My theme lately, in my spiritual life, has been seeking to see the counterfeits for what they truly are and choosing the real thing in Christ. In other words, applying God’s truth to the lies I’ve believed. Always an introspective individual, I attempt to keep my accounts with God up to date. However, it seems I never get to rest on my laurels because my God makes sure to take it to the next level, showing me the filth in the corners of my heart that I had been unaware of.

Blind Spots?

As blind spots go, I try not to have any. I even ask people what they are with no response. But, God always has a few to reveal to me when I seek Him. Unfortunately for me, it is usually in the realm of pride. I never realized how often my reactions involved a seed (or a whole loaf) of pride.

Pride? What pride?

When we think of pride, we often think of the arrogant snotty person who thinks he or she is better than others. Or maybe we envision the one who must always be right or is constantly talking about how wonderful, smart, fill-in-the-blank he or she is. But, gulp, did you know that that is only one form of pride? Pride underlies so many things in our lives if we will only take a good look. This includes that ‘reverse pride’ often displayed by those who look down on those who have more than they do.

Who Me?

One example in my own life has to do with the upcoming Christmas holiday. Did you know that I am a bad gifter? Yes, it’s true. I am not one of those who comes up with the ‘perfect’ gift that the other person will gush over and remember forever.

What's Pride Got to do with it?

The thing is that I lose sight of the purpose of Christmas and even gifting. So what if my gift is not the super gift I’d like it to be. It still has plenty of thought and love put in it. Who am I to think that I have to be a good gifter? Who am I to feel sorry for myself because I do not have the gift of being a good gifter?

Anxiety Mode?

When I go into anxiety mode concerning a gift I’ve bought or made for another, I am exhibiting, double gulp, PRIDE! What have I done? I have placed my need to give a good gift over the person I’m getting the gift for in the first place. It’s not about the gift at all! It’s about that other person.

Self-talk 101?

In order to change this, it takes a deep look into my own self-talk. What am I saying to myself that makes me feel this way? How is the self-talk creating a false belief? What is the truth that I can shine into this false belief to kick it’s behind out the door?

The Point?

The real point is that all of us have these hidden false beliefs or ‘blind spots’ in our lives. The only way to change it around is to look at it through the lens of God’s truth. As long as I allow these false beliefs to ferment in the corners of my mind, I will continue to operate in the same mode – the WRONG mode!

I’m Taking Over?

Today I was watching the TV show “Tabitha’s Salon Takeover” on BRAVO. In this particular episode, Tabitha was taking the owner around and showing her all the hidden filth in the salon. She was pointing out a mess in an upper cabinet and noticed a bunch of flies. She pulls out a bag, and it is full of cherries. Not good cherries. Maggot covered, disgusting cherries! This is what happens when we leave hidden false beliefs and sins – we get a stinky, maggot-infested mess in our souls. Sooner or later, others will smell the stench as well.

House Keeping?

This kind of house keeping takes constant effort. Imagine leaving those cherries for a whole year in that cupboard? Yes! Spring and Fall deep cleaning are great, but we should always be looking at our beliefs, shining the light of God’s truth into the hidden places of our life in order to keep from becoming a blind, hypocritical mess, believing the lie and accepting the counterfeit when a little cleansing of the Word can make us something beautiful: The image of Jesus Christ!

Twitter
Tweet

"Better a day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere!

"10 Better a day in Your courts than a thousand anywhere else. I would rather be at the door of the house of my God than to live in the tents of wicked people. 11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord gives grace and glory; He does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity. 12 Happy is the person who trusts in You, Lord of Hosts!" Psalm 84:10,12 (HCSB)

Tweet


Have you ever felt this way? I so identify with David in this Psalm. I would much rather spend time with Him than anything the world could offer. He is my God and I am His child, His sheep, His.

You see, God and I have had a relationship for a very long time. I knew Him before I finally accepted Him as my Savior at the age of 7. I fully believe the intimacy of my relationship with God began in the womb, but became a part of who I am when I was three.

I have no memories of this time, but I know that I took something special away from the experience. At the age of 3, I had pneumonia and developed a fever. My mother, believing the old school notion of covering up the child when the chills come, piled blankets on me until I began to have convulsions.

I was run quickly to the hospital where they stripped me down and threw me on ice, trying to bring down the fever, which had risen to 108º! The fever was brought down to 105º where it stayed for the next three days. I remained in the hospital for 11 days. I can only imagine the fear that must have coursed through my little body.

