Prayer Time

 “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Luke 11:9

Prayer can be done any time and any place. We can pray out loud or silently to ourselves. We can pray when we are driving, walking or running. There are many opportunities to pray!

When we pray it is just our talking to God verbally or in thought. I talk to God the same way I talk to a good friend. Some days I am just sharing my day, other days I may be complaining. He is always there to listen to us. I have talked to God while driving in my car when I begin to think of someone who is heavy on my heart. I have talked to God when someone is talking to me and telling me something difficult so I will know how to respond. I have prayed in the middle of a crowd to myself and I have prayed many times alone. Any time is a perfect time to pray to God!

Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer!
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne
Make all my wants and wishes known.

 This is a picture my dad took when we lived in Northern Africa in the 1950's.

Wonderful Gifts from God

God gives us the gift of forgiveness. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I John 1:9

God gives us the gift of salvation if we will trust in Him. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 

Another one of God's gifts to us is the Holy Spirit the moment we become a believer. The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, self-control and faith. These are the qualities that God says, I put into your life when you let me live through you. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Romans 5:5

God also gives us the gift of special abilities which are called Spiritual Gifts. They are the abilities you need to get the job done that God wants you to do. “Each of you has been blessed with one of God's many wonderful gifts to be used in serving of others. So use your gift well.” 1 Peter 4:10 

Spiritual gifts produce spiritual results! 

This picture was taken January 2014 when I was teaching the kids a few 
weeks ago at church and we made these bracelets to help in memorizing John 3:16.

Wait!

I waited patiently for the Lord;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry. 

 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps. 

 He has put a new song in my mouth—
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear, 
And will trust in the Lord. Psalm 40:1-3

David is praising God for the time he waited for his prayers to be answered. How many of us are waiting on God for the healing of a loved one, for a prodigal child to return, for a family member to change, for our hearts to no longer grieve. Waiting is hard! As David looks back on his wait on God, he praises God for a hymn of praise in his heart. 
 

When God keeps me waiting I find that my prayer may not be answered but my heart changes and He does give me joyful endurance. God is able to help us to love and trust Him enough to wait with joy and to see it as an opportunity to praise Him anyways. 

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Thou art the Potter, I am the clay;
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still. 

 This picture was taken in my backyard of one of our 

little kittens napping in my coal bucket flower pot, October 2012

My Journal: It Just Feels Good

I wrote this in my journal on July 11, 1995: In the midst of a storms in our life, our 5 year old daughter Deena asked, Mommy is Jesus here? I answered, "Yes!" She saw that her dad and I were struggling emotionally and asked, "Where?" I replied, "Deena, pretend you are mommy and daddy okay? Now I will be the part of Jesus." I then picked her up in my arms like a baby and carried her around the room. She giggled!

Later in the car, she asked, "Mommy, is Jesus still carrying us in the car?" I said, "Yes, He is!" Deena replied, "I like that." I asked her why and she answered, "because it just feels good."

The Lord is my keeper......Psalm 121:5a

Even though our little girl could see that her mom and dad were struggling, I was able to reassure her that we were trusting God to carry us through this storm and all life's storms in our future.

This picture was taken of my youngest daughter Deena around 1995 when we were at Chucky Cheese.

Help With Stress

Philippians 4:6a Be anxious for nothing.

If we want to keep our stress level down then do not worry. Refuse to worry about anything. Worry, not work is the #1 reason for stress. We are not as over-worked as we are over-worried.

 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Matthew 6:25

Worry is worthless and won't change anything. Worry exaggerates our problems. Worry is useless in any situation. The only thing worry can do is cause anxiety. The only thing worry can change is our health. Excessive worry is the main component of generalized anxiety disorders.

Proverbs 12:25a Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression.

Corrie ten Boom helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II and was imprisoned for it. She said, If you look at the world you will be distressed. If you look within you will be depressed. If you look at Christ then you will be at rest!

This is a picture my granddaughter Veronica took on one 

of our walks and I was letting her use my camera in February 2010.

It's Okay To Grieve

Blessed are those who mourn,

    For they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4

There are days that the storm is in our own life and other days when the storm is in the lives of those around us. Is it appropriate for us to walk around with a smile on our face in the midst of the storms? Not at all even though there are smiles and blessings even in the midst of the storms when we least expect.

These past few years have been my season to grieve. If I walked around acting as if it never happened and as if my heart is not broken then I would be deceiving others and myself. If I didn't admit my heartache then I would act it out in some other way.

Healthy grieving is good for us and will keep us healthy. When we don't grieve properly then we will get stuck emotionally. We need to allow ourselves to feel and grieve the loss. I have learned that the more we love the more we will grieve. 

Taken on my walk on the beach which is one of my favorite places
 to grieve and pray.

Uncertainty

Often I am asked, "How am I supposed to know if it is God guiding me or just my own thoughts?" There is no simple answer to know for certain but there are some ways to seek where God is leading. Matthew 6:33 tells us to seek God first and He will take care of the rest. If we take time to seek God each day then He will make it more clear to us. When we have a burden to do something out of the ordinary that will benefit someone else besides ourselves then most likely it is God. I think we have such a selfish nature that when we begin to concern ourselves with others it has to be God. 

