God Will Provide You the Best Place

When I was a girl the piano was my place of solace. If I was having a heartache moment I would play the Moonlight Sonata. (or Hey Jude, or Rainy Days and Mondays) Gentle melodies with lots of play across the keys were my preference as they comforted my heart and got my mind off the troubles. Playing through those songs were comforting to my heart.  If I was having a lot of fun with friends or family we always ended up at the piano playing joyful songs while laughing and singing together.  Although I played in church, via the organ, the piano and assisting with praise and worship, it was those times alone at the piano that brought solace to my heart.

To say that the piano has been a huge part of my life is so true. I don’t get to sit and play for my own enjoyment very often anymore. We are busy with work and play and family and friends and ministry. There’s hardly a time to just sit at the bench and let my hands have their way with the keys.  But every once in a while, I still try to steal away to have a moment of alone time with the keyboard. When I let God set the tone and play by ear beautiful music happens. It may not be beautiful to anyone else, but that time with the keyboard in the hands of God makes for sweet melodies in my heart.

We are all looking for a place of solace. We try to find it through various things including hobbies, jobs, marriages, children, church.  Each of these things is wonderful in and of themselves and they provide much satisfaction. But the best of them are no substitute for finding time to be alone with God.  Even a marriage cannot give you the satisfaction that God alone can. A hobby is just busy work unless the Lord’s hands are in it. We cannot find the peace we’re looking for in anything else. Everything on earth is fallible. Everything we find we love can be taken from us or broken.

Yesterday God spoke to my heart. He said “The thing you enjoy so much, that one thing that you alone find reward in – that is how I want your life in Me to be like. My desire is that you will feel so one with Me that other things will not distract you. That single minded fellowship with Me comes from the confidence you have as you seek My face.  It won’t happen in the busy times. This special intimacy comes only from spending time alone with Me. I am your Teacher and I have much to show you of My love, My mercy, My grace and My provision. You may be frazzled, worn out, stressed and overdoing everything yet finding no peace or joy in the doing. Come away with Me and find exactly what you are looking for. I will help you to make sweet music in your heart and your life that will spill over into others’ lives.

Oh beloved, steal away! Find time to be alone with your King.  You are meant to be rested, at peace and able to do all that your life has for you to do. God gives strength to the weary, purpose to the lonely, joy to the suffering and hope to the hopeless. Only time with the King will give you what you are looking for. That love you so desire and that confidence you are looking for are found only in the Lord. Jesus is the way to the Father and the Holy Spirit can make the little time expand into great treasure for you when you spend time with Him.

God loves you and He’s for you and that’s there will always be sweet blessings in your alone time with Him.

Isaiah 55:6 Seek the Lord while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near.

Psalm 63:6-8 When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches, for You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.  My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.

Psalm 27:8 You have said, Seek My face [inquire for and require My presence as your vital need]. My heart says to You, Your face (Your presence), Lord, will I seek, inquire for, and require [of necessity and on the authority of Your Word]. Amplified

Acts 2:28 ‘You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of gladness with Your presence.

1 Chronicles 16:11 Look to the LORD and His strength; seek His face always.

God Has a New Attitude Waiting for You

We have a play room in our house for grandkids. To tell you the truth they rarely play in there, but they do go upstairs to get toys out of the playroom to bring down to the living room! Often great fights start because inevitably two children want the same toy. One day Stella was upstairs playing by herself when we heard her begin wailing. I thought for sure she’d dropped the toy box lid on herself or some other catastrophe. We ran upstairs to find her crying inconsolably in the middle of the floor. A toy was there beside her. There was no sign of physical distress so we asked her what the problem was. It was simple. The toy would not do what she wanted it to do! She was actually furious not hurt. We got her mind off the situation she was in and on something else and everything was fine. A change of attitude came when her heart changed as her focus changed.

It’s hard to admit but there are times when we are the same as Stella. We’re having a good time, things are going great and our life is all planned out. We’re paying our bills, loving our family, enjoying our jobs, and may even be ministering for the Lord. A nice neat tidy play area we’ve created. It’s all good. But then something changes. There’s a blip in the system and we find ourselves in a bit of a situation. Something has gone wrong and we’re furious. We become frustrated, anxious and demanding. We want it all to work our way. We want life to “do what we want it to do”. What we’re really saying is where is God? How did He let this happen? We become angry and cry and throw a spiritual tantrum because God isn’t doing what we want Him to do. We lay in the floor and we wail and gnash our teeth at our entire situation. We may even say, “Oh God!” But we’re not really praying we’re just mad. Mad at the situation, made that our life is upset and maybe even made that God would do this to us. Life quits working and if we don’t get a handle on our emotions we’ll eventually blame God for the mess.

But God steps onto the scene of our ruined lives and scoops us up. Suddenly our perspective changes. We’re no longer in the floor having our pity party. We’re in the Father’s arms. We begin to fellowship with Him just as the Psalmist did: by sharing our hurts, our pain, our problem , our anguish. He listens and lets us spill it all out before Him. Then He speaks to our hearts and our attitude softens. We forget the brokenness of our life as we rehearse the Truth that our Father speaks into our life. “In this world you will have tribulation, but rejoice I have overcome the world”. “All things work together for your good”. “Peace I give you…” “Surely goodness and mercy will follow you…” On and on God speaks. On and on Jesus provides. On and on the Holy Spirit woos. Finally we relax in the midst of the situation and our heart is softened and our focus is no longer on our problem, but on our Savior.

Oh beloved, are things not going how you wanted them to go? Was it all just right and yet now it’s not working? Have you found yourself in the middle of the floor having a pity party and wanting to blame God for all the mess you are surrounded by? It’s time to crawl up in your Abba Father’s lap and let Him speak His truth over your life. Look full in His wonderful face as the hymnist wrote, and the things of earth will go strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. God loves you and yet things will go wrong. Your only recourse is to seek the Father’s face and let Him change your attitude. Instead of berating the situation God will begin to teach you the eternal perspective of what you are going through. His promises remain and His purpose for you is steady.

Ultimately, even if something is permanently broken, you can be assured that your life doesn’t have to be thrown out. Your plans don’t have to be discarded. Rather God wants to change you. His ultimate goal is to make you like Him and give you a stronger heart for the days ahead. Jesus is your example and faith is your window of opportunity to let God pick you up and change your heart.

Stella’s toy was left in the floor not to be picked up and get frustrated over again. God says give me the thing that you can’t get to do what you want anymore and I will turn it into an opportunity for your good and My glory. I love you and I am for you and that’s all that matters as you grow in grace and the knowledge of My Son, your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Romans 8:28 We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose. Amplified

Psalm 73:21-24 When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory.

2 Corinthians 3:18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like Him as we are changed into His glorious image.

Psalm 27:8 When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.”

2 Corinthians 4:17 For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! NLT

Psalm 34:5 Those who look to Him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces. NLT

Your Destination is New Day Street!

Along with millions of other people, we watched the historic pairing of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr on stage at the Ed Sullivan Theater for the 50th anniversary tribute to the Beatles. We both watched the original visit to the Ed Sullivan show back in 1964 as did most of the kids our age. For us, the baby boomers, it was awesome. Reliving being an enamored young girl for me and for my hubby a teenager who ultimately had every record they ever made together. Many pleasant memories came flooding back as the songs reminded us of lost love, true friends and the meaning of life (for them at least).

We did not go to bed singing Beatles songs or pulling out memorabilia. We left the fun of the evening where it belongs – in the memory bank of life. We can’t go back to those times, nor do we want to. It was fun, but it’s done. We’ve got life to live and more memories to make so we look forward to what God is doing in our lives as we live a life that’s pleasing to Him. 

We all enjoy reliving past memories. But we cannot live in the past. Memory Lane can be visited but we must not live there. The past is where it belongs. The best of moments are part of history. As great as they are, as much as we enjoy the fun of it all, it’s just a memory. We can’t live in the past, for it’s already been lived. We have a future to walk into that holds as much promise as our greatest times of yesteryear. If we spend all our time reliving the past and trying to regain the moments of our youth we’ll miss living today. We’ll also miss looking to the future where we are to keep our eyes on the prize of the high calling of Christ Jesus. 

Maybe you believe that someone has robbed you of your future. They cannot do this, for only God sets the future in motion, only God gives the calling to His children and only God says when the end will come. Maybe your life looked better back then than it does right now. Hold on, for God is making all things work together for your good as you keep your eyes on Him. 

Oh beloved! It’s important this morning for you to know that you have a future. It does not matter what your age is or what your past looks like, your future is bright with promise. God has put it in the hearts of all believers to look forward, not back. Today is the day to look ahead and ask God what today’s plans are for you. Every single day has its own special plans just for you. You are awake, you are breathing, you are able to get up and take nourishment, so God’s plan is with you. Maybe all your past memories are pleasant, maybe they aren’t. Either way, to live with your memories is to rob yourself of the blessing of looking ahead to Jesus. You can’t undo the mistakes; you can’t really live the greatest moments again. It’s time to do yourself the greatest favor you’ve ever done. 

Leave the mistakes at the altar with the Lord. He’s explained it in His Word, that He’s placed your sins as far as the east is from the west. You’ll have to leave your greatest accomplishments there as well. Leave them at the altar of praise and thank God for each and every one of them. But reach out to Him this very day for your next assignment and your richest blessings. 

You are more than your memories and your address is New Day Street! God loves you so much that He’s making a way for you to continue to walk in blessings, live triumphant and make great memories for your future. He’s for you so that you don’t have to fear what’s ahead, you only take a step at a time to walk in His ways and live for Him always.

You and I are very blessed, beloved, for He’s given us His great and precious promises so that we can live in the light of His Word! Go ahead, go out today and make some wonderful memories for the Kingdom and the Glory of God.

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Isaiah 46:4 Even to your old age I will be the same, and even to your graying years I will bear you! I have done it, and I will carry you; and I will bear you and I will deliver you.

Philippians 1:6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

You Can Walk in Freedom No Matter What

This morning I decided I needed to go out and enjoy the snow with “the young’uns”. Donning the heaviest clothes I could move around in I stepped out onto the snow and gingerly made my way across the cement at our front door. It was great! After walking around and throwing snowballs I noticed that my left foot was hurting. Looking down to see what was wrong I saw that I had gathered a huge ball of snow and leaves on the sole of my shoe. I knocked it loose and walked some more. But both feet were gathering these piles of snow and leaves. It impeded my ability to walk freely about. It was a lot of trouble to stop every few moments and knock snow from the instep of my shoes.

Finally, cold and weary of the constant removal of shoe from beneath my shoes, I went back inside to wait to help warm the first grandchild who got too cold. It just wasn’t worth the trouble and I realized that although the shoes were comfortable for regular walking, they weren’t meant for the snow. I should have picked a different pair, one with a different tread and sturdier ankles. I also realized that had I needed to walk a long way in the snow I would have been in trouble with the shoes I had on. Preparation is important. Without it I didn’t have as much freedom to enjoy the trek outdoors.

When we are born again we come into a kingdom where God has provided everything we’ll ever need for life and godliness. Yet we often find ourselves ill prepared for the situations that come our way.  We tend to want to wear house shoes everywhere. We prefer comfort. We like it. We’re God’s kids and we want it easy. Sometimes we prefer ballet slippers. We want to pirouette through life as though we’re all little princesses and princes. We are in fact God’s kids and since He is the King we are in a sense royalty. But we’re meant to traverse through hard times, rough times and rugged weather. We have to be prepared. Neither house shoes nor ballet slippers will get us through when we need our feet shod with rugged boots.

Thankfully we are blessed. We have an entire wardrobe standing ready for us. We don’t have to go unprepared. We have every need for every situation we find ourselves in. Others only have what they find for themselves, but we have the entire council of God’s Word to choose from. He speaks from Genesis to Revelation for our journey through life. All we have to do is get prepared. And we become prepared by taking in the Word and keeping it handy. We don’t know what we will encounter in the days ahead, but God does. So He has provided us with just the right Word for just the right weather. If all we insist on wearing is flip flops we’ll have a hard time in the winter of life. We may know that we have been saved, but we need to know more. We need to know that God will get us through. We can’t wait until times get hard to try to find the right Words to help us through. We must prepare ahead.

Oh beloved, are you struggling with the situation you are in? Did you find yourself in the midst of adversity and see that you are ill prepared to walk it out in faith? Are you wondering why it has happened? Did you fail to hear the weather report that all will have to walk through tough times and blustery weather? It’s not too late! You can still make it. Just stop in to God’s Wonderful Shop of Truth and let Him fit you with the proper Word for this time in your life. If you will come aside and spend some time with the Lord, reading His Word, searching for the right fit, He will lead you into all truth.  And the truth you put on for your present circumstances will get you there and you will walk through in freedom and grace.  You are not meant to stumble or be hobbled in life, but you are called to walk freely in His Word fully prepared for whatever you may encounter.

God loves you and He’s for you. That’s why you can trust Him to lead you into all truth so that, even when the going gets tough, you will walk in the freedom of His truth. There will be better days of flip flops, house shoes and slippers. But it’s wonderful for you to know that you don’t have to walk hampered as you live in the light of His Word.

Psalm 119:45 And I will walk at liberty, For I seek Your precepts. NLT

Habakkuk 3:19 The Lord God is my Strength, my personal bravery, and my invincible army; He makes my feet like hinds’ feet and will make me to walk [not to stand still in terror, but to walk] and make [spiritual] progress upon my high places [of trouble, suffering, or responsibility]! Amplified Bible

Psalm 86:11 Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; Unite my heart to fear Your name. NLT

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. NLT

What Kind of Footprints are You Leaving?

Finally we got the snow that we have anticipated. The grandchildren watched it out our patio door last night. They will be waking up to enough to play in for a while. I have enough for my beloved snow ice cream.

When I looked out on the patio in the night I noticed footprints. Something had been there. It trailed around and left distinctive prints in the snow. Because the prints were characteristic of a dog, I knew what it was. It could not be mistaken for any other animal.

There are times when I wonder what kind of footprints I am leaving behind. As believers we are given the Word to show us what they should look like. Before we are born again the trail of prints might show anger, rage, malice, rejection, haughtiness, revenge or more. The prints are of a wild animal, one who lives by its own wits, retaliating whenever the need arises, not caring what kind of mess might be left behind.

But when we are born again, we are given a new set of prints to make in the world. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self-control.  Not only are we given this “footprint” to live by, we are given a living example to follow in the Lord Jesus Christ, who completely gave up His rights and His wants to fulfill God’s plan for redemption for you and me.

The world will tell you to retaliate in kind to whatever gets thrown your way. But God says to repay evil for good, return a blessing when cursed, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who use you and persecute you.  The Lord even is so wonderful that He goes on in the very next verse to tell us why: “so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven…” So the world will know who we are by the footprints we leave behind, even in pain, sorrow, rejection and humiliation.

Oh beloved, I know you are going through some hard things right now. You may have tried to fit in where everyone wants to be and your footprints don’t match. You may have tried living right and walking according to God’s plan and still you got rejected. You may have been walked all over by circumstances you didn’t deserve. You may be hurting and suffering at the hand of one who left huge prints of pain on your heart. God knows your present situation and He’s with you. Keep walking in God’s ways. Don’t change, don’t let the flesh make prints for you, don’t take matters into your own hands. God promises blessings to you. He promises that your footsteps are ordered by Him, so that you can know that you are watched over and cared for even in the hard times, even in the pain, even in the anguish of momentary afflictions.

How bless you are to leave the Father’s prints everywhere you go! Those prints are full of the fruit of the spirit and leave a fragrance of peace behind you. You don’t walk alone, you don’t have to deal with your problems alone and you can ask Him to help you walk just like He wants you to walk. You will be blessed and be a blessing as you live in the Light of His Word.

For beloved, He loves you and He’s for you and that’s how you can walk blessed all the days of your life.

Psalm 37:23 The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. NLT

Galatians 5:25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Matthew 5:43-45  You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. NLT

Psalm 33;20-21  And though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide Himself any more, but your eyes will constantly behold your Teacher. And your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, This is the way; walk in it, when you turn to the right hand and when you turn to the left. AMP

John 13:17 If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.

I Thessalonians 2:12 so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

Jesus is the Best Renovator, Redeemer and Friend

Home renovation shows are one of my favorites. Sometimes I enjoy them because they are hilarious. The disaster renovations on one show just make me laugh as I see a picture of some of my attempted renovations in their problems as well.  Other times I just wonder if I really want to renovate something bad enough to go through the hard part.

On a recent episode of one of the best, the show centered around a mother’s kitchen renovation attempt by her son. I have lots of ideas for my own kitchen so I was watching closely. This kitchen had been gutted quite a few months back. Walls were mere studs and cabinets were half installed. Other make shift counters held things that should have been in their proper place. The kitchen was a catastrophe and looked hopeless. 

As the host of this show walked through the disaster and surveyed the situation, it was as though a light bulb went off in the mother’s head. I heard her say these words: “Until Bryan got here we were so used to living with it the way it was we didn’t realize just how bad it had gotten.” 

That’s when God spoke to my heart. When Jesus arrives on the scene of our lives the first thing we notice is our brokenness.  We see just how bad things really are. We hate to admit it, we turn our eyes from it and try to get our minds off of it. But Jesus says I cannot fix what you do not see. You can only see the brokenness, but I can see it all, including the repair, including the redemption, including making all things new.

Oh beloved, have you been living with brokenness? Have you been trying to fix your own problems? Have you lived with the rubble so long that you think it’s normal?  Are you sweeping around the junk and hoping to keep it out of sight? Jesus is calling to your heart and speaking such sweet love words. He is calling you to let Him see what you’re unable to repair and let Him work it out for you. He does more than repair, He renews! You are destined not for more demolition but for redemption! Trust in the Lord, open up the truth of your circumstances to Him and let Him apply the Truth of His Word to your situation.  Only in facing the truth will your circumstances change. But oh beloved when Jesus gets there, everything changes!

You are loved. You are chosen. God cares for you so much that He’s never unwilling to fix your broken life, broken heart and broken things. Run to Him and live in the Light of His Word as you see the magnificent remodel only He can do.

Ephesians 1:7-8a In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.

I Corinthians 1:30 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption.

I John 1:9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action]. Amplified

Psalm 107:19-22 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble; He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His loving-kindness, and for His wonders to the sons of men! Let them also offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of His works with joyful singing.

Job 33:28-29 God rescued me from the grave, and now my life is filled with light.  Yes, God does these things again and again for people.

Button Up Your Overcoat of God's Word

This winter has been colder than usual. The temperatures below freezing have been wicked. And with the wind blowing more than normal, the cold cuts right through you when you’re outside. Without the proper outerwear it’s really rough. It’s hard to enjoy anything when it’s so cold. I guess people could just stay inside and wait for spring. But that’s not living.

Winter comes around every year. Some are worse than others. Troubles come too. Disappointments, discouragements, rejection show up without fail. There can be high electric bills, high tempers and high hopes that get dashed in the cold face of reality. The chill of things going wrong cuts right through our hearts and pretty soon we’re thinking we’ll just quit living. It’s too cold and the winds of adversity reach all the way to the heart.

Fortunately, we believers are made for winter and every other season that comes our way. We can meet the chill and wind head on because God has given us preparation for it all. We’ve been given complete protection from damage when we have to go out and face life that’s not always good. We just can’t go out alone without our covering. But covered by the Word of God and sheltered by the Holy Spirit our hearts stay warm and our lives keep moving even in the harshest of winter times.

Not only that, we can rejoice for we know that while winter may be present spring will return. We have a hope that does not disappoint. We have a Savior who never quits caring. We have a God who has given us all we need and we have the Holy Spirit to remind us whenever we want to quit believing and quit living.

Oh beloved, if you’re facing the cold alone it’s time to return to the Lord and let Him cover you with His Word! If you’re ready to quit and hide from life’s storms, it’s time to remember who you are in Christ. Read all the precious promises. Read the wonderful triumphant assurances. Wear them regally for they are the clothing of royalty. No child of the King is ever meant to go out in the cold without covering. You are blessed, you are chosen, and you are redeemed.

Stop looking at the weather and rehearsing the problems and put on the garment of praise and the covering of Truth! You are not just enduring; you will triumph over this winter time. God loves you and He’s for you and that’s why you can sing His praises and rehearse His promises all the way to heaven’s door.

Psalm 34:1-2 I will extol the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

Psalm 121:8 The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever.

Isaiah 55:12 For you will go out with joy And be led forth with peace; The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

Psalm 5:11-12 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. For You bless the godly, O Lord; You surround them with Your shield of love.

You Have Shelter in the Storm

Last night I listened to the ice falling from limbs and the occasional limb falling too. I am so thankful to be in a nice warm house. I’m also glad that the weather man warned the area of impending weather. We had extra wood ready in case our lights stayed out for a lengthy time. We even have foods that are easy to prepare or heat in the fireplace so a meal can be enjoyed no matter what. Occasionally a huge limb would hit the house and it sounded as though it would come through the roof. The morning light will show whether any of the limbs are actually damaging anything. Generally the sounds of the night are found to be less horrific by the light of day.

Life has its storms. There are times when we see the problem coming and we can prepare for the worst. Other times we are caught by surprise. We didn’t see the situation unfolding until everything begins crashing in around us.  If we’re not careful we’ll find ourselves in the cold and unable to protect ourselves. Darkness will surround us and we’ll be so fearful for our life.  The icy reality of bad reports, terrible news or troubled times find us scurrying to find warmth anywhere we can.