The health care professionals thought I would be a vegetable. They were wrong. I am a viable, intelligent human being. A couple of issues happened because of the fever, but my brain managed to create new pathways to cope. This, my friends, is definitely a God thing!

So, why do I attribute my special relationship with my God to this time? I firmly believe God was there, holding me through the entire experience. I developed a trust that cannot be explained in the usual manner, and had conversations (prayers) with God from early on. He has always been the one for me through everything.

He walked with me through the hazards and joys of my entire life, always giving me what I needed, when I needed it. Always showing me His hand and bringing me to the things I needed, good or bad, to become the best Angie I could be. I don’t know for sure that this early relationship with God is unusual, but from what I know from others, it is. Some feel called from an early age, but not very many have what I had and have.

God and I have had so much fun building the God stories in my life. I do long for the day when we can be face to face forever without the baggage that life brings. I don’t know what He has for my future while still on earth, but I do know what He has for my forever future. Whatever He has, I trust Him and He has always been faithful, so I don’t need to worry – He’s got my back!

Grandchildren and Other Stuff

Nothing profound or even witty to discuss today, well, we'll see. I've had my two youngest grandchildren with me since last Saturday night, and the rest came in last night. All week, Roland, at 2 1/2 has been struggling with jealousy of his baby sister, Marilyn, almost 4 months.

He had to sleep in aunt Karen's room instead of gma's bed. He had to let HIS gma hold baby sissy. He had to allow her to sit in his high chair. AND he was NOT happy. He adores his 'baby sissy nudder one', but he's not willing to give up his place with his grandma.

So, Roland, welcome to the real world. It doesn't take long for life to come along and start teaching lessons, and with the distorted thinking of children, it's a wonder we don't all turn out more screwed up than we are. Roland is learning that he has to share. I hope he's also learning that no one can take his place in my heart. Grandma's heart will just expand to include Marilyn, along with Roland and Klarissa and Kerstin and any others that come along.

Why is it that we, as adults, are often still learning the same lessons? Max Lucado writes in one of his books how God sees each of us individually. For example if I look at a large group of children, I see a large group of children. A couple of them may stand out for one reason or another and capture my fleeting attention, but in general, I will see the group and not the individuals.

Now take one of my grandchildren and put him or her into the group. Can you guess what happens? Suddenly this is still a group of children, but one of them captures my attention and holds it. No matter what the other children do, no matter how cute or funny they are, my attention always comes back to that one special child that belongs to me and has ties to my heart: my grandchild!

God sees us as that 'my child' in the crowd too. It's hard to imagine how He can do that, but He is bigger than our understanding and capable of much more than we. And with God, He sees each one of us that way - laughing at our antics, thinking how adorable we are, etc. - as each individual stands out from the crowd. God doesn't see us as just another person, he sees us as HIS! Wow! I just hope my grandkids can understand that some day - about me and about God.

Tweet

Marilyn Matters

Last Friday, I attended the going away celebration of my dear friend, Melissa. God had given her 10 years, fighting cancer but living, to spend with her family. But last Sunday, May 23, 2010, He gave her ultimate healing by taking her home to be with Him.

During the open mike portion of the celebration, I had given a brief account of a story and poem I had once shared with Melissa as a segue to sharing how this dear friend had the gift of making others feel that they mattered. Later, the pastor read a testimony Melissa had given in a much earlier service during another bout with the cancer that would eventually take her. In that testimony she had shared the story and how it and others had impacted her.

I thought I would share that story to the best of my ability here today. Shortly after my brother’s death in 2003, my mother, Marilyn Masters, discovered she had a rare and aggressive form of uterine cancer. She had surgery, but later found the cancer had already metastasized. She endured chemo for a while and was eventually sent home to hospice and given 6 months to live.

She lived 11 months, and her story would take up a few pages, but we’ll save that for another post. For this one, I will point out that Mom had a period of time, in her grief for her son and her worry over what her own death would do to my father, she wondered if she really mattered. Did she really make a difference in people’s lives for the Lord? Was God pleased with her? Did she really matter?

During this time, showcasing God’s wonderful sense of humor, Mom kept receiving those address labels places send free with a plea for money. The odd thing was that each one of those labels arrived (from different places) with, not the name Marilyn Masters, but Marilyn Matters! One missed letter sent a message to Mom that she could not ignore: Marilyn Matters! Our God is so good.

The following is a poem I wrote for my mother during this time and later replaced the name to send to Melissa. I wrote this poem so that anyone could substitute their own name and hang on to the knowledge that they, too, matter very much to God.

Marilyn Matters!

My friend, I trust you to our Lord,
For I know: Marilyn Matters!
He made you special in His plan
For He knows: Marilyn Matters!
Each day, each pain, He chose for you
‘Cuz He knows: Marilyn Matters!
So as you rest beneath His wings,
Remember: Marilyn Matters!
As each loving detail falls into place,
Remember: Marilyn Matters!

By Angela Masters Young © 2005

Maybe you wonder about your significance in this world at times, but God and I want you to know that you matter very much. God has a plan for you; He created you for a special purpose, and He walks with you through whatever that plan entails, holding you, loving you, singing over you in joy as He works out His perfect plan for you – because you matter!

You may use this poem (changing the original name), but please give me credit for it if you do. May God richly bless you!

This poem was included in a blog post by Amanda DeCosta. Her post can be viewed here.

Tweet

Numbness arrives: God is still good!

From tears, tears and more tears to numb, the cycle of grief continues. Denial isn't possible for me, but I wish it were. I'd like to believe no one I love would ever die of cancer. I'd like to believe no one I love would have to watch someone he or she loves die of cancer. I'd like to believe a cure will be found in the next 24 hours. Yes, this is what I'd like to believe.

The reality, however, is that cancer strikes everyone sooner or later, either through a personal journey with it or watching a loved one go through it. Maybe it's just me, but it seems that cancer is on the rise. I don't know, but it is certainly in the rise in my relational sphere. Another wonderful lady I met at a support group passed away last month. A beautiful, godly friend passed away a couple days ago from brain cancer. A cousin is fighting the battle as we speak. Add these to the names in the last post, and you still don't have the full picture.

I don't honestly know how I am going to deal with the impending death of one of my dearest friends, a beautiful, godly ray of sunshine in an often dark world, but I know from experience that somehow I will. I may not understand it, but God always comes through, not when I want it, but when I need it.

Thank you, Father, for being the unchanging, merciful God you are! Because you have shown me your love, mercy, peace, forgiveness and more through the trials of life, I have learned that I can lean wholly on you at all times for all things. I thank you for those trials because they have brought me to a deeper understanding of your love and deepened my relationship with you. When I face pain or uncertain days, I take the time to look back and remember all those other times when I didn't know how I would go on, and there you were!

Sometimes you cried with me; sometimes you laughed as you heaped unexpected blessings in humorous ways; sometimes you just walked beside me, hand in hand, lending your silent support; sometimes you picked me up and held me in your comforting arms; always, you were there!

Precious Lord, take my hand
Lead me on, let me stand
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn
Through the storm, through the night
Lead me on to the light
Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home

When my way grows drear
Precious Lord linger near
When my life is almost gone
Hear my cry, hear my call
Hold my hand lest I fall
Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home

When the darkness appears
And the night draws near
And the day is past and gone
At the river I stand
Guide my feet, hold my hand
Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home

Precious Lord, take my hand
Lead me on, let me stand
I'm tired, I'm weak, I'm lone
Through the storm, through the night
Lead me on to the light
Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home

--lyrics by Rev. Thomas A. Dorsey (1899-1993), melody by George Nelson Allen (1812-1877).http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Take_My_Hand,_Precious_Lord

Tweet

Family: On Pride and Showing Up

My father has been in ill health his entire life. He has a genetic form of pancreatitis, and I have watched him suffer, in and out of hospitals, many, many times. Because of his pancreatitis, he eventually developed diabetes as well. He recently had another accident because of a sugar drop, and life has changed for all.

I spent a year going back and forth from my home to my Mother's when she had cancer, spending the majority of my time with her. I helped her physically when needed, and we leaned on each other emotionally and spiritually until her passing.

With dad, it is more difficult. He is harder to live with, and he will be the first to admit that. Trying to regulate his sugar and keep him from hurting himself further keeps us all hopping.

My point in telling you this? Dad sat with his family Saturday as I was giving instructions to my sister to take over his care for a while, and he told us he should not, did not want to, be a burden to us. What he doesn't understand is that God created us to need others and to need him. We take care of him because we love him, not because we have to.

Someone once told me that family "shows up". When we have a need, our family is there for us. They don't leave us to their own devices just because they have another life. They adjust. They sacrifice. They come through if at all possible.

Sometimes that "family" is a friend with no blood ties or a church member (a different kind of family) but those who 'show up' are family. The following are some things we need to know about needing others.

