A Heavenly Letter

Oh my children.

You who came from me.

You who grew within me.

You are wonderful each and every one of you.

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You are so different from each other

And that is good.

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Did the sun and moon and stars quibble at their differences?

Of course not.

What a ridiculous thought.

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Did they want to be like the other?

Yet, another NO.

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They each had qualities for their unique purposes.

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Oh my children.

You do too.

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You each have a uniquely crafted purpose from the God of the Universe.

It is as though you received a letter in the mail with a golden seal from Heavenly Places.

When you opened that letter, you were humbled and astounded that the Maker of All chose you for a particular purpose.

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How awed I would be to be asked to do ANY task the King required of me. How awed I would be if He even asked me to clean His table or just to sit at his feet like Mary!

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Oh, my dear children.

That letter has come to you. The King of the Universe is requesting your presence at His table...the King's table.

He is asking of each of you a particular task with HIS backing and HIS resources and HIS preparing the way.

Now, go forth and do it. You have the King's permission to go forth.

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Is it any wonder you were birthed with such a name and each of you has a name with meaning and purpose which lines directly up with whatever He has said to you in that letter with the golden seal.

Your name was not copied from a list of people whom He knew not.

Your name was hand written by your Father and the note penned with care and love to a child He absolutely adores.

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I suspect as He sealed the letter, His seal was a kiss which could only be opened by you.

He eagerly awaits your response. Oh come to Him and abide with Him this day. Let his soft and kind words lead you to the place next to him.

He will whisper into your ear secrets and you two will laugh and enjoy each other just as two friends do.

Oh come to Him who loves you beyond your wildest imaginations. Say YES...say YES!

For the joy of the whole earth,

My mind runs into places unseen and unheard.

For the love of you.

Lord of all and Father so magnificent.

Ruler of all.

Maker of all.

It is into your courtroom I find myself

Day after Day.

Seeking Mercy and help whenever I am in trouble.

It is not as I expect.

My judge is my redeemer and the lover of my soul.

My judge has mercy flowing from his robes

and justice is like a garment

made of the whitest linen one could every imagine.

On his feet there is truth and right standing.

In his hands, those hands which were bloodied and pierced...

Those hands beckon me to come to Him.

In the warmth of His embrace I find rest and know

That no matter what my case, He will judge rightly.

Oh, come with me into the courtroom of He who gave it all for you.

In his place there is mercy freely given.

His judgments are right and He seeks to put us on the right road.

Yet, He will walk with us.

He is right beside us.

Oh enter his courts with praise and give thanks.

May thanksgiving be ever on my lips.

Remind me when my lips stray and my heart falters.

Remind me to chase after what You say and embrace your words as life.

Oh, my Lord and My God, how I love you.

Teach me your ways and reveal to me your very thoughts.

How I long to be with you.

May we sit together,

May we run together,

May we fellowship together,

May we laugh together and cry together.

I never want to be anywhere but with you.

You are my all in all.

I love you.

I love you.

Praises in the Morning

This morning as I was awakening an old hymn was joyfully flowing through my spirit...to God be the glory great things he has done...so loved he the world that he gave us his Son...who yielded his life in atonement for sin...and opened the life gate that ALL may go in...PRAISE THE LORD...PRAISE THE LORD...let the earth hear HIS voice...PRAISE THE LORD...PRAISE THE LORD...let the people rejoice...O come to the Father...through Jesus the Son...And give Him the glory...great things He has done.

Before I even opened my eyes, the praises of God through this song were ringing in my ears. What a joyful way to come into the morning. It didn't require effort, nor even the use of my natural eyes, just my inner parts ready to praise.

David would often write how he worshipped in the morning hours. He throughout the day would sing and cry out to the Lord. The relationship with His Creator was tight.

The words of the song tell me right as I post...oh come to the Father through Jesus the Son, and give HIM the glory (i.e. - it does not say give ME the glory) great things HE HAS DONE.

It is truly not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of God that we live and move and have our being-that we work-that we relax-that we play-that we minister to others-that we even come to him, it is not our own power or might. Thank you Jesus...Thank you Father...Thank you Holy Spirit...Thank you God!

