MY ROCK AND COMFORTER

I opened the Kindle app on my iPad this morning. I had not looked at it in awhile. It opened to this:

DAY 7 - 40 DAYS WITH JESUS: CELEBRATING HIS PRESENCE.

WOW, this was just what I needed to read today. I wanted to share it with you.

DAY 7

I AM IMMANUEL―GOD WITH YOU―an ever-present Help in trouble. No matter what may happen, I am sufficient to provide whatever you need. Instead of imagining how you might respond to terrible things that could happen, draw your mind back to the present and take refuge in My Presence, I am much like a mother hen, eager to cover you with my protective pinions. As you snuggle under My wings, you will not only find refuge; you will also discover a growing ability to trust Me. It is in closeness to Me that you realize how trustworthy I am.

Remember that I am both your Rock and your Redeemer. Though I am impregnable in My vast strength, I became a vulnerable Man so I could redeem you from your sins. The more you take refuge in Me, the more aware you become of My overflowing Love. In Me you are utterly safe, for I am your Rock of everlasting Love!

FOR REFLECTION: PSALM 46:1-2;

MATTHEW 23:37 (NKJV0; PSALM 91:4 (AMP)

I have been lamenting the outcome of our election ever since Tuesday night. The above thoughts helped to cheer me up. I am still terribly worried about my country but I do take refuge in these words of Jesus. It is a good reminder that people will make mistakes, terrible mistakes, let you down, in general just make you miserable but God is ever faithful and I need to look even more than I have in the past to His promises that He will be with me no matter how bad things get ― and they will continue to get a while lot worse. What He has in store for those who love Him and trust Him will totally outweigh any problems we have now. I see so many of the prophecies of the Bible being fulfilled that I am really convinced that we are living in the last days. If you have been "bummed out" over the election as I have been perhaps these thoughts will uplift you as well. I hope so. So many of you have made encouraging comments to me on the latest Spiritual Sundays post. Thank you for that.

HELP FROM THE LORD

The following message was written by Lyndall Rothery and appeared in the Daily Devotionals for our 50th Year at Scottsdale Bible Church. 

I will lift up my eyes to the hills - where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord the maker of Heaven and earth. (Psalm 101:1-2)

A few years ago our HIV/AIDS medical team drove to an isolated village to visit some of the volunteers we had trained to work in the community. It was a muddy drive in the hills. I was driving our big Toyota SUV. I can drive but my mechanical skills are close to zero. We had a wonderful visit and one of our Tanzanian teams led two people to Christ that day. We came out to our car rejoicing. 

But the car would not start. I was the only driver and the person with the most knowledge of cars! I tried starting it several times with no response and we were in a village with no gas stations or mechanics. I said to the group, "Let's pray and ask God to help us."

As soon as we finished praying a man came up to us and asked if we needed any help. Apparently he was a driver of the same type of SUV as ours and was on leave in the village. He was easily able to fix the problem with our car. 

We drove back filled with thanksgiving to God who had sent us help when we called to Him.

- Lyndall Rothery

I don't know about you, but this kind of testimony serve to build my faith in the power of prayer. How many times do we try to fix our problems on our own and fail to ask God's help? I know I have done it way too many times. But I also know by experience, that God has helped whenever I have asked Him for it.


I hope you will visit the Spiritual Sundays blog for links to many inspirational posts. Just click HERE to go there.

So Many Reasons to Love the Lord

Helen Steiner Rice has so many great poems and I have so many books containing her poetry that very often I like to share one of them on my blog. This one really spoke to my heart today so it is the one I'm sharing. It's called "So Many Reasons to Love the Lord." I hope it speaks to your heart as it does to mine.

Thank You, God, for little things

that come unexpectedly

To brighten up a dreary day

that dawned so dismally―

Thank You, God, for sending

a happy thought my way

to blot out my depression

on a disappointing day―

Thank You, God, for brushing

the dark clouds from my mind

And leaving only sunshine

and joy of heart behind.

Oh, God, the list is endless

of things to thank You for

But I take them all for granted 

and unconsciously ignore

that everything I think or do,

each movement that I make,

each measured rhythmic heartbeat

each breath of life I take

Is something you have given me

for which there is no way

for me in all my smallness

to in any way repay.

