Long version or short….

Hello eGirls!!!!  I hope you all had a superific Easter weekend!  What a joy it is to intentionally remember and celebrate the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ!!!!

Now, I have a crazy story to tell you, but I need to know if you want the long or short version?  Think carefully and decide wisely!  Comment and let me know!

Love ya!

Kelly Minter – The Living Room Series….

Hello eGirls!!!!!  I am so excited about all of our upcoming opportunities for women’s Bible Study and fellowship!  This summer we are planning on doing a new series by Kelly Minter, called The Living Room Series.  http://kellyminter.com/the-living-room/about-the-living-room-series/  Take a look! 

If you might be interested in hosting a group, please let me know!  We will have a planning session soon.

Love ya!

Follow Him…One Step At A Time

   That is all He requires of you…  I was able to have a little get away this weekend to the beach.  I LOVE the beach!  It is by far my favorite place to get away too…YES, even more than Disney World!  Maybe because it is easier for me to ge to the beach and I can go more often.  But I just love to sit on the beach, with a good book preferably, and just BE.  I don’t ahve to worry, I don’t even have to think, just be still and quiet, with no cares at all.

I have always loved the poem, “One Set of Footprints In the Sand’.  And I remember when I was a little girl, Christy lane singing it as song too.  And infact, that is the only way to get through this space/time/world…by resting our footsteps right into His and following Him.

We see huge mountains looming, and we start wondering how we are going to scale those heights.  Meanwhile, because we’re not looking where we are going, we stumble on the easy path where God is leading us now.  As He helps us get back on our feet, we tell Him how worried we are about the cliffs up above.  But we don’t know what will happen today, much less tomorrow.  Our path may take an abrupt turn, leading us away from those mountains.  There may be an easier way up the mountains than is visible from this distance.  If He does lead you up the cliffs, He will equip you thoroughly for that strenuous climb.  “I will even give My angels charge over you, to preserve you in all your ways“.

Keep your mind on the present journey, enjoying His Presence.  Walk by faith, not by sight, trusting Him to open the way before you.

For He will give His angels charge over you to accompany and defend and preserve you in all of your ways (of obedience and service).  They shall bear you up on their hands, lest you dash your foot against a stone.   PSALM 91:11-12

For we walk by faith, not by sight.    2 CORINTHIANS 5:7 

The Daffodils….

My poor Sunday School class gets unsolicited insight into KathyLand….and sometimes they just shake their heads and laugh!  A couple of Sundays ago, I shared a special incident that happened to me.  It was on one of those really rainy days and I was walking from my parking lot to my building.  In front of my building are hundreds of daffodils, and although the rain was relentless, they held their heads high….and they smiled at me (yes, Mary, they really smiled)!!!  The picture below is courtesy of my dear friend, Denise Hampton.

 

Today as I was walking to work, I was enjoying the beauty of those flowers again.  And I thanked God for them and all the beautiful flowers and trees that wake up and provide a display of beauty for us to enjoy every spring.  As I was praying, I remembered one of Paul’s writings to the Romans:

Romans 1:20
For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

I pray that as you enjoy the beauty of God’s creation, you will be committed to share the Gospel and Good News of Jesus Christ with those people He has put into your life.  I also pray that if you, like me at times, become discouraged over not being able to share the Gospel with everyone….remember that God reveals Himself to everyone through His creation….”so that people are without excuse.”

Have a Happy Friday!

Love ya eGirls

Let His Love Enfold You…in the radience of His Glory

In our Bible Study last night Beth talked alot about the Glory of the Lord.  How I want to live in a way that I am in His Presence and am dwelling with Him everyday…and in doing so am basking in His Glory!  And I just pray that you will take a few moments today to sit still in the Light of His Presence, and recieve His Peace.  Quite moments with Our Lord transend time, accomplishing more than you can imagine.  Bring Him the sacrifice of your time, and watch to see how abundantly He blesses you and your loved ones.

Through the intimacy of our relationship with God, we are being transformed from inside out.  As we keep our focus on Him, He forms us into the one He desires us to be.  Our part is to yeild to His creative work in us, neither resisting it nor trying to speed it up.  Enjoy the tempo of a God-breathed life by letting Him set the pace.  Hold His hand in childlike trust, and the way before you will open up step by step.

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.   2 Corinthians 3:1

And Oh just listen to the words of this passage from Psalm.  We ARE always with Him, and one day, HE will lead us into HIS GLORY!

Yet I am always with you;
                  you hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel,
                 and afterward you will take me into glory.
                                                                                                        Psalm 73:23-24

Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord

Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the LORD is.  Jeremiah 17:7

Ever since I’ve been teaching a women’s Sunday School class, a couple of “themes” have been prevelant as I’ve studied and prepared.  One of them being “obey.”  And we’ll talk about that one another day.  The other theme being related to “hope”, which I want to talk about today.

Many Sunday mornings, our small group of women would share their hearts and hurts.  Then, as His children,  we would go to the Father and lift our conerns and praises to Him.   We know that being a child of God does not preclude us from the trials and heartaches of living in a fallen world.  We experience sickness; death; financial struggles; parenting challenges; being let down by those we love and trust; unfairness; divorce;  heart break….just to name a few.  Oftentimes after our prayers, I would point to a corner of the room (a place we had pretended was Satan’s tool shed) and say, “what tool does the enemy use on believers????”  and then I would say, “the tool of discouragement.”  I hate feeling discouraged.  It is a dark and sad place to be. So how do we deal with discouragement?  Replace it with hope!  Everyone walking this earth today wants and needs hope.

This morning, the scripture Jeremiah 17:7 was in my daily devotion.  And it put together two words that just jumped out at me…..TRUST….and……HOPE.   When we trust the Lord, our hope is renewed, it is refreshed, it is sweet.  A couple of other scriptures pair them up also..

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Romans 15:13

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  1 Corinthians 13:6-7 

I love hope!  I searched for the word “hope” on Biblegateway.com and it returned 180 results….which means there are 180 scripture references to hope!

Today, be encouraged by the hope we have in Christ Jesus!  AMEN!!

Love ya!

Kathy

“Taste and See That I Am Good”

Just had an awesome opportunity to fellowship and witness with a woman who has a family member in the middle of the Japan Earthquake/Tsunami disaster.  She is doing all she can to get some help for him and his family.  He is a Missionary, and any thing that is sent to him, he is also using to minister to and share with those around him as well.  While speaking with her, I was just touched by the fact that God had lead her into my office for help from the business with this issue, but that through our conversation there were so many other opportunities for me to encourage and minister to her in her own life as well.  She is a single mom, who recently lost her job (actually the day the tragedy in Japan happened), and she has also just came to Christ and regularly attending church in this past year.  We visited and talked about a number of things, and her excitement over Our Lord and what is happening in her life, even with the things that are going on, was  just flowing over to me as she talked.
When she left, I just thought…WOW, that was just a little TASTE of How Good Our God IS! 
You know the more intimately you experience Him, the more convinced you become of His goodness.  He is the Living One who sees us and longs to participate in our lives.  He is training us to find Him in each moment and to be a channel of His loving Presence.  Sometimes His blessing come to us in mysterious ways: through pain and trouble.  At such times we can know His goodness only through our trust in Him.  Understanding will fail us, but TRUST will keep us close to Him.  It’s the difference in knowing there is a God and BELIEVING IN GOD.
Thank Him for the gift of His Peace, a gift of such immense proportions that you cannot fathom its depth or breadth.  When Jesus appeared to His disciples after the resurrection, it was Peace that He communicated first of all.  He knew this was their deepest need: to calm their fears and clear their minds.  He also speaks Peace to us, for He knows our anxious thoughts.  Listen to Him!  Tune out other voices, so that you can hear Him more clearly.  He designed you to dwell in Peace all day, every day.
Draw near to Him, recieve His Peace.
“Taste and See that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.’  Psalm 34:8
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful.”  Colossians 3:15
For Reflection Read:  Genesis 16:13-14, John 20:19

God’s Word to Women

[Joshua read] before all the assembly of Isreal…with the women…among them.  JOSHUA 8:35

At last God’s people entered the Promised Land.  That red-letter day was so slow in arriving!  Consider their history.

• the hundreds of years of bondage in Egypt
• the 10 plagues sent against the egyptians
• the pursuit by Pharaoh’s forces as Isreal fled
• the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea
• the destruction of Pharaoh’s army
• the 40 years of wilderness wanderings

Even when the Jewish people finally entered Canaan, they faced wars, death, and destruction.  So Joshua built an altar for worship and read God’s law to the Isrealites, including the women and children.  What specific guidance did the Word of the Lord give for women?

Guidance for Family – God’s Word includes specifics for training children in the way of the Lord (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).

Guidance for the Heart – The Bible contains instructions for growing a heart that pleases God (Psalm 139:23-24).

Guidance for Eternal Life – There’s only one way to heaven, and that’s by faith in God.  Every page of Scripture points to the reality of God.

