It's a God Thing

    Sometimes we can watch the news and it can be so discouraging, that we just shut it off.  Other times tho, we can hear of God's work at hand in a miracle.  The story of Kali Hardig is a definite 'God thing.'
    Who would have thought that swimming in a freshwater pool could have such lethal risks?  Kali got infected with a parasitic amoeba that attacks the brain tissue.  The doctors at ACH gave her an experimental drug that rid her spinal fluid of the amoebas.  She is one of 3 survivors to this bug and continues to make progress every day.
    The Hardig family has also shown a 'God thing' of grace in not speaking maliciously against Willow Springs park.
    God has used Kali to demonstrate His great power in love and healing to so many of us.

1 Wonderful Year

    I can't hardly believe that today marks one year that Karla has been with me as my caregiver.  Other friends have helped make my life better but as far as a consistent, daily blessing Karla has made this the best year since I moved back in 2001.  I'm happy every day she's here and there is absolutely nothing I would change.  The 'R' in Karla must stand for 'remember' because she always knows not only what I like but how I like things.  This is huge when you have to depend on someone else to do things for you.  We are so alike in our thoughts and ways that we have to be more than sisters in Christ in some way.
    They say we should praise God in the hallways of our lives.  I feel that is where I am at but it's lighted ever so brightly.  If I can't be independent nor in heaven yet, then I will dance daily in this wonderful hallway with Karla.
    God's timing was perfect in bringing her here.  Sure I could say I wish it had been 9 years earlier but it's only my selfishness to think I needed Karla more than her previous family.  God knows where we all need to be and when.  I will just cherish this past year and the days to come.
    Karla is love and is loved.  What a blessing!

Trust

    Do you know what God's most frequently used warning in the Bible is?  'Fear not.'  Worry is misplaced fear put into action.  Why do we do it?  It is hard to let go of what we can't control.  Matthew 6; 27  ''Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?''  Worry not only eats at us but takes away our strength and peace.  ''There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever.''-- Mahatma Gandhi
   Our fears should be calmed knowing that God works with our best interest always in mind.  He will also finish the good work He began in us.  'I've no cause to worry or to fear.'  Sometimes we know of things destined for the future and we have to choose how to anticipate it.  We can worry until it happens, waste peaceful days and then see God work it out despite your lack of trust in Him.  Or we can lay our burden before Him in prayer, trust in His grace and accept what we never had control over to begin with.
   'Worry implies that we don't quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what's happening in our lives.'

T - Take one day at a time.
R - Remember all things work together for the good of those who love God.
U - Under no circumstances should you worry.
S - Start every day with prayer & thanksgiving.
T - The Lord will never forsake you. 

Surrender

    'The world wants our best but God wants our all.'  Yes, He wants us to surrender our will for His.  Surrender is usually associated with negative meanings but in God's eye there can be no greater victory for the soul.
     "For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it." Matthew 16:25   Surrender is complete obedience to God.  One of our best examples is Noah,  who was the only man on earth at the time that pleased God.  Do we trust and obey when we face what we don't understand?  Nobody likes half-hearted effort, including God.
    'One of life's most bittersweet moments is when you finally realize you don't have it all figured out.'  'The greatness of a man's power is in the measure of his surrender.'   If we don't surrender to Christ, we will surrender to chaos and idols.
    Hitting rock bottom is one of the toughest moments in people's lives but it can be a surrendering catalyst.  We then realize we've tried everything in our own power and it's never enough.  God allows all this so that we may see our need for a Saviour more clearly.
   
All to Jesus I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.

Pleasing Who?

   My recent reading poses the question of where our focus is.  'How much pleasure am I getting out of life?  or  How much pleasure is God getting out of my life?'  As believers we should have a mind shifted off of ourselves and onto a life lived with the kingdom in mind.
   We often think that if we just don't do anything really 'bad' then we're not living lives offensive to God.  Is that enough?  No... don't confuse activity with productivity.  Revelation 4;11  ''“You are worthy, our Lord and God,to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”  Psalms 149;4 ''For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.''
   Our lives are meant for service.  Are your activities rooted with a God driven purpose?  You can plant seeds anywhere and everywhere you go.  I think we should question our activities and the benefits of them.  We shouldn't just drudge thru another day but recognize that this is another day the Lord has made and rejoice in it.  He created us for His pleasure and we should live our lives with that in mind.


