God's Guidance, From Mom

Psalm 25:12  Who are those who fear the Lord?  He will show them the path they should choose. 

To fear the Lord is to recognize God's attributes.  He is holy,* almighty, righteous, pure, all-knowing, all-powerful, all-wise.  When we regard God correctly, we gain a clearer picture of ourselves:  sinful, weak, frail, needy.

When we recognize who God is and who we are, we will fall at His feet in humble respect.  Only then will He show us how to choose His way.

*Holy -  god's perfect moral character.  Our desire is to be holy - dedicated to God and morally clean.
Psalm 25:4  Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow.  

Pray for God's guidance.  How do we receive God's guidance?  1.  We must want to be guided.
2.  Realize that God's primary guidance system is in His Word, the Bible.

Psalm 119 tells of the endless knowledge found in God's Word.  By reading the Bible and constantly learning from it, we will gain the wisdom to perceive God's direction for our lives.  When we are willing to seek God, learn from His Word, and obey His commands then we will receive His specific guidance.

*Holy - My God is a God of mercy and justice.  My God expects me to imitate Him by following His high moral standards, and by being both merciful and just.  Reverent fear is a healthy respect by the believer for the all-powerful God.

Psalm 5  1 O Lord, hear me as I pray;

    pay attention to my groaning.

2 Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,

    for I pray to no one but you.

3 Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.

    Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.

4 O God, you take no pleasure in wickedness;

    you cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked.

5 Therefore, the proud may not stand in your presence,

    for you hate all who do evil.

6 You will destroy those who tell lies.

    The Lord detests murderers and deceivers.

7 Because of your unfailing love, I can enter your house;

    I will worship at your Temple with deepest awe.

8 Lead me in the right path, O Lord,

    or my enemies will conquer me.

Make your way plain for me to follow.

9 My enemies cannot speak a truthful word.

    Their deepest desire is to destroy others.

Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.

    Their tongues are filled with flattery.

10 O God, declare them guilty.

    Let them be caught in their own traps.

Drive them away because of their many sins,

    for they have rebelled against you.

11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;

    let them sing joyful praises forever.

Spread your protection over them,

    that all who love your name may be filled with joy.

12 For you bless the godly, O Lord;

    you surround them with your shield of love.

From me.

It is with a heavy heart I write this passage from Mom.  I am so  in need of the Lord's guidance right now, watching a friendship being torn apart, an organization struggling to come to agreements and harmony, seeing people I respect and care about in turmoil.  I don't know where to stand, what to say, which way to turn.  I am so grateful that the Lord chose today to have me enter this selection from Mom's journal.  I am comforted by His hand.  

Lord, guide us all.  I lift up my situation right now, and pray for those involved.  I ask You to show us Your path.  I also ask for those reading this and the situations they are in, that You would be their light as well.  Only You know the perfect paths for all of us.  In Jesus name.  Amen

Following the Lord's principles is the first step toward knowing the road ahead.  

Out of My Box

This morning was an early morning for me.  I had to run to pick up cat food for our colonies as well as meet my niece for some much needed together time.  Problem is I also spend my mornings with the Lord and then I do this blog on a Tues/Thurs schedule.  Hmmm....how to work this all in, while still getting in enough sleep being as I work late and get to bed after midnight.

Okay, so I really hate to rearrange my "God" time....the morning works best for me, I feel freshest then, and there is just something about the quiet morning that takes me to God's presence.  I also feel less distracted than when I've already started my "to do" and "want to do" lists for the day.

The last few days on my runs, I've been listening to Joyce Meyers regarding the freedom we have in Christ, freedom from legalism, freedom to be led by the Spirit.  Instead of being led by a schedule and an do and don't mentality God wants me to live in the Spirit, following His design for my day, my week, and so on.

So all this is going through my head before bed last night as I set my alarm to wake in time to "do" my morning....As I was doing this I felt the Lord impress upon me that I could spend time with Him and do the blog after I enjoyed my time with my niece and her kids.  I wasn't bound by a strict schedule, but free to share precious moments with loved ones.

But it gets better...this morning's Bible verse was on my phone...and of course God had this planned. 2 Corinthians 3:17  Now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
LOL  How amazing is God!  When many important things are going around our time clocks, God asks only for me to follow His Spirit.  And in following, I am blessed.  God doesn't operate on a strict schedule and neither do I need to!

Lord, thank You for freedom.  Thank You for the Holy Spirit.  And thank You that I have a wonderful family and am blessed when I get to be with them!

Let the Lord arrange your day!!

