Today's Prayer: Thanking God for My Salvation

Dear Lord,

I thank you for your son, whom you sent to die on the cross for my sins. I thank you that it has cleansed me and, each day, gives me a fresh start to do better. I know I can never obtain perfection, but I am thankful that You knew that first, and felt that I was worthy to make such a sacrifice for.

I understand that I am only righteous through Him who suffered for me, and I seek to live a life that glorifies You. I know I will still stumble at times, but I thank You that the nails that held Him to that tree are sufficient to hold Him to me.

I pray that the cleansing flow never stops in my life.

In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen

NO KING BUT KING JESUS

I've been seeing lots of posts for a new Constitutional Convention. While I agree that improvements are still in order for the old Constitution (we should go back to the beginning and start over with the foundation of the original Constitution), I am careful to promote this, because I've learned through experience to be careful what you ask for.

I've come to the conclusion that Man has no power to improve on anything. And, if you really want to improve this country, God should be brought back into it. If this were to happen, this country would be blessed like no other country on earth ever was and ever will be. But, the pride of men will bring us down.

I thank God that, as a Christian, I do not have to live under the law of any country that goes against His law. My home is not here, on this earth. And, if by not following the laws set before me by the government that is here, I am sent home, I would be grateful. THIS is temporary.

And, I will live thus.

NO KING BUT KING JESUS!

Bag of Money for Father's Day

I promised my step-dad some peanut butter fudge (made by me) for Father's day. He jokingly said, "Bring me a bag of dollar bills with that fudge."

So, I went to the store and bought some fake money. Then, I went by the liquor store to get a small paper sack.

It is late, and the store is about to close. I get to the counter and say, "Give me a small paper sack." The new guy behind the counter looks at me odd and gets a small paper sack. Then, to my surprise, he starts filling it up with money.

I asked him, "What are you doing?"

"Giving you a small paper sack."

"Yeah, but why are you filling it with money?"

"You might shoot me if I don't."

"I don't have a gun. I just wanted a small sack. Period. No money."

"Oh!!!!" He looked embarrassed. Then said, "You might better leave before the cops get here, then."

Sigh. The cops drove up right then. One of them came in after a few moments, with his gun drawn. The guy said, "It was a mistake. She just wanted a small paper sack. No money. I was here by myself. I was paranoid I guess."

I said, "NO DOUBT! I promise I wasn't trying to hold up a liquor store!"

The cop stopped for a few moments and then called the other guy in and told him what the cashier told him, and the other cop began to question me:

"You were just getting a paper sack?"

"Yes, sir."

"You had no intention of holding up the store?"

"No, sir."

"You don't have a weapon of any kind?"

"No, sir. I'm not even carrying a purse."

"What did you want the sack for?"

Oh, man. how was I gonna tell him I wanted to give my step-dad a bag of dollar bills for Father's Day?

(this IS NOT A TRUE STORY. I JUST THOUGHT WITH ALL THE CURRENT PARANOIA GOING AROUND, IT FIT. I started thinking, "what if..." LOL I thought I'd share... I read this to my step dad today to explain why he didn't get his bag of dollar bills. He totally enjoyed it!)

Facing the Devil

Have you ever had a day when you KNOW you did everything right, but yet you feel persecuted, attacked, stepped on, driven to your limitations? That's the kind of day I had yesterday. And, try as I could, I could not get rid of that sense of dread that overwhelmed me. It's the feeling that you have when you know you are going to have to go through more tribulation in your life as you try to gain a foot-hold again to stand on your own.

Guess I should have seen it all coming. I mean, things have been so good for so long, and now the devil is attacking with a vengence and I am about to fall. The thing is, even though I may fall, I won't be falling down this time. I will be falling into the arms of my Jesus. He's going to be all I have. If I fall, I will lose everything but Him. My dogs, my car, my home -- everything I have worked so hard to maintain.

I'm going to start looking for that open door right now. I am going to need it. Soon. My life is about to change. Again. But, whereever I end up, I know without a doubt it will be where Jesus puts me.

I am praising my God through this valley of darkness that has overwhelmed me. As it envelops me, I am looking at that candle that is sitting on top of that hill that I am climbing. I am praying that The Father reaches down and grabs hold of my hand and, on my knees, I am standing tall as I give it all to Him.

That sounds like a song in the making...

He's the only one who can handle this. I have done figured out that I don't know how.

Pray for me.

I praise Jesus, because I KNOW He has felt this way before. He understands what I am going through. HE understands why. And, HE knows it isn't any fault of my own.

