Psalm 1 ~ like a tree

Psalm 1

Blessed is the man [a]
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2 but his delight is in the law[b] of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

3 He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6 for the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

Footnotes:
a. Psalm 1:1 The singular Hebrew word for man (ish) is used here to portraying a godly person
b. Psalm 1:2 Or instruction


2011

We  had an incredible year for the trees here in the Houston area. Record drought. A stunning number of trees were still standing and dead as a doorbell. Being a gardener, a friend called me to show me her incredible composting skill.  Anyway, they called me to show me their patio tree, one of 3, shading their patio, died in the middle of the drought. It had been fertilized, watered and it just keeled over. It was the 'one' they relied upon for shade. "Why?" They asked.

I said my cousin worked for the Louisiana State Forestry Commission and when he visited he said record drought is Not record drought. It is just an event that has occurred again and again over the millenniums we have no record of. It is nature's way of making the forest - - - stronger.

But they said, "The tree had all the necessary things for life." I said," It's still the stress of the event of constant wind, constant heat and it got to the tree."

Psalm 1 is about hope and believing we can trust God. The acorns left by a 120 year old Oak left a tree. We are the tree that survived this year's drought. Life goes on. 

Some day, we will be the Christmas tree of  glory. 

In God's promises - all those lights of Christmas - are today - Jesus the Light - continue to shine.

2013 December

There is a Psalm saying one day tells its tale to the next. We finally have a pond filled with water. The trees are still in the glory of their fall color. Actually, this is rather phenomenal color. 

Change involves recognizing the times, living the emotions, allowing Jesus to fill our needs while admitting we have these times. This fall color and lush time is the realization that record drought is not here to stay - like the dire threats indicated. This is exactly how life works and God's plan.

The little oak seedling is still ready for planting.

I've finally realized life has seasons. We get so used to the Mississippi River of life pushing us in the same direction, we feel like life is on a permanent course. Life Does moves along just like the Mississippi River - looking calm and still - yet has deep waters and suddenly can change a lot. Knowing you are loved is the part that gets us through the whole adventure.

The objective of life is to know that Love created the universe. We are being pushed and pulled and prodded through life. Fight the good fight. The punches come because we aren't doing the comfy chair thing. Water flows to the sea, where it was created. We flow towards Love and pray to be the one who will recognize that Love - not the alligators, overcome us.

Let us be the grateful Children of God. Dwelling in HIS Grace. Amen.



John 1:

5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

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John 1 ~ the Light shines

A Country Church Christmas

John 1:1-14,17,29-35 ~ Today's New International Version

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all people. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel."

32 Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God's Chosen One."

35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, "Look, the Lamb of God!" 

 The Church of the Nativity Celebrates Christmas Day in Bethlehem - Link


This is is my favorite chapter of the Bible, John 1. The gospels written by Mark and John are sometimes compared without kindness, at Christmas, to the narrative of Jesus Christ's birth written beautifully in Luke and Matthew. Yet actually Mark speaks of a wilderness wanting to be tamed and John speaks of light coming out of darkness. Isn't this the deepest desire for Jesus Christ?

Christmas can bring forth all of our deepest longings. Matthew begins with an engagement, the most important choice in life. Luke begins with a barren priest. God addresses all of these concerns by reaching out to hear, to heal, to love and to care. For all of our seasons in life, God is part of them. Just as God watched, with love, each day of Jesus' life on earth, the Light continues to shine for us.

The Peace of God always be with you.

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Amos 7:1-9 ~ This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me

Amos 7:1-9


This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: He was preparing swarms of locusts after the king’s share had been harvested and just as the late crops were coming up. 2 When they had stripped the land clean, I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, forgive! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!”

3 So the Lord relented.

“This will not happen,” the Lord said.

4 This is what the Sovereign Lord showed me: The Sovereign Lord was calling for judgment by fire; it dried up the great deep and devoured the land. 5 Then I cried out, “Sovereign Lord, I beg you, stop! How can Jacob survive? He is so small!”

6 So the Lord relented.

“This will not happen either,” the Sovereign Lord said.

7 This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in his hand. 8 And the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?”

“A plumb line,” I replied.

Then the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.

9 “The high places of Isaac will be destroyed
and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined;
with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam.”



