Choosing Sides

It has been too many days since I visited this blog, but life has a way of using days up at an amazing pace!
We arrived home five days ago and, of course, hit the ground running!
Well, maybe not running...

My honey doesn't run these days and his honey has been worn out.
To be honest I have spent a good bit of my time resting this past week.
And to be even more honest I have been doing quite a lot of resting for many weeks.

Blood tests are scheduled for this week, because this lady has a few issues going on at the moment.

Papa has given me peace and I am resting in Him.

Meanwhile, life does go on and though I have had to pace myself, I am still involved in a few things, as He leads.

It is such a joy to be able to rely upon the Spirit of God to do the leading.
There is definitely a pattern to His leading in my life....

A Christian festival called City Fest was held yesterday.
A number of tents housed different ministries with a variety of offerings for those who attended the festival.
The intend was to be an outreach to those who were in need of a good dose of hope and love.
And it was!


I was able to give a couple of hours in ACTS4's prayer and information tent.
Let me share a sample of who Papa brought across my path.

A woman who loves Jesus and is in recovery.
Her son and one of her daughters are in the grip of addiction right now.
The boy's father is also.
This precious woman has had a struggle staying clean and sober, but has had victory for a few years now.
She is looking for a Bible-believing fellowship that understands the struggle and is able to come alongside her.  That is a tall order.  Not many do understand.
However, it is not too tall for our God!
The two of us spent some time in prayer together and I have committed to ongoing prayer for her.

A young man came along asking for prayer for his entire extended family.  His heart's desire was for them to come to know Jesus as he does.
I was glad to join my heart and voice with his!

Then there was the young woman who desired to experience a foot-washing with prayer.
A bit unsettled at first, she seemed to settle down as I held one foot at a time in my hands and washed it as I lifted her up to the One seated on the Throne.
How Papa blanketed us with His Presence!
It was a very humbling, blessed experience.

I am reminded over and over of the importance of prayer.
It paves the way for all God intends to do.

He calls us to join Him in what He is up to and the joining begins with prayer.
I am convinced of this and that is why I have, what I call, a prayer team.


Each week I send out an update after I visit the rehab.  Those prayers are moving mountains one subtle shift at a time!

This morning I was reading in the Fifth and Sixth Chapters of Joshua.
Joshua was walking near Jericho and most likely reflecting on how to conquer the city, when he spotted

" a man standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him, "'Are you for us or for our adversaries?'"

What was the man's response?  He said,

"No, rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD."

He was saying that he was not taking sides apart from God's.

Joshua responded by worshiping and asking for his marching orders.  With that it became evident that it was the LORD who was addressing him!

As I read this exchange, I realized that it is each one of us who must choose sides, not God.
We are either on His side or not, not the other way around.
God does not move.

The really cool thing is that when we choose God's side we find that He is for us and that we are now in the company of a great host!

Hebrew tells us that we have a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.
I have heard the saying that with God each one of us are a majority.
As I head anywhere I remind myself of this truth.  I am never alone.  I never have to face anything alone, nor do I need to accomplish anything on my own.
I am in a great company!


Part of that company are those who faithfully pave my way with prayer.
And as a member of His great company I also gladly lift my voice in prayer for them too!

Great is His Faithfulness!

While traveling to West Virginia with my honey I received a long-awaited phone call to my cell phone.  The call was the culmination of twelve months of communication, which had caused me much frustration and stress.

I know I have mentioned here the battle with my husband's employer regarding charges for benefits.  Each of the past twelve months brought us a bill of differing amounts ranging from a few hundred dollars to four thousand dollars over the basic charges.  I paid the true balance while continuing to petition them to address the problem. Their system was awry, but they seemed unable or unwilling to correct it.

Two months ago they decided to discontinue our medical insurance for nonpayment.  It came down to the wire, but they finally relented.

Last week I finally got them to give me a breakdown of the amount they purported we owed.  I then did my own research and discovered the error which had triggered this ongoing problem.
They were not convinced.
Sigh.

Meanwhile, Papa and I have been wrestling with the whole issue of trust.  Each time I received a bill or call that was upsetting, I would allow it to do just that-upset me.  Then I would bring it to my LORD and "turn it over" to Him.
Just to take it back for the next round.

Last week Papa paved the way for me to hand it all to Him beforehand.  With opportunity for some sweet time at His feet I was in the correct posture and found it easy to leave it all to Him.
So as I entered into the battle afresh, it was from a position of rest.

The result came with the call.  The woman informed me that they had discovered that "You are right."  Three very lovely words to my ears!
Three words that came, I believe, because my God is able.  I just needed to get out of the way.

Previously I had seemed to give the problem to Him, but really was just asking for His stamp of approval for me handling it in my flesh with a thin veneer of Christianity over it (I treated all with kindness, even while seething inside!).

Life brings its challenges on a regular basis.  With each one comes the opportunity to learn more fully how faithful our God is to us.

Recently I had been wondering just how much effect my prayers have on all the details and people that fill my life.

True prayer is where we listen to His Spirit's leading and our heart joins His in agreement.
That happened with the above issue.  I listened and recognized that He was poised to move in hearts for me.


This past week I have had many evidences of answered prayer.  Papa has revealed these to me without me asking, because He knew my heart had been wondering.


Every year, as many of you know, I sit with my Jesus and claim Scriptures to pray for each of my children for the given year.  As I was praying through the selection for our Tim the other day I came across one note alongside a number of claimed verses.
It said "To be a man of integrity".
My heart leaped!


Last Saturday when Timothy spoke at the men's barbecue he opened with an explanation of why he was standing before them to speak on that particular day.  He said that he had agreed to do so and though many, very attractive invitations had come since his accepting, he chose to keep his word because he chooses to be "a man of integrity."

As I realized that my son had claimed for himself that which I had prayed for him, I felt the pleasure of my God and we both rejoiced!

I could list many more evidences that I became aware of just this week, but I want to end soon and go join my West Virginia son for brunch!

One passage that I have claimed for myself seems appropriate to use to close my thoughts.  It is found in the Sixty-Sixth Psalm,

"Come and hear, all who fear God, and I will tell of what He has done for my soul.  I cried to Him with my mouth, and He was extolled with my tongue.  If I regarded wickedness in my heart, the LORD would not hear; but certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.  Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, not His loving kindness from me."

Know why He hears my prayers?  Because His Son, Jesus Christ, paid the price for all the wickedness that ever could fill my heart and has made the way into the Holy of Holies where my prayers are not only heard, but answered!

It is my joy to proclaim the Good News of such a faithful God!

True Freedom

"For you are called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."

I have been meditating on these words of Paul's, which are found in the Fifth Chapter of his letter to the Galatians.

What do his words mean?

First, I am not to abuse my freedom.
Yes, I am in His Kingdom and nothing can change that fact, but I need to live accordingly.
To do otherwise is to become "subject again to a yoke of slavery."

Those yokes come in many forms.
One of them for me is the yoke of admiration.

People look up to me.
Some even attempt to put me up on a pedestal, as if I can do no wrong!
I tell them to stick around for a short while and they will witness me falling off said pedestal!
Guaranteed.


It is tempting to accept such attention.The ego loves it.
The ego is the flesh.


The only way to battle such temptation is to keep one's eyes on the One Who sits on the Throne.
To receive and cultivate the mind of Christ and ask for His heart to become your heart makes that yoke of admiration less attractive.
It is my desire that people would see Him in me and not even notice the One whom He indwells.
Well, at least, not too much.

To allow oneself to be elevated is to rob God of His due.
He alone deserves the honor.

The second thing about this freedom is that I am not to keep it to myself, but to us it to love others.
Truthfully, if we really grasp what we have been given, we will not be able to keep quiet!
I know I can't!

As I was thinking on this an idea came to me.
To share this freedom with one is to share it with many.  For all they know will then be touched.
One person, one home, one street, one neighborhood and on to the ends of the earth!

And to touch another life is to touch Him.

In the Gospel of Matthew, the Twenty-fifth Chapter, fortieth verse, we read Jesus' Words,

"And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'"

Whenever I read of an account of a woman ministering to Jesus, I think of what a joy it must be to do so.
Well, according to Him, I am free to do just that as often and as many times as I like!

Another thought on this freedom has occurred to me.
Because I am His I am free to be me, fully.
No posing, no people-pleasing; I am free to be comfortable in my own skin wherever I am.

For many years that was a foreign thought to me.
I felt far from comfortable with myself and thus was very ill at ease around others.
I was always in the self-protection mode with tall walls in place.
Walls so high that I couldn't see over them myself!

Encountering the Love of God began a change, a very radical change in me.
Bit by bit Papa's love and acceptance coaxed me out from behind those walls and set me free.

That is the freedom that I love to share!

Grateful Giggles

My funny bone is super-sensitive today.
You might say I am feeling slightly giddy.
Giggles keep rising to the surface and bubbling over.
Then I plop down in exhaustion.

The exhaustion is both physical and emotional.

The sun rose on a new day yesterday and I quickly arose to greet both the sun and the day.
It was to be an extra-special day.  More special than I could have imagined!

My friends from the rehab were coming to the church grounds for a men's barbecue being held just for them.
This is the second annual barbecue and it went off without a hitch.
Well, maybe with a hitch or two, but nothing major!

One such hitch involved the canopy that we set up to shelter the family trio called The Ragamuffins. It attempted to move to the church roof a few times with a little help from the gusts of wind that would suddenly come flying by!
I couldn't help but smile when the musicians would stop mid-song to grab a corner of the canopy before it could get away!  I must say they were quick!
After a couple of those interruptions we found a few pegs to hold it down in spite of the wind!


Thanks to a lot of help from my friends we were able to offer haircuts to the guys, as well as a few gently used items of clothing.
That is not all!
Food and beverage were in plenty and thanks to an anonymous donor the main meal included steak, much to  our guests delight.
The goal was for them to realize that they hold as much value as anyone else.
Especially in Papa's sight and we represent Him!

Midway through our time together we had a special speaker.
A very special speaker.
Our son!

Tim spoke from his heart to the group of twenty, mostly young, men.
Every eye was on him the whole time.
Some were not dry.  Mine especially.

There was no doubt Who put the words in his mouth.
It was the One Who rescued him.

I have worked with this segment of society for many years and have never witnessed such a response before!
To a man they were moved and most were eager to respond when given the opportunity to do so.

Is there a greater joy than to have the privilege of seeing the fruit of praying for your child in such great abundance?!

As he shared I was reminded of where he and our family have come from and with it emotions were stirred up.  Tim told me later that he would not have been able to keep it together if he had looked at me.
It was the first time that I have heard him speak, as he had been hesitant knowing I would cry.  :)

I have booked him for all future barbecues!

Papa had a few lessons for me to learn as I observed how my son presented the Good News.  I am glad to accept them and will happily apply them!

Both Tim and I give God all the glory.  Without Him we could do nothing!!

"Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise.  Give thanks to Him; bless His name.  For the LORD is good; His loving-kindness is everlasting, and His faithfulness to all generations."*

*Psalm 100:4-5

One Nation Under God

I pledge Allegiance to the flag

of the United States of America

and to the Republic for which it stands,

one nation under God, indivisible,

with Liberty and Justice for all. 

Whether the pledge is quoted with the phrase "under God" or not, He alone is the foundation that offers a nation and its people true freedom.

"Now the LORD is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the LORD is, there is liberty."* 

"Correct me, O LORD, but with justice; not with Your anger, let You bring me to nothing."**

On this day, the anniversary of our independence, remember to pray for this great nation!

Let Freedom ring!




* 2 Corinthians 4:17
** Jeremiah 10:24

Gospel For Sale

Signs are appearing alongside the road and in front of church buildings.  It is the season for Vacation Bible School!
One sign in particular caught my eye, as I drove past it.  I wasn't certain that I had read it correctly, so I went back to verify what it said.
It was a typical sign advertising an upcoming VBS.  Well, not really....

You see there is a fee to sign your child up for this specific offering.
Twenty-five dollars to be exact!

I guess it was just a matter of time before a congregation would come up with the idea of charging for their services.  After all parents get a little time for themselves while their children attend VBS.

Certainly there are expenses that come with offering such a program.  Congregations budget for it and those who staff the program often dig into their own pockets to be able to make it extra-special.
Money and time are both needed to put together a successful VBS.
While the actual program might last for about three hours each day, the workers spend quite a bit more time than that preparing lessons and material.  Everything else is put on the back burner while one takes part in this outreach.  Most are a week long, while other brave souls hold a two-week VBS!

The rewards far outweigh the cost.
Quite a few years found me taking part in presenting the Good News to fresh young faces.
Many precious children met Jesus before the program ended.  Many still do.

Often the adventure began by gathering up neighborhood kids and bringing them with me and my boys.
I remember one year we pretended that my van had wings and we would swoop and soar our way to the church building.  It went with the theme of that year, which I do not recall.
VBS is fun, fun, fun, but with a purpose.

It gets children thinking about the things of God.  They hear that God loves them and would never leave them.  Many had never heard this before.  Of course, most had heard about God and even knew that Jesus was His Son, but what that was suppose to mean to them, they had no clue!

What price could we ever put on such a privilege?  Charge people who bring their children to hear such Good News?
This brings to mind the picture Matthew draws for us of Jesus in the temple turning over the money changers' tables.
Here's what He had to say to them,

"And He said to them, 'It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer; but you are making it a robbers den'."

Jesus loves all children.  Mark shares Jesus' words,

"Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." 

So charge for the opportunity to hear of this love?  Charge and thus hinder some from coming to Him?

God forbid!
I do believe He agrees!

Full!

It has been a very full week.  So full that I am certain I was engaged in a few details that were not in Papa's game plan.
There has not been one minute to sit, at least not while I had a clear mind.

Part of the problem was that I didn't speak up.
Our guys had decided that we should go camping as a family, which is a fine thing to do.  We did quite a bit of camping over the years and loved it.
They included my brother-in-law and his wife, who happen to have a good sized RV that would accommodate my honey and me.  A tent equipped with an air mattress would have been very difficult for him and not so comfy for me.
Matthew slept in his tree hammock, which looked really cozy, but it is definitely for a person with less aches and pains!  Besides the thought of sleeping in the open where bears wander through would have kept me awake all night!

So what should I have spoken up about?  The fact that we were driving four and a half hours, each way, to camp Friday to Sunday.  Too much traveling for so short a time.
In the end everyone had come to that same conclusion, so the next camping trip is going to be closer to home.  Yay!
Having felt unsettled about the plans, which I am certain was my God direction, I should have said something.

It is over now, but I faced a full week extra tired at the start.
Our youngest is celebrating four years of being clean and sober in two days and, of course, we want to help him with the celebrating!
His girlfriend decided she wanted to give him a party, which is sweet...at our house.  :)
She asked very sweetly and I was glad to make our place available.
However, I should have known there would be more to it than just making our house available!

The more included shopping, a visit to the attic for games and such, getting extra chairs and tables out of the shed, preparing a couple of dishes and....you get the idea....

This is not to say that she isn't doing anything, because she is, but she works and cannot possibly get to all the details.

For weeks one of my sisters and I have been planning a sister-weekend, which means her coming here to visit.  Guess when that is happening?
Number three son is coming too.
It will be wonderful to have more family here and I am looking forward to it!
However, this means making up beds and such.

In the midst of all the preparations for this weekend is the preparation for a barbecue I am putting together for the guys from the rehab.  This is scheduled for nine days from now.
I needn't list all that is involved for this extravaganza, but am very grateful for those who are helping!!

There are a number of other details that involve my favorite subject, insurance, that I could discuss, but I won"t...I'd rather not think about it!

Ray had a saying,

"It is either famine or glut!"

I think it is one of those times of glut!  My head has been spinning and I have felt stretched a little too far.
Too much running, not enough sitting...at His feet.

Papa has not abandoned me.  This morning we had a scant few minutes to spend alone and He in His grace spoke to my heart....from numerous passages...


From Psalm Fifty-Five,,,

"Cast your cares on the LORD and He will sustain you, He will never let the righteous fall."

Then Jeremiah Seventeen...

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him.  He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.  It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.  It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."

Then He gave me a message for my friends at the rehab, who I will be visiting in a short while.
Taking the topic of the first of the Twelve Steps of AA we will discuss being powerless and weak and how we can exchange them for His power and strength!

For this I know I will have the power and strength for this is part of His plan for me!

Praise His Holy Name!!