New Year's Eve to all!
As our year winds down and a new one begins we will all be taking inventory of our lives and making resolutions about our health, our finances, our families, and hopefully our spiritual health too.
It is the perfect time for do-overs and fresh starts, and maybe you are looking forward to a brighter day ahead. I sure am.
For me there is no better way to end or begin a new chapter than through prayer. Why? you ask. Because, dear people, prayer opens up a channel through which God's power and love flows mightily into the situation being prayed about. In what area of your life do you need to see a mega dose of God's power at work? Don't just stand there. Give God something to work with by opening up that channel through prayer. CHOP CHOP!!!
PRAYER:
Dear Lord, You have been faithful. Here we all are, alive and well, and ready for the task at hand. This was a year where we all learned more about You and the importance of taking a moment each day to talk to You, and You answered us in mighty ways. We move confidently into 2013 knowing that with You by our side, we and our families will be blessed. And thank You that You never let go--even when we squirm. In Jesus' name, AMEN~
Isaiah 41:13 (Message Version)
I, your God, have a firm grip on you and I’m not letting go. I’m telling you, ‘Don’t panic.' I’m right here to help you.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Good News~
Have you been given any good news lately?
I remember back in March of 2005 when the doctor walked out and told our family that my father-in-law would NOT die from the massive hear attack he had suffered as being good news! I also remember when Jorge had his surgery for skin cancer, and the doctor came out and said it had not spread and he would have a 100% recovery. And remember the famous break-in I had at the house in January of 2010? It was good news when the cops called that they had apprehended the perps and found my cameras. More recently, there are rumors around the office that we might be getting Christmas bonuses, and that is certainly good news.
We have all been there--the times when we have held our breath to see if the school test was passed and if the check-ups declared us healthy. Toxic relationships finally met their end and a stubborn wall of non-communication came tumbling down.
All these things and so much more qualify as good news.
Yet...
There is a bit of good news that makes all other good news pale in comparison.
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."
Oh oh! I feel a happy dance coming on!!!
This is the only good news I have ever heard of that is of great joy for all the people. Only a handful of folks really care about my good news and yours, but Christ's birth is good news for every single person alive on this earth because we all need hope, love, and salvation.
Let's spread the good news on Christmas morning. I have an assignment that will bless you and your families. Before you sit down to a breakfast or start opening gifts, have the youngest member of your clan read Luke 2:8-20.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
Thank You for reminding us today that no matter how good or bad the news is that we receive, we have already been given the best possible news, and because of Him, we have a bright and beautiful future. Glory to Your name and peace on earth. In Jesus' name, Amen~
I remember back in March of 2005 when the doctor walked out and told our family that my father-in-law would NOT die from the massive hear attack he had suffered as being good news! I also remember when Jorge had his surgery for skin cancer, and the doctor came out and said it had not spread and he would have a 100% recovery. And remember the famous break-in I had at the house in January of 2010? It was good news when the cops called that they had apprehended the perps and found my cameras. More recently, there are rumors around the office that we might be getting Christmas bonuses, and that is certainly good news.
We have all been there--the times when we have held our breath to see if the school test was passed and if the check-ups declared us healthy. Toxic relationships finally met their end and a stubborn wall of non-communication came tumbling down.
All these things and so much more qualify as good news.
Yet...
There is a bit of good news that makes all other good news pale in comparison.
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."
Oh oh! I feel a happy dance coming on!!!
This is the only good news I have ever heard of that is of great joy for all the people. Only a handful of folks really care about my good news and yours, but Christ's birth is good news for every single person alive on this earth because we all need hope, love, and salvation.
Let's spread the good news on Christmas morning. I have an assignment that will bless you and your families. Before you sit down to a breakfast or start opening gifts, have the youngest member of your clan read Luke 2:8-20.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
Thank You for reminding us today that no matter how good or bad the news is that we receive, we have already been given the best possible news, and because of Him, we have a bright and beautiful future. Glory to Your name and peace on earth. In Jesus' name, Amen~
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Be Glad~
Good beautiful morning~
Are you having a nice day? Are you glad? Are you rejoicing?
