Saturday, June 25, 2011

Counting My Blessings!

God is so good to me, tho I don't deserve His love, goodness, grace or mercy.  He still continues to give me more than I deserve. So let me count some of His blessings that He has given me. He has saved me from hell and has given me eternal life. He has given me a great christian husband that loves God and me. Two wonderful children, their spouses that love each other, love God and want to serve Him. Five grandchildren, one in heaven wanting to see us and four that God has allowed us to touch, hold, love, hug and spend quality time with. He's has given me another day to live. Health, Church family. Friends. Freedom to live in America. Peace. Comfort. Joy. Love. His presence. His promise. His precious word. He gave me wonderful parents that loved me and taught me about God and not only taught me, but lived the example before. I could continue, but then I would run out of space.  So I will stop for now, but I think you get what I am trying to say:

No one else can do this but God.  So can you count your blessings that God has given you?

Proverbs 28:20a....A faithful man shall abound with blessings:

Monday, June 6, 2011

Three Dollar Christian

When I was just starting to drive, I was allowed to use the family car. I had to share it with everyone that lived in our house. So, that meant that you only put enough gas in the car that you needed for the time being. As I would drive the car to school each day I often would have to stop and get gas at the station. Back in my time you were able to pull upto FULL SERVICE and ask the attendant to put the gas in. As I would pull into the station on my way to school, I would ask for $1 worth of gas please. For you see I only wanted enough to get  me to school and back. Well sometimes I think that is the way we treat God. We pull upto the station and ask the attendant to 'Give me $3 of God please.' For that's really all we want from Him is just enough to get us by until next time we really need Him.  I want to be filled to the bream so that God can over flow into the lives of others.

So do you just want to be a $3 christian that only wants $3 worth of God? Or Do you want to be filled and poured out for the use of God?

'Fill'er up please'

IICorinthians 2:14; Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Being Still!

Being still is hard to do, yet that is what God calls us to do sometimes. For here is where we are drawn closer to Him, We get a real glimpse of who God is. Psalms 46:10 says; Be Still, and know that I am God: You see, when we are in motion we sometimes get intangled with the affairs of the world or even spiritual affairs, that we fell to see God for who He is. The children of Israel wondered in the desert and most of them never seen God for who He is. But they were a few who really seen God as He is. They did so by spending time with Him. Getting to know Him on a personal level. God is real and He is personal. The only way to truely get to know God is to spend 'alone time' with Him. We do this by having a daily prayer and devotion time with Him. He speaks to us through His word and we speak to Him through prayer.  Being still is where we are able to know God as He is.  Being still means to 'let go or release. When we let go and release ourself to God we come to the place where we are willing to submit  ourselves to God. God has a plan for each of His children, but we first have to come to the place of  submission and the only way to get there is to 'be still' and allow Him to work in our lives. I will tell you from a personal note. 'It ate easy!!!! It's hard to be still'.

So, if God is asking you to 'be still and wait on Him', He will give you strength to do it.

Philippians 4:13; I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Do you 'Borrow from Tomorrow'?

Matt 6:34 says to Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sometimes we borrow for tomorrow on today. What I mean is: we get up thinking about our needs for the next day or even the next week or month and so on and so on. When we are facing problems or situtaions that we have no control of this what we tend to do in life. I believe it is called worrying. Jesus says many times not to do this. But do we listen? No, I am afraid because of our lack of faith or spiritual immaturity or even stuboness or disobedience it allows us to "borrow from tomorrow". God's word is true and proving time again. Satan would like for us to borrow from tomorrow, because it allows us to focus on tomorrow and not on today.  Today is all we need to be concerned about. Because that is all God has entrusted us with is today. In James 4:14; Whereas ye know not what that shall be on the morrow. For what is life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. So. you see, Jesus is telling us again not to think about tomorrow. When we borrow from tomorrow, it causes us to take our eyes off of Jesus and then we worry over tomorrow.

So, lets not think about tomorrow, don't borrow from tomorrow. Enjoy what God has given  you today. For today is all you need to get you through. And remember, if you belong to Him, He has everything under control.

Here is a song that I always sing when I start to borrow from tomorrow. Why worry when you can pray trust Jesus He'll be your stay. Don't be a doubting Tomas, trust fully on His promise, Why worry, worry, worry, worry, when you can pray?

