Where Did the Year Go?

When I checked my Blog site this morning, I was shocked to realize I had not posted in a year! A year!!! Where did it go and where was I? I've been on a journey and it's been a good one. I had a serious heart condition as a result of illness when I was nine years old. That illness and the damage it caused my heart, had been progressing for the last 54 years. Last year, about this time, I started to get very tired and had little energy or ability to do much other than sit and read, which I did. My husband, the doctors and I decided it was time something needed to be done because my health was deteriorating rapidly. I won't bore you with the details, but I had open heart surgery at Cleveland Clinic at the end of January. They performed four procedures on my heart and my recovery has been exceptional. Miracles and God's hand were evident every step of the way from the dear ones who paid for the surgery, the complete peace I experienced, the believers who were part of my surgical care team, those who cared for us with meals and love, and the beautiful recovery of my heart! That's just a portion of what He's been doing in my life, though. He's taught me so much more about His Grace and His forgiveness than I ever knew before! My walk of faith has grown by leaps as I've experienced His love, forgiveness, grace and favor this year. I went into the surgical suite, for an operation I had feared, with absolutely no fear! I'm learning how to walk with the assurance that, Christ in me, is why I can boldly pray and expect Him to answer. The full power and glory of the risen Christ lives in me so when I lay hands on someone who is sick or hurting, it's Christ in me who does the heaing. It's my faith in the One Who Heals as the Healer, not my faith in whether I believe He heals or whether I can heal. It's Christ in me, My Provider, Who supplies everything that I need. That's not my job, my husband's job, or the government's job...He's my Provider! I'm also understanding more about the battle we are in as children of The Most High God! I'm seeing more clearly the enemy's attempts to "kill, steal, and destroy" those who belong to Yahweh, what a clever deceiver he is and how he has no right in our lives unless we give it to him in agreement. He "roars like a lion", but he is no match for my Lion of Judah! I despise the enemy for what he has done to the church and how we have followed him like sheep being led to slaughter. Our lives have become feeble attempts to make our own mixture of works and recognition rather than drinking deeply from the Well that will NEVER run dry or become polluted! We have pushed and published religious fervor until our nation has regurgitated our mixture and, by doing so, rejects God because that's all they know of Him! The Bride is dirty and tattered and no longer the sweet fragrance of salvation we are supposed to be. I certainly don't know all the answers and I'm still wading through some junk I've collected, but I'm going forward with the One Who has all the answers and wants to reveal them to those who will hear His voice. I'm listenting, expectantly, for the voice of my Shepherd...who will follow?

A Stinking, Old, Bloated, Dead Thing!

Well, The Word has done it again and cut to the very quick! Yesterday was the 62nd celebration of the day of my birth. As I started reading the comments that were coming in from friends and loved ones, I started to feel quite pleased with myself! Yep, I was agreeing that Yahweh was pretty happy to have me on His team for I was making a difference and my friends were acknowledging that! I found myself eager to read what the next person would write and my head just kept getting bigger and bigger as my heart started shrinking more and more away from Him. I didn't grow up with much affirmation or encouragement and as the day progressed, I regressed back to that little girl longing for love and affirmation! I was soaking it up like a sponge and bloating up like a puffer fish! Just now as I wrote 'puffer fish', I realized that I was bloating more like a dead animal left out in the heat, because that ugly stuff bloating up was already dead and stinky and not needing to be resurrected! Thank you, Jesus! The Father is so gentle with His tests to reveal our hearts. The comments coming from my dear people were all good and not meant for evil, but as Father looked on my heart, I believe He determined it was time for a test. I've never cared for tests and never did that great on tests and yet, I love His because they create life in me! His desire for me is to be pure of heart which means the impurities have to go. My response was impure and not worthy of His daughter!

Yesterday I had been reading in Proverbs 27 for my morning time with Yahweh and as I read I was drawn to verses 19 - 21. "Just as water mirrors your face, so your face mirrors your heart. Hell has a voracious appetite and lust just never quits. The purity of silver and gold is tested by putting them in fire; the purity of human hearts is tested by giving them a little praise/fame." Just like Abba Father to give me the diagnosis as well as the cure! I'm so thankful that I'm still young enough to be corrected by my Father even at the age of 62! I'm thankful that He can teach 'old dogs' new ways and that we reap the benefits! I'm thankful for loved ones who share exhorting and encouraging words for they are salve and balm and life! I'm thankful for this life I've been given and for the blessing and responsibility of many friends who love Him and me. I give The Master, Jesus Christ all honor and glory for any good thing in me and any good thing that I have done! Without Him, I am just a stinking, old, bloated dead thing! Praise to Him from Whom all blessings flow!!!

