Glasses for the Baby

 

“Don’t sit so close to the TV,” I instructed my three year old son. 

When I placed him on the sofa, he tilted his head downward and rolled his eyes up to look at the TV. 

“Something is not right with his eyes,” I told my husband.  “I will make an appointment to take him to the eye doctor close by.

“This boy needs a specialist,” said the doctor, “And I there is an excellent specialist with offices in the Fruitvale Medical building.”

After making a new appointment, off we went to visit the specialist. 

The doctor asked him to show with his hand which way the fingers on the letter E were pointing.  The doctor twirled the small eye glasses on the machine until he was happy that this would be a correct prescription for our son.

Then he positioned the machine so that our boy could look through it at me. 

Our boy began to smile real big, and I said, “What are you smiling about?” 

The Doctor made an astonishing statement as he said, “He is seeing his mother for the first time.” 

 

Doctor continued, “Your son could not see his own feet in front of him.  That is how bad his eyes are.

At Sunday school, he suddenly became interested in the pictures and the stories about Jesus.

Those early glasses were quite thick, but he no longer ran into things as he played. 

A growing boy often needed new frames so we made regular visits to the specialist, for adjustments to his glasses. 

As time went by, and Junior High school was near, Doctor suggested that perhaps for cosmetic reasons, we should consider contact lenses.  “He is old enough to take care of contacts,” said the doctor.

That was a good choice, and it caused our son to feel better about him-self.

The thick glasses were used in the evenings at home to give the eyes a rest, but all in all the adjustment to contacts were fine.

I am reminded that there is spiritually another world that we cannot see that is brimming with angelic beings. No eye glasses on earth will reveal these angels that are protecting us, but they are real and active in their ministry.

One day, our spiritual eyes will be opened and we will be able to view angels and Jesus face to face. 

In the mean time we can pray with Paul:  Eph. 1:18-21 that - - The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,

¹⁹ And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,

²⁰ Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,

²¹ Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:  :-)

This post is shared at: Tell Me a Story

And with Laura at The Wellspring

Also linked with Jennifer Dukes Lee at: Tell His Story

What Happened?

Touch Jesus, He is Alive
courtesy photobucket.com

 

Today I gleaned from Pastor Jerry’s sermon, as he mentioned in that time and era, there had been many who preached and claimed to be the Christ, but as they died, they were soon ancient history. 

Preachers come and go.  Jesus was dead and the Romans and his enemies were assured that he also would soon be forgotten. 

The disciples were fearful and discouraged, and they felt all was lost.  They had put much energy into following Jesus, and now they expected his body and the other two bodies to be thrown outside of the city into the land fill where the wild beasts were... 

However, Joseph came and begged the body of Jesus so he could place him in a borrowed tomb.  With a final thrust of a spear into his side, the soldiers were satisfied that Jesus was dead, so they allowed Joseph to take his body.

Pastor Jerry read from John 20:19-31 regarding Jesus appearing before his disciples after His resurrection.  What happened to give the disciples a restoration of their faith? 

Jesus showed them his hands, feet and side, and they marveled that they could touch him.

Then Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.” 

Thomas was not with them, and he refused to believe unless he could see and feel Jesus.  When Jesus appeared to them eight days later, Thomas was shocked as Jesus offered him to thrust his hand into his side and other wounds.  Oh my Lord and my God, cried Thomas, but Jesus said, now you believe because you have seen, but blessed are those who have not seen, yet believe.

The disciples began to preach and teach the message of Jesus the Savior and many accepted the Good news.  Those in authority were angry and warned the disciples not to preach in Jesus name, but their reply was, we cannot stop, for we must obey God rather than man.

These disciples and many other believers were willing to lay down their lives, for reality. 

Think about it, if Jesus’ resurrection was a scam, who would be willing to die for a lie? 

Christians today receive the message of Jesus and in ways personal to each one, Jesus reveals himself to them.

Many Christians, through out our world today are martyred, persecuted and are being slaughtered.  What happened to give them this faith? 

The simple answer is because Jesus has made himself known to them in truth as a risen Savior.   We too are witnesses to the fact that Jesus is alive.  Rejoice, He lives!

This post is shared with Charlotte’s Spiritual Sundays

 

More Wonders, Surprises, Blessings!

-Devotional encouragement by Guest Roy Lessin,

sharing from his blog Meet Me In The Meadow

 

 

More Wonders, Surprises, Blessings!

Cast your net,
with all the might of your faith,
into the waters of His will.

Send it deep into the sea of His promises,
into the waters of His abundance,
into the depths of His supply.

As you do, you will gather-

more wonders than you have ever seen,
more surprises than you can ever imagine,
more blessings than you can ever hold!

