Lord Make us Courageous

It is almost Christmas. It is so hard to believe. Soon we will also be ringing in a brand new year. There is much hope across America as well as dread for the things to come. The beauty of faith is that we don’t have to fear tomorrow. We give it to God and we trust Him with it. Jesus tells us many times not to worry. It is part of our submission to Him to believe Him in this and to trust Him. It is difficult for all of us. The flesh wants to reign but we must decide in the end to submit and trust Christ. Consider all He did for each of us in giving His life to cover our sins.

This will be my last post for 2024. There is much to celebrate both personally and on the world stage. There is much to continue to trust Christ in. What an opportunity to wait and see. Blessings to all of you and I will begin posting again on the 6th of January.

In many ways I feel like I have traveled this road before. The road of fear. The road of uncertainty. The road of imagining catastrophe. This week I learned that I have very advanced osteoporosis. In a lot of ways it is frightening because bones are fragile and brittle and can break easier. Last November I fractured a rib just pulling a mattress under a bed. This November I passed out and fractured another rib. I finally decided to do a Dexa Scan and the results showed the disease much more advanced than I ever imagined.

Ten years ago I faced the same kind of fear, uncertainity and did the entire catastrophizing. That time it revolved around a stage IV cancer diagnosis. God in His mercy delivered me from that and extended my days. He blessed me beyond measure. Now with my bones. One thing is for sure. We will not experience true rest until we are in His presence praising and gloryifying Him. In the meantime, we do both of the above here and battle the flesh in trusting God.

I have two wonderful daughters in law. I find myself very blessed in this. Like many of you I know of several older ladies who do not have that kind of relationship. In some cases the rif between both mother and daughter in law causes a rif also with the son caught in the middle. How blessed am I that I do not have that kind of angst in my life. Tomorrow my older son’s wife Betty has a birthday. I was thinking this morning how much she does for me and how grateful I am for that. She is a person pleaser by nature but she also has a desire to serve. Happy birthday Betty!

These kinds of relationships do not happen by chance. They are a gift from God in my humble opinion. They require work on everyones part. Work that is driven by a desire to please God and to be grateful. God is good. He is holy. His mercies are new every morning. There literally is none like Him in all the earth. Trust Him. Walk with Him. Choose Him.

One of the things my daughter and I started a few years back, was to watch Christmas movies between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I have several of the old classics. It is harder than you might think to accomplish this. She works fulltime as a teacher and is very active outside of the classroom hours. I also keep a pretty busy schedule in retirement and I go to bed quite early. It is a challenge but one that both of us make a real effort to continue to do, this year being no exception.

It is nice to have traditions that do not go against God’s Word. It is nice to have that experience so that each of us has a memory to last a lifetime. Many things bring my son Zach’s memory to my mind on a regular basis. Most of these memories are sweet and create a lovely feeling within my soul. I am grateful to God for the gift of memory. I am more grateful for what Jesus did for me that I can spend eternity with Him. Seek Him in all things. Glorify Him in all things. Keep those traditions close at heart as well for the sweetness of the memory.

It is sad to me to see how much my life has become dependent upon technology. This is because I grew up without it. How many places did I travel that I carried no cell phone? A land line was our only link to the outside world. Yesterday the news reported that AT&T was shutting down land line services for half the country by 2029. It seems like everything is going the way of the Kodak camera and yet many of us have not mastered a lot of the technology that is currently being offered.

One thing that never changes is God. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. His love has not changed. What He did on the cross has not changed. His laws have also not changed. He has remained consistent. He is the One you can always count on when all else fails. If you don’t know Him, I encourage you to read His word. Read what He is communicating to you. Trust in Him in all things. Love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. Be courageous and bold for the Lord!

I think one of the greatest blessings as far as earthly things go that I have enjoyed in this life has been my grandchildren. Now I love and loved my four children. They have certainly been a blessing to me in every way imagineable. My husband as well. However there is something special about grandchildren. I think part of it is I don’t have to raise them. I can enjoy the best parts of them and they also get to see and enjoy the best parts of me!

Yesterday my oldest granddaughter sang a short solo in our church. It was so sweet. It is the Christmas season and part of that is hearing the young ones sing in church services. She is almost 11 and is changing in so many ways right before my eyes. What a wonderful gift God has bestowed on each of us that allows us to see my grandchildren. There was a time I did not think I would know any of my grandchildren except for this lone one. He has been so merciful to me and allowed me to meet and enjoy 6 more after her. He is merciful and kind and His mercies are new every morning. Praise to Him and to Him all the glory!

I love the early morning. I do mean early. I often rise at 2:00 a.m. in the winter time and go to bed around 7:00 pm. Yes I do take a nap if it works out around 1:00 pm. It is so quiet in the morning. I read my scripture. I have my prayer time. I do my exercise routine and listen to podcast I enjoy. I do quite a bit of cooking as well.

It is often the little things that mean so much to each of us. Our routines become a part of who we are. It is so very important to make God’s Word apart of your routine. Read what He is saying to you. Reflect on what He is saying to you. Apply it to your life where you need to. Establish the habit and it will come naturally to you. It will become a part of you. There is no better way to get to know God then to read His Word.

It is so easy to get up in this time of year. Our minds go to the foods we need to prepare, the parties we are expected to attend, cleaning we must do if we are hosting one of those parties and of course all of the present buying.

Scripture reminds us multiple times of the importance to thank God for what we have and to praise His name. He is the creator. He is the great I Am. There is none like Him in all of the earth. All of these things are true. If we truly believe this, praising His name should be easy. Consider all He has done as you rise each day, as you face the morning and all the challenges it may bring. Praise Him in sickness. Praise Him in good health. Praise Him in mourning. Praise Him in joy. Praise Him in all things. This life is a vapor. It is the next life where true living actually begins.

is upon us! Praying that each of you had a very blessed Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful time at my sister’s house. It is always a blessing to be with family.

As you prepare for another Christmas season, it is important to remember those who are not enjoying the blessings of this life as much. I am speaking of those specifically battling cancer. It feels like cancer cases are on the rise. Our ministry at our local church has increased with the number of boxes going out to people. A gentleman I met recently has a wife newly diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. I wrote of her recently. This past week he surrendered his life to Christ! That is such a allelujah moment. To trust at such a critical time is beyong words to express. Rejoice in the season but also keep in mind those hurting and when that opportunity comes along to share, seize the moment. Lord make each of us courageous to share Christ with as many as possible.

Our lesson this past Sunday in bible study was appropriately on gratefulness. Most of us understand the concept. Intuitively we know that we should be grateful for all that we have. Even those of a secular mind have been raised to be grateful for the food on your plate. How many of us were told of the starving children in Africa? It is hard sometimes to express gratitude in the middle of our pain.

Recently we were told of a middle aged woman diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. As we visited with her husband, we could see the struggle in him to express gratitude because of the pain. I recently wrote of passing out and cracking a rib. Yesterday I managed to re injure it and I feel like I am back to square one on recovery. These are examples of actual mental and physical pain that can impede our natural inclination to be grateful. However scripture tells us to be grateful in all circumstances. We are also warned that there will be pain in this world. That relief does not come until our time here is done and only if we trust Jesus is who He says He is and humbly submit ourselves to His authority. The greatest point of thankfulness is the knowledge and saving grace of Christ. It is a common cliche but it is also a very true statement. If you don’t know Christ, get to know Him. Read His word. He’s speaking to you through it. Read. Grow. Trust. Always be grateful for all He has done that we may spend eternity with Him.