Tag Archives: scripture

Sometimes Being Smart Just Isn’t Enough

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God, Give Me Wisdom. This is prayer number eight in Ten Prayers God Always Says Yes To. Here is  today’s excerpt from Anthony DeStefano’s book:

When you ask God for wisdom, you are essentially asking him to give you the gift of himself. And as we’ve seen elsewhere in this book, that’s something he’s always eager to do. Remember, the goal of authentic spirituality is to be in union with God. That’s what the whole spiritual life comes down to. When you’re in union with God, you have direct and immediate access to all of the things that God is, and that includes peace, courage, love wisdom and truth. God wants you to have these things; he wants to shine his light on humanity, to speak his word unceasingly. Therefore, he wants to pour out wisdom on all of us. This is not profound theological thinking, it’s simple common sense. Have you ever heard it said of anyone that they had “the wisdom of Solomon”? Solomon, according to scripture was the wisest man who ever lived. There are several whole books of the Bible devoted to him. When King David died, Solomon became ruler of Israel. One night the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Ask me for anything you want.” Solomon thought hard about all the different obligations he had to fulfill as king and how overwhelmed he felt, and he decided to ask God for discernment so he could govern better. The Bible says that God was very pleased that he had prayed for this. He told him, “Since you have asked for wisdom and not long life, or wealth, or death of your enemies…I will grant your request and give you a discerning heart.” God was happy when Solomon asked for wisdom–and he’s happy when we ask for it.

I’ll have to admit that I don’t always remember to pray for wisdom, but when I do, somehow my days seem to go a little better. Sometimes my prayer is for the wisdom of Solomon, the faith of Mary, and the patience of Job…or as Jabez said, “Oh, that you would bless me, indeed.”

Monday: Will I Ever Be Happy Again?…God, Bring Good Out of This Bad Situation

She bit me!

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Having just concluded a conversation with a congregation member whose husband had recently been diagnosed with Lewy Body Disease, I happened upon a blog relating to LBD. Because of the timing, circumstances, and potentional helpfulness of the post, I am reblogging it here.

sbeisler's avatarLewy, Momma, and Me

Okay, so the title makes it sound all dramatic.  I was simply trying to get Momma’s teeth out for the night and she bit down.  Kind of hard.  I jumped and yelped and then Momma proceeded to apologize profusely. For a split second I could see the Momma of my childhood.  The one who had total concern for her children’s health and well being.  The one who would not purposely hurt me and was horrified to think she may have.  The one who made everything better when you were having a rough time.

Not the one who stares at you glassy eyed.  Not the one who had tremors so bad last night we almost thought she was having a seizure.  Not the one who answers most questions with a “yes.. no.. ”  after a few minutes. Not the one I have to change as she moans “oh no, oh no”…

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The Great I AM

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Many years ago,1977 to be exact, while on vacation in Trinidad, I was introduced to a Pastor who gave me this very short but powerful prayer for use in times of need; any kind of need; spiritual, physical, emotional, to name a few.

“Jesus Christ, the Great I AM, have mercy on me.”

It is a prayer to be repeated over and over until the peace of Christ is felt in body and soul.

The prayer has been a huge blessing to me and several others over the years. Following are a few scriptures introducing “I AM”:

I am the Bread of Life (John 6:35)

I am the Light of the World (John 8:12)

I am the Door (John 10:9)

I am the Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14)

I am the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25)

I am the Way and the Truth and the Life (John 14:6)

I am the Vine (John 15:1,5)

I am the First and I am the Last (Isaiah 44:6)

I Am who I Am (Exodus 3:14)

I am the Alpha and the Omega (Revelation 1:8)

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End (Revelation 21:6)

My prayer is that this prayer will be valuable to all who use the Lord’s name not in vain.

The Eye of the Beholder

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When my eldest daughter was six years old she told me, “You’re pretty, Mommy.”

When her youngest daughter was two years old she told me, “You pwetty, Nana.”

And now they are both pretty women.

It is said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I see beauty all around me; not only in the young but in the elderly as well. And when I see it, I say it.

My daughter and granddaughter taught me that many years ago.

A teenager once reprimanded me for calling her cute. “Babies and old people are cute.” she said.