           - Helen Steiner Rice

I'm sharing on Spiritual Sundays. I hope you will want to do that too.

Light of the World

Light of the world you stepped down into darkness 

Opened my eyes let me see 

Beauty that makes this heart adore You 

Hope of a life spent with You 

These are the opening lines of a song I always enjoy singing. Jesus said He was the light of the world. We are also to be lights in our dark world. How can we be lights in our dark world if our government or any government is determined to take God out of the world. Oh, they think it's OK to talk about God, but only in churches. Any mention of God might offend someone if it is uttered in our schools, or anywhere else except church. I just hate the way the left has changed the concept of freedom of religion to freedom from religion. The founding fathers intended for us to have freedom to practice our religion without government interference. 

I thought it was so sad when the Democratic National Convention left all mention of God out of their platform. This is the first year this has happened. There was such a backlash about this that they decided they had better put it back in along with the acknowledgement that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. So, they had a vote on it. The no's were as loud or louder than the yes's when they took the vote. So, the guy in charge says "Let's try this again." He tried it three times and evidently decided it wasn't going to change. The no's were still as loud or louder than the yes's so he declared it "passed" in spite of the opposition. It was supposed to be passed on a 2/3 majority vote which obviously was not the case. 

I have a hard time understanding why the left is so concerned about offending a few atheists but are willing to offend millions of Christians. We need to pray that this trend will be reversed and that once again God is welcome in our schools and everywhere else in society. Let's not try to keep Him locked up in our churches. Of course that is preposterous to think we can do that anyway. It would be funny if it weren't so sad. 

I hope we will all try to shine our light every day. Many are doing just that by sharing their faith and inspiration by linking to the Spiritual Sundays blog. I hope you go there and visit as many links as you can and you may also want to link a post on your blog, if you have a blog. Just click HERE to go there.

P.S. After I posted this, I realized that it is precisely because of the problems I stated above that we can be lights in this world. The darker it gets, the more light "shows up". Did you ever turn the lights on in your house in the daytime and hardly tell the difference, but if you turn them on at night, they shine brightly. As our world gets darker, let's let our lights shine more brightly.

Tanzania

This was shown at our church, Scottsdale Bible Church, last Sunday morning. So inspiring. I hope you will watch it.
For more information on this ministry click HERE.

Visit Spiritual Sundays for lots of links to inspiring posts. http://bloggerspirit.blogspot.com/

ANGELS UNAWARES

I don't know about you, but I have often pondered the above scripture and wondered exactly what it meant. I've heard explanations but I still don't really know. It is an intriguing thought though and so I decided to share a poem on the subject by Helen Steiner Rice. 

UNAWARE, WE PASS HIM BY

On life's busy thoroughfares
We meet with angels unawares―
But we are too busy to listen or hear,
Too busy to sense that God is near,
Too busy to stop and recognize
The grief that lies in another's eyes,
Too busy to help or share,
Too busy to sympathize or care
Too busy to do the good things we should,
Telling ourselves we would if we could.
But life is too swift and the pace is too great
And we dare not pause for we might be late
For our next appointment which means so much.
We are willing to brush off the Savior's touch.
And we tell ourselves there will come a day
We will have more time to pause on our way.
But before we know it "life's sun has set"
And we passed the Savior but never met.
For hurrying along life's thoroughfare
We passed Him by and remained unaware
That within the very sight of our eye, Unnoticed, the Son of God passed by.

                                              Helen Steiner Rice 

I was hungry - a Christian perspective
Jesus taught that when we do good deeds for the weak and downtrodden, it's as if we are helping Jesus himself. Here, he makes it clear that he values kindness done to stranger and to those who struggle to make ends meet.
http://biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2025:35&version=NIV
"The Least of These" in the Bible: Matthew 25:35-41
One of Jesus' most interesting teachings is that our commitment to him can be measured by how we treat other people, especially people who have been rejected by society for one reason or another. If we say we love Jesus but can't be bothered to show love to those in need, how genuine can our love for Jesus really be?
http://biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matt.25.35-Matt.25.41&version=NIV

Click HERE to go to the Spiritual Sundays blog for links to many inspiring posts.