Connecting the Dots

Psalm 37:4  Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart's desire 

Psalm 32:8  The Lord says, "I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.  I will advise you and watch over you.  

Psalm 89:1  I will sing of the Lord's unfailing love forever!  Young and old will hear of your faithfulness.  

Sometimes life is like a "connect the dots" picture.  As a child I had these coloring books that came with pages where there were a multitude of numbered dots, and if I followed the numbers with my crayon, going from dot to dot in order, a picture would emerge.  Usually of an animal or toy...something relatable for a child.

These verses reminded me of those pictures this morning.  This week was the week of verses for me. In my readings and devotionals I've come across these verses that stuck in my heart and as I typed them out together here today, the picture started to emerge much like when I followed the dots as a child.  God is good!

Take delight in the Lord.  Hmmm.  Do I do that?  Sometimes yes, sometimes no.  Sometimes I just want my own way, and when I don't get it...well lets just say I am not delighting too much in the Lord right then!  LOL   But when I follow this simple instruction, my hearts desire becomes pleasing God instead of myself, and He in turn, then guides me through my days.  The only response then becomes to praise Him and tell of His faithfulness.  A picture starts to form of a life of gratitude, joy and peacefulness....a life that honors and glorifies God, and shares His goodness and love with those around us.  I like that picture!

As a child, there were many times when I didn't follow the correct order of the dots.  My crayon would make a mark in the wrong direction...and it really couldn't be fixed.  I would end up coloring it in, trying to cover up the mistake, make it look right.  Thankfully our lives with God are not like that. We don't have to be perfect for the picture to come our right.  In fact, I'm pretty sure our mistakes are part of what God uses to make our life pictures beautiful...although it doesn't usually feel that way.  I am so grateful that I don't have to be perfect for God's picture to come our the way He plans!

Thank You Lord for the way You connect the dots of our lives.  You are amazing.  I am always delighted in the way You reach out and the way You connect with me!!

Follow you dots today!!  Start with Psalm 37:4 and see where it leads!

Freedom

Psalm 119:45  I will walk in freedom, for I have devoted myself to your commandments.  

Galatians 5:1  So Christ  has truly set us free.  No make sure that you stay free, and don't get tied up again in slavery to the law.  

John 8:31-32  Jesus said to the people who believed in Him, "You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings.  And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free."

John 9:36  So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.  

It's funny how in "God's world" freedom means obedience.  Freedom starts with Jesus.  Our freedom comes from Him, and in Him.  But to maintain that freedom we need to walk in His ways.

This was yesterday's God visit theme.  It came in teachings I listened to. And then was reinforced by the daily verse I get on my phone each day.

I have struggled with addiction in one form or another for the past 30 + years.  The same tendencies that had me enslaved to drugs and alcohol send cravings through my mind and body for excess food or coffee.  Paul had his thorn in the flesh that the Lord chose not to remove.  I feel like an addictive personality is mine.  It is there to remind me how much I need God in my life.  Speaking of this thorn, Paul said in 2  Corinthians 12:8-9:   Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.   Each time He said, "My grace is all you need.  Mu power works best in weakness."  

Something that Joyce Meyer said in her teaching yesterday that really struck a chord was how we (and I really speak for myself here) let something as insignificant as a cookie control us.  As she put it, we let food "boss us around."  And I thought to myself, you know that makes sense.  That's exactly what I do.  Last year I got a bad stomach virus.  I couldn't eat food or drink coffee for a week. And even after that I had no cravings or desires for overeating or coffee.  Yet slowly, but surely I allowed those cravings to come back into my life.  And now, here I am once again fighting them.  It's exhausting.

But it's not what God wants for me.  Or for any of His children.  He may allow certain weaknesses in my life, but that does not mean they should control me.  It is my job to resist and His job to give me strength to do so.  My job to obey the leading of the Holy Spirit, His job to deliver me and sustain me during the pressure to do what is unhealthy or in some cases sinful.  James 4:7  So humble yourselves before God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  It's not easy.  But it is doable!

So this freedom themed day I had yesterday was a refreshing reminder of God's desire for my life. He doesn't want me chained to anything that will cause me harm.  Physically, emotionally, spiritually.  I am so blessed by His care.  The more obedience I exhibit in this, the less and less enslaved I become. And this is in all areas of our lives.  Obedience to Christ sets us free.  It's really just that simple. Whatever area we struggle in, there is deliverance and freedom in the Person of Christ.  I am so grateful for this fact.

