Thanksgiving 2011: Good Ideas and Creativity

Day 9: Good Ideas

Isn't it fun to have a good idea?  That moment when you suddenly think of something that seems like a really great idea is so thrilling.  I find it appropriate that that moment is often signified by a lightbulb being turned on.  I love good ideas.

When an idea comes, I must first evaluate it before acting on it.  Is it a good idea?  Does it fall in line with truth?  Would it bring good to others and glorify God?  These questions needed to be answered to help me know if the idea is a good one or not a good one.  Of course the more significant the idea the more evaluation and prayer is needed.  Not much evaluation and prayer is needed for a great idea of what to make for dinner tonight, but I love when I get one of those!  Sometimes the idea for dinner is indeed an answer to prayer, as small as it is.

One lesson I have been learning over the last year or so is that when I get an idea, I need to prayerfully consider it, ask the LORD for guidance on the first/next step, and then once I hear back from Him I need to do what He says.  Think of all of the great ideas that have come and gone through your mind, but you never did anything about it.  Then you see the idea you had in a store.  Someone else had that idea, but they did something about it.  What do you say then?  "Why didn't I do that!?"  Right?

It seems that often (not always) the difference between those of us who have an idea that never comes to realization and those who are currently marketing their idea is the fact that they did something about that idea!  Really good ideas take time, energy, work, money usually, and perseverance.  However, wouldn't it feel great to stand before your finished product and be thankful that you did it?

God takes care of the results, but what is my part?  What is He asking me to do?  What ideas has He given me to develop and shape into something that could be wonderful?

The ideas I am currently working on range from large to small.

Large ones include a few books I am working on and praying about publishing.  I have three that I am actively writing, but there are a couple of others being kicked around between my ears, as well.  I want to be diligent and responsible with these ideas and be wise with them.  I want to carry them out with excellence in His way, His timing, and for His glory and the furthering of His Kingdom.  If I produce a product, even if it looks great, but it is done in my own strength and for my own glory may it never succeed.  May I only succeed when I pursue His goals for the ideas He has placed in my mind. 

Medium-sized ideas right now include what to give to my friends and family for Christmas.  I love thinking and praying about what to give at Christmas.  It is such a fun opportunity to give to others, and I really don't get that opportunity much throughout the rest of the year - at least on such a large scale.  I get so excited when I get a really good idea for a gift for someone, especially when it is someone I was having trouble coming up with a gift idea for. 

Small ideas that are still very important have been helping me even in the last couple of days.  I am so thankful that the LORD has given me good ideas for daily life and routine with my home life, husband, children, and work.  It has been wonderfully refreshing to receive these ideas, especially when I really was needing some guidance.

I love good ideas, and I thank the LORD for them!

Day 10: Creativity 

Along the same line of being thankful for good ideas, I am so thankful for creativity!  I love creativity!  I so enjoy the creativity of others.  I love being able to enjoy someone's creative expressions through visual arts, performing arts, music, dance, architecture, writing, cooking, baking, photography, etc.  What would we do without creativity?  What would our world be like?

Without creativity, life would be pretty bland.

I also am thankful for times when I get to be creative.  I love making things and doing something creative.  It's refreshing to me, and it really is a large part of who I am.  God made me this way. 

As far back as I remember, I have always loved being creative.  My brother and I used to draw and write comic books, magazines, whole story lines, and much more.  We would also record songs and "live shows" that we made up on endless hours of tapes.  When my little sister grew old enough, she joined us in these endeavors.  It was a lot of fun, and now we have those as great memories and really funny tapes. 

My cousins and I also used to make up games and play them for hours.  We did this so often that when I became a camp counselor years later no one knew the games I was talking about.  I realized then that we must have made up more of them then I remembered.

I enjoy the creativity of others, I enjoy the creativity the LORD has given me, and I enjoy the creativity of the Creator Himself.  How can I marvel at human creativity without realizing from whom it first came?  Look at the trees, flowers, people!  Think of how many types of bananas there are, the many species of fish in the ocean and then the many species of fish in lakes, rivers, and other fresh water sources!  Isn't it amazing that instead of just giving us one or two kinds of trees, one or two kinds of food, one or two types of people He gave us the incredibly vast variety He has? 