If you are, then you are perfectly following the recommendation in the verse below. If you are not, then turn that frown upside down and get with the program!!!
Psalm 118:24
This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
No matter what is happening in the world around us, God is reminding us that this day is His. He made it, and He expects us to celebrate that we are alive to experience it.
Do you have one thing--just one--that you can be happy about? How about two things? Three or more? I am happy about each of you, so that puts me ahead by a lot!!!!
No matter what, dear one, and trust me when I tell you that I have had many low days myself, there is always one thing that peps me up and make me want to do a happy dance. That One thing is Jesus, who came as a little baby. He left the glory of heaven to understand me better as a human on this earth. He gave it all so I could have it all, and one day I will.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord, Some days we do not feel like rejoicing. But because You know best, we will follow the advice in the verse above and be glad anyway! We are glad that You understand us. We are glad that we are alive to live another day. We are glad that even when there is maddening stuff happening all around, You protect us. We will honor You today by being glad. In Jesus' name, AMEN~
Monday, December 17, 2012
CLING!
Good Morning~
So let's tackle the topic that has been on all our hearts since Friday. What happened in Newtown is unthinkable and heartbreaking in ways I pray we will never fully understand. I watched the memorial service yesterday, and what I find compelling is that even though there are those who question how God could allow this (I myself have struggled with this), that community has overwhelmingly embraced God in the middle of this horror. Friday night the community held a vigil attended by hundreds, and yesterday's inter-faith service was attended by everyone as well.
I think one of the reasons for that is that the people of Newtown, like everyone else in the planet, have a God-given inner stirring that compels them to believe in the existence of God. In other words, every single person who has ever walked the earth has a soul, and that soul, like it or not, searches for meaning, for purpose, for blessing...
Consider for a moment the most remote, aboriginal tribe, deep in the Amazon jungle. There have been some discoveries of tribal people who have never even had contact with the outside world. They have never heard of Jesus, used a cell phone, or even had electricity, and yet, you will always always always find that they were worshipping their version of God--even if it was a coconut on a stick. Why is that?
Ephesians 3:11
...He has planted eternity in every human heart...
Romans 1:20
For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities--His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.
You join these two verses and essentially what we know is that we were created with eternity already in our hearts and God's creation helps us everyday to have faith that this life is not all there is. THE BEST IS YET TO COME.
So, these families in Newtown, although devastated, hold onto the hope, that one day they will be reunited with their children. No matter how angry they are at God, they also accept that their children are safely in His arms and for that reason, they cling to Him. They cling through tears, anger, pain, but they cling.
Let us cling as well.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
We are in shock over what happened. It is truly beyond the scope of our understanding why these things happen. We know that You are the source of everything that is good but that there is also so much evil in this world. Help us to do good every single day, and just like Your word teaches, we ask that You deliver us and our families from evil today and everyday. In Jesus' name, AMEN~
So let's tackle the topic that has been on all our hearts since Friday. What happened in Newtown is unthinkable and heartbreaking in ways I pray we will never fully understand. I watched the memorial service yesterday, and what I find compelling is that even though there are those who question how God could allow this (I myself have struggled with this), that community has overwhelmingly embraced God in the middle of this horror. Friday night the community held a vigil attended by hundreds, and yesterday's inter-faith service was attended by everyone as well.
I think one of the reasons for that is that the people of Newtown, like everyone else in the planet, have a God-given inner stirring that compels them to believe in the existence of God. In other words, every single person who has ever walked the earth has a soul, and that soul, like it or not, searches for meaning, for purpose, for blessing...
Consider for a moment the most remote, aboriginal tribe, deep in the Amazon jungle. There have been some discoveries of tribal people who have never even had contact with the outside world. They have never heard of Jesus, used a cell phone, or even had electricity, and yet, you will always always always find that they were worshipping their version of God--even if it was a coconut on a stick. Why is that?
Ephesians 3:11
...He has planted eternity in every human heart...
Romans 1:20
For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see His invisible qualities--His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.
You join these two verses and essentially what we know is that we were created with eternity already in our hearts and God's creation helps us everyday to have faith that this life is not all there is. THE BEST IS YET TO COME.
