Okay.......no excuses this time. It's December 3rd and I have taken a pretty long hiatus from the blog. Thanksgiving, Christmas decorating, trip to the in-laws house for a couple of days and cookies, cookies, cookies!!!

I own a housecleaning business and every year I spent countless days baking cookies for all of my customers. No turkeys, no boxed candy, and no fruit baskets. Only homemade goodies will do for my clients.

This year I decided; nothing but homemade (from scratch) cookies.
I bought new cookie cookie cookbooks and everything.
I was following this one recipe book and before reading the entire recipe; decided that it sounded so good that I quadrupled the recipe. Later at baking time I read these word. "Place 4 teaspoons of cookie dough on the cookie sheet at a time and bake for 6 to 8 minutes until the edges of the cookies are brown."
I almost fainted, but then as I decided not to follow the instructions, I realized just how important that sentence was.
You see, these particular cookies are small. round, delicate cookies that have to be rolled around the handle of a wooden spoon (like a canoli) and then filled with a white chocolate mixture). If you bake too many of them at a time, they cool before you can get them rolled up. Being the hard-headed person that I am; I had to learn this the hard way. So, I spent the better part of two days spooning, baking, rolling and filling these cookies. Then, as if that wasn't enough time consumed; I decided to tie tiny green and red ribbons around them. Well, all I can say is, they had better taste good!!!

Really, I do enjoy the baking, packaging and giving of these treats.
Last year one of my customers called me after she got home and found her tin filled with all her favorites. She said, "thank you so much for the yummy cookies; Devin and I were talking about it on our way home. We discussed which of the cookies were our favorites and how delicious they all are, and that we hoped you had left them again this year." Devin is her 7 year old daughter.
Those are the kinds of things that make it worthwhile to put the effort into it.
It's fun to make other people's holiday just a little more special.

I wanted to update you all on a couple of the prayer requests I have give you recently. Derick Robinson, is being moved into a private room (he's the one with the brain stem tumor) I still haven't heard about the possibility that part of it was malignant. So keep praying, his little boy was back in AWANA last night and telling us how much better his daddy is doing. The other friend, who feared she might have cancer on her tongue found out that hers was not malignant. Praise the Lord for His goodness!! He is so much better to us than we deserve.

As we approach this holiday season, I want to encourage you all to reach out, get outside your comfort zone and do something special for someone this year.
It is after all what Christmas is all about.

Christ gave His everything; we should be following His example.
Celebrate Christ this year by giving to others. You don't have to spend several days baking, or make a long trip. Tie a ribbon around a candy cane and give them to the bank tellers who serve you at the window, or bake a small batch of cookies and give to another person who serves you in some other way. Add a little extra tip for the waitress the next time she serves you.

At the very least, don't neglect to say Merry Christmas to all of them.
I know what the world is trying to do by eliminating Christ from Christmas, don't let them do this to us. Those who claim the name of Christ, should be proclaiming Him to everyone we meet.

Celebrate the true meaning of Christmas.....be Christians....(little Christs).
Let others see the joy of Him in us!!!!

I have an update on Derrick Robinson's condition. He had surgery to remove the tumor on his brain stem. All went well and though the pathology report has not come back to confirm it; the Dr.'s involved believe that at least part of the tissue removed was malignant. They have determined that radiation would not have an affect on the type tumor it is, so they will probably be giving Derrick chemotherapy instead. He is in great spirits and praising the Lord for sparing his life at this point. Mary Beth is doing great and staying strong. Thank you so much for your prayers.

Don and I have a singles Sunday school class that we teach and we learned yesterday that one of our class members passed away during the night on Saturday. Please be in prayer for the Tatum family.

Two others of the singles in our class are also looking at possible cancer and are in the process of having tests done. Whatever God is doing in our church right now is pretty powerful. Many illnesses and deaths in recent months.
But, we know that His plan is perfect for each of these individuals and we will continue to pray for and encourage them to look to him for the completion of his will in their lives.

Again I must remember the passage in I Thessalonians 5:16-18 which says "Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

It's a beautiful passage of scripture. From the heart of a Savior who loves us and wants to see his father glorified through us. But, when the tragedy strikes, it's not so easy to smile and say amen. However, that doesn't change the fact that it is true. God put us on the earth to glorify him through our lives.
Jesus died to secure our salvation, so that this purpose could be fulfilled.
Even Christ himself when he prayed in the garden, said, "If it be thy will Father, let this cup pass from me, but nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done." Christ himself submitted to the will of his heavenly father. When I think about the sacrifice Jesus made for me; the things we suffer on this earth seem very small.

May God give us the grace to face every tragedy in our lives with a view of the cross and a heart of thanks for His mercy and the grace He has provided for us.
Please lift these up in prayer with me! Thanks and God bless you all.

Yesterday I learned that our friend Derrick Robinson's surgery had been cancelled. The doctors have decided that it is much more serious than they previously thought. It appears to them now that the mass is on the brain stem so they are in the process of making a decision about the direction they want to go in. Please continue to lift this family up to our Lord. He is the God of miracles and this family needs a miraculous healing from God.

As I was thinking about this situation, I remembered a passage of scripture that our pastor, Jeff Lyle has made reference to many times concerning God's will.

I Thessalonians 5:16-18-"Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing.
In every thing give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

We are called as Christians to give thanks, no matter what comes, because God has made it clear in His word that He is in control of our lives and His plan will be accomplished. Because His ways are so much higher than ours, we cannot always understand the way He works, but; over and over again, He proves that He knows what is best.

We are commanded to be thankful.....this is a very bitter pill to swallow when an illness or other catastrophe that we do not understand, ask for, or agree with, comes into our lives.
We are not asked to understand, we are simply asked to rejoice, pray and give thanks. Through every trial, if we do these three things and trust our Savior, no matter what the outcome, our faith in the Lord will be strengthened.
And God will receive the glory whatever the results.

I have been a Christian for 45 years and during those years I have experienced the peace that only God can give during a very difficult and impossible to understand situation.

Wow, I really dropped the ball!!! Aren't you guys relieved? I mean, now you can take me off that pedestal you had me on!! Now you know I'm human!!
Ha Ha, seriously kidding. God is so good to me, not because of what I've done or who I am, but because of who He is and what only He could ever do!!
Sounds a little like a song I've heard!! But it is totally the truth, and I believe it with all my heart.

Now, to a serious prayer request:
I have a Christian sister who just found out yesterday that her husband (the father of two small boys, 3 years and 15 months) has a mass on his brain.
He was having a headache on Sunday all day, they took him to the hospital yesterday and after a catscan discovered the mass, they are concerned and will do surgery early this morning.

Please lift up Derick Robinson to the Lord in your prayers and his wife Marybeth, their sons Drew and Zane. The Bible says in James 5:15 "The effectual, fervent prayers of a righteous man availeth much." The Robinson family needs Gods intervention right now and our support. Let's pray and believe God for the strength, protection, support and healing that only He can give.

Dear Lord, you are the mighty, majestic, all powerful, omniscient, omnipotent, healer. We trust you today with our brother, Derick Robinson. Lord, we know that you have a plan for everyone of your children. This is obviously part of the plan for Derick's life. Lord, we beg today for your mercy and grace on behalf of this family. God, they need your understanding and tender hands of comfort and love today as they go through this trial with Derick's health. God you are able to do so much more than we can even imagine. Please give the Dr.'s skill today as they operate and guide their hands as they start the healing process.
Please, dear Savior, be with Marybeth and the boys, give her peace in her heart, and comfort in knowing that Derick is in your hands. Help those of us who love the Robinson's and their extended family to reach out to them and be the hands and feet of the Savior. We love you Lord, and trust this family to your keeping.
May everything be done according to your perfect and holy will. A-men

As I met last evening with my dear friend for our Bible study, I was struck by just how little I knew about the tabernacle, it's construction and the significance of the elements used by God's people to worship and have restored fellowship with him. But I also was able to realize how very blessed we are as Christians today. We are continually in God's presence. His Holy Spirit lives within us. Jesus Christ is the intercessor for our prayers to the Father. We can pray directly to Him and know that God has promised us that He will hear and answer. We no longer have to make animal sacrifices, because the pure, holy, perfect, without blemish, Son of God was the lamb, slain for us. When He was on the cross and cried out "It is finished" the work to secure our salvation was complete forever!!!!!!

I hope you know Him today as your Savior. What a privilege to be able to say that I am a child of the King. Praise God for His wonderful love, His continuing presence, and His awesome provision for our eternity. Thank you Jesus!!

The tabernacle Bible study has brought us to the golden lampstand.
The lampstand is the only source of illumination in the tabernacle.
Exodus 25:31-40 gives the instructions for making the lampstand.
It was to be pounded out from one piece of pure gold. The design included a main stem with six branches going out from the two sides of the main stand.
It was probably the first menorah. There were a total of seven lamps on the stand. Can you imagine what it must have looked like to see the illumination of the golden lampstand against the gold walls and the white linen drapes overhead with the blue, purple and scarlet cherubim embroidered on them.
It must have been breathtaking!!
The lampstands were not candle holders, I found this so beautiful...Beth Moore
said, "One major difference exists between the way a candle burns and the way a lamp burns; a candle burns by consuming itself, while a lamp burns by consuming a continuous supply of oil from another source. The seven lamps on the one golden lampstand were fueled by oil (pure olive oil).
In Leviticus 24:2 & 4- we are told that the Israelites were to bring the oil and the lampstands were to burn continuously.

Beth Moore uses this analogy to drive home a very significant point.
"We are the heavenly lampstands of this age to show Jesus to a dark world. He is no less present when we hide our lamp, but when we do this, we make it harder for those walking in darkness to see. Christ was the Olive Tree pressed to make available the pure oil of the Holy Spirit to fuel our lamps continually."

"When we receive Christ as our personal Savior; the fuel of the Holy Spirit sparks the life of Christ in our hearts. Although that light can never be extinguished, the brightness of our flame entirely depends on how much oil (the Holy Spirit) we allow Christ to pour on us. " If we die daily and ask for the filling of the Holy Spirit and the light in our lives that others can see, we will light the way to Christ for those who are lost without him.

"The Holy Spirit came to fuel us perpetually. If we do not burn with a passionate flame, it is because we have limited God, who prepared us for victory. Paul warns us: "Do not put out the Spirit's fire." (I Thes. 5:19)
Matthew 5:16 speaks of this light so beautifully when it says "Let your light so shine among men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

Let your light shine today; before the men and women that you have an influence on. Let them see the light of your Lord in you so that He may be glorified always!!

As I was reading through my emails today. I found this one, sent to me by my Aunt Dottie. The tears just rolled down my cheeks as I read it.

This is great, take a moment to read it, it will make your day!

The ending will surprise you.

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. About a month later, just before Christmas, There was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands... He said, 'Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly... He often talked about you, and your love for art.' The young man held out this package. 'I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.' The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture.. 'Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift.' The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected. The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection. On the platform sat the painting of the son.. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. 'We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?' There was silence... Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, 'We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.' But the auctioneer persisted. 'Will somebody bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?' Another voice angrily. 'We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Gogh's, the Rembrandts. Get on with the Real bids!' But still the auctioneer continued. 'The son! The son! Who'll take the son?' Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. 'I'll give $10 for the painting...' Being a poor man, it was all he could afford. 'We have $10, who will bid $20?' 'Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters.' The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. The auctioneer pounded the gavel.. 'Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!' A man sitting on the second row shouted, 'Now let's get on with the collection!' The auctioneer laid down his gavel. 'I'm sorry, the auction is over.' 'What about the paintings?' 'I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will... I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. The man who took the son gets everything!' God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: 'The son, the son, who'll take the son?' Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything. FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHO SO EVER BELIEVETH, SHALL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE....THAT'S LOVE

Thanks Aunt Dottie, for reminding me that anything we do for Christ will some day be rewarded. But those rewards are not for our gain; they are so that we can honor our Savior, God's son, when we cast our rewards at His feet in gratitude for what He did for us.

Our study of the tabernacle has now moved into the study of each of the elements for worship that God commanded Moses to place in the tabernacle.
The first piece of furniture that Moses was to build was the ark of the covenant.
The ark of the covenant was constructed by very specific designs. God gave Moses the instructions in Exodus chapter 25. The ark of the covenant was an enclosed piece of furniture made of acacia wood and overlaid with pure gold.
Inside the Ark, there were two stone tablets engraved with the Ten Commandments and a golden pot of manna and later, Aaron's budded rod was added to them.
The mercy seat, which was placed on the Ark, was made solely of pure gold.
On each end, cherubim were placed to stretch out their wings above, covering the lid of the Ark-that is the mercy seat, and the cherubim faced toward the mercy seat. The mercy seat is the place of mercy where God bestows His grace on those who come to Him by faith. This was the holy place of our Savior, who had mercy on His children.
The Ark was carried with wooden poles overlaid with pure gold, which were slipped through gold rings on each end of the mercy seat, so that no one would touch the Ark as they were carrying it.

Once a year, the high Priest took the blood of a sacrificial offering and entered into the Most Hole. (Holy of Holies) The Priest sprinkled the blood of the offering on the mercy seat for exactly seven times. God said that he would meet the Israelites on this mercy seat then. God meets whoever has the same faith as that of the High Priest, that is, the faith in His remission of sin revealed in the sacrificial system. This ceremony took place on the day of atonement each year. The tenth day of the seventh month was set aside for this ceremonial cleansing of the sins of the Israelites for the past year.

Through the blood of Christ, God met the Israelites and gave them the blessing of the remission of sin. His establishment of this system allowed the people a way to fellowship with the Lord. What a blessing it is for us today to realize that we also are able to receive the remission for our sins, through the blood of God's perfect substitutionary lamb, his son, the Lord Jesus Christ. If you haven't received the gift of God's grace and remission for your sin, my prayer is that you will. God bless!!

The Beth Moore Bible study about the tabernacle is so amazing.
God used every aspect of the construction and every element in the structure to remind the children of Israel where they came from and how they got to where they were. I would imagine some times that was a pretty painful process for them; just as facing our sin is painful for us today. When we are forced to recognize our weakness it reminds us of how great God is. When we get a small glimpse of his power it causes us to realize that apart from Him and his power, we are helpless little children.

I was studying about the coverings that were made for the tabernacle. It was out in the open and needed to be covered but, the structure needed to remain mobile so that as they proceeded with their journey they could easily move the tabernacle with them.

So the ceiling was draped with four large canopies which hung down on the north, west, and south sides in perfect order. The gate was on the east side and had no drape on the sided. Visible from the outside were the hides of what the New International Version calls (sea cows) (see Exodus 26:14). Most scholars agree that they were the hides of the sea cow or dugong, a herbivorous mammal, native to the Red Sea often used to make sandals.
It doesn't really sound beautiful does it? But those that dared to enter would behold the beauty hidden within. How like our Savior's incarnate presence:
"He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him " (Isa. 53:2)
Yet within Him "all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form" (Col. 2:9)

The second curtain or Canopy is mentioned in (Exodus 26:14)
This canopy was made of ram's skins dyed red. The ram was the sacrificial offering accepted as a substitution for Abram's beloved son, Isaac; it was also the acceptable sacrifice for the consecration of the tabernacle priests.
What a beautiful picture of our risen Savior, Jesus Christ, our perfect sacrifice.
"He has appeared one time, at the end of the ages, for the removal of sin by the sacrifice of Himself" (Heb. 9:26) and He is the substitute "who gave himself for our sins." (Gal. 1:4) Just as this red canopy covered the tabernacle; when we are covered by the (red) blood of the substitutionary lamb, we have redemption from sin.