They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. John 21:6

The Lord Is Your Life

Press On
Stay Strong
Keep Believing
God has Great Things ahead for you!

Love the Lord your God,
listen to His voice,
and hold fast to Him.
For the Lord is your Life.
Deuteronomy 30:20

 Devotional encouragement by Guest Roy Lessin

NO FREE LUNCH (repost)

No Free Lunch
courtesy photobucket.com

 

Free Stuff!  I am a big sucker for all stuff free!   I should have known better - - - but when I noticed an offer on Face Book for a “Free Subway Sandwich,” I innocently took the bait!

Eagerly, I filled out all the information until I got to the part where I needed to make a purchase.  These were just a couple of offers that seemed like they might be interesting. 

Headlong, I plunged into the abyss!  

Now I am fully away that the offer for $500 to spend at Target or some other store was a come-on!   Yes, a SCAM!  However, I had not suspected a small free sandwich.

Quickly, I tried to back out, to escape, to get out of there, to cancel, and to repair any damage done, but I was locked in!  Too Late - - - Looks like the Devil ate my lunch !!

NO free sandwich today for me!  That is not the end of the story!

The very next day my e-mail In-Box brimmed with forty e-mails, asking me to earn extra income, to take courses for job training!  They wanted me to learn to be this or that! I received offers to buy engagement rings, apply for bankruptcy, meet singles, get a high school diploma, and the list went on and on.

At first, I opened each one and requested at the bottom to remove my name.  I don’t believe that worked, as evidenced the next day in my overflowing In-Box.

This was out of control; eighty new spam messages filled my in box! 

 
Horrible! I couldn’t believe it!

Using “Block mail” has never worked for me, because the senders simply change to a different name.  What does work is using the method provided by my e-mail server where you can “bounce” unwanted mail.  Using this tool causes the message to go back to the sender with a notice that says, “Undelivered mail, recipient unknown.”  I can bounce groups, so I now gleefully bounce and bounce and bounce!

Each day for the past several weeks, I have been bouncing groups of forty to eighty e-mails.  Hopefully the advertisers will get the message soon!

From heartache to pure havoc, people get themselves into all sorts of predicaments.  How do we get into these types of messes?  “Without knowledge my people perish,” the Bible says! 

Well, I have some knowledge now, and when this is finally over, I hope I will never need to repeat this again!

Now YOU also have knowledge, so please learn from my mistake, and proceed with caution if you are ever offered a FREE LUNCH!

This post is linked with Ann Kroeker’s  Food on Fridays  

 

 

Asking Permission



Courtesy free clip art

There was a step that Robert was not anxious to go forward with, but it needed to be done. 

He had to ask my father’s permission to marry me. 

Prior to coming to this point there was someone else that he needed to ask permission.  He needed to ask my Heavenly Father if he could marry me.

It seemed like he was gone a long time as he went into the church to pray.  I waited in his car for him to come back.

Soon he returned with a look of joy on his face.  He said to me, “I told God I was willing to give you up, if it was not His will, but God said, I can have you.” 

I don’t know why I hadn’t prayed about this.  Probably because I just took it for granted that God had brought me Robert and that was it.

Now it was time for Robert to face my earthly father.  My dad had already told me that he could probably get Bobby a job on the railroad, which would be a steady income instead of the sporadic roofing work he was doing.  In those days we called him Bobby.

I told Bobby, please be kind but refuse to accept the railroad job, because it would mean working evenings and on Sundays and missing church.

All went well, and my Dad was happy to have Bob take me off his hands.   He agreed to walk me down the aisle and to help with the finances for the wedding.

The first few years for Bob and me was a financial struggle. 

I remember once borrowing a dollar from my mother so I could purchase some hamburger.  I was so embarrassed when I paid her back that I vowed never to ask my parents for money again.

Bob went through the roofing apprentice program, and took what work was available. 

Some of the older roofers knew Bob would hold his own and carry them too, by taking the most of the work; so they would request that he also be hired. 

One of the contractors noticed how fast and experienced Bob was and offered him a permanent job.  When it rained, they did repairs or worked on the boss’s cabin.

Later his boss helped us go into business for ourselves and times were not always easy but God was our partner and supplier.

As you approach new directions in life, it is a good thing to ask your Heavenly Father’s permission and to follow the steps he desires you to take.

This post was shared with Paula at Wednesday Welcoming Spirit
Also shared at: Tell Me a Story
And with Jennifer Dukes Lee at: Tell His Story

 

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

courtesy photobucket.com

Richard Carlson wrote the book Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff and its all small stuff.

Matthew 23:24  ^“Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.”   In other words, they make a big to-do out of the little things and let the big things escape.

Jesus warned us to leave the small things aside and pay close attention to the larger truth.

Most of us love tradition.  The white wedding and the march down the aisle, the pomp and ceremony at church.  The exchanging of gifts at Christmas and we could make a long list.

To be honest we realize that a lot of what we celebrate as Christians is tradition, such as December 25, for the day Christ was born.  We understand that this date is not the real date, but as we follow tradition, and use that date in time to remind us that Jesus was born to live and die and live again.

As we examine Easter and the dates we celebrate as Good Friday and Easter, we understand that again we are following tradition, and using these days of the week is a point of remembrance and celebration that Jesus Lives today!.  The Bible is clear that Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week - - which we celebrate as Easter.

 
If we are a thoughtful person, and study the Jewish laws and customs, we will understand that there were two Sabbaths, a weekly and preparation for the Passover Lamb sacrifice.

Many scholars have pointed out that Jesus probably died on Thursday the day of preparation for the “Passover Sabbath.” Jesus was to be the Passover Lamb. 

 

Using this time line would then give Jesus the THREE days and NIGHTS in the tomb, and allow him to rise from the dead early on the first day of the week.

I tend to believe this is the case, but listen - - should we fight and argue over this “small stuff?” 

What is important is that all was fulfilled in Jesus and he is not here for he has risen as he said.

There are organizations who love to find fault and tear people and ministries apart.  They also enjoy pointing out these minor details and call all who do not change their thinking that they are heretics.

I refuse to subscribe to the websites of those who criticize and call certain ministers wrong because they have a large following and are bringing people into the kingdom.

These sites that stir up strife and pull down beliefs are usually extremely angry and the Bible warns us NOT to follow an angry man.

A careful reading of the Bible will reveal to us the truth.

This post is Linked up with Michelle’s Hear it on Sunday

 

Christmas is Fulfilled

Jesus is Alive
courtesy photobucket.com

 

Pastor Jerry read from Mark 16:1-8 about the women bringing spices to anoint the body of Jesus and their puzzled questions, “Who will roll away the stone for us, because it is very heavy?” 

 

I gleaned from his sermon and will share an edited version here.

When the women arrived at the tomb they discovered the stone had been rolled away and a young man in a white robe sat inside and spoke, “He is not here for he has risen as he said.  Go and tell the others that Jesus is alive and will meet with them in Galilee.”  The terrified women hardly dared to believe, yet they went and did as they were told.

The followers of Jesus were grieving and hiding, and believed all was lost.  They did not remember the hints that Jesus had shared with them; that this would truly happen; he would die and in three days He would rise again.

Pastor reminded us of the Christmas story, and the angel‘s message, “And you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”  Jesus was born to save us.

Christmas was the beginning of the promise that was first given to Adam and Eve in the garden and introduced us to a new hope.  Good things were to come, a Savior was born.

To every promise there must be a recipient.  Promises and vows are given at a marriage ceremony, in business, in school, in life - - one gives and one receives.

Jesus Christ was born to save and completed his part of the promise.  Our part is to receive him as our Lord and savior and invite Him into our life.

The world has offered substitutes for Christmas: Santa Clause, rain deer, candy canes, and also for Easter: bunnies, colored eggs, baskets filled with treats, and spring fashions.

Pastor gave an illustration of a man looking at the names on the Vietnam wall searching for his uncle’s name.  There he discovered his own name entered there in error, for he was alive and well. He said, “I must be one of the living dead!”

Some today are “living dead” as they have not received newness of Spiritual life from Jesus.  They are dead in their sins, but Jesus calls for them to receive the promise of life.

Jesus referred to pain at birth and the memory is soon past when the child is held in the mother’s arms.  The pain of the crucifixion was real.  The struggle of good and evil is real. 

 

Evil is alive and real and we see it all around us.  We hear it on the news and read about it in the paper.  The earth groans, and at times we are confused about the future.

We may be in mourning, and having problems, but do not fear or be puzzled.  He promises to be with us, what ever comes our way.

Easter is a wake up call, the promise of Christmas is fulfilled, that Jesus is alive and because He lives, we too may live. 

This post has been linked to Fresh Brewed Sundays

The Ugly Beautiful Cross

 

Cross, courtesy photobucket.com

The Ugly Beautiful Cross. By Hazel Moon

 
The cross of Jesus Christ was ugly splintered wood, spattered with blood, sweat, bits of flesh and possibly other body fluids.
Not a pretty sight, but that was not the most horrible part.  Other unseen things happened on the cross that affected you and me.
The SINS of all mankind were placed on Jesus as he hung on that cross and the sky turned dark with grief causing the most terrible thing to happen!
Because His Father God could not bear to look down on this sight of Jesus carrying our guilt and our sin; God turned his back on Jesus! 
A thick Darkness covered the earth for three hours, and Jesus was completely alone and abandoned.  All had deserted him including his Father God.    "Father why have you forsaken me?" cried Jesus. 

