June 19, 2008

  • Is Your Trust Really in Him?

     

    595954_95660198

     You have plowed wickedness;
          You have reaped iniquity.
          You have eaten the fruit of lies,
          Because you trusted in your own way,
          In the multitude of your mighty men.
    Hosea 10:13

     

    We are so quick to say we trust Him....do we, or have we trusted in our own way...?

     

    Ponder these for a minute....be honest...

     

    Self-life

    Self-sufficiency

    Self-dependence

    Self-motivation

    Self-satisfaction

    Self-intentions

    Self-will

    Self-exaltation

    Self-confidence

    Self-preservation

    Self-gratification

    Self-defense

    Self-pleasing

    Self-ambiton

    Self-image

    Self-rights

    Self-made

    Self-ingulgence

     

    The fruit that you and I are reaping today in our lives and in our relationships with those dearest to us will tell us whom we have been trusting...hear Him speaking,  He is ever calling us to come...to abandon our lives entirely to Him...to trust His plan for our day today.



June 18, 2008

  • Dependent

    "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of
    itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in
    Me. . . . Without Me ye can
    do nothing." John 15:4, 5.

    You are just as dependent upon Christ, in
    order to live a holy life, as is the branch upon the parent stock for
    growth and fruitfulness. Apart from Him you have no life. You have no
    power to resist temptation or to grow in grace and holiness. Abiding in
    Him, you may flourish. Drawing your life from Him, you will not wither
    nor be fruitless. You will be like a tree planted by the rivers of
    water. SC 69

June 15, 2008

  • Take Delight

    I can of
    mine own self do nothing…I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father…John 5:30  Jesus delighted in doing the will of the Father…His life, His sustenance was found in doing His Father’s will…He is our example…

    Synonyms for Delight: Cheer, enliven, elate, exhilarate,
    gladden, inspirit, animate, raise the spirits, inspire; perk up; put in good
    humor; cheer the heart, rejoice the heart; 
    give pleasure.
     
    Transformation begins in the mind. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he... 

    I can choose to delight in doing the will of my Heavenly
    Father for His ways are     perfect, holy, productive, happy, joyful, filled with
    love, life-giving, healing, energizing and of eternal value.          I can be excited about a new day that I can
    walk with Him, a new day He will lead me through, a new day of opportunities, a
    new day of growth – physically, spiritually, mentally, relationally.  All found in Him and all mine – free for the
    taking if I will just come to Him.

    What do I have to lose? 
    Not much and certainly nothing that compares in value to what I stand to
    gain.  I lose only my own selfish ways,
    my cluttered living and muddled thinking, fear and frustration, and transitory
    pleasures. 
    “God does not require us to
    give up anything that it is in our bests interests to retain. In all that He does He has the well-being of
    His children in view.” SC46

    Why do we focus on and fear what we will lose instead of taking
    delight in and focusing on what we desire to gain? 

    I am choosing delight today – will you join me?


    Sabbath gifts I took delight in yesterday:

    21.  Hot cereal coffee made for me by my dh on a cold morning

    22.  Sunlight on the tree tops

    23.  Early morning light

    24.  Unhurried time with God

    25.  My Thompsons Chain Reference Bible

    26.  The book Steps to Christ

    27.  Being able to give my family breakfast in bed

    28.  Sweet red apples

    29.  A drive in the country

    30.  A visit with my Dad

    31.  Primulas in my garden

June 13, 2008

  • Friday's Gifts

    The sun has set and the Sabbath begins and I am grateful for Friday's gifts...

    10.  Time outside watering my garden

    11.  Lunch made by my daughter

    12.  Elizabeth who helps me in my home

    13.  Fresh oranges

    14.  Fruit and nut bread

    15.  Candlelight

    16.  Time on the couch snuggled up to my dh holding his hand

    17.  Time as a family watching an inspirational message by David Ascherick called "Don't Look Back Now"

    18.  Hands that can massage my daughter's back and my son's shoulders

    19.  Hot water and electric lights on a winters evening

    20.  Sabbath peace for 24 wonderful hours

    Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights,
    with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17

  • Can You See It?


    Then saith He unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful even
    unto death,
    tarry ye here and watch with me. 
    Matt 26:38

    I tarried and watched and saw the heart-wrenching anguish,
    the pain & horror as He stares the weight, the ugliness of my sin in the
    face. 
    Sin is repulsive to Him & yet
    He knows He must bear it for me if He would rescue me…
    and He is willing for He
    loves me with a love stronger than the fear of death.

     

    Do I really understand how repulsive and deathly sin is?

     

    I saw written in His face the anguish of rejection by those
    He loved and desired to save
    as they choose their own wisdom and ways –
    choosing death rather than coming to Him for life.

     

    Do I choose my own wisdom and ways?  

     

    And then the anguish of separation from His Father who was
    His life and strength
    for sin separates from the Life-Giver and causes death.

     

    Can I bear to be separated from my Heavenly Father?

     

    The choice is clear –
    to bear these great anguishes or the
    anguish of losing me forever…
    and He chooses me!  And He chooses YOU.

     

    Incredible Love.


June 12, 2008

  • It All Starts With...

    We hunger for knowledge...

    We desire depth of insight...

    We long to be able to discern what is best...

    We yearn for purity and blamelessness...

    We wish to be filled with the fruit of righteousness...

    It all starts with love...

    A love relationship lived out with
    God each day.

    Phil 1:7-11

June 11, 2008

  • Snapshots

    As we visited today,
    He showed me
    snapshots of Himself...

    Director of my steps,
                  my days,
                            my life.

    Pouring out love,
                 grace,
                         and peace,

    Desiring fellowship,

    Faithfully completing
                   His work in me.

    What snapshots did He show you of Himself today?

     

June 10, 2008

  • A Thousand Endless Gifts

    The journey to a Thousand Endless Gifts begins…a conscious
    choice to daily choose to take note of the many priceless gifts that I receive
    – to enjoy them, to cherish them and to be truly grateful for them.  A daily acknowle gement that “Every good gift
    and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of
    lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” James 1:17

    One of the things I learned growing up was that in
    everything we can give thanks.  In the
    last few days my body is fighting to get rid off the effects of a miserable
    cold and as I lay awake last night after another round of coughing, waiting for
    sleep to take over again, I reviewed the gifts I had received during the day,
    the things that  blessed my life and I
    was really thankful for:

    1. Rest
      & simple remedies
    1. My
      dear husband who has cared for me and helped out so I can rest.
    1. My
      daughter who tucked me in and made me a hot-water bottle to keep me warm.
    1. My
      son who fixed my phone for me so I could read xanga subscriptions on it
      again.
    1. Glimpses
      of God’s heart-work around me
    1. Divine
      appointments
    1. Roses,
      a smile and a get well wish from a sweet neighbour 
    1. Delicious green smoothie drinks
    1. Quiet hours in the night

     

    I have been so blessed by your sharing Ann….thank you!

    Have you considered establishing gratitude as a personal soul fixture? Just
    grab a scrap of paper lying around and begin counting the blessings, with your
    own 1000 Endless Gifts.

June 9, 2008

  • The Invitation...

    "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."

    Whatever your anxieties and trials, spread out your case before the Lord.  Your spirit will be braced for endurance.  the way will be opened for you to disentangle yourself from embarrassment and difficulty.  The weaker and more helpless you know yourself to be, the stronger will you become in His strength.  The heaver your burdens, the more blessed the rest in casting them upon the Burden Bearer. 

    Worry is blind, and cannot discern the future; but Jesus sees the end from the beginning.  In every difficulty He has His way prepared to bring relief.  Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing.  Those who accept the one principle of making the service and honor of God supreme will find perplexities vanish, and a plain path before their feet.  DA329/330



May 31, 2008

  • As We Deserve...

    Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated
    as He deserves. He was condemned for our sins, in which He had no share, that
    we might be justified by His righteousness, in which we had no share. He
    suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was
    His. "With His stripes we are healed."



    By His life and His death, Christ has achieved even more
    than recovery from the ruin wrought through sin. It was Satan's purpose to
    bring about an eternal separation between God and man; but in Christ we become
    more closely united to God than if we had never fallen.  (DA25)