34th street… This was a writing (below) when I was awakening, jan 4th, three weeks only after my first writing, still one month before I was done awakening and I was only realizing that I was going down the path of Doris (Maureen O’Hara) and Susie… that I was letting faith take over my life completely and I was telling myself to believe… I did not quite believe 100% yet, so I fondly look back now at how all this awakening cracked me open…. So blessed… I didn’t even realize that God was using all HIS resources to pull me into Jesus. I was about to be transformed. I stopped and questioned and that sped and smoothed the process. God said it’s ok to ask, God answered again and again.

And I thank you ALL for letting me naturally voice Jesus’s birth in me… I believe He was born in me and made me new even though I didn’t ever realize I wasn’t ok already. It may be my chronological birthday now, this strike of midnight, but I have been eating Jesus’s birthday cake all year this year. I pray to ALWAYS be HIS lighted birthday candle perched on a rock of HIS faithfulness, just like this pic from today’s hike 😉

SMILES and such TEARS of JOY because I believe in You Jesus, I believe YOU. I’m yours to keep now, forever. “Believe – it was and is that belief has to be there first – the rest follows – you have to believe – to have faith when common sense tells you not to… BELIEVE”

———- Forwarded message ———-

Date: Jan 4

Subject: Fwd: Miracle on 34th Street -I believe, I believe, its silly but I believe

I had this title for weeks – meant to get it written – but when the first sentence came to me – and it flowed – had to grab the computer and dump it out – no edits – but a little help from the web to get the right scripture lines – but 30 minutes top for this piece… figures that it is my favorite movie and this is my current pre-occupation in my brain – believe.

Miracle on 34th Street – I believe, I believe, it’s silly but I believe, 04JAN

My favorite movie – not just christmas movie – but all time movie – is Miracle on 34th Street. Not the ’70’s version, not the colorized version but the original 1947 version – Edwin Gwynn a Kris Kringle – Maureen O’Hara, Natalie Wood… and Fred Gailey (don’t remember his name – but wow what a catch!). yes my favorite movie of all time – ever since i was a teen…

Little Susie says “I believe, I believe, its silly but I believe”. She was talking about Santa Claus – but the movie goes much deeper than that – see Santa (Kris Kringle) was looking for belief in people – in everyone who didn’t believe – looking for hope to continue in his line of work – to continue hoping for the world. Fred was asking Doris (Maureen O’Hara) to believe – to believe in him – to believe in anything – she swore off fairy tales, swore off any belief in what she wasn’t in control of. she suffered from too much reality check – “should be realistic and completely truthful with our children and not have them growing up believing in a lot of legends and myths” … “And by filling them full of fairy tales they grow up considering life a fantasy instead of a reality.” Fred will work on Doris – Kris Kringle work on Susie too – together they can make this happen – it is a movie after all – together we will see how it all unfolds…

At the pinnacle of the movie – Doris is upset that Fred throws away his career by taking on the seemingly winless case of proving that Kris Kringle is indeed Santa Claus – the one and only Santa Claus… Fred urges her “Faith is believing in things when common sense tells you not to. It’s not just Kris that’s on trial. It’s everything he stands for. It’s kindness, joy, love, and all other intangibles.” “Someday, you’re going to find out that your way of facing this realistic world just doesn’t work. And when you do, don’t overlook those lovely intangibles. You’ll discover they’re the only things that are worthwhile.” Fast forward to Doris trying to reassure Susie that Mr Kringle will be ok – Doris is not sure she yet believes what she is telling her daughter – but Doris tells little susie that she has to have faith – Doris even adds to Susie’s letter that “I believe in you too” – win – Kris Kringle gets the letter and all the other dead letters at the postoffice and Fred wins the case – Kris is recognized by the federal government to be the “one and only santa claus” – win Susie has asked Mr Kringle for something big – bigger than a normal present – she asks for a house – those cape cod’s – similar to the jubilee that i live in today – quaint, quiet and family friendly… Susie expects Mr Kringle to deliver – big time – expects a miracle – expects that snap and she will have this house – puts it as a test to him… No – she doesn’t get it at the Christmas morning party – Doris has to say – “You must believe in Mr. Kringle and keep right on doing it. You must have faith in him.” … “you’ve still got to believe in people. I found that out.” “I believe. I believe. It’s silly but I believe” – Kris has orchestrated a car ride home with Fred – down a quaint quiet street – in a family neighborhood. “I believe. I believe. It’s silly but I believe” – Susie repeats and repeats – and then – oh snap! there it is – the house – on a quaint and quiet street – the perfect house – it’s for sale – its’s unlocked – with a swing in the back – win. Fred learns from Susie that Doris told her “Mommy said if things don’t turn out right at first, you’ve still got to believe. You were right Mommy!” – WIN – Doris to Fred “I never really doubted you. It was just my silly common sense.” WIN – BIG WIN. Kiss – realization that believing is seeing – believing came first – then seeing Kris Kringle’s cane in the house – hmmm…. Believe – it was and is that belief has to be there first – the rest follows – you have to believe – to have faith when common sense tells you not to… BELIEVE

 

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When i woke up from a very sound sleep, the chorus of “True Joy”, a song written by a dear friend, was running through my head at FULL volume…. Oh, was a great song to start my birthday – and fitting since in the middle of the chilly night my son and I redid our sleeping bags and put them together, so I woke with my sweet son warm inside my arms and the “True Joy” of God’s Son warming in my soul… So blessed… Thanks God for putting a tune to praising – it’s so easy to sing along… SMILES and THANKS And then later I saw there was quite the appropriate verse of the day too from Ephesians… nice… ———- Forwarded message ———-

From: Bible Gateway Date: Sun, Oct 25, Subject: Verse of the Day – October 25 Ephesians 5:19-20 NIV “Speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

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Tending Others Gardens, 23OCT

Yeah, late night camping, can’t sleep… enjoying the weekend, been meaning to finish this one, and now I had a reminder… tenting in this chilly night… I am blessed…

“Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit”… This Simon and Garfunkel song sings “oh Lord…. I had tended my own garden much too long…”

The line is after asking why the Lord has forsaken the singer… I have tended my own garden speaks to me as an allusion that the singer has not tended to God’s garden and not felt God’s faithfulness. So this gives me pause to think about what we can give and what we can do for others….to love freely, to give what we can and to carry each other’s burdens… and like Jesus instructs with the Widow’s mite scripture, we are to give all that we can give… I don’t think you are forced to sell everything in this day and age, but sometimes it might be just as simple as a smile, or a kind word here and there.

You can ALWAYS share a smile, no strings attached.

So earlier this week my work sponsored volunteer day was at a local food bank distribution center sorting 11,000 pounds of meat with about 40 people… and the woman behind me (not from my company) had the most sour expression on her face all day long… I don’t know that’s probably just her, I don’t think she was complaining, she just had that expression… And when I would turn from sorting my pork products and talk to her at the beef station she would just answer me very succinctly, no extension of extra friendliness, nor desire to know me…that’s ok, even though I tend to just try to be friendly with everyone, I certainly know not everyone is like that.

Now, the woman in front of me was very friendly so we had a good time dancing to the music keeping our souls warm in meat packing 37 degree temperatures. That’s a nice connection to make, affirmation of smiles and silliness to pass the time in a fun way.

It’s cold tonight, I am tent camping again… Mid forties…. So I am thinking of a homeless guy, Mike, that I see when I drive on a main road… I open my window and say good morning because he is the most friendly guy ever, he does not ask for anything and he ALWAYS has a kind word…. I don’t reach out to him just because I want to feel good, that’s not the point, and I do not intend to boast of good works, I just want to say I appreciate his friendliness…. but sure, i do I feel good when he wishes me well… you’re better believe i smile when he says “you have a great smile” in a sweet way. Yesterday I stopped (yes it was safe and out in the open) and he said “I love your colorful shoes”, hey doesn’t every woman like it when someone praises their shoes, LOL… Mike always has a friendly kind word, gives me advice about eating well, about getting my car ready for winter. I dropped off a bag of clothes that another friend had given me and asked me to give directly to him because he wanted to see it goes directly to the people who needed it and Mile was so appreciative and he said something like “I have a friend for life”…. Now, granted our interactions are very short and he’s probably going to have to move on somewhere else in the deep winter…he’s not sure what he will do… I don’t have resources to help him, and he NEVER asks… i can give him advice but I can’t and don’t over give… Actually many people give him things because he is so friendly…. It’s not so simple to just hop into a shelter… He likes being on his own.

We have not much more than a friendly word exchange, no strings attached. Does it make my day??? you better believe that, it’s an awesome start to my commute to get a smile… I am not super needy for kind words, I am truly BLESSED… But it’s a reminder that kindness begets kindness no strings attached. Mike was first kind to me, he was tending to my section of God’s garden… He blesses me, not just vice versa.

I think it’s also a very good lesson for our children that we drive by and say “look there’s the nicest guy and he has almost nothing, we should be so grateful…”… yes this is an important lesson for our children… Please remember Mike in your prayers this chilly night, as I feel that his smile tends to multiply blessings thru our whole community every day…

Yes, let’s ALL tend to God’s garden, God is faithful, we should smile more to remind people…

Galatians 6:2 NIV “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

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Don’t worry about this mini diatribe post, it’s just me checking in with God… Thanks for letting me write this one out, I do feel much better now.. Luv ya all!

Pauses and praises for God.

Wasted? 18Oct

So, my son broke his video game screen, ugh, and since he forgot his kindle charger at a friend’s, it left him with NO ELECTRONIC DEVICES!!! YIKES! So guess what he brought out tonight?? His guitar, YAY, hasn’t played it for four months…. And even he asked his Dad to tune it for him, so double yay, and guess what he found in his guitar case lost since June? his glasses… Found… LOL, geez after four months, wow…. but it was just another reminder of more wasted money, because I got him new ones… Oh the endless examples of wasted money fleeing out of my hands this week/month, ugh….

And that time too… Time that he could be doing something else…. Grrr….. and then just think of all that time and money WE ALL waste, how wasteful… And I probably shouldn’t even be writing THIS, am I wasting my time? I am also choosing precious moments away from family time to process my head… Yes, should I even write this out? because I SHOULD be doing five thousand other things in my path… so WHY GOD? I know why, I am upset I don’t have control, from a great morning things went downhill, nothing horrible and still bright spots tonight, but still…. And I am now stilled, forced to write it out… I just don’t know why things get out of my control, probable because it’s not even my control, is it? Too many independent variables… Accumulated little things… And just now I blew my top at another just stopped working item…. Grrr…

I guess I could either complain to Facebook or complain to God….But I like to keep my Facebook posts cheery…. I should do that for God too, be cheery, but HE already knows my angst before I angst write it…. Sigh… So, yes, we do tend to waste our time, why? And waste our resources? Or are they wasted out of our control?

So let me ask YOU, God, this related question about Your resources…. What happens with non-believers? Today I had a discussion on purgatory as a myth, yesterday a friend asked for my take on whether everyone (all religions and not) goes to heaven or if JUST Christians do… And I thought: hmmm, well that is sad, isn’t that a waste? All those precious people God had created and only a few get thru the narrow path to get back to the garden ? Hmmm…. What happens to them God? Straight to hell? Compost their bodies and souls? Are there “get out of hell free” coupons? Of course I know Jesus IS the way… I live in Jesus’s lighted path because of God driving me gently right into Jesus’s loving arms… I understand now my place in the world as a child of God ONLY because of direct intervention by God… Lord knows I write only because of God pushing me. And I will make my way to heaven ONLY because I have to beg forgiveness for my past and future sins and 100% rely on ONLY Jesus to take me there… I KNOW I can’t get there by myself…

So, I really really don’t know if and when there is hope for the rest of the world who doesn’t get an opportunity to discover Jesus… If they don’t, are they wasted? Hmmm… Is it their fault? No it’s not their fault always… What happens to them, Lord? But I think we are left knowing that it IS an unknown… It really is… I don’t know what happens in those last few brief moments before death… Does Jesus show up in the nick of time in a death vision? Yes, I wish everyone could catch the Jesus train early, but many don’t. So does God have many rooms in his house so that people are in a “waiting room setting” until they get Jesus? I KNOW the bible says a day could be a thousand years? Yes, I KNOW, I KNOW, Jesus says only a few get thru… The path is narrow but it IS sure… But REALLY, is there ANY hope for those lost souls? I HOPE SO!

If God answers prayers, wouldn’t and shouldn’t my first and most deep intimate prayer be that ALL lost souls find Jesus? If I pray this, is that prayer like kinda cheating on the magic genie by asking for more wishes…. And yet, I do ask YOU God, can I still add a sticky note of names to Your long list in order to save each atheist that I love dearly? Can you save them a spot too, God? Maybe it won’t matter to me when I get to heaven? But it DOES matter to me now God, so what am I going to do???… What am I to do with such a short time myself here on earth with so many demands on my time? How Lord can I be most efficient in your commission?…  or am I JUST being a realist? Is it just normal for us who feel your saving grace to just be ok with being normal? I don’t know God, but it’s not my business to know, I do appreciate YOU letting me ask though…

I surely am not the first or last that a story would be repeated to make everyone saved… I thought WOW, God did this, I just want people to believe HIS power… But I know Lord, shake the sand off, shake the sand off… It’s a personal journey, there is fire that each soul needs to kindle itself… Shake your sandals so that you can keep walking… Grab your waking stick, grab your co-travellers and your sticky notes, get extra seeds from God’s pocket to keep planting along the way…

I may never know how efficient I am supposed to be, God knows my skill set and I ask him to let it grow. God knows where I am supposed to go. It’s not wasted time to think of my path… JUST checking in God… Ten months since my “Christmas Flood”, my birthday coming up soon, my first real Christmas just around the bend… I am just checking in… I know you are still holding me tighter than ever…

I know tomorrow it’s time to prepare for rain again, I best not delay… it’s time to go back out there, start walking, and LOVE…

Thanks for the pep talk Lord… Thanks, Luv Ya!

———-

PS – This was an over bubbling of angst and fear after little but big stressors of life – so much eating at me… I see the turn in my writing when God took my angst away and then changed what I was writing about! I didn’t mean to go where I went in this piece, but God refocused my mind away from my troubles, and thought about HIS troubles and I appreciate that refocus… It was a therapeutic cry, “downtime” in my hyperspeed faith journey… We did not have a Women’s Retreat this year and I missed it – but instead I have been blessed with mini-segments of the retreat that God lined up for me over the past month… From an extra hour of yapping after the UMW meeting last week, the evening with another friend couple weekends ago, the beautiful cross stitch devotion that a friend gave me, this camping trip Fri night with trusted friends – all true blessings… So much LOVE for me to soak in… I am HIS child rejuvenated; my cup was refilled with LOVE poured from others cups into mine…

So, yeah, remember to do the best that you can and just accept that you did the best that you could…. And take solace in praying for God’s help with everything you CAN do. ENJOY what you CAN do – don’t worry about what you can’t…

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This writing is dedicated to my friend Pastor “P”, I “pulled a Pastor P” and randomly prayed for someone…

How Strange How Random, 15Oct

I can’t be expected to understand most of the things God puts in my path, NO one could… There is no way to figure it all out… Understanding a couple things a day is a blessing… I understand that my weight loss and new found healthy initiative is not just about me, yes it’s a little for me, a lot for my family who depends on me, but a WHOLE lot for encouragement to everyone else to get inspired to get healthier… I get that God, I am happy complying on that one… I get easily three to five people a day who ask about it and I freely share my “secrets” to healthy eating, which aren’t really secrets… The bonus I get back is this nice stream of compliments… Even from a random grocery store shopper today, she loved my blue flowy dress, she’s a nurse and we chatted health and meditation and she complimented how healthy and happy I looked… God knows it feels good to hear those things, even though it’s God’s eye, not the human eye, that I am trying to please…

Anyways…. So what’s up with today, God? Random… Gas station guy in a Cadillac.. No cash, he seems frantic… picked me to ask for help, a more unusual event then the rest of the week combined… Something about him having no cash, had to pay a cash locksmith fee half a hour away, a golf ball setting off the security system, ADT fines, police fire fines, forgetting debit cards at office the other direction, and trying to prove to me that he was legit with this whole stack of credit cards and IDs… Whew!!!! And he’s trying to sell the place, just him and his wife and dog, and huh? I am a fast processor but this whateverness???

…. ME??? he randomly picked ME to ask in a gas station of bays of thirty cars? I AM patient God, therefore you must have picked me for him, picked me to listen and understand, I get that, God… Money? did I have ten or twenty dollars? I don’t care if you are driving a Cadillac, have Donald Trump hair and stylish clothes, that’s not my nature (I am not stupid) to give out money… Which I told him, and I had none… But I did listen for clarity, I just tried to understand and work thru his dilemma WITH him for three minutes, THAT I could give… Just a little of my time is free (don’t tell my boss)… Clarity, oh!!!…. Three minutes later he reworded and it clicked in my head, he would pay for my gas fill up and I would get the cash from the ATM… Oh that computes in my brain… Oh that’s okay… I processed that it was safe to do that… So he pumped 25 bucks of gas into my car, and YES my car was completely locked and safe and I walked into the convenience store and got out 25 bucks. Ok, no harm no foul (i think… unless he wasn’t supposed to have cash – I hope I didn’t enable something wrong)

Then as I walked out, I thought ‘you know? either way I should pull a “Pierre” and ask to pray for him!’… Pierre is a friend Pastor that is thrilled to run up to random people and ask if he can pray for them… so that’s what I did… I figured he could always say no but he said YES… so as he’s getting back in his car, I said: “Kevin, I am asking God to just fix and do whatever he can do for you, whatever it is, and see him thru his challenges”. It was the most random discombobulated jumbled prayer I have ever blurted out… but I know God got the meaning and Kevin smiled and then went on his way. He probably thought I was nuts (which I am) but I bet I wasn’t any more random than he was… because God has random things for us to do… They are random whateverness, in our minds, but God figures it all out. The last thing, before Kevin sped off, I said “oh thanks for pumping my gas”… See, I really don’t like to put my own gas so my hands don’t get stinky… I can do it no problem but I don’t like the smell of gas on my hand and if I can get full service I do… and this one time I forgot to fill up at home at the full service was already thinking I have to pump my own gas, ugh…. So randomly some guy pumped gas for me today…hmmm… “Well, THANKS God”… I’ll take that as a side benefit for today randomness whateverness…. God only knows… Only God…

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Second of my “devotions-ponderings” to God after GS camping and our 7.7 mile amazing hiking trip to see 22 amazing waterfalls…what a blessing to have a God-gifted increased energy to power thru a long hike as well as gifted vision to delight in the many natural LOVE displays of the Lord!

Church is My Nature, 14Oct

There was a plethora of nature lovers on our 7.7 mile 5 hr hike in a glen with 22 beautiful waterfalls. My GS leader, fellow camp mom and I were able to mentor to the teen girls both allowing the freedom to leisurely appreciate brilliant nature displays and also learn important safe hiking skills (like shimmying over logs and navigating precarious terrain). Over the course of the evenly paced five hour hike, I appreciated SO MANY people out and about on this crisp fall day.

Since our troop is based out of a Christian school, it is acceptable for us to mention the beauty of nature as God’s masterpiece, and that it’s our appreciation and our consciousness of the world that if truly a gift from God… These free associations organically bubble out… One scout, who is also a VBS volunteer, spoke out of the pureness of her heart when she saw a dazzling red leaf glimmering in the sun and said it’s “just like Jesus’s LIGHT shining”.

On the hike our leader noticed a hikers t-shirt which boldly stated “Nature is my Church”, and we could really appreciate that and we discussed how we are blessed to see all of God’s hand at work in this dazzling display of nature’s power and peacefulness. We called out to praise the rocks and trees, the water and the beautiful maturing young ladies with us.

All thru our appreciation hike, we were continually interacting with our fellow hikers… taking their photos, petting their dogs, and conversing of the beauty all around. I LOVE alone time but I REALLY LOVE connecting with others time…. “words with strangers”… I love to offer to take photos for couples and those group selfie attempts… “SMILE”… After I bounded up one rocky section I needed to rest and there was a group wanting to shimmy out on a ledge for a photo, but the woman had a backpack with two puppies and so I offered to hold the puppies (and catch my breath). I am a bit afraid of dogs (I’ve been bit) and there were SO MANY dogs, but one of the changes God has made in me this last year is that I am so less afraid of dogs.. And aren’t puppies God’s gift to sneak dogs into my heart (just like a sweet baby born at Christmas grew inside of me). Well, holding two puppies tucked inside a backpack, it certainly felt like Christmas!!! I felt like Santa with a dozen teen girls gaga over petting cute puppies, I was warmed immeasurably with this love and life in my arms… A gift of puppy love… The hikers thanked me, but I REALLY thanked them for an opportunity to cradle God’s Love in the form of squirming nature come to life…

So, for that t-shirt that says “Nature is my Church”? well, I want a reverse worded shirt, instead… I want a shirt that says: “Church is my Nature” because I am blessed to be part share in this live action (love action) expansion of God’s LOVE in “BEING THE CHURCH”. When I partake in sharing myself freely, oh how I gain a thousand fold back. I gain an eternally blessed feeling when I reach out to expand God’s church by walking the walk of faith, trust, generosity and partaking WITH OTHERS.

“GO AND BE THE CHURCH” my pastor always says, and He means it… We are built as temples for God… we are to have Jesus as the cornerstone… we are collectively filled with spirit as “the church”. And so church should be our nature… church should be us reaching out filled with spirit that lifts us up then spills out of us… We pray to have our cups over-filled by the spirit to be forced to spill it out to others… Encouragement with SMILES, understanding with compassion, and comfort-giving with shared tears. BE the church by your nature because Jesus showed us how. Jesus showed us how to BE. Enable yourself to “Be the Church” by refilling your soul often… Look around you and not JUST see but take in glorious nature…. search for the beauty and appreciation in all things, especially others around you, be a treasure hunter, and realize ALL IN ALL that YOU TOO are part of God’s intended immense beauty… And SMILE… Smile, because God loves YOU because God lives IN you.

“Smile God, Smile”, we are taking a picture of YOU.

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Ephesians 2:20-22 (NIV) 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

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Long drive Friday night in the pouring rain but SO worth it!! I drove three scouts, including one whom I had in my car that ice storm January morning when God’s GRACE was so ever clearly keeping us safe…

This was an amazing camping trip, fifteen of us total…a dozen 14yr old cadettes, 3 moms. Amazing waterfalls, amazing nature. Here’s devotion #1 written Saturday early morning…

FOCUS… GOD… WARMTH… GRACE…. 10 Oct

Camping in the mountains, crisp air, God everywhere.

Walked in the stars at 430am wide awake because my girl scout leader – sister mom came back to our tent after a check on a camper and said: “Debbie, YOU have to go see the stars!!!!!” Of course I knew it would be the best viewing ever, no light pollution in pitch black at 2400 feet!!! The beauty and brightness so intense.. The Pleiades, I saw the Pleiades finally, they were at the zenith, I saw the best you could ever see by eye… Plus detailed star studded Orion, Taurus, and the Milky Way…. I didn’t feel the urge to do anything else at that moment, I just stood there in PEACE… I stood there in the presence of God. I was in God with God, not admiring His works from afar, but embedded in PEACE, embedded in the FOCUS of ALL creation… Through the tall trees whipping in the wind, the pitch black darkness gave way to the closest I have ever been to the stars… it was as if there were poked holes in a moonless black sky making brilliant crisp spotlights. Good God, how blessed to see and feel the shining of all creation, one star, one creation just as brilliant as the rest… When you have been gifted the vision of God sightings, WOW, it’s seeing EVERYTHING as FROM God and OF God!

No, I didn’t feel I needed to write about the stars at that moment – because I humbly lived that in the moment…. Actually I really really felt the need to write a piece flooded into my brain about something else… this toasty blessed hand warmer… This warmth which gifted me FOCUS … and I have to write how God’s warm love gives focus….

Yes, warmth in my hand focusing me away from the upper 30’s chill at 430 am… yes I am still holding this hot pad now… it’s 8 am, camp just barely starting to stir (late but well yeah, at 1:30am we realized we should go to bed… even the dozen teenagers went to bed before us 3 silly scout moms yapping around the campfire). Cold night, wind whipping a massive cold front of thunderstorms and brilliant lightning, which had made our three hour trip into four and oh that clogged Friday getaway traffic, ugh… But we made it safe, made it 2400ft up in the desolate mountains, temperatures rapidly dropping, and what’s did we see? SNOW?…. Yes SNOW flurries and chunks shooting down, above freezing degrees but SNOW… in early October?? Well I said “Thanks God, Hello to You too!”… ” You know that I LOVE your show of SNOW kisses”… Yes it was just enough snow as God said “I love you, my child”. Smiles God, smiles.

Warm in the focus on God… This gifted hot pack from my sister scout mom gave me focus to forget the upper 30’s tent camping and rush outside for the star show of my dreams… Well, 430am the snow blown away and so the stars came out to play!!! The focus of a hand warmer is EXACTLY like the focus on God… God warming my heart takes away the angst and the uncertainty in the moment. The stressors don’t go away, but focusing on God gives me strength, gives me motivation, gives me warmth, gives me the freedom to live. Your gift and my gift from God – IS God. You have meaning, you have focus, you have oneness, you have existence in this world to just BE. BE WITH GOD. If the world is collapsing in you, but you focus on God, you will find God there to hold you in LOVE.

We have been graced LIFE, therefore we are made of God’s warm LOVE, made for God… He wants us to be HIS gift to the world, to display HIS fruit, to tell of His ways… Tell how HE has made us who we are… Tell the cold world how we feel HIS warmth when we realize we are HIS.

Thanks for the Focus, Oh God. Focus on You, God.

PS… after writing this Sat morning, well Sunday morning was a repeat performance of brilliant stars. Pleiades again, hot pad focus on warmth again, God at work always… BUT this time, with a teachable moment shared with those three scouts WIDE AWAKE at 430am… Time to ponder is a gift, time to teach a gift as we made out Taurus’ face and Orion’s bow so clearly… Oh, just then a tiny shooting star caught just in time in our focus, sweet… God shared it with all these girls, including Grace… He shared that moment with me – just like he shares equally beautiful moments with each of us… Oh these gifted moments of FOCUS… Stars in the sky and the beauty of natural curiosity… Oh these gifts from God to focus on… Oh how blessed we truly are…

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Nothing earth shattering here… Just enjoying writing how fun God can be…. I like to embrace the silliness of life A LOT, as you know … Nerdy Fun for Friday… Perhaps numbers show up like this for you too… I am NOT into numerology; I just like numbers and math.

Silly numbers, 08Oct

Fun silly little numbers, they make me smile… When I was a kid and still today my parents live at 403 as their house number… That number came up in various places growing, so of course it was fun when my mother noticed that my then boyfriend had a license plate with 403 on it, lots of silly appearances… and now even my father’s prepaid cemetery plot number is randomly, you guessed it, number 403 !

I’ve always liked the number 25, born on Oct 25th… 25 is a cool number because after October 25th comes November 25th near Thanksgiving time and of course December 25th for Christmas! Three fabulous months in a row in my favorite fall season… and so I always play 25 at the raffles, and of course money is divided into quarters… So what’s my house number? not 25… but 52… Yeah reverse 25 is 52, I didn’t think about that much until recently when now the number 52 started popping up ALL OVER the place… Now, if you take it one step further and add the numbers, 52 as 5 + 2 equals 7, so yes 25 or 2 + 5 = 7… yes 403 added together = 7… my kids each have birthdays on the 29th, and 9 – 2 = 7…. yup yup… and 7 is one of EVERYONE’S lucky numbers…. And when I started my blog as “Debbie Upper” apparently it was common enough that they assigned a number to it, yup 7, I am “Debbie.Upper.7”. The Pleiades constellation (Subaru symbol) are the seven sisters of mythology… There’s six on the emblem (maybe I am star number seven)…

God loves numbers…. Nature is full of geometric repeating and consistent patterns. “Donald Duck in Mathemagic Land” can be found as a YouTube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_ZHsk0-eF0 – I wrote about this before) and there are so many amazing mathematical descriptions of nature from the golden rule to natural spirals to geometric crystals for metals (pure solid elemental metals can form perfect cubes, even pentagram-like… I grew perfect salt crystal cubes in grad school in an evaporating stock solution, cool). Then there are the symmetrical snowflakes, leaf and flower patterns, etc. The Mandelbrot set and lots of really cool fractals can even be used to describe repeating nature mathematics…

God loves math.. God loves numbers. Yeah, so OK, even in nature God does bend the rules at times, and not every mathematical rule holds true for every creature that exists… We probably just haven’t “figured” it out yet… Even Plato tried to figure it all out, but it’s tough for humans to describe everything we DON’T understand… (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/blogs/physics/2011/12/beautiful-losers-platos-geometry-of-elements/ ).

We think we can bend God’s rules sometimes too – but quickly God catches on…. and God is the best one at changing your life up for you, when you haven’t “figured” it out yet…

So, numbers…. cool God… Thanks God for giving us nerdy people some extra fun… We all often say we are lucky… but in actuality we are all truly BLESSED… luck “probably” has nothing to do with it… God’s watching and waiting to see how we catch onto his plans – i think i am very very lucky to notice what God lets me see… I will still strive to invoke my internal lucky leprechaun status… Lucky? I mean BLESSED..

“Figured” it out, finally…

PS – follow up Nov 4th – You know, God is cute sometimes… In addition to me seeing the number 52 about five times in a 24hour period: at the gas station, the time of day, all over Facebook, etc… I was reminded by my “52” trash cans that when inverted read 25… Yeah – not only are they reverse numbers, they are of right symmetry when you invert them they say each other… Silly God, silly… Thanks for the smile, God.

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The devil may put doubt in my mind, but it’s God who gives me precious pause…. discernment between those two is vitally important… God gives pause for us to listen, learn and grow. Pause is prayer time to ponder – to enter a transient transition state – to get back to a time where God can mold us… return us to a child of God… it takes time and we are to be patient with what God is trying to teach us…

And so this essay grew out of a healthy faith conversation – a discussion about the importance of “Regenerating Our Faith”. These thoughts populated my brain this morning as i got into my tabernacle Subaru – my brain connected them to the thought of “a quiescent center” – a place in plants where the generation of new growth occurs – the “meristematic zone”. I haven’t thought about that word in about ten years, it just now popped into my head.

Quiescent, 05Oct

Yes, God and botanical lesson here: the tips of the growing regions of plants are meristems – they are a collection of cells which are undifferentiated until acted upon by internal and external factors. This region is called a Quiescent Center and has the potential to grow into anything (roots, shoots, flowers) when acted upon by clues (hormones and protein growth factors). In the laboratory, in plant tissue culture, you can take pieces of certain plants and put them into proper nutritive culture conditions and you can return to growth of undifferentiated cells… Differentiated somatic cells still have all the genetic material needed to regenerate a whole plant. This regeneration of cellular material is not JUST to bring a similar leaf back from a leafy tissue – it is potential to bring back the WHOLE plant from one cell’s growth… that’s the SAME with God…

To regenerate our faith, we really want to ask God to bring us back to a place where we can grow into anything. We don’t just bring our faith back into where our faith was before – instead we ask God to bring our faith to a NEW elevated state – we want a “God-determined” level of faith.

The quiescent meristem is not truly a quiet place. Sure you cannot visually see what is going on in those cells, but internally they’re working really really hard – new proteins – new RNA molecules to direct the development – within each cell it’s setting up a whole new potential life – and the cells will work together to create a new tissue…

The quiescent core of a soul is not truly a quiet place – you can not visually see what is going on in another’s soul – you may feel it in your own though. And God is working internally there – working really really hard. God is setting up a whole new potential life for you – for Him. This work becomes easier if we try to rest our lives in God’s truths. God wants us to ask Him to do this work…

What we can become depends on us asking God to restore our wholeness with Him and looking to Him to point us in the right path.

