RECONNECTING WITH AN OLD MENTOR

 

Jerry was recently able to reconnect with an teacher he had back in first and second grade.   This teacher changed the way he experienced school.  She had a big influence on him and it was awesome to see them together again.  She has always thought about him and I truly believe she prayed for him every day. The smile on their faces and the laughter was priceless.  In fact at 85 years of age, this lady was so excited to see Jerry I think she sprinted out the door. It had been over 50 years since they had seen each other but I could tell their love, admiration and respect for each other was mutual. She was a tremendous influence on him and I see why.  Sr. Angela Therese is an amazing woman of God.  The sparkle in her eyes, the tone of her voice when she speaks about God impressed me so much.  Se loves life, she loves her profession and above that....she loves Jesus.

I could see the tears in Jerry's eyes and I heard the excitement in his voice when he planned to get together with Sr. Angela.  I wasn't going to go because I felt it was a precious time for him to be alone with her, but he insisted that he wanted to share this time with me.  I am so grateful I went.  We spent over 3 hours together talking and reminiscing.  We shared photos and stories and treasured memories.   This time we shared was priceless.  I learned a lot from this wonderful lady.  She truly embraced the love of Jesus Christ and lived it out.  She got to meet Mother Theresa many years ago, there is a photograph of her with Mother Theresa, a treasure that she cherishes to this day.  She is an artist and an awesome baker.  I cannot wait to get together with her again.

She may have influenced Jerry in school but she is influencing me now.  The thing I love about her is she had nothing negative to say about anyone or anything. In those 3 hours I never heard any gossip, no anger, no disgust, not one word of complaint.  She praised God, she spoke with love and compassion, she hugged like no other nun ever hugged me before.   She always had a smile on her face, laughter poured out of her mouth constantly.  It was refreshing to experience.  I had some nuns as teachers growing up but this lady is different.  She has a special quality that brings me so much joy just thinking about her.  She loves Jesus and she lives for Jesus.  

Her face, her smile, her laughter spoke more about Jesus than if she had quoted any memorized Bible verses.  Her life speaks more about Jesus than anyone I ever met before.  Her eyes twinkled with a love and acceptance that definitely reminds me of Jesus.  I'm actually sitting here fighting back the tears as I write this because Sr. Angela Therese is Jesus with skin on.  I truly feel like I got a true glimpse of what it would be like to sit down with Jesus at a dinner table for 3 hours and just talk.  Sr. Angela Therese we will get together soon!  

STOP AND SMELL THE BLOSSOMS

 

If only you could smell this photo you would instantly crave an orange.  This is a photo of my mom's orange tree out in Arizona.  Orange blossoms smell like heaven.  In March out in Arizona, the smell of orange blossoms fill the air.  It's a wonderful smell, unless you are allergic to the fragrance.  I can't imagine how sad I'd be if I couldn't smell these wonderful blossoms.  I love the smell.  Is there a certain smell that takes you back in your memory bank to a certain place and time? Hopefully a good memory?  How about the smell of chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven that reminds you of mom?  Maybe it's the scent of pine trees that reminds you that Christmas is near?  Maybe it's the smell of someone's perfume that reminds you of a dear grandma?  Smells can be a trigger to bring back memories for me.

Also certain smells can trigger a warning signal in my heart.  Like a flashing red light warning me to stop, a smell can give me a flashback, a memory that I don't want to remember.  Ever have those?  I know I'm not the only one, at least I don't think I am.  Why are some memories so hard to relive?  Can't we just bury them and never deal with them?  Can't we hide them away under a bushel basket and never go there again?  While that is the easy way to do it, the truth is that sooner or later those painful memories will return if we do not deal with them and learn from them and then let them go.  If we don't deal with them and accept the pain they caused us, we will never learn from them and we won't be able to let them go.  They will be like a splinter in our finger that will keep festering until we deal with it.  The past can infect our future in ways we could never imagine.

Life is a journey with good memories and bad.  While we may do our best to try to shield ourselves and our family members from the bad, we can't.  Bad things happen to good people.  It's a fact of life.  God never promised us a problem free life.  What's the old song?  "I never promised you a rose garden along with the sunshine, there has to be a little rain sometime?"  Think about it for a moment.  How beautiful is a rose? That is until you grab it and realize there are thorns attached to that gorgeous flower.   Without rain, a rose will not grow, without the thorns the rose is not protected from predators'.    We have to deal with the thorns, we need to deal with the past.  While we can't live in the past, we must deal with it, learn from it and then let it go. 

