¹³ No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

¹⁶ So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self  is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.

Fear: False Evidence Appearing Real.
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As I searched for scripture to use on this subject these were all I could find.. I battled with using them as upon my first read of each of them I didn’t believe that covered quite the topic I was looking for.. Then upon my second read I discovered that these are exactly what I needed to hear in my foul mood.. A reminder that fear will eat you if you let it. The past does not indeed repeat itself.. I am not who I once was.. And I do deserve the blessings being handed to me..

Somebody else out there needs these words as much I do right now.. So here they are.

What fear is holding you back or down?? How can you escape it??

Dear God,
We all suffer with fears. We all have moments we lack in faith.. When trials arise and memories take over teach us to look back at the lesson not to fear repetitiveness.  For the past only repeats when we allow it. Lord teach us to remember that the threat of repeat is merely a test of strength. React as educated instead of reacting the same way. Lord thank you for the ability to walk away and pray instead of reacting without thought. Thank you for the many blessings you show each day..

Amen!!

Galatians 1:15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased

Psalm 139:16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to.

It seems certain that my life was laid out long before I got to live it. I’m not saying that I don’t have free will to make my own choices. I am sure quite a few of my decision were not exactly what God would have chosen for me. But, I do believe that ever decision I have made he has used to get me to where I am today.. Yet I still find myself wondering if I am yet where God wants me to be? Am I making the right decisions? Do I still struggle because I am missing something? Or is it that I struggle to learn the lessons that God intends for me to use down the road?

With Thanksgiving nearing I am seeing many friends and family members listing the things they thankful for.. Most of the things listed are happy thoughts and good deeds done for people.. This is all well and good but, I think this year I want to be Thankful for my struggles.. Silly huh??? Well lets look at it this way…. Every struggle has taught me a valuable lesson, every lesson has prevented another struggle.. (mom quit laughing they all know I’m a slow learner) Some struggles must be repeated before a lesson is completely learned.. I don’t think I have ever read any scripture where God promised Life would be easy.

⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

I’m terrible about telling you guys way to much about my personal struggles.. But, at the same time I hope that through these little (ok ok I know they are long) blog posts that someone is getting some kind of helpful information or advice & maybe even a sense of “Oh My!! I am not the only person struggling right now”..

It was brought to my attention today that I have an awful tendency to run from good and accept bad.. That doesn’t make any sense.. Why would someone walk away from something that is good for them to accept something that is clearly bad for them???

After several painstaking hours of contemplation I have come to this conclusion.. My fear of being hurt is covered up by accepting things I already know are going to let me down. If I go for what I know is bad I am slightly more prepared for the crash and burn.. If I let my guard down and go for the good the crash is 1000 times worse.. THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT ATTITUDE.. This is what gets me into trouble on a regular basis..

I find myself running from or pushing away healthy relationships and situations because I am afraid the outcome is going to be bad.. :-/ So instead I accept relationships and situations that I know most likely wont get me anywhere because it hurts less??? Oye!!

2 Timothy 2:23

Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.

2 Corinthians 7: 9-12

9 I now rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to the point of repentance ; for you were made sorrowful according to the will of God, so that you might not suffer loss in anything through us. 10 For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death. 11 For behold what earnestness this very thing, this godly sorrow, has produced in you: what vindication of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what avenging of wrong ! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be innocent in the matter. 12 So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the offender nor for the sake of the one offended, but that your earnestness on our behalf might be made known to you in the sight of God.

Wow!! Did you just read that?? READ IT AGAIN.. I’ll wait………………..

Maybe its just the way and the time that I read this and maybe someone is getting something completely different from these scriptures than I am.. But, to me this screams pain and trials serve a purpose in God’s ultimate plan.. Again I come to a place where I have to accept the fact I am not always right, my choices are not always perfect, and my heart is not always in the right place. OK read it one more time..

