“For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. Mark 4:22 (NIV)
Sue’s life was permeated by half-truth until she became a Christian. She grew up in a loving family but questioned if she belonged to that family. Every time she asked questions, a half-truth was given. Further questioning resulted in silence. Many things did not ring true.
Sue had an unmarried aunt living five blocks from her house. Aunt Mary showed extra kindness to her. Much more goodwill came to Sue than to the two brothers.
As a grown woman, Sue accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior and wanted to share with Aunt Mary. While Sue talked, the aunt fell to the floor on her knees with bowed head. Upon asking if she were all right, the aunt replied with a smile.
Sue asked her if she were a believer and the response was, “Yes.”
“Why do you not attend church?” Sue asked.
Her reply, “I do not like the way church handles Mother’s Day.” She was implying that she felt left out.
Sue responded, “Aunts can be mothers also.” Aunt Mary smiled.
Many use half-truth to protect themselves. God knows truth. Cover-ups keep us from letting God work truth within. When using half-truth, one is harming others and really harming oneself. God will help us work through our issues and bring us into His truth and real life.
Sue still questions who her birth parents are, but she knows she was knitted in her mother’s womb by God and can say, “Abba, I belong to You.”
Dear Lord, Thank you for Your unfailing love.
©Mary Burkey 2010
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
So Sew Sow
But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." Matthew 13:23 (NIV)
My family can give me inspiration into God's Word. The other day I was talking with my son, and I told him the trials I am going through right now. He told me I needed to take God's Word and "sow, sow, sow." We will reap what we sow. I knew he was right.
Many years ago, I spent a lot of time making my own clothes and sewing for the children. I amazed myself when homemade clothing looked store bought. People asked me where I purchased the outfits. They were surprised when I told them I made them myself. Some of my friends would examine the garment closely to check to see if I was fooling with them. Others brought their items to my house for repair.
As a seamstress, I knew using the good material and thread would make the outfits appear expensive. I made sure I studied the pattern took my time and gave all the seams a finishing touch to complete an exclusive look. This got me thinking. We reap what we sow.
I need to study the Word of God. That way I can sew my life into a pleasing garment of praise before my King. I can also sow salvation, healing and peace into the lives of others.
I want to put on that beautiful garment of praise and dance before my King!
Father, teach me how to sow Your Word. Help me to sow a field of harvest that will please you. In Jesus name.
© 2010 Marcella Panowicz
My family can give me inspiration into God's Word. The other day I was talking with my son, and I told him the trials I am going through right now. He told me I needed to take God's Word and "sow, sow, sow." We will reap what we sow. I knew he was right.
Many years ago, I spent a lot of time making my own clothes and sewing for the children. I amazed myself when homemade clothing looked store bought. People asked me where I purchased the outfits. They were surprised when I told them I made them myself. Some of my friends would examine the garment closely to check to see if I was fooling with them. Others brought their items to my house for repair.
As a seamstress, I knew using the good material and thread would make the outfits appear expensive. I made sure I studied the pattern took my time and gave all the seams a finishing touch to complete an exclusive look. This got me thinking. We reap what we sow.
I need to study the Word of God. That way I can sew my life into a pleasing garment of praise before my King. I can also sow salvation, healing and peace into the lives of others.
I want to put on that beautiful garment of praise and dance before my King!
Father, teach me how to sow Your Word. Help me to sow a field of harvest that will please you. In Jesus name.
© 2010 Marcella Panowicz
Friday, May 14, 2010
Second Births
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17(KJV)
The weather report called for snow but I was not worried. My husband and I decided to get a bite to eat before meeting with friends for a night out. I was pregnant with my second child. While waiting for the food I felt a pain in my stomach. The pain persisted so my husband took me home. He left to inform our friends that we would not be meeting them.
It started to snow. Before long it turned into a blizzard. The contractions were five minutes apart, and I called on a neighbor to take me to the hospital. With visability about a foot in front of the car, a normal five-minute trip turned into a nerve racking twenty-minute nightmare. Within an hour my daughter was born. I will never forget this second birth.
The day I became a Christian is another second birth that I will never forget. I had left my husband and become a single parent lost in a blizzard of hopelessness. Life had gone so wrong that fear consumed me. Just as I had called on a friend to help me with my second child, I now called on Jesus to rescue me from this storm. I gave my life over to Jesus and was reborn.
As I look back on those second births I realize that there is nothing that happens to me without Jesus. When I am in the storms of life I have a friend Who picks me up and calm the storms.
Thank you Jesus for giving me peace during the storms of life.
© 2010 Dawn M Sexton
The weather report called for snow but I was not worried. My husband and I decided to get a bite to eat before meeting with friends for a night out. I was pregnant with my second child. While waiting for the food I felt a pain in my stomach. The pain persisted so my husband took me home. He left to inform our friends that we would not be meeting them.
It started to snow. Before long it turned into a blizzard. The contractions were five minutes apart, and I called on a neighbor to take me to the hospital. With visability about a foot in front of the car, a normal five-minute trip turned into a nerve racking twenty-minute nightmare. Within an hour my daughter was born. I will never forget this second birth.
The day I became a Christian is another second birth that I will never forget. I had left my husband and become a single parent lost in a blizzard of hopelessness. Life had gone so wrong that fear consumed me. Just as I had called on a friend to help me with my second child, I now called on Jesus to rescue me from this storm. I gave my life over to Jesus and was reborn.
As I look back on those second births I realize that there is nothing that happens to me without Jesus. When I am in the storms of life I have a friend Who picks me up and calm the storms.
Thank you Jesus for giving me peace during the storms of life.
© 2010 Dawn M Sexton
Friday, May 7, 2010
The Next Step
If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast. Psalm 139:9-10 (NIV)
Last winter, back-to-back storms dumped unbelievable amounts of snow in our area. When I went to get my five year old grandson from school, I had to walk in the streets. On the way home, he showed me the path he and Daddy had taken the day before. When we came upon a large mound of snow, he quickly scampered over it. Starting up the small hill, I soon realized I might fall if I stepped down in the middle of this unstable icy pile. My grandson turned around, “What’s wrong, grandma?” I told him I was afraid of falling and I needed something to hold onto. He reached his little hand out to mine and gave me courage to take the next step.
God does that for us, too. At certain points in life, we may feel unsure of what to do, but He is always available to guide us with His hand. Sometimes we feel shaky when facing problems in life. When we cry out to God in the pain of a runaway teenager or a husband who says the marriage is over, He is here to hold us in His loving arms. Just as my grandson’s hand gave me courage to move on, God gives us strength to take the next step.
Dear Father, Thank You for the special people You place in our lives, and for the promise that Your hand will always guide us.
© 2010 Diane E. Hussey
Last winter, back-to-back storms dumped unbelievable amounts of snow in our area. When I went to get my five year old grandson from school, I had to walk in the streets. On the way home, he showed me the path he and Daddy had taken the day before. When we came upon a large mound of snow, he quickly scampered over it. Starting up the small hill, I soon realized I might fall if I stepped down in the middle of this unstable icy pile. My grandson turned around, “What’s wrong, grandma?” I told him I was afraid of falling and I needed something to hold onto. He reached his little hand out to mine and gave me courage to take the next step.
God does that for us, too. At certain points in life, we may feel unsure of what to do, but He is always available to guide us with His hand. Sometimes we feel shaky when facing problems in life. When we cry out to God in the pain of a runaway teenager or a husband who says the marriage is over, He is here to hold us in His loving arms. Just as my grandson’s hand gave me courage to move on, God gives us strength to take the next step.
Dear Father, Thank You for the special people You place in our lives, and for the promise that Your hand will always guide us.
© 2010 Diane E. Hussey
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