-
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…
-
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…
-
The Waiting
I’m in the second week of an Advent study I am doing with my women’s life group, preparing my heart for Christmas. It never gets old to consider the arrival of Christ in the flesh. What if He hadn’t come? I can’t even imagine the feeling of loss and yet, waiting for the promise to be fulfilled in the arrival of the Savior. Imagine the Israelites hearing NOTHING from God for 400 years, Malachi to Matthew! Silence. The most deafening silence they’d probably ever heard. Then…the angels announce the arrival of the baby born miraculously to Mary and Joseph, the long awaited Messiah! Advent means “waiting for the coming of…
-
3 Blogs Posts for Living in 2021
1 Social media today is all over the map: truth, fake news, encouraging, degrading, spiritual, business related, hopeful and concerning. How ever you use social media, Social Media: 7 Tips for Christians from SBC Voices is a great read as you consider your next update. 2 Whether Jesus comes back tomorrow or 50 years for now, we must be ready. Read 4 Ways to Live During End Times by LifeWay Research. This also relates well to the previous post! 3 This last post I will share today is written by a friend and colleague of mine, Christina Zimmerman. Read What Are Spiritual Disciplines to be reminded of how we continue…
-
Beach Lesson #2
As I shared my beach lesson on mentoring with Amanda (please read that post first, Beach Lesson on Mentoring) , she told me she got something totally different from that experience of finding shells. So this is her take on it. Amanda’s thoughts are in italics and my comments follow. 1 Our lives are like shells. How many come to the shore completely shattered. Only a few come whole. Most have broken pieces. Perhaps you are a broken shell yourself. Can you trust God for your healing? Maybe you know broken people, can you be a source of encouragement and healing for them? 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 Blessed be the God…
-
Lessons From Birds
I want to share a post my animal rehabber daughter Alycia Neighbours shared on Facebook recently. Today at work I was giving our aviary birds their food and water. One of the items is some fresh berries and I usually cut most to bite-sized pieces. Some of the blueberries were pretty small, so I left them whole. In the aviary are four grackles who recently graduated to flying free in the aviary to prepare them for outside life when it comes time for release. As I put the food down, they all four each grabbed a whole blueberry as if it was the biggest prize of their lives. They chased…
-
Unseen Progress
Remember when you were a kid and you planted a seed in a pot and watched it eventually pop through the soil? It seemed like a long time before seeing any progress, but what you didn’t see was happening below the surface of the dirt. If you watered well and provided a sunny spot to grow, you probably got to see it produce whatever fruit it was…a plant or a flower. It took time, and it took the right environment. The Bible talks quite a lot about seeds and growing plants as related to spiritual growth. The parable of the sower and the seed in Matthew 13, for instance. Luke…
-
The Aroma of Sacrifice
Many of you know I read scripture chronologically year after year. The beauty of repeatedly reading the Bible this way is that there are always new revelations, new principles I’d not seen before, and many new connections I see throughout scripture between the Old and New Testaments. The thread of the Gospel all the way through from Genesis to Revelation becomes much more obvious to me year by year. As I was recently reading Exodus 30 one morning, something struck me that I’d not noticed previously. Verses 34-38 tell us God gave very exact details for the formula of the incense that would be used in worship within the tabernacle…
-
Discipleship Today
Last week I shared a post (read What Now? here) asking what you are hearing from women you serve and lead. Many are ready to take a deeper dive into knowing and growing in Christ. Are you ready to lead them well? I am currently leading my 4th D-Group at church since retirement in 2017. Discipleship has always been the core of women’s ministry as far as I am concerned. Of course, the first step is salvation, but that is NOT the final step in a woman’s spiritual journey. She needs women who will shepherd her through the next steps. This was not my experience as a new believer when…
-
What Now?
If you lead or disciple women in any way, I want to ask you a question. What are you hearing from them regarding this past year of COVID and all the other issues we all have faced? Here’s some positive things I’ve seen or heard: Yes, there have been many negative responses and experiences as well. People have lost jobs, health, political and social unrest, finances, and the joy of being with people in person. Most of us wearied of online church and zoom meetings. But, for sure, God has been at work in so many lives. Recently, Jim Denison quoted Desmond Tutu in one of his Daily Articles: “Hope…