What creativity it took to create everything we see.  Even the buidlings around us were inspired by the LORD's creativity, whether the men and women building them realize that or not.  God is the ultimate when it comes to creativity, and I am so thankful!  What excitement, variety, pleasure that brings to life!

He not only creates, but He also re-creates.  He makes new the old and breathes life into what was once dead.  He re-created me when I turned to Him.  He made me a new creation.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Corinthians 5:17)

I praise the LORD for creativity.  It was a good idea, to say the least!

Thanksgiving 2011: My Family and My Friends

Day 7: My Family

I love my big family.  I have already mentioned how thankful I am for my husband and children, so in this post I am mainly focusing on our extended families.  My husband and I both have pretty big families.  I love that!  I also am thankful that we know our cousins and great-aunts and uncles (well most of them).

Funny enough we both come from a family of five.  He is the oldest, but I am the middle.  His family is four boys and one girl.  Mine is four girls and one boy.  I always get a kick out of that.

I am thankful for the family that raised my husband to be the great man he is.  We have a lot of fun together, and we always enjoy visits.  Unfortunately much of his family live far away from us, so we don't get to see them very often.  I am thankful for Skype and forms of social media that have helped us connect more regularly than before.  Too bad we can't all live in the same city - or the same state at least!  God has each of us where we are though, so I pray for plane ticket money.  I am also oh so thankful for how many of his family members love Jesus, too.  His grandma and grandpa have had a wonderful and profound influence, and we are very thankful for their legacy.

Thankfully we at least have most of my side of the family in the same state.  Although we don't get to spend as much time with them as we would like, it is great to be able to get together for holidays, birthdays, and occasional get-togethers.  We have a lot of fun, too.  I especially love when all of my siblings can get together.  We usually end up laughing a lot.  I have some witty siblings.

I love watching my parents play with my children.  It is a blessed thing to watch the very people who raised me love on the little ones I am raising.  It is also humbling, sobering, and overall lots of fun. 

I am so thankful for my parents who have always supported me even when they didn't always really understand why I wanted to do what I was doing or maybe even like what I was wanting to do - for example flying over the ocean a few times and even living in another country for a couple of months while in college.  They never let me just do whatever I wanted.  No, there needed to be reasonable evidence that it was a good idea, and they needed to know the details.  I appreciate that.  I think I always appreciated that even when I was young and sometimes annoyed about their authority.  I knew that not all parents protected their children like mine did.  That is very sad, but true.  It may be worse nowadays. 

I also thankful that my parents have been married for 33 years.  That is a blessing to all of us!  They have also always supported my marriage and made my husband feel a part of the family right from the beginning.  That is also a blessing!

My family extends pretty wide on both sides with so many cousins (1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th!), aunts and uncles, great-aunts and great-uncles, and one more beloved grandma for each side.  We have a variety of beliefs, traditions, personalities, professions, hobbies, and desires.  Even though there are many who believe differently than we do, we love them just the same.

I have always been taught to enjoy and be thankful for the family I have, and that took root deep within me.  I want to pray for them, encourage them, and invest in them for God's glory.  Thank You, LORD for my family!

Day 8: My Friends

This is actually a difficult post for me to write because many of our close friends no longer live near us.  I miss being able to see them anytime.  It takes time to build good, solid friendships and sometimes it's not easy to find families where the wives, the husbands, and the children connect well.

I don't believe I will name names here because I am afraid I may accidentally forget someone.  However the LORD has provided us with friends near and far who have been a great blessing to us.  Some of these friendships have grown apart over time.  Some of them have held steady even with distance between us.  Some are still in the process of building and taking shape into what He has in mind.  I am thankful for all of these because I believe that we can learn something from everyone we encounter.  Sometimes the lessons are big and sometimes they are small.  Still they remain important.  We can positively or negatively impact each person brought across our paths. 

I am also thankful for the friendships we have built within our church.  These friendships have become like family to us, and we love them and are thankful for them.  It is wonderful to have a place where you belong and where others can come and join the family, as well.  I love that.  Our church is such a welcoming place where truth is upheld and people are made to feel valued because God values them. 

I also am thankful for these friends in our church and in other churches who are ready to call me out on something that needs attention.  I am accountable to them, and I am thankful that I have good enough friends who are willing to share the truth in love because they love me.  We love others more when we speak the truth instead of just looking the other way or approving of everything the person does for fear of rejection or conflict.  Of course we need to learn from the LORD how to do this in a loving way, as well, instead of in a judgemental or condemning way (although many people may still mistake any confrontation as judgement or condemnation instead of loving truth).

Over the last few years of praying for good friends who are nearby and have similar convictions, interests, etc, the LORD has shown me that I need to be the kind of friend for which I am praying.  I want to invest more in others and take time to call or write or do something small that encourages others.  I still am longing for this balance and desire to honor the LORD in this way. 

I realize that this is not always easy and sometimes when building a friendship you realize that it just isn't going to work out.  That is okay.  I had to learn that long ago.  Not everyone wants to be my friend, just as there are people I won't feel connected to either.  As long as I am not operating in my flesh with this or out of fear or bitterness, etc, I just have to let that go sometimes.

Being in a new area now I have had to go out of my comfort zone and open my eyes to the people the LORD wants me to connect with here.  It's a little scary at times.  How much do I open up?  What questions can I ask them, so I am not doing all the talking?  Are they a safe person to build a relationship with?  Lord, please help me be patient through the process.

Good friends are so vital to life.  We all need them.  I pray the LORD has provided or will provide good close friends for you (of the same gender) to walk through life with and enjoy the many blessings that come from friendship.  Thank You, LORD for our friends!  May I be a good friend to those whom You have given to me to befriend, for Your glory and renown.

And let me know forget to thank the LORD for being the best friend I could ever have.  He not only made me His family when I surrendered my life to Him, but He also made me His friend.

"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone." (Ephesians 2:19,20)

"I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you." (John 15:15b)

Thanksgiving 2011: My Home and My Wheels

Day 5: My Home

What a beautiful time of year to live where we live.  It is amazing to just sit outside for hours at a time and enjoy the perfect temperatures and beautiful sunshine.  We are thankful to live here, and although I love to travel I am not sure I would like to live anywhere else long term.

This year I am very thankful to also have a home where my family fits.  We moved from a 1/1 to a 3/2 earlier this year, and wow has it been a wonderful move!  I didn't realize fully how much we needed more space until we moved.  I knew we needed more bedrooms, more closets, etc, but I didn't really understand until we had more how much better it felt.  We are thriving here in a better neighborhood and with the many specific requests the LORD provided when we asked Him for a new home. 

Looking at our old home now, I am even more amazed and thankful that we made it work as long as we did.  Thanks to a lot of creative ideas from the Creator Himself, we did it.  Oh, how much better we love it here, though!  Just to have a bedroom and a real bed again has been huge!

We are so thankful for our home.  Thank You, Father God!

Day 6: My Wheels

I am thankful for our wheels: our car and our van.

About two and a half years ago we decided to sell both of our cars and get one car that was a little bigger to fit a growing family and also more dependable.  Thanks to a friend, we got a good deal on it and have enjoyed it ever since.  It had to be repaired a couple of times, and now it has some weird mechanical quirks, but all in all it's a good car.  We are very thankful for a good car.

Just a year ago, we decided to add a second vehicle again to our collection because having one car was proving to be a bit difficult at times.  We bought a van for a very low price, got it fixed and were ready to ride off into the sunset with it. 

After a fun day of time together as a family that van was stolen.  We had it for three weeks.  Amazingly we received it back after only a week, but there was much damage done to it.  It has not been the same since, and it continues to need repair.  In fact we are not sure what we should do with it next.

