Category: Whispers (Page 93 of 171)

Dear Ones,

  This is being sent out early for tomorrow since we are leaving very early for Olathe, Kansas. We hope it is to celebrate the Chiefs victory but we will have to wait and see how the game turns out. We look forward to time with Kurt’s family and yummy snacks during the game etc. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

   Our world seems to be in flux and as we look at the future, we wonder what is going to happen next. Will we have sufficient food or do we store up supplies? Will we have power or do we buy solar generators? Will we be safe or do we need devices for protection? We have only to read online all the possible ways to prepare for whatever tomorrow holds, and many are left full of anxiety. We need to seek the Lord and trust Him, and ask Him what is His will for us. 

  God’s ways are not always our ways and we are to trust Him one day at a time. We waste so much energy when we worry and fail to put our hope and our trust in Him. I happen to be reading in Exodus about the Israelites as they began their long trip through the wilderness to reach the Promise land. They first experienced a great miracle of crossing the Red Sea as they walked through on dry land. But the Egyptians soldiers and their horses and chariots were drowned as the Lord caused the waters to come together again. God’s people celebrated big with song and dance but only 3 days later it seems they forgot about God’s great power as they murmured for lack of good water. When the Lord had Moses throw in a piece of wood the water got sweet and drinkable. But the people were not allowed to store up food and had to gather manna just for the day, except on the 6^th day when they got enough for the Sabbath day too. God was teaching them to trust Him for all things.

   But it seems like today people want enough stored up for many futures, stockpiling not only goods but so much money in the bank that they will not live long enough to spend. It is like saying we depend on ourselves and don’t need to trust God.

   God will show each of us how He wants us to prepare for the future and it will not be the same. There are some that are canning and dehydrating food for their families, and others that are raising chickens or putting in solar panels etc. The bottom line is we all need to trust the Lord and as David says in Psalms 143:8, “Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.”

  Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to direct your daily life and follow His leading.

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

  How do we live our lives each day? Do we live whole heartedly for the Lord or do we see how close we can fit into the world’s ways and still remain a Christian? A compromising life misses the best the Lord offers to us we end up missing so much of the joy and the peace He came to bring

  I was reading today how God told Moses to command the people to drive out the inhabitants of the Promise Land they were to claim, and to not let any of them remain. They were to destroy all their idols and traces of their pagan worship and practices. If they didn’t obey and drive them out, they would become like thorns in their sides and barbs in their eyes. (Numbers 33) And sadly, the Israelites compromised and didn’t fully obey or heed the warning. They became more like the idle worshippers and assimilated their practices and ended up suffering for it just as God said. Their compromise caused endless trouble!

   But can we admit that we can also be like the Israelites who engage in worldly things? Maybe something we are asked to do seems harmless at first and yet we get hooked and soon we feel trapped. Hopefully instead, we stand out as different and more like Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego who would not compromise at all when King Nebuchadnezzar ordered everyone to fall down and worship his 90 foot gold statue. They told the king, that their God was able to deliver them but even if he chose not to, “Be it known to you, O King, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up.” (Daniel 3:18) They could have compromised and bowed down this one time, rationalizing that they weren’t really worshipping it; or could have made other excuses but they were decisive and bold. Their witness caused the King to acknowledge God’s power and ordered no one to speak against God.

   Let us not waver in our faith and get distracted by the things of this world, but live each day for the Lord, with a willingness to pay the cost, no matter what.

  Challenge for today: Ask for holy boldness to stand up for the Lord and His kingdom, without compromise.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy 

Dear Ones,

Hope you had a good weekend! The temperatures have warmed up and so good to catch up and walk outside again with our friends on the trail. This morning I did food prep and made a dessert and soon going to Aldi’s and my exercise class. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

One of my favorite passages in the Bible is Jesus Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. If we could practice all that Jesus taught there, our lives and the world would be radically changed. When our kids were young, I had a friend in our church who was like a mentor to me and like a grandma to our kids. She and I decided to memorize that portion of scripture and we would go berry picking and other places and recite those verses together.