I thought when I got rid of my ex, the abuse would never happen again...but today I feel so mentally abused. It is as though I am staring Satan right in the face -- again. But, I am not giving in. I am not giving up. I refuse to give Satan the satisfaction of winning a piece of my soul. He might take my bank account. He might take my job, my small victories, and my companionship, the pillow I lay my head on. But He is not going to take my soul or my heart for Jesus.

God, today, I depend on you with all I have. I am yours. It is up to you to make this a testimony that glorifies You. I need You today. I need you right now. Be my strength, my patience, my endurance, my hope. In Jesus' Holy Name I pray, Amen.

Good morning, World: I just need Jesus

Good morning, World!

Today is the first day of the rest of my life. It is the day that the Lord has made, and I will rejoice and be glad in it! Each new day is a chance to start over, and with each door closed, God opens another.

Praying that God blesses my day with the abundance of life promised me by my Saviour Jesus Christ!

I don't need riches and I don't need gold, I just need Jesus, and me for Him to hold!

Have a blessed day, World!

Today's Prayer: Part of YOUR Will

Dear Lord, please help me to remember that just because others don't acknowledge me, YOU know the integrity and origin of my heart. And, though others may not like how I handle situations because it's not what they would do, YOU are One I should seek my validation from. Help me resist being "part of the crowd" and empower me to be a part of Your Will.

In Jesus' Holy Name I pray,
Amen

Today's Prayer: What have I accomplished?

Dear Lord, please help me to understand that my dependence on you is a blessing, and that my success and accomplishments in life are the by-product of that dependence. I am nothing without You, Lord. I know this from the deepest fibers of my being, (which YOU created).

Help me to be content with what I have, and what I am, so that every thing added to me is a bigger blessing that I will not with-hold from my service to YOU.

In Jesus' Holy Name, I pray, Amen.

With-holding nothing...

You should never take ANYTHING for granted, because God will take it from you when you do! There is NOTHING He can't with-hold from you if He feels it is in your best interest, or that it will bring you closer to HIM.

And, there is nothing I will with-hold from Him because of it!

Kinks and Swirls

I love it when people want to put their two cents worth in about my life and say, "If you'd do this, or if you wouldn't do that..."

It amuses me. I look at them as if they are aliens, because what they suggest for me is so out of my world. I can't help but smile when they tell me, "You can't get there from here..." because I am already closer to "there" than they are, or they think I am.

"Maybe you shouldn't (do this or that)" when what I am doing is working just fine for me. A few little "kinks" and "swirls" now and then, but even that seems to be working for me.

When they tell me "You can't" I just say,

"Watch me."

What at DAY!

WHAT a DAY! I go to work, and I am ALL prepared. Everything went SOOO smooth (even though I was an hour late getting off work). Got off work thinking, "God is SOOO good!"

Took my co-worker home, then went and picked up my friend Dallas to drive to church. Didn't even stop at home. Had to get to prayer service!

THEN, on the way, we stop at the stop sign. Look both ways. Go. My car shifts out of first gear with a big BUMP. Uh OH. 2nd Gear BUMP.

hmmmm. Transmission fluid low?

Get to church, open the hood, check it, the stick is dry. I call my step dad and ask him if he will help me out. I'm off work tomorrow. I don't have money for anything right now, until Thursday and I am not driving my car in this shape that long. I plan to drive the car home and let it sit until I can get Transmission fluid, but I don't feel comfortable even with that, and I need to get Dallas home, too.

Sister Kristie offered to drive Dallas and to follow me home if necessary. A couple of guys dug around in the back of his truck and found some Transmission fluid. I gave him one of my plastic bottles I use to carry tea in for a funnel. Everything is good. I call my step-dad and tell him never mind.

THEN, I get home and there is water all over the floor. I thought Milo must have peeed all over the house. But that was a LOT of water. Upon closer inspection I notice there is water dripping off my kitchen table. I look up at the ceiling...run out and get the apartment manager, who is NOT in a good mood!

She sees the problem and runs to get her plumber. They come back and unclog the air conditioner hose in the ceiling.

I am just now starting to relax after cleaning up the mess.

But, hey, God is STILL SOOO Good!

WHEW.

Being Single in a Couple's World as a Christian

This was posted at God Inspires on March 26, 2015

by Shonda Ponder

I sat there listening to Christian Talk Radio which hosted a question and answer show about daily life as a Christian. This last question about a woman who recently lost her husband and is considering dating again made me feel ... odd.

On the show, they made the statement that "This is a couples world, and although there are a lot of single people out there, the overwhelming desire of singles is to have someone to 'belong' to, i.e. the desire for marriage."

I am not desiring to "belong to" anyone but God and I certainly am not looking forward to ever getting married again at this point. Does that make me strange?

Sometimes I feel like Christian teachings try to PUSH marriage and dating on people by making them feel inadequate if they don't. It's just WRONG.

Paul was content being single.

THIS is why I cringe at the notion of going to singles ministries. They are all focused on how one should act in a dating relationship. They have FAILED to address those of us who are desiring to wait on GOD's Timing, and need to focus on being SINGLE and content about it. .

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 7:

6 But I speak this by permission, and not of commandment.

7 For I would that all men were even as I myself. But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that.

8 I say therefore to the unmarried and widows, It is good for them if they abide even as I.

9 But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.

This is addressing those who are consumed by their desires, who have not mastered the ability to focus solely on God as their provider, their friend, and their endearing other half. Those who cannot contain themselves in the presence of the opposite sex SHOULD marry. But those who can are blessed in that they focus on the things of God and not on pleasing another human being:

33 But he that is married careth for the things that are of the world, how he may please his wife.

34 There is difference also between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman careth for the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit: but she that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband.

35 And this I speak for your own profit; not that I may cast a snare upon you, but for that which is comely, and that ye may attend upon the Lord without distraction.

So where are the ministries that ENCOURAGE being single?

This article in Crosswalk.com makes my point about Christian Single's Ministries focusing on marriage. Although, ONE sentence in the article does make MY point:

"After all, every Christian’s first responsibility is to seek first God’s kingdom and His righteousness "

This statement is over-ridden, however, in the rest of the article. I find this unfortunate:

How can I find out who God wants me to marry?

We need more articles that PRAISE being single, that PRAISE singles who are looking for their sustainability in a God who keeps their heart from loneliness and distraction from HIM.

When all else fails, call MOM

A co-worker asked me if I would give her a ride home, since the busses are not running due to the sleet. She offered me $10. I told her she didn't have to pay me THAT much. She insisted.

We got out to the parking lot, and lo and behold, my windows are froze over, my wipers won't work because they are frozen, and it took FOREVER for the heat to get warm. The defrost wasn't working with the sleet still coming down, down either.

She gets this bright idea to pour bottled water on the windshield. No, that didn't work either. So, we're sitting there...waiting..."At this rate," I thought, "it will be dark before I get home."

What do I do? I call mom.

"Mom, I'm stuck in Wadley Parking lot, there is ice on my windshield and I can't see out of it. It's on ALL my windows. And I don't have an ice scraper. And, my wipers are frozen."

What advice does mom give me?

"Use your badge."

DUH. Why didn't I think of that? We hang up and I get out of the car. My co-worker asks, "What did she say?"

"She said 'Use your badge.'"

"Will that work?"

"I'm fixing to try."

In less than 5 minutes, we are on the road. LOL

Moral of the story: When all else fails, call MOM.

Humbling Thanksgiving

When we become thankful for every breath we take, every bite we eat, and every step we take...when we praise God even when we feel He is far away because, somehow, we pushed Him there...when we hope in spite of all doubt and fear that threatens to overtake us, and when we refuse to deny His love, His power, and His Sovereignty, even after we have found it difficult to talk to Him...

He will reach down when you least expect it and touch you in such a way that you have no recourse but to fall on your face, humbled, overwhelmed, and overjoyed, giving Him the Praise that your heart has with-held, and having faith stronger than ever that He is who He is.

Thank you, Father.

Moral Support and Encouragement

I have become acutely aware that there are some people in this world who want nothing more than to see you fail, to stay down, to wallow in your filth. Those are people that I try to stay away from, because, if they can, they will do whatever they can to impede your progress.

The reason they are the way they are is that they do not like to be proven wrong. They have already made assumptions about you and your life, and in their tiny little brains, they have determined that that is the way it should be. When you prove them wrong, and rise above their expectations of you, it makes them feel ashamed and embarrassed.

Nobody likes that. So, don't be one of those people. Don't assume the worst in people. Don't be negative. The Bible teaches that we are supposed to raise people up and rejoice in their accomplishments as we keep pushing them forward. Moral support goes a long way in the Kingdom of God.

The Issue of Faith

The issue of faith is, Does God have integrity? -- Dr. Tony Evans.

As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord -- Joshua

God said it. I believe it. That settles it. -- Bumper sticker

If God says it, folks, it's truth. It will come to being. It will come to pass. Nothing can stop it. It's there. Period. So, to have "faith" in God is to believe that He is all-powerful, all-knowing, and can do anything. The Bible says that with God ALL things are possible. To doubt what God says is lack of faith. It is the same as calling God a liar. It is the same as saying He doesn't have all the information. It is just like telling God that He is weak and can't help you.

God is. God told Abraham "I AM". If this is true, and if God is who He says he is, and can do what He says He can do, it's a very dangerous game to have a lack of faith in Him.

I choose to believe that God is everything He says He is, and that makes Him everything to me.