Even with all of that, I am so thankful to have a van.  With a new baby on the way and so much to explore with my children, it is nice to again have the freedom to go out even while my husband is at work.  That was something that was tough with just one car.

The LORD has provided for us time and time again, and we really have a lot to thank Him for including our home and our vehicles!  Thank You, Father God!  We are blessed by Him.  May He be glorified through these blessings.

Thanksgiving 2011: My Children and My Bible

Day 3: My Children

I often joke that we should have had children much earlier.  I say this because I think they have seriously mellowed me out, and I like myself better as a mom than before they came along.  However I know that God's timing is perfect, and He gave us children in His time, so that is why I say I joke about that.

I am daily amazed by and thankful for my children.  They are more than precious to me.  I love looking into their beautiful eyes and wondering who they will be and what they are really thinking and just beholding the beauty of God's creation in them.  I want to be a better mommy everyday and be honest and real with them.

I want them to know that they can trust their mommy and daddy, and even more importantly I want them to know that they can trust the LORD with every little and big thing in life because He will never let them down like we will from time to time.  I want to make sure, by God's grace, that my priorities are set up and maintained so that I can teach them by example what is good and right.  I also want to honor my husband in front of them, so they will learn to do the same and feel secure in our love for each other.

I have written about these little blessings before and also the one that is already in Heaven and the one we are expecting in April.  Their wit and their smarts always amaze me.  I love the funny things they do and say.  Their hugs and kisses are so sweet, and I generally really love being with them.  I am thankful that I get to stay home with them and teach them and take care of them full time.  That is a blessing that I do not take for granted.  My husband is wonderful with them, too, so I do get mommy-time, as well.

These children need constant care, constant love, boundaries, discipline, instruction, food, fun, books read to them, games to play, imaginative times, crafts, crayons, music, dance, prayer and much more.  And I love it!  I love fulfilling the God-given role of taking care of them and providing for their needs and wants as the LORD equips me and provides for me to do so.  It is a blessing! 

"Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward." (Psalm 127:3 NASB)

Do you believe this?

There are many people who see children as only a bother and another mouth to feed.  They look at children and see the need to provide for a college education, little league sports, a wedding...  When we focus on all of that we miss out on right now.  Yeah, I know it can be exhausting when children don't obey and need discipline so often, and it just seems hard to enjoy them at all.  There will be days like that.  However, there will be many other days that are filled with joy and delight when you take the time needed to show your children how important they are - to you and to God.

I have this twitch that happens when someone says something like, "Well, you sure have your hands full don't you?"  Yes.  Why, yes, my hands are full.  What are they full of though?  They are full of love and blessing because the LORD God who created the heavens and the earth entrusted us with these children for how ever long we have with them.  That is indeed fullness, but I am pretty sure it's not what the person meant by their comment.

Let's decide to encourage and show our children how valued they are instead of see them as a burden to endure for eighteen years or so.  Don't let the bad days get you down.  Tomorrow is a new day.

I praise the LORD for all four of my children - the two we know, the one we will meet in Heaven, and the one we hope to meet in April.  Words fail to express the genuine love and thankfulness I have for them.

They know I am not perfect, and they know that we don't expect them to be.  They also know that they are not the ones who run the household.  We remind them of that often.  Those sweet smiles and giggles are delightful!  Thank you, my Lord!

Day 4: My Bible

It's perfect that I am writing about my children and my Bible in the same post.  How would I know the truth about myself, my husband, my children, or anything at all without the Bible?  The Bible is the LORD's manual to us.  It is filled with wisdom, insight, instruction, directions, hope, and the truth I need each day! 

Without the Bible I wouldn't realize that my children don't have to learn to disobey.  It is in their nature, just like it is in mine.  They have to learn to obey instead by setting aside their own will and learning to follow the LORD's instead.  This is a daily (and often moment-by-moment) decision that will become more a part of their lives as they grow and mature.  Our job is to help them learn this when they are little and continue to teach them as they get older.  It is much easier to learn to do this with little kid problems than it is with big kid and even teenager or adult problems.  As a parent, I must realize it starts early.  I learned this from the Bible.

