The fig trees are budding, and the grapevines are in blossom. How delicious they smell! Yes, spring is here! Arise, my beloved, my fair one, and come away.'" Song of Songs 2:13 NLT
Our deck is on the south side of our house where our garden is. That garden receives more affection from my husband, Michael C., than I do. (Just kidding!). He lovingly tends each tiny shoot that rears its head toward the rising sun.
Sitting on the deck yesterday with the warm breeze gently holding me captive, I looked out over the garden at the petunias growing alongside the upside down tomatoes. The confederate jasmine mingled with the scent of honeysuckle and Georgia hedge bush pleasing my senses tremendously.
For a moment, actually quite a few moments, I felt the very real presence of God through the joy of His creation. Contentment---the loving sensual experience from an adoring Father---if only for a moment.
In that moment I was aware of the Holy Spirit of God, Gardner of my Soul, tending His garden within me. For God is the Gardner and He is also the Garden. His Holy Spirit lives within my heart nurturing, pruning,and growing me into His image.
I pray my life will be as fragrant and smell even a tiny bit as sweet as the garden in my backyard.
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To God be the Glory! Amen.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
Come Dine with Me
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will com in to him and dine with him, and he with Me." Revelation 3:20 NKJV
I truly believe that Jesus is coming soon to get those of us who believe in Him and love Him. We will dine with Him, feasting on the bread of life which is the Word of God, Jesus Christ. As a therapist, I tend to analyze most everything I think about to the nth degree. However, no amount of analytical thinking will help me wrap my mind around Jesus being the Word,the bread of Life.
No, my mind just simply cannot fathom this truth. My mind can't, but my heart can. I know in my soul and believe with my heart that Jesus is who He says He is. He is the great I AM the ever present Savior of my soul and Bread of my life. He is the energy Source of my life and the entire universe. He is before all things and in Him all things consist (Colossians 1:17 NKJV).
My heart cries, "Come, Lord Jesus, Come." To God be the Glory! Amen.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
How do we spend our energy?
In John 6:27 Jesus tells us to spend our "energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Man can give you." How much thought do we, do I, give to the way I spend my energy?
Having myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disorder that provides a limited amount of energy to my muscles, causes me to slow down and think about how I use my energy. Recovering from knee surgery adds to the low energy component. So, how can I spend my energy seeking the eternal life that only Jesus can give me?
For one thing, we all know we garner our energy from the food we eat. In this same chapter of John Jesus says, "I am the bread of life" (John 6:35). In order to seek Him I must first feed on Him for He is the bread of life. (You can see why folks in Jesus' day thought His teachings were cannabilistic).
To eat "the bread of life" is to study and learn the word of God, the Bible. Not to just know it but to hide this word in our hearts. Psalm 119:11 says, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."
As we grow closer to Christ the Holy Spirit will bring to our minds the Words we have hidden in our hearts. In this way God himself provides the energy we need to seek the eternal life only Jesus can give. God is the power source and God is the energy. To God be the Glory! Amen.
Having myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disorder that provides a limited amount of energy to my muscles, causes me to slow down and think about how I use my energy. Recovering from knee surgery adds to the low energy component. So, how can I spend my energy seeking the eternal life that only Jesus can give me?
For one thing, we all know we garner our energy from the food we eat. In this same chapter of John Jesus says, "I am the bread of life" (John 6:35). In order to seek Him I must first feed on Him for He is the bread of life. (You can see why folks in Jesus' day thought His teachings were cannabilistic).
To eat "the bread of life" is to study and learn the word of God, the Bible. Not to just know it but to hide this word in our hearts. Psalm 119:11 says, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."
As we grow closer to Christ the Holy Spirit will bring to our minds the Words we have hidden in our hearts. In this way God himself provides the energy we need to seek the eternal life only Jesus can give. God is the power source and God is the energy. To God be the Glory! Amen.
Monday, May 10, 2010
from Psalm 103 from The Message
He forgives your sins----every one.
He heals your diseases---every one.
He redeems you from hell---saves your life!
He crowns you with love and mercy---a paradise crown.
He wraps you in goodness---beauty eternal.
He renews your youth---you're always young in his presence.
He forgives your sins----every one.
He heals your diseases---every one.
He redeems you from hell---saves your life!
He crowns you with love and mercy---a paradise crown.
He wraps you in goodness---beauty eternal.
He renews your youth---you're always young in his presence.
Recovering from Knee Replacement Surgery
On April 29th I had total knee replacement surgery. During this time I have focused on recovery; physical, emotional, and spiritual. You might ask why I left out mental recovery. Well, God willing, that will all fall into place. When God heals us He heals us completely. (Of course, those of you who know me may think I'm a mental basket case, which is probably true...hmmmmm).