So, these families in Newtown, although devastated, hold onto the hope, that one day they will be reunited with their children. No matter how angry they are at God, they also accept that their children are safely in His arms and for that reason, they cling to Him. They cling through tears, anger, pain, but they cling.
Let us cling as well.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
We are in shock over what happened. It is truly beyond the scope of our understanding why these things happen. We know that You are the source of everything that is good but that there is also so much evil in this world. Help us to do good every single day, and just like Your word teaches, we ask that You deliver us and our families from evil today and everyday. In Jesus' name, AMEN~
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Give Me a Break!
Mele Kalikimaka :)
Proverbs 13:12
Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn life around.
Have you ever felt heartsick? Have you ever been so sick and tired of bad news that you were sick and tired in your body and mind? Day after agonizing day there seemed to be no positive end in sight.
Maybe that is where you are right now. But what I love about this verse is that (1) God acknowledges that life is hard--that there is such a thing as being down in the dumps. If you can't own up to the fact that life is not 100% great 100% of the time, then you can't fix it. And, (2) a sudden good break can turn it around!!!
Just like there are unrelenting seasons of disappointment in life, there are also sudden good breaks that come our way.
Could you use a good break today? God is the giver of all that is good, including a break!
Matthew 7:11
So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask Him.
Stop the presses! We are sinful. You didn't think you were perfect, did you? And yet we know how to give good gifts to our kids. How much more will our perfect heavenly Father give to us? A lot more! Included in those good gifts are good breaks.
What is He waiting for? I need a break right now. "Give me a break," we yell sometimes when we feel pressure at home, at work, in our relationships, when the creditors call...
Check out the last part of the verse...to those who ask Him. God is all about relationship, people, and perhaps if He gave us everthing we ever needed without our asking, we might just ignore Him until we get to glory.
PRAYER:
Dear Lord, You know each and every one of us and where we are right now. Some of us are in a great place, so thank You. Some of us are in the midst of unrelenting pressure and disappointment and need a break. You give good breaks, so give us one now because when You do, it turns our lives around. In Jesus' name, AMEN!
Monday, December 10, 2012
Blessings in Disguise~
Chelo~
Would you ever say that having a stroke was a blessing in disguise?
I heard a story once of a mom who called the ambulance when she found her toddler unconscious. The paramedics asked her and her husband to follow them in their car. The parents were freaking out when they realized the ambulance was heading toward the cemetery. But when they arrived they understood why they went there: The only place in their small town for the life-flight helicopter to land was the cemetery because there were no trees in the way.
Have you ever felt that you or someone you love was headed down the wrong road? I have a cousin who recently felt as though she and her family were on the way to the cemetery because of a health issue with one of her children. As she was going through this difficult time she felt God was taking them opposite of where they needed to go. But praise His holy name, it turns out the trial they all went through spared them an even harder ordeal. Said child was engaging in certain dangerous behaviors that if it would not have been for the health scare, the other stuff would have never been disclosed. That scary emergency room visit was a life- flight helicopter in disguise.
Another friend's dad suffered a stroke. For sure they thought they were headed to the cemetery. But it turns out the life-flight helicopter was there all along--warming its propellers. Now her father--a FORMER smoker--has quit smoking entirely and is getting healthier every single day.
Has there ever been a time in your life when you thought the worst was happening but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
PRAYER: Dear Lord, We thank You for these blessings in disguise. We take a step of faith today and trust You even when it feels we're heading the wrong way. Our life is in Your hands, and we know You will get us to where we need to go. In Jesus' name, AMEN!
Proverbs 3:5
Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Would you ever say that having a stroke was a blessing in disguise?
I heard a story once of a mom who called the ambulance when she found her toddler unconscious. The paramedics asked her and her husband to follow them in their car. The parents were freaking out when they realized the ambulance was heading toward the cemetery. But when they arrived they understood why they went there: The only place in their small town for the life-flight helicopter to land was the cemetery because there were no trees in the way.
