The Book

Have  you ever really thought about the advantage we have in owning a Bible?

Think about it....a Person who wants to know us and already loves us, has given us a book telling us all about Him.

Nobody does that!  We don't get a manual from our future spouse when we make a commitment to marry.  Can you imagine that?  We'd be so far ahead of the game.  We'd know the right love language, how he thinks, what makes him angry, what brings him to tears, how he treats his mother! and children, what his morals and values are, what his willingness to sacrifice for us and our future family looks like, and on and on....

And speaking of family, what if they came with a book.....
        our in-laws,
                            our parents,
                                               our children.......our teenagers!

We have such an incredible advantage having this Living Word at our disposal.

If you don't know God or you think He's hard to figure out, lets be honest, do you really have any excuse?

We will read any other book to learn to do just about any other thing, but for some reason (can you say evil...pooh!), we're not always willing to invest our precious time into knowing the most important Person we will ever meet.

"And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ."    Philippians 1-10


Humbled by His mercy,
Deb 

More Gratitude

I was so fortunate to WIN a signed one thousand gifts by Ann Voskamp...what a  complete surprise!  That's the second time I've won a book from a blog and I'm not the winning type.  No million dollars from a McDonald's scratch off, no million dollar dream home from HGTV, nothin!!  But this book is so dear to my heart and I know the Lord knows that, so what a precious gift to receive while battling shingles, nonetheless.  I have it on my Kindle, but it's just not the same.  It's the kind of book that will be so marked up, so highlighted, so tear stained, so looooooooooooooooved, that an e-reader just can't cut the mustard.  Her poetic style of writing must be read slowly and digested in little bits.

As I attempt to record 1,000 things to be grateful for in this year, my mind is stretched to think beyond the obvious.  Grateful is good and I like the idea of developing that mindset.  But to take it a step further, and just like prayer, not necessarily get caught up in our circumstances, but be able to thank for the SEEING of God in our circumstances.

That way we wouldn't only be thanking for the good (in our limited vision) things, but also for the hard.

It's a broader view.  It's seeing with His eyes, which through the power of the Holy Spirit, is possible.

Having the Spirit of an overcomer, this should have been obvious to me, and I really think that in my heart it was, but my mind still wanted to just record the sunny day or the great meal or the new job.

How to record the peace and comfort pulled through the pain of my latest illness, the opportunity for stillness because I couldn't rush my physically ill body, the joy of a praise song that took my mind from the meaningless and moved it to meditation?

Lets sit with that.

It takes more time to see past the obvious.  Time with Him.

And would we be so inclined to take that time if everything was easy?  If everything sat on the surface and took no introspection?

Oh, how proud we would be, wouldn't we?

I hope you chew on that.  And I hope you check out Ann's book.  And her blog.



"Let the peace of Christ rule in your  hearts, since as members of one body you were  called to peace.  And be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.  And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."  Colossians 3:15-17


By His grace alone,
Deb 

The desire of my heart is to live in peace,
                                             taking every thought captive to Christ
                                                                                         therefore, no anxiety!,
and to leave a wake of healing in my path as I exit this world.

So my prayer is....Lord show me each and every day how to do this.  It may not look the same on a daily basis so let me be hypersensitive to Your Holy Spirit, listening and hearing Your good and perfect will.

"May He give you the desire of your heart

and make all your plans succeed.

We will shout for joy when you are victorious

and will lift up our banners in the

name of God.

May the Lord grant all your request."

Psalm 20:4-5

I've been healed by the love of God many, many times.


Believe it or not, there are things far more injurious than even cancer.  Wounds of the soul, that without The Healer, would remain open and raw for a lifetime.

I've seen it and you see it everyday.

He's taken my feet out of despair and despondency and depression.

He's lifted my soul out of poverty and purposelessness and pain.

And then covered my head with His redemption and righteousness and reason.

Like John, can we be a witness that testifies concerning The Light?

Can we step into this new year with so much love and forgiveness that the world will wonder?

Can we leave our expectations at the door and just listen?



"We can either listen to ourselves and our constantly changing feelings about our circumstances, or we can talk to ourselves about the unchanging truth of who God is and what He's accomplished for us at the cross through His Son Jesus."  C. J. Mahoney

Listening,
Deb

An Accidental Collection

Having been deemed the "religious one" in the family, I've been given all of the Bibles.  I've never been fond of the "religious" word (it's a relationship, not a religion), but if that's what it takes to acquire the coolest Bible collection ever, so be it.  I love the way they look.  I love all the sizes and shapes.  And most of all, I love the contents...priceless and alive!

 

Perfect as an art stand.

 Little bitty ones.

 Or to hold a precious picture.

Well, angels and Bibles, they just go together :)
 

Especially love the wear and tear.  It means someone else loved them too.

 And I love to decorate with books.  As you can see, I'm not above mixing genres if the colors work :)

And The Word was and The Word is and The Word will be!
Deb

Four years ago this day.....

Tuesday, December 18, 2007 8:43 PM, CST

Rev. 21:5 "He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then He said "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."

And yes, it was. A brand new day like none other. A precious gathering of family and friends (my Mattie, Ingrid, Liz and Emily). The chaplains calming presence lead us in a blessing service. It was emotional, beautiful, sacred and holy. Putting to rest the old and bringing in the new. She anointed my head with oil as she said, "You were born from the union of the life-giving blood of your parents. Now you are being called to receive the gift of life-giving blood anew. May the living hope that resides in that gift fill your heart and mind, as well as your body."
The Lord's prayer was read and very soon after the nurses came in with the "gift". A beautiful little red bag of life. We were hushed and still. Our eyes seemed to stayed pinned on it as it was hung on the IV pole. And then we waited. First some drops and then some more, until it finally filled the tubing and entered into my chest for all to see. How to describe the feeling of seeing life enter your body? My thoughts were focused on the indescribable gift that this family had given and the wonder that our God could gift humans with minds that have the ability and knowledge to accomplish such a feat.
I am restful, grateful, in the quiet, as everyone has gone. A good place to begin to take it in and look forward and wonder.
"The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord let His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26 

And this morning, as I read in Streams In The Desert, "God did not remove Paul's thorn in the flesh (2Cor. 12:7).  The Lord did something better.  He conquered it and made it Paul's servant.  The ministry of thorns has often been a greater ministry to humankind than the ministry of thrones.", I'm reminded that nothing is wasted!  He uses it all.

In His grip,

Deb

Cyber Monday....shop on my Rendi site!

 I am introducing my new business.....Rendi!
 
Rendi Style has everything from customized signs, to Christmas, birthday, wedding and anniversary presents to special gifts for grandparents, children, and ways to commemorate achievements and sweet ideas to encourage people you love, too! Rendi Style is a pretty awesome place to shop online, so I hope you’ll check it out!  It's also made in the USA and ships in 48 hours!

 And there are super cool sports items to customize in your school colors!

And don't forget...a portion of every purchase goes to charity:water, which brings clean drinking water to millions in Africa and India.  There's a drought people!

If you agree to host a party (either in person or virtual), you'll get a 1/2 price gift and credit towards products based on your party total.

Thanks in advance for taking a look at this amazing company....it's all good!!

Deb