I have to ask myself if the long term pain of bad choices mainly in relationships in my case (friends, men, family, co-workers) is worse then the long term pain of a struggle to find happiness.. Oh I’m not sure I’m explaining this well…

If I am scared to get attached to someone or something for fear it is going to leave I am not truthfully following God’s plan.. 2 Corinthians 7:9-12 is telling me that if they leave or break or whatever the case may be it is only God’s will.. There is meaning and knowledge behind that pain.. (I hope this is making as much sense to at least one person as it is to me I definitely feel as though I am talking directly to someone)

I know where I have slowly picked up my fear of loss. I’m slightly cracked but realistic enough to know that over time I have built walls due to many circumstances.. People, pets, things don’t last forever… Becoming a recluse and hiding from these things hurts more in the long run.. God never intended for people to be alone. If he had we wouldn’t be capable of reproduction in any way shape or form..

I am making a promise to myself and to all of you to start breaking those walls to stop being afraid to live the life I want because I am afraid it won’t last. I wish I could promise that also meant no more bad decisions ever but that is impossible..

I challenge you (yes you!! Your the one still reading) to pick out your highest wall and begin to knock it down.. Find what you are hiding behind and step out of the comfort zone.. Be the you God wants you to be.. The you that has potential to do anything you set your prayer to..

Dear God,
I come to you with fear, with fear of losing people and things that are important to me. I come with the realization that I am holding myself back from your plan.. Lord I have seen loss more times than I would like to admit or count. I have lost friends, family, possessions, and Love!! Through these losses I have gained knowledge and strength but also fear. Lord help me to extinguish the fear. Hold me as I stone by stone tear the walls down. Give me the courage to climb my wall so that I may see the good on the other side. Father I know I am not the only one praying this prayer. Please let this rambling of a sinner bring comfort to those who need your message. And Thank you oh God Thank you for all you show me through everyday life and prayer and scripture.. Thank you for all that you do.

In your name I pray,

Amen!!

My first summer here I was determined to help get this yard back in order I mowed I started working in one of the smaller gardens in the yard. I hand tilled the entire area, added fresh soil, and planted Hostas (one of my favorite plants). I can grow Hostas I have done it multiple times, no problem.. People told me they were hard to grow in this soil but I had FAITH, even if I had to replant them every year that space was going to be Hostas.. My Hostas started growing beautifully.. I was however still fighting back weeds. I checked on them daily, sometimes multiple times a day. They were growing..

I’m not sure where I was that day, but I came home and a family that has been friends of our family for many years had come and mowed the lawn being the sweet, loving family they are.. I was so grateful they had done it. While I was looking at the beautiful job they had done I looked over at my newly growing Hostas only to notice, what had been a masterpiece to me, looked like no more than weeds to them.. My poor little Hostas had been whacked..

I must admit I pouted a little.. Oh how hard I had worked to get them going.. So for a few days I walked around thinking how much I had wasted my time.. I was so grateful to these people for helping, but so sad to see my work destroyed. I like to torture myself sometimes so I gave in and walked back out to the garden a couple days later only to find my Hostas were still fighting to survive.. I guess their faith was better than mine. So I picked up my chin and started caring for those plants again. I watered them, I fed them, and  I weeded around them. They were thriving again.. They still weren’t huge and beautiful but they were surviving.. My faith grew.. I just new that by fall I would big beautiful Hostas in my little garden.

Now I never said anything to the family that had so kindly cleaned up the yard. I didn’t want them to feel bad because they were definitely doing me a huge favor.. They new I had a lot on my plate and were merely being good friends.. (to be honest I kinda hope they never read this post. LOL!!)

Just a few weeks later I came home to find them working diligently in the yard again.. My first thought was oh no!! Not my Hostas.. So I wandered over to say hello (really to check on my plants) and yet again they were gone.. I was heart broken. Again, I said nothing to them because I knew they were only lending a helping hand and it was kinda my fault for not saying anything the first time..

I will admit I lost all faith in growing those Hostas in that garden.. I lost all faith in the front yard at all.. I quickly began focusing on cleaning up the back yard..

I have been in and out of this house now for almost 3 yrs. I have managed to kill every plant I have planted. (I’m not from West Texas so I’m still working on my niche) This year I find myself determined to fix this yard up. Not only to make it require less water, but to put my touch on what is now mine and my sons home. I have plans for walkways, and structures for a rock garden, and many other DIY projects..