Quiescence may infer quiet but it’s not quiet time… God wants us to “Be Still” and know that He is God, He is doing the work. Quite often we rush. We can’t see the work, but it’s happening.

God knows He has flooded me with so many blessings that I don’t know what to do with all I have gained…. And yet, I keep saying: “What’s next God? What’s next?” So yes, we (and especially I) should be patient because the places where I’m petitioning God to work is EXACTLY where I must learn to realize that He IS working, and He needs the time that He needs… He will take my challenge zones and will regenerate them into quiescent centers. He will redo me from the inside out and He will need to line up the internal and external signals to make it all work for the best for HIS Wholeness and Holiness … it’s HIS timing not ours. Wait upon the Lord.

So yes, Lord, I shall be patient. I will know that you are faithfully working on every single situation. I will not doubt what I cannot see. I will praise when I see small steps taking your direction. I will watch you work and learn how you do it… and I will wait upon YOU and your quiescent ways and I will learn to keep my faith even stronger, because you are an ALL powerful God.

I believe in YOU forever.

Amen

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PS – an email reply from my Pastor – Yeah, it’s no accident that Pastor and I walk together…. God’s plan plays out… I love watching God at work….

From my Pastor: “It’s very interesting that all you had to say and the share is what has been on my mind and in my devotions lately. The whole topic of Regeneration. Just today I’ve been thinking about Regeneration, Degeneration and Generations in light of conversations about the state of the church, lackluster attendance or wet blanket apathy. To be like a child means surrendering a lot of self and allowing God to grow us into the likeness of our brother Jesus. It has to be taught to the generations. Too many other things want to do the teaching and human nature prefers the dark even though it knows the Light, and when it opts for the dark, degeneration takes place. Holy Spirit and Spirit touched people keep shining the light into the darkness.”

And my reply to my Pastor: It’s NO accident – there is NO WAY any of this is a coincidence…. it is so clear to me that God has aligned us like stars in his universe – you me and the rest – for how long I don’t know…

and yes – LIGHT is what is being shined on strong right now – but people have to realize it – and it’s not easy to do that when they are blinded by the glitz and glamour out there – honestly yes, it’s easier for people to follow the dark that they know and the easy road away from the light than to face themselves in the light of God – one has to be ready to face the dark corners of their own lives that they KNOW God is looking at – it’s easier to run than to stand and be inspected… but I pray God will be gentle – I know HE will…if God isn’t forgiving then i don’t know who is!

I have myself experienced an interesting phenomenon:  A REGENERATION – I say and feel like I am getting younger – younger AND wiser… but yeah – it’s amazing to me how humans are human and will look at surface things and not take enough time to think to go deeper. Some folks forget to stoke their own spiritual fires and thus forget to stoke everyone else’s too – it’s that “soul on fire” song – it’s about re-kindling – re-generating – re-invigorating – yes – that means giving up what we know to an unknown – but wow I can attest that this unknown is amazingly filled with JOY.

As for the destructive forces at work, well if I am calling myself a “child of God” then I feel this pull to being a PEACEMAKER – I strive to encourage peace – I took a personality test once and it said my career should be an academic dean – in other words a peacemaker – it hurts to sometimes get caught in the middle but I remember that I have nothing to lose IF I give it ALL to God…

PEACE

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Some of my conversions make it into my essays…. today’s was a prime example… I really have been blessed to have opportunities to share my faith EVERYDAY… This essay started as a text message to someone about eating oatmeal, and general health… and because of my mindset of praising lately and giving both the praising and the eating up to God combined with my pastor’s Sunday message today, this essay flooded into my brain and out my fingers.. A connection between healthy eating and healthy praising – do them because you’re supposed to… And you will be blessed by both!

Pastor’s sermon was a great message today about God providing, and about us giving our testimony of how God had provided for us… I listened to it twice…. the first time in a traditional nice quiet moving service and the second time in contemporary nice loud moving service… (I like them both… And, speaking of God providing, I was pleased to have the freedom and the time to sit and smile in the traditional service, and I also was pleased to have the freedom and the time AND THE GUTS to sing crazy loud with the praise band music like no one was listening, and beebop praise dance like no one was watching, LOL). Not everyone will understand one’s ability to praise in their own crazy and sometime seemingly over the top way… some may even think it’s boasting… But God knows what’s in your heart and will likely correct you anyway… Therefore, praise as thoughtfully as you can… (Eat as thoughtfully as you can too…)

Anyway, I had to write this essay in one of those “Oh! Write that down!” moments… My whole deal with my testimony for my weight loss is that it never crossed my mind that when I made my healthy diet changes that the weight would come off… I’m more shocked than anyone, and sure the weight appears to have melted off, if you haven’t seen me in a while, but actually it’s been a very safe gradual process… No crash diets, listen to your body… Healthy eating, healthy praising…

Here’s the piece:

Healthy Eating, Healthy Praising, 04 Oct

Eating healthy is just like praising God…. Both are done for the sake of doing the right thing…. You are supposed to do it…. You are to eat healthier because it’s the right thing to do. You are to praise God because it’s the right thing to do. Guess what?

Eat healthy, we all know that, yet we fail to at times. Praise God, we all know that, yet we fail to at times. We are to praise God for everything, everything good and bad. We are not supposed to understand everything but understand that God has it all in His plan.

We are not supposed to eat healthy just for the sole purpose of losing weight, NOPE, we are supposed to eat healthier because it’s what are bodies were made for, it’s because God said our bodies are temples FOR GOD, treat them right (no crash diets – do what is sustainable!). Our minds, bodies, souls and words are NOT for us to revel and luxuriate in, but for GOD TO USE as mouthpieces to let us tell of HIS faithfulness, and how HIS fruitful blessings have taken ahold in our lives. We are not supposed to approach God with the sole/soul purpose of begging for favors, we are supposed to praise God because it’s the right thing to do. This may sound so simplified, but for me it’s the TRUTH… How I have seen the blessings when I praise!!!

When you eat healthier, oh my gosh, you all the sudden realize the great benefits to your body… perhaps you’ll even lose weight. No crisis needed, when you praise God, and simply TALK TO HIM about everything, oh my gosh, you all the sudden realize the great benefits to your LIFE… perhaps you will gain endless blessings. This may sound so simplified, but for me it’s the TRUTH…

By hearing testimony from those who just survived a horrific plane crash or building fire, the first thing they say is “Thank God! God was looking over me” they don’t say “God how could you do such a thing, letting my house burn”, NO!!! the first thing out of their mouthpieces are “Thank God I’m alive”. They praise, God kept them alive. We should do that too.

So let’s all pause to praise today…. God is the”All in All”… When 7 rare wild turkeys walked by me today in the middle of a conversation with a friend about healthy eating, I took it as a reminder that you never know what is coming in life, so just praise it either way. Maybe you can put it together and you figure out that God has a plan for everything… Maybe you can’t figure it out, but know God has a plan anyway.

Whether you look at the turkeys in life (often a paraphrase for not so good things) as a RARE blessing or a disastrous dud, praise the turkeys either way…. God put the good, bad and the ugly in your life for a reason, walks them right in front of you to teach you something…. I know this to be the truth…. So ask God: “Why?”… “What lesson am I suppose to learn here?” “Why are there thorns on the roses?” Well, take time to praise the thorns as well as the roses.

THANKS GOD, and I will continue to pause, praise and ponder…. I say thank you with healthy praising because it’s the right thing to do!

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Health and Peace, OCT 1

So, it’s the sweet graces that counteract the sour grapes always… God making the day sweet and worthwhile… To counteract one person’s potentially hurtful mis-understanding about my “healthkick”, I was blessed with 75 praises via Facebook…. Then the phone rang at work today and I had the most awesome conversation with a computer software saleswoman about HER health, blood pressure and getting in shape, God is good!!!! We are the same age… I encouraged her, made some suggestions, especially about oatmeal, extra protein and walking…. it was a good five minute discussion, and we exchanged text numbers to continue discussion and I sent her the yoga YouTube link….

My health corrective action is not just about me, I knew that, and I continue to be encouraged to encourage and share “tricks of the trade” with others…. Healthy sustainable changes… Changes for LIFE.

Just like Paul says…. In everything, petition God for HIS will and HE will protect you from sour grapes, HE guard your heart (and it’s ok to share your heart) and He bring you PEACE.

Philippians 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

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I awoke 430am, Why God?… So after looking up the verse of the day, I took the verses adjacent, John 3:6 and 8, those spoke to me…

It’s about letting the SPIRIT move you, about getting yourself out of the way… My writing was done on half an hour, but when God causes me to become immediately sleepy and pause before emailing it out, I know he hasn’t finished the piece…

I slept over it and woke up to a dream where I was in church and the next brand new song was “The Evil of Stades”… Stades? What are stades? I only remember the statement, sitting there in my blue dress, and sitting back into the pew to absorb the song, but that’s when I woke up… “Stades”? NO CLUE… Google says a “stade” is the original footrace of the Olympics, one lap, and is the origin of the word stadium… and so by teaching me this new word in a dream, I think God is trying to warn me and thus I warn us about the evil of stades, the evil of running in circles… don’t run in circles instead run ahead, look forward and not back, plow ahead… keep running God’s race and let the SPIRIT take you… and now I can send my written piece, God finished it:

Let the SPIRIT move you, 29Sept

John 3 (verses before the famous 16) details that this pivotal set up to the famous 3:16-17 is a conversation not with a tried and true disciple, but with an outside Pharisee, Nicodemis, seeking his own truth… Jesus answered: “6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the SPIRIT gives birth to SPIRIT…”  and “8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

So you don’t have to know where you are going… (I don’t know where I am going either, but I am going to enjoy the ride)…
So, if you have been born of the SPIRIT thru Jesus, and thus committed yourself to follow God thru Jesus’ teachings, then you got to this place by a path that the SPIRIT blessed you with and you should not expect to know where the SPIRIT will take you next….
So you have to give up your preconceived notions and you must listen to the wind…. You must listen to the SPIRIT as life is blown your way… You can’t just say “Thanks for the boost God, I see where I am going now, see ya later”… No, you have to say: “Take me SPIRIT, where are WE going now?”

Sondheim lyrics from my favorite “Sunday in the Park with George” musical: Bernadette Peters sings to a troubled and mental roadblocked out-of-ideas George (Mandy Patinkin): “Stop worrying where you’re going – Move on… If you can know where you’re going – You’ve gone…. Just keep moving on…”

My pastor and I discussed many times, early on, about getting one’s self out of the way… About Naaman allowing himself to go with God – to fall completely into the water which cleansed him of his leprosy… His spots are our current day remaining bits of self – those things – those parts of our life that we have not yet let the SPIRIT take a hold of… Those are vestiges of identity in us NOT shown thru the Jesus in our hearts … Whether we have been Christian for 8 months or 800 months, there are still little bits of self that impede our way, get us hung up, snag our steps, and get us in trouble… We have to learn from them… It’s not unexpected, it’s human, we are still journeying, we know to follow the LIGHT, but we must still walk there – one step at a time…

So stop worrying where you are going – get yourself out if the way – and let the SPIRIT take you…. Ask the SPIRIT to blow you, but make sure you funnel the wind thru the sails of Jesus holding you up… Don’t forget that we are going to be standing in front of God as who we are – but we stand there saved only because of Jesus saving us…

Did you ever think God may have better plans for your life than your own plans?

If God gives you skills, then use them for His glory – whether you understand it or not. If God plans for you to reach others then DON’T question who He puts in your path, learn… ALWAYS learn… God put the thorns on the roses to protect the flowers for the world to see their beauty… The thorns are there to warn you… To say “Don’t touch; Don’t mess with this beautiful creation”… God plans are for the rose to have time to bloom without a creature eating it’s delicious delicate bud.

So take a step back to ponder how God beautifies this world, then let’s the thorns protect that beauty from our plans to take the roses for just ourselves… God says let the world see the rose bloom, be patient for God’s plan.

Let the SPIRIT move you. Let God have the control… He has a plan… Go with HIS plan and run God’s race… Look forward… Plow straight.

“8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

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PS

Figures God would laugh at me thinking my piece was done and so I was thinking about round grapes, and being fruitful branches for God and I realized my music was stuck on the song “Roundabout” by YES. The best full circle God has made realize in awhile…. instead of “the evil of stades” (or the “evil of going in circles”) perhaps the song in my dream I was supposed to hear the band play was Roundabout, LOL… Enjoy… Thanks God, Beautiful!

Watch “Yes – Roundabout” on YouTube
https://youtu.be/-Tdu4uKSZ3M

Roundabout, YES
“I’ll be the roundabout
The words will make you out ‘n’ out
I spend the day your way
Call it morning driving thru the sound and in and out the valley…..”

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PPS

Email:

On Sep 29, “H” wrote:

I can’t remember where I was or what I was doing (scary…. especially since it was this past weekend) BUT, I had a discussion with God about the people he has put in my path and what my role is.  Wish I could remember more, but anyway your writing hit home with me.  Thanks,

Reply:

Awesome….. was just listening to a Billy Joel song that says home to “be the Pennsylvania Turnpike” and I believe home is wherever we are when we have God in our hearts and amazing people in our lives….thanks for being one of them!

D

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A POPE MEMORY, 29Sept

These are great videos on the Vatican youtube channel to play in the background while I work – the music is SO beautiful – and there is NO COMMENTARY like you would have on mass media silly TV – no interruption of commercials etc – it’s just live feed video – so you can fast forward, pause etc…  i always said i would never go back in time…  and I left my Catholic church upbringing for multiple GOOD reasons (no offense intended) – and so I don’t feel nostalgic at all, but the music in these videos IS very comforting and I have a true appreciation now that I never had – appreciation as a child with the TRUE JOY from following God into Jesus’s arms into God’s eternal life brings – and I am so blessed to be touched by the optimistic enthusiasm of all the people who are so excited in these videos….  its kinda like music that you don’t understand in Latin and in Spanish that allows your mind to wander into yourself and into your faith – almost like a Quaker service – where you return to center in yourself….  nice to have that reflection time…. nice to reflect… oh what a joy is to ask God questions while you center your heart, soul and mind together and welcome His spirit to move you….

 

https://youtu.be/Pp6-dQ8RoPQ   this has the beautiful music that touched me today- when they sing each saint’s name it is just SO BEAUTIFUL at the 54 minute mark… and then at the 1 hr mark the spanish song just makes me want to dance….  I was very very moved when I saw the “Day of the Dead” shrines in Merida, Mexico when I visited fifteen years ago….  the faith of the bus drivers too with their plastic Jesus statues and rosaries everywhere was also so moving…

 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLC9tK3J1RlaYEG9DdLtKljIcPvPq1-mQx  is the whole playlist of the Pope’s American visit  – I was touched by the Pope’s JOY and openness when I saw him drive by and speak…

 

smiles

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A firm sense of God’s faithfulness, 27Sept

You know a good messy science experiment always enhances my Sunday school class experience…. Today the older kids made oobleck (cornstarch and water) to bring home the point that a firm rock solid foundation in God is what we need for strength… This is what David had when he went to fight the giant… oobleck may seen strong and firm when you squeeze it, but like us without God, it is weak, it can’t hold its solid form, and therefore it’s not a solid foundation at all…… God is the solid foundation we should rely upon…. God had faithfulness to David… David found and relied on his faithfulness to God – knowing that God valued him and protected him… David acted upon that faithfulness…
David walked with God that day… So can we…
David was chosen for the task at hand… So are we…

 

1 Samuel 17 (NIV)

³⁷ The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

⁴⁵ David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied”

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This is a travelogue (and it’s very very long so don’t read it unless you got a good chunk of time), so it’s not an overly profound piece, but a couple people couldn’t wait to hear about my Pope experience… so here it is…

So, the whole day taken as individual pieces rolled into one journey…. this is how I wrote the day… I think the profoundness IN LIFE is that God allows us to experience LIFE…. God allows us a random-feeling mixture of things… Free will with individual blessings – and that we have NO concept of how it all fits together – but it does some how…. God knows, but we are clueless, and that’s just fine…. And sometimes, just sometimes, God gives us a chance to take a step back and ponder it all…

Individual, 26 Sept Travelogue, 27SEPT

The Pope, giggles, sand, decompression with friends, the full moon, and bird poop… I didn’t think I would write about these together… Yes I expected I might have to write about my visit to see the Pope, but the journey was so varied, it was so unique, and it invoked the word of the day: “individual”… And so I will write how all these individual events, the individual people with their individual varied life experiences all came together in a God-blessed day, in a God-blessed way…

Bird poop….
Yup, today there was alot of bird poop, as we staked out our spot under a sap-dripping tree on the fence line waiting three hours for the Pope…. We sat in old bird poop, the birds pooped on my head, on my sunglasses… It’s ok, they were small birds, I survived, I shook it off… “Blessings” people say when a bird poops on you!!! Well, we were TRULY TRULY blessed in the shade in small bird individual doses… It was a great vantage point near the podium and friendly people…”words with strangers” – we had chats with folks from Seattle, Florida, you name it… real people not any different than those in a store checkout line passing the time…it was not overly crowded and actually a shame and a blessing how easy it was to get in and out!!! They did a good job at scaring the people away in my opinion… got into the city and out so rapidly, quickest trip EVER… Best $2 train plus $2.25 parking deal EVER…$6.25 + $2.50 for a Vatican flag = deal! “Trip of a lifetime” people said – under $10, hmmm…. Blessings…

Pope…
Ah, the Pope, a sweet grandfatherly like man, with a heart of gold and a mouth to tell the world to live the way Jesus taught us… to have compassion, to respect individual dignity, and to LOVE… A pope for the ages… His speech was moving and passion touching… He even used a math example for how we should live…. “The religions thus have the right and the duty to make clear that it is possible to build a society where “a healthy pluralism which respects differences and values them as such”… foster a “sense of the dignity of each individual and the ideal of a community united by brotherly love”…
The Pope was awesome… But more awesome were the people who there to be inspired… to hear the roar coming down the street as the Popemobile moved was truly electrifying…  you could sense what was coming and then you saw him come and we were SO close – 20 feet maybe – and he stopped and kissed baby after baby … The feeling was awesome (I saw an accidental selfie photo of my face as he came by- yeah sweet joy).   And awesome were the people at home who lived this trip thru me, so super EXCITED for me… Between family calling me, and the two house parties I went to afterwards, and even the eye glass lady at the store the morning of… Everyone was so excited… My neighbor (who is Jewish) ran over to me to say “let me touch you, you touched the Pope!”… Sweet and no I didn’t actually touch the Pope, but I do know the crowds touched his heart and he touched mine with his compassion and his message… Everyone is inspired by this Pope, he so “gets it”… They appreciate his message of tolerance, individuality, and forgiveness… He brings a reminder of God’s LOVE where he goes…

I feel a little guilty that it was SO easy to get in and out of the city, that it was no hassle, and guess what? I felt the same way for my salvation realization, God made it as convenient as possible for the start of my journey – He put all the right pieces together at the right time for me to be an opportunist and take advantage and take a “God-vantage”… It’s a good feeling that by our individual journeys we bring God’s love by our presence as believers… Sharing HIS love in an open non-judgmental way….

Children…
The BEST interactions I had that day was with children… sweetest little spunky children 5-7yrs old in front of us, good as gold, engaging, loving, cute… A Seattle teen smiled as her mom and I chatted, engaged in conversation with her smile and nodding as she appreciated our discussion about me being known as being wacky and my reputation for tolerance as well as easy-goingness, which is why (plus my open faith) that I was chosen by my friend to accompany her for this free ticket… and which has enabled me to be where I am in life… appreciating life being a blessing. After the Pope trip I had enough time to be at the two other places I was invited to – two parties – and it was the young people who made me feel welcome.  First to a renewal of vows wedding (which I made with only a minute to spare) – at the reception the daughter of the bride gave me a glow in the dark bracelet and said to her friend “this is Miss Debbie, she’s cool”…. And then at my neighbor’s party, my son wanted ME to play, waited patiently for ME to stop talking,  to play “cornhole” bean bag toss with him.. I was paired with a nice young man named Mike, and we won! Sweetest to feel the love from my son, and also from my daughter, who both instructed ME in the morning on how to stay safe in the crowds, drink lots of water, and watch myself. Sweet kids…

Pierre Robert…
I got to hug Pierre Robert, my favorite DJ, a local icon in rock!!…. Both the Pope AND Pierre are Godly gentle-men who love to spread love…. I have loved chatting with him both at other events and on the phone to the radio station, sending texts and hearing a couple of shout outs, he’s real… people love Pierre because he is real. Pierre loved my rainbow and shamrock earrings which I wore for luck… fun… Besides my fun earrings, I also wore my hometown famous t-shirt, I brought my Vacation Bible School snowball, a photo of my kids, and the business card for my late cousin Mike, and I also wore my newest special cross – my Aunt’s Irish Connemara marble Celtic cross…..  I seriously thought about being like Mr .T and wearing every cross I owned…. but that would have probably taken forever in the metal detector line…. So on this trip was thinking of my blessings of ALL my family and friends who truly make me smile…  And I wore a gift of the zipper bracelet from a friend who was touched by my “Zipper Faith” writings… So glad God smoothed out the bumps and I zip all the way now passed those original naggin questions of if Jesus was real – yeah I got it now…)  So blessed!!!

My Grandfather’s birthday…
This day was my grandfather’s birthday, a man who worked so hard… I’m sure he appreciates all that his grandkids have accomplished in life… one of our last photos together was me and my PhD cap and gown  – but with me knowing that he accomplished more on a 8th grade education and 90 years of life then many of us could ever hope to achieve.

Giggles…
Grains of sand together to make something more beautiful…. a marriage union strong and vital…..l actually made it to the wedding vow renewal ceremony that I was destined to miss by going to see the Pope but I made it just in time because they rearranged the day for other reasons… I can’t believe God fit that in… I’ve never seen so many giggles and giddiness at a wedding, a renewal of vows from a spring wedding of a blended family, these giggles were cute and happy… I became a photographer… I knew God place me there for some reason… for cheering, for photography, for bustling my friend’s wedding dress train after, and most definitely for experiencing a reminder of God’s graced timing allows appreciating giggles, blended sand, a full beautiful blue moon, and beautiful fellowship…. and a faithful God…

Decompression…
One more party my immediate neighbor’s house (see, I told you I live a cake walk life)… best parties ever in the best neighborhood when we all can get together and this was exactly what I wanted and needed to decompress this day… Discussing the Pope always brings about faith discussions… this was an awesome way to share faith…. over a rum mojito, we could relax into our conversations, take heart in our blessings, and co-miserate in the “bird poop of life” times… when the day brings the greater ratio of blessings to sorrows then it’s great to thank God. And when God sends the bird poop? well, thank God for that as well…

Home, a moon rainbow…
Yes the full moon in the clouds was so bright that the ring around it was a rainbow pattern hue… stunning…. God is stunning… He is pleased with us loving Him… He touches us as an individual, and He delights in delighting us on our journeys…

God woke me up in the morning – God brought me home…

Thank you Lord, let’s travel again tomorrow, ok?

You lead Your beautiful way.

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Journeying, 26Sept

I am journeying today, things fell into place for an unexpected trip to see the Pope…. “Ten thousand people maybe more….” – that’s how the Simon and Garfunkel song goes… Well it’s going to be much much more, ten thousand is JUST the number of tickets for this speech about religious freedom (in a city founded on brotherly love, the freedom from tyranny for a country founded by those who journeyed here because they desired religious freedom…)… Yes, there will be many many more than just me journeying to see what they can see, a speck of white in a sea of humanity…. I pray they get what they are coming for…  I am going for the journey… It’s always about the journey… Seeing the humanity because of the speck of white… It’s THEIR journey…

Don’t get me wrong, I will be super excited if I actually see the Pope (with my luck we will see him I am sure) but first I will be super excited if I actually can get through the masses down to the event… just to be on the trip with my faith friend and to have been chosen by my friend to accompany her is a blessing! Yeah, sure she chose me not just because I have felt and told of the overwhelming blessings of my being made alive by God’s hands, but also she choose me because I can journey and yes, because I’m crazy enough to brave the blessings of crowds… But isn’t that what God does too? Chooses your blessings based on YOU?!!!! I get crazy blessings because I appreciate them, I handle them, and I try to find the hope in the crazy life I lead!!!

I feel that when I am actually on the journey in a few hours that I will feel the excitement building immensely, I will feel the excitement of my fellow travelers… I will feel THEIR journey….. I have mostly ignored the hype news of the crowds issue (just no time to watch tv), but I know that I feel for these millions who wish they could be in my shoes, free to travel… I have friends with illnesses that are hoping to be blessed with miracles, I have friends who could care less about the Pope’s visit…. But the fact that I get the chance to journey at all – that’s what makes me feel blessed the most. I picked up my walking stick, grabbed Jesus’ hand and said and continue to say, “Ok God, what’s next?”

Ever, I am blessed and humbled to be in my shoes, for this trip and for my whole life… excited but humbled to have “lucked” into this and ALL of my life’s blessings – but I KNOW it has nothing to do with luck at all (but thanks to God, I do always appreciate my leprechaun status!!!)…Yes, it’s not luck when I am journeying through my faith every day,  Life’s free will… while some others are still questioning where to start, I became blessed to realize what was happening to me and to make a running leap off into the deep end of a God-centered life… And even though I came into this place and PEACE of mind more gently than most, I have a brave appreciation of how long a trip I still have to make… The journey won’t always be smooth sailing, but the wind will be there always to guide me… The road is narrow but it is sure… And I will pray to EVER grab the hand of Jesus to keep me above water.

I journey because God said you are capable, I want you, I have plans for you… You are a child of God…

Thanks God… I will try to be ready in your timing not mine… Let’s go!

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Atone anew, 24Sept
It’s the day after the “Day of Atonement” and yes brand new sins I have accumulated already this year, sigh… just while writing part of this I made my son miss the bus…. I apologized, and I drove him in time and he did have a lot to carry… so I guess it worked out… but still I need to be more mindful not just about this, but about all the accumulating trespasses I make…. I deserved him chastising me because I am on my phone too much…. A sin of writing and thinking about myself too much comes to light even if it was the writing and thinking about myself that brought me to this spiritual awareness of Jesus’ light…I feel like if I can get my writings out and done I can move forward, otherwise it’s processing that would just accumulate like my sewing pile…  but it’s a gamble I take with time…

Love and sin balancing remind us that we live life precariously… Our glory-seeking life goes both ways… When we live life for God’s glory then He is getting us into a path of wholeness, and we are going to know it – we are going to see and feel those blessings… BUT, when we work for our glory, then we are getting in the way of His path for us to achieve wholeness with God, that’s when we sin, and we are blind to those blessings we already have…. And if we are “in tune” with God’s wanting us to be whole, we might feel the hurt that we are inflicting on others with our trespasses… If we are not feeling that pain we cause in others by our own hands, then we are blind sinners…. I feel the pain…. I am sorry, God, sorry for my sins big and small… I am humbled that Jesus came to forgive me, forgive us all…

Yes we are forgiven by Christ existence and resurrection, and that is because we need it…  We ARE sinners, thru and thru… and we ARE human… and it is hard NOT to sin, but we are to remember God’s law and atone for our trespasses… “I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”…. And if we do sin, if we fall, if we sink,  then are we to pick ourselves up?… No… We are to ask Jesus to pick us up… we are to draw our strength from HIM and not from us… Refocus on Him to guide us to His LIGHT. Return us to holiness. Heal us. Be our advocate, as in 1John2 NIV “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”

I Praise God for sending HIS Son, our Jesus, to remind us (to remind me) the He felt and feels all our human trespasses so deeply… He took on our pain, He humbled himself into human form in order for us to humble ourselves back into the fold of God’s children… We are created from God by God to return to holiness and wholeness with God…

Thanks God. Thanks Jesus

From HEBREWS, “I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”….. “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary. ”

———-

HEBREWS 10:
7 Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll – I have come to do your will, my God.’”
8 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them” – though they were offered in accordance with the law. 9 Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do Your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

11 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. 14 For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

15 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:
16 “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”

17 Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”
18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

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Beautiful Story from one of our Women’s Retreat Cousins-in-Christ, 23SEPT

So I asked a women’s retreat friend (and she said it was ok) to share her email of a wonderful testimony about God taking care of her after she got lost (and while she didn’t have her guide dog in his harness)…

God was taking care of her using the positions of rocks and trees, so that she could find her way home…  Praising those rocks that call out!

I love her love of God and her love of all of us… it’s so blessed to walk with sisters and brothers in Christ – I would say all of us “Cousins in Christ”!

————–

On Sep 20, 11:57 PM, “L” wrote:

Hi Debbie,
When Pastor asked in church today if anyone had a praise offering, it was silent. Then a few people spoke up. I was thinking about saying I was thankful for being at church since I haven’t been there in awhile and also wanted to thank God for rocks and trees and of course, I thought to myself, people are probably going to think I’m crazy.
So Pastor’s message was about how we do not praise God enough and praise God for the simple things. He went on to say how God created nature and the things in it, to sing his praise i.e. rocks and trees especially since we who were created in his image, don’t realize how important it is to give thanks and praise.

Ok, so this is why I wanted to say praise for rocks and trees and after you hear his message, you’ll understand how it all connected for me. Friday morning after putting my son on the bus, I stupidly decided to go across the street to a very familiar corner to walk my dog without his harness on. I wasn’t feeling that great but I go there often and besides that, I had my trusty I-phone. So he and I walk across the street and then I realize we are not where I wanted to go. I felt around with my foot and was trying to get oriented by listening to the traffic but the more frustrated I got, the more disoriented I became., “Light bulb moment”, use your I-phone to call someone or use GPS. Well, my phone was not working because before the boys went to school they told me to update my phone but they neglected to tell me I need to go through setting up my phone.

I was getting upset with myself since I haven’t grasped this technology and have become so dependent on it. So I stopped and prayed asking God to send me someone or something to get me back home. I was already lost for about a half an hour and was panicking because I left my house open and Mom was going to be coming over but she always calls first to see where I’m at and of course, she wouldn’t be able to get hold of me.

So I waited a little longer for a sign but no one or nothing clued me in so I calmed myself down, prayed again and decided to walk towards the sound of traffic in hopes I would figure out which intersection I was at. I told him to go home and he started pulling the leash a little but then stopped and he seemed confused as well then I felt the sun. I started thinking about where I am when I can feel the sun when I go for my regular walks. I decided to turn around and walk the opposite direction and I started getting closer to traffic. Then, a tree branch brushes across the top of my head this branch feels like the one I always bump my head on while passing my neighbor’s house who lives across the street from me. So I keep walking and find a driveway and decide to cross the street and if I’m correct, it will take me to my driveway. Well, it didn’t. So I step up on the curb and decide to still head toward the traffic but use my foot to trail the grass line hoping for a clue. I didn’t have to walk too far before my foot bumps into a pile of rocks which I immediately recognize as the river rocks my husband placed around the sump pump pipe sticking out of our yard. I say out loud, “Thank You God!!!!” and I immediately get the message from God, God is my rock. He is there no matter what I’m going through and as long as I believe and have faith and hope, he will take care of me.
I found my way back to my house and went inside and cried tears of joy. God is awesome!

So when Pastor said about the rocks singing praises and then he mentioned the trees, it just confirmed my belief. I know you will understand what I mean. I shared this with him, others and especially L. H. today after church. L. H.  said to me so what did you learn? my response, “to always trust God and yes, he is my rock and to never leave my house without putting the steering wheel on my dog. We had a good laugh about it.

Hope to talk soon. Love you.

---

From: debbie

Oh what a beautiful testimony of trusting God… I have tears of joy… The rocks will cry out if you don’t praise HIM, and river rocks and trees and YOU and God are so awesome….

I have an idea…. Perhaps you can take some river rocks and make a pattern at each of the neighbors, three rocks at this one, five at this one…. As a double check emergency GPS – God Positioning Stones.

