Dear Ones,
Happy weekend! Hope you have time to relax and get refreshed. This morning I studied and did food prep and made bars. This afternoon we are going to try out a new health store that just opened yesterday!  
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Is our soul centered in the Lord or are we double-minded and un-centered and tossed about? I am trying to be intentional about my own soul care, especially during this Lenten time; and as I read John Ortberg’s book, Soul Keeping, it is opening my eyes to see how important the care of my soul is. When our soul is without a center, we find it is hard to make decisions and we go back and forth without clarity. Ortberg writes that in that condition we are more vulnerable and often filled with fear and impatience, and easily thrown off balance. When we try to find our identity in externals rather than being centered in God, he compares it to building our house over a sinkhole and waiting to give way. It actually happened to a man in Florida 8 years ago when a sinkhole opened up beneath the family home; he and his house were swallowed up and he lost his life. How important it is to have a firm foundation in the Lord, and live from this deep Center. In order to keep centered, we can ask ourselves if a particular thing we are thinking or doing will block our soul’s connection to God or will it bring us closer. Sin blocks are relationship and the enemy tries to nudge us from our center. There are also times when we simply don’t take God into account; when difficulties arise, we just leave God out of the equation and try to manage on our own. But of course, it doesn’t work for we were meant to walk with God and to live our lives in Him; as we do so, we will find ourselves nurtured, healed and complete. It’s like our spiritual thirst that is quenched, for all of us were made to search for God. As David said in Psa. 63:1 (ESV), “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you.” God pursues us, He desires to be with us and I have to remind myself during the day to just enjoy Him as I do my work. I talk to Him while driving to exercise class and sing to Him, but there are periods of my day, that I am not consciously aware that He is right there with me. Ortberg’s challenge to me and hopefully also to you is: “How many moments of my life today can I fill with conscious awareness of and surrender to God’s presence?” Let’s do life centered in Him!
Challenge for today: Invite God into your day and take note how much of your day is with conscious awareness of Him.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy