Canaan's Rest

Canaan’s Rest represents a quiet place “set apart” for the purpose of hearing God's voice, growing in intimacy with the Lord, and being renewed in soul and spirit.

Category: Whispers (Page 14 of 161)

May 1, 2025

May 1, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you have an expectant day! Today is Donut Day here and Bible study and hope to get in baking and a nice walk in this beautiful weather.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
We all have expectations of ourselves, others and of God. Expectations are important: they may be limiting or enhancing for what God has planned for our lives. Scripture gives us reasons to have great expectations from the Lord, and we need to take to heart what He says we can anticipate. Our own limited expectations influence how we look at the events in our lives and we can miss what God has for us.
When we were at our son’s church in North Carolina on Easter Sunday the pastor gave a thought-provoking sermon on “Expecting the Unexpected” from Matt 27- 28. He used the example of the Pharisees who expected that Jesus was an impostor and that his body would be stolen, so they wanted guards at the tomb. They did not anticipate a resurrection to take place, even though they may have seen his healing miracles like Lazarus being raised from the dead. Pilate believed his guards could stop a resurrection! Even the disciples failed to remember that Jesus would actually be raised from the dead. But perhaps one of the most astounding pieces of evidence for His resurrection is the change in his disciples after Jesus arose. They were no longer men who doubted and often failed to understand what Jesus said, but became powerful preachers, healers, miracle workers who were willing to endure persecution. We would say they were radically changed!
If we are Christ followers then we can expect that Jesus means what He says. He wants for us to be in a living relationship with Him, knowing that we are His beloved children who can be used for His kingdom work. When we go to church He desires that we come with the expectancy to hear and pay attention to what He has to say. When we have our devotions, He wants us to know He is speaking personally into our lives. He spoke long ago but also speaks to us now, today. Do we really have that expectation?  May we say with John as written in I John 4:16, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in Him.”
Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to have expectant faith and to believe His words to your heart.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

April 30, 2025

April 30, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you have a day of freedom. I plan to go to exercise class, Creative Crafts, have a couple come to look at our apartment for possible living here some day and Bible Study later.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Would we say that we live our lives freely in God? He never coerces us but invites us to a life in Him and sets us free. Why do we resist? Paul writes to the Galatians and tells it like it is and says in Gal. 2:15. “We know we are not set right with God by rule keeping but only through personal faith in Jesus Christ.” Paul himself had tried to keep all the rules to please God but discovered self-improvement was not the way and he could never be good enough.

The Lord wants to set us free from trying to be perfect, trying to earn what He already paid the price for. When we know that in our heart, we don’t have to live on edge to impress others and especially God—We can simply go about our lives letting the Lord direct us and responding to His Holy Spirit. He wants us to trust in Him and let Him live His life through us, not struggle by our own efforts.

Paul says in Gal. 511, “Doing things for God is opposite of entering into what God does for you.” We are to live our lives in relation to Him by faith, not futilely trying to earn our way. Jesus set us free to live a free life (Gal. 5:1). Let us not be burdened down trying to earn what is ours as a gift. What matters most is faith expressed in love (Gal. 5:6) That doesn’t mean we are free to do whatever we want but we are free to live creatively and serve others in love, that is how freedom grows. If we do acts of service to earn our way, we will tire out quickly. Let us live from a heart of gratitude for what the Lord has already done for us.

 Challenge for today: Quit being a “law man” (or woman) of rule keeping so you can be a “God’s man” or (woman) of God pleasing.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

April 29, 2025

April 29, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you have a purpose-filled day! We have had rain but not too much wind. I never got to Aldi’s yesterday as it was raining so hard when I was to go. I put away our winter things so hope I don’t regret it! Emoji Today I plan to bake and go to Aldi’s and this afternoon we are going to friends for a time of fellowship.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
How are we known as followers of Christ? Do we manifest His presence to others by sharing the Good News and showing compassion and His love to others we meet?
As I read about the Christians in the second century that were only a small minority in the Roman world, I am amazed at the difference they made. They really got what Jesus had told His followers: to love one another just as He loved them. (John 13:34) The Roman culture with its pagan values was vastly different, so Christians stood out as they cared for the sick, supported widows and orphans, welcomed the poor and people of all ranks, etc. They were in the world but not of the world and lived a servant’s life with acts of love that attracted others. They gave people a sense of belonging, whether slave or free, Jew or Gentile and there was no one-up-manship. Christians were known for their love, patience, and kindness to strangers, for they welcomed all. They were a community of love, and even cities like Antioch where around eighteen different ethnic groups lived, it became home. All were warmly received and the Christian church became family as many became followers of Christ.
What really spoke to my heart as I read Professor Gerald Sittser’s book “Water from a Deep Well” is how the church handled the plagues in A.D 165 and A.D. 250 when nearly a fourth of the population died. What a difference the response was from the Christians in contrast to the pagans! During that time, the bishops brought hope and comfort to the people as they preached on God’s sovereignty and Jesus’ suffering for all. Those who were Christians showed courage by giving care to the sick and burying the dead after washing and wrapping their bodies. They risked their own lives and some lost their lives as a result. But they knew they had a heavenly home.  How different for those who were pagans, for they left their loved ones when they were sick, and I read they even threw their bodies into the roads before they were dead.
Reading Sittser’s book helps me realize how purposeful we need to live our lives as we share the Good News, not just by words but by our actions. Our Bible study class here at Northern Lakes is just beginning to study the book of Acts, and it is our hope that we can make a difference; that each person might feel a sense of being welcomed and of belonging to a community of love.
Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to help you share His love with someone who may feel neglected and unloved. Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

April 28, 2025

April 28, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you had a wonderful weekend. Severe weather is predicted for us this afternoon with a possible tornado so we are praying for calm weather. I am going to Aldi’s and my exercise class this morning and will stay home this afternoon!
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Isn’t it comforting to know that Jesus prays for us? Before Jesus was crucified and left this earth, He prayed for his disciples and also for us that we would be one as He is with His Father. We read his prayer in John 17:20-21, “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me…that they may all be one.” The Message translation says that they can be of one heart and mind and that includes us today. Jesus wants to be intimate with us, but He also wants us to enter into deep relationship with one another. We are not rivals or competing with one another, but we are one Body with countless other believers who have gone before us, are with us now, or will be together with us in the future.
I like to read books I find in Al’s study and one lately that challenged me was learning from those who have gone before us: the saints who are now in glory. We can gain from their experiences, be inspired by their faith and sacrifices, and learn how to walk out our life with the Lord in a deeper way. Much of what we see in today’s church is shallow and watered down, as we seem to need worship to be glitzy, programs may be only self-help and somehow, we are missing what it means to worship and experience the Lord. We have much to learn from those in the past who sought the Lord, were devoted to serving Him, and sacrificed, letting us know there is more awaiting us to experience. Sometimes old ways will help us to live in new ways for the Lord. We can also learn from their mistakes and failures and see our own blind spots if we are open and teachable.
May we not get confused by contemporary spirituality that lacks substance and integrity. Spirituality is rather fashionable word in today’s world but often lacks discipline or even believing in any faith tradition. It can cater to our own interests and tastes. How different it is from those who were martyred for their witness, monastics, and missionaries who left all to go to foreign lands, etc. May we open our hearts to the Lord and learn from those in our past as well as those in our present.
Challenge for today: Take time to be open to new ways the Lord may speak to you.
Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

April 26, 2025

April 26, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you have a great weekend! We had a fun Birthday party here yesterday. Today I plan to clean and do food prep and walk the trail. Still trying to lose the weight I gained in N.C.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Jesus spoke on the sermon on the Mount that we be not anxious about anything (Matt. 6:25-34), and yet today there are so many plagued with anxiety and depression. Even if we aren’t suffering ourselves, we have loved ones who are. I am reading a book by J.P. Moreland who is a professor of at Talbot school of theology and has himself suffered two nervous breakdowns. He is very vulnerable in his writing to give help on how to find peace and wholeness through counseling, meditation, prayer and medication. Since he has suffered, he is not giving superficial answers but shares how to not only survive but to thrive and give hope to others.
Mooreland himself has a genetic predisposition to anxiety from his mother’s side of the family. That in itself doesn’t determine one’s behavior but makes anxiety more common than some without the predisposition. Anxiety and depression are different but often occur together. He uses a Christian approach and also other helpful truths that are in line with scripture. It is important to train our minds because it affects our feelings. We learn that if we entertain fearful or negative thoughts it may affect our emotional faculty by creating anxiety. But there is hope, for our brains can be trained to think good thoughts and as it says in Prov. 2:7, “For as he thinks within himself, so is he.” As we take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (II Cor. 10:5), we will find that our brain can get retrained and those negative thoughts will be replaced by good ones. It takes about 2-6 months for the brain to do that.
The Lord wants to transform our minds and replace those negative, anxious thoughts. Mooreland’s four-step solution is: 1. Relabel our thoughts that have no connection to reality. 2. Reframe them and call them what they are in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. 3. Refocus your attention on something that distracts you and helps you move on, like going for a walk, listening to music, checking e-mails, etc. 4. Revaluing by reflection on how you did on steps 1-3. Think of what you did that seemed to work, etc.
If you want to know more, I suggest you get the book “Finding Quiet,” and also meditate on specific scriptures to help you think on what is right, pure, true, lovely, etc. (Phil. 4:8)
Challenge for today: If anxious thoughts come to mind, replace them with new thinking habits and positive self-talk.
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

April 25, 2025

April 25, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you have a wonderful weekend and time to regroup and get refreshed. We will be setting up for the Birthday Party this morning and going to Costco for the cake. Only 4 birthdays this month but the community room will be filled.
Dear Ones,
Anger is one emotion that all of us, including Christians, may have a hard time to admit feeling. We think we are more spiritual if we block out anger and don’t admit to it, but there is such a thing as appropriate anger. It’s good and healthy to allow ourself to feel anger and take responsibility for it, for then anger can actually become useful. As we learn to share anger in an appropriate way and deal with it, we show that we are honest and genuine and seeking to live a healthy life.
We all need to admit to our anger rather than cover it up. We can ask ourselves what we are so angry about and with whom, then express that anger appropriately in the right manner. We needn’t be ashamed of being angry, for Jesus was angry at times with his own group of followers as well as the scribes, the Pharisees and others. Appropriate anger is healthy and we always need to guard against either overreacting or underreacting. When we overreact everyone around us realizes we are angry but when we underreact, we suppress our anger and are not honest with ourselves or others. People who cover up their anger often have physical ailments like headaches, depression, ulcers, colitis, chest pains, etc. Repressed anger will come out somehow when it is not addressed. We may have outbursts or overreactions and explode. But anger can also be expressed in silence and coldness towards the other, and this is not healthy or being honest in our relationships. It may also show up spiritually, with us feeling weighted down by the meaninglessness of life and we end up feeling distant from God.
It’s important we understand that its all right to be angry, then get over it and let go. We don’t want to stay angry or it will take its toll on our body and on our relationships with others. Perhaps we are afraid to tell someone we are angry, fearing they will get angry with us. Anger doesn’t mean violence either, for that is anger out of control. But anger says that you care to be real with me and it’s an act of concern. Sometimes we get angry at God, but He is able to take it. When we are honest, genuine and express appropriate anger, it helps us live a genuine, vibrant life and we learn to trust and love one another and the Lord.
Challenge for today: The next time you are angry, speak up in the appropriate way, not to change the person but to live in openness with them. Psalm 4:4 Be angry and do not sin.”
Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

