Angels Like to Party!

Greetings~

A couple of weeks ago the latest Royal Baby was born, and given all the world-wide attention, it can make us feel UN-special by comparison.

However, keep in mind it was only mere mortals celebrating the birth of Mr. Archie.  Those of us who have turned to God, had angels throwing a party in our honor.

“The angels in heaven throw a party every time a lost soul turns to God” Luke 15:10 (The Message Version).

It turns out we are special!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, even if the world doesn’t know us, You do and You celebrate us! We are glad we turned to You seeking guidance and forgiveness for our lives. Thank You for thinking we are special; nothing else matters. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.

Good News!

Luke 2:8-11

"And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.'"

Greetings,

Every day somewhere in our world there are folks receiving good news.  

"Here's your raise!"

"Congratulations, it's a girl!"

"Here are the keys to your new car!"

"I've met the man of my dreams!"

"You're approved for a mortgage!"

All those things are fine and dandy, but not necessarily of great importance to everyone on the planet.  However, the above verse is good news for every single person, because Jesus was born for the benefit of everyone.

As our Savior, He brought peace, joy, wisdom, hope, faith, love, grace, mercy, and salvation for anyone willing to receive these blessings, and it all starts with prayer.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, Our hearts are thinking about You and how You came as a little baby with so many promises for our benefit.  We need every single one! We open up our lives to You today, and we receive all of You.  Glory to Your name, and peace on earth. In Your name, Amen.

YOU ARE SPECIAL

Greetings,

There certainly is a lot of hoopla over the latest royal couple.  They are planning a fairytale wedding next spring, and every picture of them shows them making lovey dovey eyes at one another.  It seems as though the entire planet is obsessed with this good looking duo, and it is impossible to see any magazine without them on the cover.  I also haven't been able to go one day without someone assuring me that the future princess's $3000 coat is within my budget if I will settle for a knock-off at $29.99.  Honestly, I wish them well, and I love a love story as much as anyone.  But I am sure that not one of us has ever had so much attention lavished on us.  It can make a gal, or a guy, feel unspecial by comparison.

Except...

Luke 15:10 "The angels in heaven throw a party every time a lost soul turns to God.

The day you turned to God seeking His forgiveness and guidance for your life, the angels threw a party in your honor" (The Message Version).

Can't you just hear them now?

"That Yenise is a lovely and special, precious child of God! Hip Hip Hurray! She trusted Jesus with her life, and she will be crowned with the crown of everlasting life! At the right time we will share a delicious piece of angel food cake with her!"

Insert your name above: YOU ARE SPECIAL!!!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, When we turned to You it was an awesome day for us on earth, and now we know the angels had a big party in heaven. Thank You that even if the world doesn't know it, You think we are worth celebrating over. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

A Psalm of Thanksgiving (Psalm 138 The Message Version)

A Psalm of Thanksgiving~ (Psalm 138 The Message Version)

Dear Lord, Thank You! Everything in me says “Thank You!” Angels listen as I sing my thanks. I kneel in worship facing Your holy temple and say it again: “Thank You!” Thank You for Your love, thank You for Your faithfulness; Most Holy is Your name, most Holy is Your Word. The moment I called out, You stepped in; You made my life large with strength. When they hear what You have to say, God, all earth’s kings will say “Thank You.” They’ll sing of what You’ve done: “How great the glory of God!” And here’s why: God, high above, sees far below; no matter the distance, You know everything about me. Save me with Your hand. Finish what You started in me, God. Your love is eternal—don’t quit on me now.

Happy Thanksgiving, and God bless you~

Take the Leap!

Greetings,

Our country is so great that a lot of folks want to live here.  Some arrive legally, some don't, and some even risk death to get to our shores.  Most are looking for what my family wanted when we arrived in 1966: The opportunity for a better life!

The older I get the more I appreciate the guts it took for my family to leave their native land and start over in a foreign country.  My grandfather was 52 when he arrived here, and now that I am that age I wonder how I could handle leaving the U.S. and all my extended family and friends and starting over with Jorge, my kids, and grandkids in another non-English speaking country with no money, no house, and no job.  I would like to think that if it meant we were going to a place with the promise of a better and brighter future I would take the leap!

Heaven is the ultimate promise of the best and brightest future, and God wants us to take the leap and establish our citizenship with His kingdom. 

"Mount Zion is the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to thousands of thousands of angels in festive gathering, and to Christian citizens.  You are joining the righteous ones who have been made perfect. You have come to Jesus, and it is your final glory..." (Hebrews 12:22-24).

Living with God, Jesus, the angels, and perfectly perfect citizens? I want this to be my final glory and my final home. 

How? It's almost like when I became a citizen in 1979.  I filled out a bunch of paperwork and pledged an oath of allegiance to the United States.  Citizenship in heaven is easier.  We simply pray. 

