Let us become like little children

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them. Gen 1:27

Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven . Whoever receives one little child like this in my name receives Me. Matt 18:4-5

We come into this world with our eyes shut, and our fists closed, crying out. We came out of the womb afraid, not fully understanding , why we had to be pushed out of our quiet refuge. We were sheltered, connected ,all of our basic needs cared for. Then our eyes begin to open, and we start to focus on the one that created us, and provided our home. We come out craving, needing love, and warmth from our providers. "   God was there." For  you formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made." Psalm 139:13-14
He whispers in our heart, " I love you dear one, you are cherished.

We start to trust, start to love, start to thrive. Our journey has begun, and as we grow, we look to our parents for answers, and  guidance. Everything we know, and start to attain comes from them in the beginning. Our eyes are opening more. We are taught discipline, and that the only way to have peace is to accept it, even if it seems painful at the time, it is in our best interest. But we must remember they are parents still learning too, and they don't have all the answers, they will make mistakes. This becomes more clear as we get older, and start to experience pain, and disappointment, and rejection. Our vision becomes blurred, as we cry out why God, don't you love me, don't you care. And we stop listening to the voice of love, and replace it with the voice of fear. We start to forget who we are, and why we are here , and doubts start to fill us.

My sheep respond to my voice, and I know who they are . They follow me, and I give them eternal life. They will never be lost, and no one will tear them away from me. My Father , who gave them to me, is greater than anyone else, and no one can tear them away from my Father. The Father and I are one. John 10:27-30

A Father lays in bed, holding his babe in his arms, she is cradled, sheltered, she is loved.
As he holds her close,  he whispers into her ear, you are mine.

Oh how much the Father of lights is waiting with His arms wide open to carry us. Our parents are there to provide for only a short time. But the Good Shepherd has always been there. He is the One that has been carrying us, as our parents walked beside Him.

Let us stop  listening to the voice of doubt, and begin again to start to listen to the voice of Truth.
Only His perfect love can cast out all fear. Nothing can snatch us from the Father's hand, nothing can separate us from his love.

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalm 100:5

Let us come to Him as little children, with our hurts, and casts them at His feet. Let us trust the One that made us, and be conformed again to His image. The image of the Father, the image of Love.

Our God is an awesome God

Our God is an awesome God He reigns from heaven and earth with wisdom, power , and love, our God is an awesome God - lyrics by Michael W Smith


When I find myself drowning, and can barely get my head above water, my God is an awesome God.
When I don't know how I am going to pay my bills, my rent, what do I do, I usually fret. But When I cry out to Him, He hears me, and delivers me from all of my fears. When I feel myself being totally consumed by troubles, I cry out, and I cry our, and I cry out, My God is an awesome God.

When I think of the past, my failures, the things I should have said no to, but did anyways.
The lost time with my child, worrying to much if I am a good parent, and not trusting that God will help guide me. When I have allowed myself to struggle, and fret, and doubt God's goodness, I look, and what do I see outside, rain, thunder, and lightening, but the sun is shining, a rainbow comes into the sky, because I am supposed to walk by faith, not sight. I am supposed to trust, not doubt.

Why do I doubt, because of fear, why do I fear, because I have not allowed Him , to perfect me in love.  I have allowed my pain to become my identity, to define me, instead of identifying with Him.
I am a new creation in Christ, all things have passed away, and behold, all things are becoming brand new. I am a child of God, saved by the blood of the lamb, and by His stripes, I am healed. I am the woman at the well, I am the woman, diseased for years, I am the man born blind, but Jesus has opened my eyes, He has looked at my accuser the devil, and says to me, " Do not be overcome by evil , but overcome evil with good"  How do I overcome evil I cry out, and in my distress, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father, who is in heaven. 

How do I glorify you Lord, I press on, In order to gain life, you must lose it. How do I lose it?
Without faith, it is impossible to please God.

