Another Journey Begins

"Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long."  Psalm 25:5

"Lord, let me walk so close to You each day,

that I am always ready with welcome

for Your surprise visits to my life."  B.J. Hoff

Well, dear friends....This blog began in 2010 as a way for me to journal whatever it was that God would give me to share, and really I had no idea that anyone would become a follower besides my parents--(Hi Mom and Dad!)   

This has been an online journal of lessons He's been teaching me along my way.  To know that He has allowed you to join in and even receive a blessing from these lessons is so overwhelming that I can not even begin to grasp it.  :)  He has proven Himself, over and over, and surely He will continue to do so.  Amen?  Amen!

 

First of all. . .God is faithful.      Am I faithful? 

I look back and see so many times my faith has been tested, and I suspect even wavered, in the midst of the storms. 



Instead of faith-ful, I was faith-less.

Instead of fear-less, I was fear-ful.



• The main thing I was concerned about was:  What is God's purpose for my life?  How can He make a difference through my life while I'm on this earth?  

LESSON LEARNED: 

Do not seek God's "purpose for your life" first and foremost, but rather seek GOD HIMSELF .

                     

• The other thing I most frantically tried to find answers for was:  How will I arrive "at that special outcome" that He has planned for me?

LESSON LEARNED: 

God will not show us the "final result" of what it is He has planned for you and me.  In fact, He will only reveal His plan for us on a day-by-day basis--kind of like a flower---opening up one petal at a time.

And IF we do not follow each step in obedience, we'll become sluggish in our walk with Him.

And does the arrow have anything to do with it hitting the target?  No!   The Archer places the arrow in the bow, and stretches that bow.  He finds His target, and when the target is in sight, the Archer will fling that bow, and the arrow is set in motion!  Same with us.  We are to just rest in His hands as He prepares to set us into motion.



So...I said all that to say this.  I went back to school last fall.  Exactly one year ago I was wondering why in the world He would lead me to go back to school. (fear made me doubt everything!)  I went through the required classes so I could apply for the ultrasound program this past May.  There were 140 applicants, and they only accept 16 students each year. 

Today I found out that I was accepted!  As the Lord has opened the door for me to pursue a field that I never dreamed would be possible for me ~ or something He would even have me to do in the first place based on how He's equipped me "musically" ~ I just wonder what does He have in store?  I "thought" He would have me share His music.  And yes, He has opened doors, and continues to receive glory musically. . .but there is someone He wants to reach in this field ~ someone that can only be reached if I go through that door, in His power and in His might, and for His glory.  The "ultra-sound" will be the sound of His good news being shared.  :)  And as He teaches me how to look in to the depths of the human body and understand His creation, may He open my eyes to even more depths of His wisdom!

So, instead of worrying about how life is about to  change  dramatically for me and my family, I'll just rest in the fact that God has opened a door, and He wants me to keep my grasp firmly in His, and step through it.   I do believe that is G R O W T H.  :o)

Giving God the
Room to

Override my ideas while I'm

Waiting and

Trusting Him to

Have His way

That's what "GROWTH" means for me today.

Oh Father, Thank You for allowing me to make it through this past year and for teaching me so many valuable lessons, not just in the classroom, but in the school of LIFE.  Like I told my dear Grandmother tonight, "This past year has been so rough. . .but maybe God is using the rough times to be like sandpaper and smooth out the rough edges in my life.". . .please smooth out the rough edges in me.  And oh, there's a plenty!!  I'll not worry about tomorrow, but just take each day as it comes, for You've promised grace only for each day.  Please use me somehow, for Your glory, even as You lead me to a new path.  Strengthen and encourage not just me, but also my dear friends who may be entering a new path that is unfamiliar territory.   Thank You for Your longsuffering with me.  I'd have given up on me a long time ago, Father!  Thank You for not only rescuing us in our present time of need but also consistently rescuing us each time we call out to You. 
In Jesus' Name, Amen.

When You Have NO-THING to Live For

Saw this little video today, and felt led to share it with you.  It's just a  little over 2 minutes long, but very powerful.  

Going through life, trying to live for "this" or "that," or trying to "accomplish this or that," but not living FOR God, will cause us to come up empty everytime.

We may even feel like there's 'nothing' left to live for.  That's just it, my friend; we are not to live for any THING, but FOR a Person, and that Person is God. 

When you feel you have nothing else to live for, it's time to turn to GOD.  He will give you a purpose for living.   He will give you Himself.

