Category: Month

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The Heavens Declare

I went out this morning to see the blood moon and the eclipse. My little camera didn’t capture it adequately…but my heart did.

People worldwide are looking up and the heavens are speaking.

“Wisdom and victory come when we listen to the Lord’s instruction. The heavens are telling of the greatness of God and the great open spaces above show the work of His hands. 2 Day to day they speak. And night to night they show much learning. 3 There is no speaking and no words where their voice is not heard. 4 Their sound has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun. 5 It is as a man soon to be married coming out of his room and as a strong man who is happy to run his race. 6 Its rising is from one end of the heavens, and it makes its way to the other end. Nothing is hidden from its heat.

7 The Law of the Lord is perfect, giving new strength to the soul. The Law He has made known is sure, making the child-like wise. 8 The Laws of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The Word of the Lord is pure, giving light to the eyes. 9 The fear of the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The Lord is always true and right in how He judges. 10 The Word of the Lord is worth more than gold, even more than much fine gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey straight from the comb. 11 And by them Your servant is told to be careful. In obeying them there is great reward.” Psalm 19:1-11 NLV

The earth tells of God’s greatness, the heavens declare His glory, His word gives wisdom and great reward!

Before I even stepped out on my porch my heart was singing. I am full of praise. The Creator of the sun, moon and stars sees me each day. He knows the number of hairs on my head. He protects me from harm. He calls me by name and has made me His child.

“I lift up my eyes to You, O You Whose throne is in the heavens.” Psalm 123:1 NLV

I call Him “Father”.

“All my words fall short
I got nothing new
How could I express
All my gratitude?

I could sing these songs
As I often do
But every song must end
And You never do

So I throw up my hands
And praise You again and again
‘Cause all that I have is a hallelujah
Hallelujah
And I know it’s not much
But I’ve nothing else fit for a King
Except for a heart singing hallelujah
Hallelujah

I’ve got one response
I’ve got just one move
With my arm stretched wide
I will worship You” Gratitude by Brandon Lake

My heart sings praise to the Father. I hope yours does too!!

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The Lord’s Battle

Mondays – new adventures, new challenges, new victories!

“These are the proverbs of King Solomon of Israel, the son of David. 2 Proverbs will teach you wisdom and self-control and how to understand sayings with deep meanings.3 You will learn what is right and honest and fair. 4 From these, an ordinary person can learn to be smart, and young people can gain knowledge and good sense. 5 If you are already wise, you will become even wiser. And if you are smart, you will learn to understand 6 proverbs and sayings, as well as words of wisdom and all kinds of riddles. 7 Respect and obey the Lord! This is the beginning of knowledge. Only a fool rejects wisdom and good advice.” Proverbs 1:1-7 CEV

Very good advice for daily living – Respect and obey the Lord. This is the beginning of wisdom – trusting His word, drawing on His strength, looking at things His way brings us to victory.

Moses was being attacked by the Amalekites and so he told Joshua to get some soldiers ready for the fight. These men were not seasoned soldiers, they had been slaves making bricks for the last 400 years. They were strong but not trained soldiers. But they prepared for battle as Moses said.

Moses, Aaron and Hur were up on the hilltop watching the battle. As Moses held up his arms with the rod that the Lord gave him, the Israelites were victorious. As he grew weary his arms began to drop lower and lower. When this happened the Amalekites gained the advantage. So Aaron and Hur got Moses a large rock to sit on and they held up his arms until Joshua was completely victorious.

Now where was the logic in that? It wasn’t logic it was obedience! Obedience comes from respecting the Lord – that’s wisdom.

” Moses built an altar and named it ‘The Lord Gives Me Victory.’ 16 Then Moses explained, ‘This is because I depended on the Lord.'” Exodus 17:15-16 CEV

Joshua, the leader of that battle, was about to face a battle of his own at the city of Jericho. He encountered the Lord and this is what the Lord said.

“When Joshua was by Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing near him with his sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said, “Are you for us or for those who hate us?” 14 “No,” He said, “I have now come as Captain of the army of the Lord.” Joshua fell on his face to the ground and worshiped, and said to Him, “What has my Lord to say to His servant?” Joshua 5:13-14 NLV

Joshua laid aside conventional wisdom and followed the Lord’s instruction. The rest, as they say, is history.

Today you may have battles but you have also been given the victory! Trust what the Lord is saying to your heart and obey. It’s the Lord who gives the victory!

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People With A Past

Do you ever get caught up in judging people? Writing them off because of their actions in the past.

The Bible is filled with people who had a less-than stellar past. Take Peter for instance.