My faith has been renewed by a single plant I threw in a pot 2 summers ago. I have many favorite breeds of plants. Hostas (which I may never attempt to grow again), Orchids, (which I need an extremely good green house for.. Working on that but it will be a year or so), and Succulents (hens and chicks, Sedums Cactus, things of that nature). This plant that has renewed my faith just happens to be a Hen and Chick I picked up for I believe $1.50 2 yrs or so ago.. It is the only plant I have managed to keep alive and make flourish since I got here.

This year I have faith that I can build a rock garden and plant succulents and sedums and play away. I know the risks of them not making it through the winter. But I have faith that I can make my garden grow. With a little bit of faith and a little bit of work I will build my garden. Just you wait and see..

Part of the reason I am telling you this story is because I am a procrastinator!! If I tell the world I will do it I don’t have a choice.. LOL!!

Matthew 17: 20

He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Mark 9:23

“‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for him who believes.”

John 11:40

Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”

My friends and family sin too.. What is that makes one sin worse than another? Who are we as humans to decide that any sin is a worse sin than any other? The Bible tells us that sin is sin no matter how big or small. Whether thoughts are sinful or acted out it is the same sin. Thank God my God is a God of Grace and Forgiveness.

I had a conversation today with a man I had never met before one of the things he brought up is that God is not just a God of Grace and Forgiveness but he is also Just. This thought process was used I was sure in a tactic to make people feel as though they should be scared into a “more christian” lifestyle..

²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

God is a just God.. This is not untrue.. 2 Thessalonians 1:6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you. It often makes me giggle to hear people use this particular piece of scripture.. As most times I hear it, it is meant to sound like karma will get you. God will get you is one of my favorite sayings when convincing myself that revenge is not the answer to ANY problem.. But, one thing we tend to forget is that God will get us too. When we treat each other poorly we are in turn treated poorly. When we talk about others we are in turn talked about. When we create drama we are sucked into more drama.. We get what we put out..

I have been focusing a lot lately on not focusing on the bad side of things but in turn focusing on the best side. I use the best side instead of the good side because not everything has a good side but, everything could be worse. I honestly believe that the more I push for the positive the more positive I get back.. I’m not very good at this yet I struggle to TRY to be positive. Ask my mother she will attest to the fact that when under enough pressure this girl will burst..
What does being a Just God mean?? Does it mean that when we get to heavens gates our sins will be weighed in a scale compared to the goodness?? Does it mean that we are given an eye for an and a tooth for a tooth while live in these temporary shells we call our bodies??

It is my opinion that we do get what we put out.. I also think that there are times he allows us a taste of own medicine. Is it possible that our God of grace and understanding is vengeful enough to allow bad things to happen to us to teach us and mold us to be who we are meant to be?? ( I use allow here because I don’t believe God intentionally causes pain but, that is whole different post)

²⁶ See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse— ²⁷ the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today; ²⁸ the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known.

It’s not all cheery and light.. Christians are not perfect.. We get what we put out. You give Grace you receive Grace. You Forgive you are Forgiven. You Love you are Loved.. You are vengeful you receive vengeance. You are Just you receive Justice. Spend time sharing the word not scaring the world.

If God handed out a plaque as you walked through heavens gates of one thing he thought was best about you in your spiritual walk what would it be?? What would you want it to be? Spend time focusing on the what will get you there and follow what he has been aiming you to do.. You will receive the award he waits to hand you..

Dear God,

We struggle to be perfect when perfection is not possible. Lord we struggle to follow your path and sometimes we stray so far we feel like we will never get back. Guide us, guide each and every step we take today, tomorrow, and forever. When we stray nudge us enough no matter how painful to get pack to you and your path.  Thank you for your Grace, Forgiveness and Love. Thank you for the Justice you show us in an attempt to keep us aimed on your ultimate prize. Thank you all that you do, all that you bless us with each and every day. Most of all Thank you for the little things that changes our lives more than we will ever understand..

Amen!!

By: Martha Blomstrom

I have discovered over the last few months I am not who I want to be. I am not sure I will ever be who I want to be. Part of the reason I started this blog was to share God’s love with the honesty of real life. I believe so many people think that once you are a christian you are expected to be perfect. And there are people out there who like to pretend they are and expect you to be as well..
I’m going to tell you I am glad that is not true… I am far from perfect.. I have been going around the last couple of years with the God is Good Most of the Time attitude. Let me explain.. I have an extremely deep faith, most of the time.. But when things get rough and when I need God the most I tend to forget that God is Good ALL the time..

