Bees

I'll be back to you soon friends...

I'm busy chasing bees as they pop out of our chimney.

My King

On this holy and sacred day, I'm so grateful that my King is bigger and mightier than death and the grave.

Friend, Do you know my King?

Waiting Patiently

Psalm 37:7 - Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him. (NKJV)

Isaiah 40:31 - But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. (NKJV)

As I stood standing in the check-out line, I couldn't help but notice the young mother and her toddler just ahead of me. As they often do, this toddler was becoming more and more impatient. It was almost amusing to watch him as he tried to inch the grocery cart ahead.

What a clear picture of what I try to do when waiting on God. What about you, do you try to push ahead of His plan for your life? It's easy to become impatient, and it's tempting to do things in our own strength, instead of waiting for God's perfect timing.

God knows everything about us. He knows exactly what we need and when we need it.

The next time your tempted to push ahead, remember the words of this song:

In His time, in His time
He makes all things beautiful in His time.
Lord, please show me every day
As You're teaching me Your way
That You do just what You say
In Your time.

I love what Spurgeon said about this:

“I waited patiently for the Lord.” (Psalm 40:1)

Patient waiting upon God was a special characteristic of our Lord Jesus. Impatience never lingered in his heart, much less escaped his lips. All through his agony in the garden, his trial of cruel mockings before Herod and Pilate, and his passion on the tree, he waited in omnipotence of patience. No glance of wrath, no word of murmuring, no deed of vengeance came from God's patient Lamb; he waited and waited on; was patient, and patient to perfection, far excelling all others who have according to their measure glorified God in the fires. Job on the dunghill does not equal Jesus on the cross. The Christ of God wears the imperial crown among the patient.

What a marvel is it that our Lord should have to cry as we do, and wait as we do, and should receive the Father's help after the same process of faith and pleading as must be gone through by ourselves!

The Saviour's prayers among the midnight mountains and in Gethsemane expound this verse. The Son of David was brought very low, but he rose to victory; and here he teaches us how to conduct our conflicts so as to succeed after the same glorious pattern of triumph. Let us arm ourselves with the same mind; and panoplied in patience, armed with prayer, and girt with faith, let us maintain the Holy War.

Waiting on God

Tom and I have been away for a few days and while we were away, I kept thinking about my attitude and actions on the subject of Waiting on God.

Waiting on God is not something I find easy to do. What about you?

Do you agree that when we make ourselves available to Him, we are marveled by the things He does in and through us?

The apostle Paul saw this great truth put into practice in His own life and ministry. Look at

1 Corinthians 2:9, "However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived the things God has prepared for those who love him (NIV)

The apostle is quoting Isaiah 64:4. "Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him." (NIV)

When God is at work, it is above and beyond anything we can imagine. We can see it only as the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to it. God’s works are so magnificent, we need the illuminating help of the Holy Spirit to open our eyes and our minds.

God prepares marvelous things for those who are focused on Him. If you're anything like me friend, tragic and sad results occur when we try to do things without God's leadership, direction and blessing. Focus on the last portion of John 15:5, "“apart from me you can do nothing." (NIV)

Friends, are you patiently waiting for Him to invite you to come and join Him in the work He is planning and preparing for you to accomplish? How about your attitude toward waiting, does it need an adjustment? What about your thought life, your actions?

When we patiently wait upon the Lord, we prioritize our lives in such a way that we have a dependent relationship with Him.

For the impatient, waiting on God appears to be laziness or indifference. The truth is quite the opposite. Waiting means we are ready to obey His command. Waiting on Him means we have prioritized our lives so that nothing will conflict with the will of God when He reveals His truth to us. Waiting means the believer is actively listening, spiritually equipped, ready to obey the Master's call to action. While we wait, God is busy working behind the scenes.

It takes time for Him to teach us patience in waiting. "Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires." 2 Peter 1:4 (NIV)

God will not invite us to join Him in what He is doing until we are ready. God is busy preparing something wonderful for those who love Him and wait upon Him. Things that will be be for our good and His glory.

Are you waiting patiently? Are you willing to wait until He speaks? God works with, in, and through those who wait on Him.

What are your thoughts?

Disappointment... One last thought

Many thanks for your comments on the subject of disappointment friends.

I'll end this subject with one more thought.

I'm sure each of us has experienced the disappointment of broken dreams, crushed hopes and the agony of seeking but never finding. The scars from that disappointment may linger, however for me, those scars serve as a reminder that God has not forgotten or forsaken me. Rather, it is as

Philippians 2:13 specifies.“It is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (NIV)

Embracing the truth in Isaiah 55:8 has brought me great comfort and hope in my times of disappointment.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD." (NIV)

While we know God has a way of bringing about His perfect and sovereign will for our lives, the best cure for disappointment is placing my hope and trust in the One who makes things happen for our good and His glory.