Have you ever felt that you or someone you love was headed down the wrong road? I have a cousin who recently felt as though she and her family were on the way to the cemetery because of a health issue with one of her children. As she was going through this difficult time she felt God was taking them opposite of where they needed to go. But praise His holy name, it turns out the trial they all went through spared them an even harder ordeal. Said child was engaging in certain dangerous behaviors that if it would not have been for the health scare, the other stuff would have never been disclosed. That scary emergency room visit was a life- flight helicopter in disguise.
Another friend's dad suffered a stroke. For sure they thought they were headed to the cemetery. But it turns out the life-flight helicopter was there all along--warming its propellers. Now her father--a FORMER smoker--has quit smoking entirely and is getting healthier every single day.
Has there ever been a time in your life when you thought the worst was happening but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
PRAYER: Dear Lord, We thank You for these blessings in disguise. We take a step of faith today and trust You even when it feels we're heading the wrong way. Our life is in Your hands, and we know You will get us to where we need to go. In Jesus' name, AMEN!
Proverbs 3:5
Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Friday, December 7, 2012
BE THE GOOD IN THE WORLD :)
Yesterday I saw a t-shirt with the following message on it:
BElieve
THEre is
GOOD
IN THE
WORLD
Isn't that profoundly simple yet true?
Time out for a comic strip I once read.
A turtle is complaining to God about all the hunger, disease, sadness, hunger, and injustice there is in the world. He shakes a little turtle foot at God and says, "Look at this mess this world is in. Why don't You do something?"
And then God responds, "Funny you should ask because I was just about to ask you the same thing!"
BE THE GOOD IN THE WORLD!!!
Do you desire to see less divorce? Then start by fighting for your family because that is good and it will perpetuate goodness as they grow and start their own families.
Do you desire to see people pray more? Then be bold and start asking folks if you can pray for them when you sense a need, and I can assure you they will start praying more too and before you know it, you have started a revolution.
Do you wish to see an end to depression? Then be happy wherever you go and cheer someone up.
The possibilities are endless.
Time out for another story:
There was a priest who spent his life helping wayward youth, and one day one of his fellow priests was belittling him for spending so much time with these "lost causes."
But one of these "lost causes" grew up to be a police officer who was called to an on-going robbery at the local church. To make a long story short, the officer took a bullet for one of the hostages when the robber opened fire. Who did he take the bullet for?
The very same priest who years earlier had said it was a waste of time to spend so much energy on kids who never changed.
Doing good really makes a difference :)
PRAYER:
Dear Lord, Here we are again today but with a new perspective on how we see the world. You long for Your children to rise up and declare that they will be the good this world needs. We are willing. Strengthen us to do good--especially in our immediate circles. In Jesus' name, AMEN~
BElieve
THEre is
GOOD
IN THE
WORLD
Isn't that profoundly simple yet true?
Time out for a comic strip I once read.
A turtle is complaining to God about all the hunger, disease, sadness, hunger, and injustice there is in the world. He shakes a little turtle foot at God and says, "Look at this mess this world is in. Why don't You do something?"
And then God responds, "Funny you should ask because I was just about to ask you the same thing!"
BE THE GOOD IN THE WORLD!!!
Do you desire to see less divorce? Then start by fighting for your family because that is good and it will perpetuate goodness as they grow and start their own families.
Do you desire to see people pray more? Then be bold and start asking folks if you can pray for them when you sense a need, and I can assure you they will start praying more too and before you know it, you have started a revolution.
Do you wish to see an end to depression? Then be happy wherever you go and cheer someone up.
The possibilities are endless.
Time out for another story:
There was a priest who spent his life helping wayward youth, and one day one of his fellow priests was belittling him for spending so much time with these "lost causes."
But one of these "lost causes" grew up to be a police officer who was called to an on-going robbery at the local church. To make a long story short, the officer took a bullet for one of the hostages when the robber opened fire. Who did he take the bullet for?
The very same priest who years earlier had said it was a waste of time to spend so much energy on kids who never changed.
Doing good really makes a difference :)
PRAYER:
Dear Lord, Here we are again today but with a new perspective on how we see the world. You long for Your children to rise up and declare that they will be the good this world needs. We are willing. Strengthen us to do good--especially in our immediate circles. In Jesus' name, AMEN~
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