There is true beauty that can grow from the ashes of our past.  There is true peace that can come from learning from our past.  There are so many lessons I have learned from dealing with my past.  By dealing with my past, Jesus Christ has redeemed me and allowed me to heal from the pain of my past.  It's only through His grace, His mercy, His forgiveness and His unfailing love that I have been able to move on from my past.  I am not my past, but my past has taught me well.  I am redeemed through the saving blood of Jesus Christ and my past has been forgiven and healed.  Join me in allowing Jesus Christ to turn your past into a present.

SWEET PEACE

 

Aah!!!  Peace!!!  Tranquility!!!  I know I've said this so many, many times before, but I am a peace lover.   The sheer silence surrounds me and quiets my mind and calms my fears and eases the tension of a hectic day. Gentle waves crashing on a shoreline, birds chirping in the woods behind us, the whirl of a fan on a hot summer night, a deer eating the wheat that the farmer just harvested, a sunrise at dawn or a sunset.  These are just a few of the amazing things that bring me a deep sense of peace.  This peace I long for, this peace I crave propels me to draw closer to my God who created all these wonderful things.  

My mind is often a battlefield that the enemy attacks.  He tries to fill my mind with lies, he tempts me to live in fear, he longs to steal my joy and kill the hope that lives inside of me.  He attacks me all the time, or I should say, he tries to.  As long as I am alive he will continue to try to use my mind as a battlefield. But I need to remember that the battle for my mind belongs to my God.  As long as I cling to Him, as long as I believe in Jesus Christ, the battle for my mind has already been won.  The enemy was defeated by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He lost, he just refuses to give up.  He doesn't want to admit that he lost the battle.  You know how we get when we lost an argument, we don't want to admit it.  We'll sink our teeth into an argument refusing to give up, our enemy is no different.

Being labeled a "peacemaker" can often be a condemning statement by the worlds standards.  I often felt like I was not bold enough or brave enough to stand my ground.  Often I was ridiculed because I wouldn't argue with people.  If someone wanted to get in a discussion that was heated, I'd walk away (still do).  Some people don't understand me, they think I'm weak and pathetic, a coward.  I do not enjoy a "good argument".  I do not enjoy "giving someone a piece of my mind" and I despise "getting in someone's face".  That is me in a nutshell. I don't watch the news because it's nothing but negative, political bull!  I don't watch violent movies because it literally hurts me heart to hear curse words and see the fight scenes, I won't even talk about the sexual stuff in some movies.  These things rob my peace so I avoid them.  And you know what?  That's okay.  That is the way I was designed by the creator of the universe...God.

Matthew 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God.

Ok now being a peacemaker does not always mean I keep my mouth shut or that I don't stand up for what is right in God's eyes.  I do and I will.  Trust me I (momma bear) will stand my ground if anyone tries to harm anyone in my family. I will stand my ground and defend this Holy Bible and all that is within it.  I will stand my ground to continue worshipping Jesus Christ.  I allow God to whisper to me what battles I need to fight, knowing He goes before me in battle, I will not fear.  Peacemaker am I, but when I need to fight battles I first fight on my knees in prayer and allow God to do what only He can do, then I will do what I must according to His will, not mine.  

Because of my faith and belief in Jesus Christ, I have a peace that surpasses all human understanding.  I have a peace knowing that my eternity will be in heaven not because of anything I have done.  I have a peace knowing that I have been forgiven of all of my sins.  I have a peace because God fights my battles for me and sometimes the best action I can take is no action.  

Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God.     

     

FOG AHEAD -- BEWARE

 

Driving through the Smokey Mountains, this can happen to you and I, fog.  Okay whether we call it a cloud or fog either way it's tough to drive through.  There are places in the road where the fog is light and then there are those places where the fog is so thick that we could cut it with a knife.  When it is that thick it can be dangerous especially in unknown territory.  Driving home from our vacation, we hit this patch of fog.  It was interesting to say the least.  It was thick but if we followed the lines in the road we were fine.  Jerry doesn't panic in these situations but there are some drivers who see fog ahead and literally stop in their tracks.  Brake lights go on, they slow down on a freeway (which is dangerous in itself, but in fog it is just plain reckless), they become unsure and afraid.  Thankfully we drove through with no complications, but we've all heard those stories on the news when there is a chain reaction accident.  It can happen so quickly and without warning.  That is why we need to pay attention to the warning signs, fog ahead.