When things don’t go my way I stomp my feet and whine like a toddler.. (admit you do it sometimes too) I get so caught up in what is going on I forget how much worse it could be..  I pray for patience and God holds back on things I want to teach me patience.. He is only doing what I asked. I pray for strength and God gives me obstacles to overcome to build strength. He is only preparing me for what is to come.
Opening my own business has proven quite the challenge. I have prayed for patience and strength and God has given me both. In the midst of the lessons I sometimes get so frustrated I want to throw my hands in the air and say forget it. “What is it that God has against my dreams??” Silly me!!! I am only being prepared for the things to come. If it was a snap to open my business and everything went smoothly and perfect, would I be prepared mentally and physically for challenges to come? Would I be cautious about where and what I was investing my money in??? Again I say he is only preparing me for what is to come.. He is strengthening me to overcome any obstacle that gets in my way. He is teaching me patience and understanding on a level I have never had..

The optimist in me says he is preparing me to reach my goals to be who I want to be. The pessimist in me says Satan is torturing me for his own fun and games.. The Christian in me says God’s plan is being worked and I am not supposed to have all the answers. I fall back on my favorite scripture.

Jeremiah 29:11

³² As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. ³³ They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). – Matthew 27:32-33

Simon, the Cyrene

When I stood in the shadow of the cross, I was exhausted. Yet, I found myself ignoring the groans of my body and remained there, on the hill.

            A few hours earlier, I had been standing on the street, watching a distressing scene of three men carrying their crosses, walking to their deaths.  I didn’t know what their crimes had been and I didn’t care. 

            A young boy in front of me was mocking the three, especially the man walking in the rear.  He was struggling with his cross and I could see why.  His back was bloodied and his face was swollen.  He wore a crown of thorns on his head.  No wonder blood was dripping down his face.

            There was a woman to my left.  Amidst her tears, she was talking about his having healed her.  We had heard the talk about a man who healed.  Was this him?

            When the men to be crucified reached our point in the street, the man in the back stumbled under the weight of his cross.  The crowd gasped and all was silent as he struggled to regain his grip, but the cross was too heavy and the man’s body was too injured. 

            Soon the crowds resumed their mixture of cries and taunts.  And then, one of the soldiers turned to look at the crowd.  I wondered if he intended to silence them, but his eye fell on me and as he reached through the onlookers and pulled me from the crowd, I felt my knees buckle.  What did he want with me?

            And then I knew – I was to help carry the cross of the bloodied man.  I couldn’t say, “no”. 

            As I reached the man, I looked into his eyes.  Despite the tortuous path he had traveled, there was amazing strength within his gaze and I took energy from that. 

            When I shouldered the cross, I expected him to pull back and let me do the work, but it seemed as if he was able to find some reserve.  Together we carried that cross, sharing the load.

            In those first steps, I could only think of completing this task I had been forced to take and quietly slipping away once my job was done.  Yet, when I found myself in the shadow of the cross, I couldn’t leave. 

            I found strength in his shadow and that power remained with me the rest of my life. 

            I thought I shared his burden that day and yet, somehow, I knew, he had taken all of mine.

Prayer:  Loving God, we never know when life will call us to help someone shoulder their burden.  Grant that we may see the need and willingly step up to be the support that might be so needed.  We ask this in the name of Jesus, who calls us all to take up our cross and follow Him.  Amen.

Rev. Dawn Carlson

I know when I was supposed to have found the love of my life.. I know when I was supposed to have married him.. I know when we would’ve been having our first child.. I also know that I should have an animal rescue open and running already.. WHAT IS WRONG WITH GOD??? Why doesn’t he know these things?? Must I tell him everything??

So, the above attitude has led me down some pretty nasty paths in my lifetime. Patience is something I have very little of.. Not one of my virtues as my mother would tell you..

I sit here now with many of my dreams poking through what has seemed like dark clouds for so long. Some of these dreams that are occurring have even made me question other dreams..