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We take a leap of faith today and open our hearts to You to welcome You into our lives.  We realize that we are profoundly blessed to live in the United States, but our ultimate and glorious destination is with You.  We look forward to the wonder of heaven.  Thank You that we have so much to look forward to .  In the meanwhile, bless us on earth.  Protect us and give us Your peace and provision.  In Jesus' name, AMEN.

Here We Go Again!

Greetings,

Here we go again! Almost a year ago  -  October 4, 2016  -  I, along with thousands of South Floridians, started preparing for Hurricane Matthew.  This time around it's Hurricane Irma. She is churning away in the Atlantic as a Category 5, which means her speeds are topping out at 175 mph. That's insane! Her exact path is still unknown, but as a precaution, we must be ready. 

So, as soon as I send this DEVO I am headed out the door to purchase more water and fill my car up with gas.  Then I will pick up Hershey's toys, which are scattered all around the yard, take down my hanging fern, and dust off the storm shutters. Not exactly a great way to spend a Tuesday. 

But the most important thing I will do in all my preparations is pray  -  specifically, Psalm 91 (The Message Version).

"Dear God, You are my refuge, my haven, my sanctuary, and my shield.  I trust in You, and I am safe.  You rescue me and protect me from deadly hazards [like HURRICANES]. Your huge outstretched arms guard me and my family, and under them, we are perfectly safe because Your arms fend off all harm.  I fear nothing, and no harm will even graze me or those I love. I will stand untouched because You are my hiding place. Harm can not get through the door. Thank You that You have ordered Your angels to protect me and my family wherever we go.  Their job is to keep us from falling, and we will walk unharmed.  Thank You that You give me and those I love the best of care.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

The words of the Bible are so comforting, and God knew that Psalm 91 is exactly what we all needed to hear today.  May you pray this prayer and be strengthened in your souls!

He Chose Love

Matthew 26:53 "Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and He will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?"

Greetings,

Think about your greatest struggle right now.  If you could call on God to send thousands and thousands of angels to your rescue, knowing He would do it at once, would you?  I WOULD...IN A HEARTBEAT!!!  Jesus could have done it as well, but He did not.  Instead, He chose His love for us over His own life. 

Christ spoke the words in the verse above as Judas betrayed Him in the Garden of Gethsemane.  He was arrested and would soon face a horrifying crucifixion.  He could have avoided it all; the angels were one brief request away. But He willingly chose to go through with it to give you and me eternal life. This profoundly blesses me.

He is worthy of our love, our trust, and our faith.

He is worthy to be praised and worshipped.

He gave His all for us; let's give Him our all.

PRAYER: Dear Jesus, As we prepare to celebrate Your resurrection this Sunday, we are humbled and grateful.  Your willingness to save us is the most amazing sacrifice ever.  We offer up to You our fractured, frail, fickle souls because You are the only One Who thought we were worth dying for. It does not seem fair that we get You and Your blessings, and all You get is us in return.  But love is a mighty thing; thank You for loving us.  We desperately need You.  In Your name, AMEN.

God's Angels Throw a Party...

Greetings, 

People have parties for all kinds of reasons: Birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, pregnancies, holidays...

I myself have celebrated the day I met my children's significant others, the first date Jorge and I had - March 28, 1985 - and once we even had a little get-together in honor of my son-in-law's arrival to our great nation!

But there is one type of party that is so significantly grand that all other parties pale in comparison.

Luke 15:10 "God's angels throw a party every time one lost soul turns to God" (The Message Version).

When even one person changes their old way of thinking and doing things and lives their life in a way that shows this beautiful change and seeks God's purpose for their life, the angels CELEBRATE!

I can just imagine the gold confetti, shimmering white balloons, angel food cake, of course, fireworks, and tears of happiness. They celebrate because they know things are going to be better, blessings will flow,  and joy will abound. Most importantly, one more soul has gone from death unto life and will join them in the eternal goodness and presence of the Lord.  Sin and sorrow will be gone forever. Amen.

The day you and I turned to God there was an angelic assembly in our honor, and one of our missions in life must be to pray so the angels can have as many parties as possible.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You that the angels had a party for us.  One day we will see just how spectacular it was.  Right now we pray for those who are struggling to turn to You.  Draw them near so they too can have positive change and divine guidance for their lives.  In Jesus' name, AMEN~   

The Most Important Preparation

Good morning, 

At this very moment thousands of South Floridians, myself included, are preparing for Hurricane Matthew.  My shopping list is ready, and as soon as I send this DEVO I am headed out the door to stock up on water and fill up my car with gas.  When I get back, I will focus on the yard by taking down hanging plants and picking up all of Hershey's toys, which, we have been warned, can become dangerous projectiles in hurricane-force winds.  What a lovely way to spend a Tuesday!

But the most important thing I will do in all of my preparations is pray  -  specifically, Psalm 91 (The Message version).

