In Focus

As we hang on the edge of a year gone by and look tomorrow to a new one....I sense this calling in my spirit to set my feet...to look around me and re-align anything that is out of focus....to voice the intention of my path to my husband and my children, my family and my sisters...that we may exhort one another and walk together...leading, carrying or following with our brothers and sisters as the Lord Himself guides.

The focus of my path hasn't changed....I have set my compass to point North....but as I sat with Jesus this morning, my spirit within me was moved several times to affirm to Him my heart as He was affirming His own heart to me...

I never plan to lose focus....it just happens sometimes with the busyness that comes from living in the world we live. Just like a camera loses its focal point when you are moving it around, we must constantly re-align with our subject, our Glorious Hope, in order to keep our focus.

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you;

my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you,

in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your

power and your glory.

Because your love is better than life,

my lips will glorify you.

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name

I will lift up my hands.

My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods;

with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

On my bed I remember you; I think of you through

the watches of the night.

Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.

My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

Psalm 63:1-8

Sisters...let us focus our hearts on Jesus, our One and Only, our Hope, our Joy, our Life.

God speaks very powerfully to me through my children. There have been many times he uses my love for my girls to reveal his love for me. One time in particular comes to mind.

I had come down with the flu - fever, aches and pains, no energy. I had gotten some chicken out of the freezer early in the day in order to make something for dinner, but when the time came to cook it, I just couldn't do it. As I lay on the couch, my daughter came into the room and asked what was for dinner (I have come to know that is a loaded question.) When I told that I was just going to do something with chicken but was too sick now to fix it, she said, "I'll do it." This from a girl who, at the age of 17, thought making toast was cooking.

From my vantage point on the couch, I could watch her in the kitchen. She proceeded to cut and chop and stir. I had no idea what she was cooking up, but she was in her own little world, singing as she worked, happily preparing a meal for the family. I watched her, and I didn't care what she fixed. I didn't care if she made a mess. I didn't care if it tasted terrible. I didn't care if she ruined all my pots and pans. My girl was serving me, and she was doing it gladly, because she loved me. Oh how I lay there loving her. Ocassionally she would look up and smile at me, and I would smile back. I told her that I loved her, and she said she loved me back.

And in that moment, God spoke to my heart. His heart is stirred with love for me as I gladly serve him, and he isn't concerned with the mistakes or the mess. He is loving me and I am loving him back.

Truth revealed and tears shed. (These things seem to go together!)

What do you have to do today?

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Col 3:17

After 3 weeks of not being able to go to church and the craziness of Christmas it's easy to forget to give God all the glory for every day. We've had sick kids in the house and a busy week with Christmas dinners, etc. We don't make a huge deal about Christmas but keep things simple for our kids. Just being out and about each day with family or friends can be exhausting.

I'm feeling a little thirsty spiritually and long to fellowship in church again and just have everyone back to themselves. I needed to point my eyes back to Jesus and remind myself to accept things I cannot change, to ask God for courage to change the things I can, and for wisdom to know the difference. I had this poem go through my head quite a bit today and when I googled it I found the rest of the poem very interesting and enlightening. I had never read the rest of the poem before. What powerful words and my prayer is that they'll speak as loudly to you as they did to me.

"A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but the heartache crushes the spirit." ~ Proverbs 15:13

Hope deferred...

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

    but a longing fulfilled is a tree of  life.

                                         Proverbs 13:12

This verse reminds me so much of the events that spread across the United States and Canada this Christmas as people tried to get home for the holidays or even just get back home from an event that took them elsewhere.  Stranded... with little immediate hope of getting where you need to go... want to go... hope to go. "Lord, I just want to get there, can You help me out here?" Waiting is not our greatest asset... especially at a time like Christmas.  I heard stories of friends who had loved ones who had been waiting at the airport for several days hoping to get home by Christmas Day.  Did they make it?  I don't know. But I can imagine their hearts were sick. We have all been there.

Elated! That's how we all feel when the answer finally comes.  Jumping for joy!  Tears of happiness come!  We want to hug everyone we see and say, "I'm going home; I'm going home!" It is so true, when our longing is fulfilled, there is peace and contentment.  But often getting there is sometimes a process and a time of waiting.  Every Christmas I learn something new about God and myself.   Yet, there is one thing that remains constant, that does not change... and that is His love for me.  He doesn't always give me what I want when I want it... but He does show me His love through it all.

I'm hoping that this Christmas was a time of knowing and trusting the God who loves us beyond words... As you reflect on what Christmas brought for you this year; may you rejoice in His truth, His faithfulness and His incredible gift of love through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas dear ones...It is late in the day...but my prayer for all of you has been one of peace and joy and the blessings that come from knowing the love of your Saviour....Born to die for you and me.  

Expectations

Oh Sisters.....It is Christmas Eve morning...the snow is falling...my heart is unsettled....yet I trust Him.

I have been praying for the families I know and even the ones I don't know that are desperately wanting to be together for Christmas but are separated by thousands of miles waiting to come home...

Expectations....We don't expect things like this. A neighbor's wife passing away...a family grieving....It's not what we imagine, when we think of Christmas.

Our expectation is that things have to be a certain way for us to have a good Christmas....I struggle all the time with my own expectations of what I think things are supposed to look like or be like in order for them to be good or right. Many a birthday or holiday or celebration has been ruined by the tall order of expectations in our minds...

I am learning that the only thing in this world that is worthy of our expectation is Jesus Christ.

It is His gift to us.

The weather...the airlines...the post office...our husband, parents, children and friends....they're not going to meet our expectations...we can't even meet our own expectations...

But Jesus...He's different...

He is our Joy.

So...."I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you
with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints,
to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ
and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--
that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine,
according to his power that is at work within us,
to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus
throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

Ephesians 3:16-21

Precious sisters...May the Joy of Jesus be the Light of your Christmas and may He hold you tight in His arms as you trust your heart to His.

Yesterday was one of those days, because, I must confess, I am somewhat of a grinch when it comes to Christmas - don't really get in to all the hoopla. Life is too busy to add Christmas to it, especially when the weather is ridiculously cold. I am also a wimp when it comes to being cold. So anyway, there were many little frustrations yesterday as I did what I had to do. By the end of it, I was looking forward to going to bed. As I was getting ready to wash my face, I took my earrings off and laid them on the sink counter. I washed my face and let the hot water soak into my cold pores. As I was drying off, I noticed that one of my earrings was gone.

Great. Not these earrings. My husband bought these for me in a little shop in Amsterdam. I really like earrings, by the way. They're my favorite accessory. Trying to maintain my composure, I looked down the drain and could see it. I tried to pinch it out with my tweezers, but could not get a hold of it. I slowly lifted the stopper to try to get a better grip, and down it fell into the muck. *(%^$&^*# Then the tears. Full on little-girl-screwed-up-face tears. None of the dabbing with the hanky tears. These were full blown. (I feel a bit silly writing about it today, but hopefully you all can understand.) As the tears dripped off my face, I tried to get the earring out with a special plastic tool we have for removing hair clogs from drains, but with no luck. "Lord," I cried, "I know it's just an earring and is insignificant in the big picture, but will you please help me get it out?" I reached in again, and out it came, hanging off the end of the tool. What?! I was overwhelmed, and I mean overwhelmed, by his kindness to me. It was so very personal. Talk about tears. The tears that came then were from deep within. Words are not adequate. I'm so glad I asked him to help. It was an amazing moment.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly paces in Christ Jesus so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:4-7

Amazing. Utterly amazing words. May God and his word become ever more personal for you. May you experience the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward YOU.

PS Merry Christmas!