Still processing deeply....

Will eventually post something here....I'm still processing all I took in at Deeper Still Orlando. I love how God works...how He answers you when you call out to Him...how He loves you deeply...how He goes way beyond your way beyond!!!

to be continued....

Feelin' Free!

My verse for May 15 (yes...yes....I know...I'm late...again!) is Luke 1:46-50:

And Mary said, I'm bursting with God-news; I'm dancing the song of my Savior God. God took one look at me, and look what happened -- I'm the most fortunate woman on earth! What God has done for me will never be forgotten, the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others. His mercy flows in wave after wave on those who are in awe before Him.

Mary Ann and Pastor Ron know why I chose this verse: The Lord delivered me in more ways than one about a week ago...and I'm STILL in awe and shouting praises to Him!!

In my April 23 post, I asked you all to pray for me concerning my "eye stuff". Well.....thanks to everyone who prayed for me. Because as of last week, I am HEALED of this fear!! And ALL the glory goes to my Father God! He took me places that I would have never thought would be associated with my "eye stuff"....and then proceeded to bless me beyond measure!! I was so in AWE afterwards...I don't even have the words to describe it! I LOVE how God works!! I just love it and I love Him!! Thank You, Yahweh Rophe, The Lord Who Heals!!!!
The Hebrew word rophe means "heal" "cure" "restore" or "make whole."
Yep...that describes what He did for me!!

I may post about this more in detail at a later time....I still am getting it all down in my journal.

Speaking of journal....I was convicted recently (few months ago, actually) to begin writing my life story for my children. I was thinking one day about how little I know about my mom as a PERSON...not just as my mom. Mom was killed New Year's Day, 1977 in a car accident that involved our family. When I voiced to my aunt (mom's sister) a few years ago that I didn't really KNOW mom, she spoke to my uncles (mom's two brothers closest in age to her) and they wrote an eight page memoir of mom for her children. This is a precious treasure to me! It made me realize a few years later that I needed to do this for my children while I myself can put it down on paper. So...this I am working on. My experience with the Lord a week ago will be put down in detail....What God has done for me will never be forgotten....to be a witness and a testimony of my loving Father to my children...to their children...to their children....for as far as God desires it to go.

Why am I telling you all this? Because maybe...just maybe....you will want to do this for your family. It may be something you have never thought about until you read this post. So I wanted to share what I was doing...and why...because I want to leave a treasure for my family to have when I am gone to be with the Lord. Maybe you would like for your family to have a treasure from you too. You don't have to be a "writer"...just the fact that you are putting it down on paper...in your own handwriting....is all your family needs. I love to open my mom's Bible and see her writing...the scriptures she highlighted...the thoughts she wrote down. THAT is what makes it special...SHE wrote something that I can read all these years later. I thank God that my mom was a Christian and she loved God. I'm thankful to have been raised in a Christian home ALL my life.

Ok...go get a journal started!! Let me know how you do....I dare think that you may get a treasure and a blessing just by writing it!!

May 2, 2009

The verse I picked for May 1 is one of my favorites and I like having the reminder!

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

Jeremiah 29:11-13

God has GREAT plans for me and I pray I will be obedient to His will for my life. Thank You, Father, for Your great plans for me and for your great love for me!

April 23, 2009

Yes...I am late. The post should be titled: April 15, 2009....but what can I say? I just get a little behind at times!!

"The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing."

Zephaniah 3:17 (NIV)

Not much need to elaborate on this one....God says it well in His own words!
My Father God is always with me...He saves me...He delights in me (I am the apple of His eye!)...He loves me...He rejoices over me with SINGING!! Oh...I can't wait to hear my Lord sing! He views me as His precious treasure...He speaks words of adoration over me. Thank You, Father, for loving me!

Oh...my adorable grandaughter, Layla Kate, said "Grandma" for the FIRST time a week ago!! Actually, it was more like "Gama", but I'll take it!!! She is almost 17 months old. I absolutely LOVE being a grandma to my two beauties...Erica Leigh and Layla Kate!!!

So....anyone out there memorizing Scripture?? You know....to be able to speak God's Words over our enemy when he tries to pull his little (or big) schemes?? Because God's Words are way more powerful than anything the devil plans?? Because we need to fill our minds with everything GOD...and not all the other junk?? To know His truths so we can get decipher the lies we believe?? God's Words bring peace...not confusion. God's Words bring clarity...not blurriness. God's Words save us...never condemn or reject us. God's Words reign!!! Let's jump into His Words and get sooooo excited at what He will show us!!

One more "oh": Typing "blurriness" in the above paragraph reminded me of my real blurriness after the eye appointment yesterday! My family and church family know how I feel about my eyes being messed with....I don't like it....I dread it...I get hot....I get nauseated....I feel like I am just before passing out! I know...I know...it's crazy...but it's real....for me anyway!! I have narrow angles, which puts me at a high risk of developing closed angle glaucoma. I have been doing eye drops four times a day for six months. I thought this may help me to avoid the laser eye surgery, but alas....no such luck. I can either keep doing eye drops...FOUR times a day...or have the laser surgery. No brainer for most, I'm sure....but I need prayer for this one!! So...PLEASE PRAY WITH ME!! I appreciate and cherish your prayers! I will eventually need surgery to remove the lens...kind of like cataract surgery. But my doctor wants to wait until I'm older for that. He said I was too YOUNG!! That was the ONLY part of the appointment that I liked!!! hee hee So now....I'm off to research this surgery. Sad thing is....I get sick to my stomach just READING about eye stuff....don't forget to pray....PLEASE!!!!

April 6, 2009

"But 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."
Jeremiah 17:7-8

This is verse number 7 in my list of memory verses for 2009. I really LOVE this verse. I love big beautiful oak trees and that is what I think about when I read this verse. When I choose to trust God with my all...my every things...I am strong like a tree. My strength comes from Him and Him only. It's not of my own doing. It's all God!! If I try to be strong on my own...without trusting God...I will end up like a withered little bush...wishing it was a big beautiful tree. I don't want to "wish" for anything. I want to KNOW that I'm strong in God...to KNOW that I'm beautiful because my face is radiant from being in His Word...to KNOW complete peace because I have put my trust in Him alone...to KNOW that when I talk to God and ask for His help, that He hears me and answers me...even when it is not the answer I was looking for...to KNOW His promises are kept promises...to KNOW that I am His child and He loves me dearly.

I want to be that tree planted by the water and send out my roots by the stream. I want to keep my complete confidence and trust in the One who saves me - my Father God - my Savior Jesus!

Oh...and my loving and ever-so-thoughtful husband ordered a necklace with the Tree of Life from the garden of Eden...which was made in Israel...for me this past Christmas! I love wearing this necklace...it reminds me of this verse from Jeremiah! He looked for this necklace because he LISTENED when I talked about this verse and saying that I would love to have a pendant with a beautiful tree. Thank You, Father God for giving me such a wonderful man to share my life with!

God is working through our WIN days!!

WIN day at our church is for Witnessing In Neighborhood. After church on Sunday morning, we have a sandwich lunch and then go out in teams into nearby neighborhoods to reach people for Christ. We give out a pamphlet about our church and invite people who do not have a home church to join us at Pauline.

One lady who recently started attending our church says she is a direct product of WIN day. She started coming shortly after she was visited on a Sunday afternoon...along with two of her loved ones!

Well....I always ask myself..."Self, why are you always surprised when you see God work?"

This past Sunday was WIN day again. Our pastor spoke in his message about not giving up when working to "catch boatloads" for Christ...having a willingness to try (AGAIN)...a Word to trust (we have a word from the Lord to go out for Him!)...and working as a team (we are partners together for Christ and with Christ!).

When we went out to the neighborhood we wanted to reach on Sunday, our team was denied entrance due to "no soliciting". We explained what we were doing, but were still denied entrance. Yes...it was very frustrating to be told we could not go through this neighborhood. I remembered a previous neighborhood that we did not finish going through because we ran out of our church pamphlets, so suggested that we return there. We did return and broke up into small groups to visit each home. I went to several homes with two of the youth boys to talk with people and tell them about our church. Two of the women I spoke with, when I asked if they had any prayer requests, asked for prayer for their young sons....one with cystic fibrosis...the other with autism. I wrote their names and addresses down and told them we would be praying.

Today at work (I'm an MRI technologist) we had a two year old boy who needed a brain scan under anesthesia because he was having seizures. His mom looked familiar to me, but I could not place from where I thought I knew her. After talking a few minutes, she said, "I believe I met you Sunday afternoon." Then I knew....this was the mother of the little boy with autism!
God already knew that this woman and I would be crossing paths at the hospital...and that she was going to be very nervous and scared for her little boy's procedure...that a familiar face would
help ease her fears a little.
God had a plan that she nor I could see...but He knew! He never had any intention of our team going to the first neighborhood....He knew where He needed us that day!

I thanked God for using myself and the boys with me to visit this woman's home Sunday...and then I thanked Him for making sure I was at work in the exact place I needed to be today! God is so good....I really don't know why I get surprised at His works! I am so thankful that I was an obedient servant to Him and was used in His plan for this woman and her child. Because so many times, I can make excuses as to why I don't need to go. I almost did this Sunday...because I was on call for the hospital...to use this as an excuse not to go...I have used this as an excuse before...and now I can only wonder on what plan of God's I missed out on.

So....what did God show me today? Quit making excuses....don't ever give up, even when you don't think you are seeing results. The results may come soon...but maybe much later!! God gave us this message through our pastor Sunday morning. I pray we all take note of this message and stop with our excuses.