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“Are You Serving?”

Honor!

I want to honor those that have given their lives for this country called America.  There have been many that have sacrificed their lives for the freedom of others.  This is the weekend to think of those men and women who have served to protect their loved ones.  This is also a time to remember those people that are left behind.

I think of those who have served and made it back home.  Some have made it back because a comrade gave his life for them.  Many when coming back are treated with disrespect because maybe the war they fought in was considered wrong.  Or maybe they have had to do some unthinkable things to save the life of their comrades.

I think that these men and women deserve something different.  I may not agree with the war but not all people have chosen but were drafted.  And those who have gone in on their own thought they were doing the right thing for their country.  They deserve our honor and our help.  Those who do not honor have never experienced what they have.  We cannot judge someone unless we have walked with him or her and know every circumstance.

What if…

Before I was born my father was drafted for Vietnam.  Fortunately for my dad, he had just received back surgery and was unable to go.  Dad would have received disrespect.  It makes my heart ache to think about it.  He had a cousin that went and was never the same.  And partly because of the treatment that he received when returning.

War is never something we love but we live in a sinful world.  And maybe the wars have not all been what we think they should have been but that doesn’t mean we should not honor those who suffered for it.

The leaders of any country may be making the wrong choices, which bring wars.  And I don’t want to hear all the gossip or conspiracy theories about it.  But I do know that most of our men and women that go and fight are doing it for the right reason.  They believe they are protecting those they love and we should honor them.  I would be honoring my dad right now if he had fought in Vietnam.

When parents fight and have issues who suffer?  It is the children.  They are innocent and they did not choose any of it.  That is exactly how I look at our country.  There are guilty parties.  Do I know who they are?  No, I don’t need to.  I can still honor those who have fought.  God knows the guilty and He is the only one that needs to know.  Jesus showed love and honor to all.  Those He rebuked were the religious leaders who spoke one way and lived another.  But He even loved them.  As Christians, we need to rethink how we treat those who have fought no matter what our political view is.

He gave His life…

I think of Jesus, who came and gave His life so that all can be saved if they so choose.  The same is true of many men and women who have gone in to fight without hesitation.  And their reason is to protect their families from the evil around them.  Jesus came to fight.  He came to fight against sin without hesitation.   So we can be protected and live if we so choose.

You might be thinking that Jesus coming was not a fight.  Yes, it was a different kind of fight.  It was a fight with self.  If He would have done anything for self we would have been lost.  He came to do for others no matter how He was treated to protect His family from the clutches of the enemy, Satan.  He came to lay down His life so that we would have the opportunity to live a life of freedom.  And I am not necessarily talking about physical freedom but spiritual freedom.

There is still a battle raging.  And until Jesus comes in the clouds to take us home there will continue to be a battle raging.  This battle is mostly unseen but we do feel it coming to us through trials.  And the question is how are we going to respond?  I want to respond but continuing to fight the battle with sin with the help of God.  And in the end, we will come off as the victors.  What a day that will be.

Dear Father,

When we look at what is going on around us it seems easy to point fingers and condemn.  Help us to realize that You love all people.  We need Your help in being more honoring to those who have fought for our freedoms.  And honoring You for fighting for us so that we can go home to be with You.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Go out and honor those that have fought for the freedoms of this Country. Quit analyzing and realize these are souls that Christ loves and we should love them with His love.

Love you all!

Many people who have served for our freedoms have come back with mental health issues.  They have suffered much and sometimes they do not have a good support team.  My son has seen the issues of our nation with depression and suicide issues.  Because of this, he is doing something to help.  He wants to raise money to help support a local organization that helps those that suffer from depression or suicide issues.  For more information about how you can help click on this link.

If you have been in the military thank you for your service.  Have the people you know received honor?  What has been your experience in this area?  Share below.

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“Fear for the Future!”

Fear!