WAR?

  ~ Blessed are the merciful they shall obtain mercy.

Now we could do some parallels of God relenting (?) by letting Abram convince Him to have mercy and save lives. Which does, of course, speak to the type of heart God looks for. And why God called Abram.

Why would God go against Jeroboam? Jeroboam took down David's Israel and the split created Judah. He is not from David's line. Another Scripture repeat, God sent Jesus when David's house had fallen and outsiders claimed the Kingship of Judah.

Some people don't care for the Old Testament because war creates conflicts. People much prefer the New Testament. In the Old Testament,  God carries the sins of one generation to the next. Upsetting people thinking God wouldn't be so unkind. God's vision is much more far reaching than armchair observers see. In fact, His Word to the shepherd Amos was fulfilled. We all do God's Plan, it's up to us what we bring in attitudes and heart how we accomplish His Plans.

When mankind grandly invented Psychology 3,000 years later, we Still failed to see what God, in His wisdom was saying.

God's speaking mercifully in this Old Testament Scripture. Surely we can see the New Testament - and today - has war. Just as all of us Will Experience Jesus coming again as time ceases in this life, we will experience a personal Revelation and we will experience war.

 

So what - Wahhhhaaa - do we find in this more utopian Early Church? In our New Testament?

Oh, of course, there was war and upheaval when the emperors of Rome began to persecute Christians just sixteen years after Jesus died. This really is not spoken/recorded in the Early Church we learn about being built by the disciples and... yes and... importantly with Mary and the brothers of Christ and his sister-in-laws.

Attitudes and divisions leading to unhappiness - the kind of war and divisions we all know about in life. In this utopian early Church - we have the tote the law crowd. We have sexual misconduct. We have people obsessed with food and implications. We have disbelievers changing the Word to appeal to more people. We have discord over hospitality. And who is picked to do what service project.  And some of the women dressed like hussies. We could go on but these other divisions we speak of all the time.

Jesus said there would be discord. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against. Just like the beginning of the Second Temple when the the locals were thrown out in favor of the Chosen Ones returning from the Exile.

Discord is seen both in the New Testament and the Old Testament. This is the war we are familiar with.

No doubt but we are the people, And wisdom shall die with us. Why ! Heavens Martha ! The Church today is filled with Hypocrites ! Be Spiritual - just don't be Religious !!! 

Not exactly. God calls... not the Righteous, but ... Sinners.

Jesus is the Plumb Line. Carpenter's use this tool. God is sneaky like that. Carpenters. How did God see Family? Joseph looked like Jesus. Jesus was from a messy family. Shhhh blended. Un...planned pregnancy. And was Jesus - peaceful -

Matthew 13
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. 54 Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. 55 “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? 56 Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” 57 And they took offense at him.


Now see there, Joseph blended his Holy Family so well that people saw that Joseph looked like Jesus.

In War, World War I, the soldiers called a unanimous truce - and sang songs glorifying God. Did you ever wonder why we see so much change in the world? Not the Church. Jesus said and I tell you, you are Peter, and on this Rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell Shall Not Prevail Against It!

Telling. Can you imagine Jesus speaking matter-of-factly or non-chalantly about His Church...

I tell you - I Believe - Jesus Thundered about Rock and Prevailing!!!

Telling? That plumb line - where will YOU STAND. Where will you STAND WHEN YOU STAND FOR JESUS CHRIST? When that Plumb Line is Drawn - Will You Be In That Number???


 ~ Blessed are the merciful !!! They shall obtain mercy !!!

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Isaiah 40 ~ they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles

World-Class Christmas Lights in Medellin, Colombia

Isaiah 40

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and cry to her
that her warfare is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned,
that she has received from the Lord's hand
double for all her sins.

3 A voice cries:
“In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord;
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
5 And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

6 A voice says, “Cry!”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades
when the breath of the Lord blows on it;
surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God will stand forever.

9 Go on up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good news;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good news;
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young.

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord,
or what man shows him his counsel?
14 Whom did he consult,
and who made him understand?
Who taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and showed him the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
and are accounted as the dust on the scales;
behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust.
16 Lebanon would not suffice for fuel,
nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering.
17 All the nations are as nothing before him,
they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.