Strengths: Outdoorsman, Co-owner of a fishing fleet. Tough, outspoken. Born leader. Loyal, committed. Determined. Repentant. Teachable, Usable.

Weakness: Overconfident, speak first think later. Self-promoting. Folds under pressure. Proud.

Peter cut off a soldier’s ear in the Garden when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus. He denied Christ three times in the courtyard. He was one of the first to run to the tomb and find it empty but then he went back to the disciples and they locked themselves in. Fearful.

50 days later he was in the upper room when the Holy Spirit filled the 120 with God’s power. He spoke boldly to the crowds, pointing out that they were the ones responsible for killing Jesus. But he preached forgiveness and over 3000 repented at the first preaching.

Now in Acts 4, Peter and John were arrested for preaching Jesus. No denial here. In fact, Peter spoke boldly to the religious leaders.

“Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and said to them, ‘Rulers of the people and you older leaders, 9 are you questioning us today about what we did to help this crippled man? Are you asking us what made him well? 10 We want all of you and all the people of Israel to know that this man was made well by the power of Jesus Christ from Nazareth. You nailed Jesus to a cross, but God raised him from death. This man was crippled, but he is now well. He is able to stand here before you because of the power of Jesus! 11 Jesus is ‘the stone that you builders thought was not important. But this stone has become the cornerstone.’

12 Jesus is the only one who can save people. His name is the only power in the world that has been given to save anyone. We must be saved through him!” Acts 4:8-12 ERV

This man who had denied knowing Jesus to a servant girl now stood before the rulers and proclaimed openly that he was a follower of Christ. What if Jesus had written him off as unusable because of his earlier shortcomings?

What made the difference in Peter? The Holy Spirit! Jesus said they would receive power when the Holy Spirit baptized them.

Power to be witnesses, power to be bold, power to heal the sick, power to preach!

Now let me ask you a question. Are there things in your past that you are ashamed of? Times that you feel you have failed, not just failed yourself or your family, but times that you have failed God? Those failures don’t disqualify you from service. They are stepping stones.

Stepping stones for service. Peter’s failings didn’t disqualify him instead they were examples of God’s grace and forgiveness. No one’s past prevents them for experiencing the Father’s love and restoration.

Thank you Father for changing my life from self-confident to God-confident. Thank you for seeing me as usable and trusting me with Your message of love and forgiveness!

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Good Things

This morning I want to bring you some good things from the Scriptures – things like peace, joy, protection, healing, forgiveness, strength and wisdom.

Yes, all these things are brought to you by God from His word.

Peace:

“God, you give true peace to people who depend on you, to those who trust in you. 4 So trust the Lord always, because in the Lord Yah you have a place of safety forever.” Isaiah 26:3-4 ERV

Joy:

“You have shown me the path to life, and you make me glad by being near to me. Sitting at your right side I will always be joyful.” Psalm 16:11 CEV

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 a city wall.” Psalm 91:1-4 CEV

Healing and Forgiveness:

“My soul, praise the Lord! Every part of me, praise his holy name! 2 My soul, praise the Lord and never forget how kind he is! 3 He forgives all our sins and heals all our sicknesses. 4 He saves us from the grave, and he gives us love and compassion. 5 He gives us plenty of good things. He makes us young again, like an eagle that grows new feathers.” Psalm 103:1-5 ERV

Strength:

“Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do.” Philippians 4:13 ERV

Wisdom:

“If any of you need wisdom, you should ask God, and it will be given to you. God is generous and won’t correct you for asking. 6 But when you ask for something, you must have faith and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like an ocean wave tossed around in a storm. ” James 1:5-6 CEV

Each day the Lord’s blessings and mercy are new. Let Him show you how good He is and how much He desires to carry your burdens.

“Praise the Lord! Every day he helps us with the loads we must carry. He is the God who saves us. Selah 20 He is our God, the God who saves us. My Lord God saves us from death.” Psalm 68:19-20 ERV

Now, I hope you will sit and savor the “Good Things” our Father has given you!

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A Gnarly Tree…

or as the prophet Isaiah put it, “oaks of righteousness” or the planting of the Lord.

Can you even imagine what this tree has experienced in its life cycle? The winds, the rains, the hurricanes, the drought, the fight to survive and thrive!

I think of trees like this as well as the giant redwoods, the sequoias, massive olive trees and cedars groves when I read what Isaiah, David and the other Old Testament writers refer to when they write about those who are righteous.

The term “righteous” isn’t some unattainable religious goal. No. Simply put it means to be in right standing with God. Righteous is a term that can be applied to all of us who have placed our faith in God.

