To ____ Be The Glory

To whom or what have you given the most glory lately? The "church" answer is, of course, God - as it should be.

Prove it.

Take the next five minutes and list the ways you have glorified Yahweh or Jesus Christ. And be honest. He knows your heart. If your not sure of your own true intentions, ask the Spirit to reveal it to you. Psalm 139:23

Dear Father, let this never be said of me...  "For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened." Romans 1:21

On The Tail Of The Titanic

Have you ever felt as though you were on a sinking ship?

Sometimes it's obvious to those around us: Health issues, job loss, death in the family, etc. Other times no one may know: Emotional distress, family disagreements, complacency, and such.

My sinking ship really just has a slow leak. For the last several months I've been in a "dry season", "dark night of the soul", "slump", or whatever you want to call it. I've just had a hard time connecting with God. As a result, I've found that I'm having to rely more on faith and less on feeling. I know God is there- Matthew 28:20. I know He is faithful- Exodus 15:13. So the question I've had to answer is, "When I don't feel it at all for long periods of time, what am I going to do about it?"

I'm going to keep seeking Him with everything I have. I know He wants me to come to Him, so He'll give me the strength to do it, if that's truly my heart's desire.

I'm picturing it like the movie Titanic. They main characters did everything they could to get off the boat, yet in the end they had to run to the back of the ship and ride the tail to the water in order to stay afloat as long as possible. The only difference here is that I know He'll teach me to walk on water when there is nothing earthly left to stand on!

What I Have Learned

What has God been teaching you this summer?

I've learned...

   that when I forget to read my Bible I tend to pray less and miss Him more.

   His patience is amazing. He doesn't force me to come to Him, but waits lovingly. That makes me love and want to please Him even more.

   I must be vigilant in order not to fall back into my old ways. When we start dabbling in gray it quickly consumes life's color scheme.

   He is everywhere and cares about the smallest details and prayers in our lives. Even down to the "Please Lord let no one come home covered in ticks..."

  

But what I've learned most is that I can do NOTHING without God in my life: I can not seek Him, love Him, take care of my family, take care of my health, wake up, fall asleep, or have a good laugh without Him. Through good times and bad, He gives me the only peace, joy, love, security, and hope I've ever known. I can not love my family without the love He gives and teaches me. I can not think straight, reason, or comprehend. There is no song of praise or joy in my heart without Him placing it there. 

This summer I have learned that I am nothing without Jesus Christ.

...yet, through Him, I can do anything.

No Favoritism

..."In truth, I understand that God doesn't show favoritism, but in every nation the person who fears Him and does righteousness is acceptable to Him."
Acts 10:24-25


What a blessing and relief it is to know that God does not show favoritism in this way. Otherwise we would all be lost! As we develop our walk with Jesus Christ and strive to become more and more like Him, it is good to remember that He shows no favoritism. Anyone can come to Him. Shouldn't we then act as though we know and believe that is so?

Psalm 77:12

I will reflect on all You have done and meditate on Your actions.

The Great Pretender

Today I was speaking with someone telling them about the amazing things God has done in my life- things that can only be attributed to God. They kept exclaiming how unbelievable it was, and I was so excited thinking that perhaps today was the day they could deny Him no longer. Then I mentioned a specific concerning one of my medical miracles, and they latched on to it. "Well, that has happened for me too!" Yet, as they explained their situation I saw how easily Satan can sway those who are his to believe in his "miracles" too. Yes, he has the power on this earth to bless people to blind them. How infuriating!!


I find comfort in two very important things though:
1.) 2 Timothy 2:19a "Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, having this inscription: The Lord knows those who are His..." I can save no one, and if the Lord chooses this person as a precious child of His, He will make it so.
2.) My God wins in the end. John 16:33 Jesus says, "I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world."

A Beautiful Thought In Paint

This is such a beautiful representation of the resurrection. Is it fully accurate? Probably not. But I sure enjoy it and imagining my Savior raise from the grave!

Enjoy!

CBN TV - Ron DiCianni: Painting the Resurrection - Video

A Bit of Wisdom

Here is a thought provoking quote from Selwyn Hughes, a great writer of devotionals read around the world. Take a few moments to meditate on his words in regard to His Words:


Reflecting on what God has done for us in the past enables us to have a clearer perspective on the present and the future. A biblical approach to history makes us neither wide-eyed nor downhearted pessimists. We become devout realists, for we see God at work in all things and triumphing over everything. -- Selwyn Hughes, Every Day With Jesus

Feeling What I Know

I realized once again tonight that I have one of the most precious and sought after gifts of mankind: I feel safe and at peace. 

Do you realize how rare that is for humanity? Even among Christians, we do not always feel what we know.

I have no fear of life, because I have full confidence and trust in my Father. He is trustworthy and I know He loves and wants the best for me. What a blessing!

For the LORD loves justice and will not abandon His faithful ones. They are kept safe forever, but the children of the wicked will be destroyed.

Psalm 37:28

Our Lord and God, You are worthy to receive glory and honor and power, because You have created all things, and because of Your will they exist and were created.

Revelation 4:11

For the word of the LORD is right, and all His work is trustworthy.

Psalm 33:4

Do not despise the LORD's instruction, my son,
    and do not loathe His discipline;
    for the LORD disciplines the one He loves,
    just as a father, the son he delights in.
Proverbs 3:11-12

The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I also will love him and will reveal Myself to him."
John 14:21

All My Children Are Home

I just had - for the briefest moment - a glimpse of what my heavenly Father must feel when his children come home to Him.

Dear Father, how you love us. Please help me to feel that love for my brothers and sisters. I long for the day everyone is home.

Victory?

After Judas  ate the piece of bread, Satan entered him. 

Therefore Jesus told him, 

"What you're doing, do quickly."

John 13:27

Have you ever thought about the fact that our God is so powerful, even in Satan's greatest moment of "victory", Jesus Christ told him what to do and he obeyed? How can I not live victoriously?

A Sporadic Month

June is my vacation month. Yep. A whole month!

I'm not going anywhere and am not really doing anything different except that my older boys are home for the month. I love it! That's really all I could ask for and be blessed with. My whole family is finally together.

So, this month might be a little scarce on blogs. I plan on trying to write at least ever few days, but I'm going to allow myself only posting them when the Spirit is really prompting me to say something. I pray each of you have a wonderful summer and that you are starting to see God's presence everywhere and in every situation. Please post a comment when He brings some interesting point to mind- I'd love to see how He's teaching you!

God bless each and every one of you. May God open your eyes to His wonders this summer and mold your hearts to be a little more like His.

The Power of the Cross

Thank you Father for the power of the cross.

Thank you Lord Jesus for the sacrifice You endured for us on the cross.

Please Spirit, help keep the cross foremost and central in my life.


But as for me, I will never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
Galatians 6:14

Enough To Disgrace

I don't know about you, but I mess up. A lot.

This morning I was blessed to find the reference in Scripture describing the exactly theme of my pleas before the Lord recently:


⁵ God, You know my foolishness,

  and my guilty acts are not hidden from You.

⁶ Do not let those who put their hope in You

  be disgraced because of me,
  Lord GOD of Hosts;
  do not let those who seek You
  be humiliated because of me,
  God of Israel.

Psalm 69:5-6

Has this ever been the cry of your heart? I honestly believe we should all feel this way at times- especially those who are living vibrant lives in Christ. I guess the important question would truly be, "Are  you living for Him enough to where it would even make a difference in Christ's reputation with the lost if you did stumble?"

Prayer Request

Please pray for my health.

We have the pest control guy spraying for spiders and ticks right now. Kevin has reacted very bad to the last few tick bites, so when we saw one crawling in the house knew it was tine to spray.

The problem? I react very poorly to pesticides. This past spring I even ended up going to the emergency room and the local spraying their fields had a lot to do with it. Please pray that I don't have any odd reactions. I've already been having some problem with a few specific issues and I'm afraid this may send me over the edge.

Thank you all!

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The intense prayer of the righteous is very powerful.

James 5:16