I had the privilege to attend a Living Proof Live conference in early June featuring Beth Moore. She focused on teaching the elements needed to A-D-V-A-N-C-E the gospel of Christ.  One of the key elements is to hone our offensive weapon of prayer.  She challenged us to shake up our prayer life so that we are fervent, committed, energized and passionate in our conversations with the LORD.  I have been pondering the positions of prayer that she outlined- face down, kneeling, sitting and standing.  Mostly I sit as I pray and write in my prayer journal.  I realized how much I needed this refocusing in my own life to energize my times with the Lord.  I’m going to write about these positions one at a time and hopefully, my discussion and questions will help you to rethink your own prayer life.

Going face down in prayer is not something I do.  I have to ask myself why not?  In scripture, those confronted with serious problems or with God’s presence fell face down before the Lord.  Moses in Numbers 16:4 fell face down when confronted with Korah’s sin, Joshua 7:6 says Joshua went face down when confronted with Achan’s sin, Ezekiel 1:28 tells when Ezekiel saw God’s radiance he fell face down.  In the New Testament the leper came to Jesus and fell face down seeking Jesus’ healing in Luke 5:12 and in Matthew 17:6 Peter, James and John fell face down upon hearing the voice of God speaking to them on the Mt of Transfiguration.  Do I feel my problems are not serious enough to warrant going face down before the Lord.  Being face down is a position of abject submission and helplessness in front of Almighty God.  Isn’t that where I need to be to seek His solution to my problems and ask for His mercy?    Scripture does not describe Hezekiah as being face down when he presented his letter from Sennechrib to God pleading for his mercy and deliverance in 2Kings 18, but I envision Hezekiah as being face down, spread out in utter submission to God.  He laid his case before God seeking his solution to an impossible situation.  Hezekiah trusted God for the outcome and received a miraculous deliverance.

What impossible situations are you facing right now?  Do you feel that something-a relationship, a job, a situation, a conflict is beyond help?  These are the situations where God longs to help us.  Consider going face down in prayer and laying the problem before God and asking for his mercy.   Then get up and trust God with the problem knowing that God has already taken care of it!  Remember 2Samuel 22:31  “As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless.  He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.”  Also Jeremiah 29:11 “I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD,” plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Blessings as you seek his face- face down in abject submission.

Linda

OK- so here is my adversity for this week.  I was rear ended on my way to work on Friday.  My car may be totaled, I have been in a lot of discomfort do to whip lash, unexpected expenses to cover and missed hours at work.  I could let those things consume me with worry about what might be the outcome, how long the situation will persist, how much it will cost- will I be able to afford it…..

When things happen in your life do you want to blame others or God for this happening to you?  I know that God is sovereign and nothing that happens to me happens by accident.(2Chronicles 20:6 and John 10:29)  God is good and wants only good things for me. (Psalm 25:8 and Psalm34:8)      So how do I resolve this seeming conflict of God’s goodness and bad things happening?   James 1:2-4  says “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work, so that you many be mature and complete, not lacking in anything.”  (NIV)  God’s word tells me to take things in stride and be confident that God can and will use this adversity to grow my character helping me to learn how to stand firm and be persevering. Satan wants me fearful and worrying.  Those are his tools to undermine my faith and trust in God.

I don’t know if I’m at the place yet in my walk with God that I really rejoice when adversity comes, but I am beginning to recognize those times and see that God is greater than anything I am facing and that I can trust Him.  Here are a few verses that help to turn my perspective to Him when adversity comes:  2Corinthians 12:9-10   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.  For the sake of Christ, then, ” I am content with weaknesses, insult, hardship, persecutions, and calamities.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.      Philippians 4:19  “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”  and Lamentations 3:21-23  “But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (ESV)   These verses assure me of God’s sovereignty and care.  I can rest in Him knowing that He will provide, be merciful each day and will not give me something that His grace will not be enough to cover.  Those are assurances that allow me to get up each morning, persevere and claim victory in Him in spite of the adversities I may face that day.

I pray that these words of encouragement will help you the next time – probably today! that you face adversity.  Turn to Him and let him see you through it. God is the master of turning lemons into lemonade for each of us.