"Mustard Seed" Faith

I've been thinking about faith a great deal the past few months. I've thought I understood what faith is, how it works and what it does. Remembering the "Walk of Faith" from one of the Indiana Jones movies and the Bible's explanation of faith, I was sure that I not only knew what faith is, but that I had it. Today, I'm not so sure.

Now, I know I have faith. I know that my relationship with Yahweh is based on faith - I can't see Him, but I know Him and I know He loves me. That's all faith and I'm grateful for it! I know I have faith to walk onto a second story floor and believe that the builders built it correctly to hold all it has to hold and not fall down. But, the "mustard seed" faith that Jesus spoke of in Mark 17 - that, I'm not so sure I have. In Mark 17, the aspotles asked Jesus to increase their faith. He told them, "You don't need more faith. There is no 'more' or 'less' in faith. If you have a bare kernel of faith, say the size of a poppy (mustard) seed, you could say to this sycamore tree; 'Go jump in the lake,' and it would do it." (MSB)

In Matthew 21, Jesus tells his disciples, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to the mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."(NIV) So, looking at those two chapters as well as many others in scripture, I've been thinking about faith a great deal this summer.

I think Jesus was quite clear when He stated that we don't need more faith. I believe we may have some fuzzy thinking when it comes to our own faith. That mustard seed that Jesus talked about, is one of the smallest of seeds and yet, grows a large six to eight food plant that is big enough and sturdy enough for birds to nest in. That's a very small start to a very big faith that is sturdy and safe - bird's only build their nests in protective, safe places! So, our small seed of faith needs to be coupled with our absolute trust in our Father, with no doubts, in order to become alive and useful in our lives and the lives of others. Doubts are faith destroyers that prevent our faith from being active! The best destoyer of our doubts is an intimate relationship with our Father. The more we understand His love and heart towards us and others, the more we can trust Him with the details of our lives without doubting whether He has our best in mind or whether He can bring good out of the circumstances.

It seems to me that the "bare kernel of faith" has to be an absolute, pure knowledge of Who He Is and who I am in Him. That "bare kernel" has nothing covering it; no fear, no doubt, no worry or fretting, no unbelief. Its just pure, undiluted, joyful and expectant faith! I don't think we're seeing too much of that "bare kernel faith" in the Church in America. We seem to have too many distractions, too many choices that start covering our kernels and prevent us from experiencing the Glory of Yahweh in our lives. So, my prayer today for me and my fellow believers;
is not for more faith, but for our faith to be pure and bare; not covered over with the circumstances and worries of our lives, but fully open to the touch and voice of our Master, Jesus the Christ! Then, I believe, we'll experience the active work of our faith and experience the Glory of God being visited on and in us. That's what I want and that's my prayer

Extravagant Dimensions!

Extravagant dimensions! That's what I'm talking about and that's what I'm experiencing more and more in the Father's love. Ephesians 3:16-19 in The Message Bible is God's heart for us and my heart for you.

"I ask Him to strengthen you by His Spirit - not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength - that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite Him in. And I ask that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all Christians the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. God can do anything you know - far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, His Spirit deeply and gently within us."

Experience the breadth, test its length, plumb its depths and rise to the heights of the extravagant love of Abba Father for each one of us! What a wonderful place to be in this new year of life we've been given. I feel as if I'm really just starting to experience those extravagant dimensions, so my future is very bright because there is so much more to know, experience and understand in this wonderful relationship with my extraordinary Father! Take the journey of exploration for yourself, because its for you as well. Receive and experience the amazing grace and love of the Master, Jesus Christ, deep, deep within yourselves. (Phil. 4:23) I'm looking forward to sharing this journey with you!

Grateful Thanks!

Today as I look back over the past year with its challenges and changes, I am so grateful to know that our God has been in control of our goings and our comings! Nothing was a surprise to Him and He orchestrated a few surprises for us that have all been for our good!

I am so thankful for the love of my wonderful husband, who continues to love me unconditionally and unselfishly! With 40 years of marriage under our belts this year, I have another gratitude to our Father for that fete - we could not have made it without His guidance, forgiveness and mercy! I'm thankful for the love of my three children, their spouses and my eight grandchildren! God is so good and He has blessed me with many blessings through them this past year. I thank God for my siblings and my mother who help keep me grounded and appreciative of all the opportunities and help their love has provided. I'm thankful for my Christian family that is spread throughout the world. The love of Abba Father that binds us together and makes us one is the most powerful force in the universe! I'm grateful for the friends from my past that have been brought back into my present and, hopefully, my future! I'm excited and thankful for the plans that Abba Father has for me in this next year and for the health to be able to participate in all His plans.

