How did it get to Oct???

Oh my sisters, sorry I have been so negligent on here... mercy me!! May to October?? Well, better late than never? So much has happened since May. I have been working a lot, my oldest daughter turned 21 (not months but YEARS!!!), my youngest turned 19 (also in years), and I'm sure there's more but for now, thats a lot for me. The dynamics have definitely changed in my life. When this (retired) homeschooling mom went back to working, things kind of got dropped, missed, overlooked, etc. It's amazing how UN Superwoman I am... seriously. Do you remember the commercial where the amazing woman on the screen struts to this tune, "I can bring home the bacon. Fry it up in a pan. And never, never let you forget you're a man cause I'm a woman, Enjoli." Um, well I practically forgot my husband was a man but that had nothing to do with the fact that I was a woman! Working retail, I sometimes get home after he's already in bed! Then he gets up and leaves before I'm awake. But we do have cell phones so we enjoy a virtual relationship daily! Haha! So UN Superwoman me has also failed to keep up with housework, reading, quilting, this blog, getting together with friends. Enter God's abundant grace, His grace is truly sufficient. Let me encourage you today that whatever you are facing in this crazy, sometimes break neck speed life, that God is a constant, faithful, sovereign Lord. He never leaves you nor forsakes you and He is a strength when you are weak (trust me I know about me being weak when He is strong!). Let's you and I rest in His grace, be saturated by it, be conduits of it. Take some time today to meditate on the instruments of His grace in your life. You will be amazed at His love for you. Bless you my sisters <3 Let's chat again soon <3

Regrets

The two sides of regret - the doing and the not doing.

1)Not doing: that sickening feeling that a person feels when they realize that they missed an opportunity to do something and didn't take it

2)Doing: that sickening feeling a person feels when they realize they said or did something they shouldn't have said or done.

No matter which side of regret I fall on, that feeling can be like a wave crashing over me. Can you relate? Unfortunately I have felt both sides and with the same results... miserable feelings of regret. It is so easy to get stuck in that place, living in the past and reliving our sense of failure (whether perceived or real). May I encourage you today to look at these experiences through the lens of scripture?

Romans 3:23 tells us that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." But praise be to God that "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." I John 1:9

One of the redeeming qualities of life is that we don't have to live in the past, we can make amends and move forward to make different, better decisions. God knows our frame, that we are weak and sinful yet He has provided a way for us to be reconciled to Himself: through Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection.

So next time you begin to get swallowed up by feelings of regret, remember that God has already made a way for you to be restored and get on the right path again.

Yahweh Tsuri ~ The Lord My Rock Pt 2

There may be times when we are falsely accused or slandered, unfairly mistreated or rejected. During those times, we may be tempted to defend ourselves by fighting back, slandering in return, or retaliating in some other form.

If you have confessed with your mouth and believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again to save you from your sins then you have a powerful defense... you can forgive them and freely turn it all over to God.

Should you find yourself in a situation like the ones I described above, let me encourage you to consider that God is your rock - He is your deliverer, He is your defender. Take refuge in Him, He is your salvation. Trust Him with those people, with that situation, with your hurt.

Echo David's prayer in II Samuel 22:2-4:

"He (David) said,
'The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
3 My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge;
My savior, You save me from violence.
4"I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
And I am saved from my enemies.' "

Yahweh Tsuri ~ The Lord My Rock

When the storms of life are raging or the troubles of life are overwhelming, remember that God is our Rock. He is steadfast, immovable, reliable, unshakeable. Meditate on these truths from the Word of God, make them your prayer and praise today.


"There is no rock like our God."
I Samuel 2:2

"The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge;
My shield and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold."
Psalm 18:2

"For who is God, but the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God,
The God who girds me with strength
And makes my way blameless?"
Psalm 18:31-32

"Let the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer."
Psalm 19:14

"Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly;
Be to me a rock of strength, A stronghold to save me.
For You are my rock and my fortress;
For Your name's sake You will lead me and guide me."
Psalm 31:2-3

"From the end of the earth
I call to You when my heart is faint;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I."
Psalm 61:2

"He only is my rock and my salvation,My stronghold;
I shall not be greatly shaken...
He only is my rock and my salvation,My stronghold;
I shall not be shaken.
On God my salvation and my glory rest;
The rock of my strength, my refuge is in God."
Psalm 62:2,6-7

"And they remembered that God was their rock,
And the Most High God their Redeemer."
Psalm 78:35

Unanswered prayer

There was a country song a few years ago that told a story about a guy who didn't get what he prayed for... his response in retrospect? Thank God for unanswered prayer! Of course this represents a fictitious situation in a country song but it does stimulate some thought.

While building a theological case around a country song might be a little shaky, the question that arises from this is still a good one. Does prayer go unanswered by God?

{Of course, I am not a theologian nor have I undertaken theology courses. So please bear in mind that this short discourse is just some thoughts on prayer that I have thunk (borrowed from Winnie the Pooh).}

I would argue that while God does actually seem silent sometimes, the outcome points to an answer. The singer confesses that he prayed and God didn't deliver but He did. In the case of this song, requests were made and were not granted. God didn't answer yes to the crooner, He answered no.

