trusting

i just want to bring myself to this place..  the blog!  ha!

i'm about to venture off to bed, dream, sleep, rest, lie down, take a snooze...  you get the picture.  

but i needed to get some words out and feel satisfied, if you know what i mean.  thanks... 

many people are going through some difficult seasons. i wanted to declare, as the heavens are speaking and we are responding, because we can hear heaven, right?!  :-)

...... can you hear our cries?  our requests made known? i know YOU hear and have heard.  my heart is longing for hope in the healings and my mind is settling on the unknown, but faith lifts up and carries me and shows me that i'm not alone. the body of believers are standing firm.  they are listening to the battle cry!  we are one with the Holy of Holies and we are needing His armor, His voice, His hands, His truth, His visions, His spirit, His reigning, His desires, His EVERYTHING to encompass His bride, at this hour, for this time.. Your will be done, Your heart chooses.. you, alone are God, sovereign...  trusting, your daughter... lisi

dream on!

i still can hear my friend, emma's voice, and see that beautiful smile on her face as she spoke these encouraging words for girls of all ages to hear~

"no dream is too big, no dream is too small..." she shared/spoke that for a simple dvd i was grateful to produce for women to encourage them to pursue their dreams, no matter how young and no matter how mature in age they are; no matter the circumstances, no matter what the stronghold may be.. God hears the voices and He knows how to speak to the desires and builds us strong and stronger in our spirits, in our minds, and in our hearts, so that we can pursue those callings, those dreams that He has created for us, before the foundations of the earth were put into place! wooooohoooo!

here is my dream:

to visit and to be with young girls and young women and older ones in india that have been through and are going through difficult trials such as being forced into a life that is degrading and horrific, to say the least.. i want to be jesus there, with the skin he gave me and reach out with love, that he gives me, to bridge them over to the throne of grace, the arms of mercy, the spirit of perfect love from heaven! (this bookmark i found recently found at barnes.. it reminds me of these beauty people!)

what's your dream? i'll be praying for you~

love, lisi

1 peter 4:8

"love covers over a multitude of sins"

just read these few sentences in the prologue of the book, 'practicing the presence of people; how we learn to love' by mike mason....

wanted to share~

'.....pondering the verse, i think of a gentleman taking off his coat and laying it over a mud puddle so that a beautiful lady in dainty shoes may walk across. in this parable, the gentleman is Jesus, the coat is His blood, the beautiful lady is you and i, and the love is the bridge across which we walk into one another's arms.' (pg. 6)

i love you Jesus... thinking sooo much of you this tuesday~ love, lis

wilderness love

i was spurred on by my dear sally friendship this week... something about knowing, being in, talking about the wilderness.. (actually, the holy spirit moved on my spirit through my amiga....) frederick buechner writes on love in the book, 'a room called remember'.. amazing writer!
i am reading a book about wilderness now, so it was truly cool to read once again the words of buechner... i first read this sermon in the book, 'secrets in the dark/a life in sermons', last fall..
i thought i had not read it, for some reason, when i spoke to my friend.. i went home and saw that i had, and man! i had underlined a lot!!
i was inspired to re-read it and remember.. so grateful i did.. thanks sally! :-)
here are some passages that speak so well, i think:

Deuteronomy 6:4-7 (he quotes the scripture)
................hear, o Israel! only more often than not we hear nothing because we live in a wilderness where more often than not there is nothing of god to hear. and of course it was in just such a wilderness that the great words of moses were trumpeted forth in the first place, and the people who first heard them were in the wilderness with him, as wandering and lost as we are, with nothing to keep them going but the hope of a promised land, which much of the time seemed a promise so remote and improbable that even the bondage they had left behind them in Egypt looked hopeful by comparison. ....................even in the wilderness-especially in the wilderness-you shall love him.
.....................the final secret, i think, is this: that the words "you shall love the lord your god" become in the end less a command than a promise. and the promise is that, yes, on the weary feet of faith and fragile wings of hope, we will come to love him at last as from the first he has loved us-loved us even in the wilderness, especially in the wilderness, because he has been in the wilderness with us. he has been in the wilderness for us. he has been acquainted with our grief. and, loving him, we will come at last to love each other too so that, in the end, the name taped on every door will be the name of the one we love.
............."and these words which i command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."........
and rise we shall, out of the wilderness, every last one of us, even as out of the wilderness Christ rose before us. that is the promise and the greatest of all promises.

are you in a wilderness love? i'm in the wilderness of love and it's a manna journey and a blessed sweet joy, with surprises and unexpected moments of care, trust, faith, comfort, laughter!(my favorite!), and so many other emotions, and fruits of the holy spirit of the LIVING GOD!
i will choose this day.. and the next, and the next, with his hand leading... to love the lord god with all my my heart, and with all my soul, and with all my might. woohoo!! :-)


after i finished typing some of the sermon, i was looking for a picture for this post... i ran across this dvd/movie that is based on a true story.. thought it was appropriate to share since it's the same 'subject' of leaving the 'one we love and promised to', and returning to the promised love in the end... the real god is our covenant god! i haven't watched the movie, so sorry if it's not good production wise, etc.. but the summary is good, i thought~

Summary

Inspired by a true story, the made-for-TV Personally Yours stars Valerie Bertinelli as the recently divorced Susannah Stanton. Shed of her husband Jesse (Jeffrey Nordling), an Alaskan rancher, Susannah strikes a blow for independence by opening up her own restaurant in Anchorage. Still, there is something lacking in Susannah's life, and her three children think they know what it is. Placing a classified personal in the local newspaper, the enterprising kids advertise for a perfect father, knowing full well that their specifications match one man and one man only -- their own dad Jesse. An engaging illustration of the old saw that "love is lovelier the second time around,"



happy day to you this friday!! love, lis

kung-fu fighting party and spiritual warfare destiny!