How often do you think about the future?  Do you have fears about what may happen next?  It seems that there are so many that fear more and more each day.  They see the things that are happening about them and they just can’t help but fear.

It is a fearful world in which we live without a doubt.  And we know it is way worse than we even know or can even imagine.  The atrocities that happen each day are beyond our knowledge and comprehension.  But we fear what we do know and what we don’t know.

There are people everyday that commit suicide because they fear and cannot handle the things that are happening around them.  But fear has a big part to play.  Fear that they cannot financially make it, fear for the future because a spouse, child, parent, someone they dearly love died, fear of being hurt again or killed, fear of failure and I could go on and on.  The fear is real and it is an overwhelming cloud that some can’t shake.

Failure…

I think for a lot of people the fear of failure drives them.  Every day they get up just to prove to the world and themselves that they are worth something.  Everywhere they turn they see or hear something that leads them to believe that they are not worth anything.

When you were a child you may have heard it said by your parents, schoolmates, or even friends.  They said things negative about you.  Some may have been joking and not even realizing how much it hurt.  Others did it to just hurt you or maybe make them feel better about themselves.  The idea is that you want to prove to the world that you are worth something and that you are better than they think.

Media…

Then there is the bombardment of media.  And it doesn’t matter whether you are a guy or a gal you need to look like the people seen on TV, Magazines, or billboards to be popular.  A lot of people try to imagine themselves looking like some actor, actress, or some popular singer.  There is this “ideal” look that becomes the “best” look and all you want to do is look like them.

The truth is that a lot of those people that you think you want to look or be like are the most miserable people.  Remember they are acting but inside they are dying.  And then we hear on the news that one of them committed suicide.  We should never look at someone’s life and think they have it better than we do.  We don’t know what is really going on in their mind and life.

The answer

Is the answer to fear simple?  I believe the answer to fear is simple but not easy.  You may be asking how can it be simple but not easy?  The answer is trusting and surrendering, which is simple but a lot easier said than done.  We are people that want to be in control of everything around us.  And to give that control to Someone else is the hardest thing to do.

Having trust in God and surrendering everything to Him is the answer that will bring peace and happiness.  It doesn’t mean all the troubles in our lives and what is happening around us will go away.  But what it does mean is we can have a life of peace and meaning.  God cares so much for us as well as those around us. We can’t even comprehend it.

Besides trusting God and surrendering, cut the negative out of your life.  Don’t listen to the news or read news magazines or newspapers.  Don’t spend time with those who are doomsayers.  Or make you feel you are worthless.  The devil doesn’t care where he traps us all he cares about is diverting us from the real goal in this life.  Instead, spend that time doing things that bring life to the soul.  Spend time in God’s Word and in prayer.  Pray for not only yourself but for those around you.  You can uplift the souls of others to the One who loves them.  Encourage them directing their thoughts to the One that can give them peace.

We can…

We can have peace in the midst of all the stormy blasts around us. Even though we may think we don’t “look” perfect, God dwelling in the heart is the greatest beauty.   It may not change the circumstances but life will be filled with joy even through the storm.  When we make Jesus our Captain we can weather any storm without fear, knowing that He is in full control.  And then He will shine through us making us the most beautiful people.  And then we bring the truth of peace and joy to others.

Dear Father,

We live in such a wicked world.  People are dying for lack of knowledge about the peace and joy that they can have.  Even as Christians, many times, we are lacking the joy and peace that we could have if we would stay focused on what You would have us do.  Continue to draw our hearts and minds back to You.  Help us to stay focused on the good and right so that we can shine for You and draw others to You.  Because it is only You that can give us true joy and peace.  And You are the only One that can bring us through the other side victorious.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender to the only One that you can trust today.  And let Him have full control.  Spend time out in nature.  I believe it to be God’s second book and we can be revived.

Love you all.

Has there been a time in your life that you have feared something, yet, when you put your trust in God, He gave you peace?  I would love to hear your story.  Share below.

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“The Machine is Down Again?!!!”

Disaster!

Have you ever felt as if everything is against you?  Things don’t go well at home, school, work, etc.  It seems like every step you make fails in some way.  And of course, your stress level is through the roof.

The stress has seemed to build in the last week and a half at my work.  It has caused stress for all involved.  I run a digital machine at a print shop.  One day a little over a week ago I made, what I thought was a routine call for a repair.  It wasn’t a big problem I was having with the print quality but it needed fixing.  The repairman came out the next day “fixed” the problem and we were good to go.  At least we thought it was fixed.

The next day…

The next day the problem started again.  The shop foreman had told me to go ahead and put in a call near the end of the day forgetting the fact that the next day was the end of the month.  We are always pushing as much out as possible the last day.  When digital is down it brings a real problem in getting through the work.

This time when the guy came for repairs he brought a helper and they got into the machine and replaced a lot of parts along with cleaning the machine.  In the process of taking out one of the rollers, which has a small long bulb that runs through it for heat, he broke the bulb.  No big deal right?  Wrong!!  They did not have another one to replace it.  So they had to order the part from back east.  It should be in the next day around 10 am and then they would have to come in and finish the work.  This was around 12 am so for me that meant time off.  So I went home early and didn’t come back in until around 11 am the next day.  Things got back together and I was finally able to print again.

Or was it?

I did start printing and the guy stuck around for a little while to see if things were going to go well.  It seemed good so off he went.  I started to notice that there was some kind of debris coming out with the paper when I was printing.  It was a concern to me.  Then I notice another problem.  There were some marks being made on the paper as well.  I opened up the machine to see if there was anything that I could see and all this debris was coming out of the machine.  By this time it was near the end of the day again.  So again I put in another call to service.

The next day the repair guy came right away in the morning.  He opened up the machine and started to take some things apart.  As he took things apart debris just fell out.  He was amazed that the machine had not thrown an error code.  Something had happened and it had totally shredded a belt.

He got everything cleaned up and got things running.  He stuck around for a while and noticed that there was another problem.  The machine was not heating up right.  And it was leaving a rub mark on the prints as well.  He figured out what the problem was but he had no parts for it.  It was Friday by now and he would order the parts and then be back on Monday around 10:30 am.  In the meantime, I could only run a certain weight paper because the heat wasn’t working for the more heavy paper.

Monday…

On Monday I waited and went into work around 10 am.  There had been some other lightweight jobs that had come in so I started printing them.  My boss came to let me know the repair guy called and the parts he had ordered were not going to arrive from back east that day as they were supposed to.  He was driving to another location, which was a 4-hour round trip drive to pick up the part.  So he arrived at about 12 pm.

The unusual thing is that the heating problem had gone away and we couldn’t see the rub mark anymore.  So he was afraid to even touch the machine since it seemed to be working now.  We didn’t know why but it was.  He stuck around for a few jobs and everything seemed to be fine.  So he finally left.  He wasn’t gone long when I notice the rub mark again.  It was only in a certain area so I could only run certain things that it did not show up on, how frustrating.

By this time we decided to wait until the end of the day to call it in so I could get as much printing done as possible being we had so much downtime.  I tried to put in a request on the computer after 5 pm so that a repair guy would contact us in the morning.  The repair guy had not closed out the last repair so it would not let me put in a new one.  I had his phone number so I texted him.  He said how sorry he was about the digital print not being fix and that he would come first thing in the morning.

Tuesday…

When he got there it did not take him long to see that there was a roller that needed replacing.  It had just been replaced last week but with all the debris from the belt that shredded it probably did damage to it.  He was concerned because that was the roller that the other repair guy had been trying to fix when he broke the bulb that ran through the center.  The new repair guy planned to be very careful.  The way that it is put together is not the best.  He proceeded to remove the roller but yes he broke the bulb.  Afterward, he let me know that it was not a big deal because the other repair guy had ordered two when he ordered.  He said, “I will just go pick it up from him and be back in about 20 minutes.”