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Fear

Psalms 56:6; What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.
Have you every been afraid? Are you afraid now? Fear is an awful thing to have on you. I can remember as a child fearing that I would be left alone, that my mother would die and leave me alone. I can also remember being fearful of snakes. I would lay in my bed at night and think of snakes and believe that they were at the end of my bed and during the night they would bite me. Today I am still fearful of snakes, I do not LIKE them. People say: 'Oh they are just afraid of  you as you are them.' WRONG!!!! I don't believe that (lol). But fear can be a paralizing thing in someones life. Just like the fear of being alone and snakes paralized my life for so long.  It can have a hold on your life as well. It may not be fear of snakes or fear of your parent dying, but what ever it is, it has you down. There is hope and away out of being fearful. It is found in God's word. I realized the more I read God's word and draw strength from Him and His precious word, I am no longer as afraid well let me say, it doesn't paralize me anymore. God gave me this verse when He moved us to Arizona to live. He gave me the promise that He would take care of me in the desert. Because that is where all the snakes live and the desert if full of them. Luke 10:19; Behold I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall by any means hurt you. He kept His promise. We were there for three and a half years. I climbed the mountains I went walking and not one time did I see a snake. I seen scorpions, but not one time was I stung by them. God is so good and faithful to keep His promise. There is another part to this verse that has stuck out....power over the enemy. You know if you're a child of God, your enemy is satan. He  is there to destory, depress, and detour your life. But God has given us power to over come the enemy. What ever fear  has you paralized, give it to God and draw stength from Him and His word.  God has already given us the promise that we can be victorous over our enemy. Take hold of that promise and claim it for you today. I know God's word is true and faithful.  It works try it!!!!
Remember this:
False Evidence Appearing Real

Forsaken All I Trust Him

What time I am afraid I will TRUST Him

Friday, May 6, 2011

In Honor of Mothers Day

I can't believe this will be my 7th year without my mother for Mothers Day. Wow, how time goes by so fast. It seems as only yesterday I was sitting by her bedside talking, reading the bible and praying with her. As I write this today, my mind goes back to the many nights we would sit in my bed and she would read the bible and pray with me each night before I would go to bed. I love those moments and I am thankful that God gave her to me as my mother. She loved her children and we all knew we were loved by her. Everyone that entered into our family by marriage, became her children and she loved them as her own.

Remembering back to that that week that I was staying with her during her sickness, I would read each night a passage from God's word and would pray for her each night. On this night, little did I know, that it would be the last time I would be able to  pray and read the bible to her again. I read Palms 48.    But verse 13-14 says, Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the gereration following: 14: For this God is our God for ever and ever he will be our guide even unto death. You may ask why would this verse mean so much to me? Well, let's take a look at the word bulwarks: it's defined as a wall of earth or of a strong material meant for defense; a person or a thing protecting or defending people. You see, that was what my mother was to her children. A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence. Again, this was speaking of my mother. Her home and family was very special and important to her. V14 talks about God is our God, for mother this was just as important in her life and for our life as well. Home, family, and God was always very important and she made it a point to always instill God in her children, grandchildren and yes, her great grandchildren.. My mother knew where her strength came from. God was her guide even unto death.
But God is so good to me, to give me this precious time together and to remember what a godly mother I had. For you see, my mother died a few weeks later unexpected.

Mom, I love you and thank you for instilling in me your love and your love for God. Because of your example, I have tried to teach my children and now my grandchildren what you instilled in me about God. I pray that my children will teach their children of God and live the example that you passed on.
One day I will see you again.
Love your daughter

Friday, April 15, 2011

Wits End

Ps 107:27...They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their "wits end".

  What does it mean to be at your wits end? The Webster says: Limit of one's sanity or mental capacity, point of depression....natural ability to preceive and understand: intelegence, a keenness.

Lets focus on the physical. In Ps 107:27 says: They reel to and fro,and stagger like a drunken man, and are that their wits end. When I read this verse my mind thinks of someone pacing back and forth, going no where and in an unstable state of mind. The second thing I think about is the drunken man when he is  drunk, he is good for nothing and not his self. Before you know their mind is going places it shouldn't because they have limited their mental capacity and way of thinking. This is the place that Satan likes to put our mind at. He likes to limit our sanity and mental capacity to the point of depression.

Do you find yourself at wits end?  I can at times find myself at my wits end and if I am not careful, I will allow Satan to take my mind down to the point of depression. In Isaiah 26:3 says that; Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Like I said if I am not careful, I too will allow Satan to side track my mind and I will end up having a pitty party and go through a simi depression. But I find that when my mind is stayed on HIM (Jesus), He will keep me in perfece peace, because I am trusting in Him.

We will go through times when we will be at our 'Wits End', but it doesn't have to be to the point of depression, it can be the later of the definition: abilitly to preceive and understand, that when we do have moments  that leads us to 'Wits End', we can find comfort, peace and direction in our Lord and Savior, because we trust and keep our minds on Him.How do we keep our minds on Him? Through daily devotions, reading His word and praying. What has helped me the most is to focus on a bible verse during that time and just simply talk to God and quote that verse over and over to Him and allow His word to reassure me that I will get through this with His help. When I do this, my mind is stayed on Him, because I am using His words and trusting in Him to see me through.So, you see, when I obey His word, He will keep His promise and give me the peace to get me through. So I don't have to allow Satan to take me to the point of depression.

In Palsm 107: 28-30; Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.  Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.

I am thankful that God will bring us to that desired haven after we have been at our 'wits end'