Category: Month

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Continue to Focus

There hasn’t been a day since I was in the fifth grade that I didn’t realize the importance of being able to focus.

That’s when it became obvious that I wasn’t seeing correctly. Things were blurry, very blurry. As I sat on the piano bench, I would lean in so the notes on the page would come into focus. My teacher told Mom that she thought I was having a hard time seeing what was written on the black board. I found myself sitting closer to the TV to see my favorite shows.

Mom took me to the optometrist, and I was assessed with myopia; I was near-sighted, and it was pretty bad. I remember the first day I went to school wearing glasses – it was horrible. I thought they were pretty, but they were thick and heavy and made me look awkward. It was bad enough that I was a band geek but now I had glasses to boot. I remember being so self-conscious.

But I could see and eventually that outweighed the negatives. One of the first things I do each morning is put on my glasses (if I’m not wearing my contacts). I never take seeing clearly for granted.

I guess that’s why I start each morning with prayer time and reading my Bible, I like having things focused properly. It’s not a one-time event, focus once and forget it – no, it’s a daily practice. I need to keep focused on what the Lord says about me and to me.

I have several places in my Bible that I read each morning. They set the tone for the day. I hope you will focus on one of them with me this morning.

“With all my heart I praise the Lord, and with all that I am I praise his holy name! 2 With all my heart I praise the Lord! I will never forget how kind he has been. 3 The Lord forgives our sins, heals us when we are sick, 4 and protects us from death. His kindness and love are a crown on our heads. 5 Each day that we live, he provides for our needs and gives us the strength of a young eagle. 6 For all who are mistreated, the Lord brings justice…The Lord is merciful! He is kind and patient, and his love never fails. 9 The Lord won’t always be angry and point out our sins; 10 he doesn’t punish us as our sins deserve. 11 How great is God’s love for all who worship him? Greater than the distance between heaven and earth!” Psalm 103:1-6, 8-11 CEV

You may be spiritually near-sighted, only seeing what’s closest to you and not able to get the whole picture clearly or you may be spiritually far-sighted, only seeing heaven in the sweet by and by and missing the Lord’s love and provision for each day.

Get your eyes checked and your vision corrected; continue to focus on God’s amazing love and the power of His word.

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Let’s Talk

Dave and I spend a lot of time talking. Good talking.

When we were making the plan to sell the house and move into an RV full-time, we did a lot of talking. So much to consider and it was going to be a life-changing move, we better have all the cards on the table and not hold anything back.

Apprehensions, reluctance, details, hopes and aspirations, everything had to be talked through.

Even before the house sold, we talked about what to keep and what needed to go. Family heirlooms, pictures, my wedding dress, special mementos. How much wall space did we have, how much artwork could we take? Everything had to be considered – his tools, my crafts, dishes, fishing poles, etc.

Neither one of us like clutter, really, neat and tidy is how things should be! Lived in and comfortable is good but not messy or unkept. Lots of discussion on this will go there, this will go where?

Yesterday we were having another one of those organization conversations. This time we were in the truck headed to Lowe’s to find a light-weight storage cabinet for cleaning supplies, the mop, broom and vacuum. We didn’t like anything we had seen on-line and hoped to find something locally. We talked the whole way and from the talking we decided we needed a gym locker – perfect!

Why am I telling you all of this? Well, talking is good. Sometimes it can seem ominous – those words “let’s talk”. Yikes! What does that mean? It simply means that communication is needed, and communication is healthy.

Did you know that God likes to talk?

He came and talked to Adam and Eve in the garden. He talked to Noah and told him how to build the ark. When he talked with Moses, He gave the Ten Commandments and the pattern for the tabernacle. He talked with the prophets and gave them hundreds of prophecies on the coming of Jesus.

Of course, we know He talked with Jesus but also with Peter, Philip, Paul and John. He desires to talk with us. Yes, you and I. We’re His children and He desires to be part of our lives. He wants to be included in our decision making. He wants to hear about our joys and our sorrows.

“I, the Lord, invite you to come and talk it over. Your sins are scarlet red, but they will be whiter than snow or wool. 19 If you willingly obey me, the best crops in the land will be yours.” Isaiah 1:18-19 CEV

He wants us to know that we are forgiven. He chooses to cleanse us from our wrong doings, from our sins. He plans good things for us, not just good but the best things.

