Hello, my name is....

I just had to share this video with you!  It's as though it was written just for me; maybe you can relate to it too.  No matter what our past holds, through forgiveness we become a child of the One True King.  How amazing is that!  I hope you'll enjoy the message of the song as much as I have.  To become a new creation is a great and wonderful gift....

And in our new life, we grow from taking our first steps of faith, continually growing.  This Sunday my pastor spoke on maturing in Christ, and he said something pretty interesting.  He said that who we are inside is more important than what we do.  At first this seems puzzling, but he explained that if who we are on the inside is a person following the Lord with the whole heart, then the actions will follow.  When we love God with our whole heart, soul, and mind we don't want to engage in sin.  When we are filled with His Holy Spirit, our lives will be full of that fruit:

So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.  For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. -Galatians 5:14

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Against such things there is no law.  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.  Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. - Galatians 5:22-25

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness....this is the kind of person I want to be, and it is the Holy Spirit within me that draws these characteristics out more than I am able to show them in my own strength.  On my own, I am a miserable sinner; but by God's grace and Spirit, I can say in all humbleness that I am a child of the One True King...with LOTS of room to grow.  As long as we're here drawing breath we have issues to work on and a reason for being here.  But it's an awesome journey, isn't it?

Wishing you all many blessings in our Father :)

Soaring like an eagle

How wonderful it is to be home!  I've been caring for my ill family member in her home since her discharge from the hospital in September.  She's regained the ability now to walk, so here I am. It's a great joy to sit again in front of my computer and speak with all of you.  I'm sure many of you have been in this situation; as we enter our middle years, our parents and others are entering into their final ones, and we must care for them as they cared for us.  I thank my Father for the strength of spirit that it takes to hang in day after day and often sleepless night.

Here's some of what I've learned:
When I come to the end of what I think I can do, One who is stronger lifts me up.

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.- Isaiah 40:29:31

How do we have strength in him? How does he make us soar?
I find it in prayer.  When we seek him with all our hearts, he fills us.  When we pour out our sorrow, I know he hears.  His peace floods my heart, and I know it is Him.  This is the same for all of us.
We find it in his written word.  It tells us how much he loves us:

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!  And that is what we are!- 1John 3:1
We know and rely on the love God has for us.  God is love.  Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.- 1John:4:16
And one of my all time favorites:
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?  As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."(Psalm 44:22)  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.-Romans 8:35-39

His love and grace is more than enough.  Even in the most difficult of circumstances, he is there, in the midst of the storm to keep my head above the water.  And because of this, I have no fear of the days to come.  As he carries me now, he will carry me then.

And he loves you, too, no matter what you may be going through; whether you have strayed or walk with him daily, he is always as close as a prayer.

Wishing you great blessings! 

The very least of us

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you have me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?'
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'-Matthew 25:34-40
It's easy to walk on by. Maybe sometimes we drop a few coins or even a dollar in their cup.  But as children of God, we have more to give, something infinitely more precious. Hope. We can stop for a moment and talk with them; look them in their eyes, ask their name, and ask if there is something we can pray for for them.  I usually ask if I can pray with them right there or if they'd be more comfortable if I did it later. If they'll let me, I simply take their hands in mine and pray right then and there. And trust me in this: I'm the one who walks away blessed.
.Every one of these people are children of God.  Remember, love is action: it doesn't take much to offer prayer, and then come back with a sandwich and a bottle of cold water.  We need to see them through the eyes of our Father, and when we do, we'll see them much differently. We'll see them through eyes of love.




He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak- Isaiah 40:29

Father, for those who have nothing...please use us, the body of Christ on earth to continue your work in caring for the poor and needy.

Wishing you all blessings.