18 To whom then will you liken God,
or what likeness compare with him?
19 An idol! A craftsman casts it,
and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
and casts for it silver chains.
20 He who is too impoverished for an offering
chooses wood that will not rot;
he seeks out a skillful craftsman
to set up an idol that will not move.

21 Do you not know? Do you not hear?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
and spreads them like a tent to dwell in;
23 who brings princes to nothing,
and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness.

24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when he blows on them, and they wither,
and the tempest carries them off like stubble.

25 To whom then will you compare me,
that I should be like him? says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and see:
who created these?
He who brings out their host by number,
calling them all by name,
by the greatness of his might,
and because he is strong in power
not one is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
and my right is disregarded by my God”?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.

Christmas is a time of waiting. Advent is preparation for a baby who would be King Forever.

We become so used to our lives. And we forget to Look Up. What God plans for our lives... the places we haven't been, the people we have not met. The weddings yet to happen. The family yet to be born. Opportunities to come. Blessings. Not because we are so deserving; God in His willingness to bless.

The Scriptures record people to be self-centered. We believe we can corner life, put it within our boundaries. Manage everything. Easier to take the Mississippi River and believe man is in charge. Far better to be like Isaiah who cried out -

Isaiah 6:8
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

I read one of the most popular and thought about verses in the Bible is:

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

How many of us believe it? Best to wait upon the LORD.

Luke 13:19
It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.

Hebrews 12:12 
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

Matthew 6:27
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

Luke 2:13-14
 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” 

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Psalm 130 ~ Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.

Psalm 130
A song of ascents!

1 Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;
2 Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.

3 If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?
4 But with you there is forgiveness,
so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

5 I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
6 I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.

7 Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
for with the Lord is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
8 He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.

Father God, in You there is Light. Let us forgive for what needs to be forgiven and to the work Joshua did - not to the right not to the left. This is called forgiveness for a reason. Wrong happens. Let us not slide into denial but to do the earnest work of real Christ. Being God we do not hide from you wrong intentions and desires, all is know to You. Let us Love because this is what Jesus did. Remembering in this season, Jesus is Jesus not Santa. In reality Jesus had people who never drew close to Him. Buying the world a coke is Santa. Being merciful to the ones we are given is Jesus saying the one who shows compassion is our neighbor. We can be as loving as You equip us to be and ask for more hearts of love. But YOU are GOD and you are Salvation and Reconciliation.

It would be impossible to be Jesus. But Thank God HE IS. Happy are the people who realize they have a Savior and HE is fulfillment. In this peace, we find the day sufficient and we draw Strength to be Love.

Bless the Christians like Stacey who see the work they did to be love and polite to their son-in-law becomes fruit for thank you. And for her heart saying Hallelu-Yah. (Not everyone would, some people like the excuse to hate.) Thank you and courtesy lead forward to Love. And the work of relationship - the hassle that Scripture says Church is - leads to the fruit of Love. And work towards this leads to the Real Thing. Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.

The Paintings are by Wolf Kahn. The ideas are the beauty I see in Emporium,PA and around Houston, Texas

Give us the Day - what we are looking for is - Help us Father God in the power of Your Holy Spirit to Bring Your Heaven to Earth. To do that we need more Holy Spirit. Amen.

No matter what we do, until Jesus sets the time - we are Sojourners. We, as people of the Holy Spirit, we want to solve problems, be merciful, help others, love ourselves, and find the balance to be effective for Him.

The Goal of God is to Save the World. Fortunately for us, that is HIS Salvation and His Workmen go home, but the Work of God continues. Today.

We have some realizations and steps to look at to help Him. Biblical steps.

1. PRAY

This isn't anything but Alpha and Omega. The first step is prayer. Why. This is reconciliation. If we aren't in the realization that all - and I mean all - of our thoughts are His, we have missed a crucial step. He is part of our inner workings - creating our brains.

We begin in the same place as Joshua. Most of us have lives that need constant prayer and some fixing. Joshua was fixing a plan of God called the Exodus that seemingly went awry. Yet I bet if you asked Father God, He might say He had this covered with His Plan. A very real demonstration that we have to pray and pay the electric bill.

Joshua - not to the right nor the left. Balance.

We are pressed by facts, circumstance, boundaries He gives us and opinions. God would probably call this weapons of war. And let's prove that with Scripture.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5
For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ

Prayer sees us wander off. He tells us let Him bear our burdens. Come back, our Father gently says to us. This is love. This conversation is only labelled prayer, what we really are saying is dwell in Him.

Jeshua. This is what Jesus was called in His day to day life. Jeshua gave His work to Joshua. I think Jeshua probably really liked Joshua quite a bit.

Reward. Joshua wanted to fix things. God Gave him that desire. Prayer has a reward. God is good with His blessings like that. God is seeking the core - the heart of us called Soul.

1 Peter 2:25
For "you were like sheep going astray," but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

2. LEAVE THE JUDGMENTS TO GOD

You simply will not find a verse in 3,000 pages of Scripture saying help Him Judge others.

Repent. We need to. We heedlessly, needlessly judge others and in fact we have to reveal ourselves and our discernment to label others. Point at someone and three fingers point back at you and one finger hides.

What we are doing when we label someone - is  - doing something we have to do. Discern. We are told to acquire Wisdom. Knowledge uses discernment to deal with others doing what...

Zechariah 7
8 And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah: 9 “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’

This one is even better than Micah 6:
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.

Zechariah says look out for fatherless people, widows, poor - work for them go out of your way to cross your yard, the hallway, the room to take care of them. God says Reagan Economics works from the top down, but Christians work from the no-reward bottom up.

Scripture has gotten old. Actually Scripture is alive, but the adversaries of good - even Christians - will laugh at the sheer goodness of that. Service can be used as a power game. Leaving the victim too proud to serve when service is completely in His Plan. Alcoholics Anonymous uses a book called the Blue Book. People love that Blue Book. It is the Scripture run through a blender so we cannot recognize the subtitles.

Case in point:

Romans 5:3-5
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

If we say my dear friend is helping her elderly mother, who is very ill, every day and we sent her a hallmark card and tuck in that Scripture, she might be very busy and say to herself that she is not enjoying her sufferings.

Well the evil one likes us to think HE enjoys our sufferings. And perverts our thinking that hair shirts and failing to communicate to suffer for His Glory is His. Um Nope. God communicates.

If I send her a card and say - Your daily perseverance for your difficult, difficult time shows How Much you Love Him. In this suffering, you will always have the treasure knowing you did so Right by your mom. You will OVERCOME this suffering. Your perseverance shows your character in Him, your great heart that loves. We know in Jesus that our Hope is that He has many rooms for us in His Home and you will not ever hurt forever because God's love assures us that He has given us His promises. The Holy Spirit gives you, dear one, your heart. And this is filled with Him. His Great Love.

Then we have applied God's Word in Love, not thrown up a phrase that needs to be applied. We would hardly go out into our yards and pick up leaves to wear (sounds familiar) but we need to apply the work to the cotton and loom it and fashion it and APPLY THIS.

4. BALANCE ***

Proverbs 4:27 ‎
Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil.

Isaiah 30:21
Then thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, that ye not turn to the right hand and that ye not turn to the left hand.

Deuteronomy 28:12-14
The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. 13 And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them, 14 and if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them. (Joshua)(And when there was prayer in schools, our nation was the lender. And we did not see these violent acts.)

All is Lost. Pray. And look for the ways HE will lead you to a Higher Path.

All is well. People who have been helped, actively seek to help others. We do not rest in one angle. Cast your bread upon the waters, in many days it will return to you. Got that handy little verse from my mom, who learned it from Jeshua.

Anger - why. Use big words and keep trying. We are a nation of this. God uses weakness and we need to fight the good fight. Jesus was known to be angry. Just keep Him in the front of your words, prayers and actions. Speak up even if your voice squeaks.

Forgiveness - lack thereof can cause anger. Check it and see.

Cold - are we sure that the Lake of Fire is hot?

Lukewarm - I don't know you well and your troubles are not mine. Locate that in Scripture. God says this He spits out of His mouth. This is what we see when we look up and down our streets and see no visitors. America today has two friends, if they are fortunate. We do FB instead of lunch with co-workers. And gleefully proclaim - didn't see them for two years and still friends - friends reach out. My mom discovered after her divorce, no on wanted a crying woman. And it took her about ten years to recover from the shock of being left - for a friend. And one day she decided - she had a mission. To call people every other day she enjoys - in just a couple of years she has lots of things to do and people who are thrilled to be cared for. She says the secret is - not to expect much back - to give. Good for my mom!!!

Impressions, Nonverbal, and Life. One day tells its tale to another. Life is made up of moments. ***Tim Keller says we rarely have a day that is Major Life Decisions. Life is made up of moments telling the next moment. Tiny nano moments - how we respond to one another. *** One more ounce of patience. One more rebuke with justice fully in our corner -still believing that person Is Worthy and Can do this . Teaching is one more way to encourage and Not be lofty. Love - pray to God who replenishes our heart. Gratitude is the attitude with dig and journaling three things He bring you each day.

Joy - ¨*:•.SUPER.•:*¨¨*:•.AWESOME.•:*¨¨*:•.PERFECT.•:*¨¨*:•.THANKS!!!:*¨¨*:•.
1 Timothy 3:16
the mystery of godliness:
He who was revealed in the flesh,
Was vindicated in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world,
Taken up in glory.

Got Joy? Proclaim it! Jesus was known to eat and drink. Share the love. It's the real thing. Jesus.

Perfect Peace - Wow this is elusive. Or it should be. 

Really. This is a Gift of God. A miracle.

Life rests in angles. Clark tells the events of his children being in car crashes and his wild ride to the next city at night to find them safe miraculously. And he had peace even in the concern. But Clark is not known for walking around serenely all the time. If Clark were serene all the time, then he is not fighting the Good Fight. The Word of God is about distress and overcoming a lot.

Peace is when life surrounds you with alligators and events known to your heart and still you have hope. And it ebbs and flows. God motivates us in the storms of life and assures us this too will pass. I would bet if you took Paul's BP when the shipwreck was wildly occurring, it was elevated - however Paul Believed that God would see them through.

Evangelism. The TV evangelists who smile all the time - like a mask when we have every right to be affronted are not convincing. This is probably what happened to the Moral Majority. Let Love be Genuine.  You have to weep with the weepers, be strong with the strong ones, be aware of the currents around you. Paul said be all things to the people around you.

We Christians have faked being too nice. Be genuine instead. Smiling is Not being nice when the smiling is not appropriate.

We can't believe the subtitles. All of Scripture is usually quite messy. Samson's parents went way overboard from seeing an angel go up in fire. Unwed mothers, deafness unexplained, eating the body and blood of Christ. People have begun to be affronted again with the idea God would have His Son die. We should be impassioned about that. George Carlin did a horrific stand up routine on why our Bible is ridiculous. It was pure evil. Scripture has to be lived, we have to SEEK THIS TO OBTAIN THIS.

5. PERFECTION

 NoW WhAt iS ThIs I wOnDerrr.... Oh cmon this is funny.

God calls the righteous.
Jesus actually said God Calls sinners. Look at your minister next time more closely.

~ Noah was a drunk
~ Abraham was too old
~ Isaac was a daydreamer
~ Jacob was a liar
~ Leah was ugly
~ Joseph was abused
~ Moses had a stuttering problem
~ Gideon was afraid
~ Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
~ Rahab was a prostitute
~ Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
~ David was an adulterer and a murderer
~ Elijah was suicidal
~ Isaiah preached naked
~ Jonah ran from God
~ Naomi was a bitter widow
~ Job went bankrupt
~ John the Baptist ate bugs
~ Peter denied Christ
~ The disciples fell asleep while praying
~ Martha worried about everything
~ The Samaritan woman was divorced (more than once)
~ Zaccheus was too small
~ Timothy had an ulcer
~ Lazarus was dead!

Now this list does not include Daniel and John. And you have to say this about them. They were perfect. And then. They saw things. Now that is scary. I think it might be this... The Tower of Babel occurred when mankind was just a little tooo. Paul isn't on the list. Now we know what his problem, privately, unnamed was. Actually, many prophetic people believe Paul had arthritis of the knees and continued to go down the path. Not wanting to complain too much to overcome his mission but realizing the mission was bigger than his results.

Perfection is the fulfillment of God. God is Not jazzing around about all these phrases  - -  our well worn and too large and too streamlined educational system would not give us the creativity to create.

I've seen, in a dream, the fulfillment of my beloved(!) Grandmother Bit (her nickname). Perfection in Him is Astonishing! In Texas, we have these streams that make gullies and ruts, due to seasonal changes, but in Wyoming that living water is lush and abundant and fills with Glory to the brim.

Which brings us back to ray, A drop of Golden Light. Peace - a name...
If our peace is 'all about us' - are we fulfilled? Happy is NOT Peace. Kabbalah is taking Scripture and Torah and creating a system of numbers and fables and creates an outcome - all about me. This is not fulfilling. Peace is not religious pride. Besides if you sit and think about yourself all the time - this is not going to be interesting and not be fun. It just isn't. 

Looking UP to Him is so refreshing. Goodness and Love wanting to save the world. That is how abundant God's Love it.

If we look like we are in HIM and go around smiling and looking fulfilled because we are happy - are we missing this - definitely-------

Romans 5
15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

My family says we are one part pride and two parts fear - so in the Perfection Category I'd say this is His Teaching. hhhhmmm hmmmm hmmm hmmm

6. HASSLE

On Hassle avoidance. Man, we need to think on this. God says that this is part of life.
The work of God is that Men believe. He says so. 

We can absolutely  -   sterilize our lives   -   avoiding hassle.   Sooo squeaky. Soooo ....

John 6:29
Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."

All of God's Scripture provides for the fact people hassle each other. God hassled Himself for us, continually. And God promises us HE equips us to do His work. How? We have to believe in the signs and Words He would bring our lives. If you ask Him for a sign and you gittit - do you gittit?

Are you a Christian if you do what is always comfortable to you? Lord, Lord and all who call to Him will be called His.

It's not the comfy chair, this is Fight the Good Fight. Not salmon up.

Ask Him. Earnestly. Christians are supposed to go the extra mile. Because they have been forgiven.

Father God takes all of our doubts about faith and becomes the Father who we can relate Jesus' life to. What we believe God would be. He steps down from His Righteousness and Holiness and says - remembers Jesus lived among us having compassion and love. He takes our doubts and covers them in One Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit and makes us reconciled as One Body of Christ. Jesus bore our sins on the cross. In boldness and confidence, we can run to Him as the Prodigal saw His Father return to him. 

If it's uncomfortable - are you uncalled? If you meet the basic requirements are you on the approval list? 

We go the extra mile, because we know God has work for us to do. This is a good thing. Solomon said work is what makes life meaningful and worth while.  Is work comfortable?

7  VICTORY

To obtain Victory in our bringing Heaven to Earth. We need to effectively speak the language of the person we are talking to. There are love languages and we must understand the person we bring His Love to. 

Have we done what Peter does if we say get behind me? 

Listening is what Jesus did when HE asks people questions we know HE knew. We have to understand the person we talk with.  Not expect them to just follow us.  Leading someone to Christ is not leading. And looking like old TV programs of goodness. 


We are not Salvation. HE is and HE equips us when this is the work He would bring us. Sometimes we are a seed. Sometimes we are like Lincoln and learning from each non-success. Nervous? God works within us when we do His will. Sometimes nervousness is the genuineness that is needed. HE equips us for our task. Believe this.

Speak up even when you voice squeaks, Fight the Good Fight. Not the comfy chair of relax, relax. All about you and your comfort is boring. Life has to fought over to be meaningful. Surely we can un-tv some. Provide a meal. Learn a new skill. Broaden the adventure when Jesus says Give Us the Day. Living Bread is to be held with Joy.

8. THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS ~ AT HAND 

Walls
Gates
Languages ~
Redemption
Reconciled.

Did you know the Kingdom of Heaven is written to have twelve Gates?
And Gates in the Scriptures close at night. However.
In Heaven, God is our Light. The Gates of Heaven will never close. Because the Gate is one pearl and the Light of God never ceases.

Walls fall. Barriers like languages - are removed. Because what is spoken is Fulfillment in God.

LOVE is the objective.

This takes us back to prayer, because we began with prayer as the Alpha and the Omega is Him. Reconciliation. HE is the objective. He is Love.

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