I am remembering VBS Kingdom Rock where we used those river rocks…

Jesus is the cornerstone as He and we are building God’s church…

Take care, and can I share this beautiful testimony with the other women’s retreat folks???? It is a great reminder to trust in the Lord and praise!

Love ya!
Debbie
—————

Hi Debbie,
Yes, I do not mind if you share my testimony.
I am a big nature lover too. I take any chance I can to be out there and experiencing it.
I love your idea of God Positioning Stones. LOL
I’m praising God for Debbie, my beautiful sister in Christ.

Love you

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email about Family Stone Cross, Sept

I appreciate how I really appreciate this stone cross now…and I wanted this photo, vain or not…  I am a combo of my irish Dad’s side plus my Czech mom’s side… and her maiden name means cross. I am blessed to physically cling to this stone cross, a rock of ages, firmly planted in the ground to represent our family tree… and of course I am blessed to emotionally cling to the cross to be a branch on Jesus’s tree of life…

I had a great few days at home… Good to see my brother, my parents were thrilled to have us both home….

268 email to others and Pastor P – with reply from Pastor P

Praying for God’s Ministry Thru You, 22SEPT

God bless you Pastor P., you are hitting the target with your blogs,  they resonate with me and because I am tapping into so many other people I can usually find where they will fit with their situations…

Yes, God always used me in HIS ways but these expanded ways are so exciting…

We are so blessed

—

On Sep 22, 7:53 AM, “Pastor P” wrote:

Thanks for sharing, Debbie!  God is going to keep using you!!  Blessings!

—

On Tue, Sep 22, at 7:36 AM, debbie wrote:

Hi my favorite local Ministry leaders,

I like this blog from Pastor P about growing ministry… I was tasked by the “rally day” little leaf hand out from the stewardship committee to pray for our church leaders…. Well yeah that’s a easy one to pray… I pray for SO many to bear fruit in their ministry to REACH…. I pray for the “abide” that Pastor P speaks of here … (and he had a previous blog about us not being the fruit-maker but about God growing the fruit and we are to bear it by just being the sturdy branch.

So I pray for your ministries (mine too) inside and outside the building: reaching the sheep out there, and reaching the people in feeling their worship and also reaching the people to want to help God as a co-laborer… bearing fruit that God places there, because we are just the branches to abide… To display what God bears thru us.

Thanks my co-laborers – thanks for your leadership and for accepting that even if you are putting the work in, it’s NOT your ministry at all to take credit for, you are purely the branch for God’s ministry THRU you.

God Bless! Luv ya!

—————

Three Keys to Growing Your Ministry – by Pastor P

“I was journaling with the Lord the other day and asked Him, “What are the keys to growing my ministry?” I felt like the Lord gave me three very clear and simple keys. I want to share them with you with the hope and prayer that your ministry will be expanded as you apply them yourself.

“Prayer

“The first key to seeing an expanded ministry is simply to ask God. The Bible calls us co-laborers with God. (1 Corinthians 3:9) As those working with God on kingdom assignments, we must be in good communications with the commanding officer. (2 Timothy 2:4) Prayer is not just about getting things done, but about intimacy with God, loving Him just for the sake of loving him and enjoying his presence. It is also important as a leader to raise up spiritual lieutenants who will pray for your ministry. [ Pray for this ministry! ]

“Produce Fruit

“Ministry can be defined in many ways. One biblical way to describe ministry is that it is the laboring of workers in the harvest fields. It doesn’t take being in ministry long to realize that working a ministry is a lot of work! The harvest is plentiful as Jesus put it. (Matthew 9:37) The good news is that we do not need to produce this good fruit out of striving, but out of abiding! (John 15:5) This brings us back to point number one, prayer and intimacy with God. As we spend time with God, we will hear his voice and be able to produce good fruit that feeds others’ souls.

“Partnership

“The Gospel was never meant to be a sole-proprietorship, but a partnership. Jesus set the model for ministry by working alongside other men.  Paul spoke of his partnership in the gospel frequently. (2 Corinthians 8:23) If you desire to see the kingdom of God expanded in the world, it is essential to find people you can raise up and train to do ministry.  Secondly, you need to partner with other people who have a common heartbeat, but different ministry that you can support and run alongside.

“I want to leave you with the words of our Lord that touch on all three of the above points as a final encouragement: “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’” (Matthew 9:35-38)”

http://mobile.dudamobile.com/site/christiangrowthnetwork?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.christiangrowthnetwork.com%2Fthree-keys-to-grow-your-ministry.html&utm_referrer=#2848

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Bonus Day at Home…., 21SEPT

So I have to question but I have to praise God’s timing, it’s always going to be a praise when you take God’s point of view in your situation.

My brother (who is my ride home) booked his flight for today but then changed it for tomorrow then promptly forgot that… the rest of my relatives are also leaving tomorrow… so early yesterday I was stressing about who do I spend more time with on my last day? out of town relatives? my parents? home with the kids….all that and yeah, I was saying to myself that it WOULD be nice to have more time here at home….

Although not seeing my kids gives me some angst, I am being the kid here in my hometown for my parents, who are thrilled both me and my brother are here…, although for sad circumstances of my cousin’s and aunt’s funerals, it was a placed family reunion to honor them…

Well… I walk in the door my brother says guess what, he messed up the flights… I just started laughing… I said really God? You answer SO quickly…. A bonus day at home?  could we make it work? Would my boss be mad? Hmmm…. Yeah, a bonus day at home was just what I wanted, and what I got…

And so I attach this praise photo… As I walked the gorge leisurely over the course of three hours with my family… Zoom in on the photo, see me praising with my arms up, I am the tiny spec on blue on  the right…. getting wet in the spray…. Wet in cold powerful pounding water as well as the living water of Jesus…. praising the rocks of God,  and the living trees of life, both nature’s leafy green ones and our Dormady family tree, filled with love…

Yeah bonus days…. Thanks God!

PS… After the hike and picnic lunch, we went to the overrlook… And ran into great friends, two of our church missionaries, just driving thru!!! Amazing “co-incidence” each of us five hours from home… God-incidence…. Praise God…

PPS… Oh geeze…. I just realized that yesterday the bonus day at home was September 21st which is (in the Czech Republic) my naming day which is kind of like a second birthday…  so cool… JOJOJO

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The Rain WILL Come Again, Go With the FLOW, 20Sept

It rained, twice…. It rained at our cousin and aunt’s double funerals/interments…. It rained twice in the bible account of God’s seasonal blessings… according to Joel 2:23 NIV “Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given you the autumn rains because he is faithful. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before.”

We were forced by the warm rain (rare all this dry summer) into a beautiful chapel at the cemetery for the services, which enabled a closeness, a comfort in the way of chairs, a comfort in the way of going with the flow…. A natural comfort that ALWAYS can be found in giving up the angst of the minute details of life and going with the FLOW. God allows us to rest and delight in his good works when we go with the flow…

We reconnected sides of the family at the services, we rekindled, we re-appreciated… We let the SPIRIT move us just as easily as we moved from chapel to grave to grave, we let God flow thru us… we had the rain, the autumn rain to replenish our souls… We laid our family love onto their departed souls, as God has laid HIS LOVE into ours….

It stopped raining, after lunch we took our out of town cousins to a cathedral of God’s creation to a beautiful natural place beyond words .. Then we flowed back to base camp… Dinner, brought all of us together again in the same room by… you guessed it… rain… Family closeness in SPIRIT always, and now new family moments facilitated by God’s rain…

Going with God’s FLOW means listening, means feeling how He can move us gently and with His PEACE, move us into our PEACE. It’s giving up our angst to God… It’s giving God HIS rightful place over our hearts and actions, because we stem from him, we drink the living water of Jesus to nourish and repair our human ways. When we drought, there is only one source of living water replenishment… It brings our salvation… It’s us resting in Jesus’s arms and going with HIS FLOW, please hold HIS hand and you will stay afloat…

The rain WILL come again, whether spring or fall… or even a Christmas Flood… Will you let God flow thru you? Will you flow?

Let go…. Go with GOD’S FLOW…

PEACE

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Funeral day.19Sept…. Remembering Cousins and Connections, Blood and Blood, 17MAR

So today is funeral day for my cousin Mike, and my Aunt (his Mom’s cremated ashes from many years before) … It’s 6AM and already an emotional day… Some of my cousins have gathered here in my home town, we stayed up last night gazing at the milky way, we are way out of town at a camp, it’s so dark here, and the last bit of the night I talked one on one with one of my wonderful cousins about my spiritual growth and everything… At the end of my yapping, and she sharing her faith too, I saw an amazing shooting star… Good God, God is good…

My 23 first cousins and our spouses are the best and I am the youngest of those 23.. I have so much crazy love from them, stemming from my five uncles and five aunts and my parents… We support each other immensely because that’s how we were taught to live, we were taught to LOVE… I learned a new word from my brother… Avuncular…Kind and friendly towards a younger or less experienced person: reassuring, and trustworthy…. Yes, that’s EXACTLY the word for what I feel, what I have experienced from SO many…

Cousins… My cousin Mike’s passing evoked one of the biggest emotional pieces for me to that date, on St Patrick’s Day… If I call you a cousin it is because you are… If you know me, you know I can skip all the formalities and just “luv ya”.. I just do, it’s a completely Agape LOVE of cousins in Christ…..

Thank you for letting me exude the love that I can’t help but exude, I have way more than my share and am humbled to be God’s instrument to share it….

Here’s that emotional piece… Thank you… LUV YA!!!!

—

Recap #97 I love this piece !!!!!!!

Cousins and Connections, Blood and Blood, 17MAR

> Yesterday I felt so glad to get some “unfinished” writings out… Because I told myself that I was now going to fill my mind with things that I (with a capital I) wanted to fill it with….that I asked God to empty my mind – and yes He did… and I did get about 3 hours of real work work done in the morning. > > … and then God filled my brain, unexpectedly, in the afternoon with the thoughts HE wanted me to have – and HE filled my mind with actions and connections and LOVE. Not my mind anymore is it? – it’s HIS…. sigh… a new normal i will try to remember this always…I am God’s instrument…tune him in not out… God…sigh…. > > So my beloved cousin Mike died on Saturday, he was mid 50’s… i learned via Facebook (of all places), someone posted on his wall RIP. i said “wait what??”, I messaged that person and was trying to balance my fear with my disbelief – turns out Mike dropped dead instantly in a bank from a nearly 100% blockage from heart disease – with complications from diabetes and not taking care of himself – which very few of us do…. Heart disease and diabetes and stroke are our Irish destinies – our whole family struggles… > > My flood of emotions – sorrow and questions – we hadn’t talked in years – couldn’t get a hold of him – but we loved each other – all my cousins – we love each other even if we don’t connect… we are connected by Grace and by our family tree. > > Well, God filled me with sorrow first but then with so much action. He chose ME to start spreading the news – I have the connections to the whole family – I had to get the word out, as my mother’s generation would have – it is now my generation’s job… I spent the whole afternoon and into the evening on the phone, only to look up at 7:30, when the people locking up work said “it’s time to go”… I spent the whole afternoon on the phone and email and texting with my cousins – there are 23 of us third generation Irish. My cousin Mike was an only child – the first one to pass of our first cousin generation. We stem from 6 brothers and their amazing 6 wives (my father being the youngest) – the number of children are 23 AND then of course the marriages and children and grandchildren of our cousins – we have exploded across the US and are spreading family love and spiritness everywhere. Yes, we are a family of Leprechauns if there ever was!!!. So God filled my mind with memories and the love of my cousins – the best family gift ever! > > If people ask where i draw my strength – that is an easy easy answer – i draw it from my family – and there is an overflow of strength… > > Oh, I just made the biggest epiphany about my church family…not lightbulb in your in your brain epiphany but fireworks going off epiphany… > > My church family, I love them so much in the agape way… but I just realized they are not my brothers and sisters in Christ they are my cousins in Christ!!!! Agape love is so reflected in the love of cousins. Just because I don’t know them all yet, and they come from different backgrounds (and I want to know them all more), doesn’t mean I don’t already love them. Our ancestors would tell us to love them even if we don’t know then. > > Cousins. Some are distant and some are close. Some are lost. Some are found. Some are blind. Some can see. > > Some of our cousins need to have a God connection made… maybe we are their connection… maybe they’ll find their own connection. Maybe we just need to remind them and us that we are all connected. > > My mother’s family cousins in Europe… I am so longing to see them… I will see them next week. I will embrace them. I was the one that made the connection between the Old World and the New World. God gave me the gifts to make this connection. And, I so feel like the connection of my father’s Irish cousins to our recent ancestral homeland. > > God gave me a ministry of connection. A ministry of encouragement someone said… of friendliness…but, NO it is a MINISTRY OF CONNECTIONS. I will make the connections. I will write about connections. I will connect to my words and thoughts and I will connect my people to their God and all that is good. > > Blood relative cousins ….Blood Christ cousins… > > Life is good. > God is good. > God, thanks for my cousins. All of them. > God, thanks for connecting me to you. > I believe in connections. > AMEN!

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The Thoughtfulness of a 4AM God, 15Sept

If you know me, you know I have a good imagination, am silly to a fault, and I love life… But what touches me more and more is the thoughtfulness of God… At every hour of the day… I don’t understand it, I don’t know why I am blessed so much… I feel that the signs God throws my way are truly gifts from HIM… I question and HE answers… I am not making this up, I don’t have as good an imagination as God does… I just don’t…

I know I have to focus on God… I have to stay in HIS plan… He will call me, and I will follow.

Tonight I woke up, not to write, I’m just up… thinking about the day… today my doctor diagnosed some arm numbness issues (I will be fine) – and I was also worried about my shoulders and neck too, but he said my shoulders were strong and then this serious smart doctor made this funny face and arm curl and told me in a great voice that my shoulders were “strong like a bull” – nice, nice affirmation…

4AM….The Pleiades, ah yes, there is Orion the hunter, usually viewed on a winter night. But if you’re up at 4 in the morning you can see it bright in the southern sky. I made a mistake thinking the Pleiades star cluster was in Orion for years but it turns out the Pleiades are in Taurus, being hunted by Orion… I told myself next time I was up at 4 in the morning I would certainly try to find the Pleiades stars, which God uses as a true connection to so much in my life (especially including the Subaru)… I searched the sky maps for the right direction to look… They say look for the stars in the left shoulder of Taurus, the bull… The Bull… Bull… the Bull Shoulder!???!
REALLY GOD?
That doctor told me that my left shoulder is as strong as a bull today, and tonight You show me that’s where the Pleiades are? Bull… I stopped dead in my tracks… Really God???

Bull… You are THAT thoughtful God? Or am I just fooling myself? Maybe I don’t want to know… God You know I am enjoying this, I am enjoying our time together… Maybe just maybe You will let me know only as much as You need to… But please let me praise You God for Your thoughtfulness… You make me smile… You give me pause… You give me a chance to praise 4am wake ups, You give me life and You fill it with Your beautiful imagination… How blessed am I to see Your thoughtfulness…how blessed I am to revere You God.

Job 9: 5-10 “He moves mountains without their knowing it and overturns them in his anger.
He shakes the earth from its place and makes its pillars tremble.
He speaks to the sun and it does not shine; he seals off the light of the stars.
He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.
He is the Maker of the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.
He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.

Amos 5:
8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion,
who turns midnight into dawn
and darkens day into night,
who calls for the waters of the sea
and pours them out over the face of the land—
the Lord is his name.
……
14 Seek good, not evil,
that you may live.
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is.
15 Hate evil, love good;”

—-

This is why I write, I have to process… I can’t believe my eyes, my ears, my life SO filled with the thoughtfulness of God… Well I can now, because really God is that just that thoughtful… to everyone… Just listen, just look, just pause to praise….
“Hate evil, love good”…
Love God

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And then….one more shoulder surprise reference this morning…  I opened this little devotion calendar a dear old departed friend gave me years ago, it lives in my car, I looked ahead to next week, Sept 21 is my Czech Republic “Naming Day” as big a celebration there as one’s birthday… And it reads:
“There is no surprise more magical than the surprise of being loved. It is the finger of God on a person’s shoulder.”

Such a nice whisper of God’s love….

LOL, I add this earlier blog piece from Rick Lawrence about being Jesus being “a bull in a China shop”  – like Jesus with my burst of awakening……. Matches my piece about the doctor telling me my shoulders were “as strong as a bull” and the Pleiades in the shoulder of Taurus the bull… Nice…

LOL

God is good!

———-

LOL, just the other day I called myself  “A bull in a China shop”…. The rapid awareness of full Christianity, 0-60 in seconds flat…

So I laughed (out loud) when I saw this quote this morning:
“Jesus is the original “bull in a china shop.” Is Jesus nice? Yes, of course, but when He is, He’s scandalously nice. He’s nice to all the wrong people, and He’s offensive to all the wrong people.”  — Rick Lawrence

“Is Jesus nice? Yes, of course…. ”
Yup, He loves being the bull, I can hear the crashes 2000 years later…. Loud and clear! Nice!

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Love it when random bible verses (these from flipping thru an actual paper not an electronic bible) bring my thoughts together…

I praise pausing for thought…. it’s forgiveness that gives you peace…. And it’s forgiveness that God gives us, we have to reciprocate, and forgive others… here’s my devotion/pondering…

Forgiving the Wrong Road, 14Sept

I used to know someone who would start complaining (not unusual) but then I noticed that she was trying to pull you down that road too (I don’t know if it was on purpose, but I think it was)… She would start complaining about specific people, get your opinions, and then go blab what you complained about to others to make herself look better… Yeah that’s bad… Yeah that’s both causing sin in you as well as sinning oneself…. And I think you could imagine other sinful instances where others may have pulled folks or you down the wrong road, or even yourself did this too… And maybe not even on purpose to harm, but just to have someone along for the ride….

Praise God when you see those times coming, praise if you can see them a mile away, praise if you can come to a full stop then just don’t go down that road… That is the gift of discernment…

My random bible perusing came across Mark 9:42-43 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed….”
So, your hands, feet, eyes  – all these better for you to maim to prevent yourself from sinning against others…   “Have salt among yourselves…. and be at peace with each other…..” Yeah, use discernment of your words and actions like how salt is used for a fire….

And yet suffering is part of our lot in life, so we can’t avoid getting hurt… And suffering helps us to appreciate the comfort thru Christ: 2nd Corinthians 5 “For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ“…. And Psalm 146 says “Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.”

FORGIVENESS
I have my own trespassers, whom I have to forgive… I always think about that road rage guy who cut me off and punched at my face in my closed car window (yay strong Subaru)… I forgave him on the spot because I was not hurt and because I saw old pain in his face, I told myself I was fine and because of that I forgave him, and I was able to move on with my life… And I now I try to apply this forgiveness (after some processing) for MY peace of mind… Yes, forgiveness for PEACE….

Perhaps you have had a trespassor who didn’t even know that what they were doing was wrong in the eyes of God, maybe actually thought they were helping… disregarding that they may have chanced you and themselves a walk down the wrong road… And because of that, your angst was 100-fold theirs because you were on the grieving receiving end of that trespass…

And thus it’s a tough spot…. stress at keeping true to Mark 11:22, 25, which says FORGIVENESS is the key to your forgiveness from God (and I will add is key to your PEACE of mind)…   “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. – “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

Forgiveness leads to PEACE… If you still have trouble with that forgiveness of any situation, try to figure out what you were supposed to learn from it and then give that angst to God… That will get you closer to PEACE… God will correct that wrong (in HIS timing not yours). So, LIFT up your hands to grab HIS to pull you out of your anger and tears, and let your heart be lifted…. I did and it works…. Blessed are those… Blessed are us… whose “hope is in the Lord our God”…

Pray to always walk down the right road, walk to the light, and pray for discernment always…

LOVE is the greatest commandment…

LOVE demands FORGIVENESS….

FORGIVENESS is a gift from GOD

GOD is LOVE

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Scriptures:
Psalm 146 NIV
1 Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, my soul.
2 I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.
3 Do not put your trust in princes,
in human beings, who cannot save.
4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans come to nothing.
5 Blessed are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
6 He is the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them—
he remains faithful forever.
7 He upholds the cause of the oppressed
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free,
8     the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,  the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord watches over the foreigner
and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.
10 The Lord reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord.

————
Mark 12:29-34
“Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

“Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

——–
1Corinthians 1:3-11
Praise to the God of All Comfort
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters,[a] about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.

——–

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)

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Soul on FIRE – Still, 12Sept

So many duplications of God reminding me HE is in charge this week… Just yesterday I had double scriptures in Ephesians 3 then 4; then I was singing about ‘Better one day in God’s courts, than thousand elsewhere’ at the same time I drove by ‘Ivy court’ Road… Yeah, at the same time as the song.

Last night, I was thinking about something that a friend cautioned me against months ago… warned me, in genuine concern, about me burning out from activity after having such an explosive awakening…

I said then, and still I say now, I could never burn out on God, maybe I will run out of time for everything I want to do (and be a bit weary at times), but my soul right now is still a “Soul on Fire”, like the song, and I pray it always will be, and I have faith that God won’t let me forget that….

And this soul-on-fire thought, in my constant conversation with God, was what was running thru my head while I was walking out of the Subaru and into the grocery store last night. Exactly at that thought of “FIRE” I walked right on top of the word “FIRE” on the ground…. “FIRE”… I smiled, said ‘REALLY God?’… I had to turn around to look again, I took a photo and smiled… THANKS GOD….. Thanks God for FIRE, for kindling and re-kindling my fire for YOU every day…. Praise God, you have me swept away in your love already and yet you remind me EVERYDAY to praise, every day to know your joy.

Oh how blessed am I to realize that!! … I know God, that YOU are ever-faithful to everyone, I’m so grateful that YOU take care of us all.

Thanks Lord for the FIRE, again.

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9-11- Lost Then Found in the Garden, 10SEP

Tomorrow is Friday Sept 11th – I am enclosing a photo of mangled steel from the twin towers in a reflection garden, those which i held on Feb 1st – the first day I knew I was 100% with Jesus…

It was after a swirling blessed church morning and blessed lunch with church family, that I got LOST driving to my friend’s house and then I FOUND I had driven to the 9-11 reflection garden, having never visited there before… Holding those pillars I knew God was totally in control of my life – and knew it was Him who took me there… He drove me to realize my salvation – drove me NOT out of distress and crisis but drove me at a time in my life when I had peace and love.  Feb 1st, I was able to finally say “Yes, I am sure. Yes, I 100% believe that Jesus was real, is real, is the son of God” 😉  

I will always remember standing there – in the crisp winter air – it was as peaceful a moment as you could ever have standing in a sea of sad memories, feeling angst for those 3000 people…  Forever ago it seems, but 14 years ago on Sept 11, 2001 I was holding my brand new 6-week old preemie baby (whose original due date was the day before Sept 10th) – I was holding my baby trying to make sense of it all – not knowing what to do while watching the towers burn – seeing the second crash – but knowing I had to keep moving for the sake of this little miracle who was still demanding 100% of my focus… she was crying for my attention – I had to keep moving…

Feb 1st – God was moving me and I let HIM – I was holding those twisted rusty pillars – praying – picked up a coin from the pile with John 3:16 written on it (it was also Superbowl Sunday) and I smiled to myself that YES I actually believed it… I really did believe that God gave His ONLY Son for our salvation – I really did believe it 100%.

I get so choked up thinking about that day in the 9-11 garden – I will remember my prayer wishing that all who died made it to the realization of salvation in Jesus in the nick of time ….even the perpetrators… I prayed that they ALL found peace and salvation…

I got lost into that garden because I was getting found…That moment in time was a culmination of a head spinning awakening, but I was still standing… I was stilled in praise… and I was ready to walk… Walk with the Lord the rest of my days… in SPIRIT and in TRUTH… 

Thanks God, once again for walking me/driving me/guiding me into the right Holy Spirit-led people who got Jesus awake in me – then got me into Jesus’s arms in order to get WHOLE with You Lord.  God, thank you always for the garden – and for letting me find this path with Your gentle whispering Holy Spirit’s guidance. Thanks Jesus for holding my hand, my heart and my soul as you keep me moving – eternally blessed – ever walking with You to the eternal garden…  

Amen

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Email with my Professor about Go and Tell- turning the world right side up,  09SEP

Awesome, yes thanks,  I like how you said “right side up”, as I was thinking both in my “perfection” writing yesterday about turning the pieces(people) right side up for God to grab, and as also way back I my penny piece, about flipping (or kicking) pennies and sometimes people right side up so that that could reach a hands up… you duplicated that with your email about Jesus wanting to turn the world  “right side up”… God wants to bring us back to whole with Him – to not lose anyone – to make the world realize that only thru Jesus will they get back to eternal life…

On Sep 7, 9:07 PM, Professor wrote:

Not only that, but if you read the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) carefully, he actually tells people (and demons occasionally) NOT to tell everyone about healings and exorcisms he does. It’s like he doesn’t want to blow his cover or something.

All that changes however AFTER the cross- after the resurrection, when he tells his followers, GO, and TELL. Go invite, go make disciples. Now that the work had been accomplished, he sends them to turn the world upside-down. Or, rather, right-side up again, since the world was so broken and he had come to heal it and make all things new.

259

Settling Your Heart into Jesus’s Hands, 07Sept

I have experienced Jesus awakening me, grabbing my hand to wake me.

I have also experienced Jesus raising my whole body from when I lost focus like Peter and started sinking into the water… Jesus not JUST grabbing my hand, but truly by picking me up BY MY HEART, by scooping HIS hands under it… Lifting me up with LOVE.

I was in the water by choice, so Jesus let the water rinse my heart and then when I rose my hand in surrender, Jesus picked it and me up to drain from being waterlogged and heavy. The water poured in and out, with a cleansing rinse…

I need ALWAYS to be the one to let go completely and release my heart into HIS hands, let it sink low into protective custody… To hide my heart in Christ (following poet Maya Angelou’s advice).

Yes, the trapped air pockets are what Jesus and I are now working on… The big bubbles and the little ones… all these will have to be bubbled out, sometimes painfully… But out they must go, one bubble at a time until there are none left preventing completeness.

Here is my devotion:

Rest your heart, you’ve traveled so far, it’s ok to be weary… Rest your tired soul, settle in…

Jesus came to raise us up to God’s eternal home. To hold us up so we could hone in on the focus we need to make it thru life. Jesus came not to judge the world, but to save it (John 3:17).

Let your heart nestle down into Jesus’s hands… Wholly and solidly you surrender your body into HIS supporting arms, let your body sigh and let your soul rest down into love. Let your heart nestle in, surrender into the protective shield, wear Jesus on your heart as your armor of God. Feel your whole heart in contact with his gentle yet strong hands.

We need to make it thru life, but we will find salvation wearing the bloodshed from Christ, and only then we find ourselves living the life of the good news, in life everlasting.

Please Lord, when we are sinking, let the cleansing living water of Jesus rinse thru our hearts.  Please Lord, pick us up to drain us from our waterlogged and heavy lives. Please Lord, scoop us up, lifting our hearts with Your hands. Lifting us into salvation…

Lifting us with LOVE.

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Perfection, 07Sept

Ok, so you’ve accepted Jesus, accepted you were loved enough by GOD to be saved thru the bloodshed of Jesus, and yes, you have even been treasured so much that you still have to question: “This was all for us? For me???”

Ok, now what??

Yeah, you aren’t on your death bed, YOU actually pray that you have energy to live out God’s plan picked for you….

Perhaps you feel that you need to accept God’s command to go make disciples?…
Yet perhaps you feel more work needs to be done to clean out every corner of your heart first?…
Perhaps God says DON’T wait….

Yes, God says sing your praises and share His Grace and HE will see you thru each storm as you arrive at it… But God ALSO asks you to work the soil in the lives of the people around you, as well as within your own life….at the same time…

God wants wholeness from society, not piecemeal pockets of salvation…. He wants perfection and HIS game is no game at all, He wants a time where we ALL accept our salvation at His appointed time.

Perfection, one of my favorite games growing up… Fit all the pieces in the spring-loaded puzzle board before that timer is up and POP!… The whole board pops out throwing all the pieces everywhere… Finish the board and the timer is stopped… Perfection for eternity…

Each piece must be fit individually into the unique spaces. Each piece is different from all the rest, some are tricky, they all must be studied (or shape memorized) for uniqueness… and they ALL must get into the board before time is up…

Each SOUL must fit individually into HIS plan. Each soul is different from all the rest, some are tricky, they all must be studied (or shape memorized) for uniqueness… and they ALL must get into the space marked by God’s plan before time is up…

And whenever that is, when time is up, are you going to have your skull and soul “safe” nestled into a space? Done and just pray the board will get finished before time is up? Or perhaps you might consider to be out ON the board, finding space for all the other pieces? Since you know your space is marked out, saved for you, and you know how to hop into it at the last minute… Well perhaps it would behoove you to work on the other pieces, to help God… Especially since time could be short or time could be long…  Be busy and help God work on their souls by sharing your unique tool set to support them. Help set as many of these pieces of God’s plan upright so it’s easier for all of us to prepare for eternity… It is God who will grab them to fit them all in before time is up… Before we all pray…

Shareholders, we are ALL shareholders in HIS plan, we all have a stake… We can work for the company or wait gathering dust while we slowly turn into dust. We can find use for our lives by being out there, working to increase the return on the investment of God’s capital… We can’t finish the job unless we are working in the job…

Who wants to help God?
I DO…
DO YOU?

It’s the plan for us ALL to be in God’s plan.
I want to work the plan…
DO YOU?

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from an email discussion with my professor

Trickle Effect, 05SEP

It interests me how Jesus truly didn’t want to be considered a sideshow attraction… He wanted people to dig deep within themselves, He wanted individual conversions…. And obviously He had a few miracles that also worked to convince folks, but He was likely simply showing mercy – simply kindness to deserving believers who were in bad straights…. He could have done grandeur-flamboyant miracles, but He didn’t…

This calls into question our avenues of teaching and trying to spread the Gospel to the masses, what is the best way to reach people? God could have waited and sent Jesus now, in our day and age, when mass media would have spread (or squashed) His message like wildfire…

But God choose a trickle effect…

Some mega churches try a big scale approach… Kinda like the debate people had with free education when it started, questioning if it is better to water down education for all to understand?, or keep education at high level for a few?… I think with faith, God wants the trickle effect – Yes, even at mega churches there is the trickle effect – it might be the person sitting next to you, with whom you can discuss the message’s meaning, where conversations about Jesus occur… It’s the way of the personal trickle down/bleed over effect – where God becomes REAL to you…

Hmmmm…. I wonder where God will take all these pockets of faith next….. Hmmm…. God sure is interesting in His approach….

The trickle effect is watching and seeing the Holy Spirit in action…

God wants us to come one by one – on our own realization that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life!

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Oooh!!!! GOD duplicated this verse for me – about healing the mute man from the book of Mark today at church here in our getaway city…. Crazy!!!!   God loves that crazy duplication….. Fun

Jesus Heals a Deaf and Mute Man
31 Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis. 32 There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him.

33 After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34 He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). 35 At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.

36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. 37 People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

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Oh!!! This trickle effect is not just believing but also doing (which we knew)… Verse 12… I always thought it was “you will see greater things;, but actually it’s “you will DO greater things”

John 14 (NIV)

Jesus Comforts His Disciples
14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Jesus the Way to the Father
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”

9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
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And later in the scripture I love how we think of us going to the father, but Jesus says how they will come and make their home with us….
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23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

 

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Staying Humble, Staying Hopeful…. 05Sep

Cleaning my purse…. Love this little book buried in it, today I read about Paul in it…
Paul, as amazing as his momentous transformation, remembers he always will be human, as wonderful a writer, preacher, leader he always remembers he is human, especially with that thorn in his side… And he uses a eraser…. it’s good to stay humble….
Just like the reminder from this bracelet I still wear (a Christmas in July gift at VBS Everest from my pastor) the white bead (with SNOW from Mount Everest in it) means when you are at your highest highs, remember to stay humble! I slide that white bead up and try to remember that … I try but fail at that often 😉  thanks folks – thanks Lord – for tolerating my follies…

And (gratefully only a few times) I have held onto that black bead (containing mud from the dead sea) to remember that when you are at your lowest to remember to stay hopeful! Thanks all, especially over these past couple weeks, for all your support!!!

