Canaan's Rest

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.

Category: Sister Judy (Page 111 of 277)

July 19, 2022

July 19, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you awakened to a faith-filled day! Your question this week is simply, “Do you think you are growing in your faith or do you feel stuck?”
Devotions from Judy’s heart
   If we were asked whether or not we are growing in our faith what would our answer be?  Would we say we are actively pursuing the Lord and His will, or would we have to admit that we are rather complacent and no longer moving forward
   We have been given the Holy Spirit to help us in our faith journey and He is our counselor and guide, but we must listen to Him as He speaks into our lives. Often, he brings conviction to our hearts and we need to respond and not just hang on to our guilt but rather agree with Him and repent. On the other hand, the enemy wants us to go around discouraged and ashamed and stay stuck in our guilt instead of allowing the Holy Spirit to free us and make us new. 
   We listened to the most beautiful and powerful testimony of a close friend as he spoke at the Lighthouse last Sunday. We heard he was going to speak and we were greatly blessed as we went to hear him. When he went up front, he had his Bible and notes, a bottle of water, and a box of Kleenex, and I think we all needed the Kleenex before he was through. What impressed me, is that he didn’t sugarcoat his life and say that he was a new man overnight and has followed the Lord ever since; but he told of the many ways he had failed and couldn’t fix himself but had to surrender to the Lord each time and ask forgiveness and His mercy. There were times when he strayed and the Holy Spirit would call him back in different ways, and He experienced God’s grace over and over.  
   We read in scripture how men and women of God fell, just like us, and did many things they were not proud of but asked forgiveness. King David cried out for mercy after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and in Psalm 51 asks forgiveness as he knew he had really sinned against God. He wanted to be cleansed and restored and given a renewed spirit. Let us not keep graveling over things we have done in the past but go right to God and ask forgiveness and be made right before Him. Then we can continue to grow in our love for the Lord and not get stuck or go backwards.
  Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to make you  sensitive to the Holy Spirit when He brings conviction and create in you a clean heart.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

 

July 18, 2022

July 18, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you had a great weekend! We enjoyed our time at the cabin with family and weather was lovely for a swim, sauna, and Pontoon ride. We heard an inspiring message at The Lighthouse yesterday and then  dinner at Ann’s with my sister and hubby too.  So many blessings!
Devotions from Judy’s heart
  How is our joy barometer? Do we wake in the morning with joy in our hearts that says, “This is the day you have made, Lord, and I am rejoicing in it?!”  Or do we wake saying, “Another day with so much to do, I wonder how I am going to trudge through it?!” Quite a difference in how our day will unfold.
   If we have a joy-filled attitude, we find it will affect our whole day for good. It can help us get through the rough spots and still maintain peace and a positive outlook. If we are lagging in such an attitude, there are some things that will help us get an attitude change and on the path way of joy.
   We can begin to thank the Lord for the many ways He has poured out blessing upon blessing on us and how He has been with us in the past. Like it says in Isaiah 61:10 a (God’s Word), “I will find joy in the Lord, I will delight in my God. He has dressed me in the clothes of salvation. He has wrapped me in the robe of righteousness.” The fact that we have received Him and have salvation is greatest cause for rejoicing. For we not only have joy in this life, we will have it forever more.
  We also can read the Psalms and let the words of the Psalmist be our words to the Lord. I like to read at least Psalm every day and they cover every mood we may have and help us get our focus on the Lord. David so often told the Lord his woes of his enemies breathing down on him but then he remembers the Lord is with Him and gives praise.
   At times we may want to sing songs of praise to the Lord or recite hymns or even dance before the Lord. Or if we have a rebounder, we can bounce and praise and sing at the same time.
  We can journal and write down the many things we are grateful for and keep adding to the list.
  The Lord wants to put a song in our hearts and let His joy fill us to overflowing each day.
 Challenge for today: Write down 10 things you are thankful for and rejoice in the Lord.
Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

 

 

 