Have a Blessed day.

Linda

For this holiday- Memorial Day- the greeting, “Happy Memorial Day” just does not express the appropriate sentiment.  Memorial Day is a day to remember the sacrifice of soldiers who have died in war.  It began after the Civil war and was originally called ‘Decoration Day’.  It was later extended to honor all fallen soldiers in any war.  Jesus told us in John 15:13  “Greater love has no one than his, that he lay down his life for his friends.” Anyone who joins the military knows they might be called to go to war and fight.  Believing in life, freedom and independent pursuit of happiness that is declared in our Constitution’s Bill of Rights  gives motivation and heart to their call to defend our nation.  It is an honorable calling that is worthy of our acknowledgement and remembrance.  Proverbs 10:7a  “The memory of the righteous will be a blessing.”    Who will you remember today that has answered the call and given their life for their friends?  You and I are those friends and it is our obligation to their sacrifice that we remember them.  Scripture teaches that remembering will be a blessing.

Will you attend a parade, a breakfast, have a time of prayer, watch a war movie?   Any of these things can be a cause to remember those that have fallen and give thanks for their sacrifice for you and for me.  Have a blessed Memorial Day!  I think that would be the proper greeting and I send it to you!

Linda

Prayer:  Thank you Lord, for those brave men and women who have given their all- their lives- so that I can enjoy the freedoms our country provides.  Help me to be honoring to their memory and sacrifices knowing they laid their lives down for me, someone they did not even know.  Give me an attitude of thankfulness for those Veteran’s that are still living and help me to honor them.  Lord, give our leaders wisdom and a sense of unity in working to preserve that for  which so many have died.  Amen.

What is age?  As I get older I ponder about whether I am getting better with age like good wine or if I’m moving towards  getting crotchy and narrow-minded. Yesterday I had a wonderful lunch with 2 octogenarians.  They were delightful- so full of life and quick to relate stories from the past as well as what is current today.  As our lunch progressed, we talked of things of the LORD.  Both ladies have walked with the LORD for many years and speak from experience about God’s faithfulness.  They are both students of the Word and enjoy studying, discussing  and applying God’s word to their lives.  I was reminded of these verses as we talked.     Job 12:12 “Is not wisdom found among the aged? Does not long life bring understanding?”    Psalm 111:10         ” The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.” and  Proverbs 2:6 “For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” (NIV)

Just getting older does not make us wise.  Scripture tell us that understanding, insight and knowledge comes from God.  The knowledge of God comes from following his precepts- those things he has laid out for us in his word.  Studying God’s word allows us to grow and develop through our entire life.  It allows us to develop knowledge and understanding that only He can give.  That is what made these two ladies so alive and vibrant.  They were still seekers and are not content to “rest” in their age.  They want to know God more fully with each day.  One of these ladies was in a study group with me this year and she was always consistent to memorize the scripture verses.  I was convicted over this as I have used the excuse that ‘the older I get the harder it is to memorize scripture’.  Well, she made me see that it is not age that is keeping me from memorizing it is laziness.

What about you?  Are you ‘resting’ in your age-whatever it is?  Are you seeking to know God more fully with each passing day?  Are you seeking to apply His word to your life and hide his words in your heart?  Are you using excuses like- I can’t do that anymore? or I don’t have time?  Where is God wanting to stretch you and help you to grow?  You are never to old to learn- it is a lifelong proposition. While we still draw breath we need to be open to learning.   It will keep us young at heart, vibrant and hopeful in the LORD just like my octogenarian friends.

Blessings,
Linda

How is your busy life going? Does it cause you to stress over things? I have discovered that stress is rooted in fear as I am not trusting God to accomplish what needs to be done.   There are times when my life seems to be all about  activity, doing accomplishing things and then times of rest and relaxation. I find the times of activity bring me the greatest stress, and I often feel overwhelmed by everything I am facing or need to accomplish. On those days that I know will be very taxing, I pray for God to multiply my time and energy. Another way to say this is Time Management for both activities and energy.  God has always been faithful to do this for me.   At the end of the day I look back and can praise Him for all that He has done through me that day.

How can I live fearlessly and know that God will faithfully energize me and multiply my time?  What assurances do I have from God’s word?  Matthew 7:7  “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”   (NIV)  The first step in being assured is to ask God.  Lay out your day before Him and ask for strength, guidance, energy, multiplied time, good decisions in using the time give, etc.    Once you have laid the problems at Jesus feet, you need to believe He will answer you.  James 1:6 a “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt,”   and  1John 5:14  “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”  (NIV)   God is good and wants me to accomplish things for Him.  When I ask for strength, guidance, energy and time management, those are things He will freely give me so that I can do His work.   The key to this is to remember to pray and give it to God.  We are told in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Be joyful; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

I pray these are words of encouragement to you and will help you ‘de-stress’ your life this week.

Blessings,
Linda

Yesterday was my first official book signing event.  God so graciously brought another author at the same time.  He was a young man with a powerful story about God’s transforming power in his life. Both of us had time to talk with people about God’s might and power and what he has done and is doing in our lives.  I had some deep theological conversations about fear and how God’s word changes lives.  What about you?  When was the last time you had a serious conversation- not argument- about God, who He is, what He is doing in your life or why you believe He is who He says He is?
In our society we are taught to believe that when you are with others- you don’t talk religion or politics, right?  However, my discussions were soul searching, exhilarating and thought provoking yesterday.  I should be ready to talk about the Lord and what He has done for me at anytime.  This is not always easy and Satan wants us to be afraid, intimidated, embarrassed, doubting or tongue tied by our thoughts and worries.  John reminds us in 1John 4:4  ” You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”(NIV)   When we step out- or in this case- speak out, we are living by faith and not fear!  Jesus wants us to be bold for His sake and not be ashamed to proclaim Him to the world.  Paul so aptly put it in Romans 1:16-17 ” For I am not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile (me).  For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.'” (NIV)

I want to live by faith and not be captive to my fears.  I am learning that this is a day by day walk with the Lord towards fearlessly living in Him!

Blessings,

Linda

The young man I met, Eli Contreras, tells his story in his book And then I Heard His Voice.  A short article by Allen Payton was recently published in the Antioch Herald .   You can also see him on You Tube under “Saving Eli”.  It is a powerful interview done by the 700 Club.

April 27, 2014

Just like the beautiful picture of spring flowers that I took recently in Israel, I have decided to begin a new blog that can be viewed by everyone.  I had many people tell me they wanted to follow my blog but since it was published on Google it was difficult to access for those not having a Gmail address.  This new blog address has many advantages and gives me a ‘new’ look.  I hope you will visit me often and talk to me via this link.  I have copied my past posts so that you can see what I’ve been writing since February.  When I was copying the old posts, I realized that I have been learning and growing throughout this process.  It makes me realize that I am truly a work in progress both in writing and in living.

Paul encouraged the Thessalonians when he wrote, “We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love everyone of you has for each other is increasing.”  Thessalonians 1:3 (NIV)   Does that describe you in your walk with the Lord?  I like to think it describes me, but in reality I have to be truthful and say I wish it did.  So often I want to complain and tell the Lord that I like things as they are.  He reminds me that growing more like Him is a process and if you are not moving forward you are going backward.  There is no standing still.  Writing these blogs and stretching myself to learn new technology is painful.  I would rather not have to learn new technology but then again I know there is no standing still.  I can’t get God’s word out to others if I just use what I have- I need to reach out and up.

I was complaining about learning to work with this software and how hard it was.  I said,” I’d rather quilt!”  My daughter so wisely reminded me that I did not start out making complicated quilts either.  It took a lot of time and patience to develop my quilting skills.   That is so true.  I need to be patient with myself  and know it is enough for my Lord if I am moving upward and onward and not being content to stand still.

I pray that I will hear from many of you on this new blog site.  Be sure to like me and pass it on to your friends.  I have several tabs where you can see more about me, upcoming events and even a link to purchase or view my book from my publisher.  That marvel of technology was provided by my daughter’s friend, thank you Mr. R!   My book is also available at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.com.   I linked to my publisher so you would have an opportunity to support a Christian business.  You might find other books you would like by Christian authors on the full sight.

Try to be patient with yourself this week but look for growth.  It will be there when you least expect it!

Blessings.

Linda

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Today is Earth Day. A day created in 1969 to bring us into an awareness of the environment and our need to treat the Earth with care and protect it.  In 2014, there are green buildings, houses, cars, etc. working to take better care of the resources we have on our planet.   The Bible gives us God’s perspective on this planet.   Psalm 24:1   The earth is the LORD’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.     Isaiah 6:3  “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”  (NIV)    Our planet and its resources reflect our glorious, magnificent God.    The Lord spoke to  Adam and Eve in  Genesis 1:28  ” And God blessed them and said to them. Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it (using all its vast resources in the service of God and man); and have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves upon the earth.”  (Amplified)
     Is that how you feel about the earth?  Do you see our vast resources as something to be used in the service of God and man?  I think if we did and remembered that the whole world is filled with His glory we would be more reflective and careful with the earth God has so graciously given to us.  Are you being a good steward of the earth’s resources?  How can you be “greener” in your life and do your part to help honor God with this precious earth?
Have a blessed Earth Day and let me know things you are doing to protect and save the earth’s resources.
Linda

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Seems like forever since I was able to sit down and write!  Done with the jet lag and have my pictures in order so it is time to focus on life in the here and now.  Went to see the movie “God is Not Dead” yesterday and was very impressed.  A young college freshman is challenged to defend God and prove that God is Alive.  It has a powerful message and reminds me that I need to take my belief in Jesus seriously  and be ready to stand up for Him.  What about you?  Is God alive for you?  As we approach Easter and face an empty tomb, do you believe that Jesus has risen and is living and active today?  Can you join Job in saying,” I know my redeemer lives,”  Job 19:25a, or Jesus when speaking to the Pharisees about resurrection said, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”  Matthew 22:32   (NIV).   Jesus also spoke to Martha, the sister of Lazarus, in Matthew 11:25. “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die,” Do you believe this?”   Jesus’ question to Martha is one He asks each one of us.  Do you believe He is who he says he is and that he died and rose again?  Will you respond like Job and claim Him as your redeemer?  I pray that will be your response as you encounter the empty tomb this Easter Sunday.  Praise God, He has Risen!  He has risen indeed!
Have a blessed week.
Linda

One possible location in Jerusalem for Jesus’ tomb.

 

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Shalom!  I have just returned from Israel where I found the internet working but not always conveniently available.  I had to abandon writing my blog from there which gave me more time to concentrate on the trip and soak in the history and visions of the places I had only read about.  I don’t’ know why the richness and the variability of the land surprised me so much. I’ve seen pictures and read books but somehow it did not translate in my mind.  It was a wonderful pilgrimage and I do hope to share portions of my trip and pictures as time progresses.
Today I have a funny story to share.  I wrote a text to my daughter that I was arriving on time and she came to get me.  Later she shared she was a tad worried about me as she had not received any emails since before 26th of March.  I thought that was weird as I did remember sending a few updates while in route to Jerusalem and while I was there.  This morning as we got our day started she came in and told me she got the email I sent on the 26 just this morning- 6 days later!! We both laughed.
Thinking about sending things into “space” with the push of a button, we expect them to be delivered instantly.  How often our expectations do not translate into reality of action.  I am eternally grateful that when I pray and send my prayers off to God,  that I can be assured that He hears me immediately- not after days.  Psalm 34:17  The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them: he delivers them from all their troubles.”    We can be assured that God hears our prayers and knows about our circumstances. Lamentations 3:57 You came near when I called you, and you said, “Do not fear.”  (NIV)  (See Day 43 of Fearless Living)  We are also told in I Thessalonians 5:17 to pray continually.  God wants us to live with the assurance that we can call upon Him 24/7 and He will hear us.  Take heart today and live with confidence that our omnipotent God is listening.
Blessings,
Linda

Here is the picture of the sunrise on the Sea of Galilee that I promised.