“Don’t keep worrying about having something to eat or drink. 30 Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father knows what you need. 31 But put God’s work first, and these things will be yours as well. 32 My little group of disciples, don’t be afraid! Your Father wants to give you the kingdom.” Luke 12:29-31 CEV

I would like to encourage you to open up an honest line of communication with the Father. Talk to Him each day while you do the dishes or work on the car, driving to work or sitting quietly with a cup of coffee.

Take time. He loves it when we say “Let’s Talk”!

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Love in Practice

Oh my! When I opened my Bible this morning the words literally jumped off the page!

Love in Practice! Amazing thought, godly teaching.

“If you see a cow or sheep wandering around lost, take the animal back to its owner. 2 If the owner lives too far away, or if you don’t know who the owner is, take the animal home with you and take care of it. The owner will come looking for the animal, and then you can give it back. 3 That’s what you should do if you find anything that belongs to someone else. Do whatever you can to help, whether you find a cow or sheep or donkey or some clothing.” Deuteronomy 22:1-3 CEV

Now granted, in our day and age we don’t see too many cows or sheep wandering around lost so before you say these verses really don’t apply to me let’s look at the concept. The instruction that Moses was giving to the nation of Israel was to look out for one another, even if you don’t know that person.

God desires that we would act like Him, remember?

“Do as God does. After all, you are his dear children. Let love be your guide.” Ephesians 5:1 CEV

Living rurally as we have there have been a number of times, we would come down the road to find a cow or a calf on the wrong side of the fence. A time or two we would wrangle them back through the gate that had been left open and secure it. But at others we would stop at the ranch house we would simply alert them that the cattle were out so they could get them penned up again. Not something you normally find in the city.

However, I have to tell a story on us. We had a neighbor who never took care of her yard. When we got ready to sell the house it concerned us that this would be a detriment to any potential buyers. We griped and complained to each other, alot, and even voiced our complaint to a few neighbors and family members. Then one day we were convicted about our complaining and when we listened to the Lord’s heart, we knew that we had to do. Dave went and talked to the neighbor and said he wanted to hire someone to clean up her yards.

He found a local handy man and sent him over to look at the job. We were through complaining and ready to put Love In Practice.

While we were in the mountains this summer it was common practice to ask the other campground workers if there was anything they needed when we headed to town. Most of the time there wasn’t but occasionally we would be asked to bring back a couple bags of ice, milk, coffee, fresh veggies and even a bag of birdseed.

We could switch this morning’s title around to say “Practice Love”. We don’t always get it right the first time, so we need to keep practicing.

Do the neighbors need a helping hand, a babysitter, a lawn mowed or groceries delivered? Do they need someone to take in their trash cans when their gone or water their plants? Practice love!

So, the next time you see a cow or a sheep walking down the road, (or someone in need) take the time to stop and put Love in Practice!

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True Value

Have you ever noticed the way the advertisers work to create low self-esteem at the beginning of each year? They add on to the notation that many have already adopted – I’m not good enough, I weigh too much, I need to join a gym…eat better, join a weight loss program…need a new hair style or different clothes.

It’s out there to convince us that we need to make a change and then we will be happier, more beautiful, healthier, more successful.

Our real value isn’t always recognized. It doesn’t come from how we look, what we eat, what we drive or any of those other things. Our acceptance, our status, comes from who we are in Christ. We have been given the ultimate make-over.

“Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new.” II Corinthians 5:17 CEV

The most rewarding thing to me about our “belonging” to Christ is that it doesn’t depend upon our social status, our belonging to a certain club or church, our financial standing isn’t taken into consideration nor is our beauty. It all depends on Christ and not on us. What brings us in to right standing with the Father is our acceptance of the sacrifice of the Son.

“My children, I am writing this so that you won’t sin. But if you do sin, Jesus Christ always does the right thing, and he will speak to the Father for us. 2 Christ is the sacrifice that takes away our sins and the sins of all the world’s people.” I John 2:1-2 CEV

All the world’s people…everyone, yes, everyone! No one is left outside of God’s love and His provision for new life. Our part is to accept that free gift; the Lord won’t force us to take it, but He wants everyone to benefit from it. When we accept what Christ has done for us there is no one or no thing that can separate us from God’s love.