'Day by day, and with each passing moment,
Strength I find, to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment,
I’ve no cause for worry or for fear.
He Whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best—
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.'

The Jewelry Box

    You're probably beginning to think that I have the best friends EVER and you'd be absolutely right!  LOOK at what my friend, Dale, made for me with his own two hands in the woodshop and had shipped to my front door today.  It is a gorgeous jewelry box made out of walnut [I think] with my initial 'A' engraved in the lid and gold layers to accentuate its beauty.  Dale said the box turned out larger than expected but I say that his thoughtfulness couldn't have been contained in anything smaller.  I'm overwhelmed by the time, effort, cost and creative craftsmanship that was meant for little ol' me. Words can't express how blessed I feel but 'Thank you, Dale! I LOVE IT!'

    Psalm 21;6  ''Surely you have granted him unending blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence.''   This verse describes how I have felt lately with the love of Christ shown thru my dear friends to me.  I'll continue to say it, 'I'm blessed beyond measure.'

Lunch Out

   Yes, I may have my prisoner outfit on but I have been set free from my four walls at home.  I had lunch with Karla and Mica at Santo Coyote today.  We ate two bowls of tableside guacamole...yum.  The picture above was my dish of Dos Cerviches.. tilapia with lime juice.  We had a good time of fellowship together.  It is good to be around believers who talk about God-driven events in their lives, such as feeding the homeless and attending the Beth Moore conference. I love being out among the truly 'living'.
    2 Corinthians 13;14  'May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.'
    We are called as believers to fellowship with one another.  It is one of the best encouragers for our souls there is.  'There's a quiet understanding when we gather in His name.'

It's a God Thing

    I'm having a Paula Deen nightmare moment... 'I'm out of butter!'  There is nothing that you can add to anything that will make things better like butter can.  Real butter, not some margarine or hydrogenated oil mixture.
   Convenience is our God thing that we take for granted.  We complain about 'having to go the store' but do we ever think about our local storehouses not being there?  What if I had to go milk the cow and churn it for hours on end to get my precious butter?  Would I savor it more, use it more sparingly, or appreciate it more?  We are so like Adam and Eve in that paradise wasn't enough, we always want more than we are given.
   May we think of it as if 'I get to go the store' instead of as a chore.  Our needs are being met with full supply and provision.

Joy is Coming

   

    Well some might wonder how one might not be cheer-challenged during long drawn out bouts of illness.  I can tell you the answer lies in where your hope is put, maintained and promised. You can wallow in the sorrow or suffering of today or you can trust the tribulation to be over in His timing.  Joy is coming but we must be patient in affliction.
    I've been sick for 3 weeks now but experienced some joy today in both going to the farmer's market and a visit with a friend.  It may seem small to you but it was a joy booster to me.  Yes, my blessed bounty grew again today with Gloria's blueberry jam and peanut butter cookies.
    Believers should maintain their spirits, despite their circumstances, with the promised hope of our eternal tomorrows.  When we defer our sufferings to part of God's plan then it doesn't seem so grim.

Texas Bounty

     Well Karla is back safely from her trip to Austin and that was more than enough to satisfy me. She brought me back a bounty of blessings in addition to herself.  Fresh cinnamon bread from Collin St. Bakery, an Austin coffee mug from Starbucks and a Hook'em Horns tshirt.
     Psalm 128; 1-2  ''Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in obedience to him. You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.''
     I am blessed with very generous friends in my life and my cup runs over continuously. ''Generosity is a matter of the heart and a way of life. With a focus on others, giving is to be done freely and cheerfully. People with this attitude trust God to meet their needs and are set free to give away even what they long to keep. No matter how little we have, the Lord wants us to be magnanimous people.'' [intouch.org]  Karla often says 'it's all about you friend' and as nice as that would be to indulge in, being generous should be a give and take relationship.