   One thing we discovered was that the kingdom of God was so opposite of that of the world. God’s way is like upside -down from man’s, for to be great in God’s kingdom we must be a servant to all, the last will be first and He must increase and we must decrease, etc. The world’s way is to seek the best places, to be first, to be right etc.

   So, when we pray, “Thy kingdom come and His will be done”, if we really mean what we say, we will demonstrate His kingdom in our own lives in obedience, being humble, gentle, showing mercy and all those things that belong to His kingdom. Wow! It also means loving imperfect people and that is often a big challenge. Love is more than a feeling, it is also an action for His love will flow out of our lives to others as we experience His unconditional love for us. As it says in I John 3:18 (Amplified), “Little children (believers, dear ones), let us not love [merely in theory] with word or with tongue [giving lip service to compassion], but in action and in truth [in practice and in sincerity, because practical acts of love are more than words].”

   How do we live out the Sermon on the Mount? We have to have open hearts to the Lord, and let the Holy Spirit have His way in our lives. He wants to help us die to self and live for Him. Each time we choose Him rather than self, His kingdom comes on earth as it is in heaven. By how we live our lives should be a demonstration to the world whose kingdom we belong to.

Challenge for today: Ask the Lord to help you put the Beatitudes into practice in your life (Matt. 5:2-12)

Blessings on your week and prayers and love, Judy

 

Dear Ones,

Happy weekend! Hope you can enjoy some downtime to relax! The weather is warmer so we will be going outside for our walk today!! This morning I have been busy in the kitchen. I just finished making a veggie stirfry,  and a new cookie recipe which I doubt I will try again. Al loves to be the taster and also bowl-licker so will let him give me the final verdict! 
Devotions from Judy’s heart

   Is there a disconnect between what we believe and how we live? Does our walk match our talk about the Lord? We all fail and fall short and we have so many examples in scripture of men of God who blew it many times but confessed their sin and were forgiven and used of God. We have only one life to live and we can’t do it over, but we can learn from our mistakes and failures and let Him restore us.

  It’s good to acknowledge our weaknesses and insufficiencies and rely on the Lord and not our own strength. We can never measure up on our own but He makes us new creatures in Christ and we are righteous in His sight. As the apostle Paul wrote in Eph. 2:8-9 (ESV). “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works. So that no one may boast. “I am so thankful that we don’t have to try and try on our own and become discouraged when we fail again and again. But salvation is a gift that we receive by faith and then daily walk it out in our lives.

  We can trust the Lord to take care of us, and the deeper our trust is in Him, the closer it brings us to Him in intimacy and dependency. Sin is refusing to trust God and vitally connecting to Him. We need the Lord and when we try to protect ourselves, rather than rest and trust in God, we lose ourselves and become distant from Him. Yes, we go through hard times as all people, but even in our suffering we can grow through it as He draws us closer to Himself that His glory may be seen.

  Let us always be growing in our relationship to the Lord and know that we are loved without end. May the life we live today match our talk and bring Him glory.

  Challenge for today: Trust God no matter what happens to you throughout your day and let it bring you closer to Him.

Blessings on your weekend and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Happy weekend to you! Do keep warm! My phone says it is -18 and so glad we don’t have to go out today. I’m sure we will be walking in the underground later! I just finished  cleaning the apartment and made porkchops smoothered in apple slices. When it’s cold out I love to bake too. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

  We were never meant to run our own lives but to lean on the Lord and let Him direct us. I read today from Jeremiah 10:23-24 (Message) “I know, God, that mere mortals can’t run their own lives. That men and women don’t have what it takes to take charge of life, So correct us God, as you see best.” I’m sure if it were up to us, we would take the most comfortable and easy way in life but we would miss God’s best.

   When we think of the children of Israel escaping from Egypt for the Promise land, God’s route for them was much longer than they would have chosen; but God had purpose in the more difficult way. They had a slave mentality and when they saw the enemy coming after them they might have gone back to Egypt. Also, the way through the wilderness that God took them on, was preparation for the battles that they would have to face when they reached the Promise Land. But the hard way taught them to depend on the Lord, knowing they could not go in their own strength. God wanted to let them know that He was with them on this long journey, so He gave them a pillar of cloud by day to lead them and a pillar of fire at night to give them light. When they looked up, it must have soothed their fears to know they were not in this on their own.

    God gives us assurance that He is with as for He gave us His word and the Holy Spirit. It may seem like He is taking us through the wilderness, the longest and most difficult way also; but we can rest assured that He has things to teach us through it all. I know I thought it took God so long to move us when we were in a difficult circumstance, and I would have preferred moving on much sooner. But yes, God taught us things we may not have learned otherwise and we also found that He is enough. No matter how tough the terrain is, He will guide us through as we depend on Him. 

   Challenge for today: Ask God for a teachable spirit when going through hard times.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you have a wonderful day. The house is filled with aroma as I just made choc Oh Henry Bars. Soon I am going to my exercise class, crafts, and maybe shopping to spend my Kohl dollars! Tonight is Bible Study at church. 

Devotions from Judy’s heart

  The alarm rings, and it’s time to get up to the start of a new day. But how we begin our day can reflect on how the rest of our day will unfold. If we are selfishly living for ourselves our day can get to be toilsome; but when we put Jesus first, others second and ourselves third, our day will contain deep peace.

  Our friend David has been a caregiver to his wife who has had Alzheimer’s for 7 years and in the late stage now; he has put the Lord first and then his wife before himself. God has given him the avenue of writing poetry to help him find his way through this maze of changes. I want to share this short prayer poem he just wrote that we can also identify with when we go hard situations in our day. Putting Jesus first and ourselves last will move us to a better place.

              POEM: FLICKERING LIGHT

“As a caregiver, God help me to give more light than I take.

God, show me how to mend more than I break.

The candle of one I love is flickering like a river caught in a prolonged drought. 

I know God; only you determine when her candle goes out.

 

God, sometimes I wonder where you have been.

It seems like you show up like a long-lost friend.

Forgive me for doubting that your love is like a never-ending fountain. 

I have been climbing for too long the rough side of the mountain.”

 

 David goes on to mention that he feels that Alzheimer’s is like a hurricane and God has placed him in the eye of the storm where it is calm and beautiful. That can only happen when God is first, others are second and we are third. Let us entrust each day to Him!

Challenge for today: Give God first place each day, and open your heart to the blessings He will rain down on you!

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy

Dear Ones,

Hope you wake to a day of sunshine! This week the question is: When have you received a perfect gift that you sensed God prompted someone to give you to let you know He sees where you are at and loves you? Maybe it was an encouraging card to lift your spirit and give hope, or a perfect job offer that you didn’t know existed, or maybe an offer to relieve you from caregiving for the afternoon when you wondered if you could go on etc.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

  How bright is our light shining for the Lord? Do others observe that we are His children and have the family likeness? One scripture that I learned as a child in Sunday School was Matt. 5:16 and will probably always be remembered as we recited it each Sunday. I will use the Message translation today, “Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.” Our lives are to be lived for Him and not for ourselves and our love for Him can be expressed in numerous ways.

   One way is to be generous person that loves to share with others; not just material things, but faith and love and good deeds. I read today King Solomon’s words in Prov 22:9, “Whoever is generous will be blessed because he has shared his food with the poor.” It is exciting when we listen to the Holy Spirit’s promptings and He tells us to do something, which later turns out to be exactly what was needed at that moment.

   Maybe we are shopping and we are led to buy something for someone who is going through a hard time. I know a gal that recently went shopping and was led to buy a lovely top for a person new to Northern Living. The new gal has her own health issues and her son is very sick. We pray for her each day but maybe the Lord just wanted her to know He sees her and wants to bless her and encourage her.

   Others may not want to hear about our faith journey but they may recognize a deed done in His name and want to know our Father who is Love.  Let us not dismiss thoughts that come to us throughout our day for if the Holy Spirit is prompting us, let us follow His leading. May our lights not go dim by ignoring the needs of others but shine bright that the glory may go to Him.

  Challenge for today: Be open and willing to help meet the needs of others as led by the Spirit.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy