Gateways to Joy

F or those of you who blog and wonder if your blog reaches the heart or touches a soul. I'm here to say, "yes," it does.  Do you wonder if God is doing something good with what you are writing, "He is." Let me remind you of what the Bible says, "So will My Word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing that what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it." ~ Is. 55:11 If or when God lays something on your heart dear blogger— blog it.  Tell it. Tweet it.  Facebook it.  Youtube it. Proclaim it!  Even though you may never get one iota of a comment on what you typed out.  Share what He gives you anyway... all the time! And you simply find solace in knowing that you put it out there, out there in the monstrous www. This morning I decided to have my devotions by reading one of my favorite blogs, "Grace is for sinners."   First off, I love that name.  Have you eve...

I t's early morning hours, 3 am.  The house is still.  I rare back on the couch with Bible, blanket, yellow note-pad, and pen.  Penning words from today's reflections.  Gift recordings were hard today.  So much is going on in the heart & mind.  Seems like the day was a continueous bending of the knee-heart crying out. "All is grace," right?   That's what I think to myself.  Then I answer, "Yeah...yeah.  It is.  It's all grace.   God grace, no matter what." I saw God's grace filled hands, today, felt their touch.  Accepting what my heavenly Father hands offer today is bitter—sour even.  I had to grimace just to get a little of what He offered down...deep down.  This: the accepting what His hand dishes out.   This isn't the cup I wanted to drink from.  I know, though hard, that this is the cup much needed.  I must drink and learn.  He and I have been...

I 'm back again today, talking about Grace. Let me just start off by saying, "When you have screwed up in your Christian walk as much as I have...being inconsistent in your walk, having a bad attitude and so on, you come to appreciate GRACE." I'm thankful for it.  The biggest reason I'm thankful for it now is because I really know within my being that I don't deserve it. When I first became saved I knew that I was a sinner in need of it, but I believed the "lie" that so many often told me "I was good."  That was pre-married, pre-babies (7), and pre-homeschooling. After being married for 20 years, having seven children, and homeschooling...I now know the sin that lives within my heart.  Husband and children—the people I love the most .  They are also the people that bring out the worst in me at times.  Sometimes when I think of family I think of the opening line in Charles Dickens classic: The tale of two cities: "It was the ...