Category: Sister Judy (Page 91 of 277)

Dear Ones,

Hope you are having a great day. Al is giving a communion service next door this morning at Assisted Living. I just finished baking S.F. Choc chip cookies and Sweet potato rounds and soon going to my exercise class. This afternoon is crafts and then the soup supper and service. A rich day.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

  Are we willing to change? When the Holy Spirit puts His finger on something in our lives that needs to go, are we willing to release it? When we hold things loosely in our lives, it becomes easier to let go; but if we are hanging on tightly, those things can become idols and are difficult to release. It could be a relationship that has become our focus and more important to us than doing what God says. Or maybe that we try to control our circumstances, or consider our time is more important than God’s time. But if anything comes before the Lord, we need to let it go!

   In Matt. 3:2 (God’s Word), John the Baptist says, “Turn to God and change the way you think and act, because the kingdom of God is near.” Like me, maybe you hear the Holy Spirit telling you at times to “Let go!” and change your thinking and your actions. Sometimes the Lord puts others in my life who are so giving and I see my selfishness. Or I rush through things and find I am trying to control my day rather than taking the Lord’s hand and letting Him lead me. When thoughts come to us of change needed, we are not to just pass it off, but be willing to change how we think and how we behave.

   Recently I read of Shellie Arnold who has a compassionate daughter who would even give the shoes off her feet if she saw someone in need. As a small child she would save up her pennies in a jar to give to missionaries when it was told there would be a special offering. Since she didn’t have much to give, she drew pictures and sold them and gave all the money to Missions, without thinking to keep any for herself. I want to be more like that. That child’s actions spoke to me. There are times I sense the Holy Spirit saying to give to a particular person, although I barely know them, but there is joy when I respond quickly.

  Let us all be quick to respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and allow the Lord to change us. Let us hold everything we have loosely so that our hand is free to take the Lord’s.

Challenge for today: Open your heart to the Lord to work change in you where needed.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you had a great weekend. We got some fresh snow in the night and more coming down all the time. I made some egg dishes this morning and not sure if I will get to my exercise class. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

I think most of us would concur that America has gone far astray and has need to return to our Christian heritage and to be a nation under God again. Sometimes I remark to Al, after watching the news, that I wonder how it can get much worse in our culture. We have a vivid picture before us of what life is like when God is left out. But revival often happens when people pray and recognize that we have lost what matters most.

  I am encouraged by the revival that is taking place at Asbury University and over 21 other college campuses; also, the good news that in the Philippines and India thousands are being baptized daily. God is up to something that we don’t want to miss out on.

  I was reading what Dr. Roger Barrier, who is now a retired pastor from a megachurch in Tucson writes about Revivals. He studied revivals of the past of Jonathan Edwards, Charles Finney, Billy Sunday etc. but he and his wife were personally touched by the Asbury revival in 1970. It went on for 185 hours as students and faculty gave their testimonies and prayed for one another, asked forgiveness and worshiped together. Asbury students went to campuses sharing about the revival and then new ones broke out everywhere. When a team came to Baylor where Dr Barrier was, he and his wife were deeply touched and committed to full-time ministry. When this new revival broke out now at Asbury, he was thrilled but also wanted to check it was the Holy Spirit moving and not just an emotional high.

    He shared the characteristics of genuine revivals of those who participate: they enter into fervent praise and prayer, and sense the presence of the Lord in a powerful way; they sincerely repent when convicted by the Holy Spirit, and thirst for God’s Word; they begin or renew a deep relationship with the Lord and share personal testimonies with gratitude; and finally have a new passion for sharing the gospel and living the Christian life. Dr Barrier believes that the Asbury Revival has all of those characteristics and is authentic.

