Dear Ones,
Hope you are having a sunny day peace-filled day! This morning I made a big pot of stew and also more cookies on the stick for this weekend. Al and I went downstairs for coffee and muffins and this afternoon we have Bible Study here.
Devotions on Judy’s heart
Have you ever been to the Church of the Paul Bunyan Trail? I doubt it but Al and I attend nearly every day and come away uplifted. You might be wondering where is this church located and how many attend; so far there are only 4 regular members but many others who briefly come and go. The church is found wherever two or three are gathered in God’s name. The church is not a big cathedral but found in the Body of Christ gathered together in worship of our Lord. Each day Al and I go on the Paul Bunyan trail and we mostly share about the Lord as we walk along together. But one day Al made a humorous remark to a couple sitting on a bench along the trail and they weren’t quite sure what to think of him. Other days we passed them again and made conversation together each time. We got to know them a little more and one day David shared that they had just lost a son that month, his wife had memory problems and there were other trials in their lives. Al said we would pray for them but at the time we never realized how much that meant to them for they were going through so much. After that Al and I walked together the first half of our walk and then walked with them the last half each day. We began sharing together the beauty of God’s creation, and how we experienced the Lord. Sometimes it was a scripture shared, a song that spoke to us, a prayer that was answered, etc. We loved their openness to the Lord. Each day we felt so uplifted after our walk together for our hearts were being knit together and one day David shared it was just like, “Church of the Paul Bunyan Trail”. Since then, David has been doing some writing and part of what he wrote to Al expressed how he felt when he was a grieving father and felt overwhelmed in darkness. A small part of what he wrote said:
“Imagine no lifeline wandering in spiritual darkness, sinking in a runaway ship, no one to pray for you.
God thank you for bringing a spiritual counselor, whose faith and knowledge opens closed doors.
A light at night whose finest day is yet unknown.
Thank you, Jesus, for these blessings on me.”
He wrote to me also and I will cherish the words he expressed. Yes, each day we have church on the trail as we praise God together; I think of how sad it would be if we had passed up this opportunity that God sent our way. As King David sang in Psalm 145:2 (ESV), “Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever.”
Challenge for today: Ask the Lord for opportunities to share and fellowship with others along the way.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy