Gateways to Joy

T he words still my eyes.  This is where the Father wants His daughter to begin her early morning meditation.  " The sin of Judah is written down with an iron stylus; with a diamond point it is engraved upon the tablet of their heart And on the horns of their altars, as they remember their children, so they remember their altars and their Asherim.  By green trees on the high hills.  O mountain of Mine in the countryside, I will give over your wealth and all your treasures for booty, your high places for sin throughout your borders.  And you will, even of yourself, let go of your inheritance that I will give you;  And I will make you serve your enemies In the land which you do not know; for you have kindled a fire in My anger w hich will burn forever." ~ Jeremiah 17: 1-4 "What does this mean concerning me?"  I asked my Father. I read on.  I'm stilled. "Thus says the Lord, 'Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength, an

`I NEVER NOTICED until this morning the context of this command in the Epistle of James: 'My brothers, do not blame your troubles on one another or you will fall under judgment.' { James 5:9, NEB}.  The context is patience.  A farmer's precious crop comes up only as he waits patiently for autumn rains, winter snows, spring sunshine.  Anything worth having is worth waiting for.  Troubles are permitted in order to teach us many lessons, not the least of which is patience.  If we instantly assign responsibility for those troubles to somebody else, our energies will go into resentment instead of into learning God's lesson of patient waiting.  The Lord's coming is far more certain than even autumn rains and winter snows.  We can stand firm and patient no matter how others treat us, knowing that in the end our troubles will be transformed. 'The Lord is full of pity and compassion' {James 5:11}. Can we believe that, even when we feel sorry for ourselves bec

H ave you ever searched for something only to realize once you found it, that it was never as far off as you thought? That's sort of how it is for me with Jesus and my Christian walk at times.  Sometimes I stray ... in search of?  Peace...fulfillment...happiness...joy???  I find out very quickly from searching deep and looking wide that all I long for I already have, all of the wants, the desires and the hopes are mine for the asking. Where are they to be found? I have these things and more in abundance in the person of Jesus Christ.  "Man is a hungry being, says Alexander Shememann, but often times don't realize the insatiable hunger is for God." I am a hungry soul with a hearty appetite, always on the prowl for tasty meals.  This insatiable hunger for food causes me to stray out of the boundaries of my diet.  There is always that "sugar rush."  My diet crash sends me right back to the starting point where I have to begin the process of eating p

Gratitude is defined most simply as 'the condition of being thankful.  ... gratitude is literally one of the few things that can measurably change peoples' lives.'  But, and here's the self-help angle, 'gratitude (or thankfulness) is an effortful state to create and maintain.  It is not for the intellectually lethargic.' ... preliminary findings suggest that those who regularly practice grateful thinking do reap emotional, physical, and interpersonal benefits. ... Grateful people experience higher levels of positive emotions such as joy, enthusiasm, love, happiness, and optimism ... The practice of gratitude as a discipline protects a person from the destructive impulses of envy, resentment, greed and bitterness.'  That cultivating gratitude can fight depression is no small deal, as antidepressants have become the most prescribed medication in the nation.  Not only all that, but being grateful can, or might, also protect us from heart attacks, lessen p

I 've just hopped into bed.  My feet are up and my body is adjusting to its new posture.  I can feel the days hustle and bustle leaving...I relax.  The lasagna is in the oven and shortly I will call for the girls to come make the salad.  Burning next to me is a candle, Wild Honeysuckle, a hint of its fragrance permeates the room. Besides the note pad that I'm scratching thoughts in, Elisabeth Elliot's book, "A Lamp For My Feet," rest in my lap.  Before I peel open the pages I sit quietly: meditating on the day.  Silently asking myself the question, "Did I make the most of my time today?  Did I accomplish the things on my agenda that I feel God wanted me to...this day?" My lips part.  They move and quietly I whisper, "Lord give me another opportunity tomorrow to live for you.  To spend my time a lot more wisely and to purpose in my heart to please you.  Forgive me of this days sins:  the known and the unknown sins.  The seen and the unseen.  I do

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word. ~ Ephesians 5:25 Marriage a "holy union." A precious relationship that needs tender, self-sacrificing care.  SELF-SACRIFICING CARE , men that's what a lot of us, WOMEN, want to see more of.  PROVIDING & WORKING is only part of it ...it's a good part, but not the only part. We want you to show ... compassion understanding honesty integrity loyalty empathy kindness gentleness patience friendliness attentiveness Love:  compassion, devotion.  In the NT, usually the Gr word agape', which focuses on benevolent (marked or disposed to doing good) actions toward another person, rather than on feelings for the person.  Often described as an unconditional, sacrificial love which does what is in the best interest of another, without expecting anything in return. First John

For the past 20 years, our families Easter tradition on my in-laws side has been to head up to Louisiana for a Shrimp and Crawfish boil.  We always enjoy this...the gathering together with fun and fellowship with our loved ones.  Though my heart is happy in these times, I've always felt as if I was forgetting about the "true" meaning of the Easter event.  Even when we are home and don't go to Louisiana we get up and go to early service for that day, but again the true meaning of really celebrating the leading up to the death and supernatural act of Jesus being raised from the dead truly gets lost over here. I noticed that every year Ann Voskamp posts a link to John Piper's site.  This year, actually last year I prayed and asked the Lord to really help me learn more about this season and to pass it along to my children.  I want this celebration of lent and Jesus' resurrection to be life long traditions in our family.  Something to be pass down from generati

O n my back!  That's the description of my posture this weekend.  Back pain had me down flat— pain and the drowsiness caused by the muscle relaxers I was popping.  In between pain and sleep, I found myself being supported by huge pillows in attempts to sit up and help my dearly beloved complete a 15 + hour test.  A test that really should have been taken weeks, if not at minimum, a month ago.  This is just the sort of thing in times past that would send my tongue on a lashing spree.  Not this thime.  This time I was his note taker—the bopping head one.  He would read, and I would write what was read.  I would doze.  And then I would write.   Sometimes I put tablet and pen down to sleep.  This worried the Husband. His composure told. I'm learning how to be the blessing.  The giver, especially to him.  Sometimes...a lot of times, sadly, he is taken for granted by me.  I'm a gift seeker now.  I see him differently, just by the tilting of my head he changes: beco

I 'm bended, fragile knees on pillow.  Head resting in palms and my thoughts are on Him, for a while anyway.  At this moment all I hear are the breaths of my husband.  I watch him.  Inhale.  Exhale.  I focus.  I remember our first meeting.  I give thanks: eucharisteo.   How more so now than ever do I know the brevity of life.   "Life is loss."   So I remind God that regardless of the struggles that Husband and I endure.  Regardless of the frustration of lack...  I rather be with him then to be without him.  I pray for him.  He's tired.  His eatery opens today.  He was up all night at the restaurant preparing. My prayers are interrupted with yet other things.  I hear the melodic chorus of birds. Gracing me in beautiful song early morning.  I see  "all is grace" this morning.   This too is a gift from His hand.  I want to see them, but I'm still on my knees: praying?  I want to feed them.  Finally I get up and take a look out of our glass back door.  I

Please take time today to listen to this podcast by Dr. Charles Stanley .  I really enjoyed this message today and I just know you will be blessed by it too, so PLEASE find a bit of time to listen to this audio and allow God to bless you, teach you some new truths and remind you of a few old ones. You will do have to scroll down to the bottom of the blog to mute the music. Dr. Charles Stanley Desires of the heart part 2 "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.~ Psalm 37:4 How do we do this?  How do we delight ourselves in Him and commit our way to Him? When we delight in someone that means that we experience extreme pleasure and joy from being around them—remember when you were dating your spouse?  The pleasure and the delight that we seek to have with God can only come from us spending time with Him—becoming intimate.  This is how we get to know and experience God better. When we commit to Him we entrust our very being (our

In starting this blog my only thoughts were to journal "online" instead of on paper.  I knew nothing about followers and all else that goes along with blogging.  Since starting my eyes are being opened daily to the greatest opportunity a Christian has and that is sharing the gospel.   In my case I have the privilege of sharing the gospel world wide without ever having to leave my home.  And in that I am truly honored. I ask that you, yes, you who are reading this take the time to click on the link below and listen to the young girl share what's going on in her life.  After you do that I simply ask that you pray .  Sincerely pray.  Pray for her and what she is going through. You may not be facing intense persecution now, dear one, but this is a daily reality for Christians in other parts of the world are.  As we hear about Christians suffering on behalf of their faith, remember that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ.  Pray for them.  Truth - North Korean

T oday we will continue looking at how Jesus 'let go' of His ways, and submitted to the will of His Father to bring salvation to mankind.  We're continuing our Walk With Him Wednesday participating with Ann Voskamp and community over at A Holy Experience. " 'Jesus went beyond the ancient tradition, says Chuck Swindoll, after the blessing, He passed to His disciples the broken fragments of bread and told them, 'Take, eat; this is My body.'  The bread was now not just a reminder of 'the swiftness of God's deliverance' from Egyptian bondage; it was linked definitively to Jesus, the Bread of Life, and His impending death. Jesus had given a new significance to the Passover bread, superseding the ancient meaning with the concept that His brokenness, His death, would secure salvation for all time.  Just as the Passover signified, 'the greatest redemptive event' of the Old Testament and looked forward to 'the coming of the Messianic a

`F ulfillment in its truest sense is to be found in surrender and obedience.  We need only look at two models for proof:  Eve, whose motto was 'My will be done,' who thus brought sorrow and death to the world, and Mary, who said, 'They will be done,' and by willingly simply to be somebodies mother, cooperated with God in bringing salvation to the world.  No woman has ever been so highly exalted." ~ Elisabeth Elliot The other day I went rummaging through our garage and came across a box with all of my old journals and books.  I found a journal where I'd written out this quote and a prayer that I use to pray daily for my children.  I can't remember the name of the book (I'll look it up), but I know the author is Donna Otto.  I remember the book too well as it was a life-saver for me during the beginning years of my ministry as a stay-at-home mom, and the giving of my body for babies.   I was on my third child when I came across this book.  I'd j

H er writing grips me still.  Makes me pause long in thought.  Lights the wicker of my soul.  The Farmer's wife. His servant girl...her life.  Her words.  Her book: all grace.  Simple grace. I read her book and discover lessons from Him.  This book is not for skimmers.  I read these words in her book:  "Eucharisteo makes the knee the vantage point of a life and I bend the body, it says it quiet: 'Thy will be done.'  This is the way a body and a mouth say thank you:  Thy will be done.  This is the way self dies, falls into the arms of Love." I put the book down again.  I decipher words.  I am, again, stilled.  Moved stiff.  I, too, bend the knees.  Clasp the hands and bow the head.  I mutter my utterances to Him who sees the heart. He has heard me speak these words before.  Long ago.  Somewhere...somehow...the roots of living and life chocked away the desire to give Him my will totally.  I had not realize this until I read the book.  Her book.  The light il