How to Know God!

 

 How to know God
You might have just read those words and thought “I already know all about God!” But before you click off this page, I’d ask that you press into that thought.

Do you truly know God?

Many people know about God but not everyone can say that they have had a life-changing encounter with God. There is a very significant difference between the two. Growing up, I attended church, heard about an “all-knowing, all-powerful” God in Heaven, and every night I routinely rattled off a list of prayers to Him.

As I got older, I found myself on various spiritual quests to “find God.” In retrospect, I was just trying to find myself. I was trying to find the meaning of life and my unique place in it. I bought books from spiritual gurus who offered me self-help exercises and fluffy mantras that focused me on a more “meaningful” direction. Each of those roads was new and interesting for a while, but all led to the same dead end. During this time of searching, I looked to things and people for happiness, but that never filled the emptiness or defined my significance if I was honest about it. I set goals in my life and worked to make my life matter by doing the right things for my parents, for my teachers and later for my employers. I tried to be perfect in everything, but found that an exhausting — and impossible — task.

Something was devastatingly wrong as I began to take a true inventory of my life — I was empty and there wasn’t a person, a possession, or a profession in this life was going to fill up the hole. It wasn’t until I reached the end of myself that I was truly able to recognize what I was missing in life was an authentic and intimate relationship with my Creator. My entire life I had religion but no relationship. That startling reality brought me to a life-changing encounter with God and a commitment to Him that has dramatically transformed my life. My seeking has ended, my insatiable places filled beyond my imagination.

God desires that same gift for you.

So how do you begin a relationship with God?

First and foremost, each of us desiring a relationship with God must get back into right standing with God. If you feel as though God is a million miles from you and that it is impossible to have a real relationship with your Creator, then that may be because you have allowed sin to separate you from God. Don’t worry — you’re not alone. The Bible tells us that we have all sinned and fallen short of His Glory (Romans 3:23). Human sin separates us from a Holy God. The good news is God loves us so much that He made a way for us to be reconciled — or brought back —into communion with Him. The Bible is God’s Word — His very thoughts. His Word clearly outlines a plan for us and declares that the only way for us to restore our right standing with God is through belief in His Son, Jesus.

Receiving the gift of salvation is as easy as A-B-C.
Please hear me: God is not mad at you! He may hate your sin but He loves you completely just as you are. God has an incredible plan for your life — if you will accept it. This plan begins with salvation, which is another word for belief in Jesus.

A) Admit that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Not one of us walking this planet is without sin (Romans 3:10); sin is simply rebellion against God and His ways. And because we are all sinners who have strayed from God’s laws, we need a Savior to rescue us from God’s impending judgment (death). You cannot save yourself through good deeds or works. You must admit your sin and recognize your need for a Savior. Jesus Christ is that Savior. Being an admirable, kind, generous person in the eyes of your peers will not get you into Heaven. Striving for perfection in this life will not do it.

B) Believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that his death on the Cross was for you. Jesus suffered and died on the Cross in your place — as a sacrifice for your sins. That day He was buried but three days later, He rose. He is the only One who can save you (John 14:6). Jesus did this so that you could be brought into a relationship with a holy God (1 Peter 3:18). Why did He do this? Because of God’s amazing love for you (John 3:16). He paid the price for your sins. To receive the gift of salvation and the assurance that you will spend eternity with God, you just have to choose to believe it. Salvation is a free gift. You cannot earn this gift; you need only to accept it wholeheartedly (Ephesians 2:8-9).

C) Confess your sins to God. You may have also heard it said that we must “repent.” Both are correct and both are necessary. To confess it means to “own up to it” while repent means to turn from or “to change direction.” You must do both. If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). In other words, God will forgive you, blot out your sins (Acts 3:19), accept you, and place you in right standing with Him. You must then be willing to turn away from the things that displease God—and He will guide you and give you the strength to do just that!

If you truly want to know God, then I invite you to begin a relationship with Him today. Do not hesitate on the most critical decision of your life. A relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ is your only entry into Heaven and is the only way for you to experience true fulfillment while here on earth.

I invite you to pray this simple prayer with me from your heart.

