choosenservant on Xanga

Weblog

Wednesday, 18 November 2009

Ouch! That sharp edge just cut me!

I get a little snippet of devotional thought from A Word With You from Ron Hutchrcaft ministries. It usually challenges me to look at my life and relationship with God and reevaluate. So it was today. He was speaking about the danger of having sharp edges around the grandchildren and how he rounds them off so that the ones he loves will not get hurt. And so it is in our lives. Ron tells us that we all have sharp edges that hurt those we love and those whom we do not mean to hurt. We all have buttons that can get pushed and we all know what they are. He encourages us to take the time to turn those 'buttons' over to God and allow Him to work it out so that we will have one of the fruit of the Spirit - Gentleness.I know that I am in need of this change for I know that there are those I love that are reading this too and they know also. So I am praying and asking that my heavenly Father will change my heart, heal the hurt, create in me that 'clean heart' so that I will love and not hurt those around me. How about you?

Friday, 13 November 2009

What would you do?

Earlier this week I could not sleep and was surfing the channels. I came across a movie of which I do not know the name of. It starred Latifa and was about a everyday woman who worked at a department store. Like most people she had dreams and she kept ideas about them in a scrap book called 'Possibilities'. Through a series of events she found out she had a rare medical condition that only gave her 3-4 weeks to live. She cashed in her stocks and bonds, withdrew all her money and started to follow many of her 'possibilities'. I was not able to see the end so I do not know what happened but it really gave me pause to think. What would I do if I knew that I was only going to live 3-4 weeks? What would I do differently? How would my priorities change? How would I be able to make every second count? This line of thought begged the bigger question: I really do not know if I have 3-4 seconds, minutes, hours, days months, years. Taking the worst case scenario, why not prioritize, breath, live as if there was so little left? Why do I have to be dying to realize the value of those I love, the salvation of those I love, the longing to be together in heaven, to share my heart with those who matter, to know that I am doing all that God wants me to do while here one earth? A death sentence in this way would be liberating but do I really want it to come to that before I realize what is most important. So based in this premise.....What would you do?

Saturday, 07 November 2009

Without Vision, The People Perish.

Once upon a time there was a little church that had a church family much like the one in your home. There was the optimists, the pessimists, the workers, the talkers, the organizers, the musical ones and the musically challenged, the leaders, and the followers. All of them together making a 'family'. One day the 'father' felt that the heavenly Father was calling them far away and he left. In his place there came another 'father' for the family. At first the new 'father' of the family felt that he could not do anything with the family. The 'father' saw that there were things that needed to be changed and tried to show the family what they were doing wrong......often. The family was sad and as they were trying to do the right thing but it was not going well. As the time passed, it was harder and harder to bring the family together. The family was as some families were......arguing and finding fault, trying to tell others what was wrong and how to change what they were doing, feeling frustrated and giving up on making things better, and so on. Yet there were others who were doing better. Its funny how that goes. One day this 'father' of the family had to go away. He was sad but thought that it was time and the family would be ok. In his place there came a temporary 'father' for the family. This 'father' for the family suddenly started right in to unify the family again. He showed them how wonderful it is to be part of our heavenly Father's family. He showed them how they can look for the good, to see how they were all part of one 'body' and grow. He smiled allot and told them how much the heavenly Father loved them and was just waiting to give them His greatest present for them on earth. The people smiled, looked at each other, saw hope, and prayed for their heavenly Father to pour out His blessing.....the Holy Spirit.
And all the people said AMEN

Tuesday, 03 November 2009

I Found Walnuts

On the way to physical therapy;y I pass the city compost area. I often stop here to pick up flowers, bulbs, plants, ect that others throw out and I 'recycle' them into my yard and home. If I had to pay for all that was in my yard I could not begin to afford it! I am so grateful for this as I have a beautiful yard come spring and summer. Even the evergreen shrubs that adorn my porch area were 'recycled' from our church. Anyways, as I was heading to PT I happened to notice what looked like small apples and; curiosity being my best and worst asset, I had to check it our. They were not apples.......they were walnuts! I filled a walmart bag and a box I had and went on my way. When I picked Ron up from college I told him about it. We stopped where we could pick up more bags and headed down there. We filled another 6-7 bags and went home. Until I can get to them, Ron put them in our cartop carrier (filled it) so the squirrels and chikmunks can't get to them. I sat here tonight and doing up a couple of bag worth. Now some of you may know and others may not. Walnuts are quite and interesting thing to process. I looked up on the internet and found out the easiest way to do them. I wore gloves because the juice from the skins are staining and there is nothing that can get it out of your skin......not even bleach. Interestingly, when you cut into the outer skin the inside is actually yellow. Even the juice on my gloves was yellow. It is not till the air gets to it that it begins to turn black not unlike an avocado. I lucked out the first time but the second time the right had broke through and the next time the left. I know have brown thumbs (both literally and figuratively LOL). I tired so many combinations of cleaners to get off the stains to no avail. I even combined bleach with hand soap....it got real warm and stinky but it didn't take the stain off. Even soaking in bleach! It reduced how dark but it did not remove it. Walnuts are delicious. And so is so much that satan tempts us with. Often we do not see the good part of the temptation and not until it is often too late do we realize that it has left a stain. This could be something as simple as a song you listen to. Or it could be a magazine you see, the TV program, the novels you get caught up in, the 'innocent' flirting, etc. You really do not see where it is going to lead you till it is too late. I ask you to please, please as for your heavenly Father to give you the eyes of His Son to look through. To take the blinders off that you may see what there is in your life that is leading you away from Him. Our heavenly Father promises that "Though your sin be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they be red (or in my case brown) as crimson they shall be as wool."

Monday, 02 November 2009

Remember when we..............

A while back my daughter received word that a friend died suddenly. They had met while she was in Africa. She asked me to see if I could find the pictures from there as she had lost hers on her old computer when it crashed. My computer hard drive was in for repairs and I finally got it back. Looking for the pictures, I could not find them in my picture files even after it was restored. I felt bad because I had told her I could get them. Last week as I was going through my documents, I happened on a folder in a folder and there they were! I was so excited and sent them off to her right away. Pictures are what helps to keep the memories alive after we lose those we love. We seek them out and while going through them you recall the wonderful things you shared with them. A delight to me is when I come across a stray picture from the past and suddenly I am flooded with memories. You know the wonderful thing about going home to our heavenly Father is that we will all come together and smile. We will look around for the familiar faces, hugs will abound, and we will share the stories once more. I am so happy that we will be able to know each other in heaven! I can't wait for resurrection morning so I can see those I love again! How about you?