“ If God says his chosen ones are acceptable to him, can anyone bring charges against them? 34 Or can anyone condemn them? No indeed! Christ died and was raised to life, and now he is at God’s right side, speaking to him for us. 35 Can anything separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble, suffering, and hard times, or hunger and nakedness, or danger and death?… 

37 In everything we have won more than a victory because of Christ who loves us. 38 I am sure that nothing can separate us from God’s love—…Nothing in all creation can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord!” Romans 8:33-39 CEV

Nothing, absolutely nothing can separate us from God’s love! The sentiment of the world may be that we aren’t acceptable or that we have no value but that’s not how God sees us. To Him, we are precious – priceless.

“And they shall be Mine, says the Lord of hosts, in that day when I publicly recognize and openly declare them to be My jewels (My special possession, My peculiar treasure). And I will spare them, as a man spares his own son who serves him.” Malachi 3:17 AMPC

So, as you come into this New Year focus on what is truly life affirming, life changing. Spend time with the Father and let Him confirm your true value.

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Dear Friends,

That sounds like the salutation of a letter but it’s the greeting of my heart.

Yesterday I sent a friend a birthday greeting and this morning she replied with “thank you, dear friend”. Dear friend…we haven’t seen each other in years; our face-to-face friendship was only a few years long, but she is a dear friend, truly.

Some people are in our lives only for hours or for days; others grace our lives for months/a few years, while others come and camp in our existence for a lifetime. I have dear friends from all of these, and I even consider some as dear friends whom I have never even met face-to-face.

The Father fills our lives with relationships; it’s His way of sharing His heart. Since God’s love is unconditional – He loves us all the same and He wants us to give that same kind of love to those we meet. He may use us to encourage others and at times He uses them to encourage us.

The Apostle Paul traveled extensively for several years preaching and teaching. Some places he stayed for a few weeks or a season and other places he seemed to stay only a few days. However, the letters he wrote once he left were letters to dear friends. In that day the only way of staying in touch was through letters – no text, emails, Facetime or convenient travel.

“From Paul, Silas, and Timothy. To the church in Thessalonica, the people of God the Father and of the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that God will be kind to you and will bless you with peace!

2 We thank God for you and always mention you in our prayers. Each time we pray, 3 we tell God our Father about your faith and loving work and about your firm hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. 4My dear friends, God loves you, and we know he has chosen you to be his people.” I Thessalonians 1:1-4 CEV

Dear friends, who are they? They are those people whose names come to mind and a smile comes to my face. They are those who, although I haven’t seen in years, I feel a closeness, a bond and a desire to be with again. We’ve shared laughter and tears, plenty and want, struggles and victories, heartbreak and healing. We’ve shared a cup of coffee and a morning blog. We’ve shared life!

“Dear friends, I love you and long to see you. Please keep on being faithful to the Lord. You are my pride and joy.” Philippians 4:1 CEV

So, dear friends, I am praying for you. Speaking God’s word into your hearts and trusting that you will be filled with joy, peace, love, kind deeds and faith.

May you be richly blessed!

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Protected

Some of you live in areas where the ground has been snowed covered for quite some time but that’s not how it is here. We get colder weather but not for extended periods of time and snow is a rarity.

Before we sold the house and moved into the RV, I had many plants in our yard. Most of them were resilient to the cold but others had to be covered, protected. I loved working with my flowers and plants but had to leave most of them behind. I was only able to bring a few of them with me – our space is limited.

This last week we had freeze warnings and I brought a few of them in and covered the larger, stronger ones. The weather forecast has predicted warmer days this week and night before last was above freezing so yesterday I pruned a few frost-bitten leaves and placed the plants which had been inside back out on the patio.

Much to my chagrin when I got up this morning our thermometer had a reading of 30*. That’s upsetting because I didn’t cover any of them last night. It’s one of those should have, would have, could have situations and frankly, I’m praying that they were protected even though I was neglectful.