  One of his friends went to Asbury to find out for herself. Her words: “We arrived on campus at 12:30 a.m. this morning. The atmosphere was electric. Within a few minutes, it was standing room only. Singing, Cheering. Hands raised. Some people sat quietly with heads bowed. The worship was spontaneous and Spirit-led. Honestly, it felt to me like we were seeing a repeat of the Acts 2 birth of the early church. Only it’s happening again in our Gen Z generation (and beyond.) There is a hunger and a fire and a passion for what is true, and pure, and holy.” She left there praying for more of Jesus and full of hope.

Challenge for today: Pray for revival and open your heart in new ways to the Holy Spirit.

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Happy Weekend to you! The snow seems to have stopped for now and we are left to look out on a beautiful landscape. This morning I baked cookies on a stick and bars to put in the freezer for events coming up. Al is glad to sample them for me too! 
Devotions from Judy’s heart

  Yesterday our Bible Study here at Northern Lakes left me in awe of the Holy Spirit’s work and even His timing. I always go downstairs ahead of time to set up for Bible study and to be there if people come early. One gal came and was excited of what the Lord was showing her in scripture of the importance of doing the works of Jesus in helping the poor, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting those imprison etc.(Matt. 25) Also, how one day there would be a separation of those who did His works and those who refused  and would not taste of heaven but eternal punishment.

  To get more personal in Bible study we talked about how we are the Body of Christ and what we can do, even in our apartment complex to meet the needs of others and to share Christ.  One gal told of her own loneliness and how she was walking in the halls the night before and went past the door of a gal who was recovering from a stroke. She wondered if the Lord was prompting her to knock on her door and make a visit. She responded and the woman was so thankful for her coming and also for her willingness to take her to her next doctor appointment. That is the church in action, and as we do those things led by the Spirit, one day the Lord will say, “Come you, who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for  you from the foundation of the world.”(verse 34) For I was hungry and you gave me food etc…

Let us be doing the works of Jesus as we wait for that day.

Challenge for today: Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes to ways you can be His hands in the world and share His love.

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you have a wonderful day. We were able to have our soup supper and service last night as the weather cleared. Further north they got about a foot of snow. Al has already left for the men’s group this morning and later we will have Bible Study here. For the devotion today I mostly used the words that Dan wrote before his death about the angelic encounter he had one night.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

Recently, we went to the funeral of a Christian friend who had lived down the hall from us and came regularly to our weekly Bible Study. His life was lived for the Lord and he at times shared experiences from the past. We knew he loved the song “Trust and Obey” and the week after his funeral we sang that song in our Bible study group. Later Al and I read his life story knew why that song was meaningful to him.

  In 1993 Dan was sent to St. Cloud Hospital because of pressure on his heart and shortness of breath. The Doctor had an angiogram taken on him and asked if he was a smoker, and Dan answered no. The Dr. rather surprised him and went on to say that he had him scheduled for a triple bypass the next morning. What a shock!  Dan’s wife left to go home to get clothes and he was left alone and scared; but the song Trust and Obey kept coming to his mind each time he felt nervous. The operation went well and he went to ICU to recover. Then later one night he was up walking and felt very hot. A nurse came in the room all dressed in white and had white hair. She asked Dan if she could help him and he said yes, if she could turn the air conditioner on as he was so hot. She went to the wall and fiddled there and said she turned the air conditioning on, after which she rubbed a cool washcloth all over his body. He felt cooled down and she left. But later he had sharp pains in his chest every time he took a breath. He must have collapsed as he woke up the next morning in a different room and felt like he had been run over by a truck. The nurse got him walking down the hall when he met a doctor who said he wanted to check Dan’s ribs, thinking he may have broken one rib in the crisis the night before. The Dr. told Dan he gave him quite a scare during the night and that his lungs had collapsed but he was now okay. When the nurse helped Dan back to bed, he asked her who the older nurse was that helped him last night as he wanted to thank her. She said they had no older nurse and no one there wears white. It is quite likely the Lord sent an angel to minister to him. Then the song came to his mind again, “When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word, what a glory He shed on our way! While we do His good will, He abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey. Trust and obey for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey.”  Dan’s trust was in the Lord and later he told his wife, I saw an angel and all I could do was keep saying, ”Trust and obey!”  Dan is now in the very presence of the Lord! Let us all put our trust in the Lord and walk in obedience and His love.

Challenge for today: Be open to new ways the Lord may make His presence known to you. 

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you are keeping warm and toasty. It is a blustery and snowy outside but inside is warm and full of aroma of fresh baked cookies. My plans changed and I just visited a friend who recently lost her hubby and have crafts this afternoon. Tonight if the roads are good we will go to the Lenten supper and service.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

  How often do we judge others and send out a message of condemnation? We may not actually say negative comments aloud but we may be thinking them and they block our relationship and communication with them.

   Jesus told us in Matt 7:1-2 (ESV), “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” ” What we criticize others of is often the very thing that is found in our own hearts, but we are unaware. We may think we aren’t enough and are quick to find blame in others, rather than seeing our own selves. It may cause us to turn away from others and hide our true selves. But we are told not to judge others or even ourselves for that is the Lord’s job as He only sees what is in our hearts.

   I am reading a book by Curt Thompson M.D. who is a psychiatrist and writes about The Soul of Shame. He shares how people who experience shame, shame others. Most of us need healing of wounds from our past or we will not flourish. We may believe rejection is coming from others and that they are trying to hurt us, but that may not be so at all. It could be an indicator that we need healing and what we are judging in them is stuck in our own hearts.

   Instead of hiding or judging others, we can turn to the Lord and let Him heal our brokenness and shame. We can also share with trusted others who can pray for us and help us on the journey to wholeness. The enemy would have us isolate ourselves and not connect with others but God would have us open ourselves up so we can get healed.

   It was a little scary for me at first when others prayed for my healing, but then when we experience the newfound freedom and joy, we know it is worth it. And of course, there is always more healing needed in all of our lives for we live in an imperfect world.

Challenge for today: When time seems right, share with a trusted friend something you would like prayer for in your life.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you have a peacefilled day. The sun is shining and hoping that it will melt the ice on the walks! I just finished making 2 spaghett pies and did food prep. This afternoon we are invited to new friends for coffee and fellowship. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

   When we know the Lord, we become His ambassadors to share Him with others so they may also come to faith in Him. There are many people who have never heard about Jesus, not just in foreign countries, but here in the United States. I remember when Al was an intern in CA and we had Vacation Bible School. There was a little boy in my class that had no idea who Jesus was, as he came from a Buddhist family. Such a privilege it was to share with him, Jesus. Jesus last command before leaving this world was that we go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.(Matt. 28:19)

  Recently I read the true story on Facebook that brought tears to my eyes of a little 9year old boy. He lived in Tennessee and had never been to church and had not heard about Jesus. The Bus Pastor of a large church, 3 miles from his house, stopped by one Sunday morning to see if he wanted to go to S.S. When the young boy came to the door the pastor asked to talk with his parents; but the boy responded by telling him that each weekend his parents went away and left him alone with his little brother. The pastor then asked him if he would like to hear the greatest love story and he shared with him about Jesus. At the end, he asked the boy if he wanted to receive the Lord, and he said, “Well sure!” He got down on his knees and invited Jesus into his heart. When asked if he wanted to go to church the next Sunday, he was more than willing. Church was puzzling to him as he had no idea what was going on. When the offering plate was passed around, he didn’t know what people were doing. When he saw that they were putting in money, he searched his pockets but had nothing to give. He tried to hold on to the plate but had to pass it on. He kept his eye on the plate and when it got to the very back of the church he went to the usher and asked for the plate. He proceeded to put the plate on the carpet and then stood in the plate and prayed, “Jesus, I don’t have anything to give you. Just me!”

  Of course, that is what Jesus is after from all of us; He wants us and not just a small part of our lives. Let us be like the little boy and give Him our whole heart. Like the song goes, “All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give

Challenge for today: Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal anything that you are holding back from God, and give Him all.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and  love, Judy