But we don’t have to be afraid. We are not just another character in an ice storm. We are chosen and redeemed to live a life that gives honor and glory to God. We don’t ever have to go hungry, stay cold or live in the dark.  Especially when things are crashing down around us. We may not have been prepared for the situation, we may have had no warning, but God was already preparing for us a place of refuge with warmth and light and sustenance to make it through. We may think great damage is being done, but because of God’s great love for us the Light of the Son will show us when the storm has passed that we are not damaged beyond repair and that we are still able to live as chosen children of the Most High God.

Storms will come, but God will be with us. Darkness will threaten us but the Son of Righteousness is our everlasting light. We may hunger for His presence, but we never go hungry, for He is always with us, to guide us, direct us and keep us safe all through the night.

Oh beloved, don’t despair. Don’t sit and listen to the sounds of the darkness. Light the candle of God’s Truth and shine it throughout your heart.  He is protecting you, you are walking in His safety and He will overcome these present events. Your power will not go out because it is God’s power within you. You will never hunger or thirst, no matter how rough the weather of your life gets. As long as you look to Jesus, as long as you remember God’s Word, as long as you rehearse the blessings of being a child of God, you will overcome this present darkness and live to share the glory of God with others who are going through the storms of life. You are walking in His favor as you live in His light. You are experiencing His peace as you walk through the storm.

You are loved and you are cared for and that’s all that matters as you live in the Light of His glory and grace.

Psalm 140:13 Surely the righteous will give thanks to Your name; The upright will dwell in Your presence.

Psalm 112:4 Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous.

Psalm 57:1 Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to You for protection. I will hide beneath the shadow of Your wings until the danger passes by. NLT

Nahum 1:7 The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in Him.

Philippians 4: 13 I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency].  AMP

Your Provider Will Handle Your Situation

As I went to pick up Danny yesterday afternoon there was a wreck right before my eyes. The left lane had a line of cars stopped as someone was turning across traffic. Just as I drove by a small car rear ended one of those stopped cars. The mess was huge as I saw car parts fly off as though it was a toy. The front end of that car was demolished as it impacted the back of a pickup. I cringed at what I saw. I can’t be sure what happened but with the afternoon traffic always in a hurry to get home and the line of cars that was stopped it looked as though the small car’s drive had looked down or away for a moment. Just enough time to have a terrible impact on their day to say the least.

We all get in a hurry. Life is busy and we’re busy. We have things to do and places to go. We ask God’s blessing on our plans and then push things into high gear. Although we begin by watching carefully for God’s signal and stay alert for His guidance, we get busy. Then things get congested. We find we have lots of road hazards. One look away from the Savior and we have an impact we never wanted. Our faith gets derailed. Our hope gets demolished.  We were cruising along having a great time and yet we didn’t see the danger ahead that wants to impact our life in Christ. We get to thinking we’re king of the road when actually Christ is King of our entire life. Where we go, how we travel, who we see, even how we make a living and what we do with that living should be under His guidance. But we love to be in the driver’s seat.  

Then we find ourselves on the side of the road unable to move forward. We’re sidelined. It’s then that we have to know what to do so that we can get moving again.  We often pick up the phone and call our buddies, but they don’t have a wrecker big enough to pick up our mess. We survey the damage and discuss within our hearts what we’re going to have to do to get moving again. We plan and talk and discuss and fuss. But we’re still sidelined. The wreck’s impact has done its damage and we’re unable to move on.   

Until we talk to our Provider. When Jesus comes on the scene of the impact, our hearts are at peace again. His plan provides that we don’t ever have to take our eyes off Him, not for a moment. But He knows we’re going to have those lapses of the spirit where our mind plays a trick on us and we think we can handle it all ourselves. So miracles of miracles, He comes the moment we call on His Name. Even if we caused the accident ourselves, He will come to our aide. When others cause the collision He’s there to defend and protect us. When life throws things at us and we’re off the side of the road, He comes to our rescue.

Oh beloved, whatever situation you are in God is with you! You don’t have to figure this trouble out all by yourself. What looks like a demolition derby in your mind is actually another magnificent opportunity for God’s great love to come to your rescue. He gives second chances over and over again. These are teachable moments, sent into your life to remind you that He is the One who should do all the driving. And to remind you that you should never take your eyes off of Him. Wherever you need to be, He will get you there. He promises to guide you into all truth, into His will and into blessings and honor, glory and power when you let Him show you the way. The evidence may be clear that you messed up, you looked away, you got in an accident and someone’s to blame. But Jesus gathers you up when you call on His name.  You can learn not to take your eyes off Him and things will still happen but you will have peace because you have learned to look to Him for everything.

God loves you and He’s for you and that’s why you can call on Him whenever you find yourself in a wreck, whenever you can’t see the road ahead, whenever you’ve been impacted by sorrow, fear, regret, rejection, humiliation, sorrow, worry and more. No road hazard can keep you from receiving all you need from the Lord as you live in the light of His Word all the days of your life.

Psalm 103:11-14 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.  As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.  For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.

Psalm 91:15 He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.

Psalm 86:5 For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.

Psalm 107:19-22 Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress.  He sent out His word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death.  Let them praise the Lord for His great love and for the wonderful things He has done for them.  Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving     and sing joyfully about His glorious acts.

Hebrews 12:2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith….