Guidance for Life on Earth – Job mourned, “Man is born to trouble” (Job 5:7).  Trouble is a fact of life, but God’s Word contains direction, hope, and comfort.

Before you go into the world today, be sure to stop, worship, and read God’s Word for guidance.

Loving God….

This morning I was doing my daily devotional using the Open Windows booklet.  A portion of the scripture was:

 ¹ Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. ² This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. ³ In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,   1 John 5: 1-3, my emphasis.

In AJ’s sermon, he referenced Luke 10 where an expert of the law asked Jesus how he could have eternal life.  And Christ responded by asking this person what the law said and how did he read it.  The expert quoted scripture from Deuteronomy 6:5.

⁵ Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

Both of these scripture references got me to thinking about loving God.  Reading John’s words “in fact, this is love for God:  to keep His commands,”  I had to ask myself, “what ARE His commands?”   I definitely don’t want to be Phariseeical (spell check can’t find this word, but you know what I’m saying).  I mean, sure they knew the Law, but had no heart.  So we must know God’s commands in both the Old Testament and the New Testament and see that they actually say the same thing!!!!

Vodi Baucom said it so clearly to me (actually he was talking to everyone, not just me) when he was visiting our church.  He was talking about the greatest command, and referenced the same scripture that AJ used Sunday, Luke 10.  Let’s revisit that scripture:

  ²⁵ On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

   ²⁶ “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

 ²⁷ He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^“

   ²⁸ “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

Some would say that takes presidence over the Ten Commandments given to Moses.  But, NO, my sister!  As Vodi pointed out, this confirms the Ten Commandments!  Let’s look at Exodus 20, and compare to what Jesus said.  The first five commandments line up with the first part of the “greatest commandment”.   The last five commandments line up with the second part of the “greatest commandment.”

Greatest Commandment Part 1 – Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind…

Exodus 20

 ³ “You shall have no other gods before me.

 ⁴ “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁵ You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

 ⁷ “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

 ⁸ “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. ⁹ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁰ but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

 ¹² “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

Greatest Commandment Part 2 …love your neighbor as yourself

¹³ “You shall not murder.

 ¹⁴ “You shall not commit adultery.

 ¹⁵ “You shall not steal.

 ¹⁶ “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

 ¹⁷ “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

Does this make sense to you, or am I just rambling?

So to love the Lord God, we must keep His commands, and to keep His commands, we must know them! 

It is my prayer for you that you will have an unrelenting desire to know His Word, through which you will know His commands, and by keeping them you are loving Him!  Hallelujah!!!!

Personal Relationship with Christ…..

As good ole Southern Baptists, we love to throw around the phrase “personal relationship with Christ.”  This is something we teach our children and friends and anyone who’ll hear.  But what does that really mean?  How can you be personal with someone you cannot see visibly with the eye, or hear audibly with the ear.  But, as I’ve grown older (and hopefully wiser), I absolutely CRAVE a personal relationship with Him.  Oh, I accepted Him as my Savior when I was eight years old.  And I have loved Him dearly ever since then.  But I’ve gone through seasons in my Christian walk that have changed how I relate to Him.

Now I have to tell you that I had a dream about you gals last night whilst staying in a hotel in Raleigh (I was there to make sure Dusty’s surgery went off without a hitch, which it did!).  And we were gathered in someone’s home…and we were talking about how to make our relationships with Jesus more personal.  We began to talk about how we would grow a relationship with a person we could see and talk to.  Things like going to lunch, seeing a movie, or just hanging out.  Looking at photo albums and talking about where you grew up and what you liked to do…who your parents were and where you went to high school.   Maybe we would take up the same hobby as the person we were trying to grow closer to.  As we talked, we realized that developing personal relationships meant spending time together!  And we realized that for now, until Jesus gathers us to Him, we spend time with Him and getting to know Him by studying about Him in the Word!  And by talking to Him on a regular basis.  We were all very excited!  And then I woke up!

Lately it seems like anything and everything that can happen to keep me from spending time with my Savior will happen!  I am weak….and easily distracted (just ask Karen!).  My mind goes a million different ways!  I don’t know if anyone else suffers from this disease, but if you do and you’ve found a way to settle and focus, please share it!

Also, share some of your favorite ways to get closer to Christ.    I will tell you one thing that ALWAYS makes me feel closer is singing old hymns, usually at the top of my lungs, in my car!   My Jesus I Love Thee, Trust and Obey, The Old Rugged Cross……

Love ya!