As His child in Christ Jesus, God has already completely healed me. The moment I placed my faith in Him I was healed. Living out that healing is something different. We live in a world of "dis-ease" called sin and the cure for this dis-ease, or sin, is Jesus. Jesus has cured me of sin. But until I leave this world I will continue to be affected by sin.
It's kind of like layaway. When I go to Walmart and put something on layaway it belongs to me because I have paid a deposit. When the time comes for me to pick up my layaway I pay it off in full and take my purchase home.
Jesus has bought and paid for me through the Cross but has left me here until the time comes for me to join Him. He has given me His Holy Spirit as a down payment. I'm His, I'm cured, and I have my guarantee in His Holy Spirit. But I still live here in the dis-eased sin world until time comes for Him to pick me up.
So...until Jesus comes for us or we go to be with Him we're still at Walmart, so to speak. The difference is that we have the opportunity to reach out to others for Christ. To continue the Walmart analogy, store items watch the layaway items to see how we, the layaway items, respond to the dis-eased sin world (Walmart). (Please don't misunderstand: Walmart is not sinful).
We, Christians, (or layways), must continue to encourage each other with the fact that our Savior will not leave us nor forsake us. Hopefully, the world (Walmart) will see how we wait for pick up and want what we have. To God be the Glory. Amen.
As His child in Christ Jesus, God has already completely healed me. The moment I placed my faith in Him I was healed. Living out that healing is something different. We live in a world of "dis-ease" called sin and the cure for this dis-ease, or sin, is Jesus. Jesus has cured me of sin. But until I leave this world I will continue to be affected by sin.
It's kind of like layaway. When I go to Walmart and put something on layaway it belongs to me because I have paid a deposit. When the time comes for me to pick up my layaway I pay it off in full and take my purchase home.
Jesus has bought and paid for me through the Cross but has left me here until the time comes for me to join Him. He has given me His Holy Spirit as a down payment. I'm His, I'm cured, and I have my guarantee in His Holy Spirit. But I still live here in the dis-eased sin world until time comes for Him to pick me up.
So...until Jesus comes for us or we go to be with Him we're still at Walmart, so to speak. The difference is that we have the opportunity to reach out to others for Christ. To continue the Walmart analogy, store items watch the layaway items to see how we, the layaway items, respond to the dis-eased sin world (Walmart). (Please don't misunderstand: Walmart is not sinful).
We, Christians, (or layways), must continue to encourage each other with the fact that our Savior will not leave us nor forsake us. Hopefully, the world (Walmart) will see how we wait for pick up and want what we have. To God be the Glory. Amen.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Work Around Your Abyss by Henri Nouwen
The following is an excerpt from Henri Nouwen's book The Inner Voice of Love:
There is a deep hole in your being, like an abyss. You will never succeed in filling that hole, because your needs are inexhaustible. You have to work around it so that gradually the abyss closes.
Since the hole is so enormous and your anguish so deep, you will always be tempted to flee from it. There are two extremes to avoid: being completely absorbed in your pain and being distracted by so many things that you stay far away from the wound you want to heal.
There is a deep hole in your being, like an abyss. You will never succeed in filling that hole, because your needs are inexhaustible. You have to work around it so that gradually the abyss closes.
Since the hole is so enormous and your anguish so deep, you will always be tempted to flee from it. There are two extremes to avoid: being completely absorbed in your pain and being distracted by so many things that you stay far away from the wound you want to heal.
The Wound
When I think of the darkness within my spirit I visualize a gaping, black hole oozing blood, a wound so deep and encompassing I didn't even know it was there. It had become such a part of me that I was completely unaware of its presence. I'm not sure what the catalyst was that awakened within me the presence of this wound. I only know that I feel it now. Not feeling is better for the short term. But I need to feel it for the long term.
When I picture this black hole I realize that Jesus is there. It's His blood covering the pain from the wound because He lives in my heart. He upholds me with His mighty right hand. It is Christ that wants to heal me and shows me I need to be healed. This is a tough journey. But not too tough knowing He will never, ever, leave me nor forsake me. "For I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13 NLT).
Writing this blog is cathartic for me but extremely difficult. I'm a very private person and find it hard to share my innermost thoughts and feelings. I do this in the hopes that in some way God will be glorified. All I really want to do is tell people about Jesus. He loves us all so much. I'm so thankful to You, Lord Jesus. Amen.
When I picture this black hole I realize that Jesus is there. It's His blood covering the pain from the wound because He lives in my heart. He upholds me with His mighty right hand. It is Christ that wants to heal me and shows me I need to be healed. This is a tough journey. But not too tough knowing He will never, ever, leave me nor forsake me. "For I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13 NLT).
Writing this blog is cathartic for me but extremely difficult. I'm a very private person and find it hard to share my innermost thoughts and feelings. I do this in the hopes that in some way God will be glorified. All I really want to do is tell people about Jesus. He loves us all so much. I'm so thankful to You, Lord Jesus. Amen.
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