--When we don't allow others to help us, we steal their blessing! In my case, God will honor me for honoring my father and taking care of him as he ages. I don't do it for that reason, but I'm so glad I get to do it. How will I ever have this honor if I am not allowed to sacrifice?

--When we don't allow others to help us, we are full of pride. When someone feels that others may have to have help, but not him or her, he or she is really saying, "I am special. I will never be old, need help. I will always be able to take care of myself, and I don't need help." Pride, plain and simple, keeps us from accepting reality and allowing the inevitable to come with dignity and grace.

--When we don't allow others to help us, we probably stubbornly resist God's help as well. God wants us to depend on Him, completely and wholely, and often we try to make it on our own, only calling on Him for help when we become desperate. God wants us to walk with Him every day and depend on Him for everything - even those things we can handle on our own.

When we don't watch our strengths, we open a door for the devil. We tend to turn to God for help in our infirmities, but think we're good in our strengths. This makes our strengths the prime target. Realizing we cannot go it alone in anything we do is a big step in our walk of faith.

All of that to say that we need to depend on others in the same way we depend on God. Others can't "show up", even family, if we don't allow it. God,the sin of pride is so invasive in all we do. Help us to step aside and accept help when we need it, allowing others the self-esteem and blessing that comes from showing up. In learning to submit, teach us to submit to you as well. You: above all, in all, for all.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:
If one falls down, his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves...
Ecclesiastes (paraphrase)

Tweet

Pride

Create in me a clean heart....

Why is it that whatever I teach in my Sunday School class is stepped up in my own personal life? That was a rhetorical question; I already know the answer. God has been using these lessons as well as other things in my life to point out some of my issues where I still allow the old self to pop up.

I think one reason I keep returning to the sin of pride is that it underlies so many of the sins we commit as human beings. Anger - how dare that person hurt me....; Greed - I deserve those things....; Gossip - I know something you don't know....; Backbiting/slander - I deserve to get even/hurt that person.... Whenever we have a reoccuring sin, it almost always boils down to pride or the sin of rebellion in the end. After all, that's what pride is: rebellion.

When I lose my temper, I am rebelling against perceived injustice; etc. I, like everyone else I know, am not real fond of looking at the sin in my life. In my rebellion, I want to see myself as perfect or at least "not as bad" as the other guy. But, in God's eyes, sin is sin is sin, and even if I perceive myself as "better than" others in some way, it is an illusion and must, inevitably, come crashing down if I am shining the light of God's Word upon my heart. For many of us, the idea that we have pride or the "at least I'm better than that person" syndrome is far from our conscious mind unless and until God points it out to us.

I read recently that a survey of convicts in prison showed that not one of them really believes he or she is a "bad" person. No matter what crime was committed, they justify their actions and still consider themselves to be good people who maybe did something wrong. I'm guessing this even applies to murderers! All humans have this tendency to justify their own actions, beliefs, etc. while condemning others for theirs. We magnify the sins of others and minimize our own sin. When we ask God to cleanse our hearts and show us the wickedness therein, we can often become overwhelmed by what He shows us.

I have learned never to rest on my laurels and never to think I've arrived and vanquished sin from my life. Every time I do, God bursts my bubble and shows me how a sin is not quite dealt with or a new way it pops up in my life. This is one reason I love my God and my Savior so much! He saw the wickedness of my heart before I was born, and provided a way for me to be forgiven and have renewed fellowship with Him.

But God commendeth His love toward me, in that, while I was yet a sinner, Christ died for me!!! (Personalized Romans 5:8KJV) No, taking an honest look at the sin in my life is not a fun thing to do, but I'm so glad I can deal with it by placing it under the blood of Jesus Christ - FORGIVEN!!!!!!!

"Amazing love, how can it be?
That you, my King, should die for me?
Amazing love, I know it's true;
It is my joy to honor You, in all I do!"

Dangerous Minds

The show, "Dangerous Minds", is one of my favorites. One of the themes of the show is that the unsub starts out with small stuff and escalates until he or she is caught, becoming even more and more vile in what he or she does.

Today I was thinking about this, and realized that's how all sin is. We all have 'dangerous minds'! Our sin starts out small, a candy bar stolen from a store, a small bit of gossip told to a friend, or a dislike of another. It tastes sweet in the beginning, but soon, we become immune to the caliber of our sin and have to escalate it. Soon we find ourselves delving deeper and deeper into our sin, unable to stop.

One current example is Tiger Woods. I'm sure he never intended to have so many affairs when he met the love of his life and settled down to raise a family, but the pattern had already begun, and he couldn't stop himself until he was caught.

Only time will tell if Tiger will change his ways, but it will not be an easy road. His sin has left a wide swath of devastation behind him. Maybe you didn't get caught having multiple affairs, but your sin, whatever it is, is just as devastating. It harms you, true, but it also harms all those in your path. Sin is destructive, and it always escalates if left unchecked.

The battle with sin doesn't begin with the sin; it begins in the mind with a thought. Now thinking something is not a sin, but dwelling on it is. Our potential for action begins in our thought life and escalates until it becomes action. That's one reason God tells us that hatred is the same as murder and lust is the same as adultery. It is by controlling our thoughts that we control our actions.

This is why the battle for the mind is so important. In the flesh, we have dangerous minds that tend to sin and death. When we accept Christ as our Savior, we gain a new mind: the mind of Christ. Unfortunately, even though the dangerous mind is dead, it still fights with us as we seek to gain the mind of Christ. Paul puts it well when he says he does the things he doesn't want to do and doesn't do the things he wants to do. If Paul struggled, who are we to think we will not?

One way we put to death the dangerous mind and attain the glorious mind is to keep our focus on Christ and the things above. In Colossians 3:2, God tells us to "Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth." In other words, don't allow things into your mind that will feed the dangerous mind.

We put the dangerous mind to death in our lives by starving it to death. Which ever mind we feed, whether our dangerous mind or our glorious mind, will be the one to grow. Which one are you feeding? What are some things in your life that "feed" your dangerous mind?

In Colossians 3:12-17, it says "So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all those things, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful." These are the things that feed the mind of Christ in us and allow us to put the dangerous mind to death.

PUT ON: A heart of compassion,
A heart of kindness,
A heart of humility,
A heart of gentleness,
A heart of patience.

Bear with one another; forgive one another; and above all:

PUT ON: LOVE, unity, thankfulness and

let the peace of Christ RULE in your hearts.

There is no room for two minds; one will destroy the other, the cannot coexist. Letting God's peace and love grow in you puts to death the dangerous mind and grows the Christ mind. Every time you choose compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, love, forgiveness, love, unity and thankfulness, you feed the glorious mind.

Which mind will you feed today?

I'm dreaming of a white ...

As I sit in front of my computer, looking out at the white wonderland of my back yard,I have to wonder at how God made something so incredibly beautiful that also has such a dark side. As long as I'm looking out the window, I can appreciate the beauty. If I have to go out in it, my attitude changes just a bit as I struggle with the downside of snow.

This reminded me of several things that have two sides to them. First, let's look at sin. As long as we're sitting and looking from our comfort zone, some sins look very attractive to us. It calls to us to come and experience the wonder.

So, we go out into the sin. At first, we're having fun making sin-angels and playing in it, but soon the chill and danger begin to creep in. We realize our defenses (coats, boots, etc.) are not enough and the reality of the cold and downside of sin begins to creep in to our very bones!

Just as a person who stays out in the snow and cold for two long with not enough protection will suffer frostbite or even death, sin has a deadly side that is often hidden by the "beauty" of its inticements.

From an evangelistic standpoint, if you saw someone freezing in the snow, wouldn't you want to offer them a warm place to go? When we see people suffering in the throws of sin, God wants us to offer them a refuge in Him. Of course, the snow analogy doesn't compare that well with the flames of hell in some senses, but death is death, and we need to be about the business of rescuing others from certain death.

In that light, if you go out to offer help to someone trapped and freezing in the snow, you wouldn't go out with no coat, no boots, no way of helping that person out of their trouble. To do so would be extreme foolishness, for soon both of you would need rescued!

A close walk with Jesus and making no provision for the flesh help keep us safe from falling ourselves into sin. Putting on the armor (coat, gloves, etc.), keeping close to the fire (a relationship with Jesus), and taking the tools we need to help (Bible, fellowship, prayer, etc.)help us stay safe as we seek to rescue those lost in the bitter cold of sin.

A last analogy: Do you remember the soup commercial where the child comes in as a snow man and melts into the child as the soup warms him? We take the "soup" of God's love and provision to sinners trapped in the "snow man cold" of sin.


www.clipartguide.com

Thank you Father for a warm, safe haven in You, even as the blizzard of sin swirls around us!

The beam and the sawdust

One of the hardest people to help in this world are those who have a huge beam sticking out of their own eye, to which the are totally blind, as they tell those with the sawdust in their eye how they can get better if they would only follow beam girl's advice. How in the world do you approach someone who sees others' problems so clearly and yet remains blind to his or her own glaring faults? Agghh!

As a person who often judges herself much harder than anyone else would, this phenomenon causes my brain to hurt. All of us have blind spots, after all, we're human beings. We do not, however, all have blind spots that cover our entire view except for the microscopic hole we look out of to tell others how they can fix their life.

By now, you may have guessed I know someone like this, and I'm frustrated. You would be absolutely right! As I try different things and try not to let my own anger get in the way, I just wind up shaking my head. Is there hope for someone like this? Of course there is. With God, there's always hope, but this is a tough case.

The first thing to do in dealing with this person is to recognize that I am not in control. Fixing the person is God's job, not mine. God may use me to plant seeds or water, but the crop is in His hands.

The second thing to do is pray, pray, pray and pray some more. This person needs God's help to get out of a life-long pattern learned in childhood and not forsaken in adulthood. Prayer is not just for the other person, either. It is very difficult to stay angry at someone you pray for. Prayer works on the prayer's attitude, giving the prayer patience and insight as they surrender all to the Lord.

A third thing to do is love. Loving someone who often drives off everyone by pointing out how they could change if they would "just...", is not the easiest job in the world, but it's doable if you stay in a good relationship with the Father. God never said we have to like everything, but He does command us to love. This person probably needs love more than many because they drive off everyone who tries to love them.

Remembering not to burn relationship bridges through anger, pride or hurt is difficult. We don't like it when people talk about our family or constantly deflect all fault to others, but the only way to make the world a better place is to keep after this person through surrender, prayer and love, planting seeds of hope that can sprout up and remake the person. God can whittle down that beam into sawdust if we ask. Maybe that's why Jesus came as a carpenter, so He could help all of us remove those beams or specks from our own eyes.

Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be meeasured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? . . . . first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." Matthew 7:1-5 (KJV)

Father, open my eyes to the blind spots in my own life. I surrender them to you to remove that I may see clearly to do the work you have called me to do. Then give me wisdom to help my brother with his/her vision problems. You know the needs much better than I do, and you know the things that have brought this person to this point. You also know the needs this behavior masks. Be the need-meeter of this person and give me wisdom in knowing how to deal with the issues. Also give me insight into the hurts underneath this person is trying to meet in ways that don't satisfy. Bring your child to you. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Clip art from : http://www.gospelgifs.com/clips/clips5/art1197.htm

The finishing touches

I came to post something else, and started reading through a previous post of many moons ago. The following is a paragraph (or 2) from that post:

"I'm almost finished with my purse! My last purse broke and I was frustrated trying to find one I like. I thought, "You know what, I can just make one!" That was like the "Duh!" moment. So I got some black yarn and some denim grey yarn, decided how I was going to do it and got busy. I need a BIG purse. Anyway, I just put the finishing stitches in the liner, so sewing it in is the finishing touch.

I love completing a project. I love every part along the way, but there's something about putting that last touch on and knowing you made that. Well, time to get ready for the gkids visit. "

As I read, it hit me that God must have felt something like that as He finished each of His creations. He had a plan in mind, executed it, and put the finishing touches on it. Then He stood back and admired it, saying, "This is good!"

When God created each of us, He did the same thing! He designed me; He created me; He put the final touches on His "project"; then He stood back and admired what He had done. He looked at me, Angela, and said, "This is good!" When I consider that I am His workmanship, and I consider it in a way that makes it personal, I must stand in awe of the God of the Universe who cared enough for me to not only send His Son to die for my sins, the mess I made of His workmanship, but created me as a unique individual with love and care and precision.

Whatever life throws at me, I can know God created me knowing I would face this challenge. Whatever person comes into my life, I can know God created something in me that this person needs. I can know that each person I meet is also God's workmanship and also uniquely suited to meet some need in me. I can hardly wrap my mind around that.

We aren't ready-made, cookie-cutter, off-the-shelf Barbie dolls; we are God's unique, one-of-a-kind, specially made for a unique purpose, masterpieces! If the God of the Universe created you with such special care, you can bet that He loves you with a unique, powerful love that can only come from this kind of creating.

I may come back to this theme at a later date, but for now, it is enough that you and I can know we are God's workmanship, created for a relationship with Him. I stand amazed!!