SUNSHINE OF JOY

I was wondering what I should post on my blog so I was looking at the books in our bookcase and one of them caught my eye. It was a little Helen Steiner Rice book called Sunshine of Joy. We have so much sunshine here where we live ― not only in the summer but year around. So I took the book down and opened it. I know I have seen this book before because we've had it for years, but we have so many books that I have not looked at it in a long time. It was almost as if I'd never seen it before. Could be my age I guess. I do forget a few things. LOL
Any way, back to the book. My goodness ― so many wonderful poems. The one I chose to share today is called Warm Our Hearts With Thy Love.

Warm Our Hearts With Thy Love

                    Oh God, who made the summer

                              and warmed the earth with beauty,

                    Warm our hearts with gratitude

                              and devotion to our duty.

                    For in this age of violence,

                              rebellion and defiance

                    We've forgotten the true meaning

                              of "dependable reliance."

                    We have lost our sense of duty

                              and our sense of values, too,

                    and what was once unsanctioned

                              no longer is taboo.

                    Our standards have been lowered

                              and we resist all discipline

                    And our vision has been narrowed

                              and blinded to all sin.

                    Oh, put the summer brightness

                              in our closed, unseeing eyes

                    So in the careworn faces

                              that we pass we'll recognize

                    The heartbreak and the loneliness,

                              the trouble and despair

                    That a word of understanding 

                              would make easier to bear.

                    Oh, God, look down on our cold hearts

                              and warm them with Your love,

                    And grant us Your forgiveness

                              which we're so unworthy of.

                                            -Helen Steiner Rice

It is my prayer that God will warm all our hearts with His love. For links to lots of inspirational posts, please click HERE to go to the Spiritual Sundays blog.

Number Your Days

Each time a senseless tragedy occurs as it did this week, we are reminded that we never know when our days here on earth will be over. I know people who were going to see the Batman movie that night had no idea it could be their last night on earth. For many people, it was their last night. In light of that, I chose to share a short devotion by Joel Osteen in his little book called Your Best Life Begins Each Morning.

"So, teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."

Psalm 90:12 NKJV

OUR TIME HERE ON EARTH Is so short. What a shame it would be to allow something that happened in the past to ruin one more day. If you get stuck in a traffic jam, which you can't undo, know that God is still in control. If somebody offends you, your attitude should be. I'm not going to let it sour the rest of my day. No, I'm traveling light; I'm not going to carry any extra burdens.

        I've made up my mind to do my best to enjoy every single day. I may make mistakes, things may not always go my way, I may  be disappointed at times, but I've made a decision that I'm not going to allow what does or doesn't happen to me steal my joy and keep me from God's abundant life. - Joel Osteen

As important as it may be to not let anything or anyone steal or joy, there is something that is far more important. How we spend our time here on earth will affect where we spend eternity. Our years here on earth are at best very very short. And eternity is ― well, FOREVER. Most of us spend way too much time figuring out ways to make our life here more pleasant and too little time thinking about and planning for eternity. .... Just something to think about. ... Seriously ...

If you have not visited Spiritual Sundays, I hope you will go there and discover links to many inspirational posts. 

You can click HERE to go there.

54 YEARS

Here we are — 54 years ago. Of course there have been ups and downs as in any marriage or in any relationship for that matter. But we are growing old together and I think we're just about there (old).  Thank you, God, and thank you Clif for a great 54 years. Our kids took us to Hawaii to celebrate our 50th. Our daughter says they are talking about taking us back for our 60th. Wow, I like that idea. Besides blessing us with each other, God has blessed us with a wonderful daughter and  a wonderful son. In fact, we have been blessed in so many ways that I couldn't even begin to count them.

I'm glad God instituted marriage. Here are a few scriptures on that subject. 