Will we always have the certainty of where God is leading? Not according to the scriptures as in the case of Jonathan who said these words when he was up against an army and it was just him and his armor bearer....I Samuel 14:6 b.... it may be that the Lord will work for us. For nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few.” He wasn't sure if God wanted him to take this chance but he trusted that God could bring him victory even if it was just two of them against an entire army. God didn't make it clear to him what to do but he visioned a possibility of defeating the army on his own. It could have turned out so horribly wrong but it didn't in this case because God gave him the victory.

Jonathan had a natural doubt and uncertainty on what steps to take but he continued to move forward in faith. That is the lesson when we are up against our own war or wars ~ move forward, take the steps and let God give us the victory!

This picture was taken of a pumpkin I carved 

with my nieces and nephews in Delaware, October 2014.

The Weaver

My life is but a weaving
Between my Lord and me,
I cannot choose the colors
He worketh steadily.

Oft times He weaveth sorrow,
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I, the underside.

Not till the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.

The dark threads are as needful
In the Weaver's skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned.

-Grant Colfax Tuller

John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled.

This picture was taken in Savannah, Georgia when we visited in March 2013.

Grateful For Family

The longer we know someone it is easier to take them for granted. We are not always grateful for the family that God has put into our life. We focus more on the bad memories than the good ones. We could all complain about something in everyone around us. There is certainly plenty in myself that others could and do complain about. We are all a mess!

We have to choose to be grateful for our family, our friends, our neighbors, etc. How do we show that we value those who God has placed in to our life? Let's be more thankful and not be guilty of  just complaining, making fun, nagging or criticizing them.

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you. Philippians 1:3

This is a picture of my Aunt & Uncle with their kids and grandkids in Tennessee at Point Park Lookout Mountain, Thanksgiving 2010 ~ this is a family tradition and many wonderful memories I have with all of them! 

Are We Good Or Evil?

Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God. III John 1:11
 
Friend, don’t go along with evil. Model the good. The person who does good does God’s work. The person who does evil falsifies God, doesn’t know the first thing about God. III John 1:11 (The Message)

It isn't difficult to be confused on who truly knows God and who doesn't. It is easy to see God's goodness in the life of others. When we don't see goodness in others then it's clear they probably do not know God. But what if they profess to be godly or worse are cruel in the name of religion? 

The scriptures are pretty clear that it is not the talk but instead the walk of a person that speaks volumes!

 This is a picture of my sons dog taken June 26, 2009.

We Must Be A Shelter For Others

John 15: 12-13 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

Love is the greatest gift you can give to anyone and it is God's gift to us through Christ Jesus. God sent His Son to die on the cross to pay for our sin and He is asking us to love others. The cross was the ultimate sacrifice and Christ suffered, bled and died. His parting message to us were in those two scriptures as a command because loving others is a priority to our Heavenly Father.

Why would we have to be told to love others? Seems like an easy enough request but yet so difficult to see it accomplished. As children we begin to fight for our rights and what belongs to us; in other words selfishness comes naturally and God knows this about human nature. He is commanding us to love others! Have you ever commanded your children to do something that you knew would benefit them only to have them ignore you? I think we all have and it can bring on the most disappointing and hurtful emotions. We start to believe that our children are either mentally challenged or satanic forces have just overtaken them right?

God feels the same way about us when we don't follow His commands because He wants us to have the BEST life can offer by blessing us and those around us. Yet we are like our children, we want our own way and our own choices which brings no blessing but instead heartache and sometimes disaster. Seems so simple a command to love each other, protect each other, shelter each other.....There is so much hurt and pain out in the world today that we need to prepare our hearts, minds and soul to shelter those who are less fortunate than ourselves!

I took 4 different pictures that reminded me of the letters LOVE while visiting the historical district of Savannah, Georgia.

Be An Angel To Others

And the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king. II Kings 1:15

I love that the angel gives Elijah a reminder not to be afraid because of his circumstances. I'm pretty sure if Elijah had not been afraid it would not have been necessary to have an angel bring him this message. Fear happens to all of us even a great prophet of God. 

When I become fearful it seems that I always have someone in my life such as one of my family members or a dear friend act much like that same angel to remind me, not to be afraid. Not in a condemning, self righteous or cruel way because that would only cause me more fear. Just yesterday a friend hugged me and told me she prayed for me that morning. I realized then I was not fearful of a circumstance that particular day because someone had taken time to pray for me.

We need to always pray and encourage each other because we never know how others are struggling. Let's remove whatever unkind cruel spirit there may be in others around us by praying for them too.

 This picture was taken by my beautiful niece Theresa on a walk in Delaware, May 2014.

~ Worship Is Important ~

      Revelation 4:8b   “ Holy, holy, holy,
                                      Lord God Almighty,
                                     Who was and is and is to come!”

written by Tamela on January 20, 2009:
In Chapter 4 of Revelation there are a lot of different things going on but what sticks out the most is the fact that the Angels and the Saints are worshiping God continually. If the Angels and the Saints think it's important to worship the King of Kings all the time, then why shouldn't we? Don't you think you should be practicing for that day when you finally get to heaven?

God's right over us as the Creator gives Him claim over everything, and that is a fact that should be accepted and enjoyed. Rejecting that fact only leads to frustration.

Make sure your planning ahead for that great day!

"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty, who was and is and is to come." (vs. 8b)

"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." (vs. 11)

AMEN! WORSHIP HIM!

My daughter when she gave birthday to her youngest son in 2010.