I am very grateful that our heavenly Father isn’t caught off guard by anything and He has given us His promise of protection.

“Live under the protection of God Most High and stay in the shadow of God All-Powerful.
2 Then you will say to the Lord, “You are my fortress, my place of safety; you are my God, and I trust you.” 3 The Lord will keep you safe from secret traps and deadly diseases.
4 He will spread his wings over you and keep you secure. His faithfulness is like a shield or city wall. 5 You won’t need to worry about dangers at night or arrows during the day. 6 And you won’t fear diseases that strike in the dark or sudden disaster at noon.” Psalm 91:1-6 CEV

He cares for us like we would care for a young and tender plant. This is the Lord’s promise for our protection and safety. We can put our hope, our faith and trust in Him; He keeps His word, God does not lie!

“If you honor the Lord, his angel will protect you. 8 Discover for yourself that the Lord is kind. Come to him for protection, and you will be glad.” Psalm 34:7-8 CEV

We must not let fear rob us of those things that the Father has promised. His faithfulness is our shield, our covering, our protection!

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Stay Put

This morning I have spent a lot of time praying…so many people and things that came to mind and so I brought them to the Father.

Situations beyond my control; things I would like to see changed, things that concern me and those I love. And as I prayed, I did get the Lord’s peace and I also received His instruction.

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!” Isaiah 26:3 NLT

“You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.” Isaiah 26:3 NKJV

Same verse – two different translations. Look at those two words that I put in bold type. Fixed. Stayed.

Last week we hung some pictures on the wall of our new RV. They were affixed to the wall with both nails and museum putty. We want to make sure they stay in place when we travel down the road. Some people say that RV’s go through the equivalent of an earthquake every time they are towed. Things have a tendency to move around and we didn’t want that happening with the pictures.

But this morning, that was the image the Lord gave me about my thoughts. If I’m going to be at peace my thoughts need to be fixed and stayed on my trust in the Lord and His word. Held tight in the earthquake of life’s circumstances.

And if that weren’t enough, the Lord reminded me of my teaching just a few days back about hope being our anchor. Again, an anchor is something that holds us in a “fixed” position, so we don’t drift off course. But here’s one more thought the Lord brought to mind. It’s regarding our confidence in His love.

“and that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. Stand firm and be deeply rooted in his love.” Ephesians 3:17 CEV

A tree that is deeply rooted in the soil won’t blow over in the wind; it stays in place.

All through God’s word we have examples, word pictures, of the stability and strength that our lives have when we trust, have faith in, stay fixed upon, God’s love for us and the promises of His word!

If you’re having trouble holding on to your peace, then do what Dave and I did with those pictures. Nail them down and stick them in place.

Keep your heart fixed upon the Lord. Make it stay put!

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Plan for the Future

2022 – where will it lead? 2022- what does God want me to do in this new year?

Those are questions I asked myself this morning. I have a broad idea and I have some things I would like to do but I asked “Father, what do you want me to do, where do you want me to be?”.

And here’s what He reminded me of – maybe this will help you the way it did me.

“ I will bless you with a future filled with hope—a future of success, not of suffering. 12 You will turn back to me and ask for help, and I will answer your prayers. 13 You will worship me with all your heart, and I will be with you” Jeremiah 29:11-13 CEV

“1-2 I was still being held prisoner in the courtyard of the palace guards when the Lord told me: I am the Lord, and I created the whole world. 3 Ask me, and I will tell you things that you don’t know and can’t find out.” Jeremiah 33:1-3 CEV

First thing we need to do is pray and ask Him for help. He promises to answer. I doubt any of us are in quite the desperate situation that Jeremiah was in. He had been imprisoned because he told the king what God said and the king didn’t like it. Although our circumstances may look adverse, if we ask the Lord about them, He will reveal His good plan.

There were a group of men that asked Jesus about how they should be living, their intent was to trick Jesus into saying something He couldn’t support or prove. They asked Jesus which was the greatest commandment, how they should structure their lives and this was His answer.

“Teacher, what is the most important commandment in the Law?”

37 Jesus answered: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. 38 This is the first and most important commandment. 39 The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, “Love others as much as you love yourself.” 40 All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36-40 CEV

If we keep these two commandments – loving the Lord with all our heart, soul and mind and then our neighbor as ourself – we will be walking in the center of what God has called us to do.