Memories of a life lived: Legos

My son, Justin Williams, used to get legos for every Christmas and Birthday. He had a BIG plastic tub full of legos. I home schooled him, and when I would go to work, he was at home with his books and his toys to keep him occupied.

Justin was always pretty obedient, and it amazed me sometimes just HOW obedient he was.

One day, I went to work. When I came home, I could barely get into the door. Something was blocking it. I squeezed in..then, in awe I looked around. There, laid out on the living room floor was a gigantic lego city, complete with schools, gas stations, churches, banks, roads with little lego cars and people going down them...

It MUST have taken him ALL DAY build this...and I DIDN'T HAVE A CAMERA!!!!!!!

Oh my.

I swallowed a lump in my throat, and with tears in my eyes I said quietly: "Justin, son, I REALLY hate to tell you this...but you have to pick up your toys."

When I heard what came out of his mouth next, the tears started flowing. I had to leave the room so he wouldn't see me cry.

"Yes, ma'am." No argument. No pleading. Just a simple, "Yes, Ma'am."

If he had argued with me that day, he probably would have won.

It's okay to be angry at God...

God doesn't care if you are mad at Him, so long as you are still obedient.

Read about Jonah, if you want proof. He stayed mad at God, and what he did for God, he did grudgingly.

I guess Jonah's story would be like God telling us Patriots to go to the land of Islam and tell them that God loves them, and if they don't repent and change their ways and follow Him, they are going to be destroyed. Many of us would say, go ahead, God, destroy them! But, it isn't the Christian thing to do.

It isn't what God would have us do, like it or not. And, when they have murdered our sons and daughters and tortured our loved ones and profaned our animals and our property...and THEN decide to turn and change their ways because one of us went to preach the love and mercy of our God to them, how many of us would be SOOO angry that God didn't still destroy them?

Jonah stayed angry at God. Will you?

Memories of a Life Lived: My Sister

When I was a kid, Sunday mornings were the only mornings that my parents got to sleep late. They never went to church until my later teenage years when life had dealt our family a lot of lemons. But, they didn't stop me from going to church, so I got up, got dressed, and without waking them, walked the two blocks down the dirt road, and around the bend to Faith Community Baptist Church where Brother Land preached every Sunday and Wednesday. I looked forward to that time -- and, if I didn't show up, Brother Land would later call and check on me. I think that is how he found out I had my tonsils out when he came to the hospital to see me and bring me my first Bible.

This particular Sunday, my sister, Keysha K Smith wanted to go with me. She was only three years old. I was six years older than her, about nine. She put on her shorts and her sandals and I took her by the hand and walked with her to church. I showed her her sunday school room (which was the nursery) and we enjoyed church together after.

When I got home, my parents were up and upset. They had been frantic, looking for Keysha. She was only a baby. They did not scold me, however, for taking my sister to church with me. They did make sure that I understood that I was not to take her again without telling them.

I will never forget that day for as long as I live.

Today, my sister, like me, loves the Lord, and is striving to put God first and let Jesus take the wheel, in spite of her humanity and in effort to set an example for her own children. I am proud of her.

Luke 2:49
And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?

Life is a Journey...

Life is a journey. The person you spend the most time getting to know is yourself. Your comfort zones are what determines the limitations you put upon yourself. And, I have determined to stretch beyond my comfort zones as often as I can, with-in reason, in order to find the limitations God has put on me. So far, I have found that the limitations I put on myself are far inferior to the ones that God has put on me. This makes me even more daring and fearless.

It also makes me realize how much of myself I do not know, and how much of myself I've forgotten I was. It drives me to seek answers that I thought I had already found, and makes me wonder if I will ever find the me that is somewhere inside.

I think, after deep thought on this, that the closest I have come to being me is when I determine and practice contentment in who I am at this moment.

It is probably all I will ever really, truly, know -- whether I understand it or not.

Happy New Year's Anniversary

Today, New Year's Eve, is my anniversary. I have been single for ONE WHOLE YEAR today. And, I have enjoyed every minute of it.

The more time passes, the harder it is for me to imagine being in a relationship. I like this too much. And, my whole year, as hard as it's sometimes been, has been WAY better than the last 5 Years. And, much better than any other year where-in I was not single.

I have learned to depend on God for every little thing, and to praise Him when He shows up and shows out, and to recognize those times...which sometimes seems like it is every day.

I have been able to focus on my career, to put all I have in it, both at work and at home, without being reprimanded or resented for it.

I haven't had to listen to someone tell me I was wasting my time, or that my dreams won't amount to anything, or that I was interfering with their own life because of it.

God will never give me away, push me away or ignore me. He is everywhere I look for Him. I feel secure in His love.

And, I am safe.

Happy New Year's!