New Year's Blessing

About three years ago I noticed a definite lack in our holidays. Granted, the outside world puts continual emphasis on the commercial side of things and always delivers an emotional spin, but I thought we kept Christ in the center of our celebrations. However, I noticed that we ran from one invitation to another, from one house to another for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's and Easter.

Each event had the traditional format: friends, family, food, presents, and some indication of God's part, usually a prayer before dinner.

I missed worship, deep thankfulness, dependence and acknowledgment of Christ. The business of the season left out the reason for living and I longed for peaceful moments with Him. So I instituted a tradition called the 'Spiritual Side'.

Our Spiritual Thanksgiving included gathering around communion in my kitchen. We each took a turn to thank God for that year and our lives. This year my grandchild was old enough to participate. That little tidbit surprised me. We sang songs like Jesus Loves Me, Joy Down In My Heart and others she recognized. She led us through each song at the top of her voice. Then she thanked God for each person, all the pets, our world and Jesus. What a blessing.

Our Spiritual Christmas is a morning brunch in a nice restaurant. It can be held any day in December to allow my children freedom for traditions of their own. After the brunch we return to the kitchen and appreciate Christ, the Christmas story, communion and presents...in that order.

Our Spiritual Easter is called 'Miracle Celebration'. Once again, in the morning, we gather around the table for prayer and communion. Our conversation centered on the miracles of God and the specific miracles He preformed in our lives during the year. Then we visit and enjoy one another's company till each leaves for their next Easter moment with others.

Our Spiritual New Year's, the celebration of tomorrow, gathers in my living room on New Year's Day. We ask God for His guidance for the year, lay hands on each other for healing and speak a blessing. Each person is individually prayed over in turn. This year, as you might suspect, I look forward to what my grandchild will say. Out of the mouths of babes...

May your year be filled with health, wealth of every kind, moments with God that change your life and peace, His peace.

Peace on Earth 2006

We have all, I am sure, come to the conclusion that peace on earth comes when people on earth choose to connect to the Prince of Peace. We celebrate HIM today, and thank HIM today for giving the gift of HIMSELF to us....our only hope of Peace on Earth.

Connections of Peace:

In happy moments ....Praise HIM
In difficult moments...Seek HIM
In quiet moments.......Worship HIM
In painful moments....Trust HIM
Every moment............Thank HIM

Lets remember as we proceed to 2007 that: thoughts become words, words become actions, actions become habits, habits become values, and values become our destiny. May that destiny find us all in Peace, HIS peace.

Merry Christmas

Donna May

His love endures forever.

This is hard to imagine. God loves us with and everlasting love that never fails regardless? That's how it looks to me. Psm 136 mentions enduring love 26 times. That doesn't include the countless other scripture references to His love for us. Eph 2:4 tells me that because of and in order to satisfy His great intense love for us, Christ died to save us from sin. Great intense love. Then there are verses like Matt 1:21; John:3:16; I John 4:10-17; I Cor. 16:10.
He loves me.

Have you ever noticed a child that knows their loved verses a child that does not. The loved child receives and gives out love freely. It is that way with us too. When we realize how loved we are, we risk loving others. The secrete is to allow Abba to love us, to believe in and receive this great intense love. I've discovered it actually heals me every where I hurt. It even, at times, causes love to burst out when trials squeeze an all sides.

There was a song yrs ago that said 'what the world needs now is love sweet love'. That is what the world needs now. God's Agape love heals us all every where we hurt. When this takes place in us, the search for love in all the wrong places, the drive to posses, the need for power and addictions from lust of the eyes and flesh cease. When our need for love, value and acceptance is met by His love, that love searches for an outlet Eph 2:4.

May you all realize and experience His great intense love this Christmas. Merry Christmas

Gossip a Killer

Gossip, what a killer. It slips up on us and before we know it we have whispered a little morsel of stuff about another. What a destroyer. Destroyer, sound familiar? Maybe the Destroyer is at work?

Gossip is akin to murder. It assassinates the character of an unsuspecting individual. Totally void of integrity or love, joy, peace, kindness, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control (attributes of the Holy Spirit who lives in us). Actually, it is totally void of Christ, the One we say we love, worship and serve. Yet we all do it to one another all the time. Oh, we preface with: we need to lift her or him up in prayer, she... and then we have at it.

The problems that come out of gossip:

• Promotes prejudice that spreads to all who hear (fear, hate, unkind actions)
• Separates family members and friends (pride, hurt feelings, isolates, shuns)
• Unhealthy for the one who delivers and listens
• Kills, harms, destroys
• Not profitable in any way

The scriptures indicate strongly that we need to bridle the tongue. It can kill and wound like a sword, devour, deliver wickedness, talk proud, destroy, be a poison, speak guile, and backbite. Check out lips and tongue in Psalms, Proverbs. James and 1 Peter and let the Lord work in your heart as He did mine.

Oh the tongue, that we would use it to build, encourage, praise and worship... not destroy.
I have once again been reminded through scripture to watch the tongue and to repent. Join me.

Protect the children

Please protect the children. The media leaves a wake of negative thinking, fear, lust, lies, prejudice and a host of other wrong messages through cartoons, movies, pictures, games and even some Christian stories if not age appropriate.

Questions to ask yourself:

• Does my child wake at night with nightmares?
• Do they hide their eyes several times when watching a film?
• Is the media vehicle age appropriate?
• Do they even understand the movie or story?
• Do you see new habits, words, dress, as a result of media?
• Does it promote faith and trust in Christ?

Proverbs 23:7 As a man thinks in his heart so is he.

2 Corinthians 10:5 Cast down imaginations.

The Christian walk rests on faith and trust in Christ. Fear, lust, and pride, a definite danger found in the media, interferes with the depth of faith and trust needed to live a healthy Christian life. What do your children see, hear, think, feel as a result of the media in their world? Please protect the children.

Welcome

May the Lord bless you and keep you. May He make His face shine upon you and give you peace.