I put this on my homeschooling site...Fridays I always post a devotion. I haven't posted anything fun in a long while and neither has my good friend BOMBA. He was the one who would post a mind-teaser, or strange something and then we would all have to "one up " him. So, my dear friend, the ball is now in your court!

Today let’s play a little game. Just for a fun…

FIND THE BOOK

Each sentence contains a book of the Bible.
Find the name of the book and write it down.

1. Put the hose against the house.
2. He gave Jon a horse.
3. They were walking seven miles a day.
4. His Fez rang with every step he took.
5. Always tell the truth.
6. The house numbers started falling.
7. It was the best her mother could do.
8. That coat of Gene’s is dirty.
9. A job well done is what you are striving for.
10. All tips, alms and gifts are appreciated.
11. Use pro verbs, not anti ones.
12. Joe loves to work on cars.
13. The Santana mosque is quite large.
14. The facts are available.
15. The trim ark made the voyage safely.
16. Don’t prejudge students at other schools.
17. That idea came from answer #2.
18. The trip eternal had begun.
19. He met Pam at the Winter Youth Celebration.
20. His game of golf was a fluke.

Answers:
(1)Hosea, (2)Jonah, (3)Kings, (4)Ezra, (5)Ruth, (6)Numbers, (7)Esther, (8)Genesis, (9)Job, (10)Psalms (11)Proverbs, (12) Joel, (13)Amos, (14)Acts, (15)Mark, (16)Judges, (17)Romans, (18)Peter, (19)Matthew, (20)Luke.

We have so much to be thankful for, we as God's people are so very blessed! Have a wonderful weekend...maybe some of you are off Monday...if so enjoy your long weekend!
Blessings to you all and enjoy the puzzle!!
COLETTE

Solomon's Future

At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, "Ask for whatever you want me to give you."..."Now, O lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties...So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?"...So God said to him, "Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be." 1 Kings 3: 5, 7, 9, 11-12.

Today, when I was reading this several things came to mind...of course, a lesson. Notice in the second line that Solomon referred to himself not as King but as God's servant. This is the first of several lessons this scripture gives us. Solomon must of been overwhelmed with the task ahead of him...he had big shoes to fill and a large kingdom to rule. He knew he needed wisdom but where was that wisdom going to come from? So, instead of calling his friends..instead of looking to the knowledgeable people in his kingdom he went to God! Going straight to God shows the foundation of Solomon...his prayer was the revelation of his own need for God. What an example to us. How many times, even though we are christians, do we try everything in our power when faced with something overwhelming except simply prayer! We are slow to recognize our inability, we are slow to acknowledge God's power, we seem to come to Him as a last resort instead of the other way around. When we are young, we seem to be blinded by the pride of "Iknow it all", when we are older we are blinded by the pride of the knowledge and connections we think we have. But Solomon wasn't blinded by his own pride. Even though he was picked to be King he recognized that he, even in the "I know it all" youthful stage of life and with all his kingdom at the tip of his fingers, needed God's help. WOW!

Another lesson from this is the acknowledgment of Solomon that his wisdom was not enough...not enough for now or in the future. He was asking God not only for the immediate needs but for wisdom and knowledge for the future. He knew that the future would hold problems and he would have to use wisdom in the future as well. How often are we so single-minded that we only ask for the problems of right now...solve this problem and we will worry about tomorrow another day. We want God to take care of today because our sight is so limited..."just give me what I want or need today and if I need you again i'll get in touch with you!" Not very humble are we?! When we come to our Lord we need to be humble, we should ask for knowledge and direction, not just for today, but for the future. We are God's servants, God is not our "genie in a bottle." We should seek His wisdom for today, tomorrow and for all the days, months and years ahead.

This is not new stuff to me but it does help to remind me that I have strayed somewhat. Yes, I confess I often slip into the old habit of using all my resources to tackle God-sized task instead of acknowledging my need for God-sized help. I often forget that I need and want God's wisdom to take me far beyond the solution to today's problems...I want Him and His wisdom to walk me through all the days of my life. I hope this helped to remind you of your need for Him too!

