"Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised In the city of our God, In His holy mountain. Beautiful in elevation, The joy of all the earth.   Psalm48:1-2a

What if we could see everything from heaven's point of view? We would not just say, God is great, we would probably say something more like, How amazing and abundantly overwhelming is the Lord God Almighty, who far exceeds the very best of our thoughts and dreams! We would be emphatic, and unmoving in our estimation of who is is. There would be no living with us, because we would never stop singing His praises.

We could be like this even now, because when we pray, and His presence envelopes us, we feel heaven all around. If I could just keep my eyes on Jesus, and not be sucked in to the everydayness of life! There is one problem with this! If I can't empathize with others and know how they feel, I could not pray effectively or help them as I would if I had been through the same thing.

 Do I have to feel everything to be empathetic? No, but being human helps me to understand the human experience so much better. Should I cast my burdens upon the Lord? Absolutely, But I need to realize that all of my life experiences help me to be more like Jesus, and to better identify with those around me.

Be still, and know, that God is so readily able to keep us, and that He very well knows how to make us in His image. There is nothing I would rather do, than give Him praise!

" The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect."   Psalm 33:10


This is an interesting verse. When we think about "the nations" we can be overwhelmed with the very thought! Who are the nations that we think about? Most likely those that are in the new the most, so that would be all of them! But "the nations" that concern us the most would be those in the Middle East.

God is not concerned about the plans that they make, or what they say. He doesn't lose sleep over the fact that so and so has nuclear weapons, or that someone else is mad at someone else. His agenda goes on the no consult with one or the other. The truth of the matter is, He can turn them around in a split second, and make them forget what there plans were.

The only plans we need to concern ourselves with are the ones that God made thousands of years ago, before He even sent Jesus to die for us. God knew before He created mankind that we would need to be saved, and that the final plan of justice would occur at the end. He has a bit of unfinished business with the enemy, something to do with locking him up for a very long time?

We are not too far from all of this, and the nations will all fall into God's plan, even if they don't realize who He is. Psalm 33 continues in verse 14 and 15 to say, "From the place of His dwelling He looks On all the inhabitants of the earth; He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works." He is ever present in the affairs of men. I will keep my eyes on Him!

This little snowbird is happily sitting on my kitchen window sill, between the basil and parsley. The little chickadee in my garage was not so happy. She got closed in and wanted out in the worst way. Once we have tasted of the goodness of the Lord we also can't stand being closed in any longer.

               "How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings, { Psalm 36:7}

As we grow in the ways of the Lord, our capacity for more of His truth grows. We long to be in His presence, and so we spent more time at His feet. Our capacity for truth begins to deepen, and we understand things that we never before could. God's word is opened up to us, and heaven seems so near.

Then something happens! Our son is on the way to the hospital because of a car accident, our husband falls in the driveway and breaks his leg. It could be anything really, but it jolts us into fear, and we become captive to it once again. I remember two years ago my daughter fell in the driveway and broke her foot. We were waiting for hours in the ER, and nothing seemed to be a problem, until the x-ray came back, and revealed three bones in her foot that were fractured. The next few days she was in a tremendous amount of pain. The medication could only do so much. I had lost my balance, and did not pray the way I would have for someone's else's child.

So what do we do in these circumstances? We ask for help from others who will pray in faith and believe God with us, and so we can get up and run again. We need to spend less time down, and more time running! The sooner we get up, the better off we will be. If you feel like you got broadsided by something, call a friend who can pray! They will be able to help you get on track again!

When I get to heaven I hope that I can have a field of flowers like this one, only I am sure it would be even better than this! A picture sets a mood, gives an idea and establishes a feeling, however it is never as good as the reality!

"Now I see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we will see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." {1 Corinthians 13:12}

It is good to know that "what is to come" will be thousands of times better than what we already have. Sin has tarnished everything on this earth, making it only a mere reflection of the best. It wasn't always like this. In the beginning, Genesis, things were so much better with our world. No darkness, no fear, no worries about if you could pay the bills. Every need was provided for.  That is the way God wanted things to be, for all of us.

