RESURRECTION SUNDAY!

Praise the Lord. Risen indeed!

And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. (1 John 5:11) 

(Source JAE)

Risen indeed!

Glory be to God on this resurrection Sunday!

RX FOR DESPAIR & STRUGGLES

RX---I could post a pic of LOTS of drug and other pain relieving accoutrements but....that would put the focus on me. I don't want my pain, physical and emotional, to be my ID/significance or leverage. 

Instead Psalm 118:5 reminds me, Out of my distress, I called on the Lord: the Lord answered me and set me free. Simply put but truly a 12+ hour struggle for me. But God...was faithful even when I was not.

Jesus Calling Daybrightener 7/5

As Sarah Young puts it, "I can never be in control of my life's circumstances" but I can trust in His control. Seek to know God better. Christ is central. Stop clinging to the old ways. Continue to be on the look out for God's hand and be thankful.

Regardless of which RX verse gives you the most comfort and relief, take it daily with a cuppa Gra-TEA-tude to the One who gives life in abundance! (John 10:10)

CHOOSE: A WORD FOR WEDNESDAY

Blog readers might recall the entry "My One Word" For 2017 my "focused word morphed from joy to choose.
After all most things in life are a choice.
The gist of this Wednesday word is Choose. Choose to make hope-filled choices.

NOTES: Choices based onCarol Kent's presentation at our Girls' Getaway presentation last weekend.

• CHOOSE LIFE. Instead of an emotional death, help others choose life as well---but don't minimize pain. (John 10:10)
• CHOOSE TRUST. Too often we live in fear, not freedom. Freedom comes from knowing how great is our God.  (Isaiah 41:10, Matthew 14:22-36)
• CHOOSE VULNERABILITY. All our longings are open before the Lord; even our sighs are not hidden from Him. (Psalm 38:9) 
• CHOOSE GRATITUDE. In everything give thanks. (1 Chronicles 16:34, 1 Thessalonians 5:18) 
• CHOOSE FORGIVENESS.  Forgive quickly and completely as the Master has forgiven you.(Colossians 3: 13-14, MSG)
• CHOOSE PURPOSEFUL ACTION. Do something new. (Isaiah 43:19) Be open handed in your doing for others. (Deuteronomy 15:11)

A List of 6 hope-filled choices with God's promise of being with you, strengthening and helping you and upholding you with hHis righteous right hand.
Be intentional in your choosing of one uniquely for you this Wednesday.

Dance Step "A"

Book: When Wallflowers Dance: Becoming a Woman of Righteous Confidence

Author: Angela Thomas

A springboard for "Dancing with the Lord" discussions. 

There is….a time to dance….Ecclesiastes 3:1,4 (NKJV)

It is always time to dance with the Lord---when dance means living a life of fullness/abundance w/ Him. It’s that dance/life that gets us through the "mourning’s"(griefs) of life---loss, disappointment, regret, fears, etc. 
Dance steps include the acceptance of the truth from John 10:10b where Jesus (our Shepherd) said, “I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance” (to the full, till it overflows)(AMP) (abunDANCE, mine) The fullness or abundance of the Christian life is exhibited, according to Westcott, in three elements—safety, liberty, & support.
Jesus gives--thief takes!

In comparison, the first part of the verse reminds us, "..the thief comes in order to steal and kill and destroy." 
Identify the thief or thieves in your life. Ask self, “What have I allowed him to steal, destroy or kill in my life? John 10:10 is a new verse to hang our dance shoes on---shoes of acceptance and attentiveness for a life of abunDANCE.

ACCEPTANCE --For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe. (1 Thess. 2:13) ACCEPTANCE--of one's life situations and acceptance of what God’s Word shows you about those  circumstance. ATTENTIVENESS---Along with life situations, there are often verses that do just that---GET MY ATTENTION Ps 91:4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
A recent NP ranger's forest fire story illustrated that verse for me---a bird found dead, feathers scorched & burned from flames of the fire....but when ranger turned her over with a stick, 3 little chicks waddled out. Secure. Safe from the fire by the covers of protection from the feathers of one who was trustworthy. 
ATTENTIVENESS to God's Word is always NEEDED because truth is NOT revealed to idle spectators! (C Huffman, 6/13/15)

Dance Lesson --A

D ecide (Joshua 24:14) Delve (Psalm 119:169) & Discover  (Psalm 119:130) 

A cceptance and Attentiveness

N ....

C ....

E ....

Acceptance of life's situations & attentiveness to God’s Word require a choice......just like a dancer chooses the "correct" shoes for each dance. 

Dances may change and shoe choices may vary but our Lord is steadfast, unchanging and His truth endures to all generations.
 If you’re wearing the wrong shoe, you’re asking for trouble. All of us need a shoe that FITS her own dance/ situation for Dance Step "A."

Vitali-TEA

I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:10B, NASB)

Words from Ally, a waitress, jumped off the pages of The Walk as I read it in the early morning hours.
"I meet dead people every day." Her lunch counter philosophy gave me pause as she equated dead people with those breathing people who have just given up on life. "That's all death requires of us, to give up living." (Evans, p.127) How does one get back the zip and zest for living that vitality brings into  his/her life?

Abundant life of vitality comes from union with Him.

Time with the Lord in His Word and in prayer gives needed vitality to life.

Sippin' vitali-TEA with Bible open on my lap and heart open in prayerful communion.
Perfect combo for "Tea with Thee."

SATURDAY SNIPPETS #5

11/9/13 

A Snippet---similar to a text--pithy. Hopefully, pithy with a punch!

To experience God’s sufficiency, we must realize our own insufficiency.