Loving God – putting His interest and desires ahead of ours and loving our neighbors like we love ourselves (protecting them, keeping them from harm, being concerned with their advancement). That’s what were called to do.

I’ll pray for you as you walk this out this year and I’d appreciate your prayers too. Because although this is a simple command, it’s not easy to walk out each and every day. It takes supernatural strength that we can only get from God our Father.

Now if you thought I would give you detailed specifics such as go here, do this, take that job, buy that house – I don’t have that kind of knowledge. What I do know is if we are living a life of loving the Father and being committed to our neighbors, wherever we go and whatever we do we will be in the center of God’s will, and He will direct our paths.

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Everything’s New

I don’t know what the weather is like where you are, but our desert is getting a cleansing shower. It started midday yesterday and continued off and on through the night. About 4 this morning it increased in strength and seems to be setting in for a while.

I love the smell of the desert after a good rain. It doesn’t take long for the wild grasses and flowers to pop up and cover the desert floor with new life.

What a great example of God’s love! He showers us and we grow and blossom!

“Each of you is now a new person. You are becoming more and more like your Creator, and you will understand him better. 11 It doesn’t matter if you are a Greek or a Jew, or if you are circumcised or not. You may even be a barbarian or a Scythian, and you may be a slave or a free person. Yet Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.

12 God loves you and has chosen you as his own special people. So be gentle, kind, humble, meek, and patient. 13 Put up with each other, and forgive anyone who does you wrong, just as Christ has forgiven you. 14 Love is more important than anything else. It is what ties everything completely together.

15 Each one of you is part of the body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace. So let the peace that comes from Christ control your thoughts. And be grateful. 16 Let the message about Christ completely fill your lives, while you use all your wisdom to teach and instruct each other. With thankful hearts, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. 17 Whatever you say or do should be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, as you give thanks to God the Father because of him.” Colossians 3:10-17 CEV

These verses tell us God’s love is the same for all of us. It doesn’t matter what our nationality or social standing are, nor does it matter if we are enslaved or free; His love reaches out to make all of us new.

We are to let God’s love flow through us; we are to be kind, gentle, patient and forgiving. Whatever we say or do should represent the love that Christ has placed within us.

Just like the desert blossoms come to life after the rain, our lives should reflect the beauty of God’s love.

He makes everything new!

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Beginning Again

This will be my sixty-eighth new year. For many years I paid no attention to the changing year on the calendar. When I was a young teen it was an opportunity to stay up until midnight to watch the “new year come in”.

In my late 40’s I took on the attitude that the new year would come if I was awake or asleep and I would go to bed whenever but in my 50’s something changed. Not with the time I would go to bed but with my heart.

Some time within the first few days of the year, when family and friends have gone, Dave and I take communion. We dedicate ourselves, our home and the activities of the upcoming year to the Lord.

“In the beginning God”!

I can’t think of a better way to start anything than with the recognition that God, the Father, Jesus, the Son and the Holy Spirit need to be with me at the beginning of whatever it is I’m about to do.

“Before the world began, the Word was there. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was there with God in the beginning. 3 Everything was made through him, and nothing was made without him.” John 1:1-3 ERV

Christ, the Word, was with God, the Father, in the beginning and He desires to be with us in our beginnings. The beginning of life, schooling, careers, marriage, parenthood, a new year, a new day. Whatever has a beginning He desires to be first.

“Instead, desire first and foremost God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33 CEB

Maybe this is your fortieth or fiftieth new year but in all those years you have never really committed one to the Lord. This can be your first new year of dedication, seeking the Father’s purpose.

“God’s Son was before all else, and by him everything is held together. 18 He is the head of his body, which is the church. He is the very beginning, the first to be raised from death,
so that he would be above all others. 19 God himself was pleased to live fully in his Son. 20 And God was pleased for him to make peace by sacrificing his blood on the cross” Colossians 1:17-20 CEV

We have a new year before us, we are beginning again. None of us know what 2022 will be like but our Father does, and we can have confidence in Him and His love for us. Let’s begin again making Him our priority.

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