"You may have no power to do it...

but if you surrender to Christ,

He'll give you the power."

"Time will decide if you will not,

and time always decides against you."

Checkpoints to Finding Joy

IF YOU:

• keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and
• from doing as you please on my holy day,
• if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD's holy day honorable, and
• if you honor it by not going your own way and
• not doing as you please or 
• speaking idle words,

then you will find your joy in the LORD,

~ and ~ 

I will cause you to

• ride on the heights of the land and to 
• feast on the inheritance
  of your father Jacob.

The mouth of the LORD has spoken. 
Isaiah 58:13-14

In the fast paced world in which we live, it's so easy to become too busy to remember the goodness of the LORD, unless we deliberately pause and think about Him.  If we're not careful, this fast paced life style will drain the joy right out of us. 

He warns us:  "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching."  (Hebrews 10:25) 

If you're feeling like your Joy in the LORD is "zapped," and you're running on empty---remember, there is joy in His presence.   He is everywhere, but don't forget to go to church and be with His people.  It also seems that He is telling us to allow His Holy Spirit to do through us what we can not do, even down to controlling the very words that come out of our mouths. . . .and when we do our part, He will do His part.   We can be assured of this because the mouth of THE LORD has spoken!  ;o)

Be encouraged.

Thank You, Father, for Your patience in teaching me lessons throughout this journey.  Thank You for Your encouragement, and allowing the Son to shine through the clouds to reassure me that YOU are STILL on the throne.  One day we will spend eternity with You, in the eternal Son-shine of Your presence, and there will be no more storms nor testing of our faith.  As we seek Your face, we find there is joy in Your presence, and this is our strength.  Thank You!  In Jesus' name, Amen.

God = Love

". . . God is love."  I John 4:8

Well, it's been one of those weeks where you wonder what day it is, because it seems like it's just been one long, exhausting day.  Last Friday (July 1) my husband's grandfather passed away unexpectedly.  So instead of heading down to North Carolina for our planned holiday trip, it ended up being to bury his grandfather.  So, the past week has been exhausting emotionally as well as physically.   But through it all, I know that God has been with us. 



He sent little messages of hope to strengthen us. . .
like the night before the funeral,
we saw a double rainbow! 
photo from stock.xchng

Just knowing He is with us during our storms helps doesn't it?  Have you ever been afraid and not known what to do with your fear?  Wanting to be rid of your fears, but unsure how to do it, you wonder, "When will I ever get over my fear?"    Well, the night we returned, it was in the wee hours, and I was exhausted...(We all were.)  After I went to bed, I heard my daughter calling out to me. . .oh boy...."It's almost 1:30 a.m., can we not talk about this in a few hours the morning??"  But she quickly revealed to me how she was feeling afraid. (This is her first time experiencing a death in the family.)  In the process of our conversation, the Lord began to reveal to me the following little formula:

In math, we know that both sides of the equal sign (=) must be equal, so they are interchangeable.  Well, as soon as my daughter told me she was afraid, the Lord reminded me of ". . . perfect love casts out fear."   I John 4:18   Then He reminded me of "God is love."  Now, we know that math just doesn't come to a person's mind at 2 in the morning, :o)  (LOL) so I know that the visual for this formula had to come from the Lord!  I began to picture GOD = LOVE  and then substituted the word "LOVE" in I John 4:18 with the word "GOD." 

If God is (=) LOVE and LOVE is (=) GOD, then I can substitute the word "love" with "GOD" in

I John 4:18,  and that means that:

GOD (perfect LOVE) will cast out my fear!

No more pressure to try to overcome our fear!  HE will do it!  And HE HAS done it!   All we have to do is trust!  If we are afraid, it is stemming from a lack of trust in God. 

It's amazing to me to know how exhausted my body and mind have been lately, and see how He continues to speak words of encouragement to me, and gives strength to the weary!   ;o)

Be encouraged!  When you're in the midst of the storm, He is still speaking!  Just tune your ears towards Him and believe that He will speak in the midst of your storm! 

And. . . He WILL!

Hope you all had a wonderful Fourth of July!  Freedom is not free.  And we know that our ultimate freedom was purchased on Calvary!!  

If the Son therefore shall make you free,

you shall be free indeed. 

John 8:36

Thank You, Father, for speaking strength, encouragement and Your perfect, reassuring LOVE to a weary soul!  I pray for my dear friends, wherever they are in their walk with You, to find Your perfect Love truly capable to cast out all their fear!  In Jesus' Name,  Amen.