"Get over it"...absolutely NOT!

"Get over it!"...I have heard this phrase more times than I can count. "I told her she needs to just get over it!"..."Well, we can't change him/her; we can't control other people. You need to get over it to have more peace!"..."Life throws you some curve balls...get over it!" I don't like this phrase and I try not to use it. Every time I hear it my heart sinks a little. I feel like there is no compassion, no mercy, no understanding, no patience in these three little words. Yet, they are tossed around easily, maybe without really hearing what is being said.

This weekend, when I heard these three little words uttered, something happened to me. A thought came to me that there was one topic was I was not, oh, never, going to get over. A spirit of rebellion you might be thinking?! No! I am referring to my feelings about the King of Kings..the Almighty...the Trinity...God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The feelings I have for Him I never want to "get over". These are some of the words that come to mind...awestruck, capitivated, incredible, inconceivable, indescribable, marvelous, overwhelming, remarkable, stupefy, stupendous, unimaginable, unutterable.

When I wake in the morning I am struck with an His indescribable peace. As I read His words in my bible I am captivated by His teachings. In my pray time as he pours out his Holy Spirit over me I find that my words are unutterable. It is inconceivable that He loves me so much that he gave his life for me. When I look back over my life at the blessings he has bestowed upon me...from His healing of me when I was a baby, through my wonderful years growing up, to marrying and having children, through the years of homeschooling...it is all incredible!

The way he answers my prayers and always leads me down His pathways is remarkable. I am awestruck every day just looking at His creation outside around me..all that He has made to give us pleasure..the birds, the flowers, the wild bunnies. He has stupified me with how well he knows me, so intimately...and how he cares for me so lovingly and gently. The people, my friends, he has brought into my life is something I marvel at. When I think of the family he gave me...my King knowing me before my mother even knew there might be a me...and sticking in there with us all until we surrendered our lives to him I am overwhelmed. For me to know He stays with me, my family, my friends and all His children every moment of every day, forever is unimaginable. And the thought that He has given all of us, every single person, a path to eternal life, to a place we will spend eternity in his presence is stupendous!

The mesmerizing way I feel about my heavenly Father I don't want to "get over". The inexpressible feelings I have for my King I will never work to "get over". And I will not "get over" my love and devotion for my Saviour... I will try to only work harder at showing Him that love and devotion. Now, when I hear those three little words..."get over it"...my heart will not be distressed. My heart will jump for joy and my mind will be immersed in admiration, thanksgiving and utter devotion for my God!

No Condemnation

Romans 8:1-2.. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

To condemn or condemnation is to express utter disaproval...to find guilty; convict; to doom. A very negative word but one the Lord spoke to me today. Think about the word and its definition for a minute. How many times a week do we, in our minds or through our words or actions find someone guilty...convict someone..or even express utter disaproval?

This morning in giving advice to someone else about responding in love not reacting in condemnation the Lord convicted me. I heard my own words, which really were the words of the Holy Spirit. My mind started thinking of all the times I engaged in the thoughts and words of condemnation...you know.."He/she did that on purpose just because he/she knows I don't like it!"..."I know they haven't done what I asked..they never do!"..."I know that's a lie.." and one in particular that stuck in my mind.."There, they did it again! How many times have we talked about that and there still is no change. They should have learned by now..I'm not putting up with that anymore!"

CONDEMNATION, CONDEMNATION, CONDEMNATION! Am I so perfect that I can be judge, jury and proclaim sentence without even one question? Am I so righteous that I am allowed to decide how long it should take for a soul to been transformed. Am I so heartless that I would rather judge than love as Christ did? Am I so arrorgant that I neglect my own sin but quickly point to how others should be sinless? Do I always want to be judged by the strictness of the law and be shown no mercy, grace or compassion?

Let me share what the Holy Spirit was saying through me, for my friend, but also for myself and maybe for you too! In relationships...in life for that matter we ALL have sinned and will keep on sinning. Just because you have conquerored something does not mean it is not a problem for someone else. And what might take you a day to overcome might take someone else years. And we will never be perfect...we will keep on sinning and God will keep using the Holy Spirit to teach us, mold us, make us more Christlike. If we could isolate a problem and then just change we would end up one day being perfect. Being Christlike is a day to day struggle...it is a path we are on, covered in God's grace, and it will not end until we leave this world. We, as christians, need to exhibit patience, understanding, trust, and forgiveness to the people we love to help them BE more Christlike and that shows also the transformation in us.

For instance, let's say that you are a husband and you seem to always come home from work late...you get off at 5 p.m., usually end up staying later but more often than not forget to call home. Your wife hates this and the two of you have talked about it. She watches the clock starting at around 3 p.m., counting down the minutes until you get home so that she can get a little help with the children. She also has dinner ready to serve at 5:15 p.m. because she is looking ahead at kitchen clean-up, baths for the kids, and can hardly wait to put them to bed so she can have a break....can't you tell that a woman, wife and mother is coming up with this scenerio!

Well, by the time you roll into the carport forty-five minutes late, humming a few bars of your favorite song, happy as a lark because you finished the project you were working on...your wife has judged you, the jury is in and you are condemned for a life of cold stone treatment! Now keep in mind that I am talking about christians, and a couple that has a good marriage, and a husband and wife that love each other and try their best. There is a problem and it needs to be addressed and worked on but in the law of the Spirit of Life which has brought us the freedom to extend mercy and understanding.

In our relationships we should be slow to judge the actions of another...out of love for that person we should expect that they are doing the best they can. Don't we want that from the people we love? We should expect that they want to and are trying to change those things that cause friction in our relationship. Leave the condemnation out on the side walk....don't convict him without even one question. Don't immediately express utter disaproval. It is right to bring problems out into the light. We need to illuminate our sin, our falleness, our shortcoming. The way to do that though is not through condemnation.

And in the book of Acts we find a good example of condemnation ..."When I went to Jerusalem, the chief priests and elders of the Jews brought charges against him (Paul) and asked that he be condemned." Paul had committed no offenses but was judged and convicted and found to be guilty. CONDEMNATION. And then we have the greatest example of condemnation in the books of Matthew and Luke..."I have examined him in your pressence and have found no basis for your charges against him (Pilate speaking). Neither has Herod; for he sent him back to us; as you can see he has done nothing to deserve death." Luke 23:14b-15. Jesus was tried six times, by both Jewish and Roman officals but never convicted of a crime that deserved death. But yet he was CONDEMNED and suffer a horrible death.

Sinful, yes we are...held to the letter of the law and condemned without mercy or even a question..no, that is not what Jesus teaches us! What an honor that our Lord and Saviour loves me enough to bring this to me today. I can only praise him for showing me that I need to rid my mind and my heart of condemnation and replace it with compassion, patience, love and understanding. What a wonderful Father he is to show me that I need work on my "people skills" and start responding more instead of reacting. What a teacher he is to show me that I need to confront the problems around me but with prayer, love and the Holy Spirit. What a wonderful life I have in Christ Jesus with no condemnation!

Romans 5:16 The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification.

Romans 5:18 So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men.

Divine Road Map

For me, I have always feared and dreaded uncharted territory. How about you? That feeling of not having a detailed map of our future can cloud the peace and joy that God wants for us each and everyday. My heart knows that God has a road map for me and that he will show me the route if I will put my faith in him. Making my mind join in is the real problem. But in those cases, he has given me yet another lesson from His word…one to help me in my times of weakness.

Reading in the Old Testament, I see that God’s road map for His people was clear. God knew where he wanted his people to go and was faithful to lead them there. There were some things that God used to strengthen His people, and the same things are available to us today as we face our challenges, fears and doubts.

The people of Israel, while standing on the banks of the Jordon River, had one sure thing…they had the record of God’s performance on their behalf, in the past, and so do we!

For forty years, God’s people had been wandering in the desert, yet God wonderfully and miraculously cared for them. First, they got into the wilderness through the miracle of walking through the Red Sea, then God gave them a guidance system. Each day, for forty years, they were led by a pillar of cloud. At night they were led by a pillar of fire. They were wandering, but God was leading them. God spoke through Moses, “I have led you for years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you and your sandals have not worn out on your feet.” Deuteronomy 29:5.

This summer, if you feel like you are uncertain of the direction you are to go in…feel the doubt and fear of not knowing what is ahead closing … remember that you have God’s road map. You have the record of God’s faithfulness. And then do one simple thing, take a look at the sandals on your feet. I am sure yours are much like mine…in pretty good shape and definitely not worn off my feet!

Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

A Grand and Great Salvation History

The following came as a sermon from my favorite priest, who is a wonderful man of God and also my friend. It was information I knew....just had not thought of much until it was given illumination this past Easter. I thought it would be something interesting to share with all of you and please comment...I love your input!

Jesus Christ came as the New Moses...to lead us and deliver us!

Let's take a look at the similarities:

Moses was saved from being slaughtered as a young child...
Jesus was taken into Egypt as an infant because of the Royal Decree that would put newborns to death...

Moses led his people through the Red Sea from slavery so that they could begin their journey into the Promised Land...
Jesus was led through the Waters of the Jordan River so that he could begin his journey and ministry...

Moses and the Israelites were out in the wilderness for 40 years going to the Promised Land...
Jesus went from the waters of the Jordan into the wilderness for 40 days of fasting and prayer to prepare himself for his ministry and rebuke Satan...

Moses went up on Mt. Saini to receive the 10 Commandments--God's Law for his people...
Jesus went up on the Mountain to give the Sermon on the Mount--he gave his disciples the New Covenant Law...

Moses chose the 12 tribes of Israel to lead the people and 70 Elders to help...
Jesus chose the 12 disciples to lead his followers and another 70 to help...

Moses prepared his people for the Passover--where the blood of the Lamb saved the first born sons from the angel of death. The Lamb had to be eaten...
Jesus prepares his disciples for his death as the Blood of the Lamb is shed on the cross and his body must be eaten...

These are not just coincidences--this is our Salvation History. This is the story of our King, our prophet, our pastor, our Messiah.

Jesus has formed a New Covenant for us--a new family in his flesh and blood...let us praise God we have the opportunity to receive this wonderful and miraculous gift from our loving God!

And thank you Fr. John for teaching us and giving us more to help us understand our faith, which helps us to grow so that we can love and serve our heavenly Father...you are the best!

First time in a lonnnng time!

Today I start finals....whew...my heart is fluttering as I write this. And the thought comes to mind, what am I doing on the computer blogging! Well, I want my friends to pray...to pray that my mind will be clear...to pray that my heart beat can slow down...to pray that I am able to do my best...and pray that a spirit of vanity will not come into play. I have noticed that in the school world what you make on your tests matters to everyone. And not usually in a good way. The first few tests we took, after class, everyone stood around asking what everyone else scored. You were gossiped about if you scored poorly and it made every one upset with you if you did better than they did. So, I found very quickly that maybe you should avoid just not answering the questions. WRONG! I tried that too and was pressured into "giving up my scrore". Then what followed was a smart remark and for a week I was not spoken to..(aparently I scored pretty well). So, I have tried very hard to give God the glory for the mind and ability he has given me and I try to scoot out of class before the masses gather. Today, I am nervous but feel almost giddy....really joyful...I am coming to the end of a new beginning..the end of my first quarter in college. I have been praising God and thanking him for this journey he has me on and I want your prayers to...today and tommorrow. Then I have a rest for almost 3 whole weeks. Praise God! Thanks for your prayers and faithfulness!

"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name." 1Chronicles