"As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God." (Romans 3:11)

"This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:22-24)

My little precious ones are still born into sinful human nature and will not know how to obey God and walk in truth unless they are taught.  The good news is that they can be taught and that righteousness comes through faith in Jesus Christ.

Without the Bible I would not know the truth about Jesus.  I would not be able to better understand His sacrifice to save me from the wages of sin and death (Romans 6:23).  I would not be able to better understand the everlasting covenant I have with Him because of who He is and what He has done for me (Hebrews 13:20,21).

Without the Bible I would not know how to resist the devil and flee from temptation (James 4:7).  I would not understand that the battle is not between flesh and blood but in the spiritual realm (Ephesians 6:12).  I would not know that I need armor on everyday to be prepared to fight the battle and enjoy the victory I have in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 6:11).

There are so many more verses I could pack in here, but those are just a few for which I am very thankful.

I not only love the Bible and am thankful for it, but also I am thankful for the freedom to carry it and own a Bible where I live.  Some places in the world the people there cannot own a Bible legally.  Some places in the world do not have a Bible in their own language, yet. 

I have a study Bible in the New American Standard version, a thin line Bible to take with me in the English Standard Version, and a New Testament in the New International Version.  My husband has a study Bible in the New King James Version, and a smaller travel sized one in the English Standard Version.  Our oldest has a copy in the New International Version, and we have two children's Bibles here, too.  We have the freedom to have these, to study these, to read these, to bring them with us whenever we want wherever we go, and to go to church where hundreds of others are opening their Bibles up, as well, without any hindrance from government officials.  I am very thankful for this freedom.

I have been to illegal churches in other countries, and I realized more than ever after those experiences that we are blessed with the freedom to openly worship God and carry a Bible.  I don't want to take that for granted!

I thank the LORD for His gift of the Bible.  I also pray that more people will not only have one, but that they will learn to study it and read it daily in their own language trusting God to teach them through it and help them live in truth and freedom as a result!  Help me do this more and more, as well, my Lord!  Thank you, LORD!

Thanksgiving 2011: My Lord and My Husband

Thanksgiving is coming!  I cannot believe this is November already.  Seriously I wonder how times feels like it goes by so fast sometimes.  I decided that instead of getting crazed by the busyness that can overwhelm so many of us during this season of holidays leading up to Christmas, I want to focus on being thankful.  Being thankful is a chioce.  There are many things that can lead to despair if we focus on them, but focusing on thankfulness helps us to navigate through the other stuff more easily and with a more cheerful disposition.  I am asking the LORD to help me be cheerful and thankful instead of run-down, overwhelmed, or stuck in disappointment. 

What a good time to focus on this and share with others - Thanksgiving!

So, every other day I will write about two more reasons I am thankful.  I hope you will be encouraged and even inspired to write down what makes you thankful and thank the LORD for the blessings He has given you, as well.  This is of course not an exhaustive list.  I only have twenty-four days in November, including Thanksgiving, so there will be twenty-four reasons to be thankful that I will share with you.

Day 1: My Lord

I write a lot about Jesus on here, so you probably would expect I would be thankful for Him.  I am not listing Him first to sound like a good Christian.  I am listing Him first on this list because really I recognize that everything I have is from Him.

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." (James 1:17)

I started following Him (calling on Him as my Lord and surrendering to Him as my Master) almost fifteen years ago.  It's hard to believe it has been that long.  Before that I thought I was already a Christian.  I celebrated Christmas and Easter, and my parents taught me a lot of moral truths that are found in the Bible.  However I didn't realize that being a Christian was not just about knowing about Jesus and believing in Him. 

"You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder." (James 2:19)

It was about calling on Him, asking Him to forgive me for my sins, and deciding that He would be the Lord of my life from then on.

"That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." (Romans 10:9, 10)

As time passed since that moment, and I continued to learn more and fall in love more with Him, I came to recognize my daily need for His guidance, love, direction, forgiveness, wisdom, etc.  I am so thankful because He has never failed to meet one of these needs. 

He has never failed to show Himself when I called and waited on Him to answer.  He doesn't always answer in the way I expect, and sometimes I have to realize that what I am asking for is actually not what is best.  Thankfully He shows me this with such grace and mercy.  If I listen, then much trouble is avoided.  If I decide to go with my own way anyway, there is sure to be at least some difficulty.  He always takes me back, though, even after I have disobeyed and returned to Him with my head down and shoulders slouched because of regret and remorse.

I am thankful that nothing I can do - whether good or bad - can change His love for me.  I am sealed with Him, and I will forever be (see John 10:29).  There is so much more to share.  I am so thankful.

Day 2: My husband 

One of those good and perfect gifts the LORD has given me is my husband.  It's not that he is perfect, and I couldn't expect him to be, but he is so wonderful!  I have written an ode to him before, and I am truly so thankful for him. 

We met back in college, actually before I transfered to the school where he was about to finish his undergrad.  I said to the LORD, "God, I want to marry a guy like that."  I didn't actually think I would ever see him again.  He was graduating.  Well I didn't know that he was going to be there for another three years working on his graduate degree.  We ran into each other again months later, and I still didn't really think much about it.  I learned he had a girlfriend, and I honestly didn't think he would ever be interested in me. 

Thankfully God had other plans.  Later that year he did become interested in me (he and his girlfriend had broken up months earlier), and I became very much interested in him.  It's a long a beautiful story.  I still say I "married up."

Now over eight years later I feel more in love with him as time passes.  We have had disagreements, times of lackluster, and even annoy each other from time to time.  However, he is my best friend and more than I could have thought to ask for in a husband and father of my children.  And he loves me, too!

He is such a great daddy, too!  Our children adore him, and for good reason.  I am always amazed and thankful for his growing relationship with them, his desire to seize teachable moments for God's glory, and his tender love for them.  I am thankful to be on the same page with him, as well, when it comes to raising and training up our children.  We are partners in this.

I tell you, I got a package deal with him.  I am oh so thankful!  The LORD knows I need him.  He has balanced me out in so many areas that balance was greatly needed.  Sure, the LORD has used me to balance him out, too. 

I love my husband and thank our Lord for him!

What are you thankful for today?

Learning to Love the LORD

My daughter likes to stall before bedtime, which we do not allow.  She tries, but she eventually gets in trouble for not obeying respectfully.  Sometimes this is simply in the form of, "Hey Mom..." and then a series of questions right before I walk out of the room.  Knowing that she is attempting to avoid going to sleep at the moment, I tell her we will talk about that tomorrow. 

Occasionally there is a question that does need to be dealt with right then because I can tell she has a genuine interest and/or concern about something.  At those times I try to sensitively answer her in a timely fashion.  Then if needed we do talk more about it the next day.  We want our children to be open and honest with us even with tough questions and especially with things they would not discuss with anyone else or maybe feel embarrassed about.  As they are little and have little problems we can help them through, our prayer is that we can equip them to deal with the bigger problems that come when they are bigger.

A few days ago just as I was exiting the room before naptime, my daughter said, "Mom, I like God, but I don't really love Him."  Thankfully the Holy Spirit immediately gave me this response: "That's okay, sweetie.  You are just getting to know Him.  You will grow to love Him more and more over time."  She was satisfied and seemingly relieved by my response and said, "Okay."  Then she turned over and started off to sleep.

Both pleased and thankful for her honesty and the response God gave me, I began to think about her statement more.

How many of us would be that honest in our relationship with the LORD?  Especially as one new to faith, can you say you really love Him yet?  Maybe you do, and that is great.  If you don't, though, don't be discouraged.  In any relationship love takes time to grow.  As you get to know the other more and trust builds, then love soon grows all the more.

Even seasoned Christians may experience a lull in love for the LORD.  This happens, in my experience, because of inconsistency in prayer and Bible study and/or a difficult experience that has lead to doubt, fear, or distrust of the LORD's care.  Both of these issues are answered by more time in Scripture, more time in prayer, time with a wise and trusted Bible-believing and following Christian, and honesty with God and others. 

God wants our honesty.  I have felt the most relief and the most love from Him at times when I was the most ugly towards Him.  The times when I was ungratefully shouting my demands or discontent at Him because I was not happy with the way something was going have been the times when I have most clearly and profoundly heard and felt His unconditional love toward me. 

No matter where my love meter is toward Him, He loves me more than I can fathom.  No matter what I do well or what I do poorly His love for me never changes.  Whether I succeed or fail, He remains steadfast in His love toward me.  It is indeed remarkable.

So many miss this love because of unbelief, wounds from the past, perfectionism, lack of understanding of Scripture, lies from the enemy and others, and sheer lack of intenionality to grow in a relationship with a loving Savior.

Jesus loved you and me enough to die a painful death, suffering greatly, and then rising again three days later in order to set captives who call on His name free forever.  It's a lot of take in.  It's a lot to understand.  We will never understand it all this side of Heaven.  Should that stop you from continuing on, and learning and growing more in love with Him, though?  No!

Receive His unconditional love, and let Him grow your love for Him as you intentionally seek to know Him more.  It's a beautiful thing that makes me smile.  Thank You, Jesus!

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us." (Psalm 103:11,12)

"This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." (1 John 4:9,10)

Grandpa

Yesterday my husband's grandfather breathed his last breath here on Earth.  He also took in His first breath of Heaven.  Grandpa wouldn't say so, but I think he was a real hero.

Grandpa was close to ninety-two years old.  He had been married for sixty-six years to his wife.  He had been following Jesus as Lord and Savior for over seventy years.  Grandpa was full of wise cracks and enjoyed teasing those he loved.  Even though the last eight months of his life were mostly spent in a bed in his home, his mind was still sharp until the last month or two.

The last time we saw him was a couple of months ago, and during that visit he told my husband he was ready for Jesus to take him home.  My husband assured him that as long as he was still here there was a purpose for him and that in the Lord's time he would go home to be with Him.  He was at peace because of his relationship with Jesus.  He knew his time was coming, and he was ready.  What a blessing to have that assurance and joy even in the midst of suffering.

How amazing to spend nearly a lifetime knowing, growing, and serving the LORD!  He and Grandma were even missionaries in China for three years before communism came there, and they were forced to leave.  He was a pastor until his retirement, and the churches he pastored over the years still send them gifts each year and keep in touch. 

How amazing to spend nearly a lifetime - 66 years! - in marriage!  What a wonderful example of covenant, of commitment, and of love.  They honored their Lord in so many ways through their marriage.  They served others gladly and became well known in their community.  People called on them when they needed help.  They raised a family who went on to raise families.  And now those families are raising families of their own.

I only had the privelege of knowing Grandpa for the last ten years.  I am most thankful for the godly influence he had on my husband.  They were very close, as he was with the rest of his grandchildren, as well.  I know my husband learned so much from Grandpa and looked up to him his whole life.  What a legacy!

I too enjoyed the many times I had with Grandpa and the discussions we had over the years.  Usually our visits mostly included sitting around and talking.  Often those talks would be about something in the Bible or about something we wondered about.  He often talked about the times and current events.  He was real and rarely held back telling us how he really felt.  I liked that - even the rare times that I thought differently than him.

And Grandma.  What a wonderful woman.  She faithfully took care of him and encouraged him.  Although I am sure she is grieving, she knows she will see Grandpa again when it's her turn to enter into Heaven.

It's so amazing to think about what he is doing right now.  He is enjoying what had been promised to him and worshiping the LORD like never before.  He's been reunited with those who have gone before him and waits for the rest of us to get there.  What joy he is experiencing!  No more pain.  No more tears.  Face to face with Jesus.

And we are left here with many memories and the assurance that those who follow Jesus will be reunited one day.  Praise the LORD!

He will be missed by us although we are thankful and rejoice for him that he is now with his Lord.

Please pray for the family and for Grandma who is now without her partner in life.

To God be the glory!