Jesus,
I need You. I can’t do life without You. I admit that I am a sinner and I acknowledge my need for a Savior. I believe that You are the Son of God who died for my sins, rose from the dead, and are alive today. I come to You right now asking you to forgive me. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I invite You into my heart and receive You as my Lord and Savior. Thank You for forgiving me and for giving me the gift of eternal life. Please help me daily to choose to live for You Jesus, one day at a time. Help me to become all You desire me to be from this moment forward.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

If you prayed that prayer, I want to hear from you! If you don’t connect with me, connect with someone immediately who you know is a follower of Christ. You just made the greatest decision of your life. The Bible says that the angels in Heaven are rejoicing over your decision this very minute. I’m rejoicing with you as well!

A Rock and A Hard Place

Have you ever felt like that?  No where to turn…no one to turn to?  Two opposing factors pulling you in opposite directions?  Jesus never promised us an easy road, but did promise us a road to salvation to spend eternity with Him.  No matter what, that’s the road I choose.  Even though I may not understand everything that happens on that road, and some of it caused by me…some of it caused by the world and circumstances in it, I trudge on because He has a purpose for me.  No matter what happens, I am here on this earth for a purpose.

This is a story of victory then despair then victory again and the message I would like to share with you is that Jesus is all victorious, He is the King of kings and Lord of all and eventually we will see the victory in our own lives.
The story is to be found in Exodus, remember the Hebrews led by Moses marched out triumphantly from their bondage in Egypt. For over four hundred years the people of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were enslaved by Egyptian Pharaohs. But the night came for their deliverance when the people of God gathered their belongings and marching out not in stealth escaping from their captors but as a conquering victorious proud nation of God. God led them by a pillar of fire by night which gave them heat and light in the cold frosty dessert and a pillar of cloud by day which protected them from the heat of the day. As they journeyed they realized that the Pharaoh had regained their courage for they had been subjected to ten plagues and the last was the worse of all when the eldest son in all their families died. God caused this great devastation but saved His people from being hurt of any of the plagues. The stuffing had been knocked out of the Egyptian rulers and was forced to set the people of God free but now time had healed their shame and they were determined to go after the Hebrews and destroy them. They chased the Hebrews until they came to the Red Sea. The Hebrews were confronted by an impassable river for it was in flood and it was impossible for two million men women and children to go on. With this impossibility in front they looked back to the pursuing Egyptians they realized the impossibility to go back, death was behind and death was in front. What were they to do? They could not go on and they could not go back. The only hope was to pray, so they cried out to the Lord. God intervened; God always intervenes and delivers when there is no hope. God told Moses to take his stick and raise it toward the raging torrents of the Red Sea and the Lord caused a strong east wind to blow which in turn caused the waters to stand as a wall on each bank which left a dry piece of ground for the two million men, women and children to walk safely across. You know, skeptics have said this was just a tiny little trickle of water.  Whatever you want to believe,..that God parted this enormous river for the Hebrew children to cross or that God destroyed an entire Egyptian army in a trinkle of water..either way, it was a miracle.
Life has its ups and downs. One moment we are on the mountain top. the next in the valley, sometimes things never seem to improve and impossibilities confront us. Our greatest deliverance was at Calvary where our sins were forgiven and we were set free from its bondage and set free to worship and serve our Jesus. Think of that day when you gave your life to Jesus. Remember the joy and peace in your soul.  We were crucified to the world and it was no longer our delight, it was behind us and we do not want to go back into it and be entangled again in its sinful affairs. However there are times when it is nigh and impossible to go on. It is like being stuck between a rock and a hard place and it is in these times Jesus will speak for He is full of mercy and with great power He will deliver you, no matter what!  Believe in that!

A great deliverance leads to great faith and great faith leads to great praise!!

The Big C

Have you ever heard a Christian gripe about something they can’t change?  Have you ever heard a Christian complain about anything?  Have you heard a Christian talk about someone else?  Have you seen a Christian throw a pity party?  I have and I have…in all instances heard and done all of these.  However, some food for thought.  God commands us to love each other.  Now, if this were easy, he wouldn’t have commanded it would He?  It’s easy to love our friends and family  that we love and adore and we get along with.  It’s not so easy to love those that have been ugly, unkind or self-centered.  That’s why He commands us to love everybody.  We don’t have to like someone to love them through Christ.  You see, He’s not commanding you to do this under your own strength.  He’s telling you to do it through HIS strength. I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me.  Right?  Of course!

