Be Still

Psalms 46:10

"Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

I was sitting in the park enjoying the beautiful weather that we have had recently. I watched in the distance as some of the kids had gathered together to play a game of freeze tag. "Tag your it" said one of the children as they tagged the other. I could see the little boy freeze and try his very best to stand still. I watched as it took everything within him to just sit and be still until someone came and tagged him. Have you ever had to sit and wait on something and just be still for a bit. It is a hard thing to do.

Now anyone that knows me knows that I am the type to talk, talk , talk. When I am quiet I am still talking or thinking in my mind. We can not hear God with a mind full of words. It is also hard to be quiet when you have too much going on around you. As a parent and wife, I have noticed that the worst time to have my quiet time is when my husband and kids are around. Don’t get me wrong I love them dearly, However it is kind of hard to be quiet in the mist of, "Mom she won’t let me play the game with her…. "Mom she won’t let me do it myself…."Mom where is this? Or "Hon do you know where my keys are?

You get the picture I am sure.

I remember when I was a teenager. I worked at Christian Horizons. It was a camp for mentally challenged. As much as I enjoyed working at this camp. It was a very trying day sometimes. I would get up early in the morning before I had to be with the campers. This is when I got my quiet time. There was a lake at this camp and the campfire was at the lakes edge. The trees made it shady and the water was so clear. It was one of the most beautiful sights. I would take my bible every morning sit by the water. Nobody else just me and God. That was my place of peace and rejuvenation. I find the water to be so peaceful. Maybe for you it is that drive to work in the morning, or that nice hot bath. Whatever it is God wants us to be quiet once in a while. I find that God works best when it is quiet with no distractions. It is easier for us to hear his still small voice. We can not hear him when our mind is full of worries and troubles. We can not hear him when we have our hearts and thoughts on others around us. We may not be able to sit and be quiet because we are to selfish and self-centered to let ourselves be still. We need to forget about ourselves and totally concentrate on God and his love for us. During these quiet times when we are still and forget about the worries and troubles around us. Then we can truly know his peace. In our quiet time we should be full of praise and worship for all that God has done for us.

SNOWFLAKES

Ecclesiastes 3:11, "He has made everything beautiful in its time."

    I woke up this morning to a phone call saying, "No buses… Snow day today." I continued to get up and continue on to my normal duties. After putting a load of laundry in the wash machine and getting myself some breakfast, I sat at the kitchen table and watched the snow hitting the kitchen window. I began to watch each snowflake. Snowflakes can be pretty fascinating at times. They were all different sizes. Some looked like delicate lace. Others looked like they would withstand anything. Some reminded me of shooting stars. Shiny and bright. But they all had similarities in them. All of these snowflakes had 6 points. All snowflakes are made up of hydrogen and oxygen molecules. They were also all symmetrical in shape.

A snowflake is formed when a particle of dust that ice has collected around. It then floats from the atmosphere. This tiny particle has many imperfections. It may seem like nothing but it can form into a beautiful snowflake. Without it’s existence, the snowflake can not form. . I looked out and continued watching these snowflakes fall and then an amazing feeling came over me. The snowflake is quite a work. God and snowflakes are a small hint of how much he loves all things. He goes to this much trouble for something that will never be seen or appreciated almost 100% of the time.

    It made me think of the many differences between people. God created us all. The snowflake is very unique. We too are also very unique, We come in many different sizes and forms. Some have different outlooks then others. We all have flaws and faults. God formed each and every one of us. He made us according to his will uniquely and perfectly, just like the little snowflake. Sometimes we take God’s great creation for granted. The snow was a reminder to me that if he cares this much about something that only lasts a few seconds, how much more does he feel for me. I want to encourage you to sit back and think of all the great things God has done for you. He is crazy about you. He loves you. You too are like the snowflake, uniquely and perfectly made.

Organization

We are having a special perk day at the ladies group we go to. The director asked me to write a devotion on  Organization. So I figured I would share this small devotion today. Hope you enjoy it. :)

    I remember when I was a teen going to my friends house. While visiting, my friend turned to me and said "watch this"… She walked into her older brother’s bedroom and moved his clock ½ inch to the left. She then walked out and we sat and waited. Sure enough about 10 minutes later an unbelievable screech came from his room… Who has been in here?? I know someone has been in here.. My clock has been moved!! My friend giggled and said, "Can you imagine being that organized."

    Truth be told no I could not. I could never be that organized. He had a place and position for everything in his room. I don’t know about you but I need more guidance in this issue. Organization is not my best suit. Unfortunately along with being disorganized comes discontentment. God wants us to be organized.

1Corinthians 14:33 says "God is not the God of disorder but of peace. "

The average person when they are disorganized tend to be in a life of turmoil and stress. When things are disorganized and a mess in my life. I tend to get miserable and grumpy. I become far from what God wants me to be. It shows on not just my every day life, but in my family as well. It is like that old saying If mama ain’t happy, Ain’t nobody happy. My actions and attitude show on my husband and my children also. I believe that a mother’s outlook first thing in the morning is the outlook that your family will take for that day. If you are disorganized and grumpy. Your family will be disorganized and grumpy. Also what kind of a witness are to others when they see that attitude. "We are the only bible that people read." Christians are to be happy are they not? If we know true peace it shows on our faces and our every day life. When you are organized you are not so overwhelmed. You don’t feel as if you are drowning in what needs to be done. Our minds are in a better place. We are free to be there for our family. We are also more open to God and what he has for us. Our minds are not spinning in different directions. This allows God to speak to us more clearly and to completely concentrate on him. We are able to hear his still small voice better and to live a better life being totally focused on him.

Forgiveness

When you think of forgiveness, What comes to mind? What do you really think?

Ephesians 4:32 says,

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

So when you think forgiveness, do you think of a situation that has happened in your life? Maybe you are thinking.. Rose you have no idea. I had this done to me, that is just unforgivable… Jesus was whipped, he was kicked and beaten then nailed to a cross. He had a sword pierce his side. He was ridiculed and tortured. Yet one of the last things on his mind was the people that were doing this to him. He had compassion on them and said "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." To love and to forgive like Jesus. That is what God asks of us. Not all of you know me or my past. I am a survivor of abuse. I did not always have the best in life. But I can say, "I forgive you".

How can that be possible you may ask? I could have decided to hurt that person right back. I mean after all was my right, they hurt me first. No I forgave them….I forgive because God forgave me. He makes it possible. Without him, I could never say I forgive you. Without him, I would be a pile of rubble. Bitter and full of hatred for these people that hurt me. I am not and it all because of God.

Have you ever herd the saying "Forgive and Forget" ??? This is far from the truth… Forgiveness is not a feeling; nor is it forgetting. It is not pretending that it never happened. It is not being able to trust that person again. It is not even reconciliation with that person. Forgiveness is something you decide to do because you want to obey God.

No one can make you forgive that person. Not even God himself can make you forgive that person. Forgiveness is a choice we have. We can chose to hang on to it and let is eat us away or we can let go and let God. It is not our job for revenge. Revenge is God’s job.

The bible is straightforward that no one should avenge himself on others.

Romans 12 :9

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

God has reserved vengeance for himself. I forgave those people that hurt me because God forgave me for the hurts that I caused him through my sins. In the end forgiveness protects the forgiver themselves. When we forgive others, it cancels the debt like Jesus canceled our debt when he died on the cross. God says, " I will do all the punishing. Now your job is to forgive." Forgiveness is not something that happens over night. It is a process. It takes time to heal. However it is an act of faith that shows God’s grace for us. When we forgive it gives God access to work directly on that other person. When we refuse to forgive, it creates a barrier between us and God. I am saying to God that what the person did to me is more important then him. I know I have totally forgiven that person when I can pray for them. Not for harm but for good. I also know I have forgiven that person when God can use me to touch the person that has wronged me. When my decisions are not controlled by what that person has done to me, and when I am free from the pain, bitterness, anger and hatred towards that person. When I am experiencing God’s peace, I know I have truly forgiven.

If you noticed when I said I was a survivor or abuse not a victim of abuse. I say this because I am no longer living in that bondage and hurt and pain. I have totally forgiven my abusers. I have given them over to God. And I can honestly say that God is the reason for me being a survivor. He has taken me from that hurt and bitter person and made me a person with confidence and peace. He has also gave me a heart of love for those that hurt me and he can do it for you too.

Maybe you need to forgive someone, Is your lack of forgiveness holding you back from what God wants for you? Ask God to show you, and for the desires to forgive also. He will give you the ability and strength to do so. All you have to do is hand it over to him.



Miracles Do Happen

    In a hospital room a mother was praying for God to not take her little girl. This little girl weighed no more then 2 pounds. Doctors had told her parents it was hopeless. This little girl would surely die. The mother had already had 12 other children, However her heart broke at the thought of loosing this one very special little girl.
 
   In a near by room was also this babies grandmother who was frail and at the end of her life. Family had decided not to tell her of her Granddaughters birth in fear that she would give up all hope. 12 hours after the birth of her granddaughters birth, she took her last breath. At this point this little girl would gain life and perk up. God had answered this mother’s prayers to keep the fight of life in this little baby. This made it the most special day and yet one of the saddest times for this family. As time went by this child was sick off and on but over all seemed to be getting stronger and healthier. Her parents believed in God and they loved God. They would take their children along every Sunday, to church. It was a family thing and very important that their children knew and loved God also.

    At a year old the mother went to get the baby from her crib, Only to discover that her head did not look right. As she picked up her daughter, she noticed that her head looked deformed. After rushing her to the hospital, The doctors had sat her parents down to inform them that this mass on her head was water. It got so big it came over and rested on her shoulder. They informed the parents that their child would probably die. They said there was no hope. The parents went home to rest. The mother decided to go to a ladies prayer meeting. They prayed for this baby at 12:00 p.m. The child’s mother felt this warm sensation come over her. She just wanted to dance. She looked at the ladies and said, "My baby she has been healed." I know she has.

    The mother rushed home to tell her husband that she was going to the hospital. Their daughter had been healed and she knew it. The father could not believe and did not want the mother to be disappointed. He sent the oldest son with her just in case. When they arrived to the hospital, she realized that she did not bring anything to keep this little girl busy, because she would need things to play with. She did want her getting board. She sent her son up to the room while she ran to the gift shop to get some stuff for her daughter. When the son got upstairs and went to check in on his sister. He discovered his sister was gone. She was nowhere to be seen. He went out and told his mother who at that time was coming up the hall. "Don’t be silly." Said the mother. She has to be here. Where else would she be. Just as they were going to reenter into the room where her daughter had been, a nurse came dancing up the hall. "Hello there, can you tell me where my daughter is?" asked the lady. The nurse turned and with tears in her eyes said, "Yes… your daughter is in X ray’s". She continued to tell the mother on how she went into the room to check on her daughter at about 12 noon. She looked at the little girl and that mass had vanished. No visual sign of it anywhere. They had her in X ray’s to see what happened to it. The mother knew instantly what had happened to it. She was overcome with emotion and thanksgiving to God for healing her daughter.

    Why do I tell you this story? I tell you this story as an encouragement to you. God answers prayers. I heard a lady once say.. ..Do you really think that God heals like he did in the bible. I am here to tell you "Yes he does". How can I be so sure you ask me.. I can be sure as that tiny baby with no hope was me. Satan tried numerous times through out my life to distroy me.

John 4: 4 "Greater is he that is in me then he that is in the world."

In the end no matter how bad things may seem, No matter how down and out you may be, Always remember God is in control. He is crazy about you and he wants the very best for you.

"ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE"

Free!!

Galations 5:1
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
Stand firm, then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

     In my email today I received an email about a whale. A humped back whale had gotten tangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighed down by hundreds of pounds of traps that were pulling her down and she was unable to stay afloat because of them. She also had hundreds of lines wrapped around her body, tail and torso. There was also a line around her mouth. This made it very difficult for this poor whale. With hours of working on this whale the rescue team was finally able to set her free. She eventually came back to each and every diver that had set her free. She would nudge them gently as to say Thank you. The one diver said that her eyes never left him the whole time he worked on releasing those traps. She had faith that these divers were going to remove all that bound her and that they would set her free.

     Throughout our lives we deal with issues, and past hurts. Many things in our lives that are like these traps and lines on the whale. They wrap around us so tightly that we can not swim. They keep building up until we can not stay afloat. We are weighed down so much by the things around us that we sink. Some traps may be hard to let go of. We need to have faith in God to remove the traps that bind us. Just like this whale had faith in the divers. God will show the traps that bind us. He wants us to completely hand them over to God. Once we do he will remove them one by one. Some of these traps and lines may take longer to remove then others. As we hand them over to him daily he will take that trap and replace it with love and victory. God is our refuge and he wants us to hand it all over to him. He wants us to be free.

God does not promise us that it will be a bed of roses without thorns…However he does promise to be our refuge when we prick our fingers and end up crying or being shaken. He wants to remove all the things that bind us.

The Tongue

     Have you ever said something without thinking, and later on thought why did I do that. I hurt that person. Or maybe you were on the receiving line of that insult or thing that came out of someone’s mouth. Either way it can be very hurtful to the person on the receiving end. When I was a young girl in Sunday School we sang a song. One of the verses were, "Oh be careful little tongue what you say… Oh be careful little tongue what you say… For the father up above is looking down in love. Oh be careful little tongue what you say. I never realized exactly what that song was saying until I got older.


    Washington Irving once said, "A sharp tongue is the only edged tool that grows keener with constant use." He was right. The bible emphasizes on the tongue.

James 3:6
The tongue also is fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

    One of the greatest threats to those around us and to ourselves is not any crime or violent act, but it is the tongue. I remember as a child the saying, "Sticks and Stones may break my bones but name will never hurt me. To me this saying is so far from the truth. Words kill. It kills someone’s spirit. It kills any confidence in a person. It will distroy them both mentally and spiritually. People may put on a big front, But in the end it will eat away at them in one way or another.

    Many times we scold children for talking about people behind their backs. Where do they get this from? Children learn by our actions. They do it because we do it. They also do it because the media does it all the time. It kind of makes me think of the saying, "Do as I say, not as I do" This is another saying I really do not like. Children are the carbon copies of ourselves. As they see it in us. They do it. God’s thought in this matter are pretty clear.

Proverbs 11:12
Whoever derides their neighbor has no sense, but the one who has understanding holds their tongue.

    I don’t know about you but this one is a hard pill to swallow. I was raised if you think it say it. So this was a very hard thing for me for a long time. God wants us to give everything over to him. He wants even our tongues. When we turn it all over to him. He will quench that fire with his Holy Spirit, he then is able to use our tongue for good. As we learn to complement and not condemn and we learn to encourage and not discourage. We become better people and it allows God to use us more.