Grateful always for the Jesus hand-ups, God heart-guarding, as well as those humbling thorns….

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Found this in my drafts…. Probably a bit rambling, or full circle, depends on how you look at it 😉

my thoughts were  thinking about those who do not value themselves enough, that if they focus to do HIS work that they might find purpose… And also about finding others find their purpose and not neglect them… or discard them as worthless…

And sadly there are those folks going too far in the other way… Deluding themselves into thinking they are helping for God but absorbing the praise meant for GOD along the way… hmmm….

Whole God, 28 Aug
Believe in one’s self…. believe in one’s self worth… God sent Jesus to save the world, not condemn it (John 3:17)…. So shouldn’t we do the same thing? We are made of God because God is the ALL in ALL, everything, dust to dust…. we should not condemn the world but find our place in it.

John 6:29 NIV
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Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

So we are to believe in Jesus because God sent a servant savior, to save us, because our WHOLE GOD didn’t want to lose any of us, we are pieces in HIS puzzle, we are ALL worth saving, we are ALL worth the effort…

So we are to believe in ourselves too…

Jesus was sent because HE was the living example of God, this is how you are meant to live, love, forgive, reach…. You don’t have to forget or shy away from pain, try to embrace that you have the strength to face life because that strength is from God… God gave you a direction to work forward towards: Jesus. You are made from God, you are made to go to God… You were dust and will return to dust. It’s all connected…. We are all connected… We ALL matter to God, therefore we should all matter to each other too… and although we should 100% love ourselves and take care of ourselves – it’s not always about us!…  it’s about WE… It’s about GOD…

Growth, God wants us to grow – God wants to use us as a resource – if you think of a plant where the leaves, shoots, roots all have roles then it makes sense that we are all in this together – that certain people have certain roles, certain gifts, and we all work together – to survive – the goal of a plant (of all organisms) is to survive and to prosper just enough to have offspring – to pass on their genetic material for the good of the whole community – to enrich the gene-pool – to help the community thrive in the diversity – that is a God-sanctioned event – God wants us to survive and prosper and feed back to the WHOLE community – to the WHOLE God – we are not to be islands of our own…  Have you have been in a situation and said – “wow i was here at the right time and the right place?” – realized because YOU were used as a saving grace for someone else? Yeah, you have been there – I have been there – you were there because God wanted you there (not that you had a choice anyway)…

Sure this is work!  It’s work to navigate life on the go and not take a few detours… Yes, it takes needed retreats at times to recover and refocus on how to move forward – retreating is a chance to reflect on your role in society in life – it’s a recovery to reenter, to re-engage to re-invigorate to re-vine for the will of God.

Aristotle said “the whole is mightier than the sum of its parts” – so that’s God in a nutshell – God is the synergy of everything WHOLE – and the WHOLE thing is GOD – He sees the parts and he puts them together – but they are supposed to work as a WHOLE – and unless we connect ourselves and live our lives to connect us all, then we are not holding up our end of the bargain.  If God makes US whole – then why should we not do the same for God – help to make HIM WHOLE?  Yes, believe in yourself and your role in life – make a difference – because God has a plan and he is working His plan – so why not make it easier on God and make your life purpose to work for HIM – (or at least stop working against Him)…

Believe in yourself and your role.  You are here on this planet for the SYNERGY – the summation of the parts – you are here for a WHOLE GOD ….

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Back in the Boat, 02SEP

This amazing thing happened to me yesterday after stressing about a really bad situation on and off for a couple of weeks… I was stressing awful… Yikes my stress thru the roof that instant!!!! But WOW how Jesus calmed it… I won’t tell you what those stressors were, but this was my text to a few folks immediately after my heart was released from that pain….. The stressors didn’t completely go away, but giving it to God made all the difference…

“Wow, I was just feeling so stressed this morning and it caused a real physical heart heaviness feeling, but it’s now GONE due to a refocus on Jesus…  stress pen chewing, gum, and ate my lunch early, no help, stressing my heart SO heavy… And so a friend came into my office, she is a good Christian friend and I was able to explain to her this tremendous stress feeling (and what caused it)… And then I explained that often when I was feeling under a storm I would ask Jesus to come back into my boat… when I (and Peter) reached a hand up out of the water while sinking, that it was what we need to do to re-focus….  while telling her this, I actually motioned reaching up for Jesus with my hand and grabbing HIS… And I am not kidding, my heart felt such relief!!!!! It was amazing, instant relief, the heaviness gone!!!!! WOW!!!!! Good God!!!!  Thank you Jesus for this peace!!! “

I told another friend about this amazing release feeling and she said “Welcome back into the boat!”

PEACE

 

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I am the Mustard of Life, 30Aug

Mustard, it saved me yesterday. Awesome to get to the amusement park with my son for his birthday, a friend gave us free day passes, we gave up season passes this year because my kids are old for this tiny kid park, but it’s always fun for us big kids too.

Spinning rides, I can’t do them anymore, a bell went off when I hit a certain age, and my system just can’t…. He wanted to ride all the new rides, he directed the day, he was in charge of where we went in the park, he beamed with pride… He is a good soul and so thoughtful, but needed me and wanted me by his side on those spinning rides, how could I disappoint… I did ok, but not good…. Fun yes but spinning… Pray Jesus to come into the spinning teacup like that boat on the Galilee, nope Jesus was already there, spinning too… My head kept spinning, the ride was done, still spinning… How could I let this ruin the fun day planned? That stressed me out… How could I recover…

Mustard… Mustard saved me (that and sitting still for five minutes)… I could finally stand and walk again… my son wanted popcorn and me too, I wanted food, but I had left my packed healthy lunch in the car… I was hungry, stress hungry, not real hunger… Mustard…. Free packets at the end of the counter, free in this charge you “an arm and a leg” for just popcorn kinda place. My head and stomach said food as your addiction of choice for stress relief, but my eyes are open now and I KNEW this was all stress, I had breakfast and in the past I have fasted with no problem on many days, this was STRESS…. Spinning stress… Jesus holding but not fixing what I desired as a quick fix… Mustard, I have used this awesome spice when I started changing my eating habits, I crave salty, spicy, and wow flavors… mustard, horseradish, vinegar, shock your system kinda spice…. Snap, the second the mustard hit my mouth I was cured…WOW… My brain and body snapped back to the scene of a happy day… A peaceful oasis of me returned within thousands of screaming kids, scrambling grandparents… and parents getting the most bang out of their buck, being big kids…. that’s the fun in this park, we are free to be little and rambunctious again….
Mustard, mmm…. It zapped me like one of those automatic defibrillators… I could continue, onto the water rides, day saved… Son happy…

Jesus, I should not have expected you to fix my spinning stress, I inflicted it myself and I certainly didn’t detach from you… I was balancing life this day (actually every day)…. The body has limits you know, but our free will doesn’t… and free will puts us at dangerous spots… Inflicting both injury and inappropriate quick fixes if our boundary lines are left in the dust and we go too far… Confuses our focus, spins our heads…

Can we control our free will? We have to! Test it sure, I got thru the rides, happy boy to have mom by his side… But sanity prevailed and limited the actions that would have thrown me over the edge… Mustard snapped me back, I focused on moving forward… I shouldn’t have had to use it, but it substituted with a spicy kick… It’s not a bad thing, and I was grateful, it’s just mustard… it’s good to find safe ways to get yourself into gear… better to find safe ones than risky ones… And I mean this for not just amusement rides, I mean this for big people problems… If you put yourself at risk, you may not see the best way back to the path…

Thus the connection of mustard to Jesus… Snapping back into reality, into the feeling of peace, or at the minimum finding the will to move forward, to move on…. All these are necessary when you stray… All these are things to reposition your mind, and to focus on the necessary… Jesus could be the spicy mustard you need, “I am the mustard of life”…. Jesus could shine a light into your stress or even your shame or even your vain… whether minute or major; He could be there for you because actually HE never left… He carries you, heavy burdens and all, perhaps if you shed some of those burdens the trek will be easier… Perhaps you will even go so far as to find internal joy, true joy…

Spinning heads or not, Jesus is along for the ride. If you are happy, HE is there; if you are sad, HE is there. If you are in the pits, HE has an amazing light source to shine you out… He didn’t judge, he doesn’t judge, but he wants YOU along for HIS ride… So DON’T give up on HIM, HE isn’t giving up on YOU, EVER!

252 Cling, Aug

I know they say Subaru love is a cult, I think it’s a way of life…. But, it’s God’s car to me, my true tabernacle that drove me directly into Jesus’s loving arms, so I love it, and I show it… The car, the moon, the stars, and this weight loss (20lbs since May, 42lbs total) – they all make me LOVE and appreciate God’s good works in me and around me even more…. So I don’t know if I am too vain, too boastful, or just too EXCITED about God… I wonder this, I also wonder if I spend too much time thinking about God… I don’t know about a lot of things… I still pray for discernment… Constantly… It’s just where I am right now…who knows where I will be in the future… NO WAY would I have believed I would be at this state nearly eight months ago!

But YES, sure, I cling to my Subaru and to Christmas and Easter and to music therapy (both regular and praise band music), and to the hundreds of people who bless me and witness Jesus to me… I cling so that I DON’T get off this “Christmas merry go round”… I cling because I really DON’T want to lose this blessed cloud nine feeling… I really don’t think I will, and HIS guiding hand wouldn’t let me so how dare I doubt HIS power!!!… Daily joy buffers this latest feeling of an avalanche of life tasks…. at work and home, financial crushes, stress of starting new counseling – opening old wounds…. But of course it’s expected that I am weary, not a surprise, this past month is always the pinnacle of summer busyness in my year… within one month I had three family birthdays to prep, VBS, scout trips, full time work at full steam and no time for vacation, and back to school on top of my normal life running a household… Christmas time is calming peace in comparison!! Oh how I could use a snowday right now) and then these new blindside devil attacks layered and interlaced within good things… Which really are like God peaking into the dark corners and urging me to cleanse even more of the crap out of my life… Like I wrote previously, the devil is the toilet paper that stuck to Jesus’s foot when he walked into my heart…. I will sink and rise again holding Jesus’s hand…

And yet thru all my “perceived” trouble (which is perceived and not any trouble for God to handle), I know it could be much much worse and I am truly blessed, and I have God throwing me miracles and messages constantly…. I praise God above my Subaru (and in it and on it, LOL I had to take this pic, fun)…

Above all I praise…

I praise God allowing me to absorb the good works that HE laid at my feet, I praise God for giving me a “vehicle” in my situation, smile, words, and now improved health…  my living example that shows witness to others about God’s good works (and his golden repair)…

I praise God to be used as HIS tool, and truly truly I praise God for letting me witness into the secrets of eternal joy…. And then letting me witness it back out to ALL….
God is MY “ALL in ALL”

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This essay is long, but another of a series of God teaching events for me… God will repeat scenarios until we learn what He is trying to teach us. I appreciate this lesson because it helped clear away the jetsam in my brain… Just know that the Holy Spirit blows the dust from your goggles so you may see… Thanks God!

Crossing Lines, 23Aug

Ah, sitting in the airport… Uses up three precious hours of your life before your flight even leaves….
But, it’s not so bad, actually reflection time well spent…

So, hour to kill, or maybe hour to live? It is air travel you know, you just never know… No worries… better than driving… The server comes up from the bar… “You asked for help?” Three of us looked puzzled… Oh! the one gentleman had hit the request for help, couldn’t figure out how to order a beer… Apparently he already had one too many! He said this is the most expensive beer he had ever bought. I said “well you don’t need it, maybe you should’ve just used your money going to the duty free and we could have all cracked open some liquid refreshment…”  Laughs all around… that started the chit chat, small talk you know that you get to enjoy in public places, grocery store lines, the dentist office… killing the time… this isolating Ipads? nope, don’t need those anymore! we had fallen into one of those delightful fun open conversations, I will call it “Words with Strangers”…

This buzzed gentleman asked me and the other man next to me if he and I were a couple, we both say no. He asked why we were each traveling; we both said for business… the gentleman to my left works for a security company and told us about the terrible food at his conference. I tell them about the great food at my conference, especially at the gala party – the oysters.. I tell them about the exciting science that I have been learning, about its uses to help the world … Our buzzed gentleman stops me mid-sentence and exclaims to security guy: “Wow, she’s pretty AND smart!” Blush… Security guy put his hand to his head in embarrassment. Buzz says, “well, she is pretty isn’t she?”. Security nods, says “yes she is”, but cringes, embarrassed for me… I start to say “it’s ok, I just lost 35 lbs, it’s nice to hear that, it’s a novelty for me, I have been working out at home, at church…”… I can’t finish my sentence because Buzz interrupts with: “Wow, she is pretty AND smart AND goes to church!!” Ha, smiles…. “Well your smile just lights up your face, you glow” (no I am not making this up, he really said that, like SO many have since my awakening last December). I don’t recount this to boast but to say that yes, Jesus changes your whole life and even how you look. Jesus makes you shine.

I can’t help but smile, it was sweetly said, in an inebriated cute way, nothing more… no harm yet… but ok, I REALLY want to get back to my science talk!!

And then we change the subject… Talking about food and then alcohol again… Security guy told us of his boss throwing a fabulous party.. I told them about the Canadian whiskey mixed with maple syrup and lime juice and cherry biters at our party, delicious!  Buzz says, “I bet you enjoyed them, huh?”
“Sure I did, yum!” Leading me, he then says “I think you enjoyed quite a few of them, I bet you really REALLY enjoyed them, huh?”…

SCREECH!!!!!! Oops….

There my friends is where I felt the tipping point of the conversation… I SCREECHED it to a halt… Bells and whistles, flashing lights, you name it… Signals a blaring, stop the train! Stop this conversation before it goes too far! …

There my friends is where the boundary lines needs to be drawn and held… Buzz can’t draw the line, his brain/mouth filter dissolved with his last pounded beer. I was not offended, just aware… He was leading a conversation down the wrong path for a married woman, for any unknown woman…. a conversation that is not proper often occurs because someone has blurred the lines… He was intrigued about my partying more than my science that was for sure… So, I had to step back and not cross that line. He erased his line, BUT I still saw my line, and I held it… Luckily, I also had “security” next to me. My eyes are open, my sober ears alerted my sensibility which alerted my mouth to correct my worded path. I halted the conversation with… “oh no, they only let us have two drink tickets, I didn’t have too much fun.”… Whew… Saved the line… “Security” then changed the subject for me.

A famous weatherman slipped into a trap a few years ago… some eastern European mafia girls plied him with alcohol, drugged him and ran up his credit accounts like crazy $100,000 over a weekend. Devious! Devil’s play…

Oh how in a devious situation someone could have taken this Buzz guy for a ride, emotionally at least… Could have blurred the line on purpose, like those eastern mafia girls, for financial gain…. Both parties could have given the devil delight in the banter. But it’s not right, not righteous, not even smart…

Yes, sometimes you feel the devil pull you across lines sometimes… And if there is a willing partner or player whose own devil is working hard at pulling them past their lines, well you can get that “snowball effect”…  or maybe call it dancing with fire… Either way, you are apt to get burned….  A Genesis song, Mad Man Moon, speaks to this… “And took off in the air. I flew to places which the clouds never see, Too close to the deserts of sand”. The lyricist never gets to come back from the desert sadly – BUT God would take you back in a heartbeat, God would forgive if you truly repented…

Solomon speaks to this reality, urging God to hear the repenting cries:
1Kings 8:46 “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive to their own lands, far away or near; 47 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’; 48 and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them ……  49 then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. 50 And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their captors to show them mercy…”

A book my pastor gave me was my flight companion… I read it in the spring, and am re-reading it now. Guess what? I missed a chapter… read that as I sat safely on my flight, away from Buzz who probably missed his flight… “Security” was on my plane though, good deal…

Guess what? This book chapter four fits EXACTLY this scenario… Figures… Yeah I shouldn’t be surprised how God works in my life, always tossing me the right answer, the corrective learning situation… and then backs it up with text from the Bible!! So in Chapter 4 of Rob Fuquay’s book “The God We Can Know” he writes about knowing God’s care… Jesus is the gatekeeper for the sheep. the gate represents security. Sheep would go out through the gate for enjoyment – the gate led to joy. The sheep came in through the gate at night at the dark times for security.  Who was in charge of the gate? Jesus.
Jesus, the shepherd, our shepherd, our LIGHT of the world, would let the sheep go in and out (just like us)… but when it’s time to stay in for security at night, the shepherd sleeps against the door to keep the sheep in his fold. Jesus is our gatekeeper… The scripture is John 10: 7-9 “So again Jesus said to them: ‘Very truly I tell you I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture’.”

So yes, as we, HIS sheep, look for Jesus as our gatekeeper. We are really supposed to be looking for that gate, that boundary line. Jesus will hold us in with His body, hold us as one of His own. And if we are lost, Jesus will still come find us and shine HIS LIGHT on our dark path.  His real shepherd flesh and blood saves us…  So that we are not deviled away by our enemies or by ourselves. Yes God will take us back, but it’s safer and it’s less painful if we stay away from crossing the line in the first place.

Will I approach that line again? Will you? Another day another adventure… I even saw that line drawn and redrawn and approached that very evening… a train car with six 20-year olds quite punchy from a night of rabble-rousing at the ballpark… Thank God, I was a fan of their team, slid right into their train car and conversation… One dude starts at me for sitting there and we banter back and forth, in fun… His foul mouth at the other guys (not me) wakes up the sensibility of another toasted 20 yr old who said, “Hey, watch your mouth, there’s a lady here”… See, there are people who know the lines of etiquette… There are lines being upheld every day.

So you better believe that we will all approach those boundary lines again and again! And I won’t be afraid to step out in fear of someone crossing that line. I won’t let fear rule me. I mention this story to a church friend and he motions like a baseball player drawing a line in the dirt with his foot. Yeah draw your own line, hold your line, and get ready for the next pitch.

I was about to finish this essay in my head as I put my son to bed.  He told me how he told his friend that night that God does not want us to be afraid. Truth from the mouths of babes, he is a spirit-led boy! He’s right, God does not want us to be afraid… God wants us to prepare ourselves for life… God says “I AM with you always”!!!

I pray God’s grace always to keep my and everyone’s eyes open, and our boundary lines clear… I pray for others seeing the LIGHT of Jesus that God sheds on my lines so I may plainly see them. Thanks God for security, for Jesus, and for the opportunity to step up to the plate. Batter up!

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Timing – Unfailing Love – email to praise band folks

Of course the verse of the day pertains today to the last praise song that I heard in church…. Psalm 94:18… Unfailing Love…. since I missed most of the service I loved singing that extra song, “Unfailing Love” at the end with them today, because I needed it, because God truly blesses me with unfailing LOVE, consolation and joy…

I was way late because the friend I was helping at church had fallen, I helped her and then took my son home, checked on someone who was not feeling well, then hauled back to church in a rush to get some organized praise in… Timing is everything with God. I was coming up the road a florist truck was swerving all over the road, really glad he didn’t hit me… I mean left lane, right lane rumble strips, and back, maybe texting? I don’t know… (I’m not making this up, I REALLY seem to get these crazy drivers allot)…. I started honking my horn at him of course (a Christmas tune this time)… I pulled him next to him at the light and rolled down my window… he almost hit the car in front of him but got it in park and I yelled “what’s wrong? you’re swerving all over the place, are you ok?” and he said “I know i know I’m sorry, I’m just trying to get somewhere”… he looked so out of it, so dazed and confused, I pray he stay awake as he turned onto the main highway… Thanks GOD for once again putting me in the right place at the right time.

Crazy day, crazy week, crazy year… but God is the great consoler… I was happy to get in my praise out in the unfailing love song…. Thanks for your music… it reached me when I needed it today, it always does…God’s unfailing love… The right place at the right time…

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From: “Bible Gateway”

Psalm 94:18-19 NIV

When I said, “My foot is slipping,” your unfailing love, LORD, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.

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Pray Outside the Box, 22Aug

Beautiful flowers from the church for a beautiful woman… Her services were beautifully heartfelt. I pray for the family, her mother father and sister, she was only 37 years old and died of natural causes. Pastor’s sharing was such a comfort to the family…. even though I barely knew her, she was a faithful Facebook Church friend… She always encouraged me in messages when I knew she herself did not have an easy life… Even in her situations she always found the energy to love others… truly embraced being a greater member of the church outside the building and into the Ethernet… after the services her mom brought her ashes over to a friend and me and asked us to pray over them  … I am reminded of the phrase to think outside the box… well we all need to love outside the box. Love for those we know and love especially for those we don’t know, but who need our prayers greatly. I prayed holding the box but I know that God has already taken her into His loving arms… Jesus was waiting there to pull her into heaven where she was able to finally find PEACE from a trying array of situations. But through it all she always gave love and she always had love, especially with her immediate family. I prayed to share love and comfort outside the box and back to this faithful family … Being able to pray out loud in SPIRIT and TRUTH is a new gift God has given me and I am honored and humbled to share prayers when called upon… it’s a blessing to have God help us LOVE outside the box… RIP, sweet child of God… eternally you are loved…

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God’s Eternal LOVE, 21Aug

I look back a year ago, at a photo of me at the state fair posing with a Coke can personalized with my name on it… “A Coke and a smile.” I look happy, I was happy, I am happy… I was and am always enjoying life. It’s genetics, it’s upbringing, it’s God’s gift to me. It’s a conscious decision to have an underlying contentment – or it is conscious to want to dig down deep past the sorrows of humanness and look for the deep joy.

If I am unhappy and stressed, then there’s something I need to learn from it. If I learn it, I might be able to change it. If I can’t change it, I will have to change me. I will change to be happy. Even more happy means I chose to continue to change. Both because I want to change into a joy state and because God wants us there.

The Coke photo was with my daughter, happy in the moment…. But waiting as we took the photo was her unhappy brother who wanted to go to somewhere else at the fair… When we went to his event, my daughter was then unhappy… That’s life, sometimes happy in the moment, sometimes not.

Life is here and now, life is for living, life is for loving, life is short. Eternity is not.

Eternity is not the “here and now”. But how you deal with the “here and now” will teach you what you need to prepare for eternity. Life brings unknown and known challenges, sometimes blindsides, sometimes clear as day hurdles. Life is for living past those challenges. Life is short. Eternity is not.

Life brings surprise and expected joys. Life is opportunity knocking. Life is for loving beyond those temporary joys, preparing for eternity. Life is short. Eternity is not.

Life is what you make of it. Life is short. Live in the moment, but love for eternity.
Eternity is an unknown, promised by a known.
Eternity is promised by one with eternal LOVE.
Eternity is a gift from God.

Therefore life itself is a gift… EVERYDAY a new gift from God to use life to prepare for eternity. Life is short. Love life and live it fully. Love life for eternity sake.

Your body is temporary, so use your mind to make it a temple for your spirit. Your spirit will live for eternity. I learned the secret to eternity – t was no secret – it was LOVE.

Of all the commandments, the greatest is LOVE. Love isn’t just a state, love is a commandment. Love completely, love fully, love without conditions, love forever and forever you will be loved.

God is LOVE.

LOVE is eternal life with God.

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Here’s the first writing from that awesome book Pastor gave me, I so appreciate the “Subaru in Christ” inscription he wrote…. No WiFi at night and plane rides great for book reading…And writing… God knows I need him more than ever…. Reminds me to stay vined…

I AM, book review, chptr 1, 19 AUG

Jesus re-vined me and entered my heart after I dropped my walls and feed the baby Jesus within me. He was already there in spirit guiding me, but now he became real in truth. Jesus became truly GOD to me. If I became Jesus-like then I worship God in SPIRIT and TRUTH, because we are intertwined, inter-vined.

I AM…. This book I read and am rereading I want to write about each chapter…. So what does I AM mean?

For Jesus it meant I AM God.

For God it means I AM, I EXIST, I AM ALL IN ALL, I AM Grace and grace is sufficient for you, don’t complicate it, don’t predict, don’t worry.

For me?
It means I AM God’s being here on earth… I AM made of God and therefore God’s CHILD. I am to be Jesus’s mini-me. No I am NOT God but I AM made from God, and connected as a branch on HIS vine, connected as part of His body in the church. If the whole of ME dies, the He will flow thru my whole being, be my whole energy, I AM IN HIS SPIRIT, I AM IN HIS TRUTH.

I AM a CHILD OF GOD growing everyday.. I AM growing EVERYDAY into A GODCHILD. I AM everyday growing GOD.

The ME is dying and GOD is growing….
“ME ME ME, play with ME, God”, children will say…
I am your child, so let’s be together, forever. Let me play in YOUR garden. I will swing off YOUR vine. I will play as YOUR child, I will learn YOUR voice.
I AM fine on the vine.

I AM
I AM ME
I AM going to be with YOU forever GOD
I AM HERE NOW
I AM

 

 

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This thought of focusing on Jesus while walking with him really really
comforts me right now – actually had a wave of comfort flow over me
this morning when I thought this and wrote this – truly we have a powerful God.
whew…

Walking on water with Jesus, Wash that Devil Away, 19AUG
When I let Jesus walk into my heart, that devil walked in too because
he was like a piece of toilet paper that was stuck to Jesus’s foot.
Now I envisioned myself as Peter with Jesus holding my hand on the water…
I will walk with Jesus on the water and trust him 100%. We will stand
there, eyes locked, and start walking  – and yes that devil will
dissolve away… and i will have peace…
Amen

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I had been in a (private) storm for a few days –so this was powerful for me to see God’s comforting presence tonight… I am fine – but know I am in a God-gifted retreat

Be Snow and Know I AM God, 17AUG

Well, yeah…. God is God… I know this because He knows me…Reminds me EVERYDAY…

I needed a retreat – I didn’t know I needed it so badly  because the things to retreat from happened AFTER I booked this trip – to is a science conference in Canada – the Great White North – in August – but there is no air-conditioning in the dorm room I am staying in – yet it’s ok – sure it’s hot, humid and sticky but this is how I grew up – this is not terrible, this is summer and I am grateful for it – it’s just that I could have had a nice a/c room with wifi – but I booked this last minute and wanted to be on campus and “I get what I get and I won’t throw a fit” because it’s an amazing series of events that got me here in the first place…

Conference starts tomorrow morning – that area is all A/C and wifi-ed – it will be a productive week and science-rich… therapeutic… it will of course be a God-rich week too – alone time – very therapeutic – retreat for 5 days – no kids – no work folks – no phone – no texting – no problem…

But it’s hot – sticky – I needed to process tonight like I did ALL DAY on the train, the airport the plane – I needed to reflect – I needed to ponder life and what has been happening (which I won’t detail) – but please know I am in a deep reflection right now – a devilish pull to top all other things going on this week –  I am fighting – I am relying on God to fight for me but I am fighting too – picking up my words to fight the good fight – and God gave me a week’s retreat away to reflect – thanks God –

But it’s hot – and God gave me a place to wander and rest comfortably on this hot sticky night – three minutes from my doorstep – a place to sit – a place to think – a place to work (library closes at 7 but this place is open until 11 and it is UBER A/C-ed) – AND it’s a place that has SNOW – yes – it’s Canada folks – yes I wondered if there would be snow…  snow in August…. Yes there is SNOW… and not just because I brought a fabric snowball with me too…

Yeah – Be Snow and Know that I am God – yeah, it’s a hockey rink – filled with cool ice and there is SNOW – well at least snow-like ice from the zamboni  – yeah that’s snow-enough for me in God’s summer. Yeah it’s God’s hand at work alright – God’s gentle touch in my life – yeah it’s GOD’S SNOW to comfort me – thanks God – I needed this…I needed snow… I needed You…

I need You God today and always… You are in control – You will give me retreat and rest – You remind me to stay humble and lovingly fear your mighty power…

Be Snow and Know that I am God

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Covering your face? Or Radiate?, 17Aug

Moses saw God.
Moses’ face shined, his face was radiant when he brought down the Ten Commandments… His face scared people… He covered it so the people would not be afraid…

So what do I do with my face?  People tell me I radiate, kinda like the glow when you are pregnant… physically I am not pregnant but spiritually I certainly feel that way… That plus my words have certainly scared some people… Imagine how I feel!!! God will continue to shine on your face everything that is in your heart… How you feel will show on your face… Trust me…

But do I cover my face? Or let it shine? I am pretty sure God wants me to show HIS peaceful blessings and joy. Maybe God does want me to scare the devil out of some people? If God’s will is to use me for HIS purposes then how can I not show my face? How can I not use my whole self to proclaim HIM and HIS works? I scratch my head sometimes and pray for discernment. Lord how do I use myself for Thy will?

I doubt I am supposed to hide my face… I think people like to see resilience and radiance and reaffirmation… I caught my own face in a mirror yesterday, scared myself with the glow then smiled…. Yeah don’t put your light under a basket (Matthew 5:15). Yeah this God is a powerful God!

BUT tell the people why you radiate! Don’t let them think it is from anything else but God Himself! (because they will, trust me) When praised remind them you are just using your God-given skills.

Simple truth shouldn’t scare the people, today’s people have likely heard about God… “In God we trust” is on our money and surely they have heard about money…  so tell them the truth, the truth is that you are nothing without God! The truth is God and God is truth.

So one should hide scriptures in one’s heart (Psalm 119) but I think it’s ok to show God on your face… Shine on!

Scriptures:
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11 ESV)

——
Proverbs 11:30
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
And he who wins souls is wise
——-
Psalm 119: 11
I have hidden your word in my heart
that I might not sin against you.
——–
Exodus
The Radiant Face of Moses
29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. 30 When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. 32 Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai.

33 When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. 34 But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord.

—————-

PS… Yes, googling to find the scripture about hiding scriptures I came across my favorite poet : “A woman’s heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man should have to seek Him first to find her.”-Maya Angelou  And Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

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Devil Stand Down, God Help me Chase Those Birds Away, Kindle and Rekindle,16Aug

I really wanted to  write this piece in a strong and forceful way because I’m in the middle of some tough devil chasing…. But when I can feel myself forcing the writing I know it’s not Spirit led answers from God… my pieces usually take half an hour and I sat at this piece for 2 plus hours…. Was it a waste of my time? I doubted myself, the devil causes me doubt… No, because it was spirit-led for God to make me write in order to humble myself in editing… I see how God convicts me in that I am not to battle the devil myself, I am to rely on HIM, which is a good thing because HE is God… And when God pulls me long enough and I end with a very familiar lyric to myself then I know God has closed my circle on this piece… Thanks GOD for teaching me, for loving me so much to encircle and hold me as YOUR child in YOUR garden.

Here’s the piece:

Devil Stand Down, God Help me Chase Those Birds Away, Rekindle,16Aug

Right now I am in the middle of the planting season…. Planting the seeds of the good news of Christ… I am knocking on doors anew, sometimes walking away, shaking the sand off my sandals… but many I am working already cracked open doors and spending some time appreciating being welcomed into someone’s house, blessed blessed, blessed! The great commission can be done, it just takes you figuring out where you start… Start easy until you gain more tools in your toolbox… There are tough projects but easy ones too…
… Actually know it’s not you alone doing the work… And know it’s not YOUR work, it’s GOD’S work… Plant seeds to spread the good news, but don’t stop there… You might be called into duty to work the soil while God grows the seeds. You might be there to chase away the birds.

Don’t just plant the good news and walk away, stay to work the soils of some of the people… I found it’s a combination of new and renewing faith, of kindling and RE-kindling dying or dead embers… It’s not just about NEW commissions, its RENEWING-commissions… That’s a good place for new gardeners with excess blessings to share. Show the weary commissioners that their work is not wasted… Renew their spirits too.