God's answers vary, yes, no, maybe, and wait. If I have prayed that by a specified deadline I will have a specific answer and it doesn't happen, what was the answer?
Well if I have prayed that God will allow me to book a makeup job that is taking place on a specific date and I don't get that job then I would say, God said no. But I wouldn't stop there, I would go on further to say that He didn't just say no, it wasn't His will for me. God, in His Sovereignty, has not opened that door.

Many times we view prayer with such a limited view - I ask, God gives. What we don't see is that God has a plan for our life and every part of our lives figure in to that, even those little seemingly unimportant things. They really do matter, they capture our hearts and affections; because of that, they can either be for our good or our harm.

Do I thank God for those so-called "unanswered prayers"? As I begin understand God's character, I can thank Him for the answer to my prayer.... yes, no, maybe, or wait.

Discouraged and Weary?

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28

Dear friends,

Forgive my long absence from blogging here, I have been weary and heavy laden.

God in His faithfulness has been ministering to me and bringing me back

to His side, encouraging me as well as gently rebuking me to get up again.

The main thing that God is calling me back to is prayer... over a period of time

I poured out all I had, I crossed the finish line, and collapsed.

At that point, I am ashamed to say,

my ministry of prayer did not continue.

Therein lay my real problem, I did not continue to come to Him, to lay those burdens down.

I did not come to the Water of Life and drink deeply.

Situations arose that burdened my heart,

some that wounded my heart, some that left me stunned.

Do you know, beloved friends, God knew all of that... ahead of time.

And do you know that in His faithfulness He afflicted me?

Why? So that I will begin to count all things as loss and gain Christ,

so that as I share in suffering I will begin to be conformed to His death.

(Philippians 3:7-11)

Ultimately, these burdens, wounds, and disappointments should drive me to my knees,

in humble and persevering prayer for His power, His healing , His grace.

He is able, I am not... He is God, I am not.

He simply says, "Come to me... I will give you rest."

O Lord, I do come, I need Your rest, Your mercy, Your refreshment.

I need You. Lift up my eyes to You, my help, my hope, my Redeemer.

Thank You for calling me, I am grateful for Your faithfulness.

Amen.

Renewing Your Strength

As the New Year begins, here is a good starting point - renewing our strength, strength only our Lord can give and sustain - and a wise path for the whole year ahead.

"Your life cannot be sustained without renewal from God. Just as it is essential to replace the body's energy by eating, the soul must be revitalized by feeding on the Book of God, by listening to the preaching of His Word, and by the soul-filling table of communion.

"How depressed we become when renewal is neglected! How poor and malnourished are the saints who live without the diligent use of the Word of God and secret prayer. If our faith can live without God, that faith is not from God; it is only a dream. But if our faith is from God, we will wait for Him as flowers wait for the dew....

"In humble prayer, draw near to the footstool of divine mercy, and realize the fulfillment of the promise, 'Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength' (Isaiah 40:31)"

taken from: "Morning and Evening", Charles H. Spurgeon, January 2, Evening

Checking in

Hi friends!

What a busy time it is for me made obvious by the fact that I haven't posted in 10 days! My goodness! Over here at our house volleyball season is in full swing - practice planning, practices, games, get togethers. So much fun!

One thing the Lord has been whispering into my soul is that I've gotten away from praying about things and am just thinking, analyzing and planning things. Life gets rolling then my mind gets rolling, and before I know it I'm taking things into my own hands. This is a common battleground for me when life is busy - which happens to be most of the time! So again I find myself repenting of my self-sufficiency and getting back to the foot of the cross.

Praise God His mercies are new every morning and His faithfulness is great. He is so patient with me, He gently corrects me and places me feet back on the right path. I'm so grateful for His tenderness toward me. So I stop and pray for the grace to make it through another day by His strength and not my own.

"The Deeps" - Valley of Vision

LORD JESUS~
Give me a deeper repentance,
a horror of sin,
a dread of it's approach;

Help me chastely to flee it,
and jealously to resolve that my heart shall be thine alone.

Give me a deeper trust,
that I may lose myself to find myself in thee,
the ground of my rest,
the spring of my being.

Give me a deeper knowledge of thyself
as saviour, master, lord, and king.

Give me deeper power in private prayer,
more sweetness in thy Word,
more steadfast grip on its truth.

Give me deeper holiness in speech, thought, action,
and let me not seek moral virtue apart from thee.

Plough deep in me, great Lord, heavenly husbandman,
that my being may be a tilled field,
the roots of grace spreading far and wide,
until thou alone art seen in me,
thy beauty golden like summer harvest,
thy fruitfulness as autumn plenty.

I have no master but thee,
no law but thy will,
no delight but thyself,
no wealth but that thou givest,
no good but that thou blessest,
no peace but that thou bestowest.

I am nothing but that thou makest me,

I have nothing but that I receive from thee,

I can be nothing but that grace adorns me.

Quarry me deep, dear Lord,
and then fill me to overflowing with living water.