 My faith has been stretched over , and over. And God has always, been faithful, even when I was faithless. He has provided for all my needs, and even though my future is uncertain. I know He is holding me, in the  palms of His hands. He is my security when all seems uncertain. He is my Rock, and my refuge. He is the one that speaks over the storm, and turmoil, in me, and says Be still, and I am flooded with His peace. He says in this world, I will have trials, and tribulations, but I am to be of good cheer, because He has overcome the world.
He has overcome every fear, He has overcome every hurt, every hangup, every rejection, every time loneliness creeps in , and I feel the isolation , He has overcome that too. He says Come to me , all you who are weary, and burdened , and I will give you rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matt 11:28-29

So as I cast all my cares at His feet, something beautiful happens. Ashes are turned to beauty, the oil of joy is being poured on me, and filling me with hope, and I no longer  carry in my spirit heaviness .
Because Jesus has taken it, and replaced it, and everything that was once cracked , and broken, becomes whole. I take His hand, and He speaks abide in me, and I will abide in you, for apart from me you can do nothing. I am betrothed to Him forever, I am my beloveds and He is mine. He reaches down, picks me up, and I am lifted, I am well, I am His.

Cry out to the Lord and He will deliver us!

A voice cries in the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plane. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. - Isaiah 40:3-5

I, Lord, am a voice that is crying in the wilderness, surrounded on all sides, crushed and brought low. My strength is weak, and my heart is troubled. I need you dear Lord to lift me up, and carry me away, far away from all these troubles. Then a still small voice, I hear so gently whispers, you will have troubles, and you will have tribulations, but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world. 

A little bird sits on a tree branch, the storm is raging all around her, and her song echoes through the woods, with a hunger, and longing to reach higher, so  that her song might resonate in her Master's ears. The storm is starting to pick up, and the wind is howling more violently around her, she becomes hesitant. Overcoming her fear she starts to stretch her wings, aching from lack of use. She hears her beloved call to her, when you are weak, I am strong, and my strength is made perfect in your weakness.

Standing on her shaky perch, she takes off,  soaring within the storm, to a higher ground, a safer ground. She struggles desperately to find a safe place to be hidden, until the storm passes. Finding none she finally gives up, her wings start to droop, and she feels herself falling. But just before she hits the ground, she hears again, my yoke is easy, and my burden is light, and two strong arms catch her, hold her tenderly, and place her in the cleft of the rock.

Rocking back and forth, she wonders if she has been abandoned, and starts to fall into despair, and she hears again, I will never leave you, I will never forsake you, beloved, I have called you by name, you are mine. She turns around, fixing her eyes at last on her Creator, the one who fashioned her, molded her, gave her wings to fly. Love has sealed her, love has found her, and love will never let her go.

Abide in me, she hears again, cast all you cares upon me, for I care for you. You have cried out to me, and I have heard you, and delivered you from all of your fears.

Trust in the Lord

As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire

and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. - Isaiah 55:10-11

Trust me, the Lord says, I am not a man that I would lie. My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are my ways your ways, says the Lord. So why do I fight to trust, why do I struggle with doubt? He has delivered me from death's door, he has pulled me out of many deep, dark pits. He has washed me clean, by the blood of the lamb. He is my burden carrier, the lover of my soul, so why do I fear? The Lord said, to enter the Kingdom of heaven, we must become like little children, what does that mean?

   
It means trusting him with a pure heart: "blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt 5:8). My children trust me. When I say I am going to do something, they trust that I will follow though with what I say. He is our good shepherd, and we are the sheep of His pasture. Let us be still, listen to His voice, and be comforted knowing that He is a good Father, and the only one that can calm all our fears. 

Thank you Lord,

I am still now before you, my hands reaching out, my heart open as a child's heart, you are my Father, you wipe all my tears, and calm all my fears. Even in my distress, you never turn away, you are never too busy to hear me. I bow at your feet, and I praise you, that you are my Deliverer, and you will break and destroy every work of darkness that comes against me. Your banner over me is love.