The last two canopies serving as the ceiling for the tabernacle proper are named in (Exodus 26:7) these were of goats' hair. The goat was the preeminent sacrifice for the sin offering, but let's not miss an additional application here.
The two men who have been described as forerunners to Christ; Elijah and John the Baptist were clothed in goats' hair. For Elijah see (II Kings 1:8) and for John the Baptist see (Matthew 3:4). Christ himself proclaimed in (Matt. 11:7-15) that Elijah was a type, or picture, of John the Baptist. These garments of hair distinguished them as God's chosen prophets. So within the two curtains made from the skins of sacrificial animals was draped a promise of the Messiah's coming.
Underneath the skins was a drapery of fine white linen which was embroidered with beautiful Cherubim made with blue, purple and scarlet threads.
These beautiful images are hidden from the outside and only beheld by those who were willing to enter with pure hearts of worship. The Bible speaks of God's wings. The Cherubim seem to be a marvelous symbol of the wings of God.
(Psalm 61:4) The Bible tells us that we can hide under the shadow of his wings, rejoice in their shadow and trust underneath them. But the most common portrayal of the wings of El Shaddai, the caregiver, which cover his children with safety, security, joy, and affection is found in (Matt. 23:37)
In His perfect parenting God our Father is both paternal and maternal, both the loving disciplinarian and the nurturing protector who covers His children with His life.

A beautiful illustration of the protection described in this scripture is found in the following story from "Let Me Illustrate".

"In pioneer days, wood-burning locomotives frequently sparked fires. Wheat ripens enough to burn 10 to 15 days before it is ripe enough to cut, and sometimes the fires swept wheat fields for 10 miles. A farmer saw billows of smoke in the distance and knew his house, barn, and surrounding buildings were in danger. He set backfires and burned his own wheat fields in a circle so that when the great fire met the place he had burned, it passed around and went on. With that backfire the farmer saved his buildings but lost his crop. As he walked the burned field grieving, he saw the charred body of a hen. He tipped the hen over with the toe of his boot and out ran a dozen little chicks. Because the mother's burned body was over them, the chicks lived. Because she had been willing to die, those under the cover of her wings would live!

"He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge"
(Psalm 91:4) Learn to experience the warmth and protection of life beneath the wings of the Almighty.

Today I was thinking about my dad a lot. I really miss him and my mom, especially as the holidays approach. They loved the holidays. It was a wonderful time for family to gather at their little house over in Tucker. That house has been empty now for almost two years. It doesn't seem possible that he has been gone that long. I'll always remember the last five years of my dad's life because three and a half of those years were devoted strictly to taking care of my mom 24 hours a day seven days a week. He fed her, he bathed her, he read the Bible to her, they played card games together and though he loved taking care of her, it was difficult and I'm sure took it's tole on his health.
When my mom passed away in March of 2006, he got back into church. I'll never forget how grateful he was for that privilege and how often he told me what a blessing it was for him.

His favorite verse during that time was Psalm 40:11-"Withhold not thy tender mercies from me, O Lord; Let thy loving kindness and thy truth continually preserve me.
Dad loved that scripture so much that he had it printed on business size cards and handed them out to people all the time, wherever he was.
My dad was a wonderful husband, father and grandfather.
He loved his Lord with all his heart. I'm so glad that he is with his Savior!

Dad, you are missed; I Love You, Monkey Lou!!!

I have had a fantastic day in the Lord today.
Jeff preached on FEAR in the morning service and we had a beautiful communion service in the evening. I am constantly amazed at the way God works. This week alone, I have had several people express their fear to me about a number of things; health problems, job searches, financial difficulties, the president and his policies, and other issues. God always seems to reveal himself through his word just when we need it.

Our God is so great; he's indescribable, unchangeable, and he definitely is not the author of fear. If you are feeling fear and you are a child of the King, then it is a satanic attack. He is the one who causes fear and rejoices in the lack of faith we show when we believe his lies.
Fear is a battle that takes place in our minds.
I Corinthians 10:3-5 "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh; For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; Casting down imaginations (thoughts) and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought (our minds again) to the obedience of Christ.
The battleground is our minds and our weapons are mighty through obedience to Christ. We can have the victory over fear!!!

Pastor Jeff brought this home today in his message from Psalm chapter 3.
Then, if that wasn't enough a friend of mine at church sent me to youtube to watch an amazing confirmation that God knows us intimately, created us, and put his personal stamp of the confirmation that He created us; on us permanently.
If you would like to see this example of God's love personally, google youtube, then click on a message from Atlanta, evangelist Louie Giglio called "How Great Is Our God" I promise you it is worth the few minutes that it takes to watch it.
You'll be amazed.

Other references that might encourage you if you are dealing with problems and the fear that is associated with them.
II Thessalonians 2:1-2-(be not shaken in your mind, or troubled)
I Peter 1:13-(gird up the loins of your mind)
Isaiah 26:3-(Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee)

Read these verses and meditate on them. Then pray for God to direct your mind into His presence and help you to be stable, sober and have perfect peace in your mind, so that you can defeat fear.
God Bless!!!

Well, today is Halloween. For those of you who celebrate it or get excited about it; Happy Halloween!! I myself buy candy every year and every year I end up eating most of it. We live on a busy street and it seems that parents are reluctant to allow their children to trick or treat here...Boo! Hoo!

Anyway, I wanted to share a new prayer request with you all today.
A friend of mine is having health problems; she is about 23 years my junior and about to go through some tests. The doctors, at this point, don't think it's anything serious, but only time will tell. Please remember her, I promised to keep her name private, but we would appreciate your prayers.
I am trusting God, that his will be done!

Someone ask me not too long ago if there were prerequisites to getting your prayers answered. I believe that scripture supports the fact that there are at least three prerequisites to the Lord hearing and answering our prayers.
Here are a few references to support this belief.

The first is that we must be a born again child of God. To become a child of God we must confess (ask for forgiveness) and repent (turn away from) our sin.
Romans 10:13 "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord (in prayer) shall be saved." This supports the idea that God will hear the sinner's prayer asking for forgiveness of sin.

The second prerequisite is a clean heart. Supported by:
Psalm 66:18 says "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me."
The dictionary describes the word regard as meaning; "a protective interest" and the word iniquity "a wicked act or sin" let's put these two definitions in the verse and see how it reads.
Psalm 66:18 "If I have a protective interest over the sin in my heart, the Lord will not hear me." This applies to both the saved by grace and the lost sinner. This verse is saying that if we knowingly protect sin in our lives, instead of dealing with it the Lord will not hear our prayers.
I John 1:9 "If we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." He will always cleanse the heart of someone asking for it in prayer, as Christians we need to confess and repent on a consistent basis, keeping our hearts clean so that God can hear and answer our prayers.

The third prerequisite is obedience to God's commands. Supported by the following passages.
I Peter 3:12 "For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous (the born again, child of God) and his ears are open unto their prayers; but the face of the Lord is against (he turns his back to) them that do evil. Isn't it a sad thought, that God would turn his back to us? He must, his holiness will not allow him to look on sin.
I John 3:19-22 "And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. (he knows us, but still loves us) Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
In spite of our sin, God knows us and loves us. Our sin condemns us before a righteous and holy God. If we have a clean heart before our Savior, we have confidence that he hears us and if we do things that are pleasing in his sight, he hears what we ask and will answer according to his will for us.

