Thunderstorms

A Child's View of Thunderstorms......

A little girl walked to and from school daily.

Though the weather that morning was questionable and clouds were forming, she made her daily trek to the elementary school..

As the afternoon progressed, the winds whipped up, along with lightning.

The mother of the little girl felt concerned that her daughter would be frightened as she walked home from school and she feared the electrical storm might harm her child.

Full of concern, the mother quickly

Got into her car and drove

Along the route to her child's school.

As she did, she saw her little girl walking along

At each flash of lightning, the child would stop, look up, and smile.

Another and another flash of lighting followed quickly and with each, the little girl would look at the streak of light and smile.

When the mother's car drew up beside the child, she lowered the window and called to her

"What are you doing?"

The child answered,

"I am trying to look pretty because God keeps taking my picture."

May God bless you today and everyday
As you face the storms that come your way.

Just have a good day!

Christian One Liners

Don't let your worries get the best of you;
Remember, Moses started out as a basket case.

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Some people are kind, polite, and sweet-spirited
Until you try to sit in their pews.

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Many folks want to serve God,
But only as advisers.

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It is easier to preach ten sermons
Than it is to live one.

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The good Lord didn't create anything without a purpose,
But mosquitoes come close.

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When you get to your wit's end,
You'll find God lives there.

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People are funny; they want the front of the bus,
Middle of the road,
And back of the church.

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Opportunity may knock once,
But temptation bangs on the front door forever.

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Quit griping about your church;
If it was perfect, you couldn't belong.

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If a church wants a better pastor,
It only needs to pray for the one it has.

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We're called to be witnesses, not lawyers or Judges.

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Some minds are like concrete
Thoroughly mixed up and permanently set...

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Peace starts with a smile.

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I don't know why some people change churches;
What difference does it make which one you stay home from?

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A lot of church members singing 'Standing on the Promises'
Are just sitting on the premises.

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Be ye fishers of men. You catch 'em - He'll clean 'em.

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Stop, Drop, and Roll won't work in Hell.

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Coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous.

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Don't put a question mark where God put a period.

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Don't wait for 6 strong men to take you to church.

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Forbidden fruits create many jams.

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God doesn't call the qualified,
He qualifies the called.

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God grades on the cross, not the curve.

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God loves everyone,
But probably prefers 'fruits of the spirit' over 'religious nuts!'

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God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage. ;

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He who angers you, controls you!

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If God is your Co-pilot, swap seats!

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Prayer:
Don't give God instructions, just reportfor duty!

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The task ahead of us is never as
great as the Power behind us.

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The Will of God never takes you to where the
Grace of God will not protect you.

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We don't change the message,
The message changes us.

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You can tell how big a person is
By what it takes to discourage him.

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The best mathematical equation I have ever seen:
1 cross + 3 nails = 4 given.

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Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to
dance in the rain.

It's Not About Me

So looking back and thinking back, I am brought back to the favorite comment a lot of Christians tend to make, "It's Not About Me." That's a great comment but what does it really mean in today's world, where everything is about Me, Me, Me.

In therapy you focus on yourself, in the world we often focus on ourselves. Where is the balance? How can we be Christians, focusing on God and yet still be focusing on ourselves. Would this not be considered to be dual-minded? My thoughts on this is that this is where we touch on religion versus relationship. Religion says don't focus on anything but God. Yet in God's word we are to have a Godly view of ourselves, and not to think of ourselves more than we should.

I think the balance comes in when we can embrace a Godly view of ourselves, and yet still know that our plans are not to be about us, but to be about what God wants from us. What does God want??? God want's us to believe in Him, to believe that He sent his son to Die for our sins. He wants us to be obedient to His Word, and to live in such a way as to draw others to Him, not push them away. He wants more than anything for us to Love others to Christ. That is so much more important to him than what we do for a living, or what car we drive or what someone might think. Can't we simplify our lives enough to simply Love one another and through that love to draw others to Christ.

Beattitudes for Parents

This was in my TCT Devotional today and I wanted to share.

Sunday May 10 – Mother‟s Day

“Children…learn…from their parents.” Ephesians 5:1 TM

“Beatitudes for parents”

A mathematics teacher who agreed to baby-sit while her friend went shopping, left her
this note: “Dried tears 11 times…tied shoelaces 15 times…blew up balloons, 5 per child…
warned kids not to cross the street 26 times…kids insisted on crossing the street 26 times.
Number of Saturdays I‟ll volunteer to do this again – Zero!” The following “Beatitudes for
Parents” were written 45 years ago by Marion E. Kinneman when her daughters were raising her
six grandsons. They‟re still spot-on!
Blessed are those who make peace with spilled milk and mud, for of such is the kingdom
of childhood. Blessed is the parent who engages not in the comparison of his child with others,
for precious unto each is the rhythm of his own growth. Blessed are those who have learned to
laugh, for it‟s the music of a child‟s world. Blessed and mature are those who without anger can
say “No,” for comforting to a child is the security of firm decisions. Blessed is the gift of
consistency, for it brings heart‟s-ease in childhood. Blessed are they who accept the
awkwardness of growth, for they are aware of the choice between marred furnishings and
damaged personalities. Blessed are the teachable, for knowledge brings understanding and
understanding brings love. Blessed are the men and women, who in the midst of the unpromising
mundane, give love, for they bestow the greatest of all gifts to each other, to their children, and –
in an ever-widening circle – to their fellowmen.” One successful entrepreneur said, “I may be a
self-made man, but the blueprints came from my mom and dad.” Bottom line:
“Children…learn…from their parents.” What‟re you teaching yours?

What actions can I take to overcome the challenges in my life?

The question for this week is:

What actions can I take to overcome the challenges in my life?

If our confidence is in Christ rather than ourselves, we are free to develop our potential, because we are free from the fear of failure.

We are free to develop our potential because of what God has done through Christ for us!

What holds me back....

What holds me back from trying new experiences?

Being totally transparent, I would have to say that fear holds me back most of the time. Fear of failure, fear of success, fear of the unknown, fear of what others would think. So what is fear....the feeling of being afraid. Also known as FALSE EVIDENCE APPEARING REAL. Often times what we are worried about never comes to pass, and yet we constantly fight fear, even though we are told to "fear not." We need to learn not to let the fear control us but to push pass the fear and do whatever it is every way.

Esther: Session 3~Reflections

I was able to sit in on the Beth Moore study, Esther: It's Tough Being A Woman, on Sunday. Now that was pretty interesting. I don't have the work book yet, and I started in on Session 3 because I was initially not going to join this study because of my job. So I only have the viewers guide and the notes that I took from the video session. But looking over them and thinking about how I would feel in that situation, I've gotten a better look at how it must have felt to be in Esther's shoes. Just thought I would share with you what I've come up with. The things in bold are some statements that she made in the beginning that I found important.

God pivots our lives on the heels of a crisis, it is essential for the journey.
Your destiny will always involve a group of people
There is human dilemma in destiny

Seclusion=false sheltering

My insights:

Esther was probably miserably unhappy. She's living a lie. Her fairy tale turned into her biggest nightmare. She's probably having major issues feeling good about herself because she must feel discarded...it's been 30 days since she had been called to see the King (Esther 4:11). All she wants is all any of us want, for someone to take care of us and love us. (She probably has serious abandonment issues, having lost her parents at an early age (Esther 2:7)). Feeling powerless to do anything about feeling this way, maybe she even feels forgotten by God.

Then she hears this message from Mordecai, this must leave her terrified of losing Mordecai as well. (Esther 4:14) She must feel overwhelmed and unworthy to have the fate of the Jews resting on her tiny, unwanted shoulders. The burden must seem crushing.

There was a risk in approaching the king (Esther 4:11), a bigger risk to admit to being a Jew, even if she lived after approaching the king....possibly sealing her own fate because of it. It must have been tempting to think of not approaching the King and telling him the truth. She had a "false shelter" inside the kings gate, unknowing of the danger to her people.

She was now being forced to air the secret that she before had been forced to keep. I can only imagine the fear of what others would think, of what the king would think. The possible shame and feeling as though she were less than as she had to brace herself to share her secret. In fact while revealing that secret she must have feared her world would be falling apart.

Questions for discussion

I really want to make my blog more interactive. So at least once a week I'm going to post a question for you to answer. Please share your answers in your comments. I will also answer...however in a separate post from the initial question, because I don't want to influence your own answers to the questions. Until I think of a cute catchy name for this I'm going to stick with simply Questions for discussion.

First Question

What holds me back from trying new experiences?