In Jesus's name

Amen

Seek the Lord in Prayer

If my people who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked way, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. II Chronicles 7:14

 

  More times than I would like to admit, I have allowed worry and anxious thoughts consume my life.
I have felt ill from the stress and even needed to lay down.  But I simply cannot operate, and live my life like that any longer. I have children that are always watching me, always soaking up my patterns and behavior, good or bad. When I am anxious, they are anxious, when I am at peace, they are at peace . When I let my temper get the best of me, and let anger fill my heart, they follow in stride.
So I don't want my children to pick up on that; the solution, pray. Pray when I wake up in the morning, pray when their is a dispute among my children that I don't know how to solve, pray when I feel weak, pray when I feel like giving up on this whole Mother business, and skipping town. Pray when I don't feel like it, pray when I am even mad with God. God sees all my heart anyways, I can't hide anything from him. And when I pray something starts to happen, something starts to shift, and change, it's not the world, it's not my children, it's me. My heart becomes  open , all barriers are knocked down, the weapons that the enemy have tried to attack me with, are no longer effective. Jesus comes in, all present, all knowing, and floods my heart with his perfect peace. No weapon formed against me, or any of us will prosper, when we put on the full armor of God, and walk in victory, knowing that our Victor, has already fought the battle for us. Give it to Jesus, give it all and He will turn all your ashes into a beauty, that will never fade, never dry up, never die. The beauty of a contrite heart, that in turn becomes a fragrant aroma  to our Father in Heaven.    We can win every battle when we learn to fight it first on our knees to the Lord. He fights for us, and He will deliver us.

We Are Made to Worship Him

If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. II Chron 7:14

We are made to worship Him , we are made to praise His name, but many times in my life, I have allowed myself to be ruled, and controlled by fear. His perfect love has cast off, and removed all fear.
I no longer need to spend any more wasted time worrying if He loves me, worrying that I have disappointed Him, yet again. He loves me in spite of myself, in spite of all my faults, He has delivered me from death's grip, and the defeating lies, that I have listened  longer than I should have.
I am a daughter of the Most High, clothed in righteousness of Christ, and written in the lamb's book of life. He is my comforter, when I have no strength left in me. When the winds an the waves are crashing around me, He is there. He speaks be still, and I find I am hidden, safely away, under the shadow of His wings. When I lay my head on my pillow, and feel the weight of the world on my shoulders, I give my cares to my Lord, and He gives me His peace, my heart fills with joy overflowing.

Thank you Lord,

Father, I am always grateful for your love that gives me confidence, and security.
I am being renewed day by day, by the resurrected power of Christ. /I am being brought
into your kingdom of light, and I can say with confidence, I am the righteousness of God in Christ. Thank you for your mercy that is new every morning, that you are faithful when I have been faithless.
I love you, and I worship at your feet.

In Christ name
Amen

Seek First the Kingdom of Heaven

Look at the birds in the sky! They don't plant or harvest. They don't even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren't you worth more than birds Can worry make you live longer. Seek first the kingdom of heaven and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. Matt 6:26-27, 33

The Mother wren came back to her nest in my window sill again this year. I watched her for a couple of weeks, and her newborn birds  finally hatched one fine morning. But something was terribly wrong. Two of the babies were outside the nest, and shortly after one fell to the ground. I scolded my cat for thinking that her dinner had arrived, and made her get the bird away from her mouth. I picked up the precious little bird, held her gingerly in my hand, and needed to explain to the children the little bird, will not make it through the night. I told my son we will have a service for her in our backyard, when he gets home from school the next day. The next day came, and I picked up my son from school, he eagerly wanted to get home, so we can have the service for his little bird friend. He took the box, and opened it, and to all of our great surprise the little bird was still alive. Her breaths were shallow, and she looked quite weak. I felt such guilt, thinking she was dead, I didn't place her back in the nest sooner. Nonetheless God wanted this bird to survive. I took her frail , little body, and as gently put her back in her nest. My son and I  prayed for that little bird that night, that she would live, and the Mother wren would return. I woke up to the sound of small cheeps, and looked through my window, and there she was feeding her babies, she stopped , and looked at me for just a second, and then flew off to gather more food for her little ones. Close to death, yet all she needed was to return to the  nest, and receive comfort, and nourishment only her Mother could give.  Hidden back inside the womb of  the  nest she lived, inside the nest, she thrived. That is how the Lord wants us to be. If He cares so much even for this little bird, how much more does He care for us. The only way for us to live, the only way for us to thrive is to be hidden in Christ, under the refuge of His wings. He is our shelter, from all the raging storms that try to swallow us whole.

