Devotions from Judy’s heart

 Do we always hear what the Lord is saying to us?  I’m sure I miss what He is saying to me far more times than I will ever know.  One day I was in the garden with a friend and we were picking green beans and lettuce etc. She said I could pull up the weeds by the onions and I thought she was telling me to pull up the green bean plants when I was done picking. ( We have already pulled up the spinach etc)  I went over the next day and picked more beans but wondered if I heard her correctly so I called her to double check. And sure enough she said, No, No, they will produce more and are not done for the season yet. I was so glad I checked again as I did not hear her rightly. Sometimes we are not quiet enough to hear the Lord and we take off doing things He has not asked us to do. Other times we may need to check with someone we respect spiritually to see if we are “off the wall” in something we believe the Lord is saying to us. There have actually been gals that have said the Lord told them to divorce their hubby to marry someone else in the Body that was more spiritual etc. You get the picture….we don’t hear 100% of the time and I believe the Lord looks at the intention of our heart, even when we misread Him and take detours. I know I need to be more attentive and take more time to be quiet so I don’t miss what He has to say to me.

Devotions from Judy’s heart

I am reminded so often how everything goes back to God’s grace. We are more aware of it when we disobey and know how much we need forgiveness and grace. But how many times do we make mistakes and need to forgive ourselves. We wish we could take back something we said or wish we had done something differently. While at Kurt’s he was going to visit Lily at her 11:30 lunch time and bring her McDonalds. But he got a call from the office wondering where he was at 11:15 as Lily’s lunch was really at 11:05. ( not as he had been told)  Big mistake for a little girl waiting for her daddy with nothing to eat.  And today when we left so early in the morning, I forgot the blueberries I had cleaned for my dad and it was too late when I remembered. I told dad my mistake and he forgave me just as Lily forgave her daddy. These are just small things but in the big things we mustn’t hang on to our mistakes and “beat” ourselves but receive His grace. As Paul said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.  Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” II Cor. 12:9-10. May we constantly know how much we need His grace and be quick to receive.

Devotions from Judy’s heart.

All of us can attest to the difficulty of waiting. When we were little as the grandkids, it seemed like time stood still as we waited for Christmas to come. Or like Kurt as an adult, waits to hear if he has the job in Chicago. Or like a spouse who waits to hear the report of the recent MRI. It is not easy to wait but I believe God does something deep in us as we are in that waiting time. We realize in a new way we are not in control.  In Is. 30:18 it says we are blessed as we wait for the Lord, as He is gracious to us and shows us compassion. For me it becomes a matter of trust for even though we don’t know the outcome, we know He is loving and so worthy of our trust.  Often it is later that we realize that our very hearts have been changed in that time of waiting.   David says in Ps. 27:14, “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”  Let us be courageous and trust and not fear for all is in His hands.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows”.” James 1:17
God’s gifts to us are good, even when we may not realize they are at the time. When we go to visit the grandkids, I usually have little wrapped prizes so they can open one each morning. The girls were delighted with theirs yesterday morning but when Grant opened his stuffed pirate he was not thrilled. In fact he threw it on the floor. Later in the day he appreciated it more and we used it when we played school.  His room theme is pirates so the prize was to fit in with his room decor.  But at first he never gave it a chance and threw it away. I wonder how many gifts the Lord sends to us that we discard or just plain ignore. We would rather have something else and so we put it aside. Maybe he sends us something that is wrapped up in a way we refuse to open. Inside is a precious gift if we would be willing to look beneath. Sometimes we go through hard circumstances and we just want to get out of them as quick as possible, when He is forming His character in us. Or maybe we wish for the gift our neighbor has and believe we are short changed. The apostle Paul learned the secret of contentment (Phil 4;11) and may we receive what the Lord sends, giving  thanks in all things.

Today I read the scripture from Ps. 149:4, “For the Lord takes delight in his people.” How many times have I heard Al say to the congregation, “The Lord delights in you!”  Do we really believe that and live in the awareness of that?
As you know we are seeing our grandkids now and how we delight in each of them. All 7 of our grandkids are so different from one another but we love each of them in an individual way. It gives us great joy when they are responsive as they were on Monday night when we arrived. They were waiting for us and jumped up and down and gave us hugs and xxx and spent time with us. One of their favorite things to do is at night is  to come into our bed and snuggle under the covers as I read to them. Paige also wanted to show me all her treasures and took out 2 treasure boxes, her holy water, and some beautiful dolls etc and we talked about them all in private. I can only imagine how it makes the heart of our Father glad when we tell Him everything that is on our hearts, spend time with Him in secret, share Him with others, and just love Him with all our heart, soul, and strength.” Deut. 6:5. Someone has said the opposite of love is not hate but apathy. Let us respond to the Lord with joy and love that springs up from hearts that know we are delighted in!

8-23Devotions from Judy’s heart

Have you noticed how one size does not fit all? I remember when Al’s mom (who was quite large at the time) went shopping with her good friend (who was just a little slip of a thing), they were tempted to test that one out with tights. For one it would be stretched out to its limit and for the other it would bag.  Likewise, even though Al and I are close on the spiritual journey, what works for him may not work for me. He recently got a new office chair and told me to sit in it any time I want when he is gone. So one day I did and it was not the right height or setting for me at all. I did a Bible study at his desk but felt like a little kid sitting up to a table that was too high for her. Also, when I get in the car and move the seat forward, I find that where Al has the mirrors set is not right for me. I miss much of what is behind me. It doesn’t mean he is wrong or I am wrong but it just isn’t the same for me. I have to reset the mirrors. That may apply to spiritual disciplines or many things on the spiritual journey. We have to be where the Lord wants us, individually, and not the place that someone else is at. At the same time we give others the freedom to be in the place God has for them, without judging. Let us remember that our Heavenly Father knows us so well, even our thoughts, and we can trust Him on the journey!

Devotions from Judy’s heart

I don’t know how many of you noticed the lamp shade in the picture I sent you of the Nevis group I had for lunch…but it is crooked!  I cleaned the house the day before and moved the chair and lamp over as we needed more room for the group. And as many times as I served people around the table, I never noticed the lampshade. When Al came home he asked me about it as he saw it right away.  It made me think of things in my life that need attending and I am yet blind to. We all have blind spots and areas that the Lord wants to show us in our lives. Sometimes people point those things out to us and other times the Spirit reveals them to us and all of a sudden we see. But either way are we ready to let the Lord reshape us, adjust us, change us more and more into His image?   As it says in II Cor. 3:17 to 18:  “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”  We are being transformed and haven’t arrived yet, so there will always be things in our lives that need changing. May our hearts be open to let Him do His work in our lives that we may live in freedom of His Spirit.

 Devotions from Judy’s heart

I think everyone wants to know they are needed and when they get the message they are not, it is hurtful. One day I found a gal  weeping as she had been told that someone else was taking her place at the table where she was going to be taking money. It was a mistake since two were scheduled to do it for the same time slot so she was told she wasn’t needed. I think it struck a cord from her past as she took it so personally that no one needed her now. But that is a lie for we all have a contribution to make and the Body is not complete without our part in it. I thought of someone making stew and putting ingredients in the pot. Each herb and spice makes a difference in the flavor of the whole. If we neglect to put in certain ones it changes the aroma and flavor.  The end product is compromised. We may feel our part is small but withholding it robs the whole. One of Kurt’s friends who is a great chef, made us a dinner one night. He had lots of spices and herbs in it, and one spice was $13 an ounce. Now he didn’t need to use a lot of it, but did it make a difference?  Yes! Maybe we don’t think our part is as important as someone else’s but that is not ours to discern.  Let us use   what God has put within us to benefit the whole.

 Devotions from Judy’s heart

Who are the people we remember most in life? I think we hold to our hearts those who are servants and pour their lives out for others. I read today from Matt 23:11-12 ,“The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” There is nothing more beautiful than a person who is emptied of self and thinks how she or he can serve others. I noticed when the nuns were here how they always gave each other preference….offering the best to the other, not needing to have their own way. I remember a nursing supervisor when I was a student nurse, who poured herself out in doing things needed that would have been assigned to an aid. It elevated her in my mind as she humbled herself to do anything needed at the time. Another friend who is 80 was going to clean toilets at a Via de Cristo weekend and didn’t mind a bit. The Lord looks at our hearts and it must give Him joy when we serve others in His name and are humble enough to do whatever He puts before us. The world is watching and sometimes it is a living sermon, just as my nursing supervisor gave to me.