Our granddaughter Teya is a cross-country runner.  Credit for this photo is to her mom Hope Ellen Bailey and the Bible Lens App.

I am so grateful for all the years that I have lived, and I am very aware that the older I get the more I slow down.  I have “run the race” for over 67 years and some of those years have been harder than others.  This verse has encouraged me for many years.  Can you imagine the host of Heaven cheering you on?  Abraham, Isaac, Moses, David, Daniel…all of the great Biblical heroes are the witnesses to our daily lives and struggles.  As I struggle with my family relationships, a “cloud of witnesses” is watching my choices, because it is a maze in this race.  I have family members who believe in the Lord and are saved and others who want nothing to do with God.  Yet we are all family, siblings that have gone our different ways and are running our races differently.  I want to run my race on the path that God has marked out for me.  I have no doubt that there have been times that I have strayed, but when I get back on the path that God wants me on, the “cloud of witnesses” is right there to cheer me on.  I sent Teya a message when I saw this photo.  “Way to go, Teya!”  Can you hear the Heavenly Host cheering you on when you make the choice to run the race on the path God has set our for you?  “Way to go!  Keep going!  You’re doing great!”  My takeaway from this Scripture is threefold:  1)God has a path marked for me.  It is my choice to follow that path by praying daily about the way I should go that day.  2)I have a “cloud of witnesses” encouraging me.  Some of my encouragement comes from my friends and family here on earth.  But when I don’t hear any encouraging words from them, if I know for sure that I am on the path God wants me to be on, I can count on being encouraged from on high.  I just have to be quiet for a few minutes and listen for it.  3)God loves me so much that He wants me to keep on going, through all of the tough times and the times when I feel all alone.  He has set a path for me, and I’m still going because He isn’t finished with me yet.  Do you know that God wants you to run your race?  He wants you to keep on going and watch for the blessing that is coming your way just because of your obedience.  No, this is not a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow that is promised.  It is eternal life with Him, and it is worth the running to get there.  One final word:  No one runs without first training or he/she will suffer a grave injury.  Our training comes in daily reading God’s Word, daily praying and listening for His answers, daily examining ourselves, forgiving others and ourselves and moving to the path to run.  Some days, the path is a maze, others the path has hurdles on it.  However, always remember that the path you are running, the life that you are living, is for God’s glory and He and His Heavenly Host are cheering you on.  Victory is ours, through Christ Jesus our Lord!  

What does the Scripture mean that every knee wil bend to the Lord?  The NIV Version says that every knee will bow.  The Bible tells us that the next time Jesus comes, He will appear in the clouds and will come in glory, and every knee will bow at His appearing.  Think about that word ”every”.  It means all the rich people, the poor, the leaders and the followers.  Your name can be Smith or you can be one of the rich Joneses that we always hear about.  Your money won’t be able to save you.  Only believing in Jesus as Lord can lead to salvation, and regardlesss of your beliefs, EVERY knee will bow to Him.  I have a sibling who says that I’m too religious and she just doesn’t believe in all of that Jesus stuff. My reply is this Scripture.  You can have your beliefs all of your life, yet you will still bow before the King of Kings.  And that isn’t all…EVERY tongue will declare their allegiance to God.  Now, I’m not exactly sure what that means.  Can it be possible that when Jesus appears, there will be a great revival and all men will declare that He is Lord?  Does that mean that at the end all will be saved?  I don’t know the answer, but I do know that God does.  I would like to think that all of my non-believing or non-practicing friends and family will be saved from the destruction that is to come at the end of the age, but I am not the one who decides that.  Nor am I the One who knows.  I just trust in God’s grace, mercy and justice.  But you know what?  It’s much better for you and me and others who believe in Jesus now.  We can read the whole Book, including the end, and we know how things turn out.  So, the appearing of Jesus will be a victorious celebration for us, those who are awaiting His Second Coming.  For others, it may be a time of fear and bowing in absolute terror.  I don’t know.  I just know that I look forward to that Day and I’m doing all that I can to tell others and bring as many with me as possible to Heaven.  Halllelujah!  His Name is worthy to be praised!  And one day, EVERY knee will bow and EVERY tongue confess that He is Lord. What a beautiful day that will be!  As the song and movie of that title says, “I Can Only Imagine!”  