Another daughter and granddaughter now tell me I’m cute…hmmmm.

We never know when someone needs to hear that they look good, or some other uplifting words of truth.

Behold the beauty of someone today and let them know they are.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thoughts on Caregiving

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To some of us, caregiving can become a daunting task, especially when it is a loved one who goes from a healthy independent person to almost completely helpless.

Patience is tried, sleep is denied, and nerves become frayed from the enormity of the responsibility.

But think of it another way.

It is an awesome responsibility we have been entrusted with; the caregiving of another human being. We should feel privileged that God deemed us capable and worthy of this task.

“In as much as you did it to the least of these my brethern, you did it unto me.” Matthew 25:40

 

Birds of Pray

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Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air…Genesis 1:28

Does the hawk take flight by your wisdom…Job 39:26

The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches. Psalm 104:12

…they shall mount up with wings as eagles…Isaiah 40:31

Consider the ravens; for they neither sow nor reap…Luke 1:2

…and birds of the air have nests…Matthew 8:20

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap…Matthew 6:26

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Luke 12:6

So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows. Matthew 10:31

These are but a few of many scriptures pertaining to birds. The Bible is so full of fascination for me.

Nostalgia Ends the Day

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It is said we should not live in the past, but I spent a few hours last night doing just that.

I tuned into a TV program, Jukebox Oldies, and was swept away into so many parts of my past, it was incredible.

Each song had its own place in my heart and life. Each emotion was as real in this time as it was in the years of my youth and young adulthood.

Paul Anka, Patti Page, Pat Boone and a host of other popular artists from the past put the finishing touches on an already perfect day…my 78th birthday. (There you go, Christine!)

Did I have a happy birthday? Indeed I did, and that bout of nostalgia was a welcome end to the day.

What has been will be again….Ecclesiastes 1:9

 

 

 

 

 

Oh Happy Day!

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There are people who despair when their birthday rolls around each year. They don’t want to be 40 or 50 or 65, whichever one of the “big” birthdays happens to be theirs in any given year.

Me? I L O V E my birthday every single year. January 6 is my favorite day on the calendar. Why? I always say, “This is the day the Lord has made (for me, I will) rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24) And I always do. Why would I not? Each year, if not each day, is a bonus when we consider the alternative.

On Sunday some of my family came to help me celebrate a couple of days early. It was a wonderful day with lots of food, hugs, well wishes, love and laughter.

Today I look forward to lunch with some friends, and another visit with one of my daughters.

More companionship, more food, and more hugs.

Oh happy day! TYG!

The Fallen Angel

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Well, I wasn’t too pleased when the “fallen angel” showed up on my iPad today. His number is 666 (Revelation 13:18) Most of us are aware of this “angel” who was cast to earth when a war took place in heaven between Michael and his angels and Satan and his. (Revelation 12:7-9)

Now, whenever this number shows up in my space, I am very aware that another angel must appear to counteract the negativity it implies. Sure enough just as I was referencing this fallen angel, 4:44 appeared on my iPad clock. TYG! (444 is my “angel-in-chief”).

You may be wondering how these numbers appear to me. Let me explain. Today I read this on my screen:  wordpress.com/statsday/66653405. Yesterday it was this message: Akismet protected spams 90,999. This was why I wrote about Ned, which if you read that post yesterday explains 444.

All in all this is why I have fun with my angels and their numbers. Have you “talked” to your angels yet?

 

 

 

Rebooting Relationships

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Dissension depletes my energy level. Somewhere in one of my self-reflections I admitted to disliking dissension, confrontation, petty peevishness, pessimism and poop scooping. (The only doggie bag I carry is from a restaurant!)

At times in 2014 all of the above (except the doggie thing) cropped up in my life to the detriment of some of my relationships. Some were remedied but one lingered on until today, when I decided it was not going to accompany me into a brand new year if I could help it.

And so I rebooted a relationship. It was frosty at first and I was tempted to abort the whole thing, but perseverence is one of my strengths and what could have been a three minute phone flop turned into an hour-long healing conversation.

Romans 12:18 says If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live in peace with everyone.

Rebooting relationships is a good thing if it is possible, as far as it depends on you.