Thank you Lord,

that you are our shelter, our peace, our ever present help in time of need.
We can cry out to you, and you hear us, and deliver us from all our fear.
Thank you for loving us, for abiding with me, for saving me, and carrying me
to the shelter under the shadow of your wings.

In Jesus name
Amen

I cried to the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me out of the pit!

To the roots of the mountains, I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. You brought my life up from the pit, O lord my God. Jonah 2:6

A young girl finds that she had fallen into a very deep well, she doesn't know how long she was there
or even how she got there, all she knows is that she is stuck. Like a bird in a cage, at first she flounders around looking for a quick escape, the easy way is really so much easier said that done.She spends so much time worrying and in such a great sense of constant anxiety, she doesn't know that  peace is so close, so near, she can almost touch it, yet feels like it is always achievable.

At last she finds a ladder, inconspicuous , she is relieved, finally she will be free. She starts climbing, higher and higher she goes, one more rung, and I will be there she ponders, but painstakingly , each rung only becomes more tiring, more weary, and she becomes discouraged. She at last reaching what she thinks is the top, but there are 20 more rungs nonetheless , she must climb. Let go she hears a still small voice say, it's okay, I will catch you, don't worry. She fights this at first , I can't let go I am almost there she screams into the darkness, just leave me alone. I can do it, I am almost there. Just trust me, I will catch you if you fall, I will carry you to safety. The exhausted girl takes a deep breath, and let's go. In a state of panic, she realizes that she is fallen, she has let go, and she will break when she reaches the ground. She closes her eyes, accepting the tragedy that will be the death of her, but to her surprise she feels two strong arms catch her midway down. She holds on for dear life, eyes still closed, heart still racing. She opens her eyes again, and she is standing on a rock, looking down, and that great well, that almost crushed her. Inside she feels crushed too, even though she never hit the bottom, she feels something shattered inside, she takes off running, faster and faster she runs, hoping that running will make her feel free again. She suddenly stops short, and there he is a few hundred feet away. His gaze meets her eyes, and she looks away, in shame.

 But His eyes are piercing, and as he gazes at her something miraculous starts to happen, she starts to feel herself become whole again, all her brokenness she carried starts to lift, and as she looks more at this person she starts to feel waves hitting her one after the next, Love is coming, it's being poured out over all her wounds, it's seeping into the crevices and cracks. As she looks at His pierced hands, she stares at her own. His hands start to become her hands, and His story is now hers. She is His beloved, and He is hers. Her deliverer, the one that pulled her out of the pit, the one that has been singing over her from the moment she was conceived, has now become her salvation. She is not afraid any more, for His perfect love, has vanquished all of her fears, she is clothed in a robe of righteousness, she looks down at her old cloak , dirty, ridden with all her shame, and she looks up at Jesus, perfect love, and now upright, confident that her life was, always has been, and always will be in his hands  

Taste and see that the Lord is good!

Oh taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8

I woke up this morning and walked down stairs to fix my coffee, and glanced over at my roses
that my husband had purchased for my birthday.They were off red by now, and their beautiful hue they once held was fading away, but yet I wasn't ready to get rid of them just yet. I bent down to smell them, thinking to myself that these dead blossoms probably do not have any aroma left, to my surprise they did. Their fragrance, was actually stronger. How lovely that even though these beautiful blossoms were starting to crumble and decay, yet they smelled sweeter than before.                            

         
When we fully surrender to Christ and allow him to do a transforming work in our lives, the self
with all its pride starts to crumble away, and what's left is a sweet aroma of Christ to those that are perishing, But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.

For we are to God the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one, we are an odor of death and demise; to the other, a fragrance that brings life. And who is qualified for such a task?… 2 Cor 14-16

Dear Lord,

I thank you for your redemption in my life, that I am sanctified in Christ, and it is no longer I that live, but Christ that lives in me. You are life, the Alpha, and Omega, the beginning and the end. Take my life, and use me for your service, remove all the old chips of sin off of me, so in turn I may be a fragrant aroma of Christ to those that desperately need you. I bow down at your feet today Lord, and 
praise you for being my Healer, and Deliverer, and snatching me from the clutches of death, and into your glorious light.