I know it may seem goofy to talk about this but there is something that rings very true in my heart in regards to fog.  There are days when my brain feels foggy?  You know what I'm saying right?  One of those days when we totally forget what we were supposed to do, where we were supposed to go and our mind becomes a totally blank slate.  I walk into a room and forget why I went in there.  It happens to all of us but there are some of us who deal with a totally deeper brain fog.  We are so wrapped up in ourselves that can't see the road right in front of our face.  It's hard for us to focus on anything because something is just off.  Something just doesn't feel right.  There is a fog ahead warning sign but we just can't see it.

Fog, so many of us live in a state of confusion.  There is something in our lives we're missing but we just don't get it.  There is some void we try to fill with mindless activities, with alcohol and with drugs.  Some of us become so blind to the fog that we become accustom to it.  It's just a part of our life that we need to live with.  We endure all those addictions that temporarily help us ignore the fog but eventually we will have to deal with it whether we want to or not.  The void in our hearts that is filled with fog is the same for everyone.  How we deal with the fog is personal.

For me personally the only way I dealt with the fog that filled the void in my heart was Jesus  Christ.  By literally accepting Him as my Savior, by yielding my heart to Him, by repenting of my sins and by raising my hands and accepting His salvation, the fog has lifted and my life has been forever changed.  But beyond that my eternity has also changed.  The void that was once filled with fog has now been filled with the grace, mercy ad love of Jesus Christ.  I know clearly that the road ahead of me may occasionally be foggy, but it doesn't enter my heart any more.  Listen there is a heaven and there is also a place called hell.  The choice is yours to make.  As for me and my house....we will serve the Lord.  I choose life!  I choose heaven!!  I choose Jesus!!

COFFEE WITH A FRIEND

 

This morning was very precious for me, I was able to talk on the phone with a very good friend who had moved away a few years ago.  We shared coffee, memories and great godly wisdom.  I needed that so much!  I am so grateful that God has blessed me with a friend who noticed my current struggles and she knew I needed to talk.  It was amazing and totally directed by God.  To have a dear friend I could share my troubles and concerns with is priceless.  To have a dear friend who will listen is overwhelming.  Her godly wisdom and prayers were inspiring.  Friendships can sometimes be a struggle for me, true godly friendships are rare.  

The thing about true godly friendships is they are effortless.  We don't have to talk every day or even every week.  Sometimes it's just a simple text that ignites a talk.   Coffee with a friend, I love it!!  I've had many friendships over the course of my life, but most of them require work.  It's up to me if we get together.  I have to contact the friend.  I have to make the plans.  I have to schedule things.  I have to do most of the work.  If I don't call, we never get together.  If I don't plan, it doesn't happen.  But with this friend, this true godly friend that I honestly haven't seen in a few years, or for that fact, we haven't really talked much, she knew I needed her.  She listened and was honest with me.  WOW!  That is a true godly friend.  That is the friend I long to be.  This is a dear friendship I will cherish forever.  

You know while I search for godly human friendships, there is no godly friendship that is deeper than my friendship with God.  He is a true example of a friend.  He is always there for me even when I don't realize I need Him.  He listens and allows me to cry and scream, He allows me to pout and whine, He allows me to talk and talk and talk and talk while He listens.  He is always honest with me and He points me in the right direction, even if I don't like what He's saying.  He is gentle and whispers my name most of the time, yet there are times he very verbal with me.  He knows I can be stubborn and He knows how to deal with me.

I am so grateful for my friendship with God, but I am also so grateful for my godly human friendships. God has placed this wonderful lady in my life to be a guide, a comrade, a sister in arms to battle against the lies and schemes of the enemy.  They make me realize how blessed I am.  Bobbi....You are a blessing sent to me from God above.  Thank you so much for coffee and talk this morning.  We may be 1,200 miles apart but we are as close as a phone call away.  Love you girl!!    

LIVING WATER

 

Rain was falling in the Smokey Mountains when I took this picture.  There is something about rain that comforts me.  A slow and steady rain brings a smell and a sound that is so refreshing and renewing.  It makes everything spring back to life.  The grass becomes greener, the flowers sparkle again, the leaves get a bath and the dust of the day is no longer there.  It's a shower for the earth.  I remember when I was younger, much younger, I used to love to dance in the rain.  On a hot summer day it was refreshing.  Now days I'll sit on our screened in porch and just be still and listen as God washes the earth clean all the dust and grime of the past day away.

God's like that isn't He.  Just like He sends the rain to wash away the dust and dirt, just like He sends the rain to water the plants, He sent His Son to wash us clean.  You see God sees our sins and the dirt in our life.  He sees all our flaws and mistakes.  He sees what we don't want anyone else to see, our heart.  You know those private things that only you know about, well He knows about them to.  That's why He sent Jesus.  The blood of Jesus Christ washes away all our sins and all our dirty secrets.  As a believer in Jesus Christ, I have been washed clean.  My sins have been forgiven, it's a new day, a new life, a new chance to do things right.  I have been reborn.

Without rain, everything would be dry and literally die.  This planet needs water for all the plants to survive and we need water to survive.  Without water, nothing will live.  Jesus Christ is the living water that refreshes my soul and breathes life into my spirit.  This living water is something that I cling to, I need this living water to survive.  I cannot even begin to fathom what my life would be like with Jesus Christ.  He is my best friend, my redeemer, my savior, my God.  

As I watch and read news reports and see the posts on Facebook, it's no wonder people are messed up.  Y'all need more Jesus and less news, less drama, less complaining, less whining, less arguing, less video games.  More Jesus!!  More love!!  More grace!!  More kindness!!  More compassion!!  Let's stop taking about all our problems and talk about how great our God is.  Let's stop talking about other people and talk about how awesome our God is.  Let's learn to love others instead of finger pointing and condemning.   Who's with me???

WEIRD AND UNIQUE

 

After being gone for a week, I am home.  We took a vacation to Tennessee with our family.  It was a blast!  There was laughter, adventures, lots of fun and lots of food (okay there may have been a few tears, but not many.)  So many memories were made, so many photos.  This time together was priceless.  I can't even imagine m life without my family.  I don't want to imagine my life without my family.  They are all a treasure I cherish deeply.   To be honest, my family is not perfect, but they are mine.  There are times when the chaos can be overwhelming but I choose to keep the sweet and funny moments close to my heart.  Now onto my blog today.

For quite a few years I felt like I was living in a desert.  God seemed distant to me.  Oh I prayed, I read devotionals, I listened to many preachers, I listened to Christian music, I even read books to help me grow spiritually.  But for some reason I didn't pick up my Bible.  It's not that I couldn't, I just didn't feel the desire to do that.  So I felt like I was in a desert.  God seemed distant.  The thing I realized yesterday when I listened to my pastor...God wasn't distant.  I was not in a desert.  God was growing me in a different way.  He was doing open heart surgery on me in a unique way, a more deeper way.  

It's sort of funny, yet sad to think that I actually believed that God was distant.  You see the enemy was attacking me with lies and schemes and strategies that led me into a time of wrong thinking.  I kept my mouth shut about it because I was a little embarrassed about it.  I also felt guilty for not picking up my Bible and reading it.  Well meaning, fellow Christians were being used by the enemy to increase my guilt.  After all "we should be reading the Bible on a daily basis", "we should feast on His Word and memorize it", "the only way for God to speak to us is through His Word".  Oh boy I swallowed all those lies.  Sometimes reading the Bible  daily can become a chore to do, a legalistic rule that we feel we need to follow. 

Alright I can hear all the comments right now and I will not listen to them.  God speaks to me in many different ways.  I hear Him speak to me through nature, through my family, through music, through preachers and teachers of His Word and often He speaks to my heart through His Holy Spirit that lives inside of me.  I can hear His still small voice speak His truth to me and guide me.  While others think I'm strange or even weird, God has baptized me with His Holy Spirit in a unique and challenging way and I will choose to embrace my uniqueness instead of hiding it.