July 16, 2022

July 16, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
  Happy weekend to you! We are going to the lake this morning and stopping on the way to see a friend. Weather looks warm and we plan to stay overnight. We love waking to a view of the lake through the glass doors at the foot of our bed, and it is camping in nature with comfort! Emoji
 Devotions from Judy’s heart
   How are our churches faring today in our culture where everything goes? Sadly, to say, many churches are aligning with our culture rather than with the Word of God. Chad Napier writes and asks the question, “Is your church losing its convictions?” He states that “a conviction is a concrete belief or stance that the church or individual believer will not sway away from despite the repercussion or change in the world’s social climate.”
  Al and I are so thankful to find a church where the pastor refuses to compromise but preaches the Word rather than a self-help talk or self-empowerment message. Our membership has increased because other spiritually hungry people are looking for such a church as well.
  Many churches however, seek to have enthusiastic worship with drums and strobe lights and have messages that are based on stories, contemporary books, movies etc. but no mention of sin and the need to receive the Lord. Today people are confused as the church seems to have the same standards as the world. That should not be.
  Jesus said in Matt. 5:13 (ESV), “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.” That is very sobering when we think of what has happened to so many churches.
  Our churches need to hold on to convictions and be true to the Word. Jesus should be the primary focus and sermons preached to not only reach the lost but also for the Holy Spirit to do a work in all of us: to shine in our hearts and show us areas we need to change that are hindering our walk with the Lord and to give us power to live for Him each day.
 Let us all be on guard that we not let the world squeeze us into its mold.
  Challenge for today: Hang on to your convictions and ask for courage not to compromise.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

 

July 15, 2022

July 15, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Dear Ones,

  Happy Weekend! Looks to be sunny and beautiful weather. This morning I made cookies on a stick and did food prep for the weekend and cleaned the apartment. We are going to the cabin tomorrow morning and coming back Sunday afternoon. Hope to get a swim and sauna in and maybe a hot game or two of Scrabble! 
Devotions from Judy’s heart

   We are all one day going to run out of days! For some that may come in their youth, and others in old age but it will come to all of us! We may have dreams that will not happen, and projects that will go unfinished, and prayers that we will not see the answers in our life time; but the question is, did we make the most of our days and did we finish well?

   It is comforting to know God will care for us all our days, whether they be few or many. I read this morning from Isaiah 46:3b and 4(God’s Word), “I’ve taken care of you from the time you were born. Even when you’re old, I’ll take care of you. Even when your hair turns gray, I’ll support you. I made you and will continue to care for you. I’ll support you and save you.”

   God will care for us all our days. If we are young, we are to enjoy our youth while we have vigor (Eccl 12) but also know that one day life will be over. Make use of the opportunities God gives. And if we are old, know that we can’t change things from our past but we can change ourselves in the present and make use of the rest of our days.

   Maybe we need to make things right with others in our family or let those around us know how much they mean to us. When my brother had brain cancer and knew the end was near, he did this before he died. We don’t know if our lives will be suddenly taken and those opportunities will be gone.

   We may also ask ourselves if we have been a channel of God’s presence to others and if we have passed on the faith to the next generation. Such questions can help us use the time we have left.

  Life is soon over and death is the doorway to something so indescribable that there are not words. May we set our eyes on eternity with the Lord and lean harder into Him each day before they run out.

  Challenge for today: Do something today that will last for eternityBlessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

July 14, 2022

July 14, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear  Ones,
Hope you  are enjoying this beautiful day. This morning I made egg dishes, cookies and a casserole and then went to a hot sale in the courtyard next door. Fun! Next we have Bible Study, a walk and then I have Women’s Bible Study…not much time to get in trouble today!
Devotions from Judy’s heart
  I love to know what inspires people when they write songs and poetry and what the circumstances in their life was like at the time. Often there was a loss of some kind and yet songs of praise erupt from their hearts. On Crosswalk.com recently, Dolores Smyth writes about the inspiring stories behind a few worship songs and I wonder if you know the background to the very familiar one, “Jesus Loves Me.” Maybe like me, you learned the song by the time you were 3 years old and could sing: 
                                   Jesus loves me! This I know,
                                   For the Bible tells me so.
                                   Little ones to Him belong;
                                  They are weak, but He is strong.
   Children all over the world sing this song that was written in 1859 by Ann Bartlett Warner. Her sister was writing a novel, Say and Seal, and needed a poem for her book to be read to a dying child. She asked Ann to write one and it turned out to be the most beloved children’s hymn of all time for it gives assurance to children of God’s unconditional love. Later in 1861 Willian Bradbury, a musician added the refrain, “Yes, Jesus loves me” and composed music for the song.
   I wonder if Ann realized when she wrote this simple poem that it would touch the hearts of children and adults all over the world. She and her sister went on to teach Bible study classes for 40 years to cadets at West Point, one of the students being Dwight D. Eisenhower. When Ann and her sister died, they were buried at West Point’s military cemetery with military honors, the only, civilians to be buried there; their family home is also a museum on the US. Military Academy grounds.
  We never know what a small act of obedience will reap and the fallout to others in the years to come. Let us act when the Holy Spirit prompts us and leave the results up to the Lord.
  Challenge for today: Sing or hum the song, Jesus Loves Me, and let the words fall deep into your soul. 
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

