Doctors told my mother before I was born I was a threat to her health. Thankfully, she trusted God to see her through.
However, if one presidential candidate had her way, I would have suffered excruciating pain in a slow death in my mother's womb, either being burned to death or by being torn limb from limb. If I had been a puppy or a kitten, the animal rights activists would have screamed bloody murder, and rightfully so, for so it would have been...and so it is now,
How is it that we believe all sorts of scientific facts without question but stop our ears and blindfold our eyes to the clearly proven fact that unborn children are just that....children. They have heartbeats and brains and nervous systems. They receive nourishment, move, kick, respond to the voices of their parents, and turn away from medical instruments inserted to destroy them. There is no lack of evidence, including videos, that even a toddler could perceive as truth.
There would have been no Julie on earth, and, in turn, no Joshua, no Danielle, no Peter. God saved My husband through his premature birth at only two pounds in 1947. If he had been still inside his mother's womb in this decade, they could have legally murdered him instead of putting him in an incubator and trying to keep him alive.
Why have so many Americans and others around the world agreed either overtly or complicitly in recent decades to what was previously considered a horrific form of homicide? Because it's convenient for us to do so. And if we took off our blindfolds and removed our earplugs, we'd have to face the truth of what we've allowed to happen. We haven't screamed 'bloody murder' because it would require personal sacrifice to do so. I know I, personally, have not done anywhere enough to stop this barbaric practice.
I could never look my Heavenly Father in the eye again if I were to vote for this woman, not by any means for this reason alone, but this reason itself is absolutely and most certainly enough.
Sunday, October 16, 2016
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Shaken
Someone mentioned on Facebook that she thought the hurricane was God's wrath being poured out. But Jesus is our Mediator (our One and Only), who saves us from the punishment we deserve. We are in a New Covenant, for which I am and will be eternally grateful. What I do believe, however, is that God loves us so much, He will allow whatever it takes to get our attention so we take necessary action. not just storing survival supplies, but taking a look at our spiritual survival. This call is especially for those who don't even know He exists or know they have need of Him, but it applies to all of us who claim to trust in Him but who have slipped back into lukewarm, half-hearted devotion, with one foot following the world's values and dictates and the other trying to still touch heaven by tiptoe.
Early on in the storm news, before I even knew how severe the prediction would become, He told me that there would be a great shaking. People would wake up to the danger. But the real danger, they would come to realize, wouldn't be the hurricane. It would be rejecting and cutting themselves off from their Savior...the One and Only Lover of their souls who gave everything so that they could be rescued from the hands of the evil one and live with Him forever...now in this life and in the next.
For those of us who have already made that commitment to Him, how much of our actual walk with Him is pretense? What do we truly believe in our heart of hearts. How much of what we have been given do we really entrust to Him? How much of our lives do we spend seeking His will and His heart?
The true danger is one that can't be seen on a TV meteorological report or in the economic news or in an approaching storm cloud. It is in turning from the hand of God being extended to us, from the acknowledgement of our own sin and helplessness to save ourselves and, instead, making ourself our own god. Every other religion of the world, from the formal major religions to new age philosophies and popular cults of the moment, demands that you raise yourself up to that god's height to attain what is promised, to avoid the wrath of its god, or to attain that status for yourself. Only in pure, unadulterated Christianity does God reach down to rescue, demanding nothing but
acknowledgement of His Kingship and grateful receipt of His Gift, His Sacrifice of Love. This is the One I've come to know. The One Who even now rescues us from The Eternal Danger, as well as caring for and protecting us in the temporal. I'm grateful for both, but I know which is crucial.
Yeshua said that His desire was and is that no one be lost. I believe this includes those who have treated their declaration of trust as more of an insurance policy than a vital and active daily relationship. It's time to have a 'come to Jesus meeting'....literally.
If we must endure the shaking, let us be confident in knowing it comes from a heart of Love, not one of Vengeance. After the shaking, one thing remains....
" 'Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,' says the Lord, who has compassion on you."
-- Isaiah 54:10
"Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever."
--Psalm 125:1
"I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken."
--Psalm 16:8
"Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken
--Psalm 55:22
"Truly He is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will never be shaken."
--Psalm 62:6
Early on in the storm news, before I even knew how severe the prediction would become, He told me that there would be a great shaking. People would wake up to the danger. But the real danger, they would come to realize, wouldn't be the hurricane. It would be rejecting and cutting themselves off from their Savior...the One and Only Lover of their souls who gave everything so that they could be rescued from the hands of the evil one and live with Him forever...now in this life and in the next.
For those of us who have already made that commitment to Him, how much of our actual walk with Him is pretense? What do we truly believe in our heart of hearts. How much of what we have been given do we really entrust to Him? How much of our lives do we spend seeking His will and His heart?
The true danger is one that can't be seen on a TV meteorological report or in the economic news or in an approaching storm cloud. It is in turning from the hand of God being extended to us, from the acknowledgement of our own sin and helplessness to save ourselves and, instead, making ourself our own god. Every other religion of the world, from the formal major religions to new age philosophies and popular cults of the moment, demands that you raise yourself up to that god's height to attain what is promised, to avoid the wrath of its god, or to attain that status for yourself. Only in pure, unadulterated Christianity does God reach down to rescue, demanding nothing but
acknowledgement of His Kingship and grateful receipt of His Gift, His Sacrifice of Love. This is the One I've come to know. The One Who even now rescues us from The Eternal Danger, as well as caring for and protecting us in the temporal. I'm grateful for both, but I know which is crucial.