Like in the four soils parable, people are at different faith conditions… No one said you couldn’t get in there and help them with their soils (or souls)… Till some old dried soil, and lend hands at trimming thorns, removing rocks and filling them in with extra soil… And yes, take some time to chase away those birds that swoop like the devil ready to eat the seeds of the good Word….

Use the old and new tools in your shed in new ways…

Why doubt your work? Did you do your work in God’s name? It’s the devil, I tell you from experience, which will make you doubt… The devil can sneak in with blindside attacks. But the devil also flies in “plain as day” like birds to eat fresh seed… and when you approach they all flutter away… A big whirl of feathers reacting all at once to the smallest scare. If you can see the devil come like birds then surely you can scare them away… By yourself? No! Don’t forget to call upon and rely on God… Command that devil to see God’s almighty power strengthening inside of you and holding you and ask God to make the devil stand down for you, your family and for others…. Put God firmly on your face, in your heart and in your walk. It’s God’s will to change hearts, it’s your job to witness that He did this in your heart.

Maybe you want to make it a game to scare that devil and he will get tired of playing (for now)… Await him knowingly and run directly at him with Jesus power and watch those birds flutter so fast… But don’t tempt yourself too much… It’s God’s power not yours that is scaring the devil away… And you might slip up if you think it’s a game… It’s NOT a game…

But do what you have to do to be God’s tool for this Great Commission… Remind the devil (and remind yourself) that you are following God’s command to grow the kingdom and to be fruitful.  Be part of the vine that is Jesus and be ready to help God takeover the world… But don’t let go of that vine… Rekindle your own flame for the Lord; don’t wait for more gardeners to fertilize your own soil, but fellowship with them to do so together.

But do still your soil from time to time to let it rest and replenish nutrients…
Be Still and re-listen… And re-kindle…
“Be Still and KNOW that I am God”

But then get back out there for next growing season. God needs you out there refreshed and renewed, rekindled and re-vined.

Grab your tools folks! Game on! Got to get ourselves back to the garden…. GOD’S GARDEN… Let’s go… let’s grow…

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Discernment, 14AUG

Oh wow, I was getting the scriptures for Sundays sermon to post on Facebook…. first I thought cool I never read this one before… And then I read it was about asking God for discernment…. I didn’t fall off my chair, but I could have… Discernment!!!!, that’s what I have prayed for this WHOLE time….what I asked prayers for myself – that first time… WOW…. now I understand why I feel over blessed with riches of spirit gifts, WOW, thanks God!

1Kings 3:
3 Solomon showed his love for the Lord by walking according to the instructions given him by his father David, except that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.

4 The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

6 Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.

7 “Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”

10 The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. 11 So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, 12 I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you

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Subaru Sermon – Strange – Surprise – Salvation, 11AUG

An email to my pastor:

Hi Pastor, that was a great sermon, very thoughtful… Listened in the car…

I so appreciate the fruit that appears in the orchard that God has given me… just like you read from Galatians 5…. that fruit seems to pop up awfully frequently for me these days…. it does still takes me by surprise, as you know…

Even just now I am listening to our praise song “ode 15, eternal life”  and I reached down to pick up a random vbs tag which is not mine, I have no idea how it showed up in my car… it’s the one about eternal life… I attached a photo… Strange

Another example is the next big Girl Scout trip to the exact same place where we planned then cancelled a vacation for us…. strange…

And strange wonderful to receive a work award yesterday… not so strange, because I write some nominations every year and have a good track record of them… Not so many people write them, people don’t realize the golden opportunity… kinda like salvation, many people don’t realize the golden opportunity… they have to choose to embrace it…. yup!

Have great fruitful day!

---

Galatians 5 – Life by the Spirit

¹³ You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. ¹⁴ For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁵ If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

¹⁶ So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

¹⁹ The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹ and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited,provoking and envying each other.

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God’s Stars, God’s LIGHT, 09Aug (camping on the beach)

Like the stars in the sky, there are infinite points of LIGHT that God shines on us… There are endless stars in the sky…. if we could see them all, if we could see infinitely far, they would all merge together to make one bright continuous light. If at night we see the Milky Way and the brilliant stars, then we know we are so tiny, so mini in the vast universe, and yet still blessed to God’s children, to be loved in the most personal way. You can look up and say, I know you are listening God, I know you can hear me, I know you can see me.

If there is less light pollution then you can see more stars. It’s not like the stars aren’t there… it’s you just can’t see them all… the man-made light blinds you to them. It’s just we have to move ourselves, get  ourselves out of the way, and get to a place where we can notice them more brilliantly.

Same with God’s blessings, just because you can’t see ALL of God’s brilliant points of light that bless your life at this very moment doesn’t mean they aren’t there… The man made blight can blind you to all your blessings. God is there alright, it’s just we have to move ourselves, get  ourselves out of the way, and get to a place where we can notice them more brilliantly.

For the light of the stars and the LIGHT of GOD… Move yourself…
When life is at its darkest you can see the most LIGHT.

At day or night…
God is there alright…
God is LIGHT…

Amen…

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God’s Atmosphere, 08AUG (camping on the beach)

Sunrise at a beach…
God woke me up in time…
I was camping on the sand, I ran to the water so wouldn’t miss the sunrise, I knew it was close, but I had just about 10 minutes before the Sun actually rose…  and so I sat on the sand… God had made enough time for me to reflect… reflecting on how good God has been to me, to all of us. The praise song lyrics “everything you hold in your hand, still You make time for me, I can’t understand” sings through my head…
God makes time for me… God stills time for me….  not just taking the time to listen to me and to act for me, but truly He makes time because he really causes time….   The earth is turning, we understand time chronologically but we can NOT fathom how long it FEELS from when God created the earth until we are in the present day. God could speed up or slow down time if He chooses… He is the maker of all things; we are on HIS time clock….

The clouds are still…. the steady wind is whipping here at the beach, the waves are fierce but these clouds don’t move, they are cemented in the sky… it’s unreal and you can even see in the distance, to the north, pockets of rain showers, but the clouds DON’T move. You can see the reflection of the sunrise in the cemented clouds… Be still and know that I am God… these clouds are still… the waves are not… the wind is not… but the clouds are still… they are reflecting God.

The clouds are part of the atmosphere; they reflect this rising Sun in red, yellow, orange, pink against a blue sky. The clouds are being held still by God to reflect His beauty. The atmosphere on earth causes a reflection. For us to be God-like we are to be atmosphere-like. We are to reflect His beauty, we are to shine brightly as the Sun…. maybe we have some interesting clouds that are still in our lives, but these clouds will reflect the Sun in brilliant color, they will reflect the beauty, they will reflect truth and they will be still.

Be still…  just before the Sun arose I was joined on the beach by another and another and another, appreciating God. We camp together,  we laugh together, we love life together…  we together make the atmosphere…  I realize that it was not “be quiet and know that I am God” time but it was “be together and reflect God” time… reflect the beauty of God in our friendship… the beauty of God in our appreciation of life… and the beauty of God in creating ALL that is held in His hands… for us it was exactly at the right time… these friends of mine together this morning… on the beach, as the Sun crested, someone turned around and then called out to all of us so that we could all see the most beautiful rainbow… a rainbow of God… A rainbow promise created NOT by rain but caused by God’s reflection of the Sun in the STILL clouds… behind us! I would have missed it completely just sitting by myself but God sent these friends to reflect His beauty to each other, to make an atmosphere of beauty, to create an atmosphere of appreciation and awe of God…

All of God… Awe of God.

It takes the atmosphere to reflect God in all those colors – to show HIS brilliance – to show His love…
God makes time for me… Thanks God

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Mathtime is God’s playtime, 06AUG

No doubt in my mind that God is a mathematician of the highest form… from fractals to Fibonacci numbers, God has it covered in such fun ways… Golden ratios and a great way to learn all about this amazing math is this fun video of Donald Duck in Mathmagic land…. it’s a must view!!!!  check out the section at the three minute mark to see how math is the basis for music!   the 11 minute mark for natural patterns… everything is arranged in mathematical shape and the rules are always the same….   https://youtu.be/U_ZHsk0-eF0

I also am amazed about patterns in nature – patterns that lend themselves to spirals and repeating structures in everything from flower petals to snail shells….

here are more cool things on this webpage…  http://jwilson.coe.uga.edu/emat6680/parveen/fib_nature.htm

Studying math and science leads me to God in every direction – the more you know the more there is to learn – its endless…. it’s forever… more questions appear as soon as you answer one – a fractal of forever questions  (these concepts are not new but this article with the author’s name “A Heaven-rich” is a good quick read)

 

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I found a New One !!! Romans 8, 06AUG

Aside from the three sound bites in here, Romans 8, I have never read this whole passage….
It’s a blessing to have electronic bibles, scrolling and re-learning what God already had put on my brain….

I just relistened to Pastor’s sermon about Jesus calming the waves… calling to rebuke them and I thought this is also exactly what the Romans passage is about… we are already children of God we are Jesus brothers and sisters He is so intercalated into our soul that we are to call out and rebuke the waves to calm them because we’ve intercalated Jesus into our hearts and we have already been saved by grace therefore we just need to recognize it and call out “Father, Abba”  using Jesus’s voice in our mouths….”nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Yeah when we are one with Christ, He is our soul, our hope, and we are HIM when HE is in us, nothing can separate….  We are whole… We control our waves when HE is with us…. Thanks GOD!!!

“Hope that is seen is no hope at all….” Grown inwardly… hope is patient….Yeah, we’ve already gained those “first fruits” as children of God, we already have that Amazing Grace…. “Bright shining as the Sun… we’ve no less days to sing God praise, then when we first begun…”

….. “24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently…..”

And we already were made in the image of God son therefore children of God … God calls us before we were even born…

“29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.”

Thank you Lord for calling me anew each day, each hour, each minute….

Romans 8:
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.[f] And by him we cry, “Abba,[g] Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Present Suffering and Future Glory
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that[h] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[i] have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

More Than Conquerors
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,[k] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

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Holding on to Jesus, 04AUG

An email to my former Pastor R…. Thought I would share…

Now I have a post-VBS, come back to reality check… Scale back down the mountain without falling… It is now more than ever that I truly need to stay connected to the LIGHT… it’s now when I feel the need to let Jesus hold me up… Arms raised surrender style… Financial bills, life worries, work worries, family worries, yeah swirling…. HOLD me inside the hurricane please Jesus….

This bracelet (photo attached) that my Pastor gave me is a good reminder for me to stay in Jesus’s circle of life and hold on… (oh if you could have seen the such excitement he had giving it to me on “Christmas in July” of all days, because the white bead contains water from Mount Everest our VBS theme… I was truly speechless with such a thoughtful gesture and such amazing loving support). This bracelet’s white bead representing the highest of highs in your life remember to stay humble and the black bead containing mud from the Dead Sea remind you when you’re at your lowest of lows to stay hopeful…. and for me the many beads in between in camouflage earthly tones are where I am scaling down right now… holding on to my faith to keep from slipping. The VBS slow song I’ve been listening to is “as I hold on to my faith, Jesus you are holding on to me”…

Truly I’ve been so blessed to feel the connection to the LIGHT of Jesus that will find me if I ever get too close to escaping to the dark… Psalm 139… I pray I will keep my joy, and I truly feel I will…

Truly I know I will keep my joy with my memories, my present tremendous blessings, in my hope in the future… As summer is still in full swing then winds down… I will enter my favorite season, Fall, and guess what comes after that? Christmas… this will be my first REAL Christmas, 100% now in Jesus’s loving arms… I feel he was planted as a baby in me last Dec/January and I’ve been growing him in my heart and in my arms all year and now he’s grown big enough to carry me through….

Yeah, that’s TRUE JOY…

Jesus holding me in JOY…

235

Praising God for Strength and Snow, 03Aug

Still got a snowball… This one fluffy soft, good for squeezing for stress relief….left over from VBS… Reminding me of HIS power to comfort me… so many times with his gift of snow in jan, feb, march…. Once even dropping me dead in my tracks… “Be still and know I am God…”

And still now… the snow comforting and reminding me of God’s power… last week I pretended to be the VBS fairy snowmother with the power of snow, (saving lots of snow from February to share in July), fun but I used it to teach that we truly truly need to look to GOD because HE has the REAL “Power to Heal…HOLD ON!” “He heals the broken hearted and bandages their wounds”… Psalm 147… It turns out that psalm 147 also mentions that God spreads the snow like wool… Yeah, it really does mention snow… Thanks GOD… You know every hair on my head…

So a few down moments for me today… hearing of folks very ill nearing death, and a sad lost opportunity to get away with my family for some needed vacation… So besides the armor of God to stay strong in preventative ways, my “go to” remedy today to pray thru it all was that I listened to Amazing Grace, date recorded is the same as my mom’s birthday… a beautiful rendition… Then I remembered why I had this as a recorded song because I wasn’t in regular church that day but instead was away, up home for my mom’s birthday… immersed in blessed snow up to my knees… Immersed in my family’s unparalleled love… Love so much from my mom that she collected two trash bags of snow for me to save for vacation bible school…  yup… snow

Yes, God made it full circle:  LOVE… SNOW… Providing… comfort… healing… SNOW… LOVE…

Thanks for making and loving every snowflake uniquely…

Thanks for making and loving each of us so uniquely…

Thank you God for the loving strength today, and thanks for the SNOW…

234 Jesus makes work LIGHT!, 01AUG

Whoa!!!!!

I don’t know if anyone else has made this connection about this phrase… Wow it’s too profound for me to have thought off it on my own, it’s God who connected my thoughts in HIS timing… put it together in my head… It’s powerful to me when I let God take charge… Here’s the thought:

“Many hands make light work”… This really means: “Many hands make LIGHT (as in Jesus’ Light) work!!!

Tell me others have made this connection…

I  freaky really realized that double meaning (GOD put it in my head) after a ten minute power nap just now… Praise God…. I was up with my son, not feeling well at 430am, he is fine now)… So when I felt God’s powering me down for a reboot, I took it… Ten minutes…

Many hands make LIGHT (as in Jesus’ Light) work!!!
We do Jesus’ work…
We are Jesus’ LIGHT…
We are Jesus’ work…
We are Jesus’ LIGHT…
Jesus works….

Whew God… You blow me away… and bring me back for more… Blessed… I feel as LIGHT as a feather when I let you take over… Blown onto the air and floating down into Jesus’ arms. Blessed… Light with life!

 

233 email about VBS to Pastor and co-chair, 31JULY:

Full House awesome… I was definitely nervous tonight… Definitely felt that uncertainty of “I have a captive audience to tell them everything exciting Jesus had done for me, tell everyone of my blessings, etc etc…” VS. NOTHING about me… Good thing I had planned that giant snow ball to calm me down… Blessed…
I was nervous in the prayer room… Funny how I can write all I want, and be so free at the actual morning VBS, sing as loud as proud as I can, and up!!! Our music leader and I sang a song everyday – just the two of us -pumped up for the Lord!!…  but nerves got me tonight…. I was nervous about how to share my burst in faith without it looking like it was about me… Because I know it’s not about ME being proud that God took an interest, but me telling how humbled I am that God uses me and my WHOLE toolbox… And how God uses OTHERS… That is where I should put my story telling… 2nd Corinthians Paul said I will boast about this other man who got to see layers of heaven…

So I realized all I REALLY have to do is JUST share my faith… (And then in the right settings with the people who already know me or not, I can explain the burst of my faith in as little detail or as much detail as feels appropriate..)… So tonight I shared that my faith was strengthened by boasting about the audience’s awesome children who enable ALL of us at VBS to see Jesus at work… To praise them because it’s thru teaching children (and teaching/reaching adults) where I have seen Jesus at work…

I know at some point I will nail down motivational stories in short and in long format… I already have audiences to tell other people stories to…. And it’s ok to tell my story too, I’m going to have to continue to tell everyone that it’s God who caused this weight loss and healthy life. I do that now, when I get those “wow” reactions I say in short “that’s one powerful God, I had nothing to do with this but follow HIS plan”…

Thanks for everything this week!!! You two and everyone kept me from a potential snowtastrophe of climbing too fast and too high… next year down down down… Deep into the earth we will go…

Day 1… Jesus gives us hope.
Key Verse: “O Lord, you alone are my hope.” (Psalm 71:5)…

Yup Yup Yup, spelunking for Jesus… when things are dark, finding the light of the world… Light up OUR world, Jesus… Thanks GOD! Thanks for our VBS family!

232

I Saw Jesus, 30 July

I woke up early to tell you this story of seeing Jesus yesterday…When I rolled up out of bed, the moon was smack dab in my face. I see that blessed moon and I always say “Thanks GOD!”    Here’s my witness:

I Saw Jesus, 30 July

I have a story about seeing Jesus…. A little 4 year old sweetie – Barbara – I got to witness Jesus in her…

A little 3 year old boy, who truly truly didn’t know any better, yanked her hair so hard it pulled out a big clump. I was there… oh to hear that scream, see the clump pulled out, and see others comfort this little girl. It was so painful,  she cried so much…. And her grandma emailed later to say she cried on and off for the rest of the day… Barbara said she didn’t want to go back to VBS because she didn’t want to get hurt again, but she wanted to be with her friends and it was breaking her heart not to be with them. So her grandma urged her to come back to VBS, and we encouraged her grandma, and I said to please tell her how happy her crew leaders and I would be to see her come back… And yes, Praise God, Barbara came back the next day with the biggest smile on her face. Praise Praise Praise.

For the bible lesson, we talked about that God has the power to heal… I pretended to be the Fairy Snow Mother with the power of snow (yes I saved 3/4 of freezer with snowballs from February), asked if there was anyone I could make feel better with my snowball, nope, as much as they loved holding it – it did not have the healing power that Jesus has…I reminded them that it’s actually God who has the power to heal… “He heals the broken hearted and bandages their wounds”… and that God has the power to forgive.

I was teaching but actually I was the one who was taught that day about Jesus – I witnessed Jesus in Barbara coming back to be with her friends at VBS despite being hurt by someone.  I was told by Barbara’s crew leaders that the first thing she did when she came back was to sit down next to the boy who pulled her hair and she said directly to him: “DON’T pull my hair” and then she gave him the biggest hug…. if that’s not showing Jesus is LOVE, I don’t know what is… She was being Jesus – at four years old she was shining Jesus love…

Jesus says I LOVE you, I don’t judge you, and “go and sin no more”. This little girl essentially said: “I forgive you” with her smile, “I love you” with her hug, and “go and sin no more” with her words. Will she forget? I don’t know…. But she forgave that day…. Jesus forgave that day. Jesus says: “They don’t know what they do, Father, forgive them… “

And we are all called to be Jesus as well… Not judge… Just Forgive… Always to Love…

Yes I saw Jesus today… And Jesus smiled…

231

Perfect Love, 27JULY

I promised myself that if I wrote during bible school that I wouldn’t send them out until next week… But I changed my mind… I love this piece… Called “Perfect Love” below… I love God’s love…

I had this on my mind at 530am… Couldn’t shake it, had to write it… I know that I am not perfect and actually embrace my “wing it” ability too much…
But God loves me anyway…

It was such a blessed VBS day that I can’t even begin to write about it… And I don’t have to because I witnessed “God will provide” to 175+ people and then another 2 dozen at the homeless dinner… And like 300 on Facebook…

My favorite yapping at the homeless dinner was with Sir Bruce, singing songs, talking TV shows, and just kicking back to absorb his energy level when he is so much worse off than me… Better conversation with him then some regular ole people I know… I helped him write, he traced lines I dotted and we made a VBS mountain together… Free flowing fun conversation, no strings attached… another one was at church Sunday, I sat in the back with a brain damaged man… he was telling me about Jesus… Perfect when I am in that chatting mood, which is where I am right now… Which is how I always was… Chatting with no strings attached…

Perfect Love 27 JULY
God called me – why THIS timing is not mine to know – but God waited until I was ready and he waited until he saw that now is the tipping point between what I wanted to do in life and what HE wants me to do in life…  Luckily for me – those tasks were not all that different…  at least as far as I interpret God so far… It tickles me to know that God loves me SO MUCH that he just wants me to be me….

God called me to use my skills and my vast toolbox of physical and psychological learnings… God certainly wants me to use my smile and silly ways – God certainly wants me to use my organizational skills.. God certainly wants me to use my reach to touch people’s lives for the better…  But God wants me to channel those skills through HIS plan, NOT mine.  God knows I am NOT perfect and that i strive NOT to be…  God wants me to do the best I can with the time I have and the tools and circumstances…  He will place my work right in front of me every day if I just pay attention…

Do I have a perfect life?  no way…  not then and not now…  do I have perfect anything?  NOPE – never did and never will!  Should i have/be perfection? Nope, except  ONLY in ONE thing… LOVE…

Jesus came to earth to show us PERFECT LOVE… Jesus came to show us to not judge…  to care for people…  to become right with God and SIN NO MORE…  but Perfection?  LOVE is what should be PERFECT in Jesus’ eyes… It is my opinion that you are to do the best you can in everything else – but try to LOVE perfectly…

What does PERFECT LOVE mean?  it means you and I have a LONG road ahead of us…  we are tough cookies to crumble…  we have put up a fight for a long time to dislike and judge and push our agendas…  we confuse corrective actions and love… yes we do need to push ourselves, right our wrongs, and complete ourselves… and we do sometimes feel the need to teach others to be better at whatever God calls them to do… but we also have to accept people as they are and know that God is working in parallel wit them…  and YES we need to maximize our time doing all this with the short time we have here on this imperfect earth (even the earth is not perfectly rounded).

I do feel that it is important to take a step back and appreciate the tools in others which will help achieve this striving towards perfect LOVE. As leaders we need to draw upon peoples strengths, and reach people to effect good change…  we need to examine our toolboxes too – we need to say “How can I deal with this situation and these people?”

Perfect LOVE is only obtained thru Jesus filtering of our hearts and Jesus filtering of our mouths… God is patient with us, he made us and he knows we have become human sinners, he knows our motives before we act and speak – he knows all…

We will do our best to please Him…

We will do our best to perfect ourselves in all aspects of our lives… but ONLY to the glory of God… ONLY to please God and not please ourselves…

We will do our best to PERFECTLY LOVE…
We will find that GOD loves us perfectly, teaches us perfect through Jesus, and moves and molds us through the Holy Spirit…
We will find human Jesus in our human selves and share HIS LOVE…

JESUS is LOVE…
JESUS is PERFECT…
PERFECT is LOVE…

228   Merry Christmas in July, 25JUL

How could I miss this opportunity to wish you all Merry Christmas in July…. Is it silly? I KNOW silly, I work hard at silly, and NO, I assure you it’s NOT silly. It’s Christmas.

This time seven months ago I was in question, I was in flux… I was reaching to stabilize myself to only a few souls who wouldn’t betray my sinful secret that I wasn’t truly a believer in Jesus as the son of God… I prayed for discernment, and I got it… And I got Jesus big time… Actually He got me…

I still do pray for renewed discernment… New questions… Where do I go from here, God? How do I share your promised salvation? Who do I tell and when? How do I honor YOU without disobeying YOU? How will I stop asking so many questions? How will I “Be Still”?

I still reach to stabilize my new life, I never knew this path would take me where it has, I never knew I could find more joy than I had and I never knew I was to find true sorrow and true temptation too. Yeah light and dark.

So, a few days after Christmas, at our open house party, many brought me a candle as a gift…  And my daughter made candles too, I made a couple myself… A couple days after Christmas I found myself with about 10 new candles… Yeah, why so many candles? I pondered… Why so many when I NEVER burn a candle, ever… Why so many people thought I needed the candles? That I needed the light…? Oh yeah, didn’t take me long to put it all together… God orchestrated this… and He said let there be LIGHT! And He found the people to bring it. He found the people who beam it!

Well yeah, I do boast my God sightings way too much, and I want to stop screaming how excited I am…. but I just try to tell the truth… God smiled… God said this sleeping child of mine needs CHRISTMAS, needs CHRIST. God said you the people, “Bring My Light”

Yeah, God gifted me Jesus, I got Christmas… I got Jesus… Thank you God! I got to share…

God’s timing shook me, but now I reflect… God picked the ways, God picked the people, God knows what HE is doing… comfort in His plan… I turn to God to see the light, I turn to Jesus to feel the light, I turn to the world to shine the light. I turn to God to focus His light, gifting my heart and my eyes to shine Him…

Yeah, I still reach to stabilize while I broadcast… Yeah, I am scared because I don’t know what sacrifices I must make now… I felt and have been told that the devil is out to get those who turn away from evil and ignorance… Yeah, God told me to look for Christmas everyday this year, lest I stop listening, lest I stop looking for the light. I was sent to deliver HIS message.

God assures me the LIGHT won’t go out, that I won’t burn out… I know that God knows I don’t take any chances… I reach out just wanting to stabilize myself until I stand unshakeable… I will stand for you God, I will beam Your light. God willing I can make a difference no matter what…

Merry Christmas God. Thank YOU for taking me, sinner that I am, imperfect in so many ways, for giving me your LIGHT, everyday. Thank YOU for YOU, everyway.

I give all of me to You.

Merry Christmas God.

——————-

229

Christmas again, 26 JUL

I knew it was Christmas everyday but it’s extra sweet when God shows me it in different ways… I was sitting in a random pew for Sunday services and opened the pew hymnal to find a Christmas program 1 ½ years old… from 2013… How blessed to feel God’s love in every little detail in my life … I’m sure God saved this paper for me to find… “Come to the cradle”, come and find peace… Yeah, thanks God… That’s exactly what I found. Jesus is my peace everyday… Awesome! Blessed! Christmas! That’s the real ABC’s…

Merry Christmas again

—————-

230

Christmas Times Three?  Geez God?, 26JUL

And this….?
Really God? Just sitting here in the choir loft, I look to my left and guess what I found another year and a half old 2013 Christmas program like earlier today… this one from candlelight instead of contemporary… same year… Geez God… Thanks for duplicating yet something else for me… You will explain this to me some day when I get to heaven?

227

Not patience but discernment, 26JUL

So I had a good conversation with a Christian confidante…  I said I have to pray for patience he said “NEVER pray for patience or else you will be tested on your patience by Satan”… I said oh really…yes i know that for sure!!!  and he then said I should pray for DISCERNMENT… I nearly lept out of my chair when I told him that was exactly the prayer I asked for from the very beginning… discernment… you remember oh so long 7 months ago…. yeah I renew my own prayer for discernment for everything now… I love how God duplicated things for me.

224 VBS snow praise, JUL

Today I was hiking and hands raised I praised Jesus on the mountain, and next week he will LOVE the snow!!!! I had to take this photo  – so EXCITED for VBS!!!!
God had the power to provide, to comfort, to heal, to forgive, and to give us an eternal home!! I am living proof! I praise HIM for helping me lose myself to find myself…

225 email VBS 23JULY

Yeah, what a fitting bible verse of the day….
Matthew 19:14. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

VBS is about the children, showing them (some for the first time) the LOVE of Jesus alive in all OUR hearts, encouraging them to look for, long for, and run towards Jesus in JOY – so that in times of joy AND especially in times of troubles they can also look for, long for, and run towards Jesus.

VBS is about ALL of US becoming that child again and reminding ourselves and showing ourselves (with rekindled youthfulness) the LOVE of Jesus alive in all OUR hearts (alive in MY heart, alive in YOUR heart), encouraging our ownselves to look for, long for, and run towards Jesus in JOY – so that in times of joy AND especially in times of troubles WE can also look for, long for, and run towards Jesus.

Because the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who follow and make Jesus alive….

Amen.

I believe Jesus lives.

 

 

226

VBS email July

Build a Mountain

Going to build a mountain today… I’ve been carrying it around in pieces for a long time…. This mountain is not made of rocks, but lightweight styrofoam for Vacation Bible School. It will also be easy to dismantle. What will be hard is for me to decide is what to do with the pieces after… do I throw them away? do I save them in case I need them? It’s a lot of baggage to carry around… yes just because the mountains is down doesn’t mean it’s gone…

But honestly I know and you know the mountains we are building our lives are hard…. Not ready to take down… they are made of rock stone dirt sin crap from us and crap we absorb from others… all the things that we put into our lives and then find them hard to move. It’s heavy … it’s no fun … it’s mountains that will hold you back….

We ask God to move mountains for us…. And He will… If you BELIEVE…. Mark 11:23 “I can guarantee this truth: This is what will be done for someone who doesn’t doubt but believes what he says will happen: He can say to this mountain, ‘Be uprooted and thrown into the sea,’ and it will be done for him.”

And remember, God asks us to believe it can be moved I the first place…. Believe first, then think… then look… be aware…. we have to look and see and ask “Did I build this mountain myself?” Perhaps it just built by itself?… Perhaps it’s the mountain in somebody else that I can’t move?

All these mountains…. we don’t know what to do…. we can ask God to move …. we have to believe God will move them…. He will dismantle them but is it those mountains in US that God would certainly enjoy US helping…. God appreciates the efforts, and rewards the work… WE can work on our own mountains, dismantle them break them down into smaller pieces easier to deal with.. What will be hard is for US to decide is what to do with the pieces… do I throw them away? do I save them in case I need them? it’s a lot of baggage to carry around… yes just because the mountains is down doesn’t mean it’s gone… and yet smaller pieces are easier to throw into the sea…

Yes if it IS going to take time to move a mountain in your life…. Be proactive… ask God… believe, pray and ask him to move this mountain… but be ready to know what to do with the pieces after its dismantled. Perhaps God likes action plans.

If it’s a mountain in somebody else’s life which is holding you back pray to God for your own patience. God moving that mountain may take a while its not at your pace but at that person’s pace and it’s God’s timing, not yours… maybe what you can offer is how to help that person take care of the dismantled pieces. Perhaps God likes action plans. So believe God will help then with their own action plan… KNOW and TRUST GOD to do what is RIGHT.

SO believe JUST believe… BELIEVE like you’ve never believed before. Sometimes mountains are moved slowly, sometimes we have to take the long way around and keep travelling while the mountain is being moved. Either way, know God is working on HIS plan… and BELIEVE…

223

Feel the Love – Fill the Bag, 22 JULY

Fitting bag I keep hard copies of my writing in, huh? “Subaru… Feel the LOVE”

Got it from a very spiritual friend, who thoughtfully got it for me at a car show a couple of years ago… He was the one who called me out of the blue on this mother’s day to wish me a happy mother’s day and when I called back we caught up from a long while… How blessed I could share how God had changed me…

How blessed also I was this morning to have someone check on me, worried I was ill with my head down, when actually I was just so deep in thought sitting in my car, writing a text…. It’s nice to have thoughtful people around isn’t it???

Just counting blessings… And Subarus…

222

“Til His Arms Went Free” 22July

Well rats, …. I wrote a simple song… I didn’t mean to but the chorus and melody were in my head… Woke up that way…. Hmm… I keep asking God to hold off until after VBS is done, but he slips these writings in first this in the morning… Lyrics were there but the tune in my head I had to adjust… So it’s now its contemporary sounding….  It’s simple but soulful for me… Sigh…

“Til His Arms Went Free” 22July

They captured Jesus
The sinner went free
They tortured him
Til his arms went free
Til his arms went free

Holy hol—-y, til HIS arms went free—-
Holy hol—-y, He’s for you and me

So they dragged God’s Son
Through the streets
His arms nailed up
Til his arms went free
Til his arms went free

Holy hol—-y, til HIS arms went free—-
Holy hol—-y, He’s for you and me

Thorns pierced his brow
Blood tricked down
God cries went out
Til his arms went free
Til his arms went free

Holy hol—-y, til HIS arms went free—-
Holy hol—-y, He’s for you and me

The darkened sky
The storms gave sign
Jesus died for us
And his arms went free
And his arms went free

Holy hol—-y, til HIS arms went free—-
Holy hol—-y, He’s for you and me

The cave was empty
His body gone
Jesus had arose
And HIS arms went free
And HIS arms went free

Holy hol—-y, til HIS arms went free—-
Holy hol—-y, He’s for you and me

He walked the earth
He fills our hearts
Jesus guides our souls
Heaven bound
Heaven bound

Holy ho—-ly, til HIS arms went free—-
Holy hol—-y, JESUS for you and me

 

221 email with pastor, 20JUL

Hi Pastor,  I just re-listened to a previous sermon about stress (which I thought might be good to rehear, LOL) but really i wanted to email you because it’s the end of the sermon where you had the drive home message that resounded with me…. the scripture from one of John’s letters is about us being a child of God and once you realize that, you will have peace…

This scripture talks about us being NOT of this world if we follow Jesus … Jesus overcame the world… and that matches a conversation that I had with the guest preacher and a friend… in a nutshell he said that if we follow Jesus then we are not of this world… therefore when we get to heaven we won’t be in the exact same position that we are in this world – and he talked about how God is pleased when we keep with fellow people who are believers like us but truly is only God who can do the changing of each person….

