weigh-TEA

Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2, KJV)

Bogged down for several weeks with some disturbing feelings, thoughts, and possible decisions that seemed to weighty for me, I finally asked for help. Help in the form of prayers from the household of faith. God's people. Some things need to be shared.

There are some "teas" that need to be brewed with the Lord's help---- "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28) and then poured out to others.

"Come along inside and we'll see if tea and buns can make the world a better place." (Wind in the Willows)

Weigh-TEA-----should be a "tea for two." 

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."

SABBATH SNAPSHOT: Liberali-TEA

1/5/14 Allowing for a little poetic license, I am expressing thanks to "trusted" friends who practice liberality in giving freely to my reading life. "Word of mouth"book reviews from such friends are the best gifts for me.

It's the way I discovered Beth's recommended author, Charles Martin. The Mountain Between Us was my first "audio" read and probably my favorite. However his most recent, Unwritten, is one of his "best yet" as well. Of course, that could be because it's the one I've most recently read. "Best yet" term has been coined by my friend, Lo, as relating to the most recent event or experience in one's life. A term easily used with books.

These  friends of "liberality"give recommendations for books and sometimes loans from their own collection, i.e. The Last Jihad, series which I'm still reading. How I love for someone to share an"old to them, new to me," series. Well told stories, in a sequence, that allow one to get to know the characters and the locale. Even if not deemed necessary, I like to start with the first one.

That's what I plan to do on these next few days of possible hibernation. The Walk series, a WH rec, will be opened and savored as I sip my tea & read throughout these next snowy (?) cold days.

I've only read the prologue but I gave myself permission to leisurely continue when I read, " To me it's one man's journey to find hope." (Evans, p.3)

"Liberali-TEA!" A great cuppa to share with book lovin' friends!

at-TEA-tude

See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the WILDERNESS and streams in the wasteland.  (Isaiah 43:19, NIV)

Do you not see it? One can "altitude their attitude" by looking up. Seeing the Lord afresh by refocusing on Him. Reclaiming one's faith, by taking God at His word is an action of an upward attitude.

A fresh brew left the dregs of yesterday's anxi-TEA behind as I opened, Streams in the Desert (1/4) and read a quote from George Mueller. 

"The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety."


Regret looks back.
Worry looks here, there and yon.
Faith looks up.

A new at-TEA-tude as I savored time with Thee.

anxie-TEA

 "Fret not.........Fret not.......Fret not.." (Psalm 37: 1, 7, & 8, ESV)

Anxie-TEA. Not a tea to recommend. Certainly not a tea to sip and savor. Bitterness is left with every swallow. Dregs of regret, self-pity, frustration and fear are left sticking to one's insides. Why does one keep swallowing it?

What happens when one pours herself an anxious cuppa? 

Tea with Thee indicates the need to turn to the one on the throne of one's life. Is it Me? Or Thee? Decide. Then, turn inward to self and more fretting or upward to the One who offers peace.

Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. (Psalm 37: 4-5)

Time for a re-brew. Choose a new cup. Fresh water and new tea leaves. Discard the dregs and bitter "over-brewed" remnants. 

Sip afresh and "fret not."

Possibili-TEA: a 2nd cup

For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. (Philippians 2:13, NLT)

Mulling the possibility of change of any kind, can have one second guessing every decision. When one is pondering a change concerning spiritual matters, second guessing seems to intensify. 
Desire to do God's work, God's way? Desire to edify believers and glorify the Lord? Desire to change?

The change must be His work. "...apart from me you can do nothing."(John 15:5) Apart from God, there is no good thing. (Psalm 16:2) "not adequate in ourselves but our adequacy is from God. He is at work in us." (2 Corinthians 3:5)

Those were my ponderings this morning over a cuppa of possibili-TEA, sipped and savored during my "Time with Thee."
The desire is there. Now the power will come.....if it pleases Him. 

What a thought!

What a possibili-TEA!

Possibili-TEA

Possibility is often about choice.

....fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness......choose this day whom you will serve,.... as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:14-15, ESV)

A possibilty, for.....this blog....this year, is to focus on devotional-type entries. Entries to be taken from life lessons as I experience them. One cup at a time.

Thus, "Tea with Thee" entries each week will focus on said experiences as I "see" them. Wordplay with "tea" will be added to emphasize the crux of the message---possibly aiding recall of key lessons. Sort of a grammatical aspect of homiletics (think, divergent spelling) to help one remember the preaching/teaching gleaned from time alone with the Lord and in His word.

Universal lessons with uniques applications. Devotionals with a "tea" theme based on seeing God at work in life. 

"Tea With Thee"----a real 2014 possibili-TEA. 

***FYI---January is National Hot Tea Month---a great time to start a tea blog, don't you think!

New Year's Eve 2013

12/31/13 "Frozen," an animated movie, with a grand. A yummy "build your own pizza" from Pyros. Hats and horns "before" midnight. A fun farewell to 2013.

SWEET AROMA

12/30/13

Charles Haddon Spurgeon said, "Prayers of God's people are as sweet to Him as incense, even though we come before Him unfit to pray." He calls the Holy Spirit the "Believer's Apothecary." (my Bible marginalia) Prayers "dispensed" by the Spirit seem to me to be the prayers with the sweet aroma that pleases the Lord.

In Revelation 5:8 one is reminded of that aroma of believers' prayers...."and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints."

Twelve Christmases ago, I received a gift with a special tag. So special, it still resides in my NIV Bible. Everytime I see it, I meditate on the scripture because I'm convicted of my responsibility as a Christian to be a fragrance of Christ to the world and to the Lord as I pray for others in the household of faith.

 An "aroma from life to life" from one believer to another.

For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.....(2 Corinthians 2:15)

Incense. A sweet aroma that comes from Him. 

SABBATH SNAPSHOTS: Prayers & Squares

12/19/13 Prayers & Squares. What a ministry of Roswell Presbyterian in Georgia!
The church quilters create prayer quilts for those in need. These tie quilts have an extra facet---extra ribbons to be tied by pray-ers. Those praying people include not only the quilters and other church members but also the recipient's family and friends as well. Prayers over the quilt for the one who will receive it begin at its inception and are continued each step and journey through the church itself.
A quilt created with love, hope and prayers.

Prayerfully sent, those prayers are continued at the recipient's home. That's how I came to tie a square knot on the "perfect" color and theme quilt of my special friend and sister in the Lord, Claudia. Thanks to Aunt Mary Manhardt and the quilting ministry along with  the pastors, staff and congregation of Roswell Presbyterian Church for that prayer privilege.

In loving memory of Claudia Lee Roberts Parlow---August 12, 1944-November 30, 2013