Yeshua said that His desire was and is that no one be lost. I believe this includes those who have treated their declaration of trust as more of an insurance policy than a vital and active daily relationship. It's time to have a 'come to Jesus meeting'....literally.
If we must endure the shaking, let us be confident in knowing it comes from a heart of Love, not one of Vengeance. After the shaking, one thing remains....
" 'Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,' says the Lord, who has compassion on you."
-- Isaiah 54:10
"Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever."
--Psalm 125:1
"I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken."
--Psalm 16:8
"Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken
--Psalm 55:22
"Truly He is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will never be shaken."
--Psalm 62:6
Before the Storm
As I gratefully reside at my daughter and son-in-law's home outside of the path of the hurricane, I am once again reminded of the transitory nature of the things of earth. One of the most difficult aspects of letting go for me involves those irreplaceable things tied to memories..tied to love. Photo albums, old videotapes of the kids, treasured birthday and Mother's Day cards which I meant to grab when I hurriedly evacuated yesterday after work, trying to beat the highway evacuation parking lot. I think of those items left behind, along with my prayer journals containing God's specific messages to me.
Yes, it's also difficult to deal with the thought that everything, including the house itself, could soon lie ruined. But what my mind goes to first are the 'old treasures,' not the large screen TV, antiques, or even the car just finally paid for. When you are forced to evacuate, you quickly realize where your treasure lies: in the hearts of your family and friends and, more importantly, in the hands of your loving Heavenly Father from Whom all gifts come, including the gift of those you treasure.
I am rebuking and cursing this storm in His Name, because He's given those who believe and trust in Him the authority to do so. He is the calmer of every kind of storm, including those taking place in our minds and hearts and bodies. I know He can stop this storm, and if we better understood the authority designated to us by Him, we could calm the storm in His Name. I also; like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; declare that even if it doesn't stop, still I will trust in Him. Everything I have comes from Him, and nothing can remove or diminish His love and care for me. I may not understand the whys and wherefores, but I know I am His, and I know Whom I have believed...and that He is able to guard what in His sight are my greatest treasures on earth and in Heaven....
2 Timothy 1:12
Yes, it's also difficult to deal with the thought that everything, including the house itself, could soon lie ruined. But what my mind goes to first are the 'old treasures,' not the large screen TV, antiques, or even the car just finally paid for. When you are forced to evacuate, you quickly realize where your treasure lies: in the hearts of your family and friends and, more importantly, in the hands of your loving Heavenly Father from Whom all gifts come, including the gift of those you treasure.
I am rebuking and cursing this storm in His Name, because He's given those who believe and trust in Him the authority to do so. He is the calmer of every kind of storm, including those taking place in our minds and hearts and bodies. I know He can stop this storm, and if we better understood the authority designated to us by Him, we could calm the storm in His Name. I also; like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; declare that even if it doesn't stop, still I will trust in Him. Everything I have comes from Him, and nothing can remove or diminish His love and care for me. I may not understand the whys and wherefores, but I know I am His, and I know Whom I have believed...and that He is able to guard what in His sight are my greatest treasures on earth and in Heaven....
2 Timothy 1:12
Monday, October 3, 2016
Dancing with Yeshua
I have danced in my mind with Yeshua on many occasions, but somehow this morning was different. We were 'ballroom' dancing in classic style with Him holding my left hand in His. But instead of my right hand settling on His shoulder, He took it and bent it inward, entwined with His, so that my head rested just over His heart. He then rested the side of His face on my hair. I then saw that I was wearing a wedding dress. I felt unworthy to wear this dress of purity of body and heart, yet He seemed to have no such qualms. He had provided the dress, after all. It was nothing I had purchased.
I tried to describe to Him in my journal just how it felt to dance with Him in this way. I stopped midsentence, because no adequate word came to mind. Dancing with Him was simply 'divine' ? [I could hear His chuckle.]. I told Him I was so happy He was willing to dance with me. Very clearly He told me He wasn't just willing, but wanting, to dance with me...with each of us. Intimacy with Him isn't just His blessing us, but also our blessing Him.
I know many have shared with me how they dance with Jesus. If it's been awhile since you've put on your dancing shoes, step out onto the ballroom floor. He's waiting there for you....and He bought you a dress just for the occasion.
I tried to describe to Him in my journal just how it felt to dance with Him in this way. I stopped midsentence, because no adequate word came to mind. Dancing with Him was simply 'divine' ? [I could hear His chuckle.]. I told Him I was so happy He was willing to dance with me. Very clearly He told me He wasn't just willing, but wanting, to dance with me...with each of us. Intimacy with Him isn't just His blessing us, but also our blessing Him.
I know many have shared with me how they dance with Jesus. If it's been awhile since you've put on your dancing shoes, step out onto the ballroom floor. He's waiting there for you....and He bought you a dress just for the occasion.
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