 

I woke up this morning so thankful that for the first time in over a week, I did not have a headache.  When the barometric pressure changes, as it did during the time when the hurricane and its effects were in the area, my head hurts.  So, it all began last week, and yesterday was like the grand finale.  I got physically ill from the headache and felt so bad that I went to bed at five with a hot rag over my eyes.  I was able to sleep for a couple of hours and awakened still headache-y.  I ate some soup, took my nightly meds along with a headache pill for sinus and went to bed again.  Miraculous!  I have no headache today!  So, I am blessing the Lord!  But, what I am asking myself is what happened to my praise when I was so ill?  Honestly, I was so focused on staying upright that I didn’t praise but I did pray.  However, I woke up this morning and before my feet touched the floor, I began to praise the Lord.  I would like to train myself to praise during the low circumstances of my life, not after things have calmed down. I have a real relationship with God and talk to Him all day long, including yesterday.  But I don’t recall praising Him.  Does anyone else feel like they forget to praise during the times of illness, when we should be praising God more?  I’m not talking about thanking God for the illness, but thanking Him for His continued blessing, throughout all of the circumstances of life and praising Him because He is always worthy of praise.   Life throws curve balls and God is my catcher.  I hope that you trust Him, too, and I pray that in the future I will be able to praise God in difficult circumstances, including illness.

 

 

My husband and I had to go into town yesterday (about an hour’s drive west of us) because I had to get my immunotherapy shots.  We had decided that we would go to the gym on the way back home and swim a while.  Unfortunately, there were storms everywhere and tornadoes were touching down in various locations near us.  So, the pool was closed but we couldn’t go home because it was too dangerous for us to head out on the road with tornadoes so active.  I had seen the path of destruction that a tornado leaves behind a few years ago when a tornado hit Tappahanock, the little town near our church.  Entire neighborhoods were decimated.  From that experience, I have a healthy respect for tornadoes.  But, I know who controls the winds, so I tried to remain calm with tornado alarm warnings going off on phones all around me.  I kept reminding myself about how much God loves me.  I even told the couple next to me that I trusted God to take care of us.  After all, we were in a building with a lot of glass and heavy equipment that would definitely be a death trap if a tornado were to touch down there.  I actually was calmly reading my book by Lisa Harris (Review of A SECRET TO DIE FOR by Lisa Harris) and waiting until the all clear signal to go home.  We stayed in the fitness center for a couple of hours and once the tornadoes seemed to have headed north, we went home.  There were still tornado warnings until after ten last night.  I am sad to report that a tornado did touch down in Chesterfield County, south of Richmond, Virginia, and one woman died in the building that collapsed under the force of the winds.  I pray that she was a Christian and that God will send the Comforter to be with her friends and loved ones.  But I know that God is in Heaven, regardlesss of loss of life and property, and He loves us and will take care of us.  

 

As I view all of the destruction in North and South Carolina, I have to continue to trust in God’s grace for these people.  We were just on those roads a week and a half ago as we came back from our vacation to Myrtle Beach.  My heart goes out to these people and I pray that they will turn to the only One who can truly help them.  Some of them have lost everything…all of their earthly possessions except for what they took with them when they fled from Hurricane Florence and the flood.  It is one thing to say that we pray for those people, but I hope that you will also consider giveing a donation to help them to one of the many relief organizations that are helping in the recovery.  I can personally testify that Samaritan’s Purse, an organization founded by Franklin Graham, and Christians in Action are both worthy and give the funds to the people who need them, helping rebuild homes and giving food and shelter to those in need.  Here are the links to their sites should you choose to donate.  God bless and be with each of you and with all of the victims of this devastation.  

Samaritan’s Purse

Christ In Action

 

This amazing book is available TODAY at your local or online bookseller.  

The sub-title of the book really tells you what it is about:  “Believing God’s Truth About You.”.

This book is one that you will want to keep on your shelf in order to refer to it and the truths that it contains repeatedly.  Who hasn’t walked into a room and just had a feeling that everyone was talking about you and you just weren’t “good enough” to be there?  This book tackles the insecurities that all of us feel in different situations.  Written with total respect for each individual’s need to feel that they are accepted by their peer groups and colleagues at work, this book is a must-read for all of us because there is no one who does not have some kind of insecurity.  Based on the premise that Satan is an identity thief, each chapter addresses different ways in which a person may feel insecure, asking questions that make the readers ponder how they can feel more secure in their relationships.  After encouraging you to ponder your life, the author then tells you with Scripture how God sees you.  God created you and wants you to walk with your head high, not with your identity stolen by the thief who wants also to own your soul.  Anyone and everyone should read this book and treasure it for the great truths that it contains, that God loves you just as you are and you can rest in His love.  I really enjoyed the organization and the Biblical references that the author used throughout the book.  It can be read from beginning to end or it can be used as a reference when you are feeling insecure in one or more areas of your life and need to hear God’s Word to you about that feeling.

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell, a division of Baker Publishers.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”  

 

Available TODAY from your local bookseller or online!  

This wonderful little book can be used as a devotional or just read for encouragement.  Each chapter is based on a trait of the character of God and includes a vignette of something that actually happened in the life of the author.  I was drawn into the events of Ms Gerth’ s life and I was also drawn to meditate on how that facet of God’s character related to me and my life.  The book was thought-provoking and made to be mediated on alongside the Bible.  The author makes sure that the reader can understand how totally loving and caring God is, even in the the most dire circumstances.  I was encouraged by this book and the truth of how much God cares for me, every day and in every way.  

Disclaimer 

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received a complimentary copy of this book from Baker Publishing Group.  I was not required to post a positive review.  The opinions expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”  

 

This is a clean Christian romantic suspense and is available for purchase TODAY at your local or online bookseller.  

Lisa Harris hits it out of the park with her new romantic suspense book about terrorists who are threatening the United States as well as Grace Callahan and her old college friend Nate Quinn.  Grace has already suffered a tremendous loss in her life and has become a counselor.  Nate is a police officer and is suffering from PTSD,  Although Nate is not ready for a relationship, he is determined to keep Grace safe at all costs.  The interaction between Grace and Nate was realistic and written with empathy.  The reader is quickly captured by the story because there is a murder and threat of terrorism  at the beginning of the book, and you don’t find out what is really going on until almost the last chapter.  Ms. Harris does a fantastic job of weaving a web of deceit so that the reader is drawn into the web and is working hard to figure everything  out.  I was totally delighted to be able to review this book because it is a clean read:  no foul language or steamy sex scenes, and yet the book was absolutely enthralling.  Readers of Christian fiction will thoroughly enjoy this thriller, wanting to know how the characters are able to be victorious.

Disclaimer

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received a complimentary copy of this book from Revell Publishers and from Netgalley.  I was not required to write a positive review.  The opinions expressed are my own.  I am disclosing this in accordance with 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

 

 

What responsibility do you think that you have to God now that He has saved your soul and set you on the right road?  You and I are supposed to praise Him and make sure that the next generation knows about His faithfulness.  I remember attending a church in Virginia shortly after I became a Christian and the pastor there was a true Bible scholar.  He told us that the Jewish priests used to wear something called phylacteries on their foreheads and in it was a scroll of the Law.  Thus, everyone who saw them was reminded of God’s law.  Some of us wear crosses around our necks, or even earrings, to remind us of our special relationship with Jesus Christ, and maybe even to let others know that we identify with Him and call ourselves Christians.  But that isn’t enough!  We need to praise God and tell the next generation, our children and grandchildren and anyone who touches our lives who is younger than we are.  What do we tell them?  We tell them about God’s faithfulness to us; in other words, we tell them our testimony of how God has changed our lives.  The sad fact is that we will not live forever on this earth and the best gift that we can leave behind is the legacy of God’s faith to us.  For me, it means making sure that people know that God saved me from a life of insecurity and selfishness; it means letting others know how many different times He has healed me physically; it means telling the story over and over again of how many times He has touched my life in ways that have changed how I live.  It all seems very simple, right?  God doesn’t really need us.  Hard to conceive us,  But he chose us to partner with Him to tell others of His great love.  His Word says that God’s Word stands forever, so He doesn’t have to use us to spread the Good News.  But the wonderful part about His love and salvation is that He invites us to join Him in telling others so that His Word lives on in the next generation.  I can be sure of one thing.  One day I will no longer walk this earth.  But I also know that even though I am gone physically  from the earth, the legacy about the Lord’s effect on my life will continue to live on, in the next generation of my family.  Praise God for His plan that is perfect and His Word that stands forever!

Now that I am older, I can look back through the years and proclaim that in everything I went through, God has always remained the strength of my life.  When I began a relationship with the Lord in my twenties, I never imagined how hard I would have to lean on Him as the years went by.  He has healed me miraculously many times, the most astounding being when I had a stroke about three and a half years ago.  But there were so many other times that were not so amazing to others, but it certainly was to me.  I had asthma attacks so bad that I was hospitalized numerous times for pneumonia.  But, God who loves me, kept me breathing and has healed me so that I have not had pneumonia since the 1990’s.  I had children seriously ill and injured and God healed them, too.  Our son had a sinus infection that had spread to just outside his brain and he had to have surgery.  Praise God that the doctors discovered how serious the infection was in time to take care of it and Scott is a healthy teacher now!  Our youngest son Steven fell while rock climbing in a gym and the school nurse had me racing to his side, telling me that his neck was in a brace and they needed to check to make sure that it was not broken.  Again, praise God because Steven was okay other that badly bruised and with a healthy respect for rock climbing.  Our daughter Hope, our oldest and the bravest as far as trying new things, was fortunately not injured much as a child.  But as an adult, she lost her baby Tessa when she was almost seven months pregnant.  Her faith held her steady and she made it through this horrible time, only to be blessed with another wonderful baby girl two years later.  God has been my strength through everything.  I have written a lot about being a military wife, but what everyone needs to know is that I could not have made it and would not have stayed in the marriage had it not been for God walking alongside me.  As a new young military wife, I was desperately lonely at first because I was also extremely shy.  God strengthened me to come out of my shell and start making friends with other military wives, realizing that we were all in a new place and most without our spouses for long periods of time.  Yes, God is still my strength and will remain so as long as I live.  

So my response to God’s being my strength for all of these years is to praise Him and to tell others, like you, of His glorious acts.  I was shy and God gave me friends.  I was sick and God healed me.  My children were sick, physically and emotionally, and God has healed them.  This is a daily recognition of my need for God and His strength in my life.  I don’t start my days without acknowldging that the reason I am still here to praise Him is because of His grace, mercy and love for me.  He is my all…the reason for living and my best friend forever.  I hope that you know this strength and hope in your life.  He will meet you exactly where you are and take you where you need to be to survive life’s many hurdles.  God bless you!

 

Prayer: Father God, I thank you for your sovereignty and your love for your people. I thank you that you are concerned with what it going on in our lives.   Lord, I continue to lift up those affected by Hurricane Florence.  I pray especially for the first responders and the electrical linemen.  These heroes are risking their lives to go out and rescue people and to restore the power that people need to start getting their lives back to normal once they can return home again.  Bless and be with them, Lord. Guide their steps and keep them safe.  I also pray for the victims of this raging storm, Lord.  Give them wisdom about when they should return home and encourage them, Lord, as they do, with your provision and your embrace that offers security and love.  Comfort those who have suffered unimaginable loss, Father. Be close to them in their time of need.    Watch over your people, Lord.  Help us to hear your voice and to respond to your Word to us. In Jesus’s Name.  Amen.  

So, what do you keep in your heart?  Do you know what it means to apply your heart to God’s instruction?  I have been trying, and failing more often than not, to do so.  I read the Word, put it in my heart and try to consistently apply it.  But then my husband says or does something that “pushes my buttons” and I react like an angry bear.  Sound familiar?  I am getting better, or at least sometimes, I am.  And each time I react poorly, I am sad because I know that is not the way God wants me to behave.  How many of us have the public face that we put on and the private way we actually act?  My goal is to be genuinely me all the time, but I’m not there yet.  I am working on putting more of God’s Word into my heart, so that is helping.  

This is my goal, and it should be the goal of all Christians everywhere.  I want to be filled with His joy.  I want to mature and live in harmony and peace with everyone.  I am working on that, too.  I don’t want to be that pushy Christian who is “all in the face” of those who don’t believe the way I do.  Paul never got into anyone’s face to convince them to repent.  He just shared the love of the Lord with them and that attracted others to him.  My prayer for myself and others is this verse.  I hope that we are all working on maturing, living in harmony and peace and letting God’s love and peace surround us.  

May the Lord bless and be with the people in North Carolina who are caught in the winds and rains of Hurricane Florence that is flooding there.  Send rescuers to them, Lord, and snatch them out of their desperation.  Thank you, Father, for your love for all of Your people and for Your Word that teaches us how to live and how to bring others to You.  In Jesus’s Name, I pray these things.  Amen.