January 13

There are times when you don’t know who you are hearing from; whether it’s God, or self-talk. One morning, I decided to put down my iPad and just listen, no writing, just praying and listening. The impression I got was so beautiful, encouraging, and uplifting, it made me think, am I telling myself these things? So, I asked Him “is this You or me?” I immediately became tearful and realized that I don’t tell myself beautiful things that make me cry. The tears I cry are usually from self-pity, but never from self encouragement. The rule is, God is never condemning, His words are loving, and will concur with the Bible. If you want to hear Him, you have to close everything out except you and nothingness; He’s in the nothingness! Ask Him how He feels about you. It’s then that you will hear Him or feel an impression from Him. He wants you to be sure of His love, take it to heart when you hear Him speak.

Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. Jeremiah 33:3

January 12

What is taking you away from spending time with the Lord? Our lives are full of distractions, especially now that we have the world at our fingertips. I know that a lot of people re-evaluate their habits this time of year and consider the amount of time they spend in a virtual world rather than participating in real life, which is a good thing! God deserves our time and He deserves more than that thirty second prayer that you belt out just to get it out  of the way. If your life is already full, pray and ask Him to help you carve out some time for Him. I read a post from a young man asking his dad’s friends to please refrain from calling him while he spends time with him. I thought it was very sweet that he valued his time with his dad so much that he didn’t want any distractions. I imagine God feels the same way. I have to get up before the chickens wake up because my day is usually full, how about you?

But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:6

January 11

There are those who preach with sugary lips, those who are harsh and preach fire and brimstone, and some who ride right down the middle. In the Bible, there were none with sugary lips, which is a warning for all. When John the Baptist came on the scene, he didn’t care who was listening, he spoke the truth! It was a different style that most had never heard and people were drawn to him. Like a judge, I want to hear the “whole truth and nothing but the truth!” Even if that truth begins with the sting of fire and death, as long as it ends with freedom and life and comes from the Bible, I want to hear it! The evangelical side of me wants to pour out the harshness of reality every day, but the practical side of me knows that most won't accept it, so I give you sweet stories to lessen the blow. Here’s a little truth for you: death will not bring you rest unless you have Jesus!

"O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:55-57

January 10

The older I get, the more I realize that time goes quickly and that I’ve probably been alive longer than I will live. That thought spurs me to rethink my life and the way I’ve been living. For all these years I have been taking advantage of time, not realizing that time is precious and we shouldn’t waste it. Our flesh is finite, we’re not going to live forever in this state of being. I’ve made some changes that will give my flesh the best life possible and to help me to stop striving. You have a choice, either build on a future that is sure or continue to strive for the fleshly life that is not promised. What is sure? The word of the Lord! Build your hope on the promises of God. We are like grass or the flowers of the field, one breath from the Almighty and we are gone! This flesh is only temporary, we won’t live in it forever. Build your hope on nothing less than Jesus. Decide today to concentrate on your infinite life. 

The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Isaiah 40:7-8

January 9

There is something refreshing about waking up to a warm rain. This rain is coming out of the south to thaw out the frosty cold that we experienced for the last couple of weeks here in Florida. Hopefully this will give our tropical plants a chance to recover and come back better than ever in the spring. I know that after I’ve received a beat down, I’ll hide out in a cave for a little while trying to recover, and somehow God will replenish my strength and give me the ability to come back with a vengeance! My plants are recovering from the frost, some of the leaves will fall off, but the roots and the branches are still strong and have life in them. When our lives are built around our Savior, He is our source of power and life. The enemy may come in and torment us for a day or a season, but he is not our source of strength. Set your eyes upon Jesus during those harsh and frosty days and His heat will keep your core strong!

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Isaiah 40:29

January 8

I’ve been in the stores quite a bit lately, trying to come up with ways to make my new home feel like my own. I notice that there is an increase in rudeness; it’s as if someone has turned off the courtesy and kindness button and everyone is ignoring the feelings of others. I was in a store looking at some items on a shelf when a woman, having trouble carrying her items needed to walk past me, or so I thought. That wasn’t the case at all! She wanted to look at the items on the same shelf and stood directly in front of me! I was so shocked at her behavior that I stood there in disbelief! There was a point in my life where I would have never let her get away with doing that to me, but I’ve mellowed a bit and have learned to let the unnecessary things go. That was just one of many instances. The Holy Spirit definitely dwells within me and His guidance has helped me to overcome the craziness of this world.

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. James 1:19-20

January 7

It’s that time of year again! Stone crab season! As much as I love going to the beach and spending time on the water, being on an open boat in cold weather is not appealing to me. However, my husband and son love eating them so much that they’ll forgo their comfort just to collect those tasty morsels. They are quite a delicacy, especially when the rate per pound can go as high as twenty five dollars! Many people long to afford this edible crustacean, but we are able to enjoy them at very little cost. I may be stretching this a bit, but this is comparable to our relationship with God. Many people long for the kind of peace only given to those who trust in Jesus. This world is full of turmoil and only God can give us real peace. Peace, like the crab in a trap at the bottom of the ocean floor, is readily available. Jesus is like a trap full of crab; all you have to do is go, collect, and eat.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Jame 1:17

January 5

My husband Richard and I have moved into a community where some of the neighbors are of an older generation. We were coming home from lunch when the lawn maintenance guy came running from the neighbor's backyard telling us that there was a man on the ground shaking. Richard jumped into gear to help him while I prayed. He couldn’t say anything, but we thought he may have fallen the night before while trying to cover his plants. The paramedics said they thought he would be okay. One neighbor, who is a believer, had thought about taking him soup the night before, but thought he wouldn’t open the door. The other neighbor, also a believer, was going to check on him that morning, but things got crazy around her house. We need to start listening more carefully to the Holy Spirit and follow through! We are all guilty of ignoring Him, but this shows you why we shouldn’t!

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. Hebrews 13:16

January 4

I want a life with no problems. I think that’s why I love getting away to the beach. The waves seem to wash away all the stress and anxiety that builds up from general everyday life. It’s a new year, a fresh start for some, but all it means to me is that it’s time to wrap up last years business and get our paperwork ready to have our taxes prepared. Not only that, but I still haven’t finished everything I need to get accomplished this week! As I’m writing this, God is speaking to me telling me that I don’t have to do this life in my own strength. He’s encouraging me to let Him be my strength when all I want to do is run away. If our life was easy, we probably wouldn’t be on earth and would be resting to the sound of angels singing. Let me encourage you to keep pushing through your stress, pain, or anything else that is bringing you down. God will be your strength! When we are weak, then He is strong.

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

January 3

My prayer today is for God to give me some “want to.” There are a lot of things that I desire to accomplish, but I don’t “want to.” Today I feel like Jonah, I don’t want to go to Nineveh! We are living in a country like Nineveh where our peoples minds are so bent towards evil that it seems like all hope is lost. Do we even want these people to repent? Or, do we want them to suffer the consequences? Then I remember that God loves all of us and wants none of us to perish. His desire is for all to repent and come to Him. The grace of God is hard to understand, but it’s not for us to understand. Our job is to do our best to bring others into the loving arms of our Savior. We are to go to those overtaken by evil and tell them about Jesus. Whether they reject Him or accept Him, we will have done our part for the Kingdom and we will be credited as doing good. 

When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. Jonah 3:10

January 2

This year is already starting out a little rocky. It’s cold, we have a couple of issues with our tenants, and it’s the first of the month! We are in the real estate business and our main job is property management. Our income is from rentals and sometimes people neglect to pay their rent. We see it a lot this time of year because people spend more than they have on the holidays. We are understanding, but often people take advantage of our kindness. Do you pay your rent? God has given you a place to stay, feeds you, provides air for you to breathe, and puts the clothes on your back. Are you going to continue to neglect to return a small portion to help support your local church? God is your landlord and property manager, you owe him rent! He will multiply what you give Him if you will put your trust in Him. He challenges us to test Him in this. Go ahead, try it and see what happens!

Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, 'How have we robbed you?' In your tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need. Malachi 3:8-10

January 1

Happy New Year! What a great year this is going to be! I’m happy to be alive, happy to be chosen, happy to walk through God’s will for me, and be pleasing to Him! The great thing about what I’ve listed is, I don’t have to do anything to accomplish them except trust in Jesus! It’s nice to focus on them because you can see His hand orchestrating the outcome, but you’re not the one in charge. We have a fresh new year to focus on the positive things, don’t waste it fretting over the things you have no control over. Today is a good day to thank Him and praise Him for what you do have and maybe that will change your attitude and give you hope for this new year. He’s just like our natural parents, who long to hear from us, waiting for our call. Make sure you call your Father today, He’s just waiting to reveal His plans for your future. He’s listening!

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13

December 31

New year, new you! It may be a commercial on television, nevertheless I hear this saying all the time. You can change your appearance, take off a few pounds, eat healthier foods, and drop bad habits that you’ve picked up over the years, but if you don’t turn your heart towards Jesus, you’ve accomplished nothing! Besides that, I’m not even sure how you do those things without His help. Anything that I’ve set my mind to doing, I ask for God’s help and then dedicate it to Him. My thought is that I will feel obligated to do it for Him and won’t give up so easily. If you’re making resolutions for the new year, resolve to be kind to others, be compassionate toward those who are lashing out, because deep in their soul is unresolved pain and they need Jesus! This may be why He told us to turn the other cheek. Pray about your resolution, and resolve to be a better human.

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14

December 30

If you’ve ever been to Florida, you know about the beaches and Disney, but have you ever noticed our grand old oaks? They are spectacular! Their limbs reach the sky and create the perfect place for squirrels to frolic and birds to congregate. They are a respite from the sun on a hot day and protection from the frost on a cold day. However, during a hurricane, they can become dangerous, as many are uprooted or their dead branches are pruned by the wind. Though the clean up is costly, new life springs up as the once shaded area is exposed to the sun. So, what’s dead in your life that needs to be pruned so the light can shine on you? Don’t wait for a hurricane to prune your branches or possibly uproot you, ask God what needs to be trimmed now so you can continue to stand strong like a grand oak. He’ll answer you. He wants you to be set free from all that hinders your growth. 

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. John 15:1-2

December 29

Things aren’t always as they seem. Many years ago I was grocery shopping at our local store. People were getting off work and picking up their supper before heading home. I noticed one particular guy who looked like he had been working extra hard because he was filthy and his hair was greasy. It was unusual that I even notice him because many people work hard and get dirty doing their work. The truth is that I thought he was a bum. As I was leaving, I saw a sporty Cadillac parked at the curb, and guess who got into it? The greasy looking bum! Come to find out, he was a wealthy business owner that was well known by many in our town. The Bible teaches us not to judge by outward appearances, and that my friends is one of the reasons why! We are to show no partiality or make distinctions between others. This is a hard teaching to hold to, but as a believer, it’s necessary!

For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, "You sit here in a good place," while you say to the poor man, "You stand over there," or, "Sit down at my feet," have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? James 2:2-4

December 28

God has a way of making us focus on what’s most important. If you’re worried about things rather than people, it’s likely that you will be challenged by your circumstances and forced to look at your heart. If your god has become your possessions and you’re more worried about them than the one true God, you may experience trouble or even lose them. Our God is a jealous God and will take second place to no one or no thing, so make it your mission to put Him before everything in your life. He will reward your behavior and you will become closer to Him. When we align ourselves with Him, we will automatically concern ourselves with matters of the heart; the heart of God is for His people. Live the greatest command to love God and love people, and things will fall into their rightful place and He will delight in you.

O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalms 51:15-17

December 27

If you are a parent, it is vital that you help guard the heart of your child. So many of us grow up with hurts caused by others that are carried into adulthood. It makes it important for you to have open communication with them so they are free to share their feelings with you. I was so proud of my daughter; when she found out my grandson had been called a name that hurt him, she immediately had him pray to reject that hurt and assured him of the value God had placed on him. If we handle these things early on, we will set them up for a successful, confident life. For your own sake as an adult, handle the pain someone causes you right away and don’t allow it to fester and grow. The enemy will use any means necessary to derail you and cause you to take your eyes off the Lord. Jesus took all of our pain upon Himself so you don’t have to carry it! 

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:4-5

December 26

Rush, rush, rush, and then nothing; it’s the after Christmas blues. I remember as a child, this day would hit me hard and make me sad because there were no more gifts to open or family to see, but as an adult, I’m glad it’s over and ready for my days to get back to normal. If we could get into the habit of celebrating Jesus every day, we might not become so deflated after a big event. There are so many things to look forward to, including a new year, new events, new souls to reach for Jesus. Now maybe I can get back to eating right again; the holiday food tends to add extra pounds! If you are experiencing mild depression from the holiday let-down, remember who your source is and plug into His power to defeat the enemies attempts to derail you. Change your focus from inward to outward and rely on Him for all of your needs. He’s ready to help you, just ask.

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

December 25

Today, I hope you are like a child opening a gift, a holy gift that could only be given by One. Have you opened your gift, or do you know what’s in the package and are leaving it under the tree for the perfect, more convenient time? Some of us take a peak and never open the package completely, we leave it in the box and never get it out to play with it. OPEN YOUR PACKAGE! It’s the best gift that you will ever receive and every time you play with it, it’s like new again. It’s not boring, it’s fun and exciting. Every day something different is revealed, but how will you know that if you don’t take it out and play with it. It’s like a real life video game, the more you play it, the better you get at it and achieve new levels. So today, be that child again; open the gift, and take it out and play with it and never put it down again. I hope you are blessed by receiving the sweetest of all presents, Jesus! Merry Christmas.

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Matthew 1:21

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, Ephesians 2:8

December 24

Could you have ever imagined that we would be celebrating the arrival of a King thousands of years later? Here we are rejoicing! I wonder if the shepherds and the others, who came to see Him that night, were some of those who eventually became His followers. When God decides to walk with us in the flesh, you can’t keep that a secret for very long! The King, Creator, and Savior, choosing to experience what His created experiences daily, just to give us a worthy sacrifice to atone for our sin, is incredible! As we celebrate the Savior's birth, remember that He said if we don’t praise Him, the rocks will; which is what is already happening! People are denying that He is the reason we celebrate, but are still celebrating! Only our incredible God could turn what Satan had intended for evil into the good for Him! They can deny all they want, but the truth is the truth!

He answered, "I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out." Luke 19:40