Happy New Year!
I am starting a new adventure…please join me at
www.sonshineinmyeyes.wordpress.com
A fresh dose of encouragement from the heart of God!
He delights in the creation of YOU!
“Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
Oh what a foretaste of Glory Divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.”
No matter how difficult this world is-tragedy and heartache abound-the Lord is perfectly present. And while we may not always feel His hand, we are forever held tight in His powerful, protective grip.
This world is fallen. It is wrought with pain and hurt. We face battles and wage wars that feel too great to bear, but the Father gives us His strength to fight the good fight. We must trust, that while the world is grossly sinful, we serve a perfect God who has gone before us to prepare a perfect place for our souls to rest in the everlasting Glory of Jesus.
When this life is over we will bask in the beauty of the Lord for eternity. The heartache of this world will fade and pass away and we will be met in the throne room of Heaven by the Creator Himself. The face we have sought will be revealed fully. The light of His divinity will be brighter and more brilliant than the sun could ever hope to shine.
We are created for HOPE. We are created for LOVE. We are created by a Master Designer who knits us together perfectly in His image. We have the hearts and minds of Christ.
We are washed in His holy-righteousness; cleansed in His perfect forgiveness by His blood. He longs to right our paths to the narrow trail that leads straight to His tender heart. He delights in His Shekinah Glory that fills the cracks and crevices of our broken spirit. He takes our goat hair tent-of-a-person, and by His indwelling, makes in us Glorious Temples of the Holy Spirit….the Spirit of GRACE and MERCY and JOY.
We are His treasures, created to seek his GOODNESS and KINDESS. He is the GREAT I AM, who was and is and is to come. He is our Wonderful Counselor…comforting us in our hours of need. He fills us with PEACE that surpasses understanding. He is LOVE.
Seek Him. Seek Him as a true love. A husband who will adore and honor you. A love who will hold your precious heart in His mighty hands. You are His beloved and He is yours.
Find Him delighting in the creation of you-every moment of your beautiful life. He loves you with an everlasting, perfect LOVE.
Father knows best…
“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” John 14:12-14
I am learning about prayer and what it really means to ask and receive in His will. I am learning to be patient as I wait for answers. I am learning to be silent and still so that His voice is loud and clear. He wants to lavish me in His love. He delights in me. I have to learn and understand that His answers may be contrary to what I think I need, or want. He answers my prayers according to His will. I am learning to pray for His will. I am learning to appreciate that a NO is a blessing, just as much as the YES…or even the MAYBE. When I pray in His will I feel a sense of protection and comfort. I feel shrouded in His great and perfect sovereignty. He knows the plans He has for me…always to give me HOPE. I rest in His answers. I am fully aware that He truly knows best.
I must be available. I spend time praying and asking and pleading and seeking. I get it all out…everything that troubles me or binds me or perplexes me and then I go on my merry way, not always listening to His response. When I listen; when I am still; when I am patient-I hear His perfect responses. Sometimes the response is not what I desire, but then I am reminded…He knows best.
I am confident that He will never lead me astray. That He sets my feet on paths of righteousness. I know that He is always at my side, guiding and directing my path. I may veer…but He is so faithful to set me on the right course.
Thank you, Lord that you are always present. You hear every prayer. You know every desire of my heart. You answer my prayers according to Your will. I am blessed to be directed by your grace and mercy. Please forgive me when I stray, when I feel that my wisdom is greater than Yours. You are sovereign. You are perfect. You know best.
Today’s gratitude…
How sweet it is to be filled with gratitude!
Today started with pure thanksgiving. Two children who slept through the night and were fever free! Praise the Lord!
Sunshine blinding the windows of the kitchen…warming us through to our bones. Lifting the chill of winter.
A brave little boy with a heart greater than I can imagine possessing. A kind little girl who begins her day smiling and encouraging her family.
A husband who wakes and works and serves.
