Favourite Places?

“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion. Upon the willows in the midst of it we hung our harps. For there our captors demanded of us songs, and our tormentors mirth, saying, ‘Sing us one of the songs of Zion.’ How can we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget her skill. May my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you.” Psalm 137:1-6a

“’Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.’” Matthew 6:19-221

We all have our favourite places we treasure – places we have liked (or like) living, places we like to visit or dream about visiting; we have certain places within our favourite places where we like to stand or walk or sit. We have favourite ways to get to places we enjoy. Sometimes we imagine it’s the places themselves that are special – that we can’t ever have the same happiness or joy or accomplishment or that there will be no new friends or challenges in new places or just places that aren’t our favourite. But God meets us where we are, we just need to see Him.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla leaves on Monday to Jamaica for her father’s funeral and to be with her mom, now home from the hospital. Pray for all of them and for Carla as she travels to and through this. Continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles. Pray for Tim and Barb who I miss so much.

End of Lovingkindness

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the God of gods, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. To Him who alone does great wonders, for His lovingkindness is everlasting; to Him who makes the heavens with skill, for His lovingkindness is everlasting; to Him who spread out the earth above the waters, for His lovingkindness is everlasting; to Him who made the great lights, for His lovingkindness is everlasting; -- Who remembers us in our low estate, for His lovingkindness is everlasting, and has rescued us from our adversaries, for His lovingkindness is everlasting; who gives food to all flesh, for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the God of Heaven, for His lovingkindness is everlasting.” Psalm 136:1-7a, 23-26

Just think of that….HIS lovingkindness at providing “all and big” is everlasting. In a world of throw-away loves and lives and almost everything we see, ONE thing is everlasting!

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla will leave on Monday to Jamaica for her father’s funeral and to be with her mom, who is now home from the hospital to be with the family. Pray for all of them for me and for Carla as she travels. Continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles, and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired. Pray for Wray Horton who recently lost his nephew in an air crash.

Big & All

“For I know that the Lord is great, and that our Lord is above all gods. Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps. He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; who makes lightenings for the rain; who brings forth the wind from His treasuries.” Psalm 135:5-7

I love verses that remind me of how great and all powerful and sovereign our Lord is. Nice to read that passage again. Let’s try to work harder at keeping this world in perspective.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla’s is preparing to go home to Jamaica for her father’s funeral and to be with her mom, who may now be going home from the hospital early to be with the family. Pray for the entire family and Carla as she travels. Continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired. Pray for Wray Horton who recently lost his nephew in an air crash.

Watchers

“Behold, bless the Lord, all servants of the Lord, who serve by night in the house of the Lord! Lift up your hands to the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. May the Lord bless you from Zion, He who made heaven and earth.” Psalm 134

“And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; -- And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, -- And she never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers.” Luke 2:25, 36, 37

Many serve the Lord faithfully and consistently in ways unseen and rarely appreciated. These “watchmen and watch women” serve, not for praise or recognition, but for the sheer joy of resting in the Lord for the good of His children. If you know any who watch and wait for the Lord pray for them and make time to thank them.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla’s father passed away yesterday. Her Mom remains in the hospital. Pray for her family. Pray for Carla as she tries to find a way to get home for the funeral 8 March. Continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Example of Harmony

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, coming down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard, coming down upon the edge of his robes. It is like the dew of Hermon, coming down upon the mountains of Zion for there the Lord commanded the blessing – life for ever.” Psalm 133

“And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. And everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together, and had all things in common;” Acts 2:42-43

Harmony is good, pleasant and precious. Like refreshing dew on a thirsty mountain it sustains all those about. In the church harmony can get lost as people disagree on “technology” (how the Church is to be worked out in the world) where God stresses the needs of the people. Harmony in the Church is a critical example to the world; it helps the Body itself function well and it renews and revitalises our own energy to identify and “work in” our own personal ministries.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: No new reports on Carla’s Mom in the hospital or her Dad so just keep praying for her family. Pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries); continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Mustard-Seed Promise

“And He said to them, ‘Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it shall move; and nothing shall be impossible to you." Matthew 17:20

“And Jesus answered saying to them, ‘Have faith in God. Truly I say to you, whomever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it shall be granted him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they shall be granted you.’” Mark 11:22-24

Every promise in the Bible has a condition that must be met. Yet, what we usually see is “what we get” rather than “what we are to give”. When I went to Israel, I found a beautiful mustard seed lapel pin. Yesterday, I wore it for a business meeting. As I was leaving, the other person asked me what the pin was. As I gently shared what it represented it was an unexpected way to discover a sister (and brother)-in-Christ I did not know I had.

Australia is a secular country with the highest per capa ta believers in the New Age -- seekers of Truth. Many are also deceived who enter “Christian” churches, to find an emphasis on feelings, “brownie points” or strict adherence to laws; but Jesus’ hardest lesson remains His mysterious grace.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Will return to the Psalms series on Monday, just had to share this with you.

PPS: No new reports on Carla’s Mom in the hospital or her Dad. Pray for Carla and her amazing family. Pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries); continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Priorities & Place

“Remember, O Lord, on David’s behalf, all his affliction; how he swore to the Lord, and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob, ‘Surely I will not enter my house, nor lie on my bed; I will not give sleep to my eyes, or slumber to my eyelids; until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.’” Psalm 132:1-5

In this Psalm David’s prayer gives us a clear example of placing the Lord in His rightful, high place; and prioritizing our lives around Him, ensuring He in always first in our lives. Making sure there’s ALWAYS room for His dwelling place before all other things every day, not once a week.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla’s Mom is in the hospital the next two weeks; her Dad seems to be stronger. Pray for Carla and her amazing family. Pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries); continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Weaned?

“O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; nor do I involve myself in great matters, or in things too difficult for me. Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; like a weaned child rests against his mother, my soul is like a weaned child within me.” Psalm 131:1-2

The word weaned means “to deal fully with”. In ancient times the process took about three years before a child could be entrusted to others. Once weaned, a child no longer frets for what it used to find indispensable. When we have learn to be free of the nagging, self-serving, selfish bondage to doubt, guilt and efforts to please and can be content to rest in God’s care, despite hardship or how little (or much) we have, where we are and what we’ve accomplished, we are weaned. Otherwise, the process continues until we are.

“To whom would He teach knowledge? And to whom would He interpret the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just taken from the breast? -- Indeed He will speak to this people through stammering lips and a foreign tongue, He who said to them, ‘Here is rest, give rest to the weary,’ and, ‘Here is repose,’ but they would not listen. So the Word of the Lord to them will be, ‘Order on order, order on order, line on line, line on line. A little here, a little there’, that they may go and stumble backward, be broken, snared and taken captive.” Isaiah 28:9

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla’s Mom will be in the hospital the next two weeks. Her Dad seems to be stronger. Please pray for Carla and her amazing family. Pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries); continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Blink-on-an-Eye Times

“Out of the depths I have cried to Thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice! Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. If Thou, Lord, should mark iniquities; O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait, and in His Word do I hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than the watchmen for the morning; indeed more than the watchmen for the morning. O Israel, hope in the Lord; for the Lord there is lovingkindness. And with Him is abundant redemption from all his iniquities.” Psalm 130

I’m not too keen on waiting, having grown up in a world stressing fast and faster, quick and quicker, instant and even more instant, blink-of-an-eye times. It’s the world’s plan to distract us, you know. Look around you today; see if this isn’t true. Think back to a time (if you can think back that far) when time was not so critical when you had time for friends, family, even fun. A time when you had time to meditate on God’s Word.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla’s Mom has gone back to the hospital and her Dad stills need support. Please pray for Carla and her amazing family. Pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries); continue to pray for David and Adrian with ongoing health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Example of Youth

“Many times they have persecuted me from my youth up; yet they have not prevailed against me. The plowers plowed upon my back; they lengthened their furrows.’ The Lord is righteous; He has cut in two the cords of the wicked.” Psalm 129:2-4

“For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well. And for this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” II Timothy 1:5-7

If you’ve had the privilege of having or watching children as they grow up from an early age, you can see the struggle within them to appreciate discipline and obedience. And if you look carefully, you can see your own personal, and always hidden, struggle reflected there in your adult life. The power of grace says there is nothing you can do that will make the Lord love you less; as there is nothing you can do to cause Him to love you less – His love is constant. Discipline and obedience to His will in your life is for your own benefit and blessings. So it is always a choice

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Carla’s Mom seems to be slipping home quietly and her Dad is trying to be strong to care for her. Please pray the family, especially my dear friend, Carla. Also, pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries); continue to pray for David and Adrian and their health battles; and for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Carla's Mom & Dad