You want to pray with confidence? You want to know that you are being heard?
You want to know that God will answer (in his time and according to his will)?
Then, make sure you're his child. Keep your heart pure through confession of sin and obey God's word, keep his commandments, do what is pleasing in his sight. I found this written in the margin of my Bible, it's a quote from my pastor, Jeff Lyle: "Duty belongs to man; but deliverance belongs to God!"
So, Do Right and Be Delivered!!!

I have often heard pastors preach on the "equipping of the saints."
I heard the term used again recently and decided to look up some references.
One of the references I came across was one used in the Bible study that I am presently doing.

First of all why do we need to be equipped? Because we are laborers in the Kingdom of God. A huge responsibility that we will stand before our Savior one day to answer for. Obviously, we need to know what our task is, where we are to serve and how to carry it out. Those are different with each of us, and I believe
those ministries should be chosen based on the spiritual giftings that are present in each of us. For instance if your spiritual gift is teaching, you should find a place to use that gift to edify the body of Christ. If your gift is serving, then find a ministry in which you can use that gift to serve others in the body.

According to Beth Moore's study she uses several references to help us understand the process of becoming equipped.

I Corinthians 3:9-We are laborers together with God. We are not in this alone and must depend on Him for the equipping.

In I Corinthians 12:7- This chapter is devoted to the spiritual gifts that were manifested through the holy spirit to be used before the entire word of God was given to us. Specifically in verse 7, "the manifestation of the spirit" is given to every man to profit withal.
We, as Christians, are first to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry out the will of our Father, through the ministry He has called us to.
In Acts 1:4-8 Jesus commanded the disciples not to take one more step in their ministries without the Holy Spirit's power. Jesus' message was to stay where they were until His Holy Spirit empowered them to move.

In Ephesians 4:7 & 11-12-"But unto every one of us is given (grace) according to the measure of the gift of Christ"
Verses 11 & 12- "And he gave some; (apostles; and some, prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry; for the edifying of the body of Christ.)
These verses speak of spiritual gifts and gives the purpose for those gifts to be used to the benefit of the body of Christ (the church)

And finally in II Timothy 3:16-17- "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof; for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."
If the scripture is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness, we must read, study, meditate, memorize and obey the word of God in order to fulfill the rest of the verse (to be striving for perfection) carrying out the will of the Father to the best of our ability and become (thoroughly furnished (equipped) to do the work.

Finally, in Exodus 36 1-7- God uses Bezaleel, who worked under Moses, to show
us that it is important to do the work of God, not only in submission to God's authority, but also, under the direct authority of the person(s) that God has placed over us. "Then wrought Bezaleel and Ahollah, and every wise hearted man, in whom the Lord put wisdom and understanding to (know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary) according to all that the Lord had commanded."

Therefore, we must realize that we are laborers together with God, we must be empowered by the Holy Spirit, we need to know our spiritual giftings; asking God to lead us into a ministry where those gifts can be best used in the body of Christ, and we are called to know God's word so that we can be a vessel thoroughly equipped to carry out the most important tasks of our lives; ministering to others and reaching souls for the glory of our Father. We must not only be laborers together with God empowered by the Holy Spirit, using our spiritual gifts, and study and apply God's word to our ministry; but it is absolutely essential that we learn to work well, according to the Lord's command, under the authority of the one(s) that God has placed over us.
Many times this is the one thing that hinders the work in the body of Christ the most. It is not always easy to submit to the will of others; but it is essential to the effectual work in the service of Christ. Try this; the next time you dissagree with someone in authority over you, pray for them!! It works, God will either change their heart or he'll change yours.

I want to thank you all for your prayers for my phone ministry friend, Mikka.
She got an excellent report from the Dr. today. She is in the clear as far as any illness that will require further tests or treatment. She will have to be seen again in three months. Praise God for his answers to prayer. Please continue to pray for her family as she desires to see God's hand at work in her husband and their relationship. Psalm 34:1 "I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth."

I have spoken about the Bible study that my accountability partner and I are doing. We have reached the study of the construction of the tabernacle finally!!
And a wonderful thought hit me today as I was reading in Exodus chapter 25, where God speaks to Moses and gives him a very extensive list of (offerings) that should be brought to the site where the tabernacle was to be built. I thought it was interesting that the people had so much to bring even though they had been traveling in the wilderness.

Where did they get all that stuff? They didn't go to the corner hardware store, jewelry store or farm....so, I went back to the passage in Exodus chapter 11 and 12 where Pharaoh could not get rid of them quickly enough after the death plague went through the land of Egypt just as Moses had warned it would.
In these two chapters the Bible tells us that God's chosen ones carried with them all of the items that God was asking them now to give as a free will offering to be used in the construction of the tabernacle.

When the people were finally freed from slavery, they didn't know what was ahead, they didn't know that they would fall from God's grace through their sin, they didn't know that they would be wandering for forty years and they didn't dream of how God would design a wonderful way to restore the fellowship he desired to have with His chosen ones through the building of the tabernacle.

But God did know all of these things. He turned the heart of Pharaoh and the Egyptian people to the point that they were showering the children of Israel with gold, silver, brass, cattle, flocks, herds, clothing, and all the other things that God would use to allow the continuance of sacrifices and the ability of the people to construct the tabernacle to His exact specifications; right down to the purple, blue and scarlet yarn that would be used to make the curtains that would hang over the wood construction of the tabernacle walls in Exodus chapter 26.

Isn't God great?? He knows today, exactly what we will need tomorrow and is already making provision for it. Be faithful to him fellow travelers and He will certainly be faithful to you!!!

Seek him and He will find you. Isaiah 65:24 "It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; And while they are still speaking, I will hear."

We have no idea what we may face tomorrow; an illness, the loss of a loved one, loss of a job, financial ruin, etc. But God does!! He will make provision for you, no matter what comes into your life..trust Him with everything.

Isaiah 43:2 "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you."

Today was my Sunday to be on the prayer lines again. I am always in awe of how God works. He gave me several wonderful calls today.
One of the young ladies I spoke with really encouraged me with her strong stand she was willing to take. It seems that her ex-boyfriend was not a very good influence on her and as many people think in their minds when approaching a relationship with an unbeliever; she was going to win him to the Lord through having a relationship with him. As many people have experienced, the opposite actually happens. This guy brought her down and out of the will of the Lord for her. She was pulled away from her standards by the desire to be close to the boyfriend. I am so proud of her, because she has recently told him that she cannot get back together with him because of her faith. We prayed together and she encouraged me as much as I was able to encourage her. Please join me in praying for her as she continues to honor Christ with her life. She needs the strength of the Lord to continue to resist the urge to stray from the path that God has for her life. We also need to pray for the salvation of the young man.
God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Another call I answered was from an 85 year old woman who is very dismayed by the policies of our president. She was concerned about her anger and bitterness toward the man that God has put in place to lead our country.
I must say that I have had the same angry feelings because of his policies and the direction in which he is taking our country. I shared with her that I too had to adjust my attitude and confess it as sin and ask God to replace the fear with the assurance that He is in control. Not an easy thing to do!!
She also told me that she was recently diagnosed with lung cancer. The Dr.'s have no idea where it came from, because she has never smoked or drank and there is no obvious reason for the cancer. I have joined her in praying that if God would see fit and it is in accordance with his will that she will be healed.
Join me as I lift her up for healing. She did tell me that she has no fear associated with the cancer. She is totally depending on God to be with her through the process. We had 21 other calls today...and two assurances of salvation; it was a really good day in the Lord's service.....praise His name!!

God is so good!!! Isn't He? We deserve nothing, yet He gives us everything!!
He not only saves us, but preserves, sustains, protects and guides us.
He was, is and is to come. He is Alpha and Omega. He is the Lily of the valley, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, our strength, strong hold and sheild. He goes before us and stand between us and our enemies. His grace is unfailing and his mercy is never ending. WOW!!!