Oh, He is so good and He's so loving! I'm very grateful to be called His daughter, to hear His voice and to know His love! There is nothing to top it in this world or the next! I love each of you and pray that you will find much to be grateful for as you reflect back on this year. God bless you in His love! Happy Day of Giving Thanks, dear ones.

Prime Your Pumps! or Thanksgiving Blog

Growing up on a farm in Pennsylvania, we had no running water or bathrooms in the house. We did have a wondeful, old, red-handled pump right outside the kitchen door where we could get the coldest, sweetest water on earth! The water came from the flowing creek at the bottom of the pasture and was pumped up to the house from a pump house down by the creek. Frequently, after not being used for awhile, we would have to prime the pump by pouring some water down it to get the water to come out. Once it started coming, we could pump as long as we wanted and the water would keep pouring out!

I've said all that to prime my Thanksgiving Blog! When My husband and I started our family and celebrated our first Thanksgiving in our home, we decided to start doing "Thankfulness Rounds" around the table. Everyone was expected to participate by sharing something for which they were thankful. At first, as young children, they were excited about thanking God for their sister, dog or new toy. As they entered the teenage years they became less excited about our traditional rounds. Each year our children would start off complaining about having to participate in the rounds, so each year we would have to prime the pump and start sharing our own thanks and then passing the turn around the table. Some years we only managed three or four rounds before we stopped and other years we would go about ten rounds. Each year there were tears and laughter by the time we finished and there was the determination by Allen and me that we were doing the right thing. Whenever we had guests join us for Thanksgiving, we always shared our tradition with them and welcomed them to join us in the rounds if they so desired. I don't recall that anyone ever refused the invitation even if they were a mite apprehensive. We have had some wonderful thanks given around our dining room table, thanks expressed by friends of old, friends we met that day, people of other faiths and nationalities and our own dear children as adults! Tears have flowed and laughter has been shared. How enriched and blessed we've been as we've been entrusted with thankful hearts. There is a vulnerability in being thankful. It denotes our dependence on our God and His access into our lives. It relates our interdependency on others. Ephesians 5:20 tells us to give thanks IN everything for this is God's will for us in Christ Jesus. Being thankful keeps our eyes on our Father and what He is about rather than our circumstances. Being thankful is certainly a God thing and because of that, it's a good thing!

Our three children are married with children of their own and all of them now do the Thankfulness Rounds as part of their celebration. Now they're hearing some of the same types of things we did and are also experiencing the joy of thanks given and thanks received. There are now tears at numerous tables and family gatherings. Guests and family members who shared those times with us in the past have also incorporated it into their holiday traditions. So, if you haven't already done so, prime the pump in your own family or gathering and get those thankful hearts going in grateful praise to Almighty God! Start small if necessary, but start & don't quit because if you prime long enough the cool, sweet, water of thankful hearts will come pouring out and will keep coming long after the day of Thanksgiving has passed!

Please, Please, Don't Drink the Poison!

To forgive or not to forgive is one of life's more challeging situations. I'm sure each of you has had many times when you had to choose between forgiving or not, just as I have. The decision to forgive is easier for me than it used to be, but there are still situations where I struggle with that decision. I've discovered when I'm confronted with a second-person offense, when someone I care about has been wronged, it is harder for me to reach that forgiveness decision than when it is only directed at me. I think its that "mother-bear syndrome" even when I'm not their mother!
Some time ago, I read the most dynamic definition of unforgiveness I had ever seen. The author, I regret I don't remember who it was, stated that unforgiveness is when: "We drink the poison expecting the other person to die!" What a perfect picture of such a vile thing as unforgiveness! That's a visual that has spurred me to forgive when my emotions didn't want me to. I hurt only myself when I choose to not forgive. Steve Saint wrote that "Hating someone and holding onto bitterness builds a prison around us. Forgiving others frees us." Forgiveness is first a choice and then an action. To forgive doesn't mean that person deserves forgiveness or that we forget his/her actions, it means we CHOOSE to forgive and then we do so! I choose to not die from poison I've ingested in a prison I've constructed! What a waste of our time, energy and position in Christ. The Bible states that if we don't forgive, we will not be forgiven and I need to be forgiven, hence I need to forgive because the price is too great if I don't! Our extraordinary God prepared an amazing way for our own undeserved forgiveness - Jesus the Christ! How can we do less?