"God, You are my refuge. I trust in You, and I am safe.  You rescue me and shield me from deadly hazards. Your huge outstretched arms protect me and my family, and under them, we are perfectly safe. Your arms fend off all harm.  I fear nothing, and no harm will even graze me or those I love. I will stand untouched because You are my refuge, my home. Harm can not get through the door. Thank You that You have ordered Your angels to guard me and my family wherever we go.  Their job is to keep us from falling, and we will walk unharmed.  Thank You that You give me and those I love the best of care.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

The words of the Bible are so comforting, and God knew that Psalm 91 is exactly what we all needed to hear today.  May you pray this prayer and be strengthened in your souls!

You're Still Special~

Greetings~

Yesterday one of you lovelies "lovingly" commented that I picked a great day to tell everyone they are special--meaning that so much attention was on the Royal Baby that it made you feel very UN-special by comparison.

Sure the entire world waited with baited breath to see if the baby was a boy or a girl. And yes there's all kind of speculation as to what the baby's name will be.

But what if I told you that while mere mortals celebrated the birth of the future monarch of England, something even better took place for you?

Luke 15:10 (The Message Version) The angels in heaven throw a party every time a lost soul turns to God.

The day you turned to God seeking His forgiveness and guidance for your life, the angels threw a party in your honor.

I can just hear them now..."That Yenise sure is a special young woman! Hip Hip Hurray! We can't wait to meet her! Good for her for entrusting her life to the Almighty!"

So you see: YOU ARE SPECIAL:(,)

PRAYER: Dear Lord, When we turned to You it was an awesome day for us on earth, and now we know the angels had a big party in heaven. Thank You that even if the world doesn't know it, You think we are worth celebrating over. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

Angels on the Job~

Good afternoon, all you glorious and forgiven children of God whom He is busy bringing His goodness to:)

Next month will mark the fourth anniversary of an incident that changed my life. We got that phone call that no parent ever wants to receive. Rayray and four of her friends were in a car accident. A Miami Herald employee who was working the late shift fell asleep behind the wheel of his car on the way home and t-boned Rayray as she was crossing a green light. The car flipped four times and landed upside down against a tree. All four of her passengers walked away unhurt. Rayray fractured her collarbone and needed stitches on her shoulder and arm after crawling through glass to get out of the car.

No one in the backseat was wearing a seat belt, so it was miraculous that no one was ejected. Rayray was taken to the local hospital, checked out, and released. I myself could not go to the emergency room because I had just had surgery myself. Her father and brother went, and I wondered how God would use this for good.

(1) Everyone, including the driver of the other car, survived. Enough said.

(2) The car, that would have been paid in full after just one more payment, was totaled. I DID NOT CARE. And I was able to finally prove to myself that after saying material things don't matter, I really believed it. Mind you, the other driver was uninsured, but thank God we had sufficient coverage.

(3) I was able to call my prayer partner right away, and she was willing and available to pray for my family and me. We all need to know there is at least one person we can count on in a real crisis.   

(4) When the moment of truth arrived, her brother stepped up to the challenge and was able to change Rayray's bandages with the skill of a top surgeon. This is amazing given that he has hands the size of a six-year-old gorilla. He did not shy away from helping her, and her father and I were grateful. Of course I knew they loved each other, but it blessed my heart beyond belief to know they will be there for one another long after Jorge and I are gone. Later that day Hormone just closed the door to his room and cried his eyes out. Glory~

(5) Not one of Rayray's friends pursued any legal action against us, which I found out later was possible by law even though it was not Rayray's fault. It's nice to know who your friends are, and to this day she remains close with them.

(6) I had the privilege of being the one to gently encourage Rachel to get behind the wheel again. It was beautiful being able to pray for her and watch God strengthen her as she fought against the fear of driving. She, of course, has since fully recovered, and is always always always on the go. The City of Miami is considering naming a street in Coconut Grove after her.

What was the number one good that came from this all? I learned that even when our children break a rule God still honors a mother's prayers. For you see, Rayray was not supposed to be driving that day. She was staying with a bunch of her friends, and I had specifically asked her not to drive because of the late hour. She assured me she wouldn't. But when they all decided to get something to eat, she just figured it would kind of sort of be okay. NOT!

When I finally saw her later that day, I broke down; my knees gave out. But I went on to caress that precious face of hers for hours and hours and did not once mention that she should have known better. I did not yell, threaten, or yes people, even preach. I just sat there thanking God that my baby was still with me.

PRAYER:

 

Dear Lord, We sometimes bring consequences on ourselves, but that does not stop You from blessing us anyway. Psalm 91:11 assures us that "You will order Your angels to protect us wherever we go," even when we go where we shouldn't. Thank You! In Jesus' name, AMEN~

 

 

Car After Accident



Jorgie's Gorilla Hands