1 John 5 (NIV)

Faith in the Incarnate Son of God

5 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. ² This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. ³ In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, ⁴ for everyone born of Godovercomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. ⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

⁶ This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. ⁷ For there are three that testify:⁸ the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.⁹ We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. ¹⁰ Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. ¹¹ And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.¹² Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Concluding Affirmations

¹³ I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of Godso that you may know that you have eternal life. ¹⁴ This is the confidencewe have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

¹⁶ If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. ¹⁷ All wrongdoing is sin,and there is sin that does not lead to death.

¹⁸ We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. ¹⁹ We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. ²⁰ We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

²¹ Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

 

220

Here’s how God puts things in my head to write about…. This became a case study…. I had no intention to write this (or anything ever)… But the thought will bug me until it’s down on “paper”…. I drafted two yesterday enough to please God to get them out of my head, but not polished enough to send…. (After VBS, ok God?!?)….

Here’s the case study… Starts with 6 AM email writing a VBS volunteer, a dear friend, who feels unprepared because she missed a training… (thanks for sharing your moment of questioning my dear friend, it filled my soul with Jesus thoughts that I had to write out)….

“So no worries if you feel unprepared for VBS, how do you think I feel !!!! I feel ever like a new green Christian an evergreen, wow that’s profound and funny?!? LOL… If we remain evergreen how blessed we are….”

Sigh, going to have to write that devotion out now…. Evergreen Christian…. That is me this year, I feel to have Christmas all year, I feel like I am pregnant with Jesus this year carrying HIM… I did enjoy my first Easter, I can’t even imagine how excited I be at my first REAL Christmas this year.”

YES, that’s how these God thoughts start, sigh…. God laughs at me when I say please pause the writing until after VBS… God wakes me, Pulls the thoughts together… I would say it’s like deja vu, or like it’s “Groundhog Day” movie, or a time vortex, but it’s not quite, it’s new conversations, new thoughts… Sigh…. I write these to process (usually half an hour each)…

I am weak in my own soul, reaching out to Jesus to grow it….

I am strong in my own soul, reaching out to Jesus to share it… Blessed…

 

Evergreen Christian, 18Jul

I’m an Evergreen Christian…

Shedding old needles but growing new each year….

Growing Jesus and new blood…

Spreading the word of life everlasting…

Jesus alive – feeding, stirring, holding…

Brown tree trunk rooting you always in firm good soil…

Planted in the writers’ Word of the Lord, sweetly written in your heart…

Roots deep enough but still fragile to overwhelming circumstances…

Evergreen fresh growth each spring, supple unprotected green, NEW SOUL expansion… Evergreen sharp, wax-protected, hearty needles in winter, still green, still alive…OLD SOUL protection…

Winter at Jesus’ birth is spring in your life… Jesus born, Jesus alive… Spring at Jesus’ death is winter in your life… Jesus dies, flesh dead

Evergreen in Jesus is ever life, everlasting life… Jesus dead no more… Aware, awake, alive Evergreen Christian ever holding and growing Jesus…

Jesus ever holding and growing the Evergreen Christian… Jesus is Evergreen, SO ARE WE…

Aware, awake, alive…

We are EVERGREEN…

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“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
Psalm 4:23….. I worked very hard at that this week… Guarding but being blessed to share my heart with so many…. I feel my heart grows and lives in the people I know…. I feel that armor of God kept/keeps me whole, my joy in the Lord never wavered, my Jesus holding me inside the hurricane eye… Armor and holding that gave me freedom to live free from emotional trappings…. Freedom to let your heart soar to heal to live…. Freedom i pray for everyone…

Here’s my piece:
Freedom, Christ Frees Your Traps, 17 Jul
When we are trapped – what can relieve that feeling? What can give us precious hope to continue living in the moment or forever? When we are feeling at the end of our road, what happens? Who happens? What is going to free us? Christ.

If you ever feel trapped, contemplate what it will take to be free – will it take quick action? Or slow it down, slow down and think about it, how will I achieve freedom? how will I release myself? perhaps a few minutes of thinking will lead to freedom but rash action may fail and just frustrate the situation…

Have you ever been trapped? Are you trapped right now?

How are you trapped? Tyranny? Physically? Emotionally? Can’t get out? What do you do? What do you think? Are you there for forever? Is it a temporary trap? Can you think this through? Can you open the door? Can you loosen the hinges or manhandle the handle instead?

Freedom is a grace – a way to save face – God does not promise us a lack of trouble, He only promises us that if we believe in him, he will see us through… God is true for the long term – so true and so freeing if we believe beyond our current traps.

Freedom is found in the aroma of Christ… 2 Corinthians 2:14  ^“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads in every place the fragrance that comes from knowing him.”…

Wake up and find freedom in your heart.

Know that we are eternally saved.

Fight your entrapment of tyranny…. Emotional freedom is to believe in freedom, to not feel trapped in situations, to have freedom to hope. Faith brings you hope and if you have hope then there is LIGHT…. if there is no direct light then there is still a tunnel you can feel your way out…. knowing that there is light at the end… knowing there is a light INSIDE – protect your light of Christ that yearns to grow your heart… “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

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email to a dear friend who is not feeling well but is one of the strongest faithful souls I know…. I had never read this scripture before…

2Corinthians 4:7

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11 For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. 12 So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. 13 It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak, 14 because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself.

15 All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

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FAITH, 15JUL

 

LOVE gave me Faith

Faith gives me LOVE

Faith gives me HOPE

Faith gives me JOY

Faith gives me PEACE

Faith gave me Faith

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HOPE, 15JUL

Good God of HOPE,

I hold onto You as You hold onto me…

HOPE in Your efforts is all I have left…

Actually HOPE is all I need…

I have FAITH in YOU

and I have JOY in YOU

and I have PEACE in YOU, my Lord…

HOPE holds me …

I hold HOPE….

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Hold on, 15JUL

There’s truly nothing like hearing the Holy Spirit moving… I don’t mean thru the wind, I mean in song…. Music will be our comfort until our song day… hmmm…. I wrote “dying” day but autocorrect wrote “song” day….hmmmm …

Songs and lyrics held/hold the therapeutic B-side to my scripture readings… Music puts scriptures in real life scenarios into your brain like the etched grooves of a record, except that your mind can find then like autoskipping thru a cd. Especially in times of sorrow and loss and pain…

This was a 3 AM wake up call by a sick kid, no suitable medicine in the house, so tired, but I run to the 24hr drugstore… Clerks restocking shelves… Music playing…. YES, “Owner of a Lonely Heart”… Better than a broken heart… YES, that’s a good song… Haven’t heard it in twenty years?…YES, pulled it right up in my brain and sang along…

Home now, 4 AM, found it on YouTube… Wait…. what’s the next song on the album? YES, “Hold on”… Never heard it… Hmmm… YES God??? You calling AGAIN??? Apparently so….

Yesterday’s text conversation with my pastor was three songs that said or meant “hold on”…. As Jesus is holding onto ME… So this song “Hold On” at a now blessed 4 AM… SIGH…. God…”YES, My God, you have been HOLDING onto that song for me, haven’t you God?”

4 “Hold on” songs better than a God hat trick…

4 songs… a God HOLD trick….

4 ever YOU GOD hold onto me….

My strength held in Jesus never stronger, my strength is up, like it’s nailed up on Your cross…. Can I bear it? YES, I can Hold On…. Hold On until my dying day, my eternal song day….

Thanks my Lord God – you hold on to me as I hold onto you – I know you will NEVER let me go – I love you my Lord.

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“Hold On” by YES….partial lyrics

“…..Shake –

We shake so hard

How we laugh so loud

When we reach

We believe in eternity

I believe in eternity

Hold on – Hold on

Wait – Take your time

See it through

Hold on – Hold on

Wait – Maybe a chance

Is looking for you

Sunshine shine on through

Sunshine shine on through

Sunshine shine on you Hold on – Hold on Hold on – Hold on…..” https://youtu.be/p4HZ8LwCgRA

(Other three songs were “Hurricane Eye” by Paul Simon,

“The Reason for the World” by Matthew West…:https://youtu.be/swKPS9q7rMU,

and a third I never heard called “Holding onto You” by Paul Coleman….) ……….

(Epilogue: met a “random” God-faithful servant from Texas Sunday…. I just came across her last name… Yes, it has the word “Hold” in her name…. God, You just smile as you work on my case, huh? Geez)

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15JUL email “Fell asleep in a washing machine, Woke up in a hurricane eye”

This was a catch up post for those who I hadn’t told personally of my awakening story –

I was ready to post this one day inside the closed private Facebook group that a friend had set up, but life happened… it’s fitting to share in this closed facebook group because that is where God cracked open the opportunity for me to fill in my historical lack of knowledge about the New Testament with my professor…. which led me to more professors, more faithful advisers, and most importantly right into Jesus’ Loving Arms welcoming me into God’s fold…

That day I started out feeling exuberant but at the end of the day pained immensely …. Hurricane surrounds, Jesus holds me in the eye…. There’s a Paul Simon song (of course, Hurricane Eye, Music at https://youtu.be/VyPD-N5PaeE): I truly “fell asleep in a washing machine, Woke up in a hurricane eye” Jesus pulled me into that hurricane eye – gave me peace. But he has to hold me anew each day. Each day I have to hold on tight.

The next day was more calm and I humbly shared this:

Ok folks, I know this is a very personal post in this closed group… but the reason why I’m posting it is because it’s time I decided to come clean to those I hadn’t had a chance to tell in person (I wish I had time to yap with all of YOU but time escapes me, please don’t be offended if you think I should have shared in person, it’s just God hasn’t run us together yet))…

So, I am a brand NEW Christian… As you know, I have been immensely blessed before and since then I have turned my life over 100% to God… He was taking me for his own anyway, so I decided to cooperate and not fight it any more…. He moved a mountain of my faith in front of me and told me to climb. I was 100% with God the Father, 99.44% with the Holy Spirit, but just 50:50 with Jesus). He gave me all the tools I needed. He gave me all the comfort I needed too.

God is responsible for EVERYTHING that’s happened in my life and most importantly God is the reason why I finally finally finally accepted Jesus between December to February 1st… I’ve been steady telling people individually (and been so blessed by people walking with me on my journey)…. but you know today I decided today’s the day to just let it out there little more… social media truly has been a major component in my facilitation of salvation… I know this is a closed church group so.this has been a stepping up to future public social media sharing of my salvation, I am going to share more and more openly as I get bolder and bolder… But the most important is I want people to feel comfortable discussing their faith… People (like I was) don’t discuss the very thing that needs to be hashed out, openly discussed with people… It’s not so good to “come out” as a new Christian like a clanging gong…even though it would feel great…. It’s better to come out like a whisper, and enable people to feel safe discussing faith with you… It’s non-judgement… I asked people not to judge when I opened up my faith questions… And God picked the exact people in the exact timing and walked them (or drove them) right into my path…

So I have been writing like crazy… I think its like 400 pages since December… yeah I did not choose to write this – God told me I needed to process and so there it is…. a nice thick packet… But conveniently I’ve been blogging it on a separate Facebook blog post it’s public but it is not advertised I figured God will do the advertising for me I just need that place to consolidate all this writing over 200 pieces… I’ve been so blessed by the movement of the Holy Spirit who has moved people.

It’s important to have a pseudonym NOT because I am hiding, I am certainly not, but because 1) I have small kids and want them to have their privacy. 2) I want to protect the people I wrote about, 3) the 99.44% off the attend didn’t know know me anyway.

You don’t have to read them… If someone sent me 400 pages I would probably smile and not be able to read much myself….

Again, this is NOT for my glory at all. ALL in ALL it’s for God’s glory… I was even convicted for saying it was my story… God got me good on that… Humbled me big time… It’s God’s story…. I am just God’s worker bee…. Even my name means bee in Hebrew.

Jesus has given me the biggest lift of my life and I’m so humble when I really rely on him to hold me up when I an weakest… And other times he lifts me up so much it feels like I am flying halfway to heaven.

Thank you and God bless… I would LOVE to discuss your faith with you (private chat, email, messaging, phone call)… It’s the most private and intimate part of our lives… I have been so blessed to see GOD at work in all of YOU… I have truly met Jesus, meet the Jesus within people, and HE has filled my soul.

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Jesus writing in the sand – pondering – self conviction… 14Jul

I think I answered my own question while I was extra pondering while writing a friend – I figured out for myself the question about Jesus taking time to write … after I thought i was getting side tracked I found an answer to my original question – God likes me thinking full circle in my writing… God is so patient… the answer to the question is the same as the answer to ALL my questions – I will figure them out if I ponder long enough in God’s word in my heart… Smiles

So, a random question –

What does Jesus write in the sand when the woman is awaiting her accusers at the stoning? – if there are unimportant things left out of the bible then why is this one thing left in? – is it just Jesus marking time? and he did it twice… is he waiting out the people to give them time to think and not staring them in the face to accuse them – but letting their own conscious take over – and giving them time before they left…. OR some googling says he may have been writing the Jewish law down – but again the writing itself is likely not important – but interesting if it Jesus showing that he is not even worrying about the people trying to trap him… he doesn’t have to even bother face them… hmmm…. just curious… i know it might be unimportant to the story – but i wonder… and how did this story get put back into the bible if the early people didn’t include it? we are so disconnected with the concept of time- I was just standing at the 1300’s castles in Europe – it puts you in awe that they were only 1300 years and not 2000 years removed from Jesus’ time – and it begs yet another question – how long will God let the world continue to have pockets of drifting from his teaching and pockets of strong following of his teaching? curious – and humans have such a narrow view of “how church used to be” because they think of church when they were kids and they have no concept of church 200, 500 or 1000 years ago… we think about the money “wasted” on huge things these days and then you look at all that GOLD in the cathedrals in Europe – more gold than I have ever seen – and you wonder what they could have done with all that money… I wonder if God sometimes just shakes his head – like Adam and Eve – “what did they do that for? it’s going to take me forever to fix this” – ah, the human nature of humans – shaking his head – but smiling at small victories of souls won over…

anyway I am getting side tracked – at least Jesus wrote in the sand and not in gold… His message was delivered temporary for the time and thus required human to human spreading of the word rather than Jesus telling everyone to write down exactly has he said… no gold-embossed images of the word… hmmm… sounds like a new thing to ponder… hmmm… now that is a very good thing to ponder… Through Jesus, God set up person to person connections to make this happen… set up something tough to do – but the only way to convict people is for them to convict themselves and learn how to turn to God for themselves – that woman had to do that too – she had to convict herself because Jesus wasn’t about to condemn her… yeah…. – we have to convict ourselves of our sins – we have a very patient God – taking time writing in your heart instead of sand – until he puts you in a spot where you can’t escape your own sins… hmmm… full circle i think i answered my own question – Jesus wrote as the people were examining their hearts and he would have stayed there and wrote and wrote and wrote until they could read their own hearts… cool….

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Chocolate on Your Cross, 13JUL

Well apparently my sparkly cross necklace had its first tarnish…. from chocolate… somehow it got dipped in chocolate, maybe nutella in the car… chocolate is intercalated into my salvation. I don’t think Jesus minds a little bit of chocolate…. Salvation is tasty for the tongue as well as the soul… we hunger for life everlasting that only the cross brings…

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Freaky Cross, Passionate PEACE, 12-13Jul

Well that was kind of freaky… I was at church 10 o’clock at night, dropping off stuff for Vacation Bible School and I look up at in the window and a glittery cross is twisting and shining sparkly, moving with the air conditioner?… from the other side of the room?… I took a photo and video… Freaky… a freaky cross comfort…

I am usually not freaked out alone in the building, but tonight when I heard those normal creaks, I just had to tell myself it’s nothing… When I went upstairs to the choir loft to drop off my stuff, I immediately noticed the giant wood cross I draped in white fabric across the room with the outside lights shining on it… Ah comfort.

Then I noticed the old heavy brass cross that we ignore in the choir loft too much, I move it around like it’s looking for a home… Ah comfort.

As I went back down the stairs, I looked to the wall, there used to be a cloth cross tapestry there, it’s moved but that image on the wall is imprinted in my brain… Ah comfort.

I didn’t look for any of these crosses, they just were the first things to catch my eye… To absorb my fear I was able to spy a VBS phrase: “God had the power to comfort… Hold on”.

Freaky or not, I’ll keep looking for God, HE will comfort me always…

Freaky or not, I’ll keep noticing crosses when I am not looking for them, Jesus saves me, Jesus makes me sane…

It’s not that I will forget that God saved me, it’s just that God wants me to notice the cross over and over again, he is always retraining my eye on the only comfort, hope, joy and peace I need… I do thankfully have one of those strong memories that remembers the good and fades out the bad… Reminding me all the good in my life came from God.

God decided I needed daily reminders to look to Jesus’ loving arms hung on the cross… Everyday anew He wants me to feel like I could hold Jesus outstretched in my loving arms, strongly lifting Him off the cross and then His stiff body melts in my arms as He is resurrected into LIFE… His body dark becoming glittering and glowing… Then He hugs me tight and holds me up as my body goes limp, enabling Him to polish me, as my soul goes from tarnished twinkling to sparkly bright with His bold light emanating thru me as HE lifts me ever closer to Heaven…

His passion unmatched. God’s love never-ending, never tarnished, never dull.

God is moving the passion of Christ’s LOVE inside me, stirring my soul, setting sparkles in my heart that will catch HIS light and emanate out.

The Holy Spirit is blowing me gently, turning me to catch the light. Christ is shining thru me and He turns my soul passionate. His sparkling cross wills me into passionate PEACE.

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Emails to Pastor(s)

You know what one off my favorite songs as a child was? “Go tell it in the mountain, over the hills and everywhere! That Jesus Christ was born!!!”

I am pleased to amplify and carry out God’s blessings… I have noticed my boundaries getting clearer…

God wants me to handle the good soil formed in my life and not drain out the nutrients immediately, to sustain myself…

If I know how to be a joy to the world safely, then I am not going to perish….

Anyway, thanks for your encouragement… I am so blessed to have you…

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I broke communion bread for the first time within my church as a servant recently. Although I had received communion many times since 100% accepting Jesus, this time was different – I served it….. I was blessed to serve the blood of Jesus with a smile – I couldn’t help but smile inside and out – I was so grateful for the surprise and intimate opportunity to share Jesus’s love with trusted friends – I smiled at those people whom I felt shared my now truth in understanding that salvation comes to true believers – I was so satisfied and my heart was so warm…

I smile especially because God is SO generous that He allowed me to see and feel all the smiles that are NOT for me but truly meant for HIM. He let me share in this – my daily bread…

At the end of the congregation sharing I broke one big piece for our awesome (and smiling) officiant – and then also remembered to rip an extra piece for our awesome (and smiling) video projectionist in the back… got to actually rip the bread… ripped it humbly but with a smile. Why does this act of sharing communion mean something to me? Why to us as the church? Why? Because when we break bread in a Communion community, we are actually giving up all the sins and angst in our hearts – and our pain is taken by Jesus in that briefest of moments – the only thing left in our hearts is a smile as well as a humble cry for Jesus’ pain of taking on the world’s distance from God… here is my devotion… God bless… Smiles…

Jesus was Broken for You, 11JUL

Jesus was gifted from God to absorb our pain, absorb our sins, and to show us the way to salvation.

When we break and eat bread in communion – we say “Jesus’s body broken for you” – we remember Jesus breaking bread at the Last Supper – we, like His apostles, are to remember Him. Jesus’ body broken for you – for me – yes – BROKEN – Jesus was broken, beaten, stabbed, tortured, whipped, dragged thru the streets, nailed and put on public display – body broken, spirit strong… Thorns in a crown, jeers, and a mocking sign “King of the Jews” – break his spirit they said – break him mentally for hours, days whatever it takes – that was more the goal of the mockers than for Him to have a quick painless death… Break His Spirit…

God’s true SPIRIT cannot be broken and He released Jesus’ SPIRIT for us.

Our sins are also breaking us. They weigh us down, then deaden us to the world’s needs and make us internalize our mercy towards ourselves instead of out to the masses.

Jesus says no matter what, the breaking we do to Him in body is just that, in body, we can NOT break His Spirit. We can not hide the love He has for us. We may try to shield ourselves from His salvation – we may deaden our pain with ignoring our sins – placating, medicating, soothing our pain away by turning to any means possible – except Jesus. Someone may have tired to drug Jesus with wine and gall to deaden the pain (perhaps even mercifully) but Jesus said NO. I feel that Jesus is saying: NO, I want ALL in ALL suffering – I want to feel ALL your pain and all your brokenness – I want you to remember ME by breaking ME and thrusting your pain onto ME – I have a cross and I will bear it – it is sufficient for you – I, Jesus, am sufficient for you – God’s Grace is sufficient!

Go and Sin no more… some sins are the fatal stab wound in the side, some are the tiny pricks of the thorns – Jesus is ever-willing to take it all – break HIM and heal yourself – break him open and know that in His blood that was shed for you that you will find the narrow path to salvation as He intercalates into your very being and becomes your sustaining SPIRIT.

We ought to be showing mercy to the masses – mercy to the body of Jesus – the body of Jesus is the church – ALL people are the church. If we are chosen and accept Jesus’ body into our own, then He wants us out with the people helping to bring them into His Father’s salvation, externalizing our mercy towards the sinners in the masses. Our forgiven sins are a road map to spirit-filled salvation for others, for the church, when we release our spirit for them.

When you take and break bread of Jesus you may SMILE – smile inside your heart. Jesus took your sins. Feel free to let your heart smile. God’s spirit will be there.

When you take and break bread of Jesus you may CRY – cry inside your heart. Jesus took your sins. Feel free to let your heart cry. God’s spirit will still be there.

When you climb up on your cross that you have carried all those years, when entering Heaven with smiles and cries you will be free. Jesus – freed.

I’m a free spirit

Jesus frees – Jesus is free – Jesus is for me

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It’s Salvation not Satisfaction, God’s Shooting Stars and Skunks, 11JUL

I am SO reminded to not get greedy with God… Yes, I do need to stop complaining about these thorns in my side… Paul (2 Corinthians) says they are there to remind me to be humble – to allow me to hurt like Jesus – and to know that we are to focus on personal salvation NOT our personal satisfaction… less us more Jesus…

I watched the stars in the cooling summer evening – I was hoping to see a shooting star to answer me in my cry of questions – I have seen so many unexpectedly this year – all accompanying a profound questioning God thought. So I shouldn’t be surprised that I didn’t see one – God is NOT a side show – I need to stop being greedy demanding results from God… It’s just that God has blessed me daily with mostly joyous surprises… So I look for these signs in everything… Everything is God… God is Everything…

… instead tonight I got the strong whiff of a skunk – and I know what that means… go inside and stop your night dreaming of a shooting star miracle… Of course, this skunk smell really really recalled my memory of the time I sat one night to actively look for a meteor shower and a skunk walked within a foot of me… yeah – God laughs at me and my demands – skunks instead of shooting stars – yeah God, YOU have got some sense of humor… YOU will tell me and show me what I need to know when YOU determine I am ready to understand… It didn’t hurt to ask, right? But skunks?… I get that… Thanks GOD…

I am excited when things go my way, someone said results can turn into addictions – yeah, be careful… I should be satisfied with so much I have gained… Not to rush myself or God in HIS plans… it has been 7 months of gradual changes so I should NOT get greedy.. and YES I need to be more grateful for those thorns… because even though they hurt, at least I have them instead of nothing at all…

So is it just human of me to ache so much over my thorns?… I don’t want to use my thorns for a pity party… It’s just human to share angst… I am not a completely unsatisfied salvation-bound soul… I am super satisfied with the majority of the hand God has dealt me…

There’s no doubt that it is God and ONLY God who has made me feel beautiful on the inside… And these days He is working on the outside too – I have no one to credit but God and God’s influence on others for my strength… He clearly wants to make me into my best – to serve HIM not me.

God hooks me in even closer by letting me see and feel the smiles on people’s faces that are truly meant for God… He knows how to motivate me. He satisfies me.

Sigh… It’s God and God alone who can help relieve my pain from the thorns, not always by removing them, but allowing me to tolerate them… Yes, my attitude is the one thing I can change towards my thorns.

I have to stop begging God and just let God do HIS business HIS way – we are all on God’s time… not ours… I have to respect God, fearfully, of the hand He could have dealt me, of the replacement cards that I might get if I try to trade back some of mine.

Thanks for the vent God… I truly do praise YOU God. You have given me everything and more, including the stars and moon to watch over me… And the skunks too…

…and most importantly and amazingly God, You have given me (and all) Your only Son – You have made our salvation so satisfying… The Lord is my Sheppard, I shall not want…

---

Psalm 23 (KJV)

23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

² He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

³ He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

⁴ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

⁵ Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

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Ugh, I started this piece to process, not a big revelation piece – but processing as a newish Christian… But as a newish Christian thru I got a jolt of reality, a challenge to my motivation… Fits the essential question I was asking: so how do I fulfill the great commission to God’s will and not what is perceived to be my will?…

Notice Christianity? How do I fulfill the Great Commission? 08Jul

When one is a new Christian, do people notice? Should people notice? Should you tell them? How then is the great commission accomplished?

How do I fulfill the great commission? And do I set a goal? Or just let it happen?

I’ve lost weight, so to people who know me, they know I am proud and I am trying not to boast but let them know that if I could do it, they could too… Some notice and congratulate me, some notice and don’t mention it because that’s not proper etiquette… Obviously people you first meet wouldn’t know any different…

Same with being a new Christian… so to people who know me, they know I am proud and I am trying not to boast but let them know that if I could do it, they could too… Some notice and congratulate me, some notice and don’t mention it because that’s not proper etiquette to out someone else’s personal Christianity… Obviously people you first meet wouldn’t know any different…

And honestly, although I feel the miracle that happened to me and turned my world upside down, I am not that super different to the outside world… I did not go from drug addict to sober soul, from nasty person to nice person… if you ask people who know me they probably would tell you that I have strived to live a clean “goodies two shoes” life my whole life….It’s not like I went from a non-church goer to a church goer… I already felt like church was a home away from home, creeping around like a church mouse after hours, amazed at the humongous resource which is barely used such few hours in the day… Everyone knows me as a worker bee… My name in Hebrew means bee.

So, how do I fulfill the Great Commission?

I went from SUPER sinner to saved soul. Still a sinner… Saved people are still sinners, big time… So that’s why I wonder if any efforts I make to spread the good news may be construed as self-serving…. People who don’t know me might say: are you just trying to perpetuate a dying institution in corporate churches? They might say anything I do to promote how God has changed my life are “self-promoting” and fulfilling MY commission and not God’s… They may devalue me and cause me doubt…

I would say, “Don’t you see the golden opportunities that God has placed in my path, don’t you see that focusing on God caused great changes in my life and will cause great changes in your life?” And yet you can’t challenge people, they have to see for themselves…

Maybe God wants me to NOT boast about my salvation… But Paul says it’s ok to tell of others salvation… Hmmm… I know God made me a writer for this purpose of sharing his great power. I can’t think of any other reason why I would have to start writing. & I always say I didn’t come to God in crisis so there’s gotta be a point in all this that fits the Great Commission.

Maybe that’s why God gave me “a visual”, maybe I am losing weight to not just be healthier, but so that when people say “WOW” I can tell them privately, at the right moment, that it’s ALL BECAUSE OF GOD… That God gave me willpower and blessed me with motivation… I have been able to share that with maybe a dozen people who I truly did not know… I do now see how easy it is to become complacent, skipping exercise, eating mindlessly… This might happen to me as a Christian? Ugh, I don’t know… I know you have to actively prayerfully pursue Christian life, it’s not a one and done, it’s not a “saved and see ya whenever I get to heaven…” no, it’s keeping your eyes firmly fixed on Jesus and salvation… salvation is a marathon not a one time race in my opinion you can easily go wrong again… I know heaven is like that old Motel 6 ad… “we will always keep a light on for you” … but to become complacent again in Christianity would be a sin…

Setting goals: I didn’t choose to lose weight, just wanted more energy and get my act together… do I set a goal? Seeing results can make you do that. Or do I just let it happen? …. I also didn’t choose to become a hundred percent right with God, I didn’t choose the way God got my head on straight, but just God wanted me to credit my energy to HIM and get my act together… so I didn’t have to set a goal…. I did just have to let it happen…

God commissioned me to spread the good news… I have so many skills to use… I just want to try my best…

I should not set a Great Commission goal, but I did set a hope…. I stood there Feb 1st at the 911 memorial, knowing I could say “am YOURS now God”… I held onto the twisted beam and remembered 3,000 people perished that day and then I remembered that once Peter spoke one sermon that caused the simultaneous conversion of 3000 people… and I thought maybe God, just maybe, I can touch the lives of 3000 people… But I know it’s only if God chooses that… ONLY GOD knows HIS plan for me… I will just keep listening… I will just try my best… Thanks GOD for envisioning big things for me… Thanks God for forgiving me… Thanks GOD for finding me when I was lost… Thanks for keeping the LIGHT on until I get home…

Ephesians 3:20-21, NIV, Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

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Oh wow, such a spirit-led writing, woke up from awesome sleep at 5:40 with this scripture on the brain and God had wrote most of this in my head in between dreams… He had processed more meaning for me than I already had from this scripture, my ears open more and more to HIS sweet music. I wiped the sand from my eyes and blurry eyed found my phone…. Fast 30 minutes… Plus a little for editing and finding the scripture references that were already placed in my heart… Oh, how awesome I see now that this grain and weeds parable is immediately after the four soils one…. God’s linear progression today, my discombobulated ways… I am so grateful… And I still have sand in my eyes but my ears were open all night listening for God’s whisper… Here’s the piece, may it please God…

God Wants YOU in HIS Bouquet in Heaven, 08Jul

I’d like to take the wonderful opportunity to say thank you to God for placing such certain people in my path. I have and had so many wonderful people to learn from, pull the best characteristics from each one into my bouquet of life…. Blessedly more amazing people, than terrible people… But I learn from those folks as well… Learn to delineate the good from the bad traits within each person (because we all have both), the roses from the thorns, the grain from the weeds.

Matthew 13:29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”

When God choose me, and when God choose you, he let all the seeds grow, grain and weeds alike… good grain people and weed people/temptations (planted by the evil one). When it is time to harvest, the weeds be set aside and burnt… And the best in you will be taken into the barn of God… into HIS eternal kingdom!!! Yes, you see God let’s those bad habits grow like weeds alongside your best grain characteristics. He dare not pull the weeds that intercolated into your being, entangled all around you, because the grain of who you are is/was not yet mature, is/was not yet firmly rooted in good soil.

When you are mature enough, which does not depend on your age, God will call you louder by name… God will lead you to Jesus… maybe others will cajole Him to come into your house and raise your life spirit like Jarius’ daughter (Luke 8:41-56)… Maybe you will cry out in painful screams of angst… When God says it’s time to wake up, you sometimes snooze thru the alarm, then angrily realize you weren’t ready to get up but God called you anyway. When you wake up earlier than the alarms, it’s refreshing and peaceful to see God coming for you, and you can be ready and waiting for HIM. You can work on your root growth deeper and obey his Word.

Before harvest God says: “it’s time to get right with the Lord…. It’s time to start pulling those weeds within you, so hold on tight to your roots planted in ME…” God’s harvest of the good in your crop will become easier and less painful if you cooperate with God and not work against him, if you identify and start eliminating the weeds in your life… If you dig deep and get to the roots of these vice-causing traits and clean out your soul.

It’s ok if you can’t get out all the weeds or invasive roots out before God takes you, it’s ok because God knows any harvest, no matter how small is still pleasing (Matthew 13:23). God will take you as you are. Be grateful and let God bless you with HIS joy.

God sees the Jesus within you, and takes you for HIS bouquet of heaven. God loves you and will keep you forever…

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No Baggage – Just LOVE – God catching Fish, 06Jul

I do love visiting with people, that’s just part of my nature… and having spent every other day for a short visit to my grandmother’s nursing home from my birth until age eleven, I understand the temporary nature of these visits, and the permanent situation they are in… I know the routine of flying in like a bird feasting on love and smiles and flying just as quickly out… Bringing the kids with me, maybe someday they will understand the power in a smile, a kind word… Some folks entering may be overwhelmed with the sadness of the people’s situation… Some may be caught up (especially with their own family members) in the guilt of such a short visit as well as feeling the pain of seeing them decline…and not being able to drop their baggage of the inevitably grave situation…

So entering as an outsider to “be the church” and visit briefly, you flutter in like a bird… are able to share Jesus’s pure love, while dropping your own baggage at the door… You are called to have compassion, as in Romans 12:15 (KJV) “15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.”…   With this recent visit I was reminded how nice visiting the nursing home is… Nice isn’t sufficient a word… I LOVE visiting… The first man I met grabbed my hand and wished me peace. He became my go to guy for music inspirations. Such a sweet exchange… Smiles come from all the people, especially when they see the kids… I get to share smiles and hand holding, no prep work needed… Abundant Grace gifts of community all around. As a friend from our church led the service, my daughter prepped the communion cups… My shy guy just looked cute… I thought I would ask them what they wanted to sing, and being it was the 4th of July weekend we sang some patriotic songs… and I suggested Amazing Grace… they loved singing of course. After the service one woman said how much she appreciated the service, and could understand the message…

Many well wishes and compliments abound from these lovely people. We are not family, so there are no expectations, no entitlements, just affirmations of community, just free love to flow back and forth. After service they “dashed” off to bingo… I could envision them concentrating on their own boards while keeping a watchful eye over each other’s numbers… Keeping a watchful eye over each other’s lives… On the way out I met a man, a veteran, originally from Pittsburgh, who couldn’t hear me, said he was a paratrooper jumping out of planes and lost his hearing from that, and he didn’t get the health care he needed as a vet… He told me in Pittsburgh that he could catch fish just using his bare hands… Hmmm…. He just scooped his hands to show me how easy it is to catch fish.

These people held my hands as I held theirs but truly they captured my heart… Through the love showered on me, it reminds me that I am just one of the lucky fish that HE, our Heavenly Father, caught in HIS hands. No entitlement expected, just an affirmation that I appreciate of His LOVE. No baggage, no guilt, God scooped His hands and caught me while Jesus reached out to wake me from my slumber by holding my hand… Telling me I was just sleeping… Arise…. And now telling me to live my life in a way that when I am weak, I am strong… The scripture reading (2 Corinthians 12) was fitting and a comfort to me and hopefully to them… God knows there’s pain, anguish, loneliness, personal battles… a thorn in your side…. Paul reminds us to remember to stay humble, to stay weak so that we stay connected to God, and look to Jesus to show us the way to true inner joy and peace… The cross you carry, no matter how painful, is there to give you hope, it’s your way to your salvation into an eternal life….

—————

2 Corinthians 12 (NIV) Paul’s Vision and His Thorn

12 I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. 3 And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— 4 was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 5 I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. 6 Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, 7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

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God’s Alarm Clock, 03JUL

JUST like telling someone they really really need to be exercising, or getting their act together by quitting smoking or stopping one of their vices, or even (and especially) accepting Jesus, all these things are better understood and more likely to happen when the benefits are demonstrated as opposed to commanded or jammed down your throat. People (just like I did) have to actually open your eyes to see the light. No one can wrench your eyes open… God’s timing, OF COURSE, yet we can TRY to be the alarm clock to shake them and say “wake up!” And yet the best way to have them look for the light is to SHOW them how much you are blessed directly because you have seen the light and now the light is shining out of you… Show them “if it can happen to me, it can happen to you”… Show them how blessed you are from doing the simple act of getting your act together… Or should I say of allowing God to act together with you….And in you…

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Loosed from the Devil, 29Jun

One term has been repeating in my travels these past few weeks – its actually from a prayer – that you will be “loosed” from the devil…. has this happened to you (in a small or big way)? or do you long for it…?  well it’s a powerful feeling! You feel the release in your heart! your soul! your mind! Yes your WHOLE body can remember that powerful winning struggle of Jesus taking you for HIS own…”I chose YOU” (“Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.” Isaiah 43:1 KJV)… It’s a feeling of the physical spirit-human strength of Jesus manhandling the devil for you… and keeping you safe from his evil return… Do you feel those arms around you? Like Jesus holding you with arms under yours – holding you up and kicking the devil with HIS feet until you yourself join in the fight?   You feel it, don’t you? You can be loosed from the devil and put the victorious feeling in your life… And you will never want to go back, but if you slip you can call out (as many times as you need) for faith renews the hope, peace and joy…

26 And they will remember their souls and break loose from the trap of Satan by whom they were captured for his pleasure. (2ndTimothy)

Yesterday I arranged for someone to meet up at a church meeting with my friend who is an amazing example of rebuilding his life by the grace of God… Doesn’t matter what affliction / addiction / devastating influence what’s going on in your own life this Christian brother truly is a shining example of not letting the grace-filled light from Jesus be hidden under a bushel basket… (Luke 11:33). When I returned, to pick up my friend from this meeting, they were about to start a laying of hands prayer for an upset woman… I didn’t know her story was but I so moved (excited? humbled? enthusiastic? Yeah everything) to wholeheartedly and very humbly jump in at this opportunity for prayer…. it was solid and it was powerful…  the people networked around her with their hands criss-cross on everybody elses shoulders… it must have looked like the most wonderful net to Jesus, our “Fisher of men”.  The hand on top of my hand on top of her shoulder squeezed so tightly… “Amens”.. “Hallelujahs”… affirmations of the power of being loosed from the devil…. the prayer was powerful beyond powerful while also being as solemn as solemn… I was able to let myself down too, yes my guard has been down for months now with the armor of God surrounding me… but to let myself down into this net to feel the energy in the prayer… How blessed to partake in all the people around me truly truly feeling an affirmation of Jesus having saved them from the devil… yeah… it was not just a one time prayer for her – it was an all-time prayer for everyone – a reminder for every-time.

There’s a term – to “let down” – when you are nursing a baby and you have to let it go… you have to find your peace in your mind to let your milk flow out, otherwise it’ll be all held up. With a baby in your arms it becomes easier because you’re holding such a bundle of joy – a gift from God – and the baby is likely fussing… and when you “Let down” you not only feed your child but you also find your peace… So – when you’re pumping your milk at work, it’s not so easy, you have to find that memory of the baby and your state of peace from within your mind – because there’s no babe in your arms… Your peace is not in your hands and you still have to “let down”, otherwise the baby will get no milk and your milk will dry up from limited production… You must let down emotionally in your mind and your body.

The same is true with your spiritual life… you have to let down… you have to lower your guard you have to invite Jesus into your heart and you have to let your mind go… It’s peace when you surrender to give yourself to God… when you can let down like this, oh the blessings that flow…. Just like the song, “I surrender”, surrendering all to God becomes a heavenly a state of peace… sharing in the savior’s pain by remembering past pains, and now taking some of this pain away from others…”I’m laying it all down, for the sake of you my King”.  Your peace is not in your own hands but in the arms of Jesus holding you up – you still have to “let down” into those arms to find peace.

For these folks participating in this laying of hands prayer they acted out the victorious in victory over Satan… they found the hope… they acted upon their faith… they have found hope in small doses and in large doses and they allow themselves to let down and feel the joy of God that will heal. And they do this everyday… They surrender anew… They right their wrongs and pray for Jesus in their lives everyday, sometimes every minute…

So grateful and admiring these found souls who return to the meeting week after week to pick up their fellow weary travelers… not forgetting this important reminder in Psalm 66:13-14…  “I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you— vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble.”

Praising the peace in surrendering daily to Jesus’ love and picking up the good fight over the devil.

“Let down” – “Be loosed”.

———–
2 Timothy 2, NIV

The Appeal Renewed
2 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others. 3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. 5 Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.

8 Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained. 10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

11 Here is a trustworthy saying:

If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
12 if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
13 if we are faithless,
he remains faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.

Dealing With False Teachers
14 Keep reminding God’s people of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. 16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”

20 In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use. 21 Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.

22 Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. 25 Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

 

yeah – “Loosed” is a funny unusual term to come up at least four times in the last three weeks – life is so fun…

I appreciate the fun as well as humbling experiences God throws my way…. knows every hair on my head for sure….

the middle time was from this awesome genesis song (below) that I first heard last week – there is no end to the amazing spiritual messages in the Genesis songs for me – really awesome…  and all the moon references throughout so many of their songs and my life experiences – yeah – awesome….

 

“Burning Rope”   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWZzXg_plrk

The warming sun, the cooling rain,
The snowflake drifting on the breath of the breeze,
The lightning bolt that frees the sky for you
Yet only eagles seem to pass on through.
The words of love, the cries of hate,
And the man in the moon who seduced you
Then finally loosed you.

You climbed upon a burning rope to escape the mob below,
But you had put the flaming out so that others could not follow,
To be out of the bounds and the barks of those who do not wish you well.

You must blaze a trail of your own, unknown, alone,
But keep in mind
Don’t live to-day for tomorrow like you were immortal.
The only survivors on this world of ours are

The warming sun, the cooling rain,
The snowflake drifting on the breath of the breeze,
The lightning bolt that frees the sky for you
Yet only eagles seem to pass on through.
The words of love, the cries of hate,
And the man in the moon who seduced you
Then finally loosed you.

You’re old and disillusioned now as you realize at last,
That all all you have accomplished here will have soon all turned to dust.
You dream of a future after life, well that’s as maybe, I don’t know.
But you can’t take what you left behind, you’re all alone.
So keep in mind
Don’t live to-day for tomorrow like you were immortal.
The only survivors on this world of ours are

The warming sun, the cooling rain,
The snowflake drifting on the breath of the breeze,
The lightning bolt that frees the sky for you
Yet only eagles seem to pass on through.
The words of love, the cries of hate,
And the man in the moon…

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God Works Outside the Box, So Plant HIS Seeds With LOVE, 28Jun

A friend pastor wrote about his sorrow because many people said no at a prayer outreach…he was sad that God cried for each of these souls…

I tried to comfort him, I messaged:
“Look at Matthew 10:11-14, “If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet” So, just do your best and let God stress for you… You are still planting seeds… Your boldness speaks volumes… They will still remember that offer… That was me once too…”

Let me tell you of a time when I refused prayer, and oh yeah, I can still see the expression on that woman’s face… A seed was certainly planted in me though, her surprise… I know I have had received thousands of planted seeds thru my life, I was/am truly truly blessed to now grow them – the great thing was that so many seeds were planted that the ones that were dried out were replaced by others.

That time I refused prayer, I was flippant – I regret that now – but then I was… couple nights before I was rushed… I was checking into the hospital… my first baby was coming unexpectedly six weeks early, some of my water broke, I was scared beyond scared… I hadn’t even read up about labor yet, let alone premature labor… Hadn’t even met my new doctor… Just get me into this hospital!!! They said what’s your religion? I rattled off Catholic even though I attended a Methodist church for nine years… Honestly I was just checking some old box on a old form to get myself into that hospital faster… Baby is coming early!!! OMG I don’t have time for that question about my faith right now! Yeah, right… I take the time now to recount those days and to restructure and appreciate my faith…

I had completed unpacking that day, having moved just one week prior at seven and a half months pregnant… leaving a stable and beautiful hometown, a great job/career, and my family support system for the nearly complete unknown… Yeah a stress-filled pregnancy likely factored into my complications… single umbilical artery, gestational diabetes, and now this… blood streaming down my leg – six weeks early… Scared beyond scared…

A couple days later my daughter was born – she was fine and strong, just early, she apparently wanted to come out… Her choice? God’s choice? My improper health circumstances? A divine intervention that enabled me to come to grips with a new baby for six weeks before 911 happened (because 9-10-01 WAS her due date)… I have time to reflect now – but not then – blood down my leg…

I checked the box… “Whatever!” I said to myself… Well they actually read that box, then a lady from the local Catholic church came to see me the day after my preemie was born, she offered me communion and offered to pray… “Oh no, I’m good” I said. She looked confused, really confused… I don’t remember if I told her I had just checked the box in a rush. I do remember thanking her though – nice of you to offer, but no thank you.

It WAS really nice of her, I remember thinking (seed planted) about how good it was that volunteers actually took time to minister to those who needed it… But me? Really? I didn’t need it, didn’t want to waste her time… I was fine I told myself… I had God all figured out… OMG with the emphasis on M

Ha! I am so changed now!!!! Can you imagine me or anyone (or even you?) with that attitude? Yeah I can… because it was me!!!   I had God squared away in my box, not HIS. God works outside the box. God is LOVE. Love is patient….1 Corinthians 13… He worked on me years and years before and after that day… “when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away.”

His love came down on me like a river (as the song goes), caused a Christmas flood for me, I got corrective action by God, fully taking Jesus in and myself out. Like Jairus’ daughter (Mark 5:39), Jesus said I was sleeping and said “Arise”.

I am still shaking the excessive flood water off, into my saved rain barrels of writing, and yes onto other people in the splashzone… Some people came prepared with sponges to help sop up the runoff – and some perhaps came with their own dry cups to absorb my excessive rain from God. Of course, some backed away FAST, and still others were close to see the splash but wore rain slickers to repel the excessive extravaganza of God’s power… They don’t want to get wet, they are happy to keep dry inside their box.

Now my OMG is “Oh my, God, really?” I expect God in the unexpected now, I opened my box, actually God exploded it, that’s how I let JESUS in and let the LOVE come out. God was patient with me and so we should all be patient too with the seeds we plant, don’t be stingy, plant fully with love and go back for some more out of God’s pockets. I will plant seeds the rest of my life. It’s my calling now: to pay back the LOVE graced upon me.

1 Corinthians 13:1-13
(1) If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a nosy gong or a clanging cymbal. (2) And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. (3) If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

(4) Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; (5) it is not arrogant or rude. (6) Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right.

(7) Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. (8) Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. (9) For our knowledge is imperfect, but when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away.

(10) When I was a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave up childish ways. (11) For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. (12) Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood.

(13) So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

———-

Matthew 10:11 Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. 12 As you enter the home, give it your greeting. 13 If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. 15 Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.

Sometimes it does worry me a bit – but mostly I think God is comforting me – by throwing songs my way at the right times… because when I was posting this essay (written last month) about changes I was listening “randomly” to YES – and their song “CHANGES” was playing… fitting duplication…

200
Change Your Attitude – Fire and Brimstone vs LOVE…, 26JUN
I have always known that this notion is important and the email below speaks to how Jesus is about repentance, believing, and being forgiven – not about threats of hellfire.

Fire and Brimstone vs LOVE…

I wish people in distress could count God’s blessings more, I wish they could open their eyes, and cut back their own thorns… wouldn’t that be nice if everyone did… If we find grief with situations and people, it is my opinion that we are meant to learn something about ourselves in that situation… And then we can learn to change our attitude… at least we could try… And this is because we likely have no control over the other person/situation… What we can control is us, just us. My favorite piece of advice on one of my roughest days was “if the pain is in you, well you know exactly how to deal with yourself, right? You’ve lived with yourself for 45 yrs… so just deal with it.” Yup…. That advice worked wonders that day…

I really ignored Satan before, but now I see him… I usually see him coming a mile away… Knowing the right and wrong way within your brain makes ALL the difference, and I often can get over my grief situations by acknowledging that I put myself up for a fall…. And the doubt that creeps in when you know you have done something in good faith, that’s Satan eating at you for breakfast…. Don’t forget to engage your brain when you feel your heart guard is down…

By obeying God, Satan’s legs get knocked out, he crumbles and slithers away for another day…

Whenever you exercise and build strength physically you can withstand falls and health threats. So whenever you exercise your faith – even flash your smile when you feel Jesus holding you up – then you can withstand the storms. Exercising by running towards Jesus, and retaking your body and soul as a temple, your tabernacle, well that’s doubly good…

Grace begets brave living… And brave loving…

> ———- Forwarded message ———-
> From: “Jesus-Centered Life” <info@jesuscenteredlife.com>
> Date: Jun 26,
> Subject: Your Jesus-Centered Daily
>
>> The early church presents the Jesus-following life as uncomplicated (repent, believe, and be forgiven), with no complex atonement theories (we killed Christ, but God raised him up), and zero threats of hellfire as motivation (because the gospel is less about running away from something and more about running toward someone).
>> — Bruxy Cavey

 

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Happy Halfway to Christmas, 25JUN

Why am I excited for Christmas? It’s because everyday is Christmas this year… My poinsettia is still red…

How awesome is it that Christmas and Easter are renewed in the calendar and hopefully in our hearts every year… Yeah it’s awesome!

But why do I get Christmas all year this year? Why do I not force myself away from this christmas merry go round, which certainly I also chose? Why do I allow this mental state? Why do I feed myself and mediate on God at a level I would previously said was overkill? And I’m sure others would say even now is overkill!
So I don’t know if God has caused this or I have caused this continuation of willingly focusing on God

I don’t know the answer to this I don’t know why I’m feeling Christmas just as much as I don’t know why I got here when I did.

What I am truly sure of is that I am really enjoying it. It’s a mental drifting away state… I try to focus on things and I am still getting my work done in life itrs just my life work is changing.

I am sure it’s because God wants me to be firmly rooted, and is giving me at least a whole year, I am being allowed and also allowing myself to grow. In the moment it feels such a long year but I know in hindsight it will seem so quick many years from now. And I know it won’t be done in a year but for at least this year I’m indulging myself in the pleasures of God… thank you God for supporting that.

Here’s a new-to-me song – good for a half Christmas

I Will Delight (In the Law of the Lord)
Words and Music by Walt Hurrah and John A. Schreiner

I will delight in the law of the Lord
I will meditate day and night
Then, like a tree firmly planted,
I’ll be rounded in Your Word

Blessed is the one
Who follows the way of the Lord
Blessed is the one

Satisfied
Oh, so satisfied
Satisfied

196

I have a friend going thru a court hearing today…. no details… but I found this website, talks about forgiveness…Here’s my message to them and the website link and part of the text…

Ah, ……, prayers for today, the storm passed, the sun is out….try to forgive the anger and rage…. Ask God to forgive … If they can’t see their ways, that’s up to God to correct… You have to forgive… It’s hard… Those Amish parents whose kids were killed by that shooter forgave the shooter right away, which is what God wants us to do, forgive… Forgive and ask for forgiveness… It’s the way to true peace… May God hold you tight in His loving arms so you can feel peace.

I was reading about forgiveness, from this website http://www.patheos.com/…/top-7-bible-verses-about-forgiven…/

Matthew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

” The Biblical Definition of Forgiveness:
What the Bible defines as forgiveness is much broader and more comprehensive than what the world believes. In Matthew 6:14 Jesus shows us what forgiveness really is: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” The Greek word for forgive is “aphiēmi” which means “to send away,” to “depart,” or “to yield up” which means you send away from ever being in the presence of either party. That means that if my brother offends me and I forgive him, then I “send away” the offense from myself and from him so that it is never brought up again. If a person keeps bringing the same offense up then they have never really sent it away or they haven’t truly forgiven you. True biblical and godly forgiveness is this; “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8) and “while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life” (Rom 5:10)…

 

197
Even in the darkest hour the cross still shines

198
Question, 23JUN:
The spirit, of all people, led Jesus into the desert to be tempted…. Why? To test Jesus? To show us we are able to resist temptations? Or just to give the devil some grief? Or?

And Jesus knew this ahead of time, right? Hmmmm….

I wonder about God testing vs God letting you be tested… I would think the latter… Many people blame God for the temptations, but I don’t think so…

I bet He knew that we would have to find similarities to our own lives in order to follow Him and He to show us that He understands our grief…

Matthew 4:1-11 New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness
4 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

195 A
Funny red elderbugs this year, last year they were orange… Hmmmm…. Red was my field day team color today…. I was supposed to be blue, since I run it, I get to pick my color, which is always blue like my car… Well someone messed up and I got red…. Figures…. It is still Pentecost…. Figures….

I like how this bug is smiling…

195 B Email:

Yeah, duplicate scripture so fitting for today…. God bless your all…Wishing you calm…. You always have to come back to the calm…. Focus on Jesus for calm…
And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
— Jesus

——————————–

195 C Email:

good verse – I bet it will come up in duplicate sometime this week – just got a feeling on this one…

1 Corinthians 13 New International Version (NIV)

13 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror;then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

—————————-

195 D Email:

And there’s your triple play for today, God’s hat trick, for three occurrences for psalm 23 today… Me first, reciting partially, in the car thinking of things that people and I list as wants which are not needs…. Then a friend texting me the psalm after seeing sheep along the road and sending it by email, then me pulling a copy if it out of my old purse after ignoring that bag for about a month…. Sweet triple…. “The Lord is my Shepard, I shall not want…”

 

202 – questions with professor
Q:

Well, new question professor and pastors…..the spirit, of all people, led Jesus into the desert to be tempted…. Why? To test Jesus? To show us we are able to resist temptations? Or just to give the devil some grief?  Or? And Jesus knew this ahead right? Hmmmm….

I wonder about God testing vs God letting you be tested… I would think the latter… Many people blame God for the temptations, but I don’t think so…

Matthew 4:1-11New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness
4 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

A:

Here’s your answer-

¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. ¹⁶ Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.(Hebrews 4:15-16)

He was tempted so he could be like us in every way, to better understand our human condition, and to become the Last Adam. As the first Adam was tempted by the devil and failed, thereby ushering in sin and death and sorrow into the world, the Last Adam was tempted by the devil yet was without sin- did not give in- so that the sin, death, and sorrow might one day be banished from the world.

 

My RESPONSE:

Awesome, thanks… I never heard the term Last Adam…  makes me wonder if Eve gets a do-over?

I do appreciate approaching the throne to help with temptation and being able to say no, doesn’t always work but for major glaring temptation I have been rewarded with grace-given strength.

Thanks so much!

194
Entitlements vs. Affirmations, 21JUN
I was in the mountains helping a friend open her cabin, we worked hard… So we felt entitled to sit by the lake to relax, and later I also sat at the bonfire stirring up coals. It was where I felt such peace…. Of course temporary moment for peace, couldn’t stay all night and get bitten up by the bugs, but I allowed myself to accept freely offered PEACE….felt good…felt God…

Was I entitled to sit there? probably not… I really should be out solving world hunger and working for world peace, shouldn’t I? Shouldn’t we all? That’s another conversation….but I was granted this golden slice of personal peace and I joyfully took it. Gifts are more wonderful when you don’t expect them.

When I look to God, should I look for entitlement? I am pretty sure I should not… I need to respect God and his plan. I already live a golden cake-walk type life, what is my right to ask for entitlements?

Does God give gifts? Oh yeah! Gifts are more wonderful when you don’t expect them.

I have been praying for something for at least two years, so long I don’t even know… honestly the praying became like begging at times. Yes, we should all pray for whatever we need… begging and anguish are all acceptable… we should always go to God in whatever state we are in, for all of our needs, because he already knows them before we can even ask.

Although I did not feel totally feel entitled to what I was begging God for, I have to say that when I finally said “It’s your will, God… do as YOU will, not as I ask”, well wouldn’t you know it? God answered in a big way… God knew I had changed… and I received this gift within 6 hours, I am not making this up and I am not going to tell you what it was…. Just know God provides… God’s gift was an affirmation of His LOVE. I had to admit I was not entitled to it, even though some might say I was. And “honest-to-God” when I humbly decided I was not going to demand it anymore, my heart was truly changed… and when I prayerful lifted it to God, finally in the right heart-set, He in turn gave it to me. A gift. He loves me.

God freely gives Grace. He loves you and knows what you need, just turn to HIM.

But it IS difficult to do this for everything we should, and it is HARD to separate needs and wants, and who knows, perhaps what we are demanding is the best for the situation because often it probably is…. Scripture says “All things are possible if you believe”. God wants to you to look towards Him, God does have your best interest at heart. Have faith in God, and accept grace gifts gracefully…

If we pray for God’s will in all things, no matter how difficult it is to give up control, then all the gifts from God become affirmations of Love. When we shed our human desires for human acceptance, human love, human entitlements, and instead desire to please God and respect HIS plan (a very very long term plan that we are not entitled to know the details of), then everyday everyway we can experience JOY… And the best JOY – an eternal life – only comes from God.

A good friend said JOY stands for Jesus-Others-Yourself… If you ask God to change your heart and put Jesus first – then others – before your own needs, you will find JOY… And it will feel like you are affirmed in an overload of LOVE.

I can truly truly say that, PEACE is offered by a loving God, I pray we all to take and accept that PEACE in Joy…

THANKS God. You make my heart smile eternally for you.

193
FYI…adult Sunday school time… College level…. 20JUN
I love these discussions (email below) with “my professor”… Such a wealth of knowledge that he has, and the ability to draw electronically on great resources….

This is an academic interlude… kinda like hearing Paul Harvey saying, “Now you know the rest of the story”…

It’s cool that they can debate calmly, they can agree to disagree…. We need more of that in today’s society. Luther says “Partaking of the body of Christ can be of use because it involves the promise of forgiveness of sins. Since, however, every promise requires faith, and since faith is spiritual knowledge, then the bodily repast, if it is eaten in faith, must at the same time be eaten in spirit.” Meaning it’s real… The other guy says it’s a figure of speech… He uses the “I am the vine” scripture in his argument for it being a symbol.

“LUTHER: Call upon God, that you may receive understanding.

OECOLAMPADIUS: Call upon him yourself, for you need it just as much as we!”

My favorite agreement they have is:
“Indeed, to do the smallest thing at the command of the Master is spiritual. ”

And on page 11, “Respecting Helvidius, it can be proved from Scripture that “brother” can mean “cousin.” ” yeah that made me take a pause!…. based on all my cousin writing, on 17mar and more recently… Cool…

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: “Professor”  Subject: Re: Another question

> We explored this question in (too much) detail during my scholasticism class this past semester!
>
> What it boils down to is that from the very earliest years the church believed that Christ was really present in the communion elements. We can see this belief as far back as the 1st and 2nd centuries. It wasn’t until Ulrich Zwingli in the early 1500’s that many protestant churches came to believe in this “memorial only” understanding. In fact, Zwingli and Martin Luther once held a face-to-face debate on the subject called the Marburg Colloquy. Luther believed in a version of this “real presence” doctrine, Zwingli did not.
>
> Here, read this- it’s the transcript of the debate. You’ll learn a lot!http://divdl.library.yale.edu/dl/FullText.aspx… Follow the links at the bottom to the next pages to see their actual debate.

> —–Original Message—–
> From: debbie
>> Ok, Professor,
> I am curious….
> Why is it that Catholics are taught that actual transformation of bread and wine become real body and blood, and (I think) in protestant churches it is a symbol (am I right on that?)…. And why wine switched to grape juice but not in Catholic churches….
> What an amazing argument verse 43 must have started!!!!
> Verse 37 is also very intriguing in that God had to draw the people to Jesus first, and then Jesus shows them the way home… it’s not technically a circular argument, especially since these folks had all their history of God from Moses etc, but I could see how it would incite arguments! Jesus says he is God, but said God needs first to draw people to Jesus, and then they are saved…like the parables it requires open ears to fully understand, it’s taxing to comprehend and requires each person to make a personal evaluation… And it begs the question of why God made the system so intricate? Well because it’s a long term plan, not short term…. God is not in a vacuum of just God and people and everything being made from God are not a separate entity…. Everything is connected (everything from dust then back to dust)…. it’s as if within God there is all this movement here on earth… It’s as if people wander around, some seeking (some not) until they find the narrow slit of Jesus to pass through, to find eternal life… Not many get thru they say, the slit is narrow…but Jesus says he is here for “those who God draws to him” so perhaps it is for everyone but only so few will make it… One would pray that others see the LIGHT too…
> I am in no rush, but won’t it be cool to find out how all this shakes out in heaven?!!
> Thanks… I am so blessed to have fallen thru the narrow slit, or at least the first refining mesh…. Which is like a retaining mesh as well, Jesus won’t let me fall back out, he’s got me now. Like naaman I had to let go to fall in…. To let go the baggage that blocked my pass…. Who knew how blessed I would feel… And humbleness should be in being of such few that make it thru… Not pride…humility of the work now laid out for us… Now the real work really begins! God’s work is to help those find the narrow pass thru jesus…. I don’t think God minds if we polish the pass and make it a little easier for others to slip thru….but they have to let go of their baggage too, we can’t tear it out of their hands.

> 22 The next day the crowd that had stayed on the opposite shore of the lake realized that only one boat had been there, and that Jesus had not entered it with his disciples, but that they had gone away alone. 23 Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24 Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.
> Jesus the Bread of Life
> 25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
> 26 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
> 28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
> 29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
> 30 So they asked him, “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’[c]”
> 32 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
> 34 “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
> 35 Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36 But as I told you, you have seen me and still you do not believe. 37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”
> 41 At this the Jews there began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”
> 43 “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’[d] Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. 46 No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. 50 But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”
> 52 Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
> 53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
> Many Disciples Desert Jesus
> 60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”
> 61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit[e] and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”
> 66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

 

192
Right now it is dawn in the mountains, camping with a great friend from church, helped her open her cabin for the season… It’s her and her kids tackling the big tasks and building new family memories…

Truly a prime example of church folks becoming my extended family (family away from family) and in turn I became extended family to them… Giving back as much love and time as I can, being part of a reciprocal family network… She needed the help, I love to work hard, I needed the retreat (no phone or data service), I needed to sit on a rock and unwind… after a great night’s sleep – this devotion came at dawn – about building Jesus’ net:

Church Family Cousins, 20Jun

Remembering how blessed I am for my blood family AND my blood family. My blood family extends deep and wide biologically, established in my parents generous LOVE, making every effort travel and to share with me a great multiplicity of extended love… cousins… “let’s go meet your cousins”… and I did… I have absorbed their love… I have given back love…

Most of the travel adventures I had as a child were on the way to see aunts, uncles, and cousins… Twice a year up and down the east coast – hitting all the big and little tourist and history hot spots and taking time to interact with the locals along the way.

Blood cousins, we are far apart now in a too busy lifestyle, society demands busyness, vacation for us now is less frequently cousin-hopping, and certainly less interacting with locals along the way…

Same in church… Blood relatives are there too, united in Christ’s blood. I came to church with a small baby, I came to establish roots, I moved away from my family, I came to church to grow more, I knew I needed them – but I needed them more than I knew… I found family anew. They then became my cousins in Christ.

My Roots, His Net…

In a new church I worked hard establishing deep roots, that fed me first in society love, but that grew into family love, that I was able to extend back to them… Love so deep that I don’t want to dig it up and transplant… And love so strong that I had to extend out extra roots into new space, into extra non-congregational lands to support my ever growing faith…

Faith family became blood family when, I accepted Jesus, took in His Flesh and Blood AND acknowledged a path that I must travel. “The path is narrow, but it is sure”… I don’t have a map for this path – A compass yes! and a firm sense of my skill set, and enough supplies to last a lifetime… Yes and direction – Jesus gives us direction – “He will show you the path to take Proverbs 3:6… Yes it’s travelling time.

