the focus ....

a good thought from the Life Application bible:

"Whatever you are considering as the focus of life, Christ is better.  He is the perfect revelation of God, the final and complete sacrifice for sin, the compassionate and understanding mediator, and the only way to eternal life.  Read Hebrews and begin to see history and life from God's perspective.  Then give yourself unreservedly and completely to Christ."

"The Son radiates God's own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command.  When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven."  Hebrews 1:3 NLT

expected ... yet unexpected ... expectantly waiting! ...

my family received an early Christmas present with the birth of a sweet little baby! ... my sister had a little girl!!! ... what a thrill!!! ... and she is just beautiful (babies tend to all be that way!) ...

her arrival made me think of JESUS return ... the bible speaks of a pregnant woman, and about NOT knowing the exact date/time she will deliver ... the signs are all there  - yet we do NOT know when - just that it will be soon ...  Jesus return will be just like that ...

the day my little niece was born was like any other day ... until i got the call at 1pm saying "she's here!" ... my mom said that she had called my sister that day, like every day, to see how she was feeling - and also to ask  how "little emma" was (the name was already picked out, and everyone called the unborn little one, by her name) ... well she got the surprise of her life when my sister said, i'm fine and little emma is fine too - in fact, she's right here in my arms and is just beautiful!!!!  unbeknownst to us, my sister and her hubby had gone to the hospital at 7a.m. that morning and the baby was born around noon ... mom said she was just thrilled and could hardly believe that emma was FINALLY HERE!!!!  she thought it was a dream!!!

now, we all knew my sister was pregnant ... we all knew she was in the 9th month ... we all knew that the baby would soon arrive ... even so, when she was born - it was still a HUGE (and happy) surprise!!!  even unexpected in some ways ...

yup ... I thought, that is just how JESUS return will be ... we KNOW, by the signs He gave us, that He'll return sooner than later ... yet when that soon arrives - we will still be surprised ...

that's why it is so important to not put off asking Jesus to forgive our sins and come into our lives ... to have a relationship with our Redeemer is vital ... we need to be the lights to a dieing world ... Jesus is coming ... Jesus is the HOPE ... and it will all happen when we least expect it ...

even so Lord Jesus ... COME!

be strong ... let not your heart be discouraged ...

we all have weeks that can be trying ... i'm a caregiver ... my husband is the one who deals with chronic pain ... and at times we both get tired ... on those days i need a word ...  i mean A WORD from Him who's Words are bread to the starving soul ... encouragement to the downcast ... a lifeline to the drowning man  ...

the Word that i got was from Ephesians 6:12 ...
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

i was reminded once again, that life here on earth is temporary and fleeting! ... if JESUS is our Saviour, then we are struggling with His enemy and ours, satan ... who loves to see the children of the Most High God discouraged ... but Jesus has already defeated this foe, Victory IS ours in HIM who redeemed us for Himself ... we just need to remain vigilant against attacks that are baseless and keep our spirits resting in GOD ...

yesterday morning, out of the blue, i quoted Ephesians 6:12 to leo as i was giving him his meds ... and this morning, Ephesians 6:12 was quoted in my devotional "daily light" ... coincidence?  nope - since there are no coincidences with God ... i think He gives a heads up on what really goes on during those extra tough days we may experience  ... 

may you find a Word of encouragement for your day ... i  know God has prepared one for you ... 

waiting ...

 

 our house is prepared for Christmas ... our hearts are waiting for the LORD ...

 

"For this world is not our home; we are looking forward to our city in heaven,

which is yet to come."  Hebrews 13:14

a new year approaches ...

i just finished watching the movie "soul surfer" ... wow!  i was so uplifted by the message that came through loud and clear ... it's amazing how the Lord turns adversity into opportunity ... sadness into joy ... and that He knows our load limit - and promises to limit the load!

blessings on you ...

christmas past, christmas present

i miss christmas' past ... when we were able to gather with family - the noise, the children and wrapping paper strewn everywhere ... days that have gone by ...leaving only sweet memories and faded pictures as reminders ... 

these days, as christmas time quiets down for us, the stillness helps my cluttered brain settle on my heart celebration of Jesus'  ...  His redemptive visit to planet earth ... then i look to the future and think of His return visit ... thoughts that my earth bound mind has trouble visualizing  ... yet the spirit born within me, hums and thinks on these things ... angels singing, wise men bowing and lowly shepherds (that'd be me) kneeling with awe ... Jesus has come!

same day pics

i don't usually have a sunrise

and a moon picture

for the same day ... it just worked out today - i happened to notice how lovely they each were ... just in different ways ...

i'm glad the Lord has set a definite span for each day ... if it's a good day, we want it to go on and on ... if it's a bad day, we are glad it's over ... then it all evens out for the many normal days inbetween ...  

the fall season continues to be a challenge for us ... i get a little of that seasonal sadness thing ... and leo gets more pain because it tends to be damp at this time of year ...

i was reading psalm 34 this morning and it encouraged me at the start of  the day ... "i will bless the Lord at ALL times .." ... and now at the end of the day... "the Lord redeemeth the soul of His servants; and none of them who TRUST in Him shall be desolate." ...

that little blue dot

see the little blue dot in the lower right hand corner?  compare it to the sun ...  that's where we live!!!!  this NASA graphic really captures the smallness of earth, compared to almost anything else out there !!! 

it reminds me of the Psalm that says:

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

i pray that you rest easy in the knowledge that God is way way bigger than any problem you may face today ...

God is on your side ...

The Lord will fight for you." Exodus 14:14



I read these words and draw in a deep breath. I need them right now. Don't we all? Oh, we may not go to war.
But we fight...
for relationships
for dreams
We battle...
against illness
against discouragement
I think of you staring at the screen, perhaps feeling your strength is small. Oh, yes, I know what that's like.
But victory isn't up to us.
And those words you sometimes hear?
"You're not worth fighting for."
They're a lie. Nothing more.
This is the truth from the heart of One who calls you His own:
You are loved.
You are worth fighting for.
You are even worth dying for.
So go into your day, strong friend, knowing that nothing can defeat you.
You've already won.


by Holley Gerth, DaySpring Writer

chilly temps

the snow fell and so did the temperatures!!! it is officially a mind numbing -22C as i type this ... and tonight it will probably be -30C ... since it was so chilly - i made some chili ... yum ... it turned out great and helped to warm us up ...

my blues have lifted ... it seems they strike, make me sad - then they evaporate as i read the solid, real, Word of God ... "Thou has enlarged me when i was in distress ... the Lord will hear when i call unto Him ... put your trust in the Lord ... Thou has put gladness in my heart ... for Thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety." Psalm 4 verses ...

blessings on your tuesday ...

daily light on the daily path ...

"God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering."

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. - But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength.

So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continues to do good.

GEN 41:52, 2Cor. 1:3-5, 1Peter 1:6-7, 2Time. 4:17, 1 Peter 4:19

taken from today's reading in Daily Light on the Daily Path - short scripture readings for the morning and the evening ... it has blessed the socks right off my feet ...

just a thought for the new year ...

"... God's grace is not only sufficient - it is inexhaustible. Remember the story Roy Gustafson told of the little fish who said, "I am so thirsty but I must not drink too much . The ocean might run dry." Or the little mouse in the granaries of Egypt who said, "I am so hungry. But I must not eat too much. The grain might not last." Or the little swallow, soaring and dipping through the sky, thinking, "I must not breathe too deeply; I might use up all the air."

Whatever the need, whatever the situation, "he giveth more grace"
(James 4:6). ..."

taken from Legacy of a Pack Rat by Ruth Bell Graham ...


to you my dear blog buds ... i wish a new year that is so full of God's grace - for every and all situations - that your cup will continually run over ... so you may glorify HIM, who redeemed us ... that the world will know we are different and children of the Most High ...

safe harbour

"The brightest souls which glory ever knew

Were rocked in storms and nursed when tempests blew."

~anon

Jesus is the Way Maker

this pic reminded me of a chorus we used to sing ... way back ... do you remember it too?

O here comes Jesus
see Him walking on the water
He'll lift you up
and help you to stand ...

O here comes Jesus
He's the Master of the waves that roll
O here comes Jesus
He'll save your soul ...

Jesus is the way-maker
Jesus is the way-maker
Jesus is the way-maker
He made way for me ...

Once the sun refused to shine
in this sinful heart of mine,
Jesus, He made a way for me ...

faith vs fear

are you feeling some bits of fear trying to settle in the pit of your stomach?
the uncertainty of tomorrow?
the world we once trusted in - turned upside down? ...

these are the times when faith grows -
because what we can physically see and touch, has let us down ...

these are the times when our faith looks up -
because these are the times when our faith is all we have ...
YET ... faith is all we NEED ...

isn't that the truth of it?

when all is stripped away - it's our faith that will hold everything together ...

BE BLESSED ...

sunday greetings ...

I am not the brood of the dust and sod,
Nor a shuttled thread in the loom of fate;
But the child divine of the living God,
With eternity for my life's estate.
I am not a sport of a cosmic night,
Nor a thing of chance that has grown to man;
but a deathless soul on my upward flight,
And my Father's heir in His wondrous plan.
~ Alva Romanes.


This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him!

Romans 8: 16-17 ~ The Message

there is no ones child i would rather be - than God's!!! *huge smile* ...

may you be blessed!

encouragement along the way

here is a thought from 2 years ago ... i wanted to post something to encourage YOU and to encourage ME ... this week truly is a busy one - but i need thoughts like this too! Attitude is the one thing we can control - regardless of circumstances ... BLESSINGS!

God will be right there in the morning ready to help you through the day with all the power you will need . . . one moment at a time.
Charles Swindoll

comfort

In Time of Sorrow
May you see God's light on the path ahead
When the road you walk is dark.
May you always hear,
Even in your hour of sorrow,
The gentle singing of the lark.
When times are hard may hardness
Not turn your heart to stone,
And may you always remember
You do not walk alone.

(A traditional Celtic Blessing)