57 Cents

A little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it was 'too crowded.' I can't go to Sunday School,' she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by. Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand,took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday school class. The child was so happy that they found room for her, and she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus. Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor tenement buildings.. Her parents called for the kindhearted pastor who had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements. As her poor little body was being moved, a worn and crumpled red purse was found which seemed to have been rummaged from some trash dump. Inside was found 57 cents and a note, scribbled in childish handwriting, which read: 'This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School.' For two years she had saved for this offering of love. When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note and the cracked, red pocketbook to the pulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion.. He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building. But the story does not end there...A newspaper
learned of the story and published It. It was read by a wealthy realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands. When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered to sell it to the little church for 57 cents. Church members made large donations. Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little
girl's gift had increased to $250,000.00--a huge sum for that time (near the turn of the century). Her unselfish love had paid large dividends.

When you are in the city of Philadelphia , look up Temple Baptist Church, with a seating capacity of 3,300. And be sure to visit Temple University, where thousands of students are educated. Have a look, too, at the Good Samaritan Hospital and at a Sunday School building which houses hundreds of beautiful children, built so that no child in the area will ever need to be left outside during Sunday school time. In one of the rooms of this building may be seen the picture of the sweet face of
the little girl whose 57 cents, so sacrificially saved, made such remarkable history. Alongside of it is a portrait of her kind pastor, Dr. Russell H. Conwell, author of the book, 'Acres of Diamonds'.

This is a true story, which goes to show WHAT GOD CAN DO WITH 57 CENTS.

May today there be peace within.
May you trust your highest power that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content knowing you are a child of God.
Let this presence settle into our bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing and dance. It is there for each and every one of you.

The Grocery List

Louise Redden, a poorly dressed lady with a look of defeat on her face, walked into a grocery store.

She approached the owner of the store in a most humble manner and asked if he would let her charge a few groceries.

She softly explained that her husband was very ill and unable to work, they had seven children and they needed food.

John Longhouse, the grocer, scoffed at her and requested that she leave his store at once.

Visualizing the family needs, she said: 'Please, sir! I will bring you the money just as soon as I can.'

John told her he could not give her credit, since she did not have a charge account at his store.

Standing beside the counter was a customer who overheard the conversation between the two. The customer walked forward and told the grocer that he would stand good for whatever she needed for her family. The grocer said in a very reluctant voice, 'Do you have a grocery list?'

Louise replied, 'Yes sir' 'O..K' he said, 'put your grocery list on the scales and whatever your grocery list weighs, I will give you that amount in groceries.'

Louise hesitated a moment with a bowed head, then she reached into her purse and took out a piece of paper and scribbled something on it.. She then laid the piece of paper on the scale carefully with her head still bowed.

The eyes of the grocer and the customer showed amazement when the scales went down and stayed down.

The grocer, staring at the scales, turned slowly to the customer and said begrudgingly, 'I can't believe it.'

The customer smiled and the grocer started putting the groceries on the other side of the scales. The scale did not balance so he continued to put more and more groceries on them until the scales would hold no more.

The grocer stood there in utter disgust Finally, he grabbed the piece of paper from the scales and looked at it with greater amazement.

It was not a grocery list, it was a prayer, which said: 'Dear Lord, you know my needs and I am leaving this in your hands.'

The grocer gave her the groceries that he had gathered and stood in stunned silence.

Louise thanked him and left the store. The other customer handed a fifty-dollar bill to the grocer and said; 'It was worth every penny of it Only God Knows how much a prayer weighs.'

Making Pancakes

Making Pancakes ~

Six -year-old Brandon decided one Saturday morning to fix his parents
pancakes He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter,
opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it
on the floor.

He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most
of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the
floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten.

Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to
be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad.

He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on
the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked! Suddenly he saw his
kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away,
knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up
this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white
and sticky. And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled
up in Brandon 's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something good, but he'd
made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a
spanking. But his father just watched him.

Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him
and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process!


That's how God deals with us.. We try to do something good in life, but
it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky, or


We insult a friend, or we can't stand our job, or our health goes sour.
Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything
else to do.. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us,
even though some of our mess gets all over Him.

But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to 'make
pancakes' for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and
then they'll be glad we tried.

I was thinking and I wondered if I had any wounds needing to be healed,
friendships that need rekindling, or three words needing to be said,
sometimes, 'I love you' can heal and bless!

Even if you think they won't love you back, you would be amazed at what
those three little words, a smile, and a reminder like this can do.
Just in case I haven't told you lately....

' I LOVE YA! '

suppose one morning you were called to God; do all your friends and
family know you love them?

So never stop

'Making Pancakes..