   What about worrying about something you can’t fix, that you have no control of?  Do you really think that God can’t handle this?  He can. He may handle it differently than you would, but His  is going to be in righteousness.  We can be so self-centered thinking about ourselves that we forget about what others feel in those same situations. I guess I’ve been through so much in my lifetime that there is nothing that I truly worry about anymore.  God’s taking care of my children, my life and my emotions.  I remember the days of getting knots in my stomach over different things going on in my life.  No sense in worrying now.  In fact, there are some days where I just tell God “take me now” rather than to put an ounce into worrying about something I can’t fix or change.  I can say this because I know if He took me today, I know where I’d spend eternity.  No questions about that. However, there was a time in my life where I couldn’t say that.  I know that I know that I know.

     There are people with many health issues.  Some more than others.  While I’ve been fortunate enough to not have health issues, I hold them close to my heart.  My mother passed away in March of 2004 at the tender age of 65.  Why?  Renal Cell carcinoma  (kidney cancer)  Did she have any symptoms?  A headache.  That’s it.  She died exactly a year after being diagnosed.  Why?  Don’t know.  There are many things that I haven’t understood in life and this was probably one of the biggest ones.  Why my mom?  Why not someone else’s mom?  Well, it has happened to someone else’s mom….and it hasn’t happened to  some  people who aren’t good moms or grandmothers.  My mom was a good Christian woman.  Do you know that people actually told me after my mother died that if anybody was ready to go and be the Lord it was my mom.  Are you kidding me?  I wanted to slap people who said that.  While it was true my mother also knew where she’d spend eternity I don’t believe that God used that as a witness to others.  People also said that God would use my mom’s death to influence and convict others who weren’t Christian…another dumb statement. I guess people just don’t know what to say so they say something stupid.  My mother was a Christian.  Her friends were Christian. I can’t recall one person that she was close to that wasn’t a Christian.  However, let’s say this is true, that her death might have made an impact on someone’s life who wasn’t a Christian.  My mom suffered.  She lost her speech, which made her mad that she couldn’t communicate. She knew what she was trying to say but no one else would understand.  The medicine she was on made her bloated, swollen and chapped.  When the doctors from MD Anderson said they could do no more for her and she probably had just six weeks to live, she lived six more months.  She could recognize people, but not speak with them.  She became almost child like in some of the things she did.  She lost weight, couldn’t walk and then in the very end was basically in a comatose state.Now, if you weren’t a Christian, and you watched a Christian person suffer like that instead of God just taking her, wouldn’t you rethink having God in your life? I did.  I remember sitting in the MD Anderson cafeteria talking with my dad about not understanding what God was doing and doubting my faith.  I remember yelling at God sometimes in the mornings on my way to work after I’d call my dad to check on my mom. I yelled at Him if He wasn’t going to heal her to take her.  It didn’t make sense to me.  Still doesn’t.  But I have learned that I”m not in charge of this earth. God is.  NO matter what we don’t understand, God is in control.  He performs miracles each day. He didn’t on my mom , but He still does.  I have seen people who are truly suffering and fighting cancer not ever complain  about anything and I’ve seen people who have made up diseases talk about nothing else but how bad they’re feeling. If we only could realize that our attitude has so much to do with what we accomplish through Him.  My mom had always kept a diary all of her life.  After she passed away, I was able to read her diary about the last year of her life fighting cancer.  Yes, everyday she prayed to be healed.  But before she did that, she rejoiced in the things that were going on in her life, the peoplewho visited her or called her or sent her an uplifting card.  She prayed daily and wrote down who she prayed for and many of those people are still living today who also had cancer.  If we all could think about others instead of ourselves, no matter what we’re going through, we would be so much happier.   I beg each one of you to love your family, tell them each day that you love them and don’t forget that we don’t need to worry about the future, because the future may never come. No man knows the day, time or hour!

Signs on God’s Road

 Stop Sign :   Stop being busy and listen to God. Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that Iam God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

One Way Sign:  Jesus is the only way to get to Heaven.  John 14:6   Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Trash Sign:  I’m not good enough to make it to heaven on my own effort.  Isaiah 64:6   ”But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.”

U-turn OK Sign:  Turn away from sin and destruction and go toward God. Acts 3:19  “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord’”

Yield Sign:  Allow God to have His way in your life.  John 10:27-28   “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”

No U-turn Sign:  Don’t go back to sin.  Hebrews 3:12 “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God;”

No Parking Sign:  Don’t sit around, keep moving for God.  John 4:34  Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.”

SURF’S UP

When you hear something three times in one week that you’ve never heard before, I really know that God must be wanting me to share this wisdom with someone so here goes!   Now, first, know that I am beginning two new endeavors in my life and  have been in so much prayer to make sure this is right.  While never getting a clear voice answer, I keep having things come my way so I think this is God’s way of saying “don’t be afraid–JUST DO IT”!  I’m praying that these new businesses are God’s businesses, not mine and He is my boss.  I was in a meeting this week and the CEO who was speaking said there are times in your life when you sometimes want to jump the gun and just jump right in.  If we jump in too soon, we could have problems, and when we jump in too late, we may have missed the wave.  He was telling us about taking surfing lessons.  When he was in Hawaii, he had a surfing instructor for all of about 30 minutes of “sand instruction” and then they got after it.  They sat on their boards facing the beach and getting a feel for the waves that would come under them while their instructor was sitting facing them and facing the waves.  After a few minutes of surfboard sitting, this CEO said he decided the next wave that came, he was going to trying to stand and ride it.  However, his instructor, who knew surfing told him “no, wait….a bigger wave is coming and you have to wait for the right wave”.  I sat there thinking, “isn’t this life?”  We sometimes take the little waves because they’re safer.  Then some take the huge waves but it’s not God directed.  But when it’s God directed, the wave is the right size to ride all the way into the beach.  Now, sitting here watching SoulSurfer, Dennis Quaid’s character just told his daughter the exact same thing.  If God is speaking to you, ride the wave…the one He wants you to.  Not the one you want to.  But at least take the risk.  God will not lead you where He has not gone.  Sometimes He may tell us to wait.  Other times he may tell us that this is our wave and to ride it with faith all the way to the beach.  We so limit God with our human minds and what we know.  Believe that God can do the supernatural, trusting Him that He will do what He says He will do, if we are obedient and in His Will.  Ride your wave.

All in God’s timing

Can you think of a time in your life when you acted impulsively and came to regret it? Maybe you bought a car on impulse and were sorry afterward. Maybe it was that contract you signed without reading it carefully. Maybe it was that business deal you entered into that you should have taken more time to consider. Whatever the decision may have been, you regretted it later.

I have discovered that God’s timing is just as important as God’s will. In fact, the Bible talks a lot about timing. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under Heaven” (NKJV).

The Bible talks about a man of God who had really bad timing. If this man were in a race, he would have been the one to come out of nowhere, take the lead, and then suddenly self-destruct. The man I’m speaking of is Moses.

Although Moses was one of the greatest men of God, he also was a man who had some serious setbacks and committed serious sin. It is worth noting that, along with Saul of Tarsus, Moses is one of the men God used who actually was guilty of murder.

Moses was a bit on the impulsive side. I can’t understand that, because I don’t think I have an impulsive bone in my body.   I plan everything. However, Moses’ impulsiveness brought some devastating results.

Moses was born at a time of extreme hardship in Israel’s history. The descendents of Jacob had grown to about three million in Egypt and had been forced into slavery. Pharaoh, seeing the Hebrews as a potential threat, decreed that newborn Hebrew boys were to be drowned in the Nile River.

As the children of Israel cried out to God for deliverance, enter Moses, the man of God. First, he was the baby protected by God and adopted by Pharaoh’s daughter. The Jewish historian, Josephus, tells us that this Pharaoh had no son or heir; therefore, Moses was being groomed to become the next Pharaoh of Egypt. He was being raised as royalty, which meant that he would have been schooled in all that Egypt had to offer.

But Moses still knew who he was. He was a true believer in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Underneath those Egyptian robes beat the heart of a Hebrew.

Maybe that’s what caused him to swing into action when he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. The Bible says he looked “this way and that way,” and then killed the Egyptian (see Exodus 2:12).

Moses’ heart was in the right place, but his actions were foolish, to say the least. Clearly, the Lord had not told Moses to do this. Instead of looking around, Moses should have been looking up.

Moses probably thought that his fellow Hebrews would be grateful for what he had done, but things didn’t turn out that way. Everyone knew what he did, but no one applauded. When Pharaoh heard what had happened, Moses had to flee for his life. Off he went, into the wilderness.

God wants us to do His will in His way in His timing.

Moses was a leader in training, but he wasn’t ready yet. He had lost his people. He had lost his reputation. But he had not lost God. What looked like the end was actually the beginning.

Forty years later, God appointed Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. What Moses did not realize was that God had been preparing him during that time. Notice what God said to him: “I am the God of your father-the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” (Exodus 3:6 NKJV).

What was God saying? I am the God of ordinary men who have accomplished some extraordinary things. There is hope for you. I am not just the God of Abraham. I am not just the God of Isaac and Jacob. I am the God of Moses. I am calling you. I am giving you a second chance.

God still uses ordinary people today. Even people who have made mistakes. Even people who have sinned.

Maybe you are in a situation right now in which you can identify with Moses. Can I make a suggestion? Confess your sins to God. Deal with them and learn from your mistakes. And know this: God can still use you. He gives second chances. And in my case, third, fourth and etc. chances. and etc. chances.  Maybe you need one today.

The Storms He Gets Me Through

Joyce Meyer preaches that the amount of time you spend in the wilderness is a direct result of how you act while you’re there.  Psalm 29 has been called by some the Psalm of the storm. Throughout this Psalm, there are pictures, motifs, and images of storms and storm language – thunder and wind and lightning. Psalm 29 speaks of a storm and the voice, almost as though there were chess match with one move by the storm, one move by the voice, one move by the storm, one move by the voice. It’s a jousting match, if you will. It’s a tit for tat, back and forth between the voice and the storm. Seven times sprinkled in this short Psalm, the Psalmist speaks of the voice – the voice and the storm.

When you walk through the storm, as it says it that beautiful song, hold your head up high. What is your storm today? I’ve come to believe that storms are customized, tailor-made. Your storm may not be the storm of the person sitting next to you. Storms are personalized.

What is your storm today? Maybe it’s a relational storm; there’s a storm in the relationships in which you’re involved. And maybe it’s a financial storm. Maybe it’s an emotional storm and you find yourself being shifted and tossed. Maybe it’s a spiritual storm. What is your storm today? Personalize this word as we walk through this Psalm and allow the Lord to speak to you with His voice in your storm.

The Psalmist says the voice of the Lord is upon the storm, upon the waters, upon the flood. One verse says the voice of the Lord sits upon the waters and sits upon the storm. It pictures God being enthroned on top of your storm. It paints an interesting sequence and an interesting picture. It is as though, when you look up wherever you are in this room, in this house, in the hotel room, in your bedroom, wherever you may be, if you look up, whatever you see above you, maybe the roof, maybe the ceiling, whatever it is, imagine the storm that covers you. Imagine the storm in which you find yourself, and you look up and you see storm clouds.

According to the Psalmist, above that storm there’s God. And the voice of God sits enthroned above the storm that is above you. And through that storm, He speaks a word. His voice pierces the clouds of that storm. His voice breaks through the calamities that He might get a word to you. For it is in this storm that God speaks. He speaks first to the storm that you are experiencing, that enshrouds you, that covers you, that frightens you. The storm that has you tossing back and forth with the waves and the winds and the billows. You’re tossing back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, and yet He speaks to the storm.

The disciples were out one day on the boat and Jesus said to them, “Get in the boat and let’s go to the other side.” Actually He said, “Get in the boat and let’s go over.” Let’s go over. Don’t miss that. Jesus says, “Get in this boat and let’s go over to the other side.” About midway, about halfway in the journey, a storm arises. And someone remembers that Jesus is in the boat. It’s not bad being in a storm when Jesus is on your boat. I’d rather be in the storm with Him than on the shore without Him.

So, the disciples went and awakened Him, and they said, “Master, Master.” There’s an old song in the African American tradition that says, “Master, the tempest is raging. The billows are tossing high. The sky is overshadowed with blackness. No shelter or help is nigh. Hearest thou not that we perish, how canst thou lie there asleep, when each moment so madly is threatening, a grave in the angry deep.”

The disciples said, “Get up Jesus.” And He took His position at the helm of the ship and pronounced the benediction upon the storm. He stood and spoke to the storm and said, “Peace be still.”

Jesus speaks to the storm that you are in today, as well. As the Lord of the storm, His voice pierces the thunder, the anger, the lightening, and the angry sea, and He says peace! Be still. He speaks to the storm that you are in today.

Not only that, but He speaks to you in the storm. Did you get that? Maybe you missed it. I’ll give it to you again. He speaks to the storm that you are in, but He also speaks to you in the storm.

I need help from the disciples again. Again, they were on a ship in a storm, in a boat. And the Bible says that Jesus came walking to them on the water. Ah, Jesus came walking in the midst of the storm, with the wind blowing in His hair with the wind and the waters misting against His face, He comes walking on the storm. And Peter sees Him and says, “Lord, if it’s You, and I know it is, let me come to You.”

And Jesus said to Peter, “I’ll call your bluff. Come to Me.” He speaks to you in the storm and He says if you want to walk on water, you must get out of the boat. He says to you that you can walk on the waters of impossibility, you can walk with the possibilities of His presence, but you’re stuck in the boat, and He says to step out, for He speaks to you in the storm.

An old song from the African-American tradition says, “Steal away, steal away, steal away to Jesus. I ain’t got long to stay here.” Then the line says, “My Lord, He calls me, He calls me by the thunder.” Even in the midst of the thunder of the storms, He calls you. He says, “Come to me. You don’t have long to stay where you are. You’re just passing through.”

It’s a storm that’s moving. The storm in this passage is shifting. Jesus, the Lord, becomes a storm tracker in this very Psalm. The storm begins out in the water and then the storm moves to the mountains and then the storm moves to the desert, to the wilderness. You didn’t get that; I’ll give it to you one more time. The storm is moving. God is a storm tracker. It begins on the waters, raging, tossing back and forth, to and fro. It then moves to the mountains, the mountaintops, the peaks. Then it moves to the dryness of the valleys in the wilderness.

This lets me know everyone in this room is in one of three places. Some of us just came out of a storm. Praise the Lord. Some of us, if we tell the truth, we came here today in a storm. But you didn’t just leave a storm and you’re not in a storm. As my mother would say, “Keep on living because that means you’re on your way to a storm.” But the Lord of the storm – listen now – speaks to the storm that you are experiencing, speaks to you in the storm. And here’s the last thing: And then He speaks to the storm that is in you. I know you missed that one. I’ll give you that one more time. He speaks to the storm that you are in, He speaks to you in the storm, and He speaks to the storm that is in you.

James says that sometimes we are rocked and we are tossed by doubts and by fears like a wave rising up within us. He speaks of the storm that is within. What is that raging storm within you? A raging storm of fear? A raging storm of frustration? A raging storm of doubt? How will I make it out? How will I make it through? How will I make it over?

But remember, Jesus told the disciples to get in the boat and let’s go over. I came to tell you, today, that you cannot go under when He says go over. I wonder, today, what is the storm that’s raging in you?

I have good news. Jesus speaks to the storm that is in you, and He speaks His peace. He speaks peace to the storm of your mind. He speaks peace to the storm in your body. He speaks peace to the storm in your relationships. He speaks peace in the storm of your future. He is the God and the voice in the storm. He speaks to the storm that you are in. He speaks to you in the storm. And He speaks to the storm that is in you.

Well, I have the weather report. And the weather report is the storm is passing over. Hallelujah. Hallelujah! There has never been a storm that did not end. The storm is passing over, hallelujah

The Empty Nest

It seems like only yesterday that I was having babies, changing their diapers and deciding which pre-school program was best to put them in.  Now the last of my children, Baby Katey and she has been known to some all these years will be moving to College Station tomorrow.  I guess it can’t be that bad.  Her two other siblings are up there too as well as her sister-in-law and nephew.  I think the “eyes of Texas” will be upon her.  You think you’ve trained them with good moral values as Christian children, but this week I have realized how much I haven’t taught them and what also needs a “do-over”.  Can I have a do over to teach Katey a few more things before she leaves?  I am amazed though at the way my children have become leaders and march to their own beat.  Nicholas told me something day before yesterday that just amazed me and I realized that he has grown so much!  As all parents do, I pray hedges over my children, for their safety, for them to make good solid decisions as Christian young adults.  But you can’t do it all for them.  There comes a time, and Katey’s time is now, where they have to try it for themselves.  I have told Katey that as of right now, she has made very little mistakes in her short 18 years of life.  If she makes good Godly decisions, next year and the year after and the year after that, she still will have very little mistakes under her belt.  Gosh, if only I could go back in time and someone had told me that back in 1980……naww….I probably wouldn’t have listened anyway, because I knew it all.  How does one make as little mistakes as possible.  The solution is very simple.  If you’re in God’s Word everyday and in prayer about ever decision and LISTEN, then whoop, there it is.  Why is it that we don’t always do that when it’s so darn simple?  Wish I had listened to my mom.  Wish I could listen to her now as well.  My letter to Katey as she goes off to college:

July 31, 2011

Dear Katey,

Here is the world.  Beautiful and terrible things will happen
from here on.  Don’t be afraid.  The purpose of your primary education was to
develop your weak characteristics.  The
purpose of a university education is for the development of your strong characteristics.  Excellence is not a skill, it’s an
attitude.  If you pay attention, you will
learn something new every day from those around you.  You’ll have so many choices in life that you’ll
now make for yourself.   If you’re not
smiling and happy with yourself every day, then you need to rethink your
choices.

Gracious God,

You blessed me with the gift Katey

and entrusted me with her care.

Now she leaves this home and begins a new life apart from me.

Surround her with good people and watch over her each day.

And let her know that I will always be near

whenever she may need me.

Heal any hurts we may harbor with one another

and forgive our failings

as we learn to be in a new kind of relationship with each other.

And when the sight of her empty room

pierces my heart with sadness,

may I find comfort in knowing that my child is your child too,

filled with your grace and sheltered by your love.

Proclamations for You!

Keep Katey safe.

Keep Katey sensible.

Keep Katey focused.

Keep Katey joyful

Help Katey be organized
and write things down.

Help Katey to do what’s
right when everyone else may be having fun.

Keep Katey surrounded by
Christian friends and teachers who help her grow.

Help Katey not to
succumb to alcohol or other drugs.

Help Katey not to
succumb to the fast crowd going nowhere.

Help Katey not to
succumb to careless sex and careless habits.

Help Katey to be her own
Christian lady and avoid group-think.

Help Katey to know I
miss her.

Help Katey to feel my
prayers over her, prayers of hedges of protection and goodness.

Help Katey to always remember
how much I love her.

 

When
all else fails, listen to what your mother told you.

I love you, I’ll miss you and I’ll always be here for
you.  I’ll love you forever.  I’ll like you for always.  As long as you’re living my baby you’ll be.

Mom

God Has Blessed My Broken Road

God has blessed the broken road that I have walked down.What a life!  God has saved me and I am blessed.  I am a writer (4 books unpublished), editor of a magazine, an administrator, a mentor and a mom, but most importantly, I am a Christian. What does it take to be a Christian?  Do you know that in a 2005 poll, when a group of Americans were asked if they were Christians, 54 percent of them stated they were.  When they were also asked what they thought it took for a person to go to Heaven, the answer was “to be a good person”.  What is good?   Good is relative.  Chocolate is good.  No actually I think chocolate is great. So what is good?  Have you ever told a lie?  I have.  Have you ever stolen something, even if it was just a small piece of candy?  I have.  So, wait a minute.  I’ve already broken 2 of the 10 commandments.  God didn’t say “Tracy, obey 8 of the commandments and I’ll let you into Heaven”.  In fact, we can’t get there by works.  No one is “good” enough by their own merit.  If you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and into your heart, He gives you the gift of salvation for free.  We don’t earn it.  We never could.  By His grace and mercy, we are saved.  However, He has also given us free will.  We have the ability to choose Him. We aren’t promised a straight road either.  I’ve been through divorces, step children, raising children, disappointments, curves, bumps the death of my mom, health issues and yet, through all that, He was with me and provided me peace that passes all understanding.  Some of those bumps and curves I’ve caused myself.  Others are just life’s circumstances, but I know that every thing that I’ve ever gone through has been filtered through His hands first.  Through each turn in the road, He has shown me and grown me.  I’m a work in progress traveling down that road each day.  Each day that He has given us is a gift.  I wake up thanking Him for another day. What will today’s road look like?