Category: Sister Judy (Page 115 of 270)

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Will you be celebrating in some way today? We have a supper party planned for here tonight.

This morning I went downstairs for Donut day and decorating, and this afternoon we have Bible Study. 
Devotions from Judy’s heart

A life lived for the Lord and others is a life of joy; but one lived for ourselves will leave us wanting.

Have you noticed how those that are busy helping others seem to bubble over with joy. Paul writes from prison and says in Phil. 2:4 (God’s Word), “Don’t be concerned only about your own interests but also be concerned about the interests of others.” The Message puts it this way, “Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.”  We are to humbly think of others as being better than ourselves and to think of ways we can help them. Now if I were in a cold dark prison, I can imagine myself writing of my pressing needs and to plead with others to pray that I get out of my situation!  I suspect that might be my first request before thinking of how I could be of help to others!

Many people who are busy helping others do not have an easy life and yet they put the needs of others before their own. We have a friend here in our apartment complex that seems to always be busy joyfully meeting the needs of others. She recently organized a card shower for a friend’s birthday who is temporarily in Rehab and went to visit her on her birthday, along with all the cards. Other times she is praying for someone or bringing food to their door, or putting treats on all 60 doors in our apartment building. She volunteered to help us with the Birthday parties each month and she and her hubby help at Teen Challenge. Life seems very rich for her, but it is not centered on herself but how she can serve the Lord.

One of the best ways for those who feel depressed and down is to find a way to help others. The attention is off of ourselves and our hearts open wide to needs others have. Let us make the choice to serve others out of our love for God!

Challenge for today: Ask the Lord for an opportunity to serve some unsuspecting person in a hidden way today. 

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you are enjoying the day. This morning I went to Alid’s and my exercise class and this afternoon is Crafts and tonight soup supper and Lenten service. Al is preaching tonight so prayers appreciated. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Have you ever awakened to a picture or thought going through your mind and felt it was the Lord trying to say something to you? Or maybe you had a dream and knew that it was not something that resulted from overeating the night before but a message from the Lord. I woke up one morning with the word going through my mind that Jesus is my Rock. I could immediately picture a particular rock along the gravel road that I traveled when picking up a friend for Bible Study. It stood out as it was huge and was a reminder to me that we have a solid place, a secure place to stand; that no matter what happens, we can’t be moved. We are under the Lord’s protection and He is our rock, our shield and our fortress!

I read today from Psalm 18:1-2 (God’s Word) where David sang to the Lord after he was rescued from his enemy, “I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my Savior, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and my strength of my salvation, my stronghold.”

David said his life was in the clutches of death but he called on the Lord and the Lord was His rock!

Many times, he called out to the Lord and He heard and answered; David was not shaken for the Lord was His secure place and the bedrock under his feet.

It’s like the song that Paul Baloche sings:

“There is no rock /There is no god like our God /No other name worthy of all our praise

The Rock of Salvation that cannot be moved /He’s proven Himself to be faithful and true

There is no rock /is no god like ours /Rock of Ages /Jesus is the Rock /Rock of Ages…”

Jesus is the Rock….”

Let us remember that when we go through rough times when things suddenly change, we get bad news, a loved one dies etc.; We have a safe place to go where we are secure.

Challenge for today: When experiencing something difficult, hide yourself in the Rock of Ages.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you awaken with a fresh start and eagerness to what God has for you in this day. Al will be gone most of the day to get our taxes done and to see two friends. I plan to study and go downstairs for coffee and choc covered cherries later this morning. 
The question for today: Do we feel any changes coming in our life or things we need to let go of? Perhaps God is preparing us for something new! 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

We are getting older by the minute and we can’t stop the clock for it just keeps on ticking. So many people are looking for the latest ways to look younger and defy their actual age. Alice Fryling writes about aging faithfully and says the third third of life begins at age 52.7 years. We have two children that are now in that age bracket and another who will be there before long, so we are really old!                     

Maybe that’s why I love the words in Isaiah 46:4 (God’s Word), “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.”

As we all age, we start to notice how those in a younger generation are taking over doing many of the things we use to do, but no longer have the desire or even the energy to do it all. We have to make changes and relinquish some things in our lives in order to do what God is calling us to do now. Are we willing?

It may not be easy to let go of things we may have been applauded and known for, but if God’s timing is over for it, then we need to let go and let others. That also means God has something new for us if we are willing to change. God is looking for faith in those wanting to pursue Him, and we need to be open to what He has for us next. Maybe it is not in the limelight as before, or in a position of prominence, but it will be in a place to bear fruit. Paul said in Eph. 2:10 (Message), “He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join Him in the work He does, the good work He has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.”

Let us be faithful and fruitful until we take our last breath!

Challenge for today: Ask the Lord if there is something you need to relinquish and then enter into the new He has waiting.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you had a wonderful weekend. Al and I are thankful to be well and to attend church again. We also got to walk on Cypress with our friends that we hadn’t seen for a while. This morning I made egg dishes and choc covered raspberries and went to my exercise class. This afternoon I am going to do more baking!

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Western culture is obsessed with being entertained. People complain of being bored and want continual excitement and entertainment. In many ways it is because hearts are empty and weary and have lost meaning, therefore they want to be entertained. Sadly, our culture assumes that our lives are without meaning if we don’t have a constant stream of stimulation and some form of excitement.

Television has only taught people to be more passive and to feel and not to think deeply. It is a time waster and often erodes our spiritual values.  At the close of a busy day, most people settle in passively watching T.V. rather than read a worthwhile book. We tend to vegetate rather than be stimulated or taking time to reflect.

When we go on a trip, I bring several books along, and I read in the car and at the motel. I usually bring several books from Al’s library but I also bring some lighter reading that perks my interest. Al says books are like good friends and he has a library full of friends! It’s good to read books that give us knowledge but also those that help us evaluate where we are at in our journey and the direction we are taking.

A good book needs to be savored and not hurried to be read; who knows how it may influence how we think and our very lives. Years ago, a book by a catholic priest changed my life and helped me to let my self be known to others. Otherwise, I may never have been sending out the personal devotions that I do each day.

As I child I loved books so much and only had to walk  a few blocks to the Longfellow Library where there were always more. I loved just being in the quiet library and could hardly wait to get home to read. For most people today it is easier to just turn on the TV and let it fill our minds, and excuse us from thinking too deeply or enlightening us in new ways. Like Father Michael Casey said, a good book is an invitation to grow beyond what we are at present, and to view issues from a different perspective.

A good book brings enjoyment and refreshment and of course, we should not neglect to daily read the best gook ever written, that feeds our faith. “The Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any two-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. ” (Acts 4:12 NIV)

Challenge for today: Take some leisure time to read a book that will challenge you in new ways.

Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you are enjoying this sunny day! Al went to Men’s group this morning and I baked cookies and made bars and went downstairs for donuts. We have Bible Study this afternoon and then Ann and Leif may stop in to see us. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Every moment of the day we must remember we are in God’s hands. We are not in control, but He is and we can totally rely on Him. But often we need reminders as we go merrily along, planning our day, and sometimes forgetting that He is the one who is in the driver’s seat and not us. Things happen to us that may stop us in our tracks and we call out to Him for help. Sometimes they are big things that He uses to get our attention and sometimes they are just the little things during our day that remind us to rely on Him.

A funny thing happened yesterday as Al and I were out doing errands and stopped to get our car washed. Al has done that many times and knows just what to do. He drove into the car wash and the big door closed behind us but nothing happened. Nothing. No water, no suds, no nothing. We noticed that two other cars were behind us and were probably wondering what was taking us so long. We were stranded and all we could think of was to just honk our horn and hope that help would come. It took a while and lots of honking but finally a man came that had to fix things and get them going and we breathed a sigh of relief. We were helpless in this situation but God sent just the right person to get us out of it.

This was a small situation but there are big things in our lives that we feel desperation for His help.

One friend who is going through a hard time right now wrote a poem with a quote from C.S. Lewis, “God whispers to us in our pleasure, speaks in our conscience but shouts in our pain. It is his megaphone.” Our friend went on to say that “we may feel like a constellation of pain, hear His voice, He invites us into a more intimate relationship with Him, and we are never alone. A richer dimension of faith Jesus has shown me. I need to move forward, rely on Jesus and LET IT BE.”

I was reading from Psalm 27 and David knew where to go in all of his troubles. He sought the Lord and said, “O Lord, I will seek our face. Do not hide your face from  me..You have been my help. Do not leave me!:”

In all of our situations, big and small, Jesus invites us into a deeper intimate relationship with Him and to rely on Him. We are weak but He is strong and He is with us always.

Challenge for today: Look to the Lord and rely on Him and not yourself.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,                                                                                                                                                               Hopefully you had a great weekend and time to relax. Today I was excited to go back to my normal schedule after being sick. This morning I went to Aldi’s and then to my exercise class. Wonderful!  PTL!                                                                                  Devotions from Judy’s heart                                                                                                                          How have each of us been impacted these past couple years during the pandemic? Our lives are not the same in so many ways and I suspect we have all been changed in various ways. Hopefully we have new vision and have come to recognize what is really most important in our lives.                                                                        I was reading an article by Ines Valasquez-McBryde who shares about what it must have been like for Noah after so many months and months on the ark. He boarded the ark with only a promise from God and the goal to keep his family and animals alive. What went through his mind when he had to wait for the waters to recede and to embark on dry land? He must have stepped off the ark a different man, with everything radically changed for him and his family. What did he learn during that time on the ark?                                                                                                                             Ines asks similar questions of us, referring to the Pandemic. Let us ask ourselve   1. During these 2 years what did we lose during pre-Covid that we want to restore in post-Covid?                                                

2.What things did we do in pre-Covid that we don’t want to see restored and choose to leave behind?                                       

 3.What are the things we picked up during Covid that were life-giving and that we want to continue?continue?                         

4. What are the things that we picked up during Covid that we want to let go of post-Covid? 

Hopefully we have all learned and grown through this time. I’m sure we have all experienced losses of many kinds, but have we have also been transformed in many new ways?  Let us each take inventory of our own lives and have new vision and desire to continue the transformational process. As it says in II Cor. 3:18 (NRSA), “And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.”                                                      Challenge for today: Write down the answer to the questions and ask the Lord to continue the transformation process to make you more and more like Him.                                          Blessings on  your week and prayers and love, Judy