Trust the All Sufficient One for "sufficiency" for all of life's needs.

Abundant life of vitality comes from union with Him. "Blessed are the men whose strength is in thee;" Psalm 73:26

When we walk with the Lord, there comes a new vitality, a superabundance of life. ... because he lives within them, they have the riches of the superabundant life. (John 10:10)

Do you have life?

It is only when one lives with the Lord that life becomes really worth living and one begins to "live" in the real sense of the word.

SABBATH SNAPSHOTS: UKRAINE BEAUTY

7/8/12  Scripture prayer was the focus of my time in Ukraine. It was my “prep” for the Lord’s work. Praying John 10:10 for my devotional times for the leadership, that the ladies could know the fullness of Christ in their lives so that a life of abundance would be theirs. Also, I prayed “my dance” verse for them, that all their hard places/struggles could be seen as blessing as they saw the Lord’s strength and sufficiency. (Psalm 30:11)

My “babies” team and my small group of Ukrainian women especially touched my heart during my week with them at Kompas Park. Several of them had shared their stories with me and I was drawn to pray for them. As with so many women, approval from others keeps us prisoners to what others think so I prayed for all of us to seek only God’s approval. But, I truly wanted the Lord’s words from scripture to become my prayers. I would encourage this method of prayer as one prays for others----whether for a day, a season or a lifetime, as God leads. It’s praying His words---His word according to Isaiah 55:11, that produces “fruit”.

so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Katya (l) and hubby, David, that their Kreativity ministry would continue to be a joint effort and bring glory to the Lord. “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!” (Psalms 34:3)

Luba (R) Praising the Lord for her “joyfully expectant” news and that she would see children as a blessing from the Lord. “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.” (Psalm 127: 3)

Tanya---As we share a similar struggle, & I know the value of Christian friends who listen and pray, I pray for such a friend for her……”but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24)

Masha (l) my traveling buddy, who gave of herself continuously for to those involved in ministry, especially to the Bute children---freeing Katya and David for the Lord’s work. “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Gal. 6: 9-10)

Ira (R) A beautiful wife and mother who gave unselfishly of her time to tend the babies of all the moms at the camp A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. (Proverbs 33:10-11)

Diana---That she will not only continue to sing God’s word (Psalm 119:72) but that she will see her true self as one beloved by Him and be all that He created her to be. “I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. “(Psalm 139: 14)

Valya---Strength in ministry for this beautiful one who always had time and energy for kids---even those who cried “Mama” at first. “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (I Corinthians 15:58)

Liza Col. 3:12-15---especially v. 12, that she would continue to daily clothe herself with the godly attributes which were so evident to me. “So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;”

Oksana(L)---my translator, who also serves as a pastor’s wife, I Timothy 1:12 “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service,”

Alena(R)---God’s direction for her, who with her husband is seeking the Lord’s will about a mission assignment in Germany, “We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.” (Psalm 33:20)

Inna---Praying God’s best as she raises her son and seeks God’s peace “You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word.” (Psalm 119:114) May she filter all knowledge thru His Word.

Nastya---Praising the Lord that she seeks God’s priorities for her life, I pray that seeking Him first will give her needed direction. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33)

Dancing in the Rain: An application

7/5/12 My morning devotionals for the leadership team in Ukraine dealt mainly with living a life of abundance (John 10:10) in the midst of a struggle. A hard place. A storm. Living a life to the fullest was labeled a dance. The dance steps were given that could offer a universal approach to answering those struggles. All humans have similar problems, especially women----they just take on different forms.

One of the quotes I wanted to share “left” me as I was speaking. I see it every day at home but was unable to retrieve it from the recesses of my mind.

So….this picture is for the Ukrainian women who are choosing to dance in the storms of life by choosing to learn the steps and applying them .

UKRAINE BOUND

6/20/12 UKRAINE BOUND---FLIGHT LEAVES AT 10:40 am. Headed to airport in 15 minutes.

HOORAY! HOORAY!! We’re on our way---our summer vacation (mission trip) begins today. That’s a Liles tradition so my kids will “get it”.

These verses and lots of prayers are "packed" and going with me!
Philippians 2:3-5, (team verse) John 10:10, Psalm 92

For updates on the trip, “my” Molly will blog updates as she receives them though contact will be very limited. For regular updates, in interested, you can send your email address to "Jennifer Baumer" <jenbaumer@gmail.com>, or If you do FaceBook check out the church FB page at FirstEvanUkraineTeam.

All prayer “donations” certainly appreciated by this old lady.

Excited and shaky----but God......is clearly in control for which I am so grateful.
Love to all---

Heartwarming Dance

4/29/10 Dance! Dance! Dance! It seems to jump out at me from everywhere lately. God continues to give me “dance” tidbits and trivia from all over the place. How heartwarming is that!
In February, “Day of Dance” celebrated this art form because it’s good for the heart. Today, International Dance Day is celebrated and has been every April 29 since 1982. For me it was a great analogy between the physical and the spiritual art form of dance. Dance is good for my physical heart and dancing with Him as my partner is good for my spiritual heart. "Attentiveness to Him and responsiveness to others" (C. Huffman) are heart healthy signs.
Celebrate “life” with me through the art form of dance. Allow your teacher to be the One who came that you might have life in abunDANCE!

I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:10)

To really celebrate, each believer needs to extend the joy of that abunDANCE to others---thus making his own heart bigger and spiritually healthier while warming the heart of another.

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; ( Colossians 3:12)

Live the life you teach. Dance the dance you’ve chosen.

No better way to stretch/enlarge your heart than to allow God’s teaching to touch the soul of another---a heartwarming dance.