My dream of the perfect husband has been crushed to many times to explain. The last time the worst by far. Do I give up this hope?? Of course not.. Deep inside I know that God has that man picked out for me.. If I could just sit back and wait..

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

I sit here writing this wondering if someone like me has any right to be sharing God’s word with the world.. I am currently experiencing one of God’s greatest miracles. Something I have wanted and prayed for and been denied many times over my life.. I am UN-married, divorced, and practically widowed at my young age.. And now at this time, when I often feel like the forever single women, I am expecting a baby.. I keep asking myself how I got here.. How did I make a decision to put myself in this position.. Me?? Really?? OK!! I know really!! I’m not nor have I have been perfect.. I don’t expect I ever will be..

“If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t FALL!” (1 Corinthians 10:12)

I have even wondered over the last 6 months if my previous thoughts that God had given me the strength to start this blog were even true.. Why would God encourage a sinner to spread his word?? Why would God allow me someone who has made bad decisions in life over and over and over again to speak his name??? How many times will he pick me up when I fall???

“If we confess our sins God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:9)

David prayed, when he asked forgiveness, “Have mercy upon me O God, according to your loving kindness, according to the multitude of your tender mercies. Blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin” (Psalms 51:1-13). In the greatness of God’s compassion, there is a “multitude of tender mercies” and no upper limit on the number of times you can approach him for forgiveness.

Am I saying that intentionally doing the same thing over and over again and just asking forgiveness is OK?? No.. Not at all. What I am saying is that we all slide.. We all have our own demons that we struggle with.. Sometimes God chooses to use those demons and struggles to teach you amazing lessons.. Sometimes those lessons end in the biggest blessing you could ever imagine..

”A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” (Proverbs 16:9)

I can’t promise you that I will never stray off my path again. But I can assure you that even as I type this out I can see the ways God has been preparing me for the rest of my life.. How he has worked a plan for me to be exactly what he created me to be.. “We all fall short of the glory of God”.. We should all be willing to pick the ones who fall, including ourselves back up..

1. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5)
2. Thus says the Lord, Your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit, who leads you by the way you should go.” (Isaiah 48:17)
    
3. “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” (Psalm 32:8)
4. “For this is God, our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even to death.” (Psalm 48:14)
5. “The Lord will guide you continually …” (Isaiah 58:11)

Remember – God already has your next new job all set up and planned out for you. All you have to do is simply WAIT for His timing to bring it to you!

By: Martha Blomstrom

I had to share this!

Have you ever seen how God is able to use the least expected vessels for His mission? An unwed mother, from Nazareth (“Can any good thing come from Nazareth?”), a stable in a small town called Bethlehem not to mention a killer of His people named Saul, later known as the Apostle Paul.

Have you ever noticed that God’s view of people isn’t always ours? Shepherds in the field chosen as the first to receive the news of Christ birth, instead of the priest and kings.

Gentile, wise men, led by a star the first to give Him gifts.Jesus’ willingness to eat with tax collectors and sinners, even His chosen disciples were fishermen and tax collectors not priests or scribes.

Have you ever noticed that where God needs us isn’t always a comfortable place? A mother about to deliver in a stable, taking a young child and running to Egypt to save His life, Paul and Silas in Jail, Jesus on the cross.

Have you noticed that fulfilling God’s will often requires a difficult journey?  Mary and Joseph’s journey of about one hundred miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the wise men’s coming from the east, Paul’s ship wrecked missionary journey, the children of Israel from Egypt to the promised land, Jesus’ journey to the cross and our journey of course from sinner to saint.

Now for a confession, every time we sing, one of my favorite Christmas Songs, “Silent Night” or “O Little Town of Bethlehem” I have trouble seeing the place as silent or still. An uncomfortable crowd, forced to travel with no place to stay, there to pay a burdensome tax imposed on them from a foreigner, you know they were talking loudly with each other. Not to mention the family reunions taking place with loud greetings and memories and catching up. It’s no wonder the people in Bethlehem didn’t come running to the stable they were distracted with the every day things of life. My prayer for myself and everyone else is that we may not be distracted this Advent Season but that God will gain our attention and we will see “The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” as the shepherds and wise men did.

One last thought, of course He called shepherds He had a very special Lamb to be watched over.

By Rev Bill Rafuse