PRAISE Him at ALL Times! \0/

When is the best time to make a joyful noise by praising God? The best time to praise God is all day, everyday to the greatest extent we can, with joy in our heart, and with a song on our lips. Too many of us easily fall into the trap of just existing in the mundane (accepting the world's attitude about life) 'Blue Monday', 'Hump' Wednesday, 'TGIF' (Thanking God Only on Fridays) throughout our weeks on end- of work, rest, play, family time and worship. When we do this, we not only mistake opportunities to have God's outlook on life, but we shortchange ourselves in the very being and nature God has called us to live EVERYDAY. Worship and praise should be into the fabric of everything we do not only on Sunday morning.

Joyful Noise is PRAISING Jesus with a joyful Heart!

Today find a little more time to lift your concerns to God in prayer, and make a JOYFUL noise to Him for all that He has done! \0/

Psalm 100 (KJV)
100:1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

No FEAR!

 Fear is one of Satan's favorite weapons. When you start to feel afraid, affirm your trust in the Lord. Speak out...Resist the devil in His Name, and he will slink away from you. Refresh yourself in His holy Presence. 

Our lives are filled with moments of weakness, painful insults, unforeseen catastrophes, unfair persecutions, and mounting pressures that can overwhelm the best of any saint...but I am so grateful that...My God is Greater Than My Fears!

2 Peter 1:3-4 states, "For His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness...He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them (we) may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world..." 

Living in His Presence is like "living in two realms simultaneously." To be an overcomer, I must 'come over' and capture more and more of His Divine Nature through the application of His "great and precious promises!"

Christ's power resides in us...in weaknesses, in insults, in catastrophes, in persecutions, and in pressures, for 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 states, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. Yet, when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Cor.12:9-10)

We must not become weary in well-doing nor walk in FEAR (trust in false evidence appearing real) what can go wrong, when God has called us into His marvelous light and caused us to triumph in every good work. What is your challenge on today? I dare you to give it over to the Lord and trust that His strength is being perfected within your process of life. Pursue, Praise, Pray, and purpose in your heart that today will be a different day!  \0/

Wading Willingly Into His Will

"I speak to you from deepest heaven...in(to) the depths of your being. 'Deep calls unto deep...(My) billows sweep over you.' Psalm 42:7 states, I hear the tumult of the raging seas as your waves and surging tides sweep over me.

On several occasions as I took several beach vacations this summer, I was awed each time by the vastness and magnificence of the God we serve. While the ocean intrigued me, it also however intimidated me...both at the same time. The way that waves can roll in, crashing over each other, or the way a breeze can send gentle ripples over the glassy surface, gives it an ever-changing, nearly living, breathing, expression of nature. I am clearly reminded that though we serve a mighty big God. He is so personable in that He remembers mere mortals, human beings like you and me and the very things that concern us.

I am also reminded that God's grace, His mercy, His unfathomable love goes far deeper than any soul struggle I may experience or encounter. I cannot earn it, I cannot say that I have arrived or attained from it. I simply can receive from all that God – the Great I AM has, as I do from the beauty and vastness of His great creation, the ocean!

Just as God’s ocean is unending, so is His love, His grace, His mercy! And in realizing this, my misery calls out to His mercy. My sin cries out to His saving grace. I am overwhelmed with praise, captured in worship, as the deepest part of my heart is caught up in the depths of His love. 

I am challenged to come out my comfort zone and delve into the depth of His purposes and plan for my life!  Let go on today, and trust that when you feel you may be sinking that God’s grace is sufficient. His ultimate call over your life is unfailing and His Mercy is not moved by your inadequacies.

Wading willingly into Waters of His Will….

Drawing Near to Hear.

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” (James 4:8)  What do you need to do today, this week, to actively choose your relationship with Jesus over the many important and busy tasks that call for your attention? He longs to bring that freshness to your soul!

Make a choice to become active in pursuing God afresh. Actively choose to spend time in His presence, to expose yourself to music that inspires, to turn off the TV, to invite Him into every decision, to ask Him which fruit of the Spirit He wants to cultivate in your life today, to pray in a quiet space and not just on the run, to listen for His voice, to read his Word and not just a devotional book, and to ask Him to teach you.