we decided to wait until our friend, georgie, a karate instructor, was in town last saturday to celebrate bud's 9th b-day with his close friends and family.. man! i wish i had pinata pictures! we had a great kung-fu fighting time!! woohoo!!

wanted to share some of the pics here!

have a really nice and totally spiritual fighting day today! i feel the heavens are in warfare and i know that we are positioned with our heavenly father, our savior/brother and power-filled spirit of the LIVING god! (the trinity! the true warriors and the only way to 'fight' in battle is with TRUTH!!!) i LOVE that so much.. and need that so!!

the battle is the LORD's! along with these fun pictures, i am posting just a few of god's promising words on this subject of battle!

blessings are yours, with ten-thousand behind!! wooooooooooooohhoooooooooo!!! and AMEN!

Judges 3

1 These are the nations the LORD left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan 2 (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience): 3 the five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in the Lebanon mountains from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo [a] Hamath. 4 They were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the

LORD's commands, which he had given their forefathers through Moses.
5 The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. 6 They took their daughters in marriage and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.
Othniel 7 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD; they forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs. 8 The anger of the LORD burned against Israel so that he sold them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram Naharaim, [b] to whom the Israelites

were subject for eight years. 9 But when they cried out to the LORD, he raised up for them a deliverer, Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, who saved them. 10 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, so that he became Israel's judge [c] and went to war. The LORD gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him. 11 So the land had peace for forty years, until Othniel son of Kenaz died.
Ehud 12 Once again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and because they did this evil the LORD gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel. 13 Getting the Ammonites and Amalekites to join him, Eglon came and attacked Israel, and they took possession of the City of Palms. [d] 14 The Israelites were subject to Eglon king of Moab for eighteen years.
15 Again the Israelites cried out to the LORD, and he gave them a deliverer—Ehud, a left-handed man, the son of Gera the Benjamite. The Israelites sent him with tribute to Eglon king of Moab. 16 Now Ehud had made a double-edged sword about a foot and a half [e] long, which he strapped to his right thigh under his clothing. 17 He presented the tribute to Eglon king of Moab, who was a very fat man. 18 After Ehud had presented the tribute, he sent on their way the men who had carried it. 19 At the idols [f] near Gilgal he himself turned back and said, "I have a secret message for you, O king." The king said, "Quiet!" And all his attendants left him.
20 Ehud then approached him while he was sitting alone in the upper room of his summer palace [g] and said, "I have a message from God for you." As the king rose from his seat, 21 Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king's belly. 22 Even the handle sank in after the blade, which came out his back. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it. 23 Then Ehud went out to the porch [h] ; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them.
24 After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, "He must be relieving himself in the inner room of the house." 25 They waited to the point of embarrassment, but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their Lord fallen to the floor, dead.
26 While they waited, Ehud got away. He passed by the idols and escaped to Seirah. 27 When he arrived there, he blew a trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down with him from the hills, with him leading them.
28 "Follow me," he ordered, "for the LORD has given Moab, your enemy, into your hands." So they followed him down and, taking possession of the fords of the Jordan that led to Moab, they allowed no one to cross over. 29 At that time they struck down about ten thousand Moabites, all vigorous and strong; not a man escaped. 30 That day Moab was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace for eighty years.
Shamgar 31 After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel.

Isaiah 27
Deliverance of Israel 1 In that day, the LORD will punish with his sword, his fierce, great and powerful sword, Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; he will slay the monster of the sea.
2 In that day— "Sing about a fruitful vineyard:
3 I, the LORD, watch over it; I water it continually. I guard it day and night so that no one may harm it.
4 I am not angry. If only there were briers and thorns confronting me! I would march against them in battle; I would set them all on fire.
5 Or else let them come to me for refuge; let them make peace with me, yes, let them make peace with me."
6 In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit.
7 Has the LORD struck her as he struck down those who struck her? Has she been killed as those were killed who killed her?
8 By warfare [a] and exile you contend with her—with his fierce blast he drives her out, as on a day the east wind blows.
9 By this, then, will Jacob's guilt be atoned for, and this will be the full fruitage of the removal of his sin: When he makes all the altar stones to be like chalk stones crushed to pieces, no Asherah poles [b] or incense altars will be left standing.
10 The fortified city stands desolate, an abandoned settlement, forsaken like the desert; there the calves graze, there they lie down; they strip its branches bare.
11 When its twigs are dry, they are broken off and women come and make fires with them. For this is a people without understanding; so their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor.
12 In that day the LORD will thresh from the flowing Euphrates [c] to the Wadi of Egypt, and you, O Israelites, will be gathered up one by one. 13 And in that day a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled in Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

Ephesians 4:10-20

The Armor of God

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

women vs. wild!

i bought 2 books on january 1 this year.. i wrote in the inside page, "for me; happy 1st day of 2009!!!"
i shared one of the books last week in a blog post, and now this book, 'wilderness skills for women; how to survive heartbreak and other full-blown meltdowns', by marion jordan (a houstonian who has insight for us girls, and shares her personal story beautifully...)

one of the parts i'd like to share here from her book: ch. 3, the wilderness of temptation, pg. 66....
'in the bible, worship is not primarily about singing songs or acts of devotion. it is about one thing: offering a sacrifice. something is placed on the altar and dies. when job, in the midst of his suffering, falls to the ground and worships, he offers god a sacrifice. what is this sacrifice? after carefully and prayerfully reading his story, i believe the sacrifice made by job that fateful day was this: the expectation to have life on his terms.'

marion writes with beauty about life and the real struggles, the ones that she's walked and heard and seen during her last 10 years of knowing christ..
i know of many women, all ages, that are going through a 'wilderness', and that need to choose, to decide, what survival skills to take, to receive.... i want to garner wisdom and be a part of the story of redemption that so many are in, including this young woman... glory is god's! woohoo!!

marion's website: http://www.redeemedgirl.org/
marion's blog: http://redeemedgirl.blogspot.com/
marion's vision: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_O56buH42c
youtube for the book: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFvh2Gvcq2Q

joy journey

mike mason, one of my favorite authors, wrote a simple book, or more like a personal devotional, about rediscovering god's gift of joy. 'champagne for the soul' is a 90 day joy journey. i started reading it while on a trip last week to tennessee. 2 page reading a day, and man! it fills you up, so to speak!! ;-)

my dear mom-in-law, ma, as i call her, would re-read the ones i had read, aloud, while i drove. as we started down the road to kentucky, to see her aunt evelyn, who i now call my aunt evelyn, ma would read, and we'd cry, say, "thank you father.." etc..

i so desire to express joy, but i first have to acquire, obtain, find, get, pursue, grab hold of....this precious, priceless gift. joy. so cheers!! to champagne for our souls, true joy!

(here's a 'day' that i loved reading; hehehe, i skipped around a bit! it's day 25! soooo good~and i may add my 'thoughts' in parenthesis's) oh! and the day i read this, was the day that we all went to the tennessee aquarium; the butterfly display, was a beautiful inside temp. controlled room, with butterflies EVERYWHERE! and they were gorgeous! and i kept looking for them, and looking for them, and it never got old, or boring! joy came...... indeedy it did!

STANDING OVATION

let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy. PSALM 107:22

when it it a sacrifice to offer thanks? when i don't feel like it. this marks the difference between thanksgiving and gratitude. gratitude is an attitude of heart, whereas thanksgiving is an act. if the act of giving thanks is not performed, gratitude will not develop.

years ago, realizing i needed to develop gratitude, i began the practice of saying thanks to god for five things every night before bed. i still do this whenever i feel the least bit low. looking for reasons to be thankful, instead of focusing on worries or fears, is like putting on a new pair of glasses. life looks different through the lens of thanks. (i love that!!!!)

if you are so low that you have only one prayer to offer, let it be a prayer of thanks. it's the easiest way to pray and often the most powerful. moreover there's an intimate connection between thanksgiving and joy. in some circumstances thanksgiving, like forgiveness, is both the quickest and the only route to joy. prayers of thanks, offered from the heart, always draw one closer to the light and therefore to the fire of joy. (woop!!)

giving thanks is a way of gathering joy. imagine yourself in a meadow chasing butterflies with a net. though the meadow is full of spiders, you don't notice these; neither are you concerned with weeds or scraps of letter. you aren't collecting spiders or weeds or litter. you're collecting butterflies, and your sole focus is on capturing those brightly colored flecks of beauty.

joy requires single-mindedness. the world is full of reasons to be sad or distressed, but beauty and goodness also abound. which to look at? what you see is what you get. (man! that speaks!!)

now imagine yourself in a meadow gathering wildflowers-violets, let's say. there are other flowers in the meadow, but you have eyes only for the purple violets. when you're finished, do you have a fistful of stones or twigs or grasses? no, you have a bouquet of violets.

every day joy waits to be gathered. will you take the trouble to fine it, cherish it, be grateful? joy is like a stranger standing on you doorstep, and gratitude is the host who opens the door and says, "do come in and make yourself at home." without gratitude, joy stands forever just outside the heart, making gestures that go unnoticed. (i had to re-read that line, over and over..... )

a joyful experience isn't really ours until we call it to mind and give thanks for it. how many such experiences are lost on us every day because, living without reflection, we never take time to pray them through our door? (wowza!!)

is god less good to us on our bad days? no, he doesn't change. he's always awesome and loving. doesn't he deserve for for us to be happy? isn't he worth celebrating? he tips the sky like a goblet of light over our heads; he dresses the continents in the satiny robes of the seas. (beauty, and i'm tearing up!) if he'd done nothing else, wouldn't these feats alone be worth a continuous clap of joy?

joy glorifies god. when we fell good, god looks good. don't be half-hearted for god; give him a standing ovation every day. it's what he's waiting for. it's what you're waiting for too. your whole being waits to erupt into thunderous and unending praise. you won't be happy until you do. you won't be happy until your first waking thought is of the glory of being alive. you won't be happy until like a little child you can hardly wait to get out of bed and tiptoe downstairs to see what magic awaits you. you won't be happy until you forget your problems long enough to look up to heaven and be stunned into heartfelt thanks for a life overflowing with goodness. (amen!)

(pg. 49-50, champagne for the the soul; rediscovering god's gift of joy by mike mason)

to blog or not to blog!

hey! i was thinking in the shower this weekend about my blog.. why i have one, what i share, etc... :-)
friends/family may read this blog, but that's not why i'm writing on 17 diamonds, so just others can read or comment, or share.
it's a bit more needy on my part/i don't like to admit, maybe a lil' selfish, for me! :-D

blogging sort of reminds me... of a church, a place of truth, a place of finding, seeking, knowing, hoping. a 'safe' place, and a quiet place. doesn't matter the time or the day/i'm a night owl! 24/7; if i'm sick or not, with make-up, or not! come as you are~

so, as i was talking out loud and scrubbing my scalp, hehehehe, i said, "lord, this is a 'place' for me to share my thoughts, my ideas, my heart, my soul, sometimes intimate vulnerable places for me, songs, family pictures, friends/relationships, times with you, papa... i love sharing, and connecting; reading and seeing other friends/people share and connect and live, laugh and love!! ;-) that's my favorite part, lord.. just good ol' fashioned encouragement, and joy, and at times, crying with someone else, trying a new fabulous recipe/yum!!!, 'hearing' a heart, relating with a women in a 'going through', learning something new and different, remembering the past, living in the present and hoping for the future, reading about your hand, papa.... it humbles me, it lifts me, makes me smile, makes me want to reach out, reach in, fill up more with you, and be apart of your creation...

thank you, lord, for the blogworld! ha! bless the sharers and the ones that are in need today, and please allow your people, the fruit of YOUR spirit to go forth in them, to be multiplied in the readers, the listeners, the ones wanting to blog/to share and perhaps be healed, or begin the journey of your truth, today! for this is the day YOU have made! you designed it just for us, god.. your 'blog' is beautiful!! i love you.. "

yep.. it was a longer shower than usual, and i was cleansed in a really cool way, and that is all for now~ here's 2 links to 2 of jill phillips' songs, 'a lot like me'. really great tune, and i love the lyric. http://jillphillips.com/albums/good-things-2008/10/lot-me and 'nobody's got it all together' http://jillphillips.com/albums/nobody039s-got-it-all-together-2006/1/nobodys-got-it-all-together (thanks, jill!)

here is a christmas picture that makes me smile and feel really good!! i love my family~

may you receive the shunshine from the SON this beauty monday day~

love, lisi

deliver christ!

my family and i watched casting crowns christmas special on the gospel channel
last week. we were so glad we did!

max lucado has insight, and man! did he share a simple message, that i personally, have not heard quite like that.. i tried finding a 'live' viewing or even the script or sermon of what he shared that night.. can't find it, but! here's he's link... maybe it will show up, or i just didn't find/see this beautiful message there.... http://www.maxlucado.com/

but, i found this when i checked out the site just now.. max can sure 'deliver' a message to the body of christ/and to the world in great need.. http://maxlucado.com/pdf/upwords.heavenly.exchange.pdf

http://www.maxlucado.com/christmas/ it may be here? but i couldn't listen to all of these great messages... ;-)
this series looks amazing.. okay.. i better stop 'browsing!!' ;-) http://maxlucado.com/fearless/
bless mr. lucado and his family papa!

Deliver Christ to the World

Grace for the Moment: Volume 2 by Max Lucado

“I work…using Christ’s great strength that works so powerfully in me.”
Colossians 1:29
The virgin birth is more, much more, than a Christmas story; it is a
picture of how close Christ will come to you. The first stop on his
itinerary was a womb. Where will God go to touch the world? Look deep
within Mary for an answer.
Better still, look deep within yourself. What he did with Mary, he
offers to us! He issues a Mary-level invitation to all his children. “If
you’ll let me, I’ll move in!”…
What is the mystery of the gospel? “Christ in you, the hope of glory”
(Col. 1:27 NIV)…
Christ grew in Mary until he had to come out. Christ will grow in you
until the same occurs. He will come out in your speech, in your actions,
in your decisions. Every place you live will be a Christmas. You, like
Mary, will deliver Christ into the world.
from
Next Door Savior
-=- by Max Lucado -=-

soul thinking

i receive devotionals from alicia's website, and this one was truly a blessing.. thought i'd share~ ;-)

I wouldn't have written it this way

from alicia's book, Sitting in God's Sunshine

I wouldn't have written the script of my life this way Father God.
What would you have changed Child?

I would have deleted unnecessary pain.
What kind of pain is that?

Senseless misunderstandings, incurable illnesses, and undeserved injustice. These produce nothing but tears in my heart and aches in my soul. I could have done without them Father.

I too could have done without sin's shadows and pain's piercings. But because of choices made long ago and choices re-made every moment I myself had a choice to make: turn my back on sin's shadows or personally embrace pain's piercings.

What did You choose Father?
I chose the path of what you call unnecessary pain.

Why? How?
Actually, You helped me. Before you were born Child, I saw you and My love for you was greater than Life. Through sweat and blood I measured my love for you and its passion fixed My Life willingly to a cross. By embracing pain, I robbed sin of its power to crush you.

Then the shadows will not destroy me! But there are still tears in my heart and aches in my soul.
Yes Child. In Mine as well. But even there you can find a treasure if you allow the tears in your heart and aches in your soul to grow dependence upon Me in your spirit.

Reflection Questions

This tender dialogue between Father and Child reflects on soul-bruises. If we think of our lives as a movie, all of us have scenes we wish could have been deleted or edited. These are the bruising memories that cause us to wince, to ache, to question, to move faster. Consider the following thoughts as you reflect on this week's devotion.

One ~ In your memories of the more painful moments of your life, where is God? Do you picture Him watching? Sleeping? Helping? Absent? Protecting? Distracted? Critiquing? Where is Father God in your painful memories? Take a few moments to consider the truth that God was and is as near to you as a mother is to the child in her womb.

Two ~ In this story, the Father speaks of how His love for Child fastened His life to the cross. As a child, my daddy would ask me, "Do you know how much I love you?" Then he would stretch out his arms as far as he could and say, this much.
Ask God how much He loves you. Hear Him whisper, "This much child," as he stretches His arms out wide, upon the cross. Know that His intense love for you strengthened Him to endure pain so that you could embrace freedom: For God so loved the world, that He gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3.16

Three ~ I call dependence a 'treasure.' How can dependence be valuable when we live in a culture that applauds independence? Choosing to be dependant upon God is not a vote for passivity or weakness. Choosing to be dependant upon God is a vote for active reliance by dependence we intentionally immerse ourselves in God's strength.
Remind yourself often in the coming days that even in pain you can find treasures if you avoid the path of bitterness and choose the path of dependence.

http://www.truthportraits.com/
© alicia britt chole ~ onewholeworld, inc. ~

love dare

we are all 4 learning about love.. the love dare!

i bought the book a few months ago.. left it sitting there, glancing at the words on some of the pages. challenged, and fully charged, i dated the first dare, so i could look back years from now (ha!) and remember when.. ;-) but, instead of going on with each 'dare', i thought it would be really cool and a blessing to share with laur and bud and chris! (adapting it slightly with the kids/and having the marriage part for chris and i) so we started last week.

first dare: LOVE IS PATIENT

here are some really neat lines we liked and boy! are we submitting to papa to help us all!!!!!

and to allow his holy spirit to guide us and to change our way of thinking, even, when we start serving out cold love to each other, and to strangers, and friends/family.. and to Him....

we are born with a lifelong thirst for love.

love changes our motivation for living.

love is built on 2 pillars that best define what it is.

those pillars are patience and kindness.

patience brings an internal calm during an external storm.

patience is where love meets wisdom.

patience helps you give your spouse/friend,etc.. permission to be human.

it gives you the ability to hold on during the tough times in your relationship rather than bailing out under the pressure.

what would the tone and volume of your home be like if you tried this biblical approach: "see that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another" (1 thessalonians 5:15)

http://thelovedarebook.com/

father.. thank you for filling our hearts with your love, and we seek you, you alone! lead us, lead our families to love each other, so that people will know you!

i want to speak these words you spoke, today, for us, that we may be transformed and washed by your holy words and that you, jesus, will lead us to love.. no matter what! "Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other." (John 13:34-35 (The Message)

i love you lord~

His promise

this picture may seem a little corny in that it's just a picture.. but it's true.. i read a lyric from sara grove's new christmas cd.. 'it's true' is the tune.. made me think of how REAL it was when he first arrived and how amazing it will be to ride with my king someday, for real! the one true GOD, and the only savior! woohoo! revelation 22:20 says.. he who is the faithful witness to all these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon!" amen! come, lord jesus!

i would like to share what i thinking and reading today... god has given me, all of us, many many promises.. when he speaks, i try, we all try, to listen, and hear; when i read his words, hear others teach/preach/share, and just his spirit in my soul and mind, i am hopeful, encouraged, blessed and so much more ... his promises are true!

in john 16 i read again about hope of his holy spirit, his name, his desire, HIS hope to have relationship again with us, his creation!! wow.. i'm very humbled and very grateful.

John 16
“I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. 2 For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. 3 This is because they have never known the Father or me. 4 Yes, I’m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning. I didn’t tell you earlier because I was going to be with you for a while longer.
The Work of the Holy Spirit 5 “But now I am going away to the One who sent me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. 6 Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. 7 But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. 10 Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. 11 Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.
12 “There is so much more I want to tell you, but you can’t bear it now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14 He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’
Sadness Will Be Turned to Joy 16 “In a little while you won’t see me anymore. But a little while after that, you will see me again.”
17 Some of the disciples asked each other, “What does he mean when he says, ‘In a little while you won’t see me, but then you will see me,’ and ‘I am going to the Father’? 18 And what does he mean by ‘a little while’? We don’t understand.”
19 Jesus realized they wanted to ask him about it, so he said, “Are you asking yourselves what I meant? I said in a little while you won’t see me, but a little while after that you will see me again. 20 I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn over what is going to happen to me, but the world will rejoice. You will grieve, but your grief will suddenly turn to wonderful joy. 21 It will be like a woman suffering the pains of labor. When her child is born, her anguish gives way to joy because she has brought a new baby into the world. 22 So you have sorrow now, but I will see you again; then you will rejoice, and no one can rob you of that joy. 23 At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. 24 You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.
25 “I have spoken of these matters in figures of speech, but soon I will stop speaking figuratively and will tell you plainly all about the Father. 26 Then you will ask in my name. I’m not saying I will ask the Father on your behalf, 27 for the Father himself loves you dearly because you love me and believe that I came from God. 28 Yes, I came from the Father into the world, and now I will leave the world and return to the Father.”
29 Then his disciples said, “At last you are speaking plainly and not figuratively. 30 Now we understand that you know everything, and there’s no need to question you. From this we believe that you came from God.”
31 Jesus asked, “Do you finally believe? 32 But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. 33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

frederick buechner writes: ...."the whole life and ministry and death of jesus is in a way a figure of speech for god, a metaphor for the love that was in him; and what jesus is telling the disciples is that up until now they have seen only the metaphor.... but the time will come when they will see the god in him plainly. the time will come when they will see plainly for themselves his love itself..... shadows, echoes, dreams, odd moments in our lives that speak at best ambiguously and brokenly of him-they are the most we have seen of jesus." (from a room called remember-a little while)

It's True
by Sara Groves

In your heart you know it’s true, though you hold no expectation

in the deepest part of you

there’s an open hesitation
but it’s true

kingdoms and crowns

a God who came down to find you

it’s true

Angels on high sing through the night alleluya

heard it told you think

it’s odd the whole thing fraught with complication

the play begins with baby God

and all His blessed implications
but it’s true

kingdoms and crowns

a God who came down

to find you

it’s true

Angels on high

sing through the night alleluia
alleluia, alleluia
Oh it’s true

kingdoms and crowns

a God who came down to find you

it’s trueAngels on high

sing through the night allelu

while many voices speak to us about promises, my heart leaps!! because i KNOW his promise(s) are true!! thanks be to god!

thankful

november is really my favorite fall month! love the changes, and the beauty that our creator chose for this glorious season.

thankful for this time, i thought about what was spoken this morning in worship, about what malachi, a prophet, spoke to the people back in about 430 b.c. long time ago! whew! ;-) but still relevant today...
he was the last of the old testament prophets.

the first line in the book.. "i have loved you deeply," says the lord. (malachi 1:1)

i am pretty sure this gave those people at that time, a message of hope; and for all people in every year after, and through every season they go through.

this is such a 'short-read' for an OT book! but wowza! what meat it truly brings to the table!

as i listened to the teaching, i was reminded of ALL that god has done for us all. he did and still does everything WELL. he gives his BEST. do i? this can be: challenging? convicting? redeeming? loving? oh yeah! and soo much more, i believe.

towards the end of this book, the lord says in ch. 4, v. 2.. "but for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. and you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture. " that picture is amazing to me!! :-)

as i read the notes in my life application study bible.. they apply to this 4th chapter..

'these last verses of the OT are filled with hope. regardless of how life looks now. god controls the future, and everything will be made right. we who have loved and served god look forward to a joyful celebration. this hope for the future becomes ours when we trust god with our lives.'

as god helps me evaluate and look closely to my committment to him, to the body of christ, his body.. and in my sincerity and heart of my worship, and then.. the direction or purpose of my life, i pray and ask him to heal and continue restoring my spirit and my relationship with him and others on a consistent basis.. and like malachi shared with those people, god is still using that 'voice' then, to speak into our hearts and minds today.

i am thankful for god's LOVE and Forgiveness.. thanks be to HIM!! forever and ever!!!

i have this song on my playlist. thought it was cool for this entry..

bless you!! god is SO fond of you!!!

"Thankful"

Somedays we forget

To look around us

Somedays we can't see

The joy that surrounds us

So caught up inside ourselves

We take when we should give.

So for tonight we pray for

What we know can be.

And on this day we hope for

What we still can't see.

It's up to us to be the change

And even though we all can still do more

There's so much to be thankful for.

Look beyond ourselves

There's so much sorrow

It's way too late to say

I'll cry tomorrow

Each of us must find our truth

It's so long overdue

So for tonight we pray for

What we know can be

And every day we hope for

What we still can't see

It's up to us to be the change

And even though we all can still do more

There's so much to be thankful for.

Even with our differences

There is a place we're all connected

Each of us can find each other's light

So for tonight we pray for

What we know can be

And on this day we hope for

What we still can't see

It's up to us to be the change

And even though this world needs so much more

There's so much to be thankful for

(here's the connection for some info/teaching on malachi/that i heard today: http://www.theoaksonline.org/members--attenders/red-oak-fellowship/)

more HOPE givers!

i just 'met' this gal, pati, from phoenix, arizona recently. not face to face, but blog to blog!! hehehehe

she is an amazing photographer! i am really glad that she is pursuing all that god has for her and her beautiful family. she has 3 gorgeous children, and a handsome husband! she adds to the beauty!! and she inspires, and gives many HOPE! from the true HOPE source..

i think of her and how her family is facing cancer. this is not a journey i have personally experienced, but i believe that we all have 'cancer's' that come into our lives.. i have made choices that have brought that malignancy, into my life/and others. i have repented and i have made better decisions, but in the end.. there are scars.. i call them 'good scars'. the ones that keep me humble, alert, prepared for battle, free, aware of the love that saved me, and... since those cancer's in our lives may not be permanent, they can be washed in the divine healing waters, cleansed in the pure sacrificial blood of our saving god! thanks be to god!!!!

i'm blessed to know this woman, and many others that have brought HOPE and have been vulnerable enough to share their story(ies)..

and through our pain or our past situations.. we can now choose to be the wounded healers, like christ.. the ones that use those tender moments/memories with the father of life, to be producers of HOPE and be perhaps the catalysts to 'heal' those same cancers in others; whether strangers, or close friends, or family.. or us, once more.

i wrote a song over 10 years ago during some of those moments for me, personally~

You Are

jesus, jesus

please hear my cry

a voice you've heard many times

spirit of the risen king

pour yourself on me

chorus

you are my healer

you are my release

savior, you know my needs, you are

you are my comfort

you are my peace

jesus, you meet my needs

you are, you are

jesus, jesus

please use this cry

to heal a soul like mine

spirit of the living king

pour yourself on me

chorus

jesus, you are

pati's website and blog.. you will be blessed!! with HOPE and more~

http://www.patipakulis.com/

http://www.patipakulis.blogspot.com/

producers of HOPE

i was thinking a lot about hope this weekend. i looked up the defintion just now..

Hope is a belief in a positive outcome related to events and circumstances in one's life.
Hope is the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.
To hope is to wish for something with the expectation of the wish being fulfilled, a key condition in unrequited love.
Hopefulness is somewhat different from optimism in that hope is an emotional state, whereas optimism is a conclusion reached through a deliberate thought pattern that leads to a positive attitude.
When used in a religious context, hope carries a connotation of being aware of spiritual truth.

so... i'd like to share 3 people (i don't know them, but they are known by many people in the world) that have blessed me with HOPE. producers of hope, if you will~ first, a man who is inspired by his faith in god to write beautiful pieces of truth for us; second, a woman i just met, whose life has already given me more HOPE , and third, a musician/singer, songwriter, that always blesses my life with truth and HOPE.
there are many many others. friends, family that pour out so much of the father's hope to me. i may share more this week, as my heart reflects on divine HOPE.

