Category: Sister Judy (Page 201 of 271)

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Do you know we are still eating some left-overs from when Kurt and his friends were here?  The food they cooked was fantastic and we are still enjoying and savoring the results.  When they left the cabin, they left behind some wonderful gourmet dishes and made me think of what we leave behind. Do we exude the fragrance of Christ or are others relieved when we depart?  In II Cor. 2:14 it says we are the aroma of Christ and “through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere.” Is it possible that others drawn to Him because of the fragrance we leave behind?  The guys left behind an aroma that has blessed us and not just their food!  I usually put water (with a fragrant oil) in a tea kettle on top of our wood stove and as it heats up the aroma fills the house.  May it be our prayer that others catch the sweet aroma of Christ by what we leave behind also.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Surprise!! How many times have we been surprised by a party, maybe someone’s kindness to us, a gift etc?   It may be a simple kindness like my neighbor who picks me up for Line Dancing and has my passenger seat all heated up by the time she arrives at our house. Or when we went to El Tequila’s to talk over if we should buy a new SUV, the boss surprised us with paying for our dinner. Then he surprised us again by giving us a gift certificate for several more lunches there. A wonderful surprise! I think the Lord loves to give us surprises but the sad thing is we often miss thanking Him or recognizing they come from him. “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”(James 1:17)  When we surprise others, we are being used by Him to share His love. Or when others surprise us we can give thanks to Him for He prompted them to give. Let us remember where every good gift comes from!

Devotions from Judy’s heart

 Today a very old familiar song came to mind. “This is my Father’s world and to my listening ears, all nature sings and around me rings the music of the spheres.”  There are so many songs and scriptures about nature and it does seem to sing. Just this past week, Al was walking near the channel and could hear the ice “singing”. He told me to walk that way and listen as well. It is hard to describe but it did sound like singing. As ice was forming and coming together, it made a loud noise and was awesome to hear. As it says in Ps. 98, all nature is invited to make a joyful noise to the lord and break into song…the sea, the rivers, the hills etc.  He wants to draw us nearer and can use even the singing ice to help us see His awesomeness. Let us not miss what nature wants to teach us before our eyes.

My Psalm for today ( read them methodically) is: Ps. 29:3-4, “The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful: the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.”

Devotions from Judy’s heart

This morning I woke up with the moon streaming in our window and shedding its light. When I went outside the heavens were just filled with stars and glory. ( This was at 5:30 am).  Just think, “He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.” (Ps. 47:4). If He knows each star by name, certainly He knows each of us in a most personal way. If we are paying attention we will notice that, “The earth is filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord. (Hab. 2:14)  Nature can speak to us if we are listening and it can cause us to see the Lord. It can speak of His love in new ways that we don’t want to miss. “As high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His steadfast love towards those who fear Him. “Ps. 103:11.  May we draw closer to Him as we see His beautiful creation and know that we have a Father who delights in displaying His love to us in a myriad of ways.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Today as I went to clean the glass door of our wood stove, all the soot and grime came off without much effort at all. Other days, I can’t get more than a little tiny clear window as the black soot is stuck on. When the temperature of the stove is just right, it is easy but when it is not, it is almost impossible. As I looked into the clear glass, I thought of how wonderful it is when our hearts are open to God and to others. Others can see us as we really are and we can see outward and upward with clarity. It made me think of how we need to respond to the Spirit as He moves upon us, and not just when we decide the time is right. Our times are in His hands!  Let us not dismiss the move of God upon us but be quick to respond. Let Him clean the window of our souls that we can be transparent and reflect His glory.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

We are still eating left-overs from the gourmet dishes of this past week. We were so impressed with Bo’s recipes that are simply “to die for” !!  When Kurt and his friends use to come to the cabin they fished constantly and would come back to the cabin and throw a pizza in the oven.  Now instead they just spent almost  4 days hanging out and making unbelievable gourmet dishes, 3 times a day. I wonder if we aren’t often settling for simple pizzas when we might be feasting at the Lord’s table. He desires to feed us with the finest of wheat. He loves when we “hang out” with Him and spend lots of time together. He gives us a taste for flavorful things that may be new to us but are rich and satisfying. We can anticipate each meal for He prepares endless feasts for us. Why do we settle for so little when He has so much for us?  As it says in Song of Solomon 2:4, He invites us to His banqueting house, and His banner over us is love. Let us accept His invitation for the rich things that await us from the One who loves us most.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

While Kurt and his buddies were up here we had a mishap on the night of the feast they prepared. There was a hot bubbling carrot soufflé that was being carried to the table along with the Beef Wellington etc. All of a sudden I heard a big splat and the soufflé was upside down on the floor, still bubbling.  We were able to salvage the part not touching the floor and Kurt helped me clean up the rest of it. Now the one who dropped it didn’t even say how it happened and that it wasn’t his fault or rationalize it away. But the handle on the dish carrier broke and it would have happened to whoever carried it to the table. In the routine of our daily lives we all have mishaps. Some are messier than others but it just happens. Why are we surprised when it happens to us or others around us? Why do we spend so much time defending or rationalizing?  Let us instead ask God to help us see even the good He can work out of it. In this instance I was filled with gratitude as I was aware that the hot soufflé could have spilled on Gary who was sitting only inches away and he would have been severely burned.  You are probably  familiar with the verse from Rom 8:28 that says, ”for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Let us accept those things that happen in our lives and not be hard on ourselves. The enemy wants to send us into a tail spin and get down on ourselves, but God wants to weave it all together and bring good out of even our mishaps!

Devotions from Judy’s heart

When I went for a prayer walk the other day and saw many deer tracks in the snow, it made me aware that there is a lot of activity going on that is often unseen by our eyes. When I walked a little farther, 3 deer ran across the road right in front of me.  Often in our spiritual lives we know the Lord is in something but is rather hidden. We see His print, like the deer tracks, but it is not obvious and we must trust our discernment. But when the deer showed up and pranced across the road in front of me, it was like Yes! I saw clearly what I only had a hunch of before.  Of course, I would rather see the actual deer than just prints in the snow. I can identify with the disciples (as I read in John 21 today) when Jesus revealed himself to them on the shore after catching 153 fish. John said, “It is the Lord!”, and there was no doubt. But may we also rejoice when we see signs of Him and know He is there, even when it isn’t so obvious.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Lately I have been doing Christmas baking and sometimes the counter is full of dirty dishes in the process. I love making cookies etc but wish someone else would be present to do up all the dishes.  There are times that friends drop in unexpectedly while I am cooking and baking and find me in my kitchen mess.  Isn’t it that way in our lives too… they are always filled with messes? Spiritually, we need someone to come along side of us and do heart cleaning? We have such a loving Father who wants to do that for us as we ask Him. He waits and is so ready and willing.  Others may see our “messes” too and may offer to pitch in and help us through those times but only He can cleanse our hearts. We need continual help in this area for our hearts are always needing cleansing as we have no good apart from Him. Ps 16:2

Devotions from Judy’s heart

This past week Kurt has had buddies here at the cabin and they are enjoying some snow and lots of bonfires etc. When Bo first came he drove his minivan down the steep hill to the cabin and unloaded everything.  He does not have 4 wheel drive so we were aware that he needed to watch the weather so he wouldn’t have to be rescued!  It snowed some and the guys were almost done napping when Al went down the hill to warn him he may need to move his SUV up. He made 4 or 5 attempts and had to back down and take a fast drive up with 2 of them pushing before finally he got to the top. Had he waited any longer, he may not have made it. Timing is important in our lives. God has a time table and we need to be in sync with it. Otherwise we may be spinning our wheels and not getting any where or backsliding. Sometimes God gives us warnings, like the warning Al gave the guys, and we need to pay attention. It is easier to stay put than to move out like Abraham when he was asked to leave his country, not knowing where God would lead him. It takes faith and obedience but the safest place to be is in His will and on His time table. Jesus gave us a wonderful example for He paid close attention to His Father’s timing. One thing we know for sure that it is always “time to seek the Lord”!  Hosea 10:12