-In Christ
Amen

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians12:9

I lay in my bed, consumed by my problems, I feel myself becoming weaker, and weaker. I am surrounded by my fears, my failures. I have disappointments, yes. I have yelled at the kids today, lost my patience, on more than one occasions, made decisions based on guilt. I have been resentful at my husband, and carried petty offenses, gone to bed angry, when I needed to ask for forgiveness.

But there is one thing that is certain, forgetting what lies behind me, and straining forward to the goal, with my eyes fixed on my Master, the author, and finisher of my faith. When I am weak, I lean on him, when I am down, I need only to look up, and let Him catch me.. I may be sinking at times, but his hands are big enough to hold me up. He opens up His hands, and satisfies the desire of every living thing. He will not abandon me, He will not forsake me. He is my refuge, and strength, my very present help in time of need! I can cast my cares on Him, because He cares for me. My faith is not based on circumstances, my faith is not based, on my personal comfort. My faith is based and firmly planted on the lover of my soul. who has gone to battle and won. No weapon ever formed against me will prosper, no scheme of the evil one can crush me, because I am His, and was bought with a steep price. By His stripes I am healed, and His strength, will always be made perfect in my weakness.

Dear Lord,

This Passover season, I ask you to purge all the leaven/sin from my heart, that I may stand 

boldly before your throne, asking and seeking you in a dry, and barren place.

For you are my stream in the desert, my spring in the valley. You are faithful, and never 

leave us Fatherless. You are gracious, and daily forgive all my sins, that pile up. My guilt

is atoned for, my spirit is renewed, as I am washed clean in the blood of the lamb. It is only

by His stripes, I am made whole. 

The Mother Wren and Her Children

A mother wren made a nest in my window. I discovered this one morning,when I heard little chirping sounds coming from that direction. I had the pleasure of watching this sweet bird, along with her male counterpart, feed these precious babies. They never tired as they continually fed the hungry brood, all five of them. They must have been terrified of me, because anytime the mother wren spotted me, she flew away.

After several glorious weeks of waking up to the baby birds, the time finally came for them to leave their nest. One by one they started poking their little heads out. There was only one problem: They were stuck between the window and screen. The mother originally was able to get through to feed her babies because their was a hole in the screen, but the babies did not realize that they needed to get through the hole as well. So one by one they started leaving the nest and climbing up my window screen. The mother and father wren started getting into a panic, They continued to fly to the screen bringing food, and pecking at the window, but to no avail, they could not help their babies escape.
 

I called a  good friend, and she came over quickly. I got a cardboard box, opened the window, put the little birds in the box, and carried them outside. One little bird managed to escape the box inside my house, and I gingerly picked her up. She sat in the palm of my hand only for a few seconds while I carried her out, and then flew away to find  a new home . . . and one day to make a nest of her own,

The birds reminded me so much of human parents. We only have our children with us for a short time. During their stay, we feed them, clothe them, and take care of their daily, and spiritual needs. When it's time for them to leave the nest, the enemy make put a stumbling block in their path, to prevent them from seeing where the path is, even if it is right in front of them. As parents we may become panicked seeing our children suffer. But nevertheless, we cannot help them escape, they must find their own way. We can only pray, and put them in the Lord's hands, because ultimately they were His before they were ours. When we think all is lost, and their is no way out. the Good Shepherd sends help their way. His loving hands swoop down and carry them to safety.

Then he said to His disciples: "Therefore I tell you don't worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body , what you will wear. For life is more than food and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they don't sow or reap; they don't have a storeroom or a barn; yet God feeds them. aren't you worth more than birds? Can any of you add a cubit to his height by worrying . If then you're not able to do a little thing why worry about the rest?" (Luke 12:24-26)      

Dear Heavenly Father,

You have given me the gift of three precious children. They have brought much joy
to my life, and at times heartache too. I want to not just care for the earthly needs, but
also feed them spiritually. Help me Lord, teach me Your ways, come along side me, help
me to be still, and allow Your Holy Spirit to be my guide. On my own strength I will fail, but
in you I will soar. How I adore You, Lord; You are my maker. You are the Potter, and I am the clay, and my children are the works of your hands.

In Christ's precious name,
Amen