When sin entered, well you probably know the rest. What really matters is that when Jesus was sent by His Father, He destroyed sin and death! He took it out of the hands of the enemy, and fulfilled every dream and heart's cry of mankind. Sometimes it just doesn't seem that way. Because we are still here on earth, with the enemy of our soul. The battle has been won in the heaven lies, and so we fight to keep the perspective of heaven. Jesus said, "It is finished." 

When He comes the second time, oh, it will be as the Victorious King, and the devil will be bound, with all his demons never to accuse us, pick on us, or lie to us again. He will be completely revealed as the snake in the grass that he is.  

Stephanie managed to get Lena, our westie into the basket for a second! She is so spunky and full of life that even illness doesn't stop her. Praise God!  We can learn from our animals.

"My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding; Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding, If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will understand the fear of the Lord, And find the knowledge of God.  {Proverbs 2:1-5}

Sometimes we wonder why did Jesus speak in parables? Why didn't He speak plainly for all people to understand? Ah, His words are jewels that need to sought after by those who have a desire to know what they mean. Jesus wants all people to know plainly what He is saying, but if it is not worth your time to dig them up, maybe you don't want them that badly.

And so we see the same thing in this proverb. Treat my words and commands as treasure, and hide them in your heart, where they will benefit you, and help you in the way that you should go. Does God want us to fear Him, oh yes He does, because He is powerful and if you fear God, you won't fear anything else.  Remember He's the one who spoke the world into existence! He is to be revered.

Once Jesus is our single focus, He can begin to speak to us. We can be so divided and distracted, but our only need is to stay close to Him. Find a place where you can be alone. Sit there, and pour out your heart's cry to Him, He is there! Allow Him to pour His love back into you where those hurts and feelings were before you gave them to Him. Soak up His love and grace, because there is nothing in this world that compares! He designed your heart, and only He can fix it.

This is Bethany beach in Delaware. See the little sandpiper near the edge of the water? All he does all day long is run away from the water as it comes into shore. I guess he never realizes that the water is not going to harm him.

God says that He cares for the birds, so how much more will He care for you, because you are worth more than many birds.We can reason, we can make choices, and choose how we will behave.  Our little friend, he can't do any of that. Most importantly, we can choose to have a relationship with God's son, Jesus. It is why He created us, to have relationship with Him. Sometimes that truth can just blow me away!  Why would He, who is all powerful, all knowing, and has all wisdom want to speak to me? I suppose that is the reason for some people to choose unbelief.

Others choose to not think about any of this, but sooner or later, it catches up with all of us. What comes after this life? Is God good?  What do I have to do to go to heaven? The answer to that is nothing. You can't possibly do anything that would cause a righteous God to allow you into His sinless, Holy place called heaven. The work has already been done for you, and for me.

"It is finished," Jesus cried out before He died on the cross. The work has been completed, so all we have to do is obey, receive, believe and listen. Is He calling you to Himself? I believe He is as He has with so many others. The difference is, He knows you by name. I only know that someone will read this and say to themselves, God is speaking to me! Read His written word, the Bible, and listen for Him to speak again. 

I was just speaking to my sister Allison, and she sounded very upbeat, then she informed me it was Friday, and she had a very hectic week. Hmm, I wonder if any of us can relate? It certainly feels good to have the weekend just around the corner. My husband calls this his Friday collapse. Yes, he will be on the sofa with the fireplace stoked.

" Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever."  {Psalm 136:1}

Just because it is cold outside, doesn't mean that we can't enjoy the warmth that this picture brings. There are multiple reports done on the effectiveness of good thoughts on the mind, and on our bodies. The Bible says, " A cheerful or joyful heart is good medicine { Proverbs 17:22} but a broken spirit dries up the bones." This does not mean that we should be fake or untrue to our feelings. No one likes it when another is faking "happy". It tends to come out more like sarcasm, and that doesn't help anyone, especially the person doing it.

"The joy of the Lord is our strength" [Nehemiah 8:10]

Worship and praise to God gives us real joy that can bring us through the most difficult situations. Knowing that Our King, Redeemer and Lover of our souls is always for us can cause us to relax! Yes really, you can relax and enjoy the life God has given you when you keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. I know a song for each one of these verses, and if you think about it, you may know them as well. Whether you do or not, know that when we are "In Christ" as I shared yesterday, you are safe in a way that far exceeds the definition in Websters.  Blessings and grace to you this weekend!