Many of times, it is impossible for our physical bodies to exist in its healthiest form if we are not investing physical foods, nutrients, vitamins, minerals and water, and the rest it needs daily to be restored, renewed, and healed of the days activities.

Just like we are unable to operate in our greatest spiritual potential, if we are not investing seeds of God’s truth, the washing of the water of His Word, and the place investing in moments of quiet rest to be renewed and restored in His strength – over our own. 

Therefore, we must choose to make the right choices actively and daily - He will be true to His promise! He will come near and refresh your soul. Then you will once again have that fresh lunch to place in His hands to multiply and to work a miracle today.

If I could a pray a prayer with you today, “Father God, thank you for each person You have brought into your Kingdom.  Thank you for each of their specific roles in the Body of Christ. Give them fresh bread in their times with You so that they will have the freshness of Your truths overflowing in their hearts. Give them insight, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to speak and to do just what the souls around them need so that they can be drawn on in their journey to You.

Bless and protect each of the members of the family of God. Draw them into quiet places to have their own hearts refreshed with the simplicity of Your truths.  Give them divine insight in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen.

Enjoying the Journey!

Have you ever said, I can’t wait until this spiritual test is over...I can’t wait until summer....I can’t wait until I find that next job....I can’t wait for my next car.....I can't wait for my next house...I can't wait until my kids are out of school... out of their diapers/pull-ups....even more so out of my house! Or (you fill in the blanks…)________ --- so that I can be at some next point in my life?  

Well Jesus always prepares us for what is on the road ahead... He says that we should take time to be still in HIS Presence so that He can strengthen us. It is no wonder that the busier we become, without spending that valuable time, the more we end up opening ourselves up to weakness and temptation because we literally need this time to be revived (renewed back to a spiritual life) in Him...

I vividly remember one weekend afternoon, feeling like I had to keep the mouse wheel going rushing in from being out, making a phone call to my husband to give him additional things to shop for while he was at the store, while I also made another phone call to my mom while opening a big can of tuna for a tuna salad until dinner was done. Not really focusing on what I was doing, I told the person to hold while I put the phone between my ear and shoulder and then proceeded to finish opening the can of tuna. Voila! All was well until I set the tuna can down and proceeded to stir in the relish and mayonnaise and noodles, and knocked my bowl into a now empty flying can of which I proceeded to catch with my left hand. VOIL- OUCH! What had just happened?

I was staring down into two of my fingers, my middle finger you could almost see clear to the bone. The can I just caught by its jagged top, also just caught me! OUCH!  I proceeded not realizing how bad the cut was to rinse my hand until all I could see was white flesh in my finger and a big gaping hole of skin. I had my son call his dad as he was doing the dishes. Meanwhile I asked my son what he thought- as he looked over my shoulder in a matter of fact way as he so often does- and he said, “Yep, you are going to need a good amount of stitches.” 

I then replied, “Thanks Howie!” as I proceeded to cry. Eventually I called over a sister from our church who happened to be a registered nurse, who proceeded to confirm I would need to seek urgent care. Of which I spent the next four hours of my evening in the waiting room…WAITING…on the nurse, then the doctor and finally much later that night headed back home. All this time, of which, I had plenty of time to reflect how I needed to s-l-o-w  D-O-W-N!

Now I am sharing this story to not gross you out, but I do share this story to say that it is so easy to get into a RAT("Rapidly –Accelerated- w/Things" I call it!) race of doing so many things at one time, rushing through the day from one thing to the next - not really seeking the rest or mind of God in a matter. I was painfully reminded on this day and now have a beauty mark going forward what it means to truly enjoy my journey.  Although my finger from the outside is totally healed, it is much more sensitive than my other hand when I do certain things, and it serves as a clear reminder and painful experience for me, personally, to help me now remember to slow down…..I also realized on this same day that if it does not all get done…..that LESS can often really be MORE! And it is okay...

The scriptures says that the Lord hates a false balance, however a well-balanced life offers a healthy path and a perfect pitch between calmness and activity, work and play, personal time and professional time, family life and social life, and most of all, time alone with God in His Word and with His people.

I always make it an intentional point to carve out quality time to spiritually refresh myself, strengthen my marriage/family and nourish our corporate and personal ministry to people. To do that, I have to cut into time that could be spent doing other very good, even noble things. Sometimes that can be painful...not participating in something I'd like to do, am asked to do, cannot afford to do or simply cannot do because of previous commitments.

But choosing to say a Healthy balance allows me the opportunity to later stay a Healthy in every thing and leads to a more balanced, productive, peaceful, rewarding life.

I don't want to just be busy, but I want to be blessed. A balanced life blesses me and allows me to more readily bless others.....even those who live under my roof! Are you running the R-A-T race today? If so, I want to challenge you to slow it down, take time outs, and don't rush those times that you get with the Lord. Have a blessed one! Enjoying my journey today....

My 11-"Stitch" Lesson on how to enjoy the Journey!

Jesus is Enough!

We may lacking time, energy, and even money - however we should consider our self blessed if in the Lord. Why? Because our very lack is the very opportunity we have to latch onto the Lord in an unashamed dependence... When we are aware of our natural inadequacies the Lord can impart to us His blessing, training us to rely wholeheartedly on Him.

Last night in leadership training I studied in a Bible study what it meant to experience true wealth in the Lord. The world states to seek after 'things'. The Word of God emphasizes the importance of seeking after the 'God of the things'. 

The travesty is that many of us are wealthy through our relationship with the Lord, and we don't even realize it!  Lack in the natural, sets us up for a far different perspective on life. Like a pair of glasses that magnifies the challenge and shrinks our ability to make a worthy contribution, we may truly feel extremely inadequate. However, we as believers all have eternal and internal riches that supersede what is reflected in the bank account, or what we drive or where we live. It is having the fruit of the spirit, love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, meekness, self-control, those things that can never be taken away when we recognize our source in an eternal God!

"Being confident of this, that HE who began a good work in (me) WILL carry it on to completion, until the day He comes (for me)." (Phil. 1:6)

My lack of confidence is challenged by God Confidence! Therein lies my highest confidence...

In Him alone..

Be a life-giving stream...

I want to encourage you that in all of your getting on today as it encourages in Proverbs 4:7, get understanding.....

Isaiah 58:11, it states "The LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not."

As I was reflecting this morning, I thought about the aqueduct system, one of the greatest discoveries and constructions of the Roman Empire. A system that provided hydration for distances very far away and a totally genius method which made use of gravity, as I have reviewed with my kids on numerous home history lessons, with stone arches to support the water channels.  One particular aqueduct which was built in 109 AD actually carried water to the city of Segovia for eighteen hundred years. For nearly sixty generations this aqueduct provided cool water from the mountains above. But more recently, it had collapsed.

Consequently, it is why it is equally amazing that though it took great brain-power to develop such a powerful tool, it could just as quickly have great demise as it did through a well-intentioned citizen.  It is noted that this citizen observing the ancient structure, remarked, “This aqueduct is so great a marvel that it ought to be preserved for our children, as a museum piece. We shall relieve it of its centuries-long labor.”  So the city decided to construct a modern water system with iron pipes to carry the water, intending to give the aqueduct a long-deserved rest.

What they failed to realize, of course, was their attempt to preserve the aqueduct by stopping the flow of water through it, assured its rapid disintegration! As the sun beat down on the drying mortar and stone, the centuries old structure quickly began to fall apart. Amazingly, nearly 2000 years of service would not accomplish the destructive work of less than 100 years of idleness!

This thought really encouraged me in the realm of how we should view Kingdom work…As we continue to allow Jesus' living water to flow through us (through serving, and actively being a vessel for His Kingdom), we are constantly renewed and preserved.  When we are not active in Him praying, giving, serving, being a witness we often can fall into a position of drying up with idleness and atrophy- a wasting away.…

With so much work to be done, I am also reminded of Luke 10:2 that states, “the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”.  That is why I truly believe that Jesus offered “living water” that would never run dry (in John 4:10, 14) because of the active, vital necessity that we not only have of needing Him daily, but our our lives to ACTIVELY speak of Him daily- loving, accepting, and forgiving others.  We must always remember that we are called to continually become a life-giving stream: the ever-renewing vitality of Jesus’ living water! Not a well of stagnancy. I pray God's blessing on you, and I pray God's leading over you on today.

  

In His Service.