1. Genesis 2:24
   That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
   Genesis 2:23-25 (in Context) Genesis 2 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
2. Matthew 19:5
   and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’ ?
   Matthew 19:4-6 (in Context) Matthew 19 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
3. Mark 10:7
   ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife,
   Mark 10:6-8 (in Context) Mark 10 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations
4. Ephesians 5:31
   “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”
   Ephesians 5:30-32 (in Context) Ephesians 5 (Whole Chapter) Other Translations

You really cannot improve on God's plan although people do keep trying to change it. 

I posted the following video/book a couple of years ago but thought I'd share it again. 

God Bless America?

Patriotism is being displayed in the United States this week as flags will be flying all over the place in celebration of our independence. Americans have been celebrating since way back in 1776. There are some in our country now though, who think we should not honor this day, or the flag. Seems it is getting more popular with the PC crowd (and I don't mean personal computer) to want to do away with any displays of allegiance to America. Who would have ever thought that saying the Pledge of Allegiance in our schools would ever be challenged? They managed to take the Bible and God out of our public schools. Next it will probably be against the law to display the American flag in our classrooms. After all, it might offend somebody. Well, I know someone who is terribly offended, and the liberal left couldn't care less. That someone is me. I am offended that in order to keep from offending one person that thousands, and probably millions, like me are offended.

Back to the title of this post. My opinion is that God has blessed America like He has blessed no other country in the history of the world. He has blessed America because it was founded on the principles found in His book. He was acknowledged in our government. He was acknowledged in our schools, in our homes and in our churches and synagogues. In God We Trust has been our national motto. Now I'm wondering, "Is God withdrawing his blessings from America?" I was impressed with the response that Billy Graham's daughter Anne Lotz made after 9/11. When asked why she thinks God would allow something like this to happen, Lotz replied, "I say God is also angry when he sees something like this. I would say also for several years now Americans in a sense have shaken their fist at God and said, God, we want you out of our schools, our government, our business, we want you out of our marketplace. And God, who is a gentleman, has just quietly backed out of our national and political life, our public life. Removing his hand of blessing and protection. We need to turn to God first of all and say, God, we're sorry we have treated you this way and we invite you now to come into our national life. We put our trust in you. We have our trust in God on our coins, we need to practice it." I certainly agree with her. I hope America wakes up before it's too late. If we want God to bless America, America had better start blessing God.

God's Favor

Joel Osteen writes good stuff. Today I'm sharing a devotion from his little book entitled Your Best Life Begins Each Morning.

The title is Never Rule Out God's Favor.

Though the fruit tree not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labor of the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls — yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. Habakkuk 3:17-18 NKJV

If you have read the book of Job, you realize that although his suffering began in chapter 1, he was not delivered and healed until chapter 42. But from the very beginning, in the darkest moments, Job was saying "God, I don't care what the situation looks like. You are a good God. Your favor is going to turn this situation around."

Friend, you may be in circumstances today that look impossible, but never rule out the favor of God. Stay in an attitude of faith. God promises that good things will come to you.

Thank you, Joel Osteen, for your insight. Many people are going through trying times right now. I hope this little devotional will be of help and comfort if it applies to you.

Be sure to visit Spiritual Sundays. You will find links to many inspiring posts there. Just click HERE to go there.

FALLEN CACTI

Who knew that a Barrel cactus would break off and fall over if they leaned too far? Who knew Barrel cacti had a tendency to lean? We found it out the hard way. Dear friends of ours gave us the cacti and even planted them for us over 20 years ago. They were tiny then. They grew and grew, and then one day we saw one of them laying down on the rocks. A short time later (probably about a month) the second one bit the dust (or I mean rocks). Now, how to get them moved was the question. They are EXTREMELY heavy. And those needles are sooo sharp.

Clif is good at figuring out how to fix things, so he set his mind to figuring out what to do. Here's the result.

Cut (saw) them into "manageable" size chunks.

Haul them around to the side of the house to await their turn in the trash can.

Then take a little break in the shade with a glass of ice water.

The goal: Get them all moved before the forecast high of 112º.

That Totem Pole cactus is leaning too. Is it just a matter of time? The Saguaro cactus is nice and straight.  I don't think it is in jeopardy. The Saguaro is "king of the cactuses (cacti)" These cacti were all planted at the same time about 22 years ago.

We love our desert - even when there are problems.