July 13, 2022

July 13, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
   Hope you are enjoying this day! This morning I made bars and stroganoff and went to my exercise class. Al did a communion service next door at Assisted Living and tonight we have Bible Study at church.
 Devotions from Judy’s heart
   Sometimes it is just good to act on our gut feeling even though others may try to influence us another way. I found that out recently when Al and I were deciding to go for our walk on the Paul Bunyan trail. We usually go 2 1/2 miles but yesterday there was a problem since a storm was noted on the radar. Not a big one and it looked like it would touch just the edge of where we were going. I told Al I didn’t trust the radar as I could see the dark clouds forming close by. But my adventuresome hubby was going with or without me and so I went. We hardly got half way before we knew we were in trouble as it started thundering and rumbling and then the rain started. Soon it wasn’t just a little rain but a downpour and even hail. We were still a mile from home and by the time we got to our door, we were saturated to our skin and looked like soaked rats. The gals who were busy doing puzzles took one look at us and burst into laughter! We were quite a sight!
   This was such a small decision I made to go on this walk but it had no lasting consequences other than having to take a shower and washing our clothes; but often when we have a gut feeling we should not ignore it for it could be the Holy Spirit warning us. We may not see the long-term consequences but we need to heed the warning. I’m sure we all have regrets when we didn’t listen and things happened that could have been prevented and affected our future.
   The Lord wants to be our constant guide and we need to stop and seek His help and direction rather than doing our own thing. King David said in Psalm 32:8 (NLT), “The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.’”
  There are often so many ways to go and decisions to make but we have Someone who wants to instruct and teach us and it is vital that we listen to Him and heed what He says. Let us take the first step in faith and obedience, and He will guide us the rest of the way.
   Challenge for today: Give up your own plan and listen and follow how the Holy Spirit would lead you.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

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July 12, 2022

July 12, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
  You are getting this early today and hope you wake to a glorious day! The question for today is: What do you see when you first look into the mirror? I hope you see a beloved child of God that is in the process of being transformed. 
Devotions from Judy’s heart
  What do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you see beautiful bright eyes and soft skin and perfect physique? That is not what looks back at me in the mirror! I am soon going to have a big birthday next month and I notice wrinkles, and freckles and hair that is getting lighter (gray to be exact) around the edges. Clearly it is not the same image I saw in the mirror years ago when I was young and first in love, but the mirror doesn’t lie.  
  But there is a more important mirror. It says in scripture that God’s word is like a mirror and it shows us the truth of what we are really like inside. It’s not very pretty at all for we are all sinners and in need of a heart makeover. But it is not something we can do ourselves, but only to recognize our condition and ask forgiveness and for our Maker to do a major heart change. It is quite astounding to go from an ugly sight to being covered over by His grace and being made entirely new and beautiful. The more we agree with what we see in the mirror and ask for Him to cleanse us, the more we will become like Him.
  As we look into the mirror of His Word, wonderful transformation can take place.  Paul says in II Cor. 3: 18, “We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”
  It makes me think of Cinderella who is dirty and dwells amongst the cinders and then being transformed into a princess. The change is so over the top, that sometimes we are not even recognized from what we use to be. Let us be conformed more and more to His image, that even our outward appearance changes and others begin to see Jesus in us.
   Challenge for today: Look into the mirror of His word and let Jesus change you from inside out. 
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

July 11, 2022

July 11, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you had a wonderful weekend. We enjoyed our time of fellowship with friends on Saturday and love that we do it each summer. This morning I did food prep and I made S.F. Choc chip cookies and went to my exercise class. It’s sunny out now but we may need to walk earlier today as a storm is suppose to go through later. 
Devotions from Judy’s heaart
  There are people in life that go the second mile and make a difference, and sometimes it’s the little things done that matter most. We can all probably remember an uplifting word someone gave us when we felt discouraged, or an act of kindness done when we were in a tight situation. Those things are not quickly forgotten for they were may have changed the course of our life at a strategic moment.
   As we gathered with our friends who were on the Board of our former retreat house, so much love flowed. Al and I remembered how each one of them was used of God to bring us encouragement during the time we ran Canaan’s Rest and continues even now. We went around the group and gave prayer needs and also ways we were desiring to share the Lord right where we are now. All the couples are being used in their churches as some teach, lead worship, decorate the sanctuary, help on sound system, and preach. They also give silent sermons as they reach out into the community with His love in tangible ways of helping.
   We all need to be open to how the Holy Spirit would want to use each of us to make a difference for His kingdom. Often it may be a small practical act of kindness that shows the recipient that God sees them where they are. My cousin recently went to Assisted Living and gave out birthday cupcakes, in memory of her mom who use to live there but has since died. She visited her mom’s friends that they would know that they aren’t forgotten.
   Even the smallest acts of love let others know that the Lord sees them and remembers them. As it says in Isaiah 49:15b-16 (God’s Word), “Although mothers may forget, I will not forget you. I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. Your walls are always in my presence.”
    Let us go the second mile and respond to the Holy Spirit’s prompting when He directs us in expressing God’s love in a specific way, be it ever so small. We have no idea what a difference it can make.
   Challenge for today: Listen closely and obey when the Spirit directs you to reach out to others.
Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