Cousin-hopping feeds you love best when you reciprocate… When you are as much the giver of love as the recipient… When you provide the soil for your blood cousins to put down their roots.

When you look to your congregational family for support, it’s good to ask yourself if you have done the same for them… Feed them so much – and don’t worry if you get it directly back, hopefully we all realize that we are being fed cross-network and not back and forth…. Set up this network for others as you have enjoyed for yourself… Trust me, you will be fed… Just change the type of diet you long for…. Feed on JESUS’ LOVE and not individual human love and you will never go hungry. Look for the love of Jesus under stones, in the dark spaces, and plain as day in the open… But make sure you cousin-hop. Don’t over eat.

At first I went to church for the people. I needed and always will need people, that’s who I am, that will never change. Once in my church family, I followed God’s love in a unique path that I didn’t realize I was taking. God drew me near and I found Jesus along the way. In a long term plan, God was reeling me in… Slow but sure… Slow enough that my wriggling didn’t unhook me, God used a wide hook made even wider by my own extension of love into my church family, a network woven tight, built strong… A network that is GOD’S fishing net, the tighter the weave, the smaller the fish you can catch, the wider the net, the wider the range of fish you can catch, the stronger the safety net behind the first net, the more fish you won’t lose when things break…

See Jesus is a Fisher of men… Humans are the fish caught in the nets, but they must then become the nets themselves… They can be the builders of new nets, repairers of old nets, designers of new net styles, and then embed themselves into that net.

Anytime you network in Christ means you produce more nets for His work, for Him to draw upon…

See, after I accepted Jesus, I accepted being part of HIS net. I know my tool set, sometimes I build, sometimes I repair, sometimes I design, but all the time I network from within, by being part of that net… I am and we are called to work, as well as exist… we must be networked to work within and not outside God’s workshop.

I used to go to church – for the people…. Jesus caught me in His net… So, I now hunger NOT for people love but JESUS LOVE… And so I now go to be the church – for the people… same reason – new love –  JESUS LOVE… I am here for Jesus. I am blessed to be a member and a builder of His Net.

 

191

Calm with Christ, 19JUN
A very emotional day with church shootings and life happening… I’m just reflecting on stress tonight… I usually stay calm… Why? How? from 1) training my heart to wait until I evaluate the situation before I respond with emotion… And 2) from just having Faith… being sure things will work out….

Whew…

Calmness, I try to know which battles to pick… Which ones to stop…

I have trained in calmness, due to life circumstances… 1) I learned to stifle emotional feedback to grief-rich situations when knocked down repeatedly, humbling tends to strengthen us… it’s NOT fun… It’s where I learned to retract, not to cry…. I trained successfully, hardened my heart, grew thick skin, there is part of a tom petty song that fits this, but too salty for this… But this is not a unique situation; you make the best of life stresses…

For a light example: I was at my uncle’s yard sale, something dumped over and he jumped and screeched, and I realized I didn’t even move a muscle…. not even a finch… I am not oblivious, quite opposite, I knew instantly something had happened, I just waited a golden peaceful second to process how I was going to react..

Calm, yet in this awakening I let God THAW my heart ALOT… He melted it, but I am/was the one who decided whether to let down my walls or not…. And I am the only one who can apply the armor of God for myself, no one else…. When they say weep with those who weep, and laugh with those who rejoice, yeah…. my melted heart allows me to show more depth in my emotional state… It was there always, I already felt deeply… but what to display…. Now I feel released to cry more, to laugh deeper, to extra bubble over and over and over…

As I re-learn emotional release… I appreciate the re-practice… I have such JOY in the Lord, and I do cry when I bubble over in sadness now, when I pre-project into the future about the sadness of things beyond my control… But I take comfort with Faith in the One true God who will see me thru. And I tear up with the overflowing realization of how blessed I am…why me now…SO loved…. Overwhelming love….

So readjust I must…Calm with Christ…

190…. 2nd Timothy 3, God’s Blatant Reminders to build HIS kingdom, 17Jun

connected to my recent God sightings……Author Rick Lawrence’s recent blog post (below) spoke of the last letter to Timothy from Paul…. Paul reminds him the basic gospel truth again and again…. Lest Timothy and all us forgetful people forget to look to God everyday for the truth, the gospel truth, that God is in charge! Lest we forget “Be Still and Know I am God”.

The blatant God sightings are reflections upon how much we attribute to God: none, some, or ALL… The biggest blessing and human distinguishing feature is our consciousness. Why? Why do I get to question why? Why?

We see, hear, feel, taste and smell – 5 ways- and then we process…. We uniquely process, some faster than others, some with rose colored glasses and some with thorns choking out the light.

Humans attribute, humans can see but not believe, humans question, humans not only forget but doubt…. Humans are human…. and often humans negate God sightings or the existence of God all together.

ALL in ALL, God rules, God had a plan, it’s a long term plan, filled with joys and disasters we cannot even begin to fathom…. God gives us glimpses because He loves us, reminds us.  God sightings to make us smile, believe, fear HIS awesomeness and befriend HIS faithfulness.

WE see, hear, feel, taste and smell – 5 ways – but most blessedly, we process…. God gives us the tools to see HIM, everyday, let’s not forget to look, AND most importantly, don’t JUST sit back and enjoy, let’s NOT forget to use our tools to build HIS kingdom… We are here for His purpose, when we lose ourselves, we will find ourselves in HIS Kingdom.

3 Timothy 3:

“The Man of God and the Word of God

10 But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, 11 persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. 13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

———- Forwarded message ———-

From: “Jesus-Centered Life” <info@jesuscenteredlife.com>

In his old age, and with the end of his life on the horizon, Paul offers this parting advice to his longtime ministry partner Timothy: “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal” (2 Timothy 2:8-9). Why would Paul have to remind Timothy, a man whose whole life orbited around Jesus, about something as basic as the gospel? Because he is humble enough to admit the truth: Everyone, including Paul, Timothy, John the Baptist, Peter, and the disciples…and you and me…are notorious forgetters.

— Rick Lawrence

 

190 Six Months – Hatching Seven, 17JUN

It’s six months today, from my first positive awakening process piece, “Christmas Flood, 17Dec”  it’s half a year but half a lifetime ago, waking up is a long and short process.   Just like my hatched butterfly “Seven” whose photo (at 777 kb size) is attached, I came out but am still stretching my wings…”Seven” would shake him/her self and motion very purposefully to fill in all the fluid on her beautiful painted lady butterfly wings. She even excreted bright red droplets as she worked the fluid thru… Those on my hand stained for a day.

Thanks to all for being so supportive, I feel to be still stretching my wings, shaking sometimes purposefully and sometimes instinctively, and likely flapping to keep myself afloat.

And so I caught up this blog of my writings today. I was hoping to quiet my writings for a while (at least until after VBS) and move into life’s pressing tasks…. Nope…. Yeah, not my choosing…. I blogged them for convenience, collecting them in a fashion that is public but not advertised… Advertising is up to God…. I will be at the ready to tell my story both in short (like to the cashier at the convenience shop – I just said I focused on God and not eating for my weight loss) and in long format (these nearly 200 posts).

And you really don’t have to read them!!!!  But I so appreciate when you do and your wonderful feedback…..  If someone sent them to me, I probably wouldn’t read them!!!! Just know that I appreciate you letting me shake my wings until I am ready to fly…. Who knows, maybe a frog will gobble me up, whatever GOD’S PLAN, I have to be at the ready…

189 Really God? St Deborah? – 16Jun

This post is one of the biggest emotional releases in a while of “REALLY GOD?”  Why are you doing this?

This is why I pray for discernment…. am I just going crazy? Seeing things? Or is God truly orchestrating these blatant and I admit silly connections in my life? And not being shy about showing me? I don’t think it’s blasphemous to question, it’s probably really good to test and verify what is God given and what is “lead into temptation” maneuvering by the devil…. I just happen to question and praise out loud… (It probably makes the devil even madder…. He’s coming for me, I have to be ready!!! Flash my smile and my Jesus card)…

Holy S(pirit)–  this website  http://www.antiochian.org/node/17095

says Saint Deborah was commemorated on December 17th… that’s the date of my first writing with awakening….  Christmas Flood!!! (my diatribe piece was Dec 10th)…. But Dec 17th I was flooded with Christmas… Holy you know what.., I said “You gotta be kidding me Lord!!!” LOL!!!!

I looked up Saint Deborah while I was stuck in traffic after coming thru a rain storm in which I was inside a rainbow… cool… The spray coming up from a truck with perfect sun at our backs and I put myself right at the end of the rainbow for about 2 min until I drove through it. Remembering that God keeps His promises….and I started thinking about myself and being myself… And remembering St Deborah’s commission and being an exception to the rule (pretty cool if you check out the website)… And it’s raining Christmas rain apparently now too… Dec17th…

God has me pegged…. Thanks GOD for over abundance of reminders!

188 God’s Crossing Us

While wearing this glittery cross on Sunday, which my cousin gave me, I appreciated also singing the praise song “Turn Your Eyes upon Jesus”…

“When you’re dull from all that glitters… all you need to know is where you belong …”

I know that although it’s fun to touch and see this big clunky glittery cross, I reflected that it is nothing compared to the feeling of clinging to the real cross I now have within – now that level of belonging truly warms my heart! God’s crossing of us is crossing us safely into HIS LOVE for LOVE for EVER.

187 Crucifers – God’s Back Crossing Jun

From an email to my pastor:  more verses that make connection with his seed planting sermon:

John 14
22 Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”

23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

mmm…. yeah perfect… totally goes with the winnowing concept of seed and chaff separation – from yesterday’s sermon –

and also Mark 4, the four soils… God grows the crops of the seeds we plant and sometimes the harvest is 30-fold, 100-fold etc – sometimes we see the harvest and often we won’t be around for the ongoing harvests.
Mark 4: 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

Back crossing… So God has been winnowing us and the church for years and years – this is nothing new – and God can take all the time He wants… Perhaps (like in your sermon) our global church enrollment decline is one of the natural progressions of winnowing the chaff away.  Perhaps the desired results are to GO OUT (and also to GO INTO our churches) and remove the chaff part and just plant the highest percentage of seeds… be a good sower – but also prepare the soils – and prepare the fields for God’s rain – and the rest will follow… Just like you said “do the best you can for God and He will take care of the rest”… yup…

I myself had to separate seed from the chaff many times in school… and I had friends who spent hours and hours of doing that – tiniest Arabidopsis thaliana seeds, the smallest of crucifers (this type with white 4-petal cross flowers – the crucifer name standing for crucifixion) in the Brassicacea-family of plants – an ideal 5-chromosome model plant system for all types of genetic and molecular work). Well, one friend found a very unusual mutant back in school – and couple of days ago I chatted with him and he is upset that ten years later he didn’t keep re-planting those seeds and harvesting to keep the strain alive – because seeds do dry up and lose viability… you have to continually plant and “back cross” plants to get the desired traits – you have to breed what you want into the strains…

That speaks to me as God’s mission – God has to back cross us with HIS Word and the LOVE of Jesus to produce the best from us with the best attributes He wants… and we can’t let our gifted seeds rot in our pockets – we have to actively plant and harvest – and plant and harvest – so that we don’t lose God’s growth of that lineage of good people – I mean seeds 😉

God is “back-crossing” us – with the Cross – Jesus’ cross – it’s not just a play on words – it’s really God’s way to increase the yield – the harvest to heaven…

186
Heard a sermon yesterday about building your house on rock which provided the scriptures to finish what I had draft written about blindspots previously…. The methods of following Jesus are the cure to deal with the madness of blindspot challenges… Glad the Holy Spirit glued that and this together when I woke up this morning…what perfect timing…. that Holy Spirit is so good!

What’s in your Blindspot? 15 Jun

What’s lurking that you are not paying attention too?

What’s Satan got planned to throw at you when you least expect it? Seriously! New or old Christians, when you declare your LOVE for the Lord, that’s what sets the devil scrambling…. Trying to find any which way to trip you up… to pull something out of your blindspot… So get ready, get your own self on solid ground. And get out and flash your “Jesus card” at the Devil’s evil ways.

When I became 100% Christian, I accepted not only that Jesus was real, but that I loved Him… I declared personal allegiance and like those “cross in your pocket poems” suggest, I carry Him always.

And the Devil went scrambling.

Twice, recently, I was driving and a car was in my blindspot, and I blessedly did not crash. I wasn’t watching what I couldn’t see, I didn’t expect it.

Multiple times, after I had declared myself 100% accepting Christ, sinful temptation came from my blindspot, I blessedly did not crash. I wasn’t watching what I couldn’t see, I didn’t expect it.

I won’t air my dirty laundry of sins, but do know that Jesus knows how to do laundry! He washes you clean. Jesus can do delicate as well as heavy duty washes, and if you lean your cross up against His for support, then He will gently hang your cleaned laundry up on your cross to dry in a gentle breeze. He’s the REAL Savior saving here.

If you are prepared, then the sinful temptations can be so obvious… Know that this scrambling Devil regroups… throws dark to soil your clean soul. If you see it – and even if you don’t see it coming – and you feel its effects – you can go to Jesus to do wash again and again.

How do you prepare for what you can not see? Stand on solid ground. That is how we survive those blindspot challenges to our faith – to our core strength… We can get lashed again and again by the same or new challenges – we will survive if we don’t put our faith on unstable ground – we will survive and certainly thrive when we firmly build our lives on rock- on the solid foundation of Jesus – then we have the best chance to survive the devil’s detailed attacks…

Matthew 7:24-27New Living Translation (NLT)
Building on a Solid Foundation

24 “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. 25 Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. 26 But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. 27 When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

 

They say the AIDS virus, HIV, will retreat to the spinal cord in a fraction of cases when treated with the powerful awesome medicines available these days. These RNA viruses will regroup, and mutate as if to create a new tactic to infect again… Viruses mutate all the time… Yes – that is the same tactic that the Devil will try – he will retreat to your blindspot – come up with something new or re-mutated old – and when your aren’t looking – will splash you with it. Look at the waves coming and reach to Jesus to calm them – just like Peter who lost faith and sank – there will be times that the blindspot challenges will shake you and try to knock you over – but if you prepare and keep Jesus in your boat – in your heart – in your soul – you will be on solid ground – and calm.

Remember Matthew 8:26 “He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.”

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46

—
Continuing in the autopsy phase of a new Christian… but a good question for all….

What Tool am I ?

I have been made whole in Jesus.

God used some of his sharpest tools in the shed to quickly and efficiently prune a few sections of my branch, but most importantly to re-graft me properly to the True Vine… And He was obvious about it…  so much that He wanted me to notice… He did that, in my opinion, so that I would now extra notice when He HOLY SPIRIT moves me, in words and deeds.

So God has this amazing plan and He wants me and you to cooperate fully, to be 100% at the ready…. Yeah… that’s the plan… Are you ready to be used by God for His plan not yours?

To cooperate fully in God’s plan means to find the greatest joy, the greatest strength… and when you give up yourself you will find yourself… Trust me…

So, what tool am I supposed to be in God’s toolbox?

How does God want to use me?

As Carbon paper (or a copy machine) – replicate (as exactly as possible) the perfect love that God shares.

As an Amplifier – repeat the good news at a good volume, allow more to notice God’s powerful plans for themselves by seeing what he had done in you and others

As a Multi prong outlet – share your energy with others yet staying grounded

As a pick up wagon, then as a bonfire (or a compost) – gather the other people’s dead branch trimming that God has pruned and burn them or compost them. Clear the dead branches to get them out of the way, clean up the mess, say “Move along, nothing to see here”, return the energy to God. Let the improved people move on with their lives with less burdensome baggage which would be dragging them down. And demonstrate to others in a way that they see just the good in others and not their past sins.

As a striker, sparking embers into flames – humbly personally see that intensification of the faith in others, rekindling their “soul on fire” like in the song…. rekindling of embers of seasoned wood.

As a campfire – allow people to come sit relax take stock of their faith, maybe even sing a praise song or two with their fellow weary travelers.

As sandpaper – be refining, BUT choose your grit wisely, human instincts can be rough… be careful not to draw blood… To some people, perhaps you are called to just allow them to fine tune and become smoother.

As a mirror, reflecting the signs of how their lives are blessed when you are grateful for their generosity. And sometimes as a mirror, silently reflecting how destructive behavior sucks the life out of situations.

As the seed-sower – spreading the good news of Jesus and salvation

As the watering can – saving up God to share with someone else. ONLY God can do the watering of the seeds that are planted, but perhaps you can collect some of that God Water, and share it…. See who looks a little dry and sprinkle on over….Help them out, in a God way.

As the washing machine and soap scrubber, perhaps you can help other people air and wash their dirty laundry and grievances (even against you) that need to be forgiven. If Jesus is the water that can wash us clean, why not provide the opportunity for forgiveness. If they have sinned against you, even better for you to provide not the “Calgon” of the seventies TV commercials but the reminder of “Calvary”. God loves doing the laundry, He loves it when people come out clean.

Those are great tool…

However, you DON’T need to be God’s pruner… He will be the driving force for that. He doesn’t want you to cut the branches in others…. sure sometimes you can’t help but suggest trims with spray paint markings to catch their eyes faster… But God is more precise and less painful in anything He does with others than any cut you could do… He’s got the Vision, remember? You catch a glimpse but He’s the ultimate “Big Picture Guy”.

So time to be ready in His toolbox, with one’s own unique tool set… might as well prepare yourself… hone your skills while waiting… even pack a lunch… and be ready to be called into duty – to be used to craft the GREATER glory that God intends for all of us.

184
I meant to finish this since it spit out of my head last week… it’s half done – time to send it out “as is” – I need to move on with my life – it’s one of the series of convicting myself on the “seven deadly sins” so here it goes – I maybe will revisit someday to fix it up… because another of my sins is rushing – and also thinking that if I finish something (even if half done) that I can move forward and put it behind me and open up my brain to something new to work on – so apparently I am not rushing on fixing my sin of rushing, LOL

Convictions on Pride, Vanity, Temptations, 10JUN
There are two aspects of pride/vanity that I am reminded to be convicted on… Weight and God.

I am so excited and blessed to have lost nearly 30 pounds over the course of 6 months… This time frame is in parallel to the time frame in which I’ve had my most amazing spiritual awakening. God had been working on correcting my lifestyle, not just a few aspects, but ALL aspects, simultaneously. When they say you don’t need a diet, you need a lifestyle change, it’s true and it works… Instead of hungering for food, I have been hungering for God’s word. Instead of going against HIS will, I have been going with it. Go with the flow, when you are in the know…. Know God.

Yes, nearly thirty pounds down, it surprises me still, and I am still losing, I am trying not to be vain/prideful but people mention how much better I look, and I couldn’t help but scope out my new hourglass shape on the window reflections, yeah sweet… but most important are my blood numbers – it’s what’s inside your heart is the most important! So proud of myself? Well, so surprised at myself, never tried to change my eating before – exercise yes, but really so surprised at the power of focusing on God instead of stress eating! It truly works… God is right sizing me.

I try to make the most of my food choices, and guess what? every bit of food bursts with flavor! Those smaller protein-rich meatier courses will satisfy your appetite… calm you down and not make you crave JUNK…

And on the flip side – but certainly related, every bit of SCRIPTURE bursts with flavorful meaning…. Seriously, I sometimes wonder if I am or have been overdosing on God with this voracious appetite… That sounds silly and yet I wonder if I should slow down or take smaller doses to mull them over, really slowly ponder, discuss and act upon for all the extracted flavorful goodness that can be applied to life…. Those smaller praise-rich meatier pieces will satisfy your soul. “Be still and know that I am God” in extracting the meaning and applying it to your own life with intent and not rushing will calm you down and not make you crave (or worry) about JUNK..

Vanity…. Yes for both losing weight and for gaining God…. Vanity is the Temptation that I need/needed a touch of conviction on… because temptation does not come from God… so I ask forgiveness for those times I fill with vanity…

Yeah – as healthy it is to lose the weight – and healthy to feel better about your look – it is also where you need to catch yourself before you are tempted into looking at yourself in vain ways… you need to catch yourself before you FORGET to praise God for HIS efforts in how far you have come – instead of starting to be self-critical in that you aren’t perfect yet – or instead of becoming overconfident (overconfidence is truly a temptation to be reckless in many aspects of life)… You don’t want to begin rushing it and overdo it in an unhealthy way… What’s important is to find a new healthy balance – one that you can sustain…

Yeah – as healthy and spiritually sound it is to gain God in a big way – and Joyous beyond belief – it is also where you need to catch yourself when you are not humbled by it….catch yourself before you are rushing it and you are tempted to feel like you have a righteous license of entitlement… Being a Christian is NOT to be flashy for your sake but for God’s sake…. God might use you as a flashlight to shine into someone else’s darkness if you are lucky and blessed (and you are) – so pray for God to use you and your skills to HIS glory not yours…. What’s important is to find a new healthy balance – one that you can sustain…

“Stir up a hunger in my heart” is not just a great song lyric but it truly is a reflection of how we want to maintain the hunger for God at a very high intensity… that intensity is sometimes scary – sometimes makes me wonder if I will burn out – but again – finding the new balance is the key…

This past week, I again was experimenting with fasting… Good Friday easy, the next time easy again, and this time? easy too… I don’t understand why… it’s the strangest thing… I don’t want to vainly point that out but I just want to acknowledge and Thank God that I have not felt sugar swings or felt light headed from not eating. In my previous life I would feel ANGRY from not eating – nope not anymore… instead of “shaken not stirred” my hunger is stirred – my life settling into a new balance…

This is God’s correction on my whole mind, body and soul… a correction facilitated and supported by God HE continually feeds me with HIS good word HIS great love and HIS comforting presence… I don’t need to do anything but eat up the God parts, listen and put it to good use… and skip the JUNK

(and stop rushing it…)

—————-

James 1:
12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

16 Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Listening and Doing
19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.’

———-

Well I WAS going to include a part about pride and overconfidence in driving in this essay, but didn’t get to add it…. But now I will…. Instead of almost driving in front of that road rage guy in the rain, today I must have had some angels, saints and God himself make the actual “save” when I changed lanes on the road right in front of a car in my blind spot…ugh…. Yes, again the car was apparently riding in my blind spot for quite a while, but this time it was sunny, a red car, and 75mph…. Whew, thanks God for saving the stupidest move I have made in a while…. It’s that blind spot that I can’t be over confident about…. This time no accident, I don’t know how, whew… And the red car lady (her license plate said something with”mom”) shrugged it off as she subsequently safely changed lanes out of my way…. and I so humble myself praying for forgiveness from God… Ugh, I’ve got to move away from that blind spot…. It’s going to get me one of these days… It’s also the blind spots of life that I/we have to look more carefully at, that’s where we least expect the trouble from…. But that’s EXACTLY where the trouble is…

The ONLY ONE I can credit for saving me (and the red car mom) today is God… Was none of my doing…

The ONLY ONE I can credit for saving me eternally is God…so many I do praise for their roles, but “All glory and honor are HIS” as the song says… Was God’s doing, not theirs and certainly not my doing…

Thanks GOD! Thanks for my physical life and for my eternal life!

Joy with humility and thanks…

183
Caring for Creation, 10JUN

kinda nice to be cleaning up old emails and reflecting that God is in the little things – which I really understand to be true… 
its one of the nice affirmations that even though I wonder if I am “overdosing” or “obsessing” on God that I am still just re-balancing my life – and eventually I will find the right balance… I just am feeling a bit overwhelmed this week – for good reason – whew!

I so look forward to going up home for a day on friday – and maybe before I return I am just going to sit on a rock alone and look and listen to one of the beloved waterfalls for an hour…

From Bernard of Clairvaux,
“Believe one who knows: You will find something greater in woods than in books. Trees and stones will teach you that which you can never learn from masters.” Creation teaches us the knowledge of caring for all. Caring for creation and one another is a series of small choices that seem, in and of themselves, almost incidental, or shall we say, throwaway.”

yup, perfect little book…

so – this is the perfect preface to my half-done essay on Pride and Vanity and Temptations.. which may be next…

YUP, Forgiveness, 10JUN
I love this little “Windows to God” book – just flip open the book and within a couple pages from the opening find the right passage for the day! Yeah, this passage “When Right goes Wrong” pertains to much in my life and other’s lives… and I can also reflect when appreciated the relief that came in the circumstances where I forgave others or situations… (many come to mind but most recently that road rage incident – I still think about that punch and pray for him). we are going to do a craft at VBS that involves braiding fabric strips on ropes – and forgiving – the three strands stand for me, them and God – it’s good to forgive – just like God forgives us…

Even when we don’t feel we are in the wrong – it does feel better to ask for forgiveness… it doesn’t condone that other persons actions, but whatever bothers YOU about the situation, its a good opportunity to ask God: “what is the lesson I am supposed to learn here?” I ask that in many of my painful situations and yes, I have learned important lessons about my feelings towards the situation – one of the biggest lessons I learned from a painful situation was when I asked “how does this conflict relate to MY story”… Perhaps I was feeling too righteous about how I had gotten “right” with God, so when I realized that the conflict had nothing to do with “MY” story – I realized it was “GOD’S” story – well then it made sense and it clicked in my head that I was inflicting the pain on myself… So when I learned what I was suppose to learn and then guess what? the pain dissipated – yes the situation still needed to be re-mediated and it was – but not until I let go of the pain…

So – it is clear to me that I wasn’t the one who should be righteously thinking that “I got Right with God” – instead I should be humbled that it was God who changed me to put me into HIS plan, not mine… He was obviously planning this years and years – even before I was born… I had nothing to do with it but I did have to realize what was happening to me…

yeah – forgive to be forgiven… again and again….

 

181 Shiggaion Panegyric, 08JUN
Shiggaion, there’s my new word of the day to add to yesterday’s… panegyric – provided by a dear lawyer friend.

Add those two words together –  you know that my writing is sometimes shiggaion panegyric…. Emotional (sometimes frenzied) elaborate praise!!!!

Shiggaion
(sshihg gay’ ahn) Transliteration of a Hebrew technical term used in psalm titles (Psalm 7:1; Habakkuk 3:1 ). Suggested translations include, “frenzied” or “emotional.” Some think the basic meaning is “to wander” in reference to a wandering style of thought or melody or to the unconnected expressions of a lament.

Habakkuk’s Prayer
( For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.)
3 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth.
2 Lord, I have heard of your fame;
I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord.
Repeat them in our day,
in our time make them known;
in wrath remember mercy.
3 God came from Teman,
the Holy One from Mount Paran.
His glory covered the heavens
and his praise filled the earth.
4 His splendor was like the sunrise;
rays flashed from his hand,
where his power was hidden.
5 Plague went before him;
pestilence followed his steps.
6 He stood, and shook the earth;
he looked, and made the nations tremble.
The ancient mountains crumbled
and the age-old hills collapsed—
but he marches on forever.
7 I saw the tents of Cushan in distress,
the dwellings of Midian in anguish.
8 Were you angry with the rivers, Lord?
Was your wrath against the streams?
Did you rage against the sea
when you rode your horses
and your chariots to victory?
9 You uncovered your bow,
you called for many arrows.
You split the earth with rivers;
10 the mountains saw you and writhed.
Torrents of water swept by;
the deep roared
and lifted its waves on high.
11 Sun and moon stood still in the heavens
at the glint of your flying arrows,
at the lightning of your flashing spear.
12 In wrath you strode through the earth
and in anger you threshed the nations.
13 You came out to deliver your people,
to save your anointed one.
You crushed the leader of the land of wickedness,
you stripped him from head to foot.
14 With his own spear you pierced his head
when his warriors stormed out to scatter us,
gloating as though about to devour
the wretched who were in hiding.
15 You trampled the sea with your horses,
churning the great waters.
16 I heard and my heart pounded,
my lips quivered at the sound;
decay crept into my bones,
and my legs trembled.
Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity
to come on the nation invading us.
17 Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to tread on the heights.

 

180

So much blessing to talk about from a Sunday from 8am to 8pm… spent in and with church – absorbing much from being afforded the time to watch how others were moving Jesus out into the community… I won’t and can’t write it all – and luckily I was able to process so much (blessings and heartaches) in taking in community with others – that I don’t feel obligated to process it all by writing – but I want to touch on two aspects of the day – especially since a 4:30 am wake up call is affording me this occasion to sit and reflect:

Communion and Community, 08JUN
Breaking Bread – not just about the bread – but who you break it with… the aspect of community with communion is of paramount importance… I went to a nursing home for monthly communion and scripture service – I come in late (of course) and attach myself to a lovely woman in a lovely flower capped hat. Her smile and beautiful red lipstick and sunglasses made her smile bounce – she said she had no idea what the gathering was and I said – “oh, it’s for communion” – she was pleased to be in communion and community…. she was next to a woman with a permanent smile affixed to her face – yes, permanently smiling – a nice state to be in…

I didn’t have to do anything for the service so I was allowed to float (as a child I visited my Grandma in the nursing home every other day for ten years – I know the situation – I know the pain and hardships- even if the surroundings are nicer – the situation is the same – and as a child you are there to bring life backing into the often grim existence) – so next I moved back to a couple of others who were just happy to see us – and I especially kept pointing out my cute but shy kids up front who were responsible for helping their Dad and counting and setting up the communion elements… and then I settled down next to a woman with the prettiest blue eyes and smile… she grabbed my hand and shook it in love and excitement – her dementia was bad but she kept calling out to her husband “Tony, Tony” – across the table – she shook my arm in excitement every few minutes – told him I was doing a good job – and although I was a bit sore staying on my knees, I didn’t leave – this was communion and community – I helped her with the elements – pleased to be placed in this moment of time to be the helper – to me these folks were the good elderly Italian fellow parishioners at my parochial school as a child – this woman was like one of those hard working ladies at the school carnival calling you to get “Pizza Fritta – get ’em while their hot!”… a touch of the best memories of growing up in my blend of Irish/Polish/Italian community. “Tony, Tony” was very pleased at our attendance and told me about his Italian mother,m named Isabelle, same as his niece – they used to call his mom “sa belle” – for beautiful – yup – beautiful girl – beautiful communion – beautiful community…

This monthly communion service pulled from devotional scriptures – spoke of hymns that speak to us and are we really singing them truthfully? – believing in the words – or are we just running thru the words?… well, yeah – lyrics are my muse for writing often – and now for listening to God, always…to listen to how the words touch your heart – the tunes you carry with you – the words you live…. Although not all could read all the devotions in the bulletin, the whole room reverberated with the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer. See, that prayer seemed to be not JUST rote running thru the words for these people – that is etched on their hearts – it may become rote in some peoples lives – even taking of communion may be rote to some – but in that place and time, with those people, it was in community and that’s what mattered – that’s what amplified the walk with Jesus – to be sitting at His feet whether words were exchanged or just smiles… To be in communion with God is to be in community – to kneel at the feet of the weak and soak up and amplify their joys – it was real in that time and place. It takes such little effort to just “be there” – it takes time, yes – especially when your heart tugs at you for wanting to spend more time with them – when you are supposed to be in ten other places – but it gives back ten-fold of blessings to them from a slice of your time… you may just get to blow in out of your whirlwind life for a short time – and certainly it is VERY difficult for many to visit nursing homes – but to sit and absorb and smile and be in community for the briefest time – well, the smiles that come back to you are ten-fold…. community with communion – “sa – belle” – so beautiful….

Later I sat in community at a pool party with beautiful young vibrant Christians – being in community – and breaking not the actual communion elements – but a whole host of common party foods…. the community was there – the breaking bread was there – the relaxing and processing of life’s twists and turns was there – Jesus was there for sure – appreciating, sitting and relaxing – absorbing the Spirit – reflecting on a good day – community with common purpose – communion – “sa belle” – so beautiful…