Test
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2022 Beach Lesson
So after years of hearing from the Lord when I’m at the beach (just click the “Beach Lessons” category for evidence!), I don’t always hear “new” things, but sometimes I hear old things in a new way. This year that happened. I heard something I know, but with a fresh visual. It came to me in a variety of ways: through a couple of books I was reading, and by watching the shoreline. Life has had lots of twists and turns this year, mostly unexpected ones. Some painful. Some just a nuisance. But even as I’ve waited for resolution and healing, I’ve known that God was in control and had…
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My Soul’s Longing
Something occurred to me recently regarding why I want others to know Jesus and why my heart for discipleship has been a calling now for about 40 years or so. Because it was quite a few years between my salvation and the first time someone personally discipled me and showed me how to grow in Christ, I do not want that to be the story for other new believers. Some days, even during difficult seasons, my time with the Lord just causes my soul to soar and all I can think is, “I so want others to experience this satisfying joy.” A joy that transcends earthly concerns and pain. The…
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Lessons from #MoDawg
Listening has been the theme of some recent posts, today is another. You may know that our 12 year old Yorkie Mo has been blind for about 2 years. Today we took him kayaking, which he loves, and also for a walk in the park. In the past, we let him off the leash to run his legs off. Then he went blind. He still loves the freedom to run. Although we let him off his leash occasionally in an open field, he’s much slower than before, more cautious, and he depends on our voice commands to guide him safely, and so he can locate us. Today as we watched…
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Treasures
I started this train of thought last week in When It Makes No Sense. Today, I want to share 7 follow up treasures He has given me, and how I am getting those insights. I do not like waiting for answers…just ask my former co-workers! I’m just not good at waiting. And right now…waiting is where I am. But in the waiting, the Lord ALWAYS shows up. These things occurred (and this time I was listening!) in a weeks time. And even though resolution has not yet appeared, He has shown up, every single day! 1 I read the phrase “don’t hurry through the heartache” alongside Romans 8:28, “We know…
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When It Makes No Sense
It was one of those days. I’d been dealing with something heavy on my heart. Something that just isn’t how things should be. This led me to look at others and wonder why my situation couldn’t be fixed like their situations seem to be. This day, as He does often, God spoke in various ways as I spent time with Him on my deck. I started with the song, Sovereign Over Us, one I listen to especially when I just need the reminder of His sovereignty over EVERYTHING. Take a listen. My Bible reading then took me to John 21 and the conversation Jesus had with Peter, after He told…
- Beach Lessons, Leadership Lessons, Lessons, Spiritual Growth, Test, The Cost of Leadership Series, Trial
The Cost of Leadership Part 7
Please start with the first 6 posts in this series if you haven’t already. The seventh aspect in the cost of going deeper is battles. Followers of Christ have an adversary, and his name is Satan. His desire is to keep us from knowing, serving, and trusting Christ as we walk with Him. At times we will carry scars from the battles with him. Ultimately Christ has won the war, but this side of heaven the enemy still has influence on earth that we will face continually. It may come through painful relationships, failure, criticism from others, health…any number of situations in which we face spiritual warfare. Even when we…
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Two Book Recommendations
I recently finished reading two amazing books I want to recommend to my readers. The first is When Strivings Cease by Ruth Chou Simons. My D-group did a slow walk through this book. I wrote one post on it in Perfect? For Who? since I am a recovering perfectionist! Ruth takes us from a “self help” mentality to a grace mentality as she reminds us of who Christ is and what He has done for us. Because of His grace we can walk in confidence in His image and stop striving to work our way through self-help methods. Yes, there are things we do to become disciplined disciples, but even those things…
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The Blessed Limp
Ever had an injury that just wouldn’t heal? Or surgery on a part of your body that took forever to heal. Maybe, like me, you never were the same after an incident. I’ve had 3 foot surgeries. Each time I’ve had numbness from the procedure that I’ve never fully recovered from. The last surgery took the longest to heal. I limped in a boot for a while, then limped as I favored it when the boot was removed. Lasting issues, although minor, continue to bother me. But what happens when the “limp” is a spiritual one? Those sometimes last a lifetime, and yet, they can be some of the sweetest…
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Who Hates Disruptions?
Task oriented people like me! You know, gotta get the job done…today…now! No matter what. What about you? All of us have experienced them. Most of us do not like them. Over 2 years ago the entire world experienced disruption to life as we had known it. In addition to the pandemic, many others also experienced a disruption in their good health, close relationships, face-to-face community we relied on, satisfying jobs, and income that goes with that. And this is the short list. Some experienced continual losses, one after another, along with, and in the middle of, the pandemic. But, what if, for whatever reason, this was God’s plan for…
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Easter & Romans 8:28
As you celebrate Easter, remembering what Jesus has done for you through His crucifixion and resurrection, I just want to challenge you to consider Jesus’ obedience and the truth of His Father’s plan in light of Romans 8:28. If it’s true that…. We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. …then, we know Jesus truly understands what it is to do what God asks, no matter how hard it is. He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane for a different way to accomplish our salvation, but submitted to His Father’s “no” to this request so that…