“ Christ never sinned but God put our sin on Him. Then we are made right with God because of what Christ has done for us.” II Corinthians 5:20-21 NLV

“But he finds joy in the Law of the Lord and thinks about His Law day and night. 3 This man is like a tree planted by rivers of water, which gives its fruit at the right time and its leaf never dries up. Whatever he does will work out well for him.” Psalm 1:2-3 NLV

Isaiah, the prophet, wrote these words about Jesus hundreds of years before He was born.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is on me, because the Lord has chosen me to bring good news to poor people. He has sent me to heal those with a sad heart. He has sent me to tell those who are being held and those in prison that they can go free. 2 He has sent me to tell about the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day our God will bring punishment. He has sent me to comfort all who are filled with sorrow. 3 To those who have sorrow in Zion I will give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes. I will give them the oil of joy instead of sorrow, and a spirit of praise instead of a spirit of no hope. Then they will be called oaks that are right with God, planted by the Lord, that He may be honored.” Isaiah 61:1-3 NLV

Jesus spoke these words in a synagogue and it made them so angry they tried to throw Jesus off a cliff. (Luke 4:17-30, read it)

Some people still get angry today when they are told that we have received right standing with God because of what Jesus did.

A life lived in Christ is a life of thriving in the storms. Our roots go deep into His word, our branches sway in the wind, we provide shelter to those in need, comfort to those who are weary.

We become gnarly old trees who have been planted by the Lord and we stand grounded on His word.

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Caution Low Power

Every morning I pick up my laptop and share what the Lord has put on my heart for that day. After I post, I look at what others have posted overnight, read through emails and then do some research.

Inevitably, I will receive this message. “Power supply at 10%. Plug into power source.” And if I don’t heed the warning, I will get another one in a few minutes telling me I only have 7% of my power and if I ignore that warning the laptop just shuts down.

Do you ever feel like that? Your power is in short supply, you’re running low and about ready to shut down? I’ve been there many times and that weariness is my warning that I’m operating on stored power and need to reconnect to the power supply.

In Acts, Jesus had spent 40 days with His followers proving to them that He had died, rose again and was fulfilling the Father’s plan. Their main concern seemed to be the Roman government. They wanted to know if Jesus was going to set up His earthly kingdom and do away with the Romans. Jesus said to leave that up to the Father; He would handle things. (a good word for us today)

Jesus then gave them what He saw as their primary mission.

“Jesus said to them, ‘The Father is the only one who has the authority to decide dates and times. They are not for you to know. 8 But the Holy Spirit will come on you and give you power. You will be my witnesses. You will tell people everywhere about me—in Jerusalem, in the rest of Judea, in Samaria, and in every part of the world.” Acts 1:7-8 ERV

Our mission, should we choose to accept it, is to give testimony of what God has done in our lives. Starting first with those closest to us and spreading out from there. Our family, our friends, neighbors, work mates…

The Book of Luke puts it this way.

“You saw these things happen—you are witnesses. You must go and tell people that they must change and turn to God, which will bring them his forgiveness. You must start from Jerusalem and tell this message in my name to the people of all nations. 49 Remember that I will send you the one my Father promised. Stay in the city until you are given that power from heaven.” Luke 24:47-49 ERV

Jesus knew they needed to be connected to the power supply, the Holy Spirit. It was essential. Jesus didn’t do any miracles or ministry until He had the Holy Spirit empowering Him and He doesn’t want us to attempt anything on our own either.

We need to be connected.

Thank you Father for reminding me that my power is draining and that I have a power source with unlimited supply. I desire to stay plugged into You today!

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Enjoy the Sonshine

One of the things I enjoy the most about living in Arizona is the amount of sunshine we get to enjoy. The sunrises and sunsets are absolutely gorgeous but it’s the warmth of the “all-day” sunshine that really touches my soul.

I am so grateful that the Lord has brought me to this place. This is my home but more importantly, it is a daily reminder of the goodness and blessings of God.

Oh, how I love the Lord…I never want to take His love for me for granted!

“But I will sing about your strength. I will rejoice in your love every morning. You have been my place of safety, the place I can run to when troubles come. 17 I will sing praises to you, my source of strength. You, God, are my place of safety. You are the God who loves me!” Psalm 59:16-17 ERV

“For I know that nothing can keep us from the love of God. Death cannot! Life cannot! Angels cannot! Leaders cannot! Any other power cannot! Hard things now or in the future cannot! 39 The world above or the world below cannot! Any other living thing cannot keep us away from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39 NLV

As much as the sunshine warms my soul, it is the Sonshine that gives me a victorious life each day. This morning my heart once again breaks out with one of the old hymns I learned as a child. “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”/

” O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!

Refrain:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.”

I pray that you let everything in life dim this morning so that you may see Jesus shining bright.

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Praying or Complaining

I hate to admit it but some days it’s more of the second than the first. Let me explain.

Several years back I heard a teaching on prayer. The minister made a comment that I think I will always remember.

“If you go to the Father in prayer about something that is bothering you and you come away still worried about it, you weren’t praying you were just complaining.”

Some mornings I find myself complaining! Ugh!!

I think I am casting the care of the situation over on the Lord. But, when it keeps coming up and I am worried that the situation won’t change, I realize that all I have been doing is complaining about it.

Now I know none of you ever do this, telling the Lord you are rolling all of the care over on Him, He can handle it and then proceed to worry. Yep, I’m the only one so, this is for me this morning.

These are such great verses – resist the devil and he will flee. So, one more time I am handing my care over to the Lord and I will resist the enemy by praising God and not worrying. Every time a thought of worry comes up, I will replace it with praise, thanking the Lord that He is in control and the enemy will have to flee.

“So be humble under God’s powerful hand. Then he will lift you up when the right time comes. 7 Give all your worries to him, because he cares for you.

8 Control yourselves and be careful! The devil is your enemy, and he goes around like a roaring lion looking for someone to attack and eat. 9 Refuse to follow the devil. Stand strong in your faith. You know that your brothers and sisters all over the world are having the same sufferings that you have.” I Peter 5:6-9 ERV

Be humble – admit that “God I can’t handle this so I’m giving it over to You! You are the One who has my best interest at heart, You are the One who can bring change that I can’t even imagine.

I will keep my emotions in check; I will refuse the devil’s invitation to fear. I will stand strong with my faith firmly placed in You and Your provision. I won’t complain. I will pray and thank You for being in control. In Jesus name.”

Here’s to a praise filled, worry free day!

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Greener Pastures

Did you have a busy weekend? Was it hard to find time to rest? Were there too many distractions or unsettling circumstances that caused you to fret?

Some days are like that. Some days it feels as if we carry the weight of the world on our shoulders. Those are the times that God reminds us to follow Him and His leading. He knows what we need better than we do.

This morning this blog is for you!

“The Lord is my Shepherd. I will have everything I need. 2 He lets me rest in fields of green grass. He leads me beside the quiet waters. 3 He makes me strong again. He leads me in the way of living right with Himself which brings honor to His name. 

4 Yes, even if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will not be afraid of anything, because You are with me. You have a walking stick with which to guide and one with which to help. These comfort me. 5 You are making a table of food ready for me in front of those who hate me. You have poured oil on my head. I have everything I need. 6 For sure, You will give me goodness and loving-kindness all the days of my life. Then I will live with You in Your house forever.” Psalm 23 NLV

We have everything we need when we are close to Him. Rest. Quiet. Strength. Right Living. Worry Free. Comfort. Peace. Goodness. Loving-Kindness.

Somehow, Psalm 23 seemed to be the perfect reading for the 23rd day of February.

Only seven weeks into the new year and already so many are loaded down by fear and worry, uneasiness and care. God never intended for our lives to be in such turmoil. Regardless of the circumstances we have His promise of peace and rest.

Look up. See the Shepherd. Let Him lead you to green pastures and still waters. Lay down and rest. Let Him give you the comfort that only He can provide!

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Always Thinking About Us

When you woke this morning, God was thinking about you!

As you go through your day, His thoughts are always on you. His desire is for your best. He loves you so deeply and is thinking of ways to show you His best.

King David said that God’s thoughts to us were so many that they couldn’t be counted. Jeremiah, the prophet, said that God’s thoughts toward us were for our success.

As you go through your day, if you stop and think, God will be thinking of you. I hope you will take time to thank Him that you’re always on His mind and in His heart!

“Great blessings belong to those who trust in the LORD, for those who do not turn to demons and false gods for help. LORD my God, you have done many amazing things! You have made great plans for us—too many to list. I could talk on and on about them, because there are too many to count.” Psalm 40: 4 &5 ERV

“‘ I say this because I know the plans that I have for you.’ This message is from the LORD. ‘I have good plans for you. I don’t plan to hurt you. I plan to give you hope and a good future.'” Jeremiah 29:11 ERV

“The Lord is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works. 18 The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.” Psalm 145:17-18 CEV

Even when our thoughts are not on Him, He is thinking of us!

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