Pink scooters and hours and hours at the park. Tiny tiny indigo flowers lining the sidewalk. Teeny pine cones teeny. Yellow flowers so tiny they seem like drops of sun light scattered through the green green emerald green grass.
An unexpected letter from a friend…a best friend.
Painting in the lawn…painted little feet and knees and elbows. A hard working daddy relaxing enjoying his little ones with pure delight.
Dinner that came out as intended and enjoyed by all. Provision…constant provision. Thank you Lord.
The quiet of a day well lived. The knowledge and grasp and understanding of honest love.
I am blessed.
He is the way…
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepare in advanced for us to do.” Ephesians 2:8-10
No matter how good I am…no matter how hard I serve…no matter how well I love- if I am not dwelling in Christ Jesus I will not spend eternity praising the Lord. I was brought up to believe that all good people go to Heaven; that goodness was the key to spending the “here after” with my Lord. Not the case. Eternal life comes from the acceptance of Christ as my Lord and Savior. I will dwell in His house because I know in my heart, believing with all my Spirit that Christ died to save me. I must die to self and live in Him-fully. He is the WAY the TRUTH and the LIFE.
The path to salvation is really, in basic terms, as easy as ABC.
A-Accepting that Jesus Christ made the ultimate sacrifice on the Cross. He bore all of our sin…past, present and future.
B-Believing that Jesus Christ is the way to the Father. We come to the Lord God only through the Son.
C-Confessing that we are sinners. That we need a savior to pull us into the realm of Heaven so that we may dwell there all the days of our life.
Don’t deny yourself the gift of Christ. Accept His sacrifice. Accept that He loves you greater than any earthly love and that He alone is the way.
Slow down you move too fast…
“Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:12
I love the Lord’s agenda for my life. Divine appointments. Worshiping Him. Singing praise. Loving our brothers. Loving the Lord with all our hearts and minds and souls and strength. Delighting in the beauty and grandeur of His majestic creation. Exalting Jesus. Listening to the whisper of the Holy Spirit. Absorbing His light. Living with a heart full of JOY.
I need to prayerful and intentionally make His agenda MY agenda. I need to learn to praise Him and sing to Him and worship Him as I run through my daily ‘to-do’. I need to stop and see the beauty and grandeur of His majestic creation. After all, He created beauty for me to enjoy…while He enjoys me!
I need to stop doing things like…putting the dishes away while my children plead with me to play with them. (The dishes will still be there) Dwelling on the mounting stacks of laundry and just put it all away. Thinking and bruiting about getting the house clean and just do it! Feeling pity for myself and seek Him.
I need to stop filling my days with busy and hurry. I am missing the moments of my children’s miracles {their lives} as I rush rush rush. I miss the opportunities to see the world I am rushing through. When was the last time I marveled at the razor sharp edge of a blade of grass or lifted it to my nose to smell the sweetness of the earth? I do know that the last time I did, I sat patiently and contently in the grass with no agenda. I was a young girl. Too long ago.
When do we stop living in the moment only to have them speed past us, never, ever to return?
When He numbered my days, I venture to guess He didn’t measure their depth by the number of PTA meetings attended or the number of loads of laundry folded or the amount of things checked off a ‘to-do’ list. I suppose He purposed my days to delight in Him and all that He has created…for me.
I will take my list and cross of the myriad of activity and obligation I have planned into each day, but, I will do so as though I am doing it all for Him. I will purpose in my heart to seek His face and joy and contentment in all the ‘to-dos’. I will stop in the midst of the flurry of busy and appreciate the majestic beauty He has blessed me with. I will see Jesus in my daily tasks…finding the parables that bring His presence into the ordinary-washing a plate clean becomes an example of how His sacrifice has washed me clean.
I will delight in the moments that make up my life, catching them as they fill my heart with His tender love. Watching for the miracle instead of wishing for it; living in it instead of longing for it; delighting in the miracle of right now and sharing in His purpose for each moment as though they are the last I will ever know.
Wakefield
I seek His face. It’s glowing brighter than the sun at noon.
He is life. He breathes life into me. He sustains me.
He is in my every moment.
He is the bright blue of Max’s ever-seeking eyes.
He is the auburn hair that frames the porceline face of my sweet Caroline.
He is the warmth of my Rick’s strong embrace…strength he gains only from our Creator.
He is the laughter that bubbles from the hearts of my sisters…rejoicing in the delight of His ordinary extraordinary.
He is the rain soaked day that lends to the emerald green of grass and tree and leaf.
He is the lover of my soul. The author of my every breath.
He is grace. Grace far greater than I could ever embody-until I sit with Him in the Throne Room.
Until I am made whole and perfect in His delight.
He is mine. I am His. He created me for His purpose.
He created me to spend eternity basking in the warmth of His eternal light.
I praise Him for he is I AM. He is present….always.
Hello friends…
I have had two breath-taking moments in the last few days.
Actually, there have been, what seem like infinite ways the Lord has taken my breath away over the last three weeks. I have been “Immersed in God.” I have spent hours in contemplative prayer and consideration over the course of 21 days. The Lord has given me insight about my life I never imagined understanding.
I love having people around me and I love being with people-I love friends. But, as I am enjoying and reaping the delight of friendship…I get scared. I flee. Not always, and not now (Glory to the Lord, He has graciously shown me the security in lasting friendships and commitment to another person.) But…I had fled from two very special friends.
The encounter with both of them was like stepping into the sun after days of winter gray. Our reunions were days apart yet so thoughtfully planned.
That first sight of a long lost friend is like seeing them for the first time all over again. There was a moment when time seemed to stop…God does that, His hand is the hand of time, He controls it all. I had to catch my breath. That’s what true heart based friendship is- someone who knows you and has loved you and cared for you and set you to wander away-always welcoming you home with open arms.
For years we had spent, what seemed like, days together…consecutive days-for a long time. Then we didn’t. It wasn’t anyone’s fault…or maybe it was all three, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is that in all the absence, our hearts grew stronger and fonder of one another. That’s what takes your breath away. Chokes you up. Makes you weep-joyfully.
Our laughter filled the ordinary places of our designed encounters. My friend said that “eyes never change.” Her words seemed to linger and dive into my heart. That’s exactly it. Our eyes are significant to our Spirit. We reveal the world…our world. Seeing the eyes of a friend is like returning to a memory. It’s comfort greater than a worn and loved quilt. It is kindred-spirits relieved to reunite.
My friends know who they are…they are two who will forever be part of my glorious life puzzle. They are pieces that form shapes of beauty. I am blessed. They are blessings.
The board in my eye…
“Do not judge and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:37
I have been that person. Judgmental. Condemning.
I have looked down my nose at people. I have thought thoughts that were displeasing toward others.
I have done this with full expectation that I will not be judged.
We do this…cast stones; find the plank in our brother’s eye; JUDGE. But, we are not judged…if we are in Christ Jesus. Who are we to condemn our brothers and sisters? How can we expect that they will not judge us when we condemn them? I think learning to refrain from judgment and condemnation is a very difficult task; especially when we feel like we have been wronged our hurt by someone. Or, when we feel like those we love are being condemned. But! This is not of God. We are to love and not judge. We are commanded to LOVE ONE ANOTHER…loving does not mean judging. We cannot receive the blood of Christ and continue to look down on others. We must love like Christ. The Lord asks us to KEEP OUR BROTHER FROM STUMBLING…not judge him because of his sin. We are taught to CORRECT and REBUKE…not condemn.
Father God,
I am all too good at casting stones. I need to be better at sharing LOVE. Thank you, sweet and precious Friend that you whisper into my heart when I am being less than honorable with your word…your love…your blood.
Lord, help me to love and shine for YOU! Teach me to rebuke the Spirit of judgment.
Thank you, Jesus, for bearing my sin. Thank you for washing me white as snow when my hands were stained in your blood. Thank you Lord for not judging me, but gently rebuking and correcting me.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
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