When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other. (Ecclesiastes 7:14a).
Yesterday I related a story of how I turned from anxiety and discontent, to contentment and peace in the Lord. In a nutshell, I prayed, turned to the Word, cast my anxieties at His feet, and asked the Spirit to take it from there. He did.
My reasons for getting personal were that I wanted to share that I’m not Mrs Perfect Spiritual, that I do worry and I have to work hard to return to a restful state. Also to be transparent once in a while, and confess my sins as the Bible says to do. Thank you to the many people who responded! Continue reading “It’s hard work to rest, part 2”→
Yesterday I wrote on my various social media platforms,
The Savior who conquered the grave can handle your budget. The God who sustains the universe every moment by a single word can help your anxiety. Focus on how powerful and perfect Jesus is, not how minuscule your budget is or how empty the streets are. Lift your eyes to see a heavenly scene of Jesus interceding for us, providing for us, rejoicing over us with singing, preparing a place for us. The future is bright.
In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 Paul talks about running the race. In 2 Timothy 4:7 Paul talks about finishing the race well. The race, or the course, is referred to several other times,
1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.
Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before usContinue reading “Keep running the race!”→
My friend Kay sent me this clip of sheep being herded to the fold. It appears to have been taken by a drone, or some type of mechanism which portrays the scene from above. It’s incredibly moving. Please watch the short clip and see what thoughts come to your mind. The below comment is what came to hers. It’s shared with permission-
It immediately reminded me about our beloved Shepherd the Lord Jesus and His ushering His entire flock onward from this present church age into His eternal sheepfold!
Perhaps we could view the attending sheepdogs as representative of the Apostles and those countless saints of God who through the ages with unwavering faces set like flint, preached the exacting Word of the Gospel of Salvation by which we were saved!
How serendipitous that in this video we see that the gate by which the sheep enter is also narrow! This to me for us, is so very lovely a visual allegory to Luke 13:22-25 and Matthew 7:13-14!!
I believe that our “ushering” into that eternal sheepfold will be the millisecond we hear our beloved Saviour say to us His bride, “Come Up!” And so we will be with Him forever!!
I spent a lot of time outside yesterday watching the birds. There is an Eastern Phoebe nest under the awning at the patio, a Carolina wren nest in the underhang, and another wren nest at the other side of the lawn in the big birdhouse.
I watched the mom of that one go back and forth incessantly, bringing food to her babies. I’d hear the baby’s racket inside the birdhouse and I’d know that the mom was back with another bug. She always swooped around looking for a tasty insect and was never disappointed. She always had enough to feed her babies.
The mama would fly off, and soon return with a bug, but not fly directly to the birdhouse. She would pause in a nearby branch, presumably to ensure that no predators were nearby. Then she’d quickly light on the birdhouse. I wanted to snap a photo of this process. I soon learned I did not have to keep my eyes glued to the birdhouse because when the mom landed, the inside of the house would erupt with chirps, lol. and I’d hear the racket. Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!
The Lord takes care of them. They have food. Jesus was hungry often, (Mark 11:12, Mt 12:1), but God feeds the birds. Jesus had no place to lay His head but the birds have a nest.
And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Matthew 8:20).
How He takes care of us! Not only meeting our physical needs but interceding for us in heaven and in prayer! We are so blessed to have been given the grace to repent. And being in Him, we are secure in knowledge that He will provide what He knows we need.
God clothes the grass with wildflowers
26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (Matthew 6:26-34)
When I was a Newspaper Editor/Publisher, I wrote an editorial every week. An Editorial is the Editor’s thoughts on some civic event or issue reported on in the paper. The Editorial gives readers a personal perspective about the issue that the Editor feels is of relevance to the community. It is an opinion about the issue as opposed to the factual reporting on the issue.
Every word of God is flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. (Proverbs 30:5)
I look around my apartment, nothing is flawless. The house has settled and the kitchen cabinets are a little crooked. The dining table has a crack. Even my new book has a typo. The kitty bed has uneven seams. Nothing in this life is flawless. Flawless means perfect. Is there anything here perfect? No. Continue reading “His word is flawless”→
Where I stand as this lockdown continues: I stand on the Rock of all creation, because the mercy of Jesus has saved me. Gratitude fills my heart and my life with the blessings He has delivered to me, first fruit of which is that precious salvation. He Who is the fount from which all beneficence flows, in His mercy accepted my piteous cries for forgiveness and smiled upon my soul, bringing light and peace. Continue reading “A grateful heart will remain unshaken”→
As a kid growing up, the thing to do was pile into some relative’s car (the one who had the hugest station wagon), throw a bunch of sleeping bags and blankets in the back, a bunch of cousins too, and head to the Drive-In. The Drive-In was an outdoor theater where you pull up in your car next to a pole with a speaker on it, clip the speaker to the half open car window and enjoy a movie on a 50′ screen. There was a snack shack centrally located to get your popcorn and Coke, and rest rooms somewhere out there too. The steam from all our breathing fogged up the windows and mosquitoes infested the car inside. Since the summer’s late sunset meant the movie had to start late, we usually fell asleep. But the novelty was the screen. It was huge! What a spectacle that was! Continue reading “Spiritually thriving amid the biggest spectacle of all”→