I am also grateful for the wonderful, loving husband God has given me; who has spent his entire life serving God with all his heart. What a privilege to serve along beside him. He has led our children in the ways of the Lord as well.
I only have to speak with one of two people to realize how blessed I truly am.

I am thankful for a wonderful church (Meadow Baptist) in Lawrenceville, GA.
God has given us a pastor who preaches the word with passion, unashamed, and I have spent a lot of time with pastor Jeff, Ms. Amy and their two children over the passed two years. What a blessing to see that he (pastor) lives what he preaches. What you see is what you get. Praise God for Amy who stand beside him and supports him which in turn allows him to be the pastor he needs to be.
I love knowing that when he stands in the pulpit and preaches to us, he is practicing the same principles in his life and with his family.

Pastor and Amy, I am praying for you as you continue to serve God in the place he has led you and your family and us to be co-laborers with Christ and for His glory alone. Thank you, and God bless you!

I've started to get some comments from my " ".
I really don't like the term "followers". So let's have a contest.
Send me a comment telling me what you think I should call the people who read my blog. I want you all to be followers of the only one who is worthy of having true followers; Christ. Let's make it fun!! If you will send me a suggestion, I will send you something in return.
The one who sends the winning entry, I will send you a nice prize.

So far I have had the suggestions of "fish" which I really like. The other suggestion was "Sundays" this is a term that another blogger uses to describe their followers.

Put your thinking caps on and let me hear from you. I know all of you and you are creative people!!!! Thank you for continuing to read the blog.

I also want to become " " of your blog, if you have one, so send me your URL address and I will visit you blog.....thanks everyone!!

One other thing; the young lady that contacted me through the prayer line at the church, has been going through a health problem. Test have been done and some of those were really good, a definite answer to prayer. But, she still needs a follow-up test and then she will know what course of action to take. Her name is Mikka, please lift her up in your prayers and continue to pray for myself and the other two ladies that I am having Bible study with as we strive to grow closer to the Lord and resolve some life issues.
God bless you all!

I would like to welcome new readers.
Hi, Amanda, Aaron and A.J!!
Thanks for a wonderful day at your house today.
See you Wednesday at AWANA.

I was working with one of my close friends yesterday and she was relaying a story about her 8 year old. I guess she and her three boys, 8, 14 and 20 years of age, had a discussion about the kind of syrup they liked best on their pancakes.
They decided that Aunt Jemimah was the only brand they really liked.
So they asked their mom to be sure and purchase only Aunt Jemimah.
Last Monday when the kids were out of school, she was making pancakes for the boys and as the eight year old poured the Aunt Jemimah syrup on his stack, he commented on how much he loved "Old Aunt Jemimah".
Suddenly he looked up from his plate and said "Oh, no!!" His mom said "what is it Chad?" He said, with a very worried look on his face, "Mom, I was just wondering, what are we gonna do for syrup when old Aunt Jemimah dies?"
His mom snickered and said, "Well Chad, it won't be a problem because Aunt Jemimah left very specific instructions in her will, that if anything happens to her, her family will be sure to always provide the same wonderful syrup for little boys like you."

I started to think how often people, even those a lot older than eight, get so wrapped up in fantasy that they lose out on the present reality.
Grown ups spending hours in front of the TV, playing video games as if their lives depending on a victory. Spending hours and a lot of money on gas, and food for tale gating to go to a football game in another state, but seem to be too tired to get out of bed on Sunday mornings (or perhaps to hung over) to be in the house of God. People spending hours on line, just wasting time and accomplishing nothing really worthwhile.

We really have some problems with proper priority in our lives.
I wonder how many hours a day we waste on unproductive things, when we could be making a difference in someones life. I am trying to reach out and make a difference in the lives of those around me, I'm really sorry that I waited until I was fifty something to make it one of my priorities......

Do yourself a favor, start today with something small...but do it!!
Try smiling at people that you pass on the street. Introduce yourself to the new guy at work who probably needs a friend in the new environment.
I started doing something a couple of weeks ago. When I drive through the bank I put a lollipop with my checks and deposit slip. I get lots of nice comments and smiles from people who are serving me.
It really is easy to make a difference. Try it, it pays dividends!!!

Today, I got an update from the young lady from a few weeks ago that I spoke with during the phone ministry at my church. She is having a really hard time understanding why God is allowing the difficulties in her life right now.
I of course told her that I can't really tell her why...but I do know that God has made many promises to us as Christians that she needs to keep in mind during difficult times.

In Deuteronomy 23:14 "For the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee.
God is asking us to examine our hearts for sin (known and unknown) to rid our hearts of it and then He is there to deliver us and to give us the victory over our enemies (whatever or whoever they are).

In Psalm 84:11-12 "For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee." Keep on trusting, no matter what the enemy tells you!!!

Zephaniah 3:17 "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing."

What wonderful promises to be with us, to be light and strength and give us the victory over our enemy......praise God for His wonderful grace and mercy to us; we are so unworthy!!! Rest in Him today and always.

I woke up this morning thinking about my brothers. I grew up with four brothers and no sisters. I was sandwiched in between two older and two younger brothers. I always felt so lucky, even though there were no girls in my family and strangely enough I grew up in a small neighborhood where there were no girls, at least none close enough to my age for me to pal around with.
I remember many days of cowboys and Indians, climbing trees and running full throttle trying my best to keep up with them and even one-up them.

I didn't really understand then what God was doing. But I married into a family of great athletes. My mother-in-law has been an excellent athlete her entire life. She was an all star softball player, and has told me many stories of bowling with a sixteen lb. ball to within only a few weeks of delivering her children. As far as I know she's the only one in the family to have gotten a hole in one, even though the entire family has played golf for years. My husband grew up playing baseball and golf. He taught our boys to play and coached them through high school and one of them even into college. One of the first gifts my husband bought me after our marriage was a cheap set of golf clubs so that I could accompany the rest of the family on the golf excursions. So the fact that I was a tom boy growing up and had a leg up on understanding the male psyche has been a real asset to me throughout my 34 years of marriage.

I spoke to three of my brothers today, to let them know that I was thinking about them and that I love them. I will keep trying to reach #4 tomorrow.

My oldest brother, David, is a craftsman.
He builds furniture, much of which has been fashioned out of old barn wood, old doors, and old windows that have been removed from houses being demolished. He is so creative and just has an eye for design and color. He has built a good business for himself through his talent.

My next older brother, Darrell, is also very tallented. His talent is not only in the area of building and carpentry, but also, drawing and painting and he is wonderful with computer animation, music and graphics. Darrell is the one who was able to spend time with my mom after her stroke, and especially with my dad following her death. Thank you Darrell for your sacrificial heart and the love you showered on mom and dad during those last four years of their lives.

My brother who is closest to my age Doug, who is 11 months younger than me is an associate pastor and school administrator in California. He is also very talented in the building area, is brilliant with computers and is a very creative writer. He wrote some beautiful things about our mother to share at her funeral.

Do you see a theme developing here? Creativity runs very deeply in this family!!

My youngest brother, Danny, is a landscaper. He is creative in a different way.
I once saw pictures of some of the beautiful landscapes his company did. He is also a car buff. Enjoys messing around with cars with some of his friends. I think I heard some rumblings about "racing"!!!

And as for myself, I got a huge dose of creativity, which came for the most part, from my mom. I love to cook. I sew a lot. I love to paint. My mom taught me to do all of these things and so much more. I am grateful for that everyday.

Both of my parents taught all of us kids the value of working hard (three of us own our own businesses). They also taught us that we are priviledged to live in America, to be good citizens and to be responsible in our actions.

Last, but certainly not least, they taught us the importance of trusting God (all five of us grew up in the church and began our relationships with Christ at an early age) one of my brothers, as I stated earlier is an associate pastor and I have always had some sort of ministry in the service of my Savior.

I am thrilled that God gave Don and I the privilge of passing this heritage down to our own three children and Lord willing, if the kids will hurry and give me some grandchildren, we will have the honor of passing it to yet another generation. I can't wait!!!!

It's now only 79 days until the "follow me" project begins on January 1st.
For those who are following this blog. Thank you. I am excited about the months ahead.

But, I wish there was another term to use for those who read the blog.
I don't want my readers to be called my "followers".
It is disturbing to me to have people following me.
I am terrible with directions, just ask my son Stephen and his baseball team mate who was in the car with me back when he was in high school.

It's funny to tell it now, but then, it wasn't so funny.
My husband, Don, was out of town and flying into the Tampa airport to meet us in a couple of days. My son, Stephen, and another of the ball players had obligations in Atlanta, so we were going to meet everyone else in Florida for a baseball tournament. We started out on our journey, everything was going great. The boys fell asleep in the back seat and I was just driving along and driving and driving and driving. When the boys woke up we had covered many miles. Stephen poked his head into the front seat and said, "Where are we?" I said, "We're well on our way." He said, "What city are we in?"
I said, "Let's look at the next sign and see how far we have left to go."

The next sign was welcoming us into Montgomery, Alabama.
Well, obviously, I had missed something along the way.

But, thank God, He was much more alert than me. I stopped at the next gas station and there in the parking lot was a big rig driver, with an atlas already spread out on his hood. I walked over and said, "How do I get to Florida from here?" After explaining myself, he said that I had missed the turn at I-75 in Atlanta. When I asked him what I should do, he told me I had two choices; I could either go all the way back to Atlanta and connect with I-75 or I could cut directly across the state and connect with I-75 in another place.

After comparing the time and distances, we chose to go across the state.
We made it to the meeting place with the rest of the team, it just took us a little longer than the other players to get there. I always told everyone that we decided to take the scenic route!!!

Thank God for that driver with the atlas, we might still be trying to find our destination. You can also ask my husband, Don, no matter how many times we've been to a location, if it's more than 50 miles away, I always have to confirm the directions, and there's still no guarantee that I won't call him from somewhere along the way. I thank God for Don as well, he's rescued me many times during our 34 years of marriage.

Anyway, you get my drift. If you ever go anywhere with me, bring an atlas!!
But, please do continue to read my blog. In 79 days the journey through the Bible begins. I love God's word, something my dad instilled in me.
I am not a Bible scholar, and will not do a lot of interpretation, but, I want the word of God to be real in my life, so I will be sharing what God does in my life throughout the study of His word. My prayer is that by going on this journey with me, you too will learn to love God's word and will see Him working in your life during the course of the year.

The point of all of this is: follow someone who is worthy to be followed, can always be trusted, and will never let you down...the one who came to seek and to save the lost, the one who sees your life's path from beginning to end; Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever...Amen!

I was sent an amazing video from my aunt Dottie this morning about a 92
year old woman who was confronted by a robber after loading her groceries in her car. It has made the national news.
She had read a passage in her Bible in the morning before it happened.

The passage was in II Chronicles 7 and verse 14 "If my people who are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

After loading her groceries she got into her car and was immediately accosted by a guy who jumped into the front passenger seat and told her he had a gun. He ask her for her money and she refused to give it to him; not once but three times. How much courage does that take?? More than most of us have. She proceeded to tell the man that Jesus was in the car with her and that He went with her everywhere she went. She then told him that the worst that could happen to her would be that she would go to heaven if he killed her, but, he would go to hell. She said the man began to cry, his demeanor changed, and he told her he was going to go home and pray. She said you don't have to wait until you get home. You can pray anywhere. She then gave all the money she had to him ($10.00) and said don't spend it on liquor now!!

As I watched the video of this brave elderly lady trusting God with her very life, in order to be a witness for Him, I knew that God had put her in that situation to reach this young man. I've always been told that God works in mysterious ways that are so much higher than ours that they are above our understanding. This is definitely a case in point!!!

May God grant us the strength and courage to recognize the opportunities that are given to us to reach those around us; no matter the circumstance!!

As the video went back to the news reporter. His last comment was that the station had contacted the lady and invited her to come to New York for interviews and she refused, saying "No, I think I'll just reach people right here where I am." Isn't that what God has commanded all of His children to do?

What a blessing and inspiration. May God give this lady many more years.
I have a feeling that she has been inspiring people her entire life.
Have a blessed day and take advantage of every opportunity to live for Christ.

I am taking a day today to get some things done around the house.
A little sewing, a little cooking and a little cleaning. I also need to do a little laundry. Day to day things that I didn't have enough days to get done last week.

But my day needs to start off with a little time with my hubby and my Bible study. I'll make some breakfast and hang out with Don and then when he leaves for work, I'll get my stuff done.

I was reminded about a wonderful passage of scripture yesterday in Proverbs chapter 3. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your path."

What a fantastic call to us as Christians, to trust fully in our Lord, without trying to work it out with our understanding. He promises to direct us if we will simply trust him and acknowledge him with our words and deeds!!!

I am going to try in every way to acknowledge Him today. In everything I say, everything I do, and in every attitude I display. May God give us the courage to take this simple piece of wisdom from His word and apply it to our lives.
Have a great day....walking with Him.

It's another beautiful Sunday. A day to worship God, the day of rest.
I wonder how often we actually observe Sunday as a day of rest; not to the extreme that the spiritual leaders (Pharisees) of the Bible. Who had so many laws and regulations that even they could not remember or possible observe them all.

Some times I think we go to the opposite extreme. The day that our secular jobs have given us off for centuries, which began out of respect for the people who wanted to go to church and worship on Sundays, has been turned into a day when we do what we cannot do on the other days of the week when we are required to work.

How sad that we cannot set aside a day when God's people can worship him as a people. "forsaking not the assembling of ourselves together" as it says in Hebrews 10:25. What a wonderful passage this is (Hebrews chapter 10)..
Here God uses such beautiful language to tell us that the sacrifices that were made by early Christians were just a shadow of the true sacrifice for sin.
When Jesus Christ died on the cross, He was the final sacrifice for our sins.
Praise God that we now can worship anywhere, and at any time.
But, later in the chapter God exhorts us to gather for several reasons;
to " provoke one another to love and good works" "exhorting one another" and
to do this "the more, as ye see the day approaching" this is referring to the return of Christ.

Brothers and sisters, we need each other!! As the world becomes a more difficult place for Christians to live in peace, we need to support and encourage one another more than ever before,to keep the body of Christ focused on the job at hand; to reach others for Christ before it's too late.

May we come together to worship our Savior in spirit and in truth, to edify, encourage, and exhort one another to good works, while there is still time.
I hope you have set aside today to worship with your brothers and sisters in Christ in order to love and exhort them.

I don't know about you, but I need this; to be ready to face a new week in this old world. Have a wonderful day of worship!!

Today we are going to the Apple Festival in Ellijay Georgia.
My husband Don & I are involved with a singles class during Sunday school.
He is the teacher, and I am his faithful sidekick....we have a great group of men and women who love the Lord.

When we started our class we had three regular attendees plus Don and myself.
It has grown to a regular attendance of anywhere from 10 to 20.
We have great activities with them, good fellowship, and we have begun a Bible study in the book of Revelation. Through this week Dale Adamson, is doing three weeks of preliminary teaching. These three weeks will lead us up to the in depth study of Revelation. If you are reading this blog and you do not attend Sunday school I would encourage you to get involved at a Bible teaching church.
Sunday school is a wonderful opportunity for learning.
It gives you the freedom to ask questions and it's also a great time to meet new people and have some wonderful fellowship with fellow believers.

Get going tomorrow morning to Sunday School!!!

