Category: New

Praise the LORD

“Give Praise to the LORD, proclaim His Name; make known among the nations what He has done. Sing to Him, sing praise to Him; tell of all His wonderful acts. Glory in His Holy Name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. Look to the LORD and His Strength; seek His Face always. Remember the wonders He has done, His miracles, and the judgments He pronounced…” Psalm 105:1‭-‬5 (http://bible.com/111/psa.105.1-5.NIV)

WHY can’t we just praise Him? Remember this hymn? “Praise Him, Praise Him….” by Frances “Fanny” J. Crosby? (From Psalms 146:2)

  • Praise Him! Praise Him! Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
  • Sing, O Earth, His wonderful love proclaim!
  • Hail Him! Hail Him! Highest archangels in glory;
  • Strength and honor give to His holy Name!
  • Like a shepherd, Jesus will guard His children,
  • In His arms He carries them all day long.
  • Refrain: Praise Him! Praise Him!
  • Tell of His excellent greatness;
  • Praise Him! Praise Him! Ever in joyful song!
  • Praise Him! Praise Him! Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
  • For our sins He suffered, and bled, and died.
  • He our Rock, our hope of eternal salvation,
  • Hail Him! Hail Him! Jesus the Crucified.
  • Sound His praises! Jesus who bore our sorrows,
  • Love unbounded, wonderful, deep and strong.
  • Praise Him! Praise Him! Jesus, our blessed Redeemer!
  • Heav’nly portals loud with hosannas ring!
  • Jesus, Savior, reigneth forever and ever;
  • Crown Him! Crown Him! Prophet, and Priest, and King!
  • Christ is coming! over the world victorious,
  • Pow’r and glory unto the Lord belong.

LOVE that last verse! Jesus reigneth forever and ever, He is coming back and will be victorious! ALL Power and Glory to Him belong! ALL Power; ALL Glory, Amen!

Be Still

He [The LORD] says, “Be still, and know that I AM GOD; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 (https://psalm.bible/psalm-46-10)

I love how God decides what I’m thinking and writing, sometimes mid-sentence. As I sit outside on the back porch this morning, I was considering how beautiful and unusual it is for the 1st day of August in central Oklahoma. It’s raining; a soft, gentle rain with no wind or lightening, and the temperature is hovering around 70°. More like early March or April, really. Whatever the date, I am grateful for the cooler temps and the rain, and enjoying being outside with the pups. So, gratitude is on my mind…..

As I read and take in the words of Psalms 46, it strikes me again that we humans worry too much. I am all for peace between countries (“Peace on earth!”), and I am adamant about conservation and management of our God-given resources; the plants and animals and the earth itself. It is all here for us to use, not to abuse… and it is critical for us as Christians to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ throughout our neighborhoods and cities and countries.

But be still and read these words from the psalmist:

“Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging….. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; He lifts His voice, the earth melts. The LORD ALMIGHTY is with us; the GOD of Jacob is our fortress….. He says, “Be still, and know that I AM GOD; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The LORD ALMIGHTY is with us; the GOD of Jacob is our fortress.” Psalm 46:2‭-‬3‭, ‬6‭-‬7‭, ‬10‭-‬11 (http://bible.com/111/psa.46.2-11.NIV)

Whatever natural disasters occur, when nation fights nations, He is reminding us again to be still in our hearts, and to take the energy we would spend worrying to instead, worship Him. I really do understand how difficult it can be, and how difficult it IS, to praise God when our lives are in turmoil. I have experienced and witnessed things I couldn’t wish would happen to anyone, but I know that worse things happen to people. There is much evil in this world, and the enemy uses it to try to destroy our faith. It almost worked on me. Years – YEARS – of my life were spent in the enemy’s grasp. It was ugly, at best. Beyond description at the worst, and there are still millions of people caught up by it all. As difficult as it is, I go back to the Psalms to remind myself of God’s power… and to Revelations to see the punishment of evil when God sits on His Judgement Throne. He will reshape the earth and come to dwell with us in the new Jerusalem, the City of God.

“He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” … Then He said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Revelation 21:5 (http://bible.com/111/rev.21.5.NIV)

LORD, if I am anxious about anything, let me be anxious for Your Return! Amen… He will return like a roaring lion!

