Category: Sister Judy (Page 177 of 271)

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Al took me for a boat ride around the lake the other night and when we passed the resort there wasn’t any sign of activity there. In the summer there are people in the water or on the raft, boating, walking on the beach, etc but fall has come and there was no activity at all. I thought of the seasons and how important it is to be in the right season of the Lord.  Maybe what He has been doing in our church in the past is now being taken into a new season and that means change. Or maybe what worked in another place is not what He has for us at all. We need discernment to be moving with the Spirit in what He has for each of us right now. As it says in Daniel 2, To Him belong wisdom and might..  ”He changes times and seasons”.   He gives wisdom and knowledge and reveals deep and hidden things. We need to be continually seeking Him and be in His time and season.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Some time ago Ann gave me a lovely ¾ sleeved jacket that I picked out when we shopped together. But when I got it home, I was disappointed for it didn’t match the intended outfit.  I kept the jacket in the back of my closet and when I shopped last Saturday, I bought a lovely fall skirt with Birthday money. And this time when I got home, it matched the jacket perfectly. I thought of how sometimes we receive teaching that is good but doesn’t quite fit in to where we are at presently. So we put it “on the back burner” so to speak. It is good but we are not able to apply it yet. Then in the future, all of a sudden it makes perfect sense to us and fits right where we are at.  It may be a  scripture that comes alive, a teaching that seems  to reinforce what He has been telling us along etc  We are glad we didn’t throw it out and may even wonder why we didn’t “get it” sooner. But the Lord has His timing and brings us to those “Aha moments” and we know He has spoken to our hearts..Let us be like the little boy Samuel who said to the Lord, “Speak Lord, for your servant hears.” ( I Sam 3:10)

Devotions from Judy’s heart

We need to live our lives one day at a time and enjoy each moment. That can mean taking breaks out of our busy schedules and drinking in the present. I thought of that yesterday when Al was with the Sisters at Shalom. They were giving the Spiritual Direction class but at 11 a.m. they took a break as there was a Home Coming parade for St. Scholastica going right past the monastery. Four Sisters rode on one of the floats with their dress garb dating back 100 years. Al loves parades and there was a lot of laugher as he had the Sisters and participants scooping up candy too.  One of our former parishioners was a cheerleader in the parade and Al rushed out in the midst of the parade to give her a big hug! Everyone said that watching a parade with Al was quite an experience!  They could have skipped it all, but I rather think the Lord was smiling on them.  As I read from Paul Keller today, “It is this moment of your life that is most important and you are urged to live it to the fullest, trusting God, and believing that God will bless you with joy, providing  you with healing peace. Don’t reach beyond yourself. Live each moment to its fullest, one moment at a time, and you shall be led forth in peace.

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Devotions from Judy’s heart
Last night I wrote 73 e-mails and then noticed that none of them were going out. At first I thought maybe I could the fix the problem and tried a few things but nothing worked. Al called TDS and tried several things by phone and then said they would have to send out a technician today. He was here quite a while and found out there was a technical glitch in Madison, that needed to be fixed. Now I could have tried all night and I never could have fixed the problem. Sometimes there are things in our lives that need fixing and we need to ask for help from those that have been on the journey longer. This local technician had been working for 13 years for TDS but still couldn’t fix it. So he also had to call for help from above him and waited while it was being fixed in Madison. I remember times in my life when I needed healing of some things from the past and asked for prayer from the Body.  I had already tried on my own to “fix” them but I was still broken in that area. But as they prayed for me, healing came and I was able to move on. Just like today, my computer is up and running and I can move on and send messages again. Let us avail ourselves to Body ministry when we need it and not be “The Lone Ranger”!

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Today we had Matt over for dinner and he has just received this huge gift from his dad…a big CAT with a 15 foot blade that he plans to use to make trails in the woods.  Now this CAT was in Canada and had to be delivered to them in MN and was received with much joy. It made me think of God’s great gift to us when he sent His son, all the way from glory to earth and to clear the way for our salvation. But we need to receive this gift, just as Matt did when it was delivered.  He was thrilled and began at once to look it over and to get it started.  It is just the beginning for it will be used to clear out the old logs and also trees that are blocking the path that he is to go on.  We also need to receive the gift of God’s grace for salvation, and it is just the beginning of His work in our lives. He wants to clean out the things that hinder our walk with Him and gives us a new path on which to walk. Now this is only one of the wonderful gifts He gives us and other gifts are smaller but often surprise us. Every day we are gifted by the Lord and may we give thanks and receive with open arms what He has for us..

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Today I went on a road that I haven’t been on for a long time. I was surprised how the forest had filled out with wild flowers and bushes and grasses that seemed to hide the fallen trees and decaying logs.

Often when we go through a loss, whether it is through sickness or death of a loved one, a job loss, or loss of friendships etc. we may feel like we are walking in barrenness and darkness. It may be hard to see the light of hope. But as we lean into the Lord, we receive faith that we will be led out of the darkness into the light again. In time we will be able to see the hidden work the Lord has been doing in our lives. We may actually see beauty in it and what a miracle that is!  He turns our mourning into dancing! ( Ps 30:11) and beauty for ashes.( Is. 61:3) The forest is no longer dark but alive with sunshine and aroma of flowers and fullness. We may have thought it was not possible but now we can see He was working in our dark times to fill us out. Let us trust Him in our dark times and know that the day is coming when the sun will shine again and we will dance!

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Yesterday, I was reminded that we should never give up hope. I was watching the Viking game and in the last minutes when the Jaguars got a touchdown pass, it looked like the game would be over. But it wasn’t. Walsh, the Viking rookie , made a long 55 yard kick and tied the game. Great jubilation!  He scored again with another good kick in the overtime and won the game. Spiritually often times it looks like the enemy is getting the best of us. It seems like we are losing ground and he is winning. David had so many of those times in his life. But even though he had some very narrow escapes he says in Ps. 30, “ I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me.”  It is not over until the end, and in the end we have the ultimate victory in Him. Often we tend to depend on the big star player, but sometimes it is the little rookie that comes through for us. It is a good reminder that it is truly His power that defeats the enemy. Even when we may be in a tight situation like David, let us remember his words in Ps. 42, “Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, my salvation and my God.”

 Devotions from Judy’s heart

On Friday when I was at Line Dancing, a new gal joined us and was not familiar with the dances. Our instructor went through the moves with her and she also observed the rest of us and did quite well for the first time. She was open to instruction and wanted to learn. Isn’t that the way we should be in our spiritual lives too?  Are we willing to take instruction from others or do we think we already know all there is to know in an area?   Do we gain by observing others that are further along on the spiritual journey? We can learn a lot just by observing their lives, how they handle conflict, how they face trials, how they handle praise etc.  We of course, will make many flubs but as we are open and willing to learn, we will grow in grace and become more like our INSTRUCTOR who has our best always in mind. One of my favorite verses in Ps. 32:8, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.” We are further warned not to be like a horse or mule that have to be controlled by bit and bridle. Let us be teachable and humble and open to His instruction through whatever means He uses in our lives

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Jesus has called us to be light-bearers and as He says in Matt 5, we are to let our lights shine so others can see and give glory to God. The Message translation puts it this way “ You’re here to be a light, bringing out God-colors to the world.” He desires to use us to make Him visible to the world. When we went to the coffee party on Saturday with all the relatives, Scott spoke of relatives that we honor and who have let their lights shine before us, like my dad, my aunt etc. I’m sure you have all gone by mailboxes with reflector tape on and it makes them stand out, especially at night.  We are to be His reflectors and  As Sarah Young said we are to brighten up the world by reflecting who He is.  As the Holy Spirit has free access in our lives, may the light of His presence flow from us to all those around us, bringing His healing love.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Yesterday I was at a coffee party and one of the gals showed a picture of a bear taken right from her window. Another gal said this bear was in her garage and they had a hard time getting him to leave, even after banging on things.
As you can imagine that didn’t make me feel very good as I walk each day in the same vicinity!  I thought of how the enemy is out there and wants us to be afraid and to hinder our relationship with the Lord. In fact, we can get so focused on him that we lose sight of the power of the Lord.  We need to be cautious of the enemy’s tactics and alert, but not so the enemy steals our focus. When this happens we miss out on the peace and joy that the Lord gives. Later yesterday I went for a prayer walk but I just enjoyed that time and used it to pray and not to imagine a bear behind the trees or a rock. We have the wonderful promise in Ps. 91:15, “When you call me, I will answer you. I will be with you in trouble. I will rescue you and honor you.”  When we sense the enemy trying to trip us up or rob us of our peace, let us call out to the Lord and as it says in Ps. 18:39, He equips us with strength for the battle.

P.S. Right after I wrote this I went to Facebook and there I saw a picture of a neighbor who had just killed the bear. Wow!