“How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways. When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, you will be happy and it will be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine, within your house, your children like olive plants around your table. Behold, for thus shall the man be who fears the Lord.” Psalm 128:1-4

“Then some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, ‘Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’” Matthew 19:13-14

Carla’s Mom had eleven children for the man she loves. She loves the Lord and demonstrated that love in most everything she did from parceling out the food (trying never to miss someone), to making the beds or sweeping the floor. Her husband provided for them with hard labour -- not unlike some of the disciples -- as a fisherman. Both are rather no-nonsense people but fun and creative who never missed an opportunity to be in the church or helping others.

The eleven children are in various stages of growth in the Lord. Most all are now gathering to the bedsides of their Mom and Dad. Both have had strokes and are home now, but growing weaker. The example they have always had in their children’s lives continues to live through their children. Please pray for them.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries). continue to pray for David and Adrian -- for their health battles. And pray for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Topsy-Turvey

“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labours; for He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.

“Behold children are a gift of the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; they shall not be ashamed, when they speak with their enemies in the gate.” Psalm 127

Many of us spend our days working for worldly glory or gain, continually, sometimes inadvertently “keeping up with the Jones” and sometimes forgetting it is the Lord and our immediate family that is our priority. This is the example others watch in us, especially pre-Christians. Our world is so topsy-turvy that what is truly valuable is now seen as less important.

Take some time today to consider His top priorities for you: 1. Your personal relationship with Him, 2. Your spouse, 3. Your children, 4. Your work, 5. Your church activities.

Challenging isn’t it?

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries). Carla and her family (her mother and father both home recovering from strokes). Matthew is much better. Continue to pray for David and Adrian for their health battles. And pray for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Reaping

“Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with joyful shouting; then they said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad. – Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting. He who goes to and from weeping, carrying his bag of seed, shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.” Psalm 126:2-3, 5-6

God has unlimited ability to restore life beyond our imaginings. Forest burn down and are able to grow back. Broken bones heal. Even grief is not a permanent condition. Our tears can be seeds that will grow into a harvest of joy because God is able to bring good out of tragedy. When burdened by sorrow, know that your times of grief will end and when they do you will again find joy. We must trust in the Lord and be patient, knowing that God’s great harvest of joy is coming.

“Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.” II Corinthians 9:6

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Ian and Gerarda (recovery from serious injuries). Carla and her family (her mother and father are both at home recovering from strokes). Matthew is better. Continue to pray for David and Adrian for their health battles. And pray for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Trust & Abide

“Those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people from this time forth and forever. For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest upon the land of the righteous; that the righteous may not put forth their hands to do wrong. Do good, O Lord to those who are good, and to those who turn aside to their crooked ways, the Lord will lead them away with the doers of iniquity.” Psalm 125:1-5a

Sometimes there is nothing more we can do and yet we struggle; all too often forgetting that God has a plan - that no matter where we are or what we’re doing or for what reason that we must trust in the One with the Master Plan. And that is difficult.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Carla and her family; her mother is now being taken care of at home as she recovers from her stroke. Matthew is getting better. Continue to pray for David and Adrian for their health battles. And pray for Adrian’s uncle who is growing older and more tired.

Rising Waters

“Had it not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us; then they would have swallowed us alive, when their anger was kindled against us; then the waters would have engulfed us, the streams would have swept over our soul; then the raging waters would have swept over our soul.” Psalm 124:2-5

Sometimes the world seems to be drowning in a sea of troubles from grand scale wars to abuse of one small child. We listen to or read the news and listen to other – most of those around us would not know there is hope. That hope is in the rescuing power of the Lord. You just need to reach out and take His hand…

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Carla and her family; her mother is now being taken care of at home as she recovers from her stroke. Matthew is getting better. Continue to pray for David and Adrian for their health battles.

ASSIGNMENT: Look up!

“To Thee I lift up my eyes, O Thou who art enthroned in the heavens! Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress; so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until He shall be gracious to us.” Psalm 123:1-4

“’And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.’” Luke 21:27-28

I don’t know if any of you have read the “Left Behind” series; if you have you would likely be struck by the first couple chapters of the first book as the Rapture takes place. Those who are left behind question, not just where are the others, but why they are left behind. Those who assumed their church work and outward behaviours were the way to Heaven were the ones who were understandably shaken.

Assignment: For the weekend take at least one hour to consider His return.

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Carla and her family, with her father and mother recovering from stroke (see yesterday’s prayer PS). Matthew, is getting better (thank you for your prayers). Continue to pray for David (also see yesterday’s PS).

Stand Up...

“‘May peace be within your walls, and prosperity within your palaces.’ For the sake of my brothers and my friends, I will now say, ‘May peace be within you.’ For the sake of the house of the Lord God I will seek your good.” Psalm 122:6b-9

[Jesus speaking] “’Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, not let it be fearful.’” John 14:27

Some of us would remember the Campus Crusade illustration of the circle with the little stick throne drawn in the middle of it that represents our life. Our interests and activities circle about us and we sit on the throne. Christ is outside the circle. Once we trust in His grace, He enters the circle of our heart, but does not take the throne. We must abandon it to Him. And every time we take it back He stands within the circle waiting for us to turn the throne back over to him. When we are on the throne there can never be peace in our hearts. Let’s all stand up….

“If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and the Word is not in us.” I John 1:8-10

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Carla and her family, with her father and mother recovering from stroke (see yesterday’s prayer PS). Matthew, is getting better (thank you for your prayers) Continue to pray for David (also see yesterday’s PS).

Cuddles...

“I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from whence shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever.” Psalm 121

He listens, you know. In your most desperate moments and in your quiet times when nothing much seems to be happening around you, He listens. He knows your heart. He knows your thoughts. He hears your words as you mumble them aloud to yourself and those you speak or even shout or whisper to those around you. And because He lives to love you, He knows how you feel and longs to comfort you. Just turn your face to Him and cuddle into his wide and open embrace. He died to hold you!

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Please pray for Carla and her family, her father had a stroke several months ago and her mom just had a stroke and is hospitalized now. Carla cannot go home to be with the family and needs your support. Matthew, the seven year old in my life (not mine but Carla’s) came home yesterday. He is fine, thank you for your prayers. Continue to pray for David (who has been going through chemo again and had a heart attack and is now in the hospital) and finally for Adrian who continues to battle since his stroke.

Lies, Damned Lies!

“In my trouble I cried to the Lord, and He answered me. Deliver my soul, O Lord from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue. What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue? Sharp arrows of the warrior, with the burning coals of the broom tree.” Psalm 120:1-4

“So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. Behold, how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.” James 3:5-6

Ever tell a lie? Of course you have, whether it is on purpose to deceive someone purposely, to exaggerate something you think you know or heard, to be politically correct or polite – once you are old enough to understand the difference between a lie and the truth, you begin to hear them from your own mouth and from those around you – lies surround us. He came to save us because He knew how easily our tongue would betray us.

But…”Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you abide in My Word, then you are truly disciples of Mine, and you shall know the Truth, and the truth shall make you free.’” John 8:31-32

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Matthew, the seven year old in my life (not mine but my best friend’s -- who allows me to share him) had his tonsils removed successfully yesterday. Please pray that his experience will give him a sensible imprint of hospitals. Continue to pray for David too.

C. E.

“Let my cry come before Thee, O Lord; give me understanding according to Thy Word. Let my supplication come before Thee, deliver me according to Thy Word. Let my lips utter praise. For Thou dost teach me Thy statues. Let my tongue sing of Thy Word, for all Thy commandments are righteousness. Let Thy hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen Thy precepts. I long for Thy salvation, O Lord, and Thy Law is my delight. Let my soul live that it may praise Thee, and let Thine ordinances help me. I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Thy servant, for I do not forget Thy commandments.” Psalm 119:169-176

What I have found is that God always puts surprises in His Word for us to discover. It is why we love it so. Here is the last section of Psalm 119, and as I type it out for you I was thinking of ending at verse 175 and just leaving that last verse off. Instead I thought about how it illustrates one of the most important reasons to READ and STUDY and MEDITATE on God’s Word – and FREQUENTLY – our C. E. (continuing education).

Stay near God's Word. Take care. Your servant & friend in Christ, Darlene

PS: Matthew, the seven year old in my life (not mine but my best friend’s -- who allows me to share him) is going to the hospital today to have his tonsils removed. Please pray that his experience will give him a sensible imprint of hospitals. Continue to pray for David too.