God Doesn’t Want Secret Admirers

God Doesn’t Want Secret Admirers

Remember when you first fell in love with someone?

Perhaps he or she is your spouse now, or you’re still dating and wondering if this could be “the one.”

You think about that someone a lot.

God doesn't want secret admirers

Like, all the time.

You wonder what they’re thinking about and, mostly, if they’re thinking about you.

As your admiration and love continues to grow, every decision becomes about that person in your life. You want to make them happy and let the world know that he or she is yours.

When should you tell them that you love them?

Love is a beautiful thing.

There’s nothing quite like it.

When you truly fall in love with someone, you can’t wait to tell everyone you know, right?

If we can get that excited over that special someone we admire, how can we get any less excited about the King of the Universe?

Better yet, how can we hold that excitement in, and not let others experience that same joy and love for God that we do?

God doesn’t want secret admirers

Why would He?

Think of the ultimate sacrifice and resurrection of His Son on the Cross.

Incomprehensible love and divine grace.

All for yours and my salvation.

It’s very, very humbling.

God didn’t send His Son to us, just to have us clam up and keep the Good News of salvation a big secret.

And that’s the gospel truth.

Sing to the Lord a new song;
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
Tell of His glory among the nations,
His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.  – Psalm 96:1-3

New American Standard Bible (NASB)Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

But what if you’re scared

Does sharing your faith frighten you?

What will people think?

They might not like me anymore.

I remember the first time I shared my faith in front of a large group of people.

I’d already written online about my family’s accident many times before. The story traveled quite far, even all the way to Romania, considering the online comments. But, I wanted to do more.

The first time I shared in front of a lot of people was at my father-in-law’s funeral. I felt compelled to speak about the accident and how it affected my family. I was nervous walking up to the podium, but in retrospect, it was a privilege and God saw me through it.

Are there any resources to help you learn how to share your faith?

Yes!

Last year I took an online course. It’s a six week course, one lesson a week. The best news is that you can take the course at your own pace.

It isn’t hard at all and one lesson a week is doable for anyone.

There’s a video that you watch followed by review questions before you advance to the next lesson.

For someone like myself who can get easily distracted, I recommend this course without hesitation. Each lesson held my attention and, even though I had already shared my faith before, I learned a lot. In fact, I eagerly looked forward to each session.

The course is called, “Tell Someone” and you can access it by clicking on the link in this sentence.

I might even take the course again.

Tell Someone

It’s a new day and a new year.

When you have the opportunity to share your faith, just do it!

Follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

You’ll be glad and blessed that you did.

Thank you for dropping by

As always, I would be honored if you would share this blog post with a friend.

God bless.

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Happy New Year 2017

Happy New Year 2017 Everyone!

Happy New Year 2017

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for the new year.

C’mon 2017!

Have you made any New Years resolutions?

Better yet, how good are you at keeping those resolutions?

New Years Resolutions

I must admit I’m great at making “the list,” but some of those challenges seem to fall by the wayside once the month of January is over.

Where did all those pounds come from?

As if you couldn’t guess, losing ten pounds (or more) is right there at the top of the list. From what I’ve heard, I seem to share that resolution with most of humanity!

Losing weight…and exercising.

Oh yea, exercising.

I remember when I used to do that.

Wink, wink!

My Zumba class took a back seat as my nights were filled with pre-Christmas preparations, baking holiday goodies, choir rehearsals, and Christmas shopping.

Christmas goodiesThen the gifts of food, Christmas treats, and flavored popcorn arrived on our doorstep from wonderful friends and family.

“It’s too much, we have to quit eating all this,” my husband and I said to each other, as we nibbled on chocolate-covered cheesecake pops.

Need I say that we lost that battle?

It’s all good though.

We enjoyed every minute of it. 🙂

Christmas 2016 was a joyous and wonderful celebration of Christ’s birth.

God’s Love Letter

My most important resolution though has nothing to do with dropping a few pounds.

It has entirely to do with reading through God’s entire love letter to man – the Bible.

God's love letter to man

Many churches offer their own Bible reading plans, so you may want to check those out from a local church.

You can also find a reading plan at Back To The Bible.

If you follow the link below, it’s a faster way to their Bible reading challenges. You can choose from several different options:

http://www.backtothebible.org/bible-reading-plans

If you prefer to listen to God’s Word, (which I’m also a fan of) I recommend the Word of Promise Audio Bible.

I downloaded it on my iPad and I’ve been really happy with it.

You’ll hear narrations from Jim Caviezel (from the movie, “The Passion of the Christ”) and Gary Sinise, among others. It’s not a free app, but it’s totally worth it to me.

No matter which reading or audio-listening plan you prefer, I hope you’ll take the Bible reading challenge too.

Blessings to you all.

See you next year!

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Jesus Changes Everything

Merry Christmas to One and All!

Merry Christmas to one and all

Are you enjoying the holidays?

I sure am.

We recently attended the annual Grapevine Opry Christmas Reunion Show and I heard a beautiful song during the performance that I’m still thinking about. It’s the Faith Hill song, “A Baby Changes Everything.”

Have you heard it yet?

I try to imagine what it would have been like for Mary the day the Angel Gabriel revealed that she would be with child.

This blessed child named Jesus would grow up to become a man and teach us about salvation, even to this day. He came to save us, and the entire world would never be the same again.

I can’t hear this song without shedding a few tears.

The little Lord Jesus lying in a manger.

Innocent and precious, the Darling of Heaven.

Jesus changes everything

Little fingers, little toes.

The soft round head that I’m sure Mary and Joseph covered with sweet kisses on that Night Above All Nights. And when He cried, they picked Him up as loving parents do and comforted the Christ child until He fell softly to sleep.

Thank You Jesus

Thank you Jesus for changing everything in my life, from the inside out. The journey is sometimes painful, but You comfort me and Your grace is sufficient.

The goals I aspired to as a child pale in comparison to the breathtaking joy I look forward to someday spending time with my Savior in Heaven.

Thank you Heavenly Father for sending us your Son. He is Your gift to an undeserving world.

You and Me are God’s Treasures

Talk to Him, He will hear you.

Have you accepted Jesus as your Savior?

If not, it is not too late.

Don’t know where to start?

Your answer may be just a phone call away.

Find a Christian friend or family member and ask them how to be saved.

It’s the best decision I ever made in my life and I’m grateful that the Lord heard my broken prayers.

From broken to redeemed, Jesus changes everything. With your repentant heart, a happy eternal life can be yours too.

Joy in Christ for all eternity

Jesus Changes Everything

This world and the sufferings we experience are only temporary.

With gratitude, I look back on the blessings God has allowed in my life and remember that these are mere glimpses that God allows of what will be mine for eternity.

Who wouldn’t want that?

I encourage you to pray about this decision if you haven’t made it yet.

God bless you on your journey towards Him.

From our home to yours, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas

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Star Light Star Bright

Christmas Is Almost Here!

Star light star bright

Can you feel the excitement?

The music, the holiday specials on TV, the Christmas presentations at local churches – it’s what I look forward to every year.

I’m not the most creative person in the world, but I did come up with an idea that has become a little tradition at our house and I wanted to share it with you.

If you ask my husband, he will claim it was his idea.

Like he does about all the great ideas at our house 😉

So, how did this idea come about?

Star Light, Star Bright

In the second chapter of Matthew, the Bible describes the Magi following the brilliant star that led them to the birthplace of Jesus.

Think about that star that lit up the sky and how overjoyed the Magi felt to come and worship our newborn king.

I wanted to somehow capture the joy and wonder of Christ’s birth, so an idea came to me about using flameless candles.

backlight the manger scene

I love flameless candles!

We have several on hand in case the power goes out or, for an even better reason, those times when we want to have a candlelight dinner.

There are three manger scenes of varying sizes in our home, including one large one given to us by my husband’s parents. We really treasure it.

I took flameless candles and backlit each manger scene with them.

Here’s the cool thing.

When you turn off the lights in the room, you see the manger with just the flickering candle behind it.

It serves as a reminder to us of that blessed night when our Savior was born.

special night when our Savior was born

Feel free to use this idea at your home if you want.

I won’t even be mad if you steal the idea 😉

The Joy of Christmas

Another part of the joy of Christmas is children.

The wonder and exuberance they feel when they experience the real reason for the season is heartwarming.

Here’s the beautiful song, “Who Would Imagine A King,” sung by a remarkably talented young vocalist.

 

May your Christmas be merry and bright! 

God bless

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How Many Kings

The Song “How Many Kings” by Downhere

Sounds of Christmas

Here I go again.

Another song has touched my heart – so much so that I’ve added it to my iPod playlist.

Have you heard the song “How Many Kings” by Downhere?

Our church choir sang this song, among others, for our Christmas presentation last Sunday and I’ve been in love with it ever since.

In just a little over four minutes, the song’s lyrics capture the heart of what Christmas is all about.

*Lowly and small, the weakest of all
Unlikeliness hero, wrapped in His mother’s shawl
Just a child
Is this who we’ve waited for?

How Many Kings

“Just a child,” but not just any child.

Jesus Christ is the Savior of the World!

*How many gods have poured out their hearts
To romance a world that has torn all apart
How many fathers gave up their sons for me?
Only One did that for me.

Worshiping the Messiah Doesn’t Stop After Christmas

“How Many Kings” is one of those songs you can listen to any time of year.

In less than a month, Christmas will be over.

The colorful decorations around the house and the stockings on the hearth are carefully packed away for next year. For some folks, that may feel like a let down.

But hark!

Notice I said “hark.” This is the only time of year that fits. 😉

Hark!

Jesus Christ and the celebration of His life is for all seasons.

Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring – He’s the reason there’s a “you” and a “me.”

May the blessings of Christmas warm your heart as we prepare to celebrate Christ’s birth!

*Song lyrics courtesy of MetroLyrics.

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