OOOPS!!! I must apologize to those who are following my blog.
I allowed yesterday to pass without a post. This emphasizes to me that I need to work on time management. Yes, I am busy and things happen unexpectedly, that's life, but come January 1st, there will be no excuses! This is good practice for next year's blog through the Bible. Some scheduling changes need to be made before 1/1/2010.

On September 27th during our church phone ministry (prayer lines during our TV broadcast) I spoke with a young lady, who I promised to follow up with.
She and I have been talking and I wanted to let you know that God is working in her life. Her husband accompanied her to church last Sunday, even though she relayed to me that it was obvious that Satan was fighting it. God won the victory...so please continue to join me in praying for her husband and her as God is working in her heart as well.

The conversation I had with her was a reminder to me that when we pray expecting God to answer our prayer, we must also be willing to accept the fact that there may need to be some changes made in our own hearts and lives to see that prayer answered. Often we will pray for sister so-in-so to get her heart right or brother so-in-so the kick that bad habit, without realizing that we have sin in our lives that are affecting the allowance of that prayer to be answered.
In Psalm 66:18 David wrote; "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me." If we have sin in our lives, our prayers are unable to be heard by God.
It is imperative that we confess and known of unknown sin to God, before we request anything from Him. I was taught during my college years that when we pray we should (Confess, Adore, Thank and then Request)

1)Prayers of Confession will cleanse our heart (I John 1:9)"If we confess our sin He is faithful and just toforgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

2)Prayers of Adoration confirm our love for Him, and these verses reminds us that it is the first commandment (Matthew 22:37-38) "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment."

3)Prayers of Thanksgiving are our way of showing our gratitude for what God has done for us (Ephesians 5:20) "Giving thanks always, in all things unto God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

I have always felt that once I've done these three things I am then ready to make request of my father. (Ephesians 4:6) "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Amen He said in all things!!!!
I find so much comfort in that verse because it reminds me that He loves us so much that He desires to hear us, not just when we need something big to happen, but even in the little things "every thing" Have a blessed day Ya'll!!

AWANA Night!!!! Tonight we had 21 great Cubbies.
They are so enthusiastic and fun. But, if there's even a short lull in the night, look out, they get restless pretty quickly.

So, we try to keep the program exciting. There's always a great flannel graph story. Tonight it was all about how God created the animals. We told them last week to bring in their favorite stuffed animal.

We played several fun games directed at making animal sounds.
We had animal crackers and ice water (sounds a little like prison doesn't it--crackers and water). They loved it. As we served their snack, we tapped them on the shoulder and without talking, they had to make an animal sound to get their snack. The second game was a classic, pile all the animals in a great big pile, divide the kids into two teams and race to find their animal and bring it back to their leader, the only problem was that several of the kids left their animals at home and couldn't remember the animal we loaned them for the night, so they got someone Else's when they went to the pile. Well, you can imagine the rest!!!! They were making animal sounds alright.

What a rewarding program. Watching those little guys grow and learn about God's word. I love it!!!! I praise the Lord that He has chosen to let me be involved for almost 15 years now. Good night little animals, sleep tight.

In my Bible study this morning (the Beth Moore study) I had a precious reminder that I want to share with you. We are studying the freewill offerings.
We have already looked at the significance of gold, silver, and precious stones.
The most familiar passage, describing those three elements, is found in the passage of scripture located in I Corinthians 3:9-15 which describes the judgment of the works of Christians. Whether they were done in the flesh or in the spirit. They will either come through the fire of judgment as Gold, silver or precious stones (refined, but not destroyed) or they will be consumed by the fire
as (wood, hay and stubble). Some of the things we have done here on earth, much to our surprise will not be able to stand the test of fire. Because many times we think of ourselves much more highly than we should, some will have few crowns to lay at the feet of Jesus and few rewards for service to our Savior.
We must examine our hearts daily to make sure that the motivation for the offerings of sacrifice we bring to Jesus can stand the test. Only days before my mom went to be with Jesus, she said to my dad and me, "I hope Jesus won't be ashamed of me". That is something we should be asking ourselves daily...my Bible tells me in Mark 8:38 "Whosoever, therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." Just as my mom, I do not want to stand before my Savior and be ashamed. Lord, please help me to speak of you freely and not be ashamed of your gospel, for it is the only way to salvation.

Continuing to look at the freewill offerings In Exodus 25:9 God commanded Moses to make the tabernacle "a copy and shadow of what is in heaven".

Included in the description in Exodus 25:3-4, were three colors of yarn appropriate for offerings. The colors mentioned are blue, purple and Scarlet.

It's interesting to research those three colors. They have very significant meanings throughout God's word.

The Blue- A glance upward reminds us that the blue sky is a direct connection to heaven. The color blue is also spoken of in Ezekiel 1:26 "And above the firmament (in heaven) that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone... " (also a beautiful blue color)

The Purple-A very significant color throughout the Bible, the most valued color among ancient cultures, it represented royalty, kingship, and elegance.
Both passages (Judges 8:26 and Mark 15:17-18) are describing the crucifixion of Christ and how purple raiment was used to Mock him, as the king.
And in Mark 15 17-18 the description is of a "rich man clothed in purple and fine linen" How heartbreaking it is to realize that the true King, the Savior of the world who deserved the purple raiment, a real crown instead of the crown of thornes they placed on His head, and all the majesty that was given to Him by his Father was mocked; while the rich man considered worthy by the world was rewarded and recognized as royalty when wearing it, even though he was unworthy.

The Scarlet-the color that readily denotes bloodshed, pain and sacrifice.
The Bible speaks in many places about the blood shed for us by Jesus.
But my favorite passage about scarlet is in Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."
Praise God for His wonderful provision for our sinful hearts, which can be redeemed by the blood of the one true King.

Blue (heaven), purple (royalty) and scarlet (blood, pain & sacrifice).
What a wonderful connection can be made between these three.
God requires only the best that can be offered.

God sent His son Jesus Christ from heaven, Jesus gave up His royalty and became a peasant, so that his blood could cleanse our sin stained hearts to make us heirs to His royalty.

He changed us from peasants to royalty through His freewill offering of Himself on the cross.....Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

I am a royal daughter of the King. What a blessed thought!

Today, I was thinking about my childhood and how wonderful it was.
I have to give the credit to my parents for so many things. Ultimately, of course the glory goes to God. But, my parents are responsible for making important decisions that guided me and have stayed with me for my entire life.
Like raising us in the church and teaching us to work hard.
As I think of my parents I can easily see the important values and characteristics that each one instilled in me.

From my dad, I got my sense of humor, my love for God's word, my desire to be a disciplinarian for my children, (with love, and according to God's word) and the strength and stamina to work hard. My dad could make you laugh at his jokes even if they weren't really funny. He had a twisted sense of humor when it came to my mom, he loved to make a joke and then watch her roll her eyes and try not to laugh....even as adults it made us laugh all the more. I remember for so many years, my dad would get up at 5:00 am and leave for work but almost never neglected to bring us our favorite candy from the vending machine at the GM plant. And when it was time for discipline, he had a certain look that said; if you do that one more time, you know what you're going to get when you get home, not a word had to be spoken. There was a different look when you actually had already crossed the line and we knew exactly what was going to happen when he got where he could reach us. But, we never had a doubt that we were loved. I will always remember the way my dad would gather us kids together and share God's word with us. There were five of us, it was like having a small church congregation every night at devotion time.
He loved to tell us how important it was to live by God's commands, he gave me a deep love for the scripture and a desire to share it with others. Thank you dad, I love and miss you.

From my mom, I received a lot of the common sense I have. The ability to create almost anything out of things I have around the house. The ability to cook creatively ( a pinch of this and a dab of that) so don't ask me for a recipe; I seldom use them. I know the food is going to be good by the way it look and smells. I remember my oldest son, at about the age of three, looking up at me from the dinner table and saying "momma, you're a good cooker" I have my mom to thank for that. The funny thing is, he's the one now at 30 years of age, who loves to cook, and still says that I taught him how. Thanks Mom!!!

