Category: Sister Judy (Page 162 of 271)

Dear Ones,

 

Happy Weekend to you! Hope you enjoy it and get refreshed. This morning I cleaned our apt. and Al and I went to a funeral Mass of a friend who lived in our apt. building. Al took me out for lunch at Poncho Lefties after which we got a surprise yummy dessert.  (A nearby table  had people from our apt. complex and one of them ordered the dessert for us) Enjoying the day with phone calls which began early this morning and as you may have guessed I am a year older now! If you did not receive devotionals again go to https://www.canaansrest.org/whispers. Sorry and will let Mark know.

 

Devotions from Judy’s heart.

 

Life is not about me, me, me! It is really about the Lord. Just think what it would be like if our identity was found in what others thought of us, or how we performed as a boss, or in being a good spouse or parent. It wouldn’t take long for us to lose confidence for we are sure to blow it. Our lives are meant to revolve around the Lord, and our Identity is in Him; He is our confidence, our source.

 

When we get upset when things don’t go our way or when we have expressed behavior that is not godly, we soon realize that we have strayed from our Source. I don’t know about you, but there is not a day that goes by that I don’t sense my need of the Lord and realize that I can’t live life on my terms. When our focus is on ourselves, life becomes very shallow and meaningless. Perhaps this is seen as it is played out when people have a need to put their whole life on Facebook to validate their worth and importance. But when our focus is on the Lord and then others, everything shifts to a life that has meaning. We experience deep joy!  I was reading Psalm 34 today when David escaped from his enemy. Some of his words from The Message translation are: I bless God every chance I get… I live and breathe God…God met me more than halfway, He freed me from my anxious fears……Worship God if you want the best; Worship opens doors to all His goodness…God seekers are full of God…..God keeps an eye on His friends, His ears pick up every moan and groan….God is listening, ready to rescue you….God is there every time.”  We don’t need to spend time thinking of all our weaknesses or wondering what others are thinking of us, but rather to praise the Lord and rejoice that He loves and accepts us as we are. Our identity is in Him!

 

Challenge for today: The next time someone puts you down, go to the Source and thank Him for his unconditional love.

 

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

 

Hope you are enjoying this day!  So good to see the sun again! The is morning I went to Aldi’s shopping  and made cookies, choc covered raspberries and individual egg dishes.  The house is full of aroma!

 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

 

Yesterday Al and I went for our daily afternoon walk and I mentioned to  him how good it is when we are pointed home again. We walk almost a mile and a half on the Paul Bunyan Trail through the woods until we get to our marker which is a bench on the side of the trail. Al does a few stretching exercises and then we begin our mile and a half back. On the way there, I look especially at the flowers and changing leaves and any animals we may see, but on the way home, it seems like the time goes faster in anticipation of getting home and having supper etc. I shared with  Al how it is much like life for in the first half we are busy building our careers, trying things out and discovering our gifts. But in the second half of our lives, which some of us are in, we let go of thinking of those things as being most important; we think more of eternal things, rather than the transient. In fact, we begin to get ready for the day we can put aside these earthly bodies and are home with the Lord…that is our true home! We find ourselves anticipating the marriage feast of the lamb and the day of no more tears or pain, but being forever with the Lord and all believers. It’s hard to even imagine what that day will be like but for now we need to stick it out here and now.

 

Paul says in Col. 3:1-3 (The Message), “So if you’re serious about living this resurrections life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ–That’s where the action is. See things from His perspective.” Our lives are meant to be centered in the Lord and then we can see things as He sees them, from His perspective. Let us not be so focused on our temporary lives, but focus on what will last forever.

 

Challenge for today: Let go of those transient things that take up your time and let your focus be on what is lasting.

 

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

 

Hope you are having a wonderful day. I made a zucchini/choc cake with fresh zucchini from Ann’s garden and also surprised one of the couples here with a huge one that got overlooked! I wrote cards and went to my exercise class this morning and tonight we have Bible Study. 

 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Great things happen when we pray for one another! We are reminded in James 5:16 (The Message), “Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.”

 

When I have been with friends who ask for prayer and share an area they are struggling with, it draws me closer to the Lord and to them; it lets me also know I can be free to share my own sins and offences as well. This should be a common practice and not something that is rare.

 

Lisa Lakey gives a warning of what our attitude should be, for at times our very tone we may be saying, “O you struggle with that sin. Not me but I will pray for you.” Very self-righteous sounding and where is our humility and love? Instead, we can say, “How can I pray for you?” As husband and wife, Al and I share our areas of weakness and sins that we need to repent of and in doing that we experience forgiveness and freedom. We can’t fix each other, for that is God’s work, but we can all pray for one another and watch God work. The enemy likes for us to bottle things up and work on our problem areas in our own strength. That doesn’t work. God wants us to bring our sins out into the light and if we humble ourselves and confess our need of His forgiveness, the Lord steps in and forgives and heals us. We will find ourselves healthier spiritually but often physically as well.  It is so wonderful to hear the words of absolution, “You are forgiven in the name of the Lord.” As fellow believers we are priests to one another and have that privilege to speak those words to those who have confessed their sins. Let us make confession that we may be forgiven and set free.

 

Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to use you in listening to others and praying for them.

 

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

 

Hope you are having a peaceful day. We left early this morning for the lake and we stopped on the way so I could see my friend in Assisted Living. Then I got to my old Bible Study group which was wonderful and Ann made a birthday cake for me and shared with them. Then we had a delicious  early Birthday lunch on Ann’s deck. It was followed by tutoring on our new phones by our grandson which was a big help. Now we are home with grateful hearts.

 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

 

We don’t know the exact number of our days on earth for only God knows that; but we can live each day wisely and well, as if it were our last day. Moses prayed in Psalm 90:12 & 14 (God’s Word), “Teach us to number each of our days so that we may grow in wisdom…Satisfy us every morning with your mercy so we may sing joyfully and rejoice all our days”.

 

Recently I read how Pastor Max Lucado prepared himself for heart surgery and had the thought, what if this is my final night? He was having 4 hours of probes inside his heart and asked himself, what if something goes wrong? He spent some time alone the night before surgery and asked the Lord to show him if there were people in his life that he needed to make things right with; he also wrote letters to his wife and daughters in the event he didn’t make it. Afterwards he was at peace and slept like a baby, and his surgery the next day went well. But we all need to face the fact that we will some day die and we may have no warning ahead of time, so each day is a day of preparation.

 

Right now, my very special aunt who is 94 years old, has been in the hospital as she has been bleeding and her heart grows weaker. She has had other times that we thought the end was near when she fell and broke her hip, had pneumonia, or was injured when hit by a drunk driver; but she has always surprised us and bounced back stronger than before. That would be my personal wish again at this time and I am so grateful she was discharged late this afternoon to her daughter’s home.  But like Paul said in Romans 14:8, “If we live, we honor the Lord, and if we die, we honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”

 

It is wonderful to know that we are secure in the Lord. When we exit this life, we have so much awaiting us.  No matter if we have few days or many days on earth, we have an eternity with the Lord when we have accepted His gift of salvation. May our hearts overflow with joy as we wait for that wonderful day and let us be ready!

 

Challenge for today: Make preparations for eternity and share the Lord with those around you who may not be ready.

 

Blessings on the rest of your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you had a good weekend. We are getting ready for our grandson to come for an early lunch as he is on his ways to the city for college. Shortly after that we are getting friends from Tulsa for coffee and looking forward to catching up. Tomorrow we are going to the lake and I will  get to go to my old Bible Study group! Please keep praying for the Matt who has the virus and for my aunt who is in the hospital with bleeding. Both need prayers.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

How shall we then live? In this world that is changing by the minute, in this time of upheaval in our nation, how shall we then live as Christians? As I was going to bed night before last, the thought came to me, live in peace, live positively, live in the present. That is often a challenge and not always easy to practice, but is by God’s grace and He will help us. I awoke to the news on an e-mail from our pastor that one of our young members died that night of a heart attack, and I was stunned. He was visiting his brother whose wife is critically ill with inflammation of her brain and he suddenly died. How do we handle those heart wrenching situations? Only with the Lord! He is our peace when everything around us is suddenly taken. Jesus told His followers when He was about to leave this world in John 14:27 (God’s Word), “I’m leaving you peace. I’m giving you my peace. I don’t give you the kind of peace that the world gives. So don’t be troubled or cowardly.” His peace surpasses all our understanding! We are held secure and can remain calm as we know the end of the story…a life forever with the Lord! We can also live positively because of the assurance that He is with us no matter what we go through. It’s important to not dwell on negativity but to think good thoughts and speak encouraging words. It affects health to our whole body and soul. It says in Prov. 16:24, “Pleasant words are like honey from the honeycomb—sweet to the spirit and healthy for the body.” We are also to live in the present and be fully engaged. There are often times we can be with others or busy doing our own thing but our minds are elsewhere. Instead we need to pay attention! God is present to us, and let us be present to Him and live in the now. I have to tell myself often, just enjoy this moment! Be mindful! Jesus said in Matt. 6:34 (The Message), “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” Let us fully enjoy life with the Lord now and seek to listen as He speaks to us positive words of peace!

Challenge for today: Get rid of negative thoughts and live in the present, letting His peace flow into you.

Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy 

Dear Ones,

Happy Weekend to you! Hope you have time to relax and enjoy the day. Al is going to a breakfast meeting this morning with all the other fantasy football players. Fun! I think our website is running again, and you should have gotten the devotions for the whole week: but if it happens again go to website.  
Devotions from Judy’s heart

Challenge for today: Seek to know God in new ways and ask for opportunities to share Him with others.

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

 

Dear Ones,

Hope you are having a peaceful day. I have been busy wrapping prizes to send, and made 2 spaghetti G.F. pies and our favorite bars. I am sorry that so many of you are not getting my devotional from our website this week. I don’t know why that is but I will send this the old way and then see if our son can fix what the problem is. Whenever you don’t get a devotional you can let me know or go to https://www.canaansrest.org/whispers and they are all there. You can read the ones you missed this week. Sorry.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Do we live our lives with fear or like children who have a Heavenly Father who we can rely on and hears us? Are we resilient or do we let our problems and the troubles of our world come between us and God, robbing us of joy? I was reading today from the devotional book, “God Hears Her”, and Joanie Yoder writes about Martin Luther’s wife and how she responded to a time of despondency Luther was going through. One day when Kathryn got up, she decided to dress in black mourning clothes and Luther questioned her as to who died. She said “God.”  When asked how she could possibly say such a thing, she replied, “I’m only saying what you are living.” You can bet that straightened Luther up in his thinking and changed his attitude; he realized he was acting as if God was not alive and able to watch over them. Instead he began to praise God and his perspective began to change. Perhaps we live much the same way as Luther did when we get overcome by worries, forgetting that our God is all-powerful, all-knowing and all-wise. He created the universe and is certainly able to handle everything that concerns us. The Psalms are such a wonderful praise book and can help us as well, especially when we feel overwhelmed by circumstances in our lives. David wrote many of the Psalms and he had plenty of problems plaguing him and often had to flee for his very life.  When he was captured by the Philistines, he said in Psalm 56:3-4 (The Message), ”When I get really afraid I come to You in trust. I’m proud to praise God: fearless now, I trust in God. What can mere mortals do?” Even when the situations around us feel threatening, even when we flub up too, we can turn to the Lord in trust and praise Him. Then may we say as David did in verses 12 & 13, “God, you did everything you promised, and I’m thanking you with all of my heart. You pulled me from the brink of death, my feet from the cliff-edge of doom. Now I stroll at leisure with God in the sunlit fields of life.” Let us not fear but trust! 

Blessings on your day and prayers and love,

Judy

Blessings on your day and prayers and love,

Judy

Blessings on your day and prayers and love,

Judy