Lord, thank You for setting us free at the Cross. Technically, I know that all my weaknesses and sins were left there on Calvary....Help me to walk in that truth.  I am so grateful that You allow weaknesses in my life, so that I can remember the Cross and what it  means for me and so that You can be glorified in any victory that I have.  Lord, I will walk in Your freedom!!

Memorize on or two verses on freedom.  Use them to fight any sin that tries to ensnare you.

Happy Valentine's Day💕

Luke 15:1-10  So Jesus told them this story:  "If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do?  Won't he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it?  And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on is shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.'  In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't strayed away. Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one.  Won't she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it?  And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.'  In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God's angels when even one sinner repents."

John 3:16  For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.  

Jeremiah 31:3  Long ago the Lord said to Israel:  “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love.  With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.

Romans 8:35-39  Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love?  Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?  (As the Scriptures say, "For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.")  No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is our through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love.  Neither death nor life, neither angels not demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love.  No power in the sky above or in the earth below--indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.  

Exodus 20:6  But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.

God's love seeks us out.  God's love willingly sacrifices.  God's love is everlasting, lavish and unfailing.  Nothing, ever, nowhere, nohow can separate us from this eternal love in the heart of our Father.  What a wonderful truth!  What an awesome God we serve.  Take time today to meditate on His love, receive it, bask in it.  What a treasure, this love of our Savior....a love that knows us through and through, each thought and emotion, All our darkness, all our hurt....and yet does not turn away, but loves even more.  He celebrates with us, weeps with us and longs to wrap us in His loving arms. God's love is real even when we don't feel it, even when all seems wrong and off track.  His love never fails.

Lord, thank You for this everlasting love.  I rejoice in Your love today!

Meditate on God' love today.  Share God's love today.

💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

Follow Me

After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know I love you.”  “Then feed My lambs,” Jesus told him.
Jesus repeated the question: “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”  “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love you.”  “Then take care of My sheep,” Jesus said.   A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”  Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.”  Jesus said, “Then feed My sheep.   “I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.”  Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God. Then Jesus told him, “Follow Me.”   Peter turned around and saw behind them the disciple Jesus loved—the one who had leaned over to Jesus during supper and asked, “Lord, who will betray You?”   Peter asked Jesus, “What about him, Lord?”   Jesus replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? As for you, follow Me.”

Yesterday as I started my drive to work I heard the tail end of an answer on the "Let's Talk About Jesus" radio program.  This snippet of conversation started a thought train in my head....I'm pretty sure the engineer was the Holy Spirit.

At my job, being one of those that is "wired" to work gets a bit old.  It seems more and more that people there no longer subscribe to the old adage, "an honest day's work for an honest day's pay." Top that off with the fact that management seems to either be oblivious or more than likely doesn't care that there are people under their supervision that do little to nothing most of the night. As long as someone is doing it, and the mail is getting done, they are happy.  Whether that is fair or not to those who are the "ones getting it done," is absolutely irrelevant.   I am not complaining or gossiping here, just stating the facts of my workplace.   I don't know if it's just the Post Office where I work, or if this is happening in other industries as well.

So, now cue the radio program and that few seconds of conversation that I heard as I got in my truck and turned on the radio.  "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?  As for you, follow Me."  Hmmmm.  You know how sometimes a Bible verse will jump off the page as you read? Well these words seem to come flying out of my radio and into my heart and mind. Immediately I was convicted of my propensity to irritation at the behavior of some of my coworkers. God just loves reminding us of where He wants us to be, spurring us on to draw closer and come up higher.  "Let it go," He seemed to say, "just follow Me."  Easier said than done, for sure!

The thought came to me as I was mulling all this over, that the key was keeping my eyes fixed on Jesus.  Looking at Him would make this doable.  Follow Him.  Remember the old WWJD (What would Jesus do?) bracelets?  My prayer lately, and it seems this all goes together, is for the Lord to help me see people through His eyes.  I've been praying those words more at work, especially when I start to get agitated over other's behavior and lack of commitment.  Once again the Lord is stringing things together, thoughts, Holy Spirit promptings and outside sources, to bring me to a deeper place.

Psalm 66: 8-12  Bless our God, O peoples!  Give him a thunderous welcome!  Didn’t he set us on the road to life?  Didn’t he keep us out of the ditch?  He trained us first, passed us like silver through refining fires, brought us into hardscrabble country,  pushed us to our very limit, road-tested us inside and out, took us to hell and back; Finally he brought us to this well-watered place. I love the way the Message Bible puts things sometimes.   The Lord continues to work on us. Allowing circumstances, and often people to be the cutting and polishing tools that cause us to become he diamonds He already sees us to be.  And that is what gets me excited when He corrects me.  I know it is meant to make me more like Jesus and to bring me to a place of abundance and peace.

I need help in this area.  I have to say the Lord has worked with me a long time on this, and I am better than I used to be.  But apparently, if I needed this reminder, I still have some growing to do! LOL.  I am grateful for the patience of my heavenly Father.

How great is our God!  I praise You this day Lord.  Thank You for helping me grow!  Please bring about the changes You want to see in me.  It is only through the power and working of the Holy Spirit that I can shine for You.  Help us all to grow!

When life isn't playing fair, turn your eyes to Jesus.

 

Peaceful

Psalm 23:2  He lets me rest in green meadows; He leads me beside peaceful streams.  

Mornings.  It is one of my favorite times of day because I start it with the Lord.  It is the moments of peace in His presence that I enjoy and cherish.  I can truly sense being by the quiet streams of tranquility.  If I could just live in this place!!!  LOL

As we went through this Psalm recently on Sunday I felt this verse call out to me.  It brought comfort, encouragement, and correction.  God wants me to remain in this peacefulness, even when I am living in the whirlwind of crazy, dizzying life.  And that takes practice!  And a new mindset.   Romans 12:2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

One of the things I heard the Lord "say" when this verse called my name was I (and I'm sure a few others out there!) wear my busyness as a badge of honor, almost like it makes us important and feel like the world can't get by without our doing  everything. Well, let me tell you, I've been sick for over a week now and pretty much laid up, and the world is still turning and surviving!   Hahaha.  And then sometimes I have to wonder if we use busyness as a shield...protecting ourselves from dealing with life's hurts, pains, uncomfortable situations....Interesting and perhaps troublesome, inconvenient questions to run around in our heads.  But that's what the Holy Spirit does...He peels back the curtains of our hearts and exposes our motivations and needs to His light.  That's the only way healing can begin, the only way we can put into practice the words of Romans 12:2

All this is where Psalm 23:4 steps into reality:  Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. Our good Father taps us with His rod to get our attention and pulls us back to the correct path with His staff, where we are protected and cared for.  Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

I love God.  He really knows how to reach me.  Praying this peacefulness will soon become a haven in which I spend my day.  I've made some progress in this area over the years, but it's time to take it to the next level.  I want to live there!!  I love the Word, it truly lives and speaks into our moments.  It is not just words on a page, but breath and power to our lives.

Lord, thank You.  You amaze and thrill me once again.  Infuse me with Your power today to live this out.  Remind me, remind me, remind me.  I declare Your love this morning.  A love that never fails, never gives up on us.  A love that is intimate, personal and constant.  You meet us where we are and speak to our greatest need.  Help each of us to listen, to be aware of Your visits.  Remind us, remind us, remind us.

Be on the lookout for God today!
 

Godliness, From Mom

Godliness is:  living by God's Spirit, living in the fear of God, living under the eye of God, living according to the will of God and with an uninterrupted consciousness of God's indwelling presence.

Godliness is:  love, obedience, unity.

Seed time, my life is my seed time.  To live in godliness we must be in prayer.  Pray in agreement with God's will.  1 John 5:14-15  And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him.  And since we know He hears us when we make our requests, we also know that He will give us what we ask for.  And we must be in the Scripture.  It is meant to give us protection, correction and direction.  2 Timothy 3:16-17  All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives.  It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.  God uses it to prepare and equip His people to do every good work.  

From me.

We all need to be striving for a godly life, a God glorifying life.  Staying in contact with our God, through consistent prayer, and  spending time in His Word we will find ourselves shining brighter and brighter for our Lord. These are the seeds we sow to reap godliness in our lives.  Sometimes I forget to do these things, and I believe that is where the struggle starts. I do my "God time" in the morning then walk out the room and in about five minutes I lose what I learned and then get so caught up in the day I forget to go back to Him.  Bible verses on index cards that we can carry around is a great way to stay in the Word throughout the day.  Add some quick and frequent prayers for help, for guidance and strength to live a godly lifestyle.  Getting caught up in the world is so easy, we seem to slide right into place with what goes on around us...but maybe making a practice of prayer and Scripture will help us no fit in so easily with the world.

Lord, I know I need constant reminders to stay in contact with You.  I pray that You give those reminders that we all so desperately need and desire.  Be glorified in my life, in all our lives.  Let us show the difference of being Your child.  

Look up and write our a few Scriptures today that you can carry with you.  Meditate on them often throughout your day.