April 24, 2025

April 24, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you have a blessed day! Thank you so much for your prayers as we are grateful to be safely home after making it through pouring rain and lots of traffic and now tucked into our apartment again. We enjoyed our time so much with Mark’s family and got spoiled with wonderful meals and fun times together. I was able to get unpacked, wash clothes, go to Aldi’s and put way the Easter decorations. This morning I have an appointment and later Bible Study.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
How good is your hearing? Do things have to be repeated or do you catch what is being said and respond quickly. Some of us have to have devices to help us hear well, but spiritual hearing is even more important than physical hearing. Jesus spoke of that when he was strolling in the Temple and the Jews were questioning Him if he was the Messiah. He said actions speak louder than words and since they didn’t believe in Him they couldn’t recognize His voice. When we belong to Him, Jesus said in John 10:27, “My sheep recognize my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them real and eternal life.”

One of the marks of knowing our Shepherd is that we hear His voice as He calls our name, instructs us, tells us which way to go etc. But hearing is only the first part, for we are also to follow with action. Young children often pretend they don’t hear what their parent is saying because they don’t want to do what is asked of them. The parent’s voice may then get louder until finally action takes place, for It is no longer questionable that the children have actually heard.

Of course, the Lord knows our hearts and if we are being stubborn, double-minded, or disobedient, He knows. The sad thing is that when we don’t obey, we miss what He has for us. There may be something He asks of us and as we do it we often experience a big surprise later. When our kids were young, we worked in the morning which on certain days meant cleaning their rooms, doing dishes, cutting the grass etc. and most afternoons I took them to the pool as their reward. The rule was no work, no play!

We all need to listen carefully to the Lord and follow in obedience. There is only one way to be happy and that is to TRUST and OBEY!

Challenge for today: Make up your mind ahead of time, “What You say we will do. Where you send we will go. Never fear, only trust and obey!”
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Jud

April 23, 2025

April 22, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
 May you make a difference for the Lord each day. This is our last hotel night and we are at the Drury in Iowa City enjoying a little time to retreat. Tomorrow night we hope to be home in our own bed with thankful hearts for your prayers. I am sending this out early tonight as we will leave right after breakfast in the morning.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Does our life honor the Lord or does it give a different message than what we speak with our lips? I think we have all been disillusioned when someone we highly respect behaves in a manner that is not even Christian. Perhaps we have heard a great speaker and read his book, and then discover he treats those under him badly and even having a love affair. It’s so important to live what we believe if we are to make a difference in this world to influence others for the Lord.

None of us is perfect, for sure, and we have so many examples in scripture of people that have royally blown it, but when they repented and changed their ways they were forgiven and restored. That doesn’t mean we should go out and live a life of sin because we know the Lord will forgive us, but rather that we should live like Jesus and repent when we go astray. The apostle Paul said in II Thess 1:11, “If your life honors the name of Jesus, He will honor you.” He encourages the followers of Jesus to live worthy of His calling so that He is glorified in them.

Our conversation should also be different when we know the Creator of the Universe. If He put the world in place, can’t He take care of things? As Christians we see the horrendous violence that is taking place all over the world as seen on the news, but we must not be without hope. Do we talk as if the Lord is absent or are we prompted to pray and even share what the Lord is doing. In the midst of all the chaos there is also revival happening, especially amongst young people. We just celebrated Easter and were reminded of the power that raised Jesus from the dead is also in us. In Romans 6 Paul shares how we were baptized into His death and now walk in newness of life like Jesus who was raised from the dead.

Let us live as those who have been freed from the power of the enemy and become more like Jesus each day.

Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to show you ways that your life is not honoring Him and pray for His power to change you.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

 

April 22, 2025

April 22, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
May you wake to a day of sunshine! We are again at Shelbyville, Kentucky at the same Fairfield that we were at on our way to Mark’s. We are on our way home now and got in a lot of rain and wind yesterday. We hope to make it to Iowa City tomorrow night and then home by Wed. evening. We thank the Lord for the wonderful time with Mark’s family and also thank you for prayers for our trip home.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
It is beneficial to count our blessings, for instead of thinking of losses in our lives we think of the treasures we have been given. Perhaps you have sung the song, “Count your many blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.” It is important to live our lives fully, remember how we have been blessed and give thanks.
Sometimes we may count our regrets instead of blessings, but we can’t alter our past for it only blocks us from living a bright future. However, we can change our attitude toward what has been, giving thanks that the Lord has rescued us from our past and is present with us every moment. There are times we are not aware of His closeness and that is the perfect time to start praising Him and thanking Him. I find as I do this, it seems like the clouds part and I see deeper into His love for me. Maybe praising also helps us surrender on a deeper level to the Lord as we put Him first above all other things. He is to be our Center, not on the periphery and we were meant to live deeply in Him. May we keep a sense of joy and purpose for each day.
Let us be like the one leper who was healed and came back to Jesus to give Him thanks, unlike the other nine who never gave thanks for the One who changed their lives. Every day we are recipients of God’s mercy and grace. Are we grateful and do we use the gifts He has placed in us? Also, do we trust the Lord and not let anxiety dominate our lives. The Lord doesn’t want us to worry for He is on our side, loves us and His love is enough. We can love others because of how deeply the Lord loves us. Let us read the Sermon on the Mount often (Matthew 5-7) and be thankful and free as the birds of the air, giving thanks in all things.
Challenge for today: Spend 5-10 minutes just thanking the Lord for His gifts to you without asking for anything, but just expressing gratitude.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

April 21, 2025

April 21, 2025 / / 0 Comments
Dear Ones,
Hope you had a wonderful Easter! We went to Easter breakfast at Mark’s church and then to the Easter service to worship and hear a great sermon. Andrea’s mom joined us for a T-bone steak dinner that was scrumptious! We spent the day with games, sharing, popcorn and a movie etc. We have been shown such wonderful hospitality!! Today we start our long trip home and appreciate prayers for a safe journey.
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Isn’t wonderful that Jesus has promised to always, always be with us? Before He left our world to go back to the Father, He told His disciples to go and make disciples, baptize them and teach them. And then promised in Matt. 28:20, “And look: I am with you, every single day, to the very end of the age.” These words are especially comforting when others speak against us and even hate us because we are Christ followers. But we shouldn’t be surprised for they hated Jesus. He said in John 15:18-19, “If you find the godless world is hating you, remember it got its start hating me. If you lived on the world’s terms, the world would love you as one of its own. But since I picked you to live on God’s terms and no longer on the world’s terms the world is going to hate you.”
One day a friend told me she had invited her daughter-in-law over to spend some time together. Her answer surprised my friend as she answered, “As long as there is no Jesus talk!” Up to this time, my friend had not known that talk of Jesus was offensive to her, and she said she rarely mentioned the name of Jesus when she was with her. But her life must have been a witness in itself, for her daughter-in-law was aware that she was a Jesus person and must have caused her heart’s conviction.
We might think what have I done to cause a negative reaction from others and how have I offended them? If there is something specific that we did that was wrong or unkind, we need to be humble and ask their forgiveness. But if we have done nothing wrong and simply lived out our life with Jesus, then it could be for those that don’t know Him yet it becomes an offense. No need to be apologetic but simply continue to show His love, even when spoken against. But all the while let us not forget that Jesus is with us and understands fully what that is like as He endured so much, even to the point of death although He never once sinned. Maybe we should rejoice when others hate us and not react but draw closer to the Lord.
Challenge for today: Thank the Lord that He counts you worthy to suffer for Him.
Blessing on your week and prayers and love, Judy
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