God's Plans for You Are Right on Time

I wanted snow. Not 10 inches but enough to make snow ice cream. I’m just a little disappointed. But I was home this week-end and would have enjoyed it. Usually when it snows I’m looking for a can of condensed milk and find none. This year I’ve been ready all winter. There are extra cans waiting in the cabinet. But no snow to go with the milk. I’m prepared but there’s nothing happening.

Ever feel prepared for something yet nothing happens? You know in your heart it’s something you really want and you’ve done everything to be ready. Yet it does not appear. Disappointment wants to knock on the door of your heart and walk right in and take over. It could be a job, a boyfriend, a marriage, a house, a past-time, a ministry, a dream. You’ve prepared and made everything ready on your end but the answer doesn’t come through. You start to wonder. Questions come. You ask yourself if you did something wrong, if you missed the boat, if God was not aware of your dreams and plans.

Disappointment isn’t something you want to let in. The trouble with disappointment is it brings friends with it. Entertain disappointment and you’ll find yourself feeling depressed, and ultimately in despair. Satan will use disappointment that settles in your heart to convince you that you missed God. Or that God missed you. The tactic of the enemy is to use situations that are temporary and convince you they are permanent.

Snow will eventually fall here again. It’s just not going to happen right now. Do I give up? Do I throw out the canned milk? Do I curse the snow and refuse to believe? No. I refer to the truth. I defer to the truth.

With every situation we find ourselves in we must defer to God. He alone knows the why, the when and the where. But He says He has plans for us and they are good. So, we don’t answer the door when the disappointment comes. We replace disappointment with the knowledge that it is HIS appointment that counts. All our appointments are kept right on time by an On time God! We shut the mouth of the enemy by praising God. Praising God for delays that give way to His wonderful ways – right on time.

Oh beloved! This is not the time to give up. This is the time to spend time with Jesus. Praising Him. Worshipping Him. Responding to Him. Letting Him speak His truth into your heart. Reading His Word, over and over again. Finding the Scriptures that speak to your heart and living in their light. Everything else wants to let darkness take over – your mind and your senses are reeling because what you thought would happen hasn’t happened. But your spirit responds to God’s Word with His Truth to lift you out of despair and into His presence of glory and peace. Don’t spend another moment cursing what should have been, but begin to praise Him for what is going to be! You will find that your burden of disappointment can’t stay in the presence of praise. This is the time to be full of joy and peace as you wait for the Father to fulfill His plans for you in His time. 

God loves you and He’s for you and all His plans are good and right on time. Keep praying for His plans to come through and watch as He will never disappoint you ever. You can dance with joy as you wait in His presence for His plans to come to light.

Psalm 23:6 Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart. AMP

Psalm 52:9 I will give You thanks forever, because You have done it, And I will wait on Your name, for it is good, in the presence of Your godly ones.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 27:14 Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord.

Psalm 16:11 You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.

God Will Birth His Plan in You

Danny’s cousin in California is expecting a grandchild any day now. The due date has passed so it won’t be much longer. The expectations of this child, a girl, are great. Everything is just right, as with all first babies, and all they are doing now is standing by in anticipation. This is their first grandchild by their only daughter. So they are holding their breath every time the phone rings.

Although their daughter has to go through the birth process, they are full of anticipation of the wonder of holding a newborn baby in their arms. The nine months of preparation followed by the few hours of concentration will bring forth a wonderful gift. As great as the 9 months may have been, the birth process cannot be avoided. It’s just part of it.

We know God has a plan for our life. We live in anticipation of the realization of plans too wonderful for us to imagine. We give our life to Jesus and then we expect things to go well. Too often though, expectation and anticipation give way to worry and fear. We knew we wanted God to birth a plan in our hearts, but we didn’t know it might hurt. We think “hey I’ve given my heart to Jesus, He will give me something good to do and life will be just right”.

We want a neat and tidy life. We don’t want birth pangs. We don’t want the reality of our walk with Christ to go past our expected due date. We definitely don’t want hard situations and yet God even uses these circumstances to grow our faith.

Oh beloved, whatever you are going through today, God has already been there. He’s doing behind the scenes prep work and He’s clearing the way for your life to be a beautiful birth of His wonderful love. It may be really rough right now, as you weren’t expecting what’s happening. But God is with you. Your life is meant to be a shining example of His glory and grace.  When you go through the growing pains of faith, your ultimate outcome is beautiful. It’s worth it. Don’t give up in the middle of it all, for there is a wonderful reward awaiting you. And what a blessing it is that you don’t have to go through it alone. Always present, always leading, always teaching, always holding you safe in His arms – God is there with you. He will see you through. He has promised to be with you all the days of your life and on that you can rely. Hard times won’t last forever, so hold on and talk to the Father often. He will soothe your weary brow, He will speak His love Words over your situation and together you will make it.

Whatever it is, God is here.And he will birth the plan of God in you to its complete fulfillment.   He loves you and He’s for you and that’s all that really matters as you trust Him to make your life beautiful and your faith grow as you live in the light of His Word.

Romans 5: 1-5 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,  through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.  And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;  and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;  and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Philemon 1:6 and I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the knowledge of every good thing which is in you for Christ’s sake.

1 Peter 1:7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ

Colossians 2:6-7 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.

Romans 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Psalm 16:8 I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for He is right beside me.

God Will Keep You Always

We love all the Toy Story movies. We see that Woody goes through a lot in each of the movies. Each movie showcases troubles that the toy Woody gets into. His owner Andy went away to college and he was boxed up and accidentally given away. Woody feels pretty bad about it all and is convinced that he meant much more to Andy than how it appears to be. Still Andy is gone and Woody is given away. Woody feels rejected and even though he wanted to stand with Andy forever, it’s over. Or so it seems. Watching to the end of the movies, each and every time we see how things turn out right for Woody, even when he’s in the hands of treachery and thievery. We applaud the good ending and rejoice with the toys.

I know there are times when we all feel like castaways. We may know that we were right where we belonged. We were doing a good job, just like Woody did a good job of being a toy for Andy. Yet things happen. While we are willing to go for the long haul, there are times when the worst happens. We get boxed up and sat to the curb. It’s then that we wonder what we are going to do. We feel alone, left out, and useless. We didn’t want it to happen but it did just the same.

Toy Story is just a movie, but the fact is we belong to Someone. We have given our heart and soul to the Lord and we pour our lives into where God has put us. Wherever we are, we are meant to sow as unto the Lord and we know that it’s from God we receive that reward. We can trust that the One who wrote our life story has not written finished, done or “the end”, for we are alive and looking for God to call us on to higher things. We can rejoice that whenever one door is closed, God most certainly has better plans for you. No one who is alive and breathing and belongs to God is useless. There may be a time of waiting for God to open that next door, but we must never give in to dismay or discouragement. This is the time to spruce ourselves up in Christ for the next big event.

Oh beloved, God knows your heart. He hears your cries of pain as someone invariably has put you out on the curb. They do not know God’s heart for you. All they can know is their perspective. But you can trust God, no matter what. You will never be called a castaway by God. And just like the ending to the children’s movie, the ending to God’s story of you is good. God promises to promote you beyond your own present situation, when you stay close to Him and rejoice in His truths. Don’t let yourself be sold out because of the current circumstances you may be in. You are priceless to God, and He will keep you safe all the way to heaven. Now is the time to get into the Word, get on your knees and get even closer to God. Your faith is your greatest ally and the Lord is your comforter. Keep watching, keep praying, keep forgiving and keep looking to the Lord for His response.

You’ll never lose out as long as you walk with Him. God is writing your story and you are In Christ. So the story of your walk with Him is written with great purpose and continuing plans of good and not evil. Nothing else matters as long as you realize that God loves you and He’s for you and His plan for you will be fulfilled.

Psalm 27:10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me, But the Lord will take me up.

Isaiah 54:6 “For the Lord has called you, like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,” Says your God.

Philippians 1:6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

Psalm 57:2 I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill His purpose for me.

Psalm 40:5 O Lord my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all Your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them.

Clear Those Stray Thoughts out of Your Mind

“How precious are your thoughts of me…”

We have lots of stray dogs that travel through our neighborhood. A pair of a rather large breed has set up residence, at least part time, in our yard. They come back often. While I like big dogs, I know whose these are so I can’t claim them for my own. Other dogs come into the yard and repeatedly trash things. They might strew things that are on the deck or they might even try to get into the trash. We holler and tell them to get but they come back again.

Our minds can wander too can’t they? Sometimes it seems that our minds want to linger on the same thing over and over. Bad memories, mistakes, wrong thinking like to show up on the doorstep without invitation. Wrong thoughts like to trash our hearts and minds. Out of nowhere those thoughts show up and try to ruin us. If we let those thoughts stay or feed the memories, they grow bigger and bigger.

The only way to keep our thoughts in line is to practice the presence of God and rehearse His Word. Without God’s presence to guard us and without His Word to remind us, we’ll have a constant stream of stray thoughts playing in our minds. But when we start using the Word of God as our weapon, the only one we have, the spoken Word has much authority and the enemy has to flee.

Oh beloved, God’s thoughts about you are precious! They are good and right and comforting! God’s thoughts towards you won’t leave you reeling in past mistakes or rocking over future fears. Two strays will always want to come into your heart and those are past regrets and hard times. Yes, you’ve made mistakes, you may even be living with terrible regret. But God says as far as the east is from the west is how far your sins are from Him. He has forgiven it all. Everything you’ve ever regretted is under the sea of forgetfulness. Those thoughts may return but you can meet them at the property line of your heart and say be gone! Confessing your mistakes and your sins to God lets you know and the enemy know that you mean business with the Lord. It’s a no trespassing sign beyond measure. There are also troubles you may be dealing with and things can look bleak, but God’s Word is true. The enemy may try to parade your desperation back to you, but again you have a high fence of protection around your heart and mind as you read the Word and speak the Word. As you pray to the Father and ask for His help He’s there. As you look away from your circumstances to the Father’s heart you see that those trespassers in your heart are just vapors. Whatever your problem is, beloved, you have God with you and His Word to speak over it, so that you can rejoice as God cleans the yard of stray thoughts.

How precious are God’s thoughts about you! His Word is True. He goes on to say that His GOOD thoughts about you outnumber the sands. Try counting grains of sand and you will quickly see that the sum of those wonderful thoughts about you, His beloved, are more than you can count. Rejoice in His truth, rehearse it often, spend plenty of time with God and you will see that stray thoughts will cease to be a problem in your heart and mind.

God loves you and He’s for you and that’s an impenetrable fortress no enemy can get through as you live in the light of His Word all the days of your life.

Psalm 139:17-18 How precious are Your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, You are still with me!

Isaiah 55:9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts.

Ephesians 4:23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.

Philippians 4:8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

1 John 1:9 But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Psalm 103:102 He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

Psalm3:3-5 But you, O Lord, are a shield around me; You are my glory, the one who holds my head high. I cried out to the Lord, and He answered me from His holy mountain. I lay down and slept, yet I woke up in safety, for the Lord was watching over me.

God's Plans for you Are Wonderful!

“For I know the plans I have for you…” 

Today is my birthday. We all celebrate birthdays in one way or another. To celebrate the birth of a person is no little thing. It’s amazing that of all the days of a year, we all had an ordained day for our presentation to the world. God’s plan. I know all of us have parents who wanted a baby or adoptive parents who wanted to bring us home, but the date of our arrival was no accident. He knew. Before the foundation of the world, He knew you were going to be here. He knew I was going to be here.

God ordained a lot of great things for my life. Along with those great things, there have been some close calls and near death experiences. There have been some things that weren’t so fun. There have been some out –of- this- world wonderful things. My life has been nothing usual; it’s been all very amazing, even in the hard times. For that I am grateful. For seeing God’s hand as I look back on my entire life I am thankful. For Christ bending down and picking me up for His own I worship Him every single day. Good and bad, mixed together, life is beautiful as I look to Him and wait for His plans to continue to unfold in my life.

Your life is no accident either. You weren’t born at the wrong time or under the wrong circumstances. God knows the plans He has for you. He had your days numbered before you were even a glimmer in your family’s eyes. You weren’t a mistake. God’s plans for you were wonderful and they still are. I know things can be rough. I know not everything is perfect in life. 

Today is a choice. We can be sorry about what’s not perfect or we can rejoice in the goodness of God. We can be miserable about things we cannot change or we can rejoice that we’ve made it this far. We can curse the junk that doesn’t really matter or wecan bless the Lord that we’re still here.

Oh beloved, God knows the plans He has for you! You are uniquely God’s creation. It’s the day to rejoice in your birth for God has wonderful plans for you! His plans for you are good and not evil. His plans give you a future and a hope. His plans include Christ, who is the Author and Finisher of your faith. Today is your day too. Choose joy over misery. Choose blessing over cursing. Choose to let God love you and rest in His promises. What a wonderful thing it is to be born. And at such a time as this, you are right where you need to be to reach out to God and let Him lead you. 

Precious one, focus on God! Focus on the wonderful things that God has done for you. Focus on the things you love about your life. Give the things you’re not so sure about to Him and watch as He makes all things good! 

God loves you and He’s for you and that’s why you can know that His plans for you are good as you walk in faith all the days of your life!

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Psalm 139:13-18 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand!

Psalm 71:6 Yes, You have been with me from birth; from my mother’s womb You have cared for me. No wonder I am always praising You!

What Tools Are You Trying to Use?

One of my friends has been sharing a lot about His walk with the Lord during a very trying time. Just recently he shared about trying to get to church one Sunday when things started falling apart. They raise chickens and there were problems in the chicken house he had to take care of. He realized he wasn’t going to make it to church and got really frustrated. Just as he thought he might blow a gasket he looked at the wrench in his hand and realized it was his daddy’s. After that he relaxed and began to enjoy every twist of the tool.

That really spoke to my heart. Each of us have gone through, are going through or will go through tough times. Often the phrase says tough times don’t last, but honestly sometimes those tough times are long and winding and rough. We get desperate in the midst of it all. As if the hard time wasn’t enough, things just seem to fall apart all around us. We try to get it all back together and we try to move on to better things. But it’s hard. It’s hard to believe God, it’s hard to believe the sun will shine and it’s hard to see where we are in the big scheme of things. We work though, hard sometimes, fighting the feelings, trying to restore order and all the time we’re hoping that things will start working again and we can move on. Frustration, anxiety and even self-pity try to come help us, but they’re useless. They’re not fit tools to use in the hands of a believer.

Just about time we think we’re going to boil over with outrage at it all we look up to the heavens and cry out! And then we see. Our Father God is with us. But He hasn’t left us to our own human devises to get through it all. He’s not just absently looking down from heaven. No, He’s with us. And He has given us tools to get things working again in our faith. He’s given us every Word, breathed out for us, straight from the throne room. We have every tool we’ll ever need and we can use them as often as we need to. They’re unbreakable, unbendable and undeniably perfect.

Oh beloved, are you sitting there this morning looking at the broken things? Maybe you’re wondering how you got to this place? You’ve tried every trick in the book and it’s all a mess anyway. Rejoice! Looking at the things our Father gives us helps us get through the rough times. He’s given you everything you need to get through. Repairs needed? Every tool imaginable is there for you. Grace, favor, joy, peace, and more. Prayer, worship and fellowship with God are our grandest tools. No matter how you feel, no matter what is happening, God Himself is here to give you everything you need for this time. He hasn’t left you, He won’t forsake you and He gives you all you need from the storehouse of His Word to get through.

Rejoice in the Word of God! Look up to the heavens and cry thank you! Then reach for the tools your Father God has given you. Every promise is full of strength for you. They won’t break and they won’t disappear when you need them. You are blessed, you are forgiven, you are walking in the light of God’s Word. You have access to the Lord of heaven and earth and as you pray, as you worship Him right where you are, His presence will be so overwhelming that you will know your life is blessed. God loves you and He’s for you and that’s why you can trust His Word to get you through, fix you up and get it all running for His glory and your good.

Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is tried and purified; He is a shield to those who trust and take refuge in Him.

Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. NLT

Psalm 88:13 But I, O Lord, have cried out to You for help, And in the morning my prayer comes before You.

Psalm 22:2-4 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. He is my refuge, my savior, the one who saves me from violence. I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and He saved me from my enemies.

Psalm 9:9 The LORD also will be a stronghold for the oppressed, A stronghold in times of trouble;