When my children were small, my mom used to beg me to bring them over so she could keep them, some times for Don and I to go to dinner or even over night. My mom was very wise when it came to marriage and family.
She encouraged me to take time away from the kids for just the two of us. When it came to us kids, I never remember my mom raising her voice, but I do remember a lot of praying that went on when she was worried about one of us. I also remember a lot of big hugs, kisses, and compliments flowed very freely from her lips. I believe that my mom was the most unselfish person I have ever known. She taught me to be that way as well. I am often accused of not being able to say no. But it is just a reminder that I am my mother's daughter; and proud of it.
Even after I left home for college, I remember one week calling my mom, excited about a formal event that was taking place on the campus on Friday night.
I had a date and was prepared to wear the same formal that I brought and wore the year before to a similar occasion. My mom wouldn't hear of it. She stayed up two nights in a row into the wee hours of the morning and convinced my dad that he needed to accompany her from Atlanta to Chattanooga on Thursday afternoon so that the new dress she had just made completed, would be there for me to wear on Friday night. Sure enough they fought the traffic and got it there on time. She always knew exactly what size I needed. It fit me perfectly without any fittings or alterations. But, of course, she had her sewing machine and all the necessary equipment just in case.

When my mom died in March of 2006 my dad and I were planning her funeral.
I was in charge of creating and printing the program for the funeral service.
He insisted that I make sure to include the phrase "she was a woman without guile" He always spoke so lovingly of her and remembered her as a woman who never pretended to be anything that she wasn't. He was so proud of her for that!!! And I, in turn am proud of him for loving, cherishing, and caring for her for the 57 years that they were married.

Three and a half years before she went to be with Jesus, my mom had a stroke.
As hard as she tried, she never regained the use of the right side of her body.
She was basically bed ridden 24 hours a day. He would not hear of hiring anyone to take care of her. He kept her so clean that she never had a bedsore, that is unheard of in people who are on their backs for that length of time.
I know for a fact that his loving care for her made those years bearable for her.
Thank you dad for the wonderful example of God's love that you displayed for all the world to see, not only in your service to your heavenly father, but also, in the way you sacrificed yourself for moms sake.

Dad told me many times how empty he felt without her. But he found true fulfillment in the joy of attending church again after mom's death. He only lasted ten months without her. One day we were walking to his car in the church parking lot. He turned to me, put his arm around me and said, "guess what sweetie, God has finally filled that empty spot in my heart." I'll never forget the look of perfect peace and contentment on his face. He knew that it was a special prayer that God had answered just for him. It was only a couple of months after that, when God called him home.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for these wonderful memories of my life. Thank you for the Godly parents you gave me and the privilege of growing up in a home where you were honored and glorified. I pray that some day my children and grandchildren will have the same kind of heritage to pass on to their generation.

Today is Sunday and has been a very busy day as usual. But what a blessing it has been. Our pastor and his family are on vacation this week so our administrative pastor, Larry Miller preached the morning service. It was a great reminder for me to check my heart and see where I am spiritually.

The basic premise is that there were 5 categories of people described in Matthew 27:33-54 and that they still exist today. See if you find yourself in any of them.

I.The Gamblers: vs. 33-35-the gamblers are described as being close to the cross, but clueless as to what was really taking place "playing games at the foot of the cross".

II.The Grumblers: vs. 39-40-the grumblers were religiously wrong, they told Christ to save himself....not knowing that the scripture had prophesied that He would be exactly where He was. These people wanted a show in front of the cross. They wanted to see something spectacular happen; after all they had already witnessed the miracles of Christ. This would just be another show to them.

III.The Graceless: vs. 41-43-this group included the religious people of the day.
The scribes and pharisees were there mocking Him and criticizing Him, causing others to doubt His power. Even though they were the ones who penned the scriptures in the Old Testament that foretold His coming.

IV.The Guilty: vs.54-(Isaiah 53) both of these references speak of the contrast between Christ and the thieves. Christ ask the father to forgive those who were guilty of His blood. This was in strict contrast to others who were witnessed cursing and trying to plead their case while being punished for crimes they had actually committed and were being punished for. In contrast, Christ said not a word to defend Himself, but gave Himself willingly. The people watching were convicted by the contrast they witnessed. Oh, that we would be such a contrast from the world around us that the conviction of sin would be felt in the hearts of those watching us.

V.The Grievers-Luke 23:48-49-This category is divided into two groups.
A.Luke 23:48-the first group came, saw and left exactly the way they came.
B.Luke 23:49-the second group came and stayed never to be the same.

I want to be of the second group of grievers. They saw the love and mercy of Jesus and grieved over the pain, suffering Jesus had to endure. But they also grieved over their own sin, that cause Jesus to died in for their salvation.
May the love of Christ be the driving force that causes me to live my life in a way that others see the contrast. May they see the love of Christ lived out through my life.

Look at the words of this old Hymn, it explains the love of God in a way that I cannot.
Could we with ink the ocean fill and were the skies of parchment made.
Were every stalk on earth a quill and every man a scribe by trade.
To write the love of God above, would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from sky to sky!

Oh love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless and strong.
It shall forever-more endure, the saints and angels song.

Isn't that beautiful. The earth cannot contain the height or depth of God's marvelous love for us. There isn't enough space in the sky to contain the volumes it would take to describe it. Be thankful today for that constant, unchanging love that He has for you.

It's Saturday and I am so excited to be meeting my Aunt Dottie, cousin Susan, and daughter-in-law Brooke to paint pottery at a place called "All Fired Up".

We are meeting for brunch at "Panera" first and then...let the fun begin!!!

Well, we got to Panera and had a bite to eat and then went next door to the pottery place. I scanned the shelves of a couple hundred items to choose from
and decided that I would be making a baby gift for one of my customers.
I chose a cute piggy bank, Susan painted an "H" a gift for her niece, and Brooke chose a dish for her mother's birthday.
We spent one and a half hours talking and painting. What a great time we had.

As we were sitting there the thought occurred to me. That pottery reminded me of a passage of scripture in Isaiah 64:8; where the writer says "But now, O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand. "The work of His hand!"

I looked at all that pure white pottery, it was so clean and without spot.
Just as we are at the moment of our salvation. Our hearts are free of sin, stain, blemishes and pure white covered by the blood of Jesus. Untarnished by the sin of this world. But, as we go through our Christian lives, and sin creeps in, they become stained again, until we come before our Savior and repent and are restored.

As we began to put strokes of paint on the white pottery, I couldn't help but compare those to our pure white hearts. Each stroke representing something; whether good or evil that has become a part of our heart. Some of the strokes are allowed to be placed on our hearts by the Lord, others we allow to be painted on us by the world or through disobedience to the commands of our Father. When a mistake was made on the pottery, a lot of effort had to be made to repair it. The paint had to be cleaned of all the way down to the white piece of pottery and repainted properly. So many times in my heart I had to repent and ask the Lord to clean that spot on my heart down to the pure whiteness that I had at salvation and then restore it to it's original beauty.

Every decision we make along the road of our Christian lives puts a few more strokes on us. We can become a thing of beauty that points others to our potter, the one who made us. Or, if we do not choose carefully and according to God's commands, we will create of ourselves a vessel that brings dishonor to our Lord. I don't know about you, but I want my vessel to be a thing of beauty that points to my Savior.

As we sat there and looked at the finished pottery, we were all pleased. Today, we were the potters, the artist and the creators of something beautiful. I pray that my life and yours is a vessel that we have allowed our Savior the Lord, Jesus Christ to form, fashion, mold and paint strokes of beauty that point others to Him. A vessel that can be used for His honor and glory.