When his friends and all others ran, Jesus could accept that, but NOT rejection by His heavenly Father.  That was too much to bear and it broke his heart.
Jesus proclaimed that what He had been sent to do was done.  "It is finished" he cried.  I did it for “YOU” (your name here) the thoughts of “YOU” were in his mind and he could see into the future and view all those he was dying for. You and Me!
It was then his physical body died, and the temple curtain (veil) that blocked access into the Holy of Holies was torn from the top to the bottom by the finger of God.  Now we can enter boldly into the throne room and cry Abba Father.
That cross reminds me of a horrible death, but I am so glad the story did not end there.  No the end was not at the cross nor at the grave.
We know that Jesus rose again on the third day, full of life, power, forgiveness and love. The Angels declared, “He is risen as He said.”

During the next 40 days Jesus proved to his friends and others that He was truly alive.

On the mountain top, Jesus gave instructions and another promise, I am leaving, BUT, I will return to gather you onto myself.  Until then I am sending you a Comforter and guide.  The Holy Spirit will abide IN you and He will be also WITH you and shall never leave you.
Praise God we can celebrate Easter in all its magnificence !! - - It is Resurrection Day, a Glad and Glorious Day.

 

Glad Glorious Day

 

Empty Tomb
courtesy photobucket.com

           Easter is a fun time for children as they hunt eggs and receive gifts in their Easter Baskets.

As children we dyed hard boiled eggs, had fun hunting for them, and often hiding them again.  Later we enjoyed deviled egg sandwiches, and potato salad with lots of eggs inside.

Spring time, flowers and fun all are in order this time of the year!

However the days prior to the original Easter were NOT a fun day for Jesus. 

Jesus was betrayed and rejected by his friends, yet he uttered, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”  He suffered and died for you and for me.

On that Glad Easter Morning, He arose from the dead and He lives for ever more.

Not only is he alive, but after 40 days he was escorted by Angels back to heaven leaving us with a promise that he would return some day to receive us unto himself.

Jesus did not leave us comfortless.  He sent His Holy Spirit to be our helper. When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we can know that He is IN us and will be with us always! 

He says, I will never leave you nor forsake you.

So let this Easter be a Fun day! Let it be a Joyous and Glorious Day! 

Let it be a day of Hope!

It is Resurrection Sunday!!

 

This post has been shared with Ann Kroeker

at her Food on Fridays site

  

Clean Straw (Repost)

photo by Granddaughter Ashley

                                          

There’s just something about a Blue Tick Hound Dog that my husband loves!  I think it must be that baying bawl that they let out when they have a varmint “treed”.  It is definitely not for their odor, as the Blue Tick unquestionably, has a distinct, pungent aroma.

We have an area in our home with a specific rug where we allow our hound dogs to share some quality time with us.  At the close of the evening they are sent to their boxes which had been neatly lined with straw to help keep them warm.

One morning, my husband reached his toleration level for our pooches’ lovely smell.  That was it!  Time for baths! Since he was on his way out, he passed that task on to me.  Wonderful!

Shower ‘n suds - scrub-a-dub-dub!   In rotation, I led each hound into the shower, me in a swim suit trying to hold them still and then suds, scrubbing and rubbing until they glistened!   Two hours later - - - they looked good enough for a dog show!  

With that chore behind me, I hurried around the house to catch on some other things.  My husband was extremely pleased when he arrived home that evening.  As for me, I was ready for an early bedtime. 

The next morning, our babies greeted us eagerly!  Phew!  What was that smell? Each dog reeked!  There was that unmistakable hound-dog odor again!

Oops!  I had forgotten one minor detail!    I neglected to change the old straw in their boxes!   How could I forget that?  The dogs had wallowed in it all night, undoing all my hard work!  They stunk!

Isn’t that often the way it is with a new Christian? He is born-again and cleaned up as he kneels at Jesus feet, but because of a lack of knowledge or desire, he doesn’t make the changes necessary to keep smelling like a newborn.  Instead, he returns to his “old bed of straw” – those worldly habits that make him stink!

The Bible speaks about those who turn back to their old ways and referrers to them in rather descriptive language.

2 Peter 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

Let us, as mature Christians, make it a practice to begin each day to start out brand new, ourselves.  If our “straw” has become affected by the world, we have the knowledge that we can always exchange it for God’s fresh touch. 

 

No need to smell anything but sweet in the presence of our Lord.

 

This post has been shared at some of my favorite Blog Parties:  Please visit them!

With Ramona at:  Create With Joy

with Jennifer at: Tell His Story

and with Tracy at Winsome Wednesday