July 9, 2022

July 9, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Happy Weekend! You are getting this early today as we are going to head to Mora for a time of fellowship with our friends of Canaan’s Rest.  It is a special time of blessing for us each summer to gather and share what the Lord is doing where we are all planted now.  
Devotions from Judy’s heart
  Don’t we all want to be people of strength that can stand no matter what is happening to us or around us? But strong people look different in the eyes of the Lord than how the world looks at strength. I was reading on Crosswalk.com what Joe Mc Keever, a preacher for 55 years and writer, had to say about strong people. He mentioned things that only strong people can do; let us ask ourselves how many of these we can apply to ourselves and also what things we might need to work on.
  Strong people humble themselves before the Lord and others. The way up is the way down in humility and God exalts those that are humble before Him and others.
 They serve and don’t look to be served. When something is needed, they step up to the plate and help meet the need. Perhaps they can be found serving at a soup kitchen or mentoring a teen.  
  Strong people admit when they are wrong and know how to say they are sorry. They don’t wait for the other person, but deal with their part in it.
  They also aren’t afraid to ask for help for we all have weak areas and need help from those who know more. Just like when I  ask our pharmacist daughter when I have any questions about a med, for she knows far more.
  Strong people aren’t afraid to brag on those who excel for it doesn’t diminish who they are. Or when others show kindness, they can admit indebtedness to them.
  Strong people can rejoice when others persecute them, for they know their reward is in heaven. (Matt. 5:11-12) You don’t find them complaining.
  They also endure suffering for they know that God is building character in them. They seem to grow even stronger in their suffering and can actually sing in tough circumstances like Paul and Silas in prison.
  Keever also mentions that strong people can serve the very ones that have criticized them and made their life miserable. That definitely takes strength and grace.
   As I read all of these qualities of strong people, there is no way we can have that kind of strength except through the power of the Holy Spirit. As it says in Eph 6:10, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.”
  Challenge for today: Admit where you are weak and ask the Holy Spirit for His strength.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

 

July 8, 2022

July 8, 2022 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Happy weekend! Hope you are enjoying this sunny day. This morning I cleaned the apartment and   made chili, and a dessert for tomorrow, and choc covered raspberries as I didn’t have even one left. This afternoon we have several errands to run before our walk. 
Devotions from Judy’s heart
   Are there times you feel depleted and question if you have enough in your tank to complete what you need to accomplish? We probably have all been in that place and the enemy will capitalize on it and whisper that we don’t have what it takes. He will cause us to question if we can make it to the finish line. But the Lord will give us whatever it takes to accomplish what He has in store for us.
   I like what Kirk Routio had to say when he wondered how he could finish out the season at the ARC (Association Retreat Center in Wisconsin). He is the executive director of the retreat center and there is always much to do. But he said, “I woke up this morning; thus, He has already given me what I needed for today. I just have to be willing to move, and he will take care of the movements We are called to simply show up and once again, be willing to go wherever He tells us. It does not matter how full our tanks are. It just matters that there is enough for the day at hand. Go play, work, live and love remembering that life here is temporary and leave the outcome in His hands. My weakness is all part of His plan.”
   Let us not complain that we don’t have enough time or energy but only that we are obedient, for there is enough for what we are called to do. The Lord has the outcome planned and will fill us with all that we need for each day. It says in Eccl. 11:7 (The Message), “Oh, how sweet the light of day, and how wonderful to live in the sunshine! Even if you live a long time, don’t take a single day for granted. Take delight in each light-filled hour.”
   We have only one life to live so may we live it fully and well. Let us enter into each day with joy and anticipation for all that God has. We will have enough in out tank for what He calls us to do so let us do it with delight!
   Challenge for today: Thank the Lord that He has deposited within you all that you need for this day and go forth in joy.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy


  

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