What are your thoughts?

Hope in Christ is Never Disappointing

Recently I was lunching with a friend when I overheard the conversation at the table next to us. One woman at the table came very close to winning a promotion, and her disappointment was understandable as she had just learned she did not get what she had wanted. As she shared her frustration, her friend read the following verses from the Book of Romans. “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith unto this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5: 1-5)

After hearing those verses the woman expressed that God must be teaching her to be patient. In other words, when God knows the time is right, this woman expressed confidence that her promotion will indeed be made evident.

What an encouragement as a Christian, knowing that we have hope even when things don’t appear to be going our way.

When I returned home and looked at those verses in Romans, God began to open my eyes regarding my attitude toward a recent disappointment of my own. Just one verse beyond the promise of hope was God’s message to me:

“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.” (Romans 5:6)

Friends, when we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, we must learn to become selfless if we are ever to live a spirit-filled life. Secondly, we have to accept God’s timing as sovereign and perfect for his children.

That night as I brushed my teeth, I took a moment to really I look at myself in the mirror. I realized that I had not allowed that selfless quality to show through my recent disappointment. The only quality that was shining through was a selfish Christian who would not submit to fact that God’s ways are not my ways and His timing is always perfect.

If you're struggling with disappointment today will you pray this prayer along with me?

Lord, forgive me for the selfish attitude I have shown throughout this recent disappointment. I am grateful for the doors that you have closed and for the ones You are about to open. Fill the emptiness of my disappointment with your Spirit and enable me to trust Your provision and perfect timing.In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

The Latest Winner

I'm happy to announce the winner of my latest blog goodie bag give away.

Doot Doot Doo Doooooooooo.!!!!!

Congratulations to:

Steffie who posted on April 7 at 7:46 AM

Steffie, email me your contact info and I'll pop your goodie gift bag in the mail to you today.

Here's what you can look forward to

Keep Posting friends, The next give away is soon...

Practicing Patience

2 Peter 1:5-7 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

Patience is one of those attributes can only be acquired by persistent practice– and for me it’s something I have to practice over, and over, and over again!

Here's what Webster’s dictionary says about patience: “the suffering of afflictions, pain, toil, calamity, provocation or other evil, with a calm, unruffled temper; endurance without murmuring or fretfulness, from a kind of heroic pride, or from a Christian submission to the divine will.”

There are several things about this definition that caught my attention – first, “endurance without murmuring”. I was reminded of yesterdays traffic jam… there I was, fussing and fuming out loud over this "inconvenience". After more minutes than I'd like to admit, I finally "woke up" to the realization that this was yet one more opportunity to practice patience without murmuring.

The next thing that really stood out to me was, “a Christian submission to the divine will.” Think about all the times are we placed in a difficult or “impossible” situation. Maybe you're dealing with a difficult person. Several years ago when my husband's job was eliminated I went to work selling cosmetics in a department store. What I thought would be a dream job for this girly girl, quickly turned into an opportunity to learn how to deal with a VERY difficult counter manager. She hurled insults laced with profanity my way 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. My first reaction was to feel beat down, beat up and down right abused. After the realization that this indeed was a opportunity to submit to my heavenly Father's will, I was able to get on with the work of practicing patience. Not only are these circumstances in our lives an opportunity to grow in patience, to learn to submit to God’s providential will, they are also an opportunity to minister to those "difficult" people. After many months of practice, my boss softened her heart and her language. While the story didn't end with the two of us becoming BFF's, after seven months the Lord did move me out of that job and opened the door for me to practice patience in a different environment.

Friend, is your patience being tested today? Let me encourage you! The Lord is training you toward godliness –- and godliness is moving toward perfect love. Our heavenly Father wants to work this quality into our character now -– for His glory!

Will you share your story of practicing patience with us and the lessons you are learning?

The end is in Sight...

Friends, the end is in sight. I mean the end of our seven month restoration. Yes, sister friends the final details are almost completed. Grouting, painting and some lighting are the biggest things left to be done, but I've actually unpacked my kitchen and put things away in the new cabinets. What a relief to move the coffee maker back to the kitchen counter top and out of the foyer. Although he had perfected his technique, Tom is not going to miss making his shake in the powder room. Our indoor camping experience is about to come to an end.

The final result is going to be worth all the headaches (literally), frustration and all the rest, however, I really will be grateful when this life chapter is closed. As we are about the bring this train into the station I thought this would be a great time to get back to our 2011 topic of change.

While we have been experiencing updates and improvements in our physical dwelling, I know many of you have joined me in making some updates and improvements in our spiritual dwellings. I'd love to hear an update from you on your own physical and spiritual updates and improvements.

Leave a post and you'll be entered in the drawing for my next give away.