John Waller: While I'm Waiting

Many of you might remember the song "While I'm Waiting" from the movie FIREPROOF. This is an awesome story of the "wait" for this young song writer and how he gave it all up...
John Waller: While I'm Waiting

AHHHHEEEAAHHHEEAAA

Okay, I am just slightly jazzed about the trees turning all shades of warmth and dragging out the old Thanksgiving ornaments the kids have made over the years. I'm even excited about putting out the old decorative candles made in the shape of pilgrims and Tom turkey (who by the way got just a wee bit melted several years ago and looks like he has a crick in his neck).

The view from our window of the trees in varying shades of gold, orange, green and red is awesome. I LOVE FALL!

Last night as we exited one of our favorite restaurants the smell of fall was in the air and it was wonderful. When this season rolls around and I smell that cool evening air I feel like Tarzan pounding on his chest and making that AHHHHEHHAAAEEAAA warbling sound. I do believe it is a power thing with me and I am totally okay with that.

So, with dust cloth in hand, clothes strewn down the hall in pile to be washed and a merry heart, I will usher in the first good cleaning of the fall, complete with decorations and all the fanfare of a new season of hope.

Yes, it is a season of hope no matter how life looks. What may appear to be changing and dying is actually about to put deeper roots down so that when this time next year rolls around, strength will be increased. Yeah for fall. Yeah for God's kind of change!

Things NOT to Ask a Woman

Having married in our late twenties we didn't immediately try to have children. Even though we were older than most of our friends when they married, we were not in a hurry to start a family. It wasn't until I was about to turn 34 that our first child came along. Three years later came our second and along about 46 number three arrived.

Any way you look at it, 46 is not the same as 26 even though at the time, I could escape being identified as 46.

As many a new Mom experiences those first months with their baby, sleep is a commodity and fatigue is a constant companion. I was no different. Our third did not sleep through the night completely until he was 8 months old so by that time I was very ready to have that first full night in snoozeland.

However, it was somewhere within the first few months after his birth that a dreadful event occurred. I was looking rather haggard that morning as I put him in his carrier and off to the store I went. This was not a store I usually shopped because even though they carried groceries and hardware the smell of stacked fertilizer was more than I could bear. For some reason, this grocer was located in the area where I was running my errands so I thought a quick pop in for whatever it was would lighten my day.

A perky checker was cheerfully ringing up the customer in front of me. Then it was my turn. Her first words out of the box were, "Oh, you taking care of your grand baby today?" To which I responded curtly, "No, this is my son!" End of conversation.

The urge to expose my stretch marks to this checker were put on "check" (pun intended). I payed for my few items and huffed out of the store more tired than when I had arrived. That okie dokie feeling that morning had burned off with the smoke coming out of my head!

Eventually I blew it off, but here is one thing you do NOT ask or say to a woman. "Is that your grandchild?" In this day and time it may be or it may NOT be their grandchild.

By His Spirit

Whenever I wrangle within, I pray that God deals with me.

Long term wrangling just leads to anger, depression and bitterness, so I would rather get it over with sooner than later. It is kind of like what Moses through Aaron asked Pharaoh as to when he wanted the plague of frogs to end to which he replied "tomorrow". Well, I do not want to take a page out of Pharaoh's book in waiting to move ahead.

So, God spoke this morning to correct me and now, peace is coming...release is here. His gentle reminder of what He spoke to me many months ago concerning our own children applies in this situation I have been wrangling over.

We as parents love to think we have had a great influence on our children. We like to think that they have hung on every word of wisdom which issued from our mouths. When, in reality, we have both done good and have acted foolishly as well at times. An unkind word spoken in haste. Wrongly sizing up a situation in their lives. Ignoring them when we are busy with another activity.

As HE reminded me this morning, if I want to take credit for the good things about our kids, then I will also have to take credit for the bad things as well. Once again, I realized that I am not God. Our children whether born of us or come to us through our children, are in the hands of God. Oh yes, we are to help guide, but God can do a much better job than we can.

It is a matter of submitting to HIM and letting HIM lead us. The HIGH powered Mothering instinct which God put there for a purpose can get into overdrive and hoard those precious ones who were given to us to raise. The balance can only be accomplished in listening to the perfect Father who made them and knows even the number of hairs on their heads.

As a Mother, I know, at least today, what I am to do. Now, it is time to put time and energy into praying...seriously praying because it is NOT by MIGHT, NOR by POWER (Mother Power), but by MY SPIRIT saith the LORD OF HOSTS.

Whew!