When he arrived back I was working in the back in the bindery.  We were all discussing what would happen if he broke the second and last one.  Within seconds the guy came back and told me when he opened the box the bulb was broken in 3 pieces.  The choices were to order another one, which would arrive the next day around 10 am.  Or he could take a 4 hour round trip to the different location, where he had gone the day before and get the part there.  Of course, we asked him to drive and get it.  We needed our machine up and running.

Home…

The repair guy headed off for his 4-hour trip while I went home for a few hours.  The frustration I felt was unspeakable.  Financially we could not afford for me to lose hours and I had lost so many already.  I knew that I needed to quit thinking about it and just make the best of my time doing things that needed to be done at home.  It actually felt good to be home and I do miss it a great deal.

Soon the time came for me to head back to work.  The repair guy was there and things went quickly.  When I started printing the repair guy stuck around for another 30 minutes just to be sure that things were going to run well.  Then he left.

More problems…

He hadn’t been gone 30 minutes when I noticed another problem.  My foreman said let’s try to get through as much printing as we can before we call in again.  So I waited another few hours until the end of the day.

He came the next morning and fixed the problem.  And we were off and running again for a few hours.  It is Friday now and we are now waiting until Monday for another part.  Another repair guy did a temp fix that we know could quick working at any time.  Every time I pushed the print button I prayed it would work and I made it through the day on the temporary fix.  The question is when is this going to be over?  I don’t know!  It has been frustrating.  I have lost money, my boss has lost money and it has affected 3 other guys also in lack of hours.  And it has affected our customers and gives the potential for losing customers.

Learning…

But with all these problems what can I learn.  Because we all go through trials every day, right?  We can always learn things in all our everyday experiences.  God wants to teach us things.  The number one thing He wants to teach us is to trust Him.  He is beside us to guide us through all circumstances.  We just need to reach out to Him.  I am planning on a miracle.  Because even though I made less money I want to see how He is going to bless that money to fulfilled the needs that it provides.

Another lesson that came to me in this experience is that the digital machine is a lot like us.  The machine is fairly new, maybe a year and a half old.  And it reminds me of when a person decides to give their heart to the Lord.  You may or may not have grown up in a Christian home.  But you have to come to a point in your life where you surrender and give your heart to God.  And you become a new creation, just like a brand new digital machine.

But then…

Everything seems to be going well with our brand new walk with God.  We are having victories and we are on fire for God.  But as time goes by we tend to get distracted.  The devil makes sure it happens.  Things in our life start to breakdown.  It starts out small, just a “little print” quality.  Maybe we fail to spend the quality time we need one day.  We realize we need to get back connected so we seek out the Repair Man.  God is always there to help repair our lives and the great thing; we don’t have to wait because He is too busy.  We make things right with God and go on our way.

But the next day something comes up unexpectedly and your time with God is cut short again.  Believe me, the devil will make sure there are distractions if we are not intentional.  We get a little stitch of time with God but not what it should be.  And sometimes it goes into days, weeks, and even months that our quality time is diminished.

Major repair…

Before we know it we have become so spiritually wore out that we need major repairs.  The great thing about God is that when we let Him He repairs everything the first time.  But a lot of times what happens is that we don’t allow Him to get in and do the repairs before we allow life to take over again and get in the way of spending that quality time.  And every time we do that the need for repairs become more major.  The outcome can be different for everyone depending on how long we keep letting things go and not allowing God to fully repair us.

God is the only one that can do the major repairs that we need.  But we have to make a total and complete surrender to Him and allow Him to do it.  And we have to commit to spending the quality time with Him.  Believe me, I am speaking to myself as I write this.  It is so easy to get distracted.  And God also gives us so many opportunities to connect with Him throughout the day.

Time…

We need to have that special time each morning where we spend time in prayer and study of God’s Word.  And if we don’t initially schedule it in it won’t happen.  Besides our scheduled time, we should take advantage of every opportunity to connect with God.

For those of us who drive to work, we can be praying during those times.  Praying out loud can keep us focused.  This is a great time to pray about those things that are really on your heart for yourself, family, friends, etc.  It is a great way to keep yourself on track with keeping connected with God and keep your sanity while driving with “crazy” people on the road.  You can also be listening to God’s Word while you are traveling.  Some may be able to listen to God’s Word while they are working depending on where you work and what you are doing.  I actually have that opportunity at work and I love it.

Dear Father,

We live in such a crazy busy world.  Forgive us for not making you the priority that we should. I want to surrender my time to You and make sure that my time is used wisely.  I pray for the problems with my machine at work and for those that may be having troubles at their work.  Help us to reach out to You more and be a witness to Your power.  Thank You for the lessons that You teach us through the trials.  And I am praising Your name to see how You are going to stretch my paycheck this pay period.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender all to God today.  Be intentional about your time with Him.

Love you all!

What trial has come into your life that you have learned some lessons from?  I would love to hear it.  Please share below.

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“Is There Power in Our Thoughts?”

Power!

Is there power in our thoughts?  And if there is power in our thoughts how powerful are our thoughts?  I am not an expert in this matter by any means but over the years I have learned different things.  I have also learned from my own experiences.  Our thoughts can play a major part in whether we are sick or well, happy or sad, a winner or a loser, successful or a failure, etc.

I have told the story before about how one day I couldn’t breathe.  My husband told me later that I had started to turn blue.  This was due to some physical issues I was dealing with at the time.  I am still not immune to having this happen even today.  So what made the difference in how it plays out today versus then.  It all has to do with my thoughts.  Believe me when you can’t breathe you go into panic mode and your thoughts are not thinking anything pleasant.

At that moment…

When I couldn’t breathe and I was in the panic mode my husband came beside me and calmly helped me work through it.  I don’t remember what he said at the time but it calmed me and helped me get my breath.  When I had another occurrence sometime later it was at that moment I realized the power of my thoughts.  I realized that if I didn’t think about the fact that I couldn’t breathe but focused my thoughts on breathing, and realizing no matter how I felt I was getting air, I was able to get passed the difficulty.  At that moment I took control of my thoughts and every time I have had this breathing issue since that time I keep my thoughts focused.  I even was able to help my father-in-law multiple times when he could not breathe due to his congestive heart failure.

So how powerful…

So how powerful really are our thoughts.  Some say that our thoughts make up 75-95% of physical and emotional issues others say nine-tenths.  The bottom line is that our thoughts play a big roll in our health, whether emotionally or physically.  “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he…” Proverbs 7:23a.

It is so important not to allow how we feel to control how we think.  Now, this a lot easier said than done.  We have all been there.  We wake up feeling a little down, angry, discouraged, sick, etc. and we follow how we feel.  But we should not follow how we feel because it will destroy our day.

Moral Character

For me, I believe that our thoughts and our feelings make up our moral character.  How our thoughts go our feelings go and therefore we respond in kind.  If someone does something to us or someone we love, we may feel angry about it.  And there may be a good reason.  Maybe your kid got bullied at school or you were falsely accused of something you did not do, etc.

The Bible says, “Be ye angry, and sin not.”  And I think a lot of us stop there.  But we need to keep reading.  “Let not the sun go down upon your wrath” Ephesians 4:26.  So when something initially happens we may be angry and for a good reason but we should not allow that anger to stay with us, otherwise, it becomes sin.  And it has an effect on our behavior, besides destroying our health.  This may be so difficult if you are living with an abusive spouse, parent, child, boss, friend, etc.  But it is imperative that we do this if we want to have our characters prepared for heaven.  If there is abuse involved we may need to physically separate ourselves from it.

Anger never affects the other person it only effects us.  Worry doesn’t help the situation or the person you may be worried about, it only effects you.  As we continue to dwell upon the negative we will have a negative response.  But if we dwell upon the positive we will have positive responses and it will transform our lives.

…Our health

Not only does the thoughts affect us negatively or positively emotionally but the same is true for our health.  Unfortunately, we live in a world of sin and death.  We are bombarded each day with things that can affect our health.  And if we have done all we can to keep the laws of health we may still get some sickness.  But our thoughts can play a roll and we can choose to control our thoughts.

I have seen and heard stories of people that have destroyed their health by their thoughts or gotten better by their thoughts.  When you are sick with something simple like a cold do you wallow in self-pity?  Or do you keep a positive outlook?  Those that keep a positive outlook get well sooner than those who do not.  Two people may be both doing the same things to get well but they are thinking different thoughts and there will be a different outcome.

Believe me, we all have been there.  When things are not going well it is easy to get discouraged and not be able to look on the positive side of things.  So I am not saying that this is an easy task.  But I believe it is possible with the help of our Saviour.  And the truth is that even if they don’t get well and end up dying they have lived a happier life.

I believe…

I believe that the Father’s presence encircled Christ, and nothing happened to Him but that which infinite love permitted for the blessing of the world.  This was Christ source of comfort.  I believe that this can be the same for us.  If we are choosing to walk with Christ we will be filled with Christ through the Holy Spirit.  The blow (crisis, health issue, trial, etc.) that is aimed at us falls upon the Saviour, who surrounds us with His presence.  Whatever comes to us comes from Christ.  We have no need to resist all the blows, Christ is our defense.  Nothing can touch us except Christ gives permission.  And we know His promise which says,  “All things,” which He permits to happen, will “work together for good to them that love God.”  Romans 8:28

The key is to be abiding in Him.  We can’t be doing our own thing that is going against God’s laws whether they are health or civil laws and expect His blessing.  But if we are fully surrendered to Him everything that comes to us is for the purpose to refine us as gold that has been tried in the fire.  He wants us to see our need and come to Him and lay all our burdens upon Him and allow Him to carry us through.  And in the process, our characters are being refined.  This is not easy but it all boils down to trusting God.  How much trust do we have?

The Red Sea…

I think of the children of Israel when they were at the Red Sea and the Egyptian army was behind them.  Have you ever felt that there was a trial or crisis before you that was as insurmountable as what the children of Israel faced?  I sure have.  Even as I write I am in the midst of a crisis.  I don’t just write this only for you but it helps me to see what I need to be doing during the time of crisis and how I need to trust God.

“And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show to you to day:  for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.  The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace” Exodus 14:13-14.  I love these verses.  This is a promise that as I am surrendered to the Lord He is there to fight my battles for me.  I need to follow His direction and trust Him through every circumstance.

This goes back to our thoughts.  We need to keep our thoughts on the promises of God.  And as we do this our feelings will fall into place, which will form a character that reflects Christ.  If we allow our feelings to be at the forefront they will be controlling our thoughts and our characters will be reflecting self.  A life of self is miserable for ourselves and those around us.  We need to keep things in the right order and God is the one that can help us do it.  He is the one that will part the sea.

Dear Father,

We need You so desperately!  We struggle with trusting You through every circumstance.  Lead us to Your promises as we see You.  We lay our plans and our circumstances before You asking You to take them and lead us through on the dry ground.  You have never promised to take the “sea” away but You have promised to walk us through the mist of the “sea” on dry ground.  You have promised to never leave us or forsake us.  We cling to those promises today.  Help us to keep our thoughts in tune with You.  Thank You for Your unfailing love.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender your thoughts to Christ today.  Your thoughts are so powerful!

Love you all!

Have you seen the power of thought and how it affected you?  I would love to hear your story.  Share below.