Canaan’s Rest represents a quiet place “set apart” for the purpose of hearing God's voice, growing in intimacy with the Lord, and being renewed in soul and spirit.

Month: May 2026

May 2, 2026

Dear Ones, Hope you are having a great weekend. We had a lovely May Day party last night with May Pole decorations. I dressed in an authentic Swedish dance costume that was used to dance around the May Pole 35 years ago in Mora, MN.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
What does a woman of God look like? I tuned into Pastor Joby Martin online as he spoke from Proverbs 31 of a Godly woman. He has been talking to the men in the past five sessions, and I love his honest sharing and humility to tell even where he fails. But whether you are a woman or a man reading this, it is good to know more about the mystery of what it means to be a woman of God, for we are complicated as men would say.

Woman have a unique role as a helpmate, but are also meant to display the glory of God. A woman Is a gift to her husband, and he is to protect, love, and provide for her. A wife is to submit to her hubby (not to all men). To submit is to lower self to make more for someone else. As a wife, we are to be our husband’s number one encourager. He needs our respect, and what we say has great power. When Joby preaches, he doesn’t ask the elders or parishioners how he did, but he said most important are the words his wife says. We don’t realize how much our words impact our husbands: we are either a lift to him, bringing encouragement, or a lid that holds him back.

Hopefully, our husbands can trust in us and that we are supportive, and not one to expose all of their weaknesses. We are not to be nagging or think our husbands should be the answer to all our insecurities. We are not to compare ourselves with other women, and it doesn’t matter what is important in the eyes of the world like certain labels, a certain look, or having the latest things. We are to rest in God’s finished work in us, for our security is in the Lord, not in comparisons with others.

For both husbands and wives, we are not to keep score, but to forgive again and again. Love never quits and says it is not all about me, but to walk the way of His love that is patient, kind and loving.

Challenge for today: Read the love chapter ( I Corinthians 13) and ask the Lord to help you walk in love.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

May 1, 2026

Dear Ones, Happy weekend to you!! We had a big turnout for Bible study yesterday and good sharing. Today is another party day here and we are having a dinner party tonight! Emoji
Devotions from Judy’s heart
We all have fears, and some fears are beneficial so that we can respond to threats and escape a dangerous situation. But most are fears we need to overcome, and we need God’s grace to let go of them so that we might do all that God has called us to do. It’s good to honestly examine our fears and name them, so they can be dealt with rather than attempting to suppress them, for they don’t go away on their own. Something that is a fear for one person, may not bother another person at all. I am not afraid of spiders but if a bat flies in my room, I am out of there pronto!

Instead of suppressing our fears and avoiding situations that may bring on anxious thoughts, we need to not only name the fears, but do the opposite of what we would naturally want to do and face it…like if we fell off a horse, we should get back up again. The Bible gives so many examples of people who were afraid, and yet they went on to do what God asked them to do. The most common command in the Bible is to FEAR NOT. I think of Gideon and Abraham and Moses and Joseph, who were all told to do difficult things. They didn’t feel capable, but God graced them with His power to do what He asked of them.

I have had fears in my own life, and knew that in my own power I could not accomplish what God was asking of me. We are not to go in our own power, but to be empty of self, that God will fill us with His power. I pray that every week for Al before he goes to teach Bible study, as when we are empty, He can fill us with all that we need for what we are to do. Let us not be bound by our fears, but admit to them, face them, and go in the strength of the Lord. Even when we have times we fail, we can learn from much from our mistakes, knowing God still loves us and forgives.

Challenge for today: When the next situation comes up to cause fear, pause and pray and ask the Lord to help you through it, and go in His power.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

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