The Cost

      Air is required for us to live so why is it that we just take it for granted?  We feel good and comfortable at 98 percent oxygen saturation in our blood but below 90 we can feel the desperate need for more air.  What if air was a commodity and some people could only afford 80 percent? Well it would be an uglier world because when I choked on my subway sandwich and my oxygen was 65, I was not patient or understanding at any level.
     My 'extra' air now is provided at a cost to me but my true and ultimate supplier is God.  He supplies all our needs when we need them, even if we overlook it with thanklessness.
    Air, gravity, the rising and setting of the sun, and all the forces of nature are just small examples of what He freely gives to us everyday.  Our ultimate free gift is His saving grace which we cannot buy or earn but which only Jesus paid the cost for each of us.  Is your debt paid in full, pending or accumulating?

Fading

    I have began reading 'Purpose Driven Life' for the second time and this was the verse for the day above in the caption.  Nothing on this earth stays shiny and new.  We, as well as our things, age and deteriorate with time.  God planned us with eternity in mind and that gives believers the hope to press on through this life.
    We are very short sighted in this life.  'We should think about death more, not less.'  For some, funerals are to be avoided because it's just too much to think about.  Whether you think about it or not, your body will quit one day and your eternal destiny will be decided.
    The Scripture says our lives here are a 'tent' but He has prepared for us an eternal 'house.'  This points out how short and temporary this life is and yet we often live as this were all there is.
    'We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.' Colossians 1; 9-14
    You can live like it won't happen to you but the inevitable will come sooner than you expect.  Think about it, prepare for it and be at peace with it.

Lovely Lunch

    Somedays God wants us to be patient in waiting for a better day ahead.  That was yesterday and it was rough but today is much better in every way.  My friend, Betsy, was checking on me thru facebook and offered to bring lunch.  She is an excellent cook and you'd have to be stupid to turn down one of her meals.  She asked what I'd like but I knew any suggestion of mine would fall short of her ideas.  She brought tilapia, homemade guacamole w/scoops, mango and sweet tea.  To top it off, her sister Tori made her famous chocolate chip scones that melt in your mouth.  No bakery has her beat.  No pictures because it looked so good that we devoured it faster than a flash.
   So from my perspective being sick does have its perks but that's only because I have friends with the heart of giving. Thanks ladies!

True Witness

      'Jesus came to serve, not to be served.'  I can think of no better example of this than that by my friend, Charlene.  All year long and not just to me, she is 'be the church' in whatever way possible.  Even when it's boring and not fun like today, she will be there for you.  She cares for family members that depend on her because no one else will.  She is a true servant of good to others and I'm blessed by her.
      1 Peter 4:10  'Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.'
      'It seems that Biblically speaking, retirement isn’t a time to rest on your laurels, but instead it’s a time to serve those around us:   Did you know that God told the Levites to retire from their regular duties at age 50? (Num. 8:24-25). But He did not want them to stop helping others. He said that they should minister with their brethren… to attend to needs(v.26). We cannot take this incident as a complete teaching on retirement, but we can see a godly implication that continuing to serve others after our working days are over is a good idea.'  [odb.org]

It's a God Thing

    Why do we have to suffer through things in our life?  Is it just to get thru it or is there a purpose?  Suffering is a 'God thing' that is allowed to produce in us perseverance, character, and hope.  James 5;10-11  'Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.'
    'The fire turns spiritual wimps into spiritual warriors.'  Don't you find that to be true?  We draw nearer to God when our need of Him is more acutely in front of us.  Our own suffering is not just about us either.  It can turn up the desire to pray in other people around you.  It can give them an opportunity to serve in a helpful, giving way.  It can give endless ways to show Christ-like love.
    'I'm thanking God today that life doesn't have to be a meaningless parade of days that replay the same old questions and the same old emptiness. On the day we step into the relationship we were made for, we step into the "more" God put us here for, and the search is over.'  When we say 'Lord, use me for your glory', we don't just to choose how it will be done.  Our choice lies in our response and the ripple effect goes beyond what our eyes can see.
    Ecclesiastes 2;11  'Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.'  This verse clearly points out how what we consider as important means nothing without it being centered around God's will and purpose.
    May what seems painful or uncomfortable for you at the moment be seen as glory in the end.

The Battle

     Since there isn't much to watch on television right now, we've been watching 'The Guardian' series on Netflix.  We are on the second season right now and the theme song lyrics by The Wallflowers caught my attention.

     'There is trouble in my mind; there is dark, there is dark and there is light.  There is no order, there is chaos, there is crime, there is no home to the empire in my mind.'

      Do you ever feel that battle between good and evil in your mind?  The Bible addresses this in Romans 7;15-25  ''I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.  So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord.''
     We are all born guilty by design and therein lies our struggle.  Our sinful nature creates the chaos in our lives and robs us of the peace we seek.  Yes, even when we are trying to do good, we can fail.  'Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.'  We can find order to the confusion of life in our minds by turning to the Scriptures for answers.
     'Sometimes we may think of God and Satan in the same way. We see them as opposing but equal forces with the same unlimited power. However, God is God and Satan is not. God is stronger than any force of darkness. He does what He pleases (Ps. 135:6), while Satan’s power is limited to what God allows.'  [odb.org]
     1 John 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.''
    The saving Light is promised to all who believe in the last verse ...'Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord.''

Be the Church

  

   

   Sunday was the 'Be the Church' project day for Cornerstone Bible Fellowship.  The goal is to show Christ-like love to different people and places around the city. Examples include fixing up the St. Joseph orphanage, visiting the people who are stuck at home alot, and more.
    I was blessed to be on the 'to visit' list.  As I was under the weather yesterday and unable to go to church, it was a good pick-me-up to be visited by Twylia, Diane and Nell.  We had about an hour of sharing and caring time together.
    Twylia also brought me this beautiful painted pot that she got me in Branson.  She filled it with everything from snack foods, lotion, hand sanitizer, kleenex and even a toy for my cats.  Oh how spoiled I am with the blessings of friends.
    May we all exhibit the 'be the church' love in our everyday lives to others and not just once a year.  Let this Sunday reminder just be a kickstart to your year of showing love to others.

  

Lost Sheep

    Today I finished a book I've been reading, 'A Peep Behind the Scenes'.  The theme of the book is based on the parable of the lost sheep in the Bible.  Luke 15; 3-7  ''Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?  And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.''
    Are you a lost sheep or have you been found by the Good Shepherd?  We have all been distracted by the 'artificial' green grass of the world but our Father is always seeking to pull us into His flock and care.  Oh what a privilege to be the one He sought and saved.
    We lose things all the time and our grief can in no way compare to God's desire to find us.  There are two kinds of sheep, the lost and the found, which are you?

Get Closer

    If you think God is far from you, do you consider who moved?  We are the transient nomads in our relationship with God.  He is ready, waiting and available to you at all times.  We are the door closers, the fence builders, the distance stretchers, and the absent minded ones of Him.  'Peace does not come from the absence of conflict but through the presence of God during the conflict.'
   James 4;8  ''Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.''  Psalm 71;12  ''Do not be far from me, my God; come quickly, God, to help me.''
   The Bible says not to be lukewarm in our beliefs and faith but when we keep God at a 'comfortable' distance in our lives then that is exactly what we are.  When we are looking for something we've lost, isn't it almost always in the last place we look.  May God not be our last resort in our lives but always the first and foremost.

Air to Share

    Okay so this is pretty much my growing opinion and attitude toward smoking as I grow older and weaker.  I used to be married to a smoker so my tolerance has dwindled, to say the least, to a minimal level.
    Although I do believe your body is a temple to be used for God's glory, I can understand the addiction and weakness for it.  BUT, when it interferes with my air and stressful breathing then we have a problem.
    I am thankful for non-smoking restaurants now but I would also prefer not to have to go thru the cloud of smoke by the front door to get in or out either.  I saw a photo of smoking vents used in Japan where the excess smoke went up and away, instead of permeating the nearby air of everyone. Where is the 'made in America' idea on this concept?  I don't know exactly how they work but I do like the idea of smokeless electronic cigarettes too.  As Woody the Owl says, 'Give a Hoot, don't pollute.'
    May we all think about how all of our everyday actions may affect and compromise others in all shapes and forms.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
''Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.''