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GOD IS NOT DEAD

It is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that I am able to survive & thrive here in this world. When I try living life without Jesus, I am a miserable mess. I spent years searching for happiness, as the song says, “Looking for love in all the wrong places…” What about you? Are you searching for that elusive happiness – the perfect man/woman, car, job, clothes, things… acceptance? Having so much ‘fun’ that you can ignore the misery you feel? I can tell you unequivocally, with total assurance, there is only one path to happiness – ONE Way, and it is through Jesus.

“I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling…. That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what GOD has prepared for those who love Him.’ ” 1 Corinthians 2:3,9

Think of the best situation, the absolutely, most breathtaking place you can imagine. Have you been to awe-inspiring places? Seen beauty that is beyond words to describe? Well, imagine those places and things, and heaven will be thousands, no, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of times better! I can hardly wait…. I will get to see Jesus, face to face! I’ll see my earthly Daddy, and my Grandma, and other friends and family who have already gone. Will I see YOU there?

ANSWERS

“This is what the LORD says, He who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it—the LORD is His Name: ‘Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ Jeremiah 33:2‭-‬3 (http://bible.com/111/jer.33.2-3.NIV)

God says to us “Call to Me and I WILL answer you….” Seems like a pretty straight forward statement. I wonder why we question it so often, but really, I already know the answer. We question it, because we don’t get the answer we think we want. God ALWAYS answers prayer. ALWAYS. The first problem is that we ask for blessings on a decision we’ve already made, but we decide (WE decide) that God should agree with it. After all, He’s too busy to deal with every decision we make, right? Wrong. He is aware of, and cognizant of, every single thing that takes place on earth and in the heavens. EVERY. SINGLE. THING.

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” Matthew 6:26 (http://bible.com/111/mat.6.26.NIV)

Another problem we create is that we, in our infinite wisdom, think that we can make better decisions concerning our lives than God is capable of. After all, it’s MY life, so I know better, right? Wrong again, and oh, how wrong.

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” Matthew 6:31‭-‬32 (http://bible.com/111/mat.6.31-32.NIV)

“For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their prayer, but the Face of the LORD is against those who do evil.” 1 Peter 3:12 (http://bible.com/111/1pe.3.12.NIV)

God sees all we do, and He has an answer for each one of our prayers. Sometimes He says yes, sometimes He says no, and sometimes He says wait. Not ‘maybe’, but ‘wait’. Big difference. Of course, being the impatient, ‘I want it NOW’ people (humans) that we are, we often decide that instead of ‘wait’ God really means that we should just make the decision without His blessings and move on with our lives. Guilty as charged, and let me assure you, from ample real life experience….. when God says to wait, it is in your best interest to put on the brakes and WAIT, because every decision we make has consequences. Some turn out well, while others… well, let’s just say that I have had quite a few epic fails in my life because of my decisions. When I let God steer my life, it is SO much better!

“Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.” Psalm 37:7 (https://psalm.bible/psalm-37-7)

I still get impatient and want answers NOW, and then I remind myself that sometimes, waiting IS the answer. Ugh.

Trudge, Plod, Slog

Definition: To walk slowly and with heavy steps, because of exhaustion or harsh conditions.

I love to people watch. At a social gathering, or out in public, I often wish I could be the fly on the wall so that I could observe, uninterrupted. (Of course, another part of me wants to be right in the thick of it all. Quite the dilemma, at times, to see which side of me wins!) One observation that I have made many times is that there are so many people who are trudging through life; heads down and shoulders bowed by the weight of their lives. Only this morning, I caught myself doing the same thing…. trudging, plodding, slogging through the house like the entire weight of the world was on me. (In my defense, I hadn’t had my coffee yet!!) Over and over in scriptures, Jesus says not to worry.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear….” Luke 12:22 (http://bible.com/111/luk.12.22.NIV)

Look up the word “worry” and you’ll find many references in the Gospels and in Peter’s and Paul’s letters to the churches in the New Testament. As a Christian, I know in my head and my heart that nothing can be gained by worrying. That’s not to say that I should never be concerned, or that I should just sit back complacently and expect God to provide for me. Plodding through life is a widespread disease, fostered and nurtured by the enemy. When we are overcome with fear and guilt and worry, is it any wonder that we are trudging through the day? Keep this in mind as you face the day:

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And GOD IS FAITHFUL; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 (http://bible.com/111/1co.10.13.NIV)

As Christians, we are NEVER alone. We NEVER have to face the day alone. We NEVER have cause to worry. As for my trudging through the day… that is the enemy trying to beat me down. Day to day life can get pretty rough to deal with, but you know what? Even when the enemy wins a skirmish and life becomes more difficult, I know the ultimate outcome. Satan might THINK he has won in my life, so I just have this reminder for him:

“So the LORD GOD said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.” Genesis 3:14 (http://bible.com/111/gen.3.14.NIV)

“Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; you do not have in mind the concerns of GOD, but merely human concerns.” Matthew 16:23 (http://bible.com/111/mat.16.23.NIV)

And finally:

“And the devil*, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” Revelation 20:10 (http://bible.com/111/rev.20.10.NIV) *Satan, Lucifer, the (fallen) morning star….

FOREVER AND EVER, AMEN! No more trudging through life, because I have Jesus!

Heaven

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” – Psalm 139:23‭-‬24 NIV (http://bible.com/111/psa.139.23-24.NIV)

I don’t understand David. He was raised up from being a sheep herder, one of the lowest jobs there were, to king over Israel. Power and wealth were his, and he has “anxious thoughts?” Really? At first glance, it appears that he has it made. He is favored of God and man, and there is nothing he needs. Instead of focusing on all that he had, he looked out and saw a desirable woman – a married woman, at that. Disregarding all of his own beautiful wives and concubines, he wanted somethingthat belonged to someone else. He had EVERYTHING he could possibly need, but he wanted more. Sound familiar? I can look at my own life and see similarities. I’m certainly not wealthy by American standards, but I am comfortable. I don’t have everything I want, but we have a nice house and groceries and the bills are (mostly!) paid. I look around me and I am surrounded by memories, yet I want more. I get anxious about how we’ll get by financially, but God blesses us constantly!

It is so incredibly easy to fall into the “more stuff” attitude that seems to rule America and a lot of the world. We have so much already, but it is never enough. Like the psalmist, we should be on our knees asking God to search our hearts and take away our anxious thoughts. If you have accepted Jesus as your Savior as I have, you have – WE have – all that we could ever need. I like the way C.S. Lewis puts it:

“If we accept Heaven we shall not be able to retain even the smallest and most intimate souvenirs of Hell.” – #CSLewis | #TheGreatDivorce

And yet we spend our lives grasping those stupid “souvenirs” …..

Perfect Love

  “There is no fear in love. Instead, PERFECT Love drives fear away. Fear has to do with being punished. The one who fears does not have perfect love.” I John 4:18 NIV
It reminds me that there is no perfect love on earth other than Christ’s Love for us. We try… There are good, even great, marriages out there that we can look to for inspiration. A parent’s love for their child can come close to God’s Perfect Love. We can find inspirational love in looking at people who serve others in so many different ways. There are many examples of love in this world, but even the greatest falls far short of the Perfect Love the Jesus demonstrates for us. If we can’t achieve it, then who can?

Many – and I would say, MOST of us spend our lives searching for that perfect love. We become enmeshed in a marriage with an abusive spouse. We settle for acquaintances instead of friends. We neglect our children in our search for the perfect job, or while seeking to advance our careers. Even in the most loving human relationships we hurt each other. We are afraid of being hurt and in doing so we hurt those around us. Mostly unintentionally, but every day, hour, minute we hurt someone one either through omission or commission. That’s a sad commentary on the human race, but take heart! JESUS loves us with a PERFECT LOVE. He will NEVER leave you or forget you. He will never hurt you! No matter what hurts life, the enemy, throws at you, Jesus is at your side IF you want Him there. I don’t have words to express my gratitude for His Unfailing Love!

No punishment, no condemnation. Just LOVE. Kneel at the throne of Jesus today.

  “And so we know and rely on the Love God has for us. God IS Love. Whoever lives in Love lives in God, and God in them. This is how Love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is NO FEAR in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” – 1 John 4:16‭-‬18 NIV


(http://bible.com/111/1jn.4.16-18.NIV)

And The Greatest of These

 “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails. …. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4‭-‬8‭, ‬12‭-‬13 

Beautiful words; words to live by. Just as Jesus pointed out, and written about by Paul, we are to be united as the body of Christ in LOVE:

  “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.” – 1 Corinthians 12:12‭-‬14 

A Christian is, by definition, in love with the Savior. As Christians, we should be striving to apply that love in every area and every aspect of our lives. Why is it so difficult to love each other? We let so many things get in the way of our love. People, places, things. They will NEVER be enough, and they will ALWAYS disappoint. Welcome to our world. Skin color, economic status, country of origin, whatever …. don’t even bother trying to deny your prejudice. We all suffer from from that disease! It is through our LORD, Jesus Christ, that we can overcome prejudice and live Love. Faith, Hope, Love. ONLY available through Jesus! Hallelujah and Amen!

Let it out so that love can wash over you AND all the people around you.

(Scriptures are from  http://bible.com/111/NIV)

Depression – It’s ALL In Your Head!

So, this post may be focused towards women, but it applies to everyone. 

Over the years, I’ve gone to multiple doctors with a litany of symptoms including fatigue, extreme lethargy, unexplainable aches and pains (and more). They would tell me that there was nothing wrong with me physically; therefore, whatever was bothering me was probably just menopause (really? At age 30???) and definitely was just in my head. Women get stuck with that diagnosis frequently. I have to say:

Bosh. Poppycock. Bologna! 

Turns out the docs were right…. although they were also terribly wrong. It wasn’t menopause, but it was in my head. I battled undiagnosed depression for years. It was only in the last few years that it was recognized and diagnosed, so for many of those years, life was a Catch-22 for me. I knew there was something wrong. There were so many times I fought my way through the fog and ‘molasses’, just to collapse into bed or the couch. If not for my animals and the knowledge that they depended on me, I could have just stayed down for days on end. It was all in my head…. so why wouldn’t my body behave??? My body responded like a sloth, and the effort to do ANYTHING took such effort, why bother trying? Obviously (but only obvious to me), if I were such a failure, really, why stick around? When I would drive somewhere, the pull of bridges and overpasses could be really strong. Who would care that I was gone?

  “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have Life, and have it to the full.” – John 10:10 NIV

I know without a doubt that those thoughts comes straight from the enemy! He is a thief, and he does everything he can to steal our joy and destroy lives. God has given us physicians so that they can help us, not harm us, and any doctor who dismisses us with “It’s all your head” is NOT helping. Whether consciously or not, they are furthering the agenda of the enemy with those words. I already felt worthless; to have a DOCTOR tell me there’s “nothing” wrong, when I could FEEL the wrong inside me…. let’s just say it didn’t help at all! I finally saw a doctor who recognized my physical symptoms for what they really were. I was depressed, not physically ill. At first I resisted the notion. Why would I be depressed? That’s just an excuse for lazy people, right?

No, not at all. After ruling out any underlying physical conditions, this was the conclusion, and she put me on antidepressants. Ugh. There is such a stigma attached to taking these things, especially among the Christian community. I have heard all of the platitudes. “Have more faith. You aren’t praying hard enough. With God on your side you can just push through it. It’s all in your mind; let God have it.” I’ve been prayed over and annointed…. and I still battle depression. I believe that God can heal any disease, IF it would further His Kingdom to do so. He hasn’t cured my depression (yet), so I take that to mean that there is a reason for my depression, I just don’t know what it is – and I don’t need to know. Depression is a real disease, just as much as any physical disease. If you had cancer, do you want people telling you you don’t have enough faith, and to stop taking your meds? I believe that our Great God, Creator God, has given the knowledge to our researchers and doctors to help people with ALL types of diseases, including depression. If you have never experienced it, God Bless you and I pray you never will! It can be debilitating and difficult to diagnose. If you, too, suffer from this insidious disease, then my prayer for you is that your doctor will see it and treat it for what it is.

In all those years, even in the depths of my denial and rebellion and depression, and little voice in my head was constantly reminding me of this:

  “I AM the Good Shepherd; I know My sheep and My sheep know Me….” – John 10:14 NIV

He never left me, even as I tried to leave Him. Like the sheep that was lost, He carried me back to the fold and His Love. He used human doctors and counselors to show me I wasn’t worthless. I will be grateful for modern medicine as long as I live, and for my God, Who never, never leaves me to face the enemy alone. AMEN. 

(Scriptures are from  http://bible.com/111.NIV)