Category: Sister Judy (Page 178 of 279)

I read a beautiful poem by a 12 year old girl who wrote it the night before she was struck by a car and died 8 days later. She talked about hesitating with fear to go through a door but then being willing  and going through it with hope. The last line of her poem… “Change is beautiful; you will learn to love it.”  Change is something we may not get excited about but we need to welcome and embrace it, rather than fear.  As Joyce Rupp said, “Each day God calls us to stretch a little further, search a little deeper, and become a little freer. Let us go through those doors with hope …accepting the inevitableility of change and trusting in its benefits for our transformation.”

Devotions from Judy’s heart

During this Christmas time so many doors are decorated beautifully for this season. Doors are important as they are a passageway to where we are going. The opening of the door to our heart allows us to see more of the treasure of who He has made us to be and His presence within us. I am reading a book by Joyce Rupp, “Open the Door” and she speaks of opening the door to finding our true self that wants to be “known, loved, embraced, welcomed without judgment, and integrated into the way we live. When we open the door and go inside, God is there in the temple of our soul..in the cathedral of our being.”  As we are all familiar with the picture of Christ knocking at the door, Sallman omits the doorknob on the outside, as it is only we who can open that door from within. It is our choice. If we choose to open the door of our heart and welcome Him in, we open ourselves to grow and change in ways we never dreamed of. I suspect we often get so preoccujpied that we miss opportunities or maybe we just refuse to take the next step and stop in the doorway. But if we are willing to go through the door, we will find the richness of His presence and greater freedom to be our authentic self.

 Devotions from Judy’s heart

Our lives have changed and we  keep praying and seeking His will as to where we will find a church home. At a new church on Saturday night when it came time to pass the peace, a little Down’s syndrome boy shook my hand and then bent over and kissed me so sweetly on the cheek. I felt like it was His kiss to me and also when the deacon prayed for us  it was His words speaking to our hearts. Isn’t it neat how the Lord can use whatever means He chooses to bless us and speak to us… from a child to a deacon etc? The Lord’s presence is always with us, and we don’t need to fear the future for He is already there. Like Sarah Young said, “Your future is in My hands; I release it to you day by day, moment by moment. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow…I want you to live this day abundantly, seeing all there is to see, doing all there is to do. Don’t be distracted by future concerns.”  May we leave all our concerns into His hands.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Yesterday I went for a prayer walk and since the leaves are gone, I was able to see the nests in the trees. There is a well known  nest of an osprey on top of a power pole on Highway #5 that is especially huge. I thought of the birds and their nests and prayed that God would lead us to a new “nest” (church home). These past months have been a time of prayer, seeking discernment, and sharing together for Al and I.  The bottom line is that we have left the  ELCA Lutheran church after a life time.  It is not an easy decision and for now we are “homeless” and we will be seeking a new church home. Often in scripture we read how God only tells so much and after we obey He gives us more. Just like Abraham who was told to leave his home country to a land that God would show him. As I was pondering just what our future will look like, I read a verse that a friend gave on Facebook from Ps. 32:8, “I will instruct you and teach you the way you are to go.  I will counsel you with my eye upon you.” That is enough for He will give us what we need when we need to know.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Things are not always the way they seem outwardly. We can misjudge if we only go by outward appearances.

Each day I try to find time to go for a walk alone and spend that time praying as I walk. The other day Al and I both went for a prayer walk about the same time, only in separate directions so we wouldn’t interfere with each other’s time alone. But a neighbor saw us as he was driving by and asked if we had had a fight. That’s how it looked. I told him we were both on a prayer walk and he just laughed.  God sees what is, and the more we grow in Him the less concerned we are for what others think. What matters is our life before Him, as it says in Prov . 5:21 “For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the Lord”.  When we are doing His will , we don’t  have to justify, but “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” I Cor. 15:58

When we were in Charleston, Al took each of the grandkids out alone and was hopeful to make a good deposit in them.

It says in Ps. 89 that we are to tell the next generation of His faithfulness. At this Christmas time it is the first anniversary of my dad’s Homecoming and I think of him often. He made many deposits  in us in so many ways by his words and even more by his life of generosity and unconditional love. The fruit of his life goes on and on as we share about him in our memory bank. What will people say about us when we are gone?  Did we love well? Did we put first things first? Did we use the gifts God gave us?  Did we change courses when necessary? Wm Penn said, “let us be careful neither to run out ahead of our bride nor loiter behind Him; since he that makes haste may miss his way, and he that stays behind may lose his guide.” Let us run the race of life well and leave behind a path for others.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

There are times in our lives when we want to so badly to be certain we are hearing God’s voice to our hearts….especially when making decisions, changes, seeking direction, desiring discernment etc.  It’s like our spirit is on tiptoe, and seeking to recognize His voice, even when it is like a faint whisper. His voice is calm, peaceful and consistent with truth. But the enemy’s voice pushes and condemns and not like God’s voice that draws us. No we don’t always hear Him correctly 100% of the time but it is important to have a teachable open spirit that wants His will most of all.  Like David prayed in Ps. 143:10 “Teach me to do your will for you are my God!  Our part is to be still, provide inner space wait patiently, and to listen. As it says in  Ps. 85:8, “I will listen to what God the Lord will say; He promises peace to His people, His Saints.”

Devotions from Judy’s heart

I recently read Emilie Griffin’s book, “Green Leaves for Later Years” and she writes of living freely and bearing fruit into old age. She speaks of each day as a new beginning and there are no time-outs, no free-passes. We just have to begin again and again. The author has rheumatoid arthritis but has chosen to remain as active as possible in her speaking and writing. She was encouraged by remembering people like Renoir who painted with knarled hands at the end of his life as he was determined to express the beauty of creation even with severe pain. Emilie said,”Transcending illness is not just a matter of wanting or wishing but a response to God’s grace.”  We have to choose happiness and count our blessings instead of what we have lost. All we have is the present moment, the now,. And more than that, the knowledge of God’s love and  grace opening us up to His unlimited future.”

Time is precious and let us not let is slip through our hands but live each stage of our life fully.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

At this time several of our friends are living in pain, in darkness or the unknown. But it need not be a “wasted time” or a time to “get over” quickly. Even though we also may experience a time of suffering,  it can become a time of awakening to God’s life in us.  It is not something to fight against but to let go and open to God. When we do this He becomes our source for each moment and in each relationship and in each activity.

 Let us surrender to His love and  see God is in every trial and embrace Him in whatever way He comes to us.