GOD is my one true HOPE!

i just read a sermon outloud with chris on the way home from the train
depot saturday; 'a room called remember' by frederick buechner. his writings, teachings.. man.. i can't get enough of the insight and truth that is so eloquent, so god-led and driven; it shakes my brain up! ha! no, really.. my heart is more full of papagod each time.. grateful.
chris loves his works, and what god does to our hearts to challenge us with his real truth. and that truth often, actually always, penetrates our souls to bring us freedom.. and so so much more!
thanks be to the living god!

anne beiler founder of annie's pretzels, came to speak during a worship service sunday and she shared her heart and soul about her life, her past. what held her, and how her past strangled her freedom.. she was hopeless...

i really appreciated her candidness, but more.. how she chose to keep perservering through her mess, her secrets..

i bought her book, 'twist of faith', after she spoke, and she signed the inside page, "Free Indeed!". her and jonas, her hubby, had a vision years ago to help and encourage many to seek out hope.. the HOPE giver. http://www.gapfamilycenter.org/index.php
oh! btw.. she spoke at the republican convention in september this year.. blessed me! http://www.youtube.com/watchv=wSsWIOH3544


sara groves, a singer/songwriter, wrote this song, "it might be hope".
i instantly thought of friends, family and situations that this song could 'speak' to.

here are the words to the song..
i have in on my playlist here on my blog as the starting tune~

You do your work the best that you can
you put one foot in front of the other
life comes in waves and makes its demands
you hold on as well as you're able
You've been here
for a long long time

(chorus)

but Hope has a way of turning its face to you just when you least expect it
walk in a room you look out a window and something there leaves you breathless
you say to yourself
it's been a while since I felt this
but it feels like it might be hope


It's hard to recall what blew out the flame
it's been dark since you can remember
you talk it all through to find it a name
as days go on by without number
You've been here for a long long time

chorus

here are some parts of that sermon that mr. buechner wrote, that i mentioned earlier..

........'then hope. then at last we see what hope is and where it comes from, hope as the driving power and outermost edge of faith. hope stands up to its knees in the past and keeps its eyes on the future. there has never been a time past when god wasn't with us as the strength beyond our strength, the wisdom beyond our wisdom, as whatever it is in our hearts-whether we believe in god or not-that keeps us human enough at least to get by despite everything in our lives that tends to wither the heart and make us less than human. to remember the past is to see that we are here today by grace, that we have survived as a gift.'

......'remember those moments in our lives when christ came to us in countless disguises through people who one way or another strengthened us, comforted us, healed us, judged us, by the power of christ alive within them. all that is the past. all that is what there is to remember. and because that is the past, because we remember, we have this high and holy hope: that what he has done, he will continue to do, that what he has begun in us and our world, he will in unimaginable ways bring to fullness and fruition.'

(taken from: 'a room called remember', uncollected pieces)

info on these authors/writers, and scriptures:

john 8:31, 32 (nlt)
31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

hebrews 4:12 (nlt)
12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

http://www.annbeiler.com/
http://www.frederickbuechner.com/ (coming soon!)
http://www.buechnerinstitute.org/
http://www.saragroves.com/

WOMEN OF BEAUTY

in new york city, 25,000-33,000 women marched on fifth avenue to advocate their right to vote. it was a pre-election parade for women suffrage in NYC. wow! i love this... back on october 23, 1915, women were trying to 'convince' the government, an assembly of men, that they were equal and should be able to have a 'voice' too. to vote!

woohoo!!!!! you did it gals!!! :-)
Finally, the long battle for the vote for women was won on august 26, 1920, when a young legislator voted as his mother urged him to vote.

Charlotte Woodward was the only participant in the 1848 Convention who was still alive to cast her vote. Eighty-one years old, she cast her vote proudly. Finally, the long battle for the vote for women was won when a young legislator voted as his mother urged him to vote.


Women in ancient Israel:
Women's status and freedoms were severely limited, by Jewish law and custom in ancient Israel. Generally speaking:

• they were restricted to roles of little or no authority,




• they were largely confined to their father's or husband's home,




• they were considered to be inferior to men, and under the authority of men -- either their father before marriage, or their husband afterwards.
  

From the Second Temple period, women were not allowed to testify in court trials. They could not go out in public, or talk to strangers. When outside of their homes, they were to be doubly veiled. "They had become second-class Jews, excluded from the worship and teaching of God, with status scarcely above that of slaves." Their position in society was defined in the Hebrew Scriptures and in the interpretation of those scriptures. Their status was not unlike that of women in Afghanistan during the recent Taliban dictatorship.

very humbling....

what triggered this blog about women, ironically, as today was a day that had this event, was an article, 4 Women Astronauts Talk About Space Exploration, in reader's digest that i read to my daughter just last night! (november 2008 issue)
http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/4-women-astronauts-talk-about-space-exploration/article102220.html

and of course... today.. we have Mrs. Sarah Palin running for vp! yeah!!


WE HAVE COME A LOOOONG WAY BABY!! blessings come from the father in heaven, who made us women in HIS image! thanks be to GOD!

i looked up some passages in the bible to read what He shared...


genesis 1:26, 27

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”
27 So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.


galatians 3:28


28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.


i wrote a song 10 years ago, "we are", that makes me think of what heaven, the trinity, longs for in the body.. HIS bride~

"we are"


we are building a place
where we can stand
in spirit and truth
relying on god's hand

unite us, lord
in one accord!

(chorus)
we are, coming together
we are reaching in
we are, called to his purpose
to love as a friend
we are joined to him
we belong to him
we are, we are

we are searching for those
who have no home
the wayward soul,
for those who cry alone

unite us, lord
in one accord!

(chorus)

we will seek GOD'S FACE
and love with his grace

(chorus)
we are, we are

UNITY

unity is really quite a chore, huh?!! :-)

i wondered about that today.. 458 years ago, mr. bucer tried to submit to the king, the 'authority' of the land, what was on his mind, his heart. i like this guy! gutsy.. and someone that we can remember and be grateful for. maybe, just maybe, he helped others understand, and perhaps the 'seed' of god's truth, was planted then, and continues to grow and bless us today. thank you martin!!

oh! btw.. he wasn't perfect.. hehehehe... no-one is~

he was soooo zealous, but in his weakness to 'see truth' he compromised at times. a lesson for us today. truth stands on it's own. with or without our 'help'. our passion should never lead us to compromise or to gain what we want or what we think we need or want. our lives need to demonstrate god's love as best as we can, as HE fills our souls, daily..

the trinity is our model of true unity. i'm trying to understand this, and hold it inside my heart and learn what i can to love; even when there are disagreements and difficult times.

here's a scripture from matthew that makes me think... forgive us, lord, for sometimes, we truly don't know what we're doing.. but with your mercy, grace, perfect love.. you bring us through! i can be at peace with you and others~

matthew 24

4...Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you,

5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many.

6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately.

7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world.

8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.
9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers.

10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.

11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people.

12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold.

13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come.

Unity of the church is an eminently desirable thing. To compromise for the sake of unity leads not to unity, but to further trouble. Bucer made important contributions to the Reformation; but his zeal for unity remains an abiding warning against compromise of the truth of the gospel for purposes of attaining mere outward unity.

When Reformer Martin Bucer handed his book, The Kingdom of Christ, to John Cheke on this day, October 21, 1550, he was sure that England's King Edward VI would see it. The boy-king was under the supervision of men who were in sympathy with the Reformation. One of them was the royal tutor, John Cheke.

Luther, Calvin, Melanchthon, and Zwingli are names from the Reformation that almost everyone recognizes. Martin Bucer's name is not. And yet he was among the five or six most prominent reformers, and was the author of many scriptural commentaries. John Calvin was deeply influenced by his thought.

Martin Bucer began his religious career as a Dominican, but converted to Protestant views in 1521 after reading works of Luther and Erasmus. Excommunicated by the Roman Catholic church in 1522, he moved to Strasbourg where he became a Protestant leader.

With the success of Protestantism, a new problem arose: Whose Protestantism? Each leader interpreted the Bible differently. For example, Lutherans and Zwinglians could not agree on the exact nature of the Eucharist (Lord's Supper). Bucer labored to bring the two sides together, proposing formulas that he thought might be acceptable to everyone. His attempts met with distrust on every side. Luther scornfully said to him, "It is better for you to have your enemies than to set up a fictitious fellowship."

Bucer himself thought that "Those who do not make a whole-hearted effort to do the things that are pleasing to the Heavenly Father" should not "declare themselves citizens and members of the kingdom of Christ." In 1548 he refused to sign a faulty peace agreement and had to leave Strasbourg. Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury, invited him to England and made him a professor at Cambridge University.

Bucer's sharp eye quickly saw the needs of his adopted country. Friends urged him to write a practical proposal for reform. He called it De regno Christi (The Kingdom of Christ). "It would seem fitting to write for Your Majesty a little about the fuller acceptance and reestablishment of the Kingdom of Christ in your realm," Bucer said in the preface. He defined the kingdom of Christ as God's total administration by which saints are saved and preserved.

Did the book make any difference? Edward died young and had little influence on England's future. However, when the young king wrote an essay on reforms, it echoed Bucer's ideas, listing the same abuses Bucer had named (including wastefulness, and official corruption); and suggested remedies that could have come straight out of Bucer's work. The Kingdom of Christ championed education and other topics. Edward also became a champion of schools.

Bucer died in 1551; but his story didn't end there. After Edward's death, the Catholic queen, Mary Tudor, considered even the memory of Bucer so dangerous that she had his bones dug up and burned. His tomb was destroyed. When Queen Elizabeth came to the throne, she promptly reversed Mary and had Cambridge restore Bucer's honors.

(copied from: http://chi.gospelcom.net/)

life's little instructions

my good friend's momma gave me 'the complete life's little instruction book' last christmas. i was drinking some celestial seasonings tea last night and noticed on the side of the small box was 'the wisdom of daily life', with 8 different instructions from the same author of my little book...
i smiled thinking of each one as i sipped the hot wellness tea. thought i'd share a few that i read from the book she gave me.. thanks h.j.b. jr. for your insight~ (more to come later....) :-)

• be the first to say, "hello."


• learn three clean jokes.


• make new friends but cherish the old ones.


• make the best of bad situations.


• always accept an outstretched hand.


• hug children after you discipline them.


• slow dance.


• never give up on what you really want to do. the person with big dreams is more powerful than one with all the facts.


• don't major in minor things.


• never go grocery shopping when you're hungry. you'll buy too much. (soooooo true!! hehe)


• when someone hugs you, let them be the first to let go.


• don't allow the phone to interrupt important moments. it's there for your convenience, not the caller's.


• seek out the good in people.


• lie on your back and look at the stars.


• live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation.


• compliment even small improvements.


• read to your children.


• sing to your children.


• listen to your children.


• use a favorite picture of a loved one as a bookmark.


• remember that the more you know, the less you fear.


• be happy with what you have while working for what you want.
  

change

a lot of people like the fall. i do too.. but, i thought about it a bit today.
change. lots and lots of it. leaves, weather, elected officials, food, smells, flowers, style/clothes, my children (growing).. just to name a few...
change is a noun but it's also a verb.
this season is about change for me, spiritually... day by day in this fall time, i'm reminded of this simple word. change. it's inevitable and it can be mysteriously altering, inspiring, and moving.
i read numbers 10 and 11 in the bible.. i long to be uprooted of any 'wilderness complaining ways' as my hungry, changing heart asks, seeks and knocks at His door daily.. stability does not mean lack of change, but moving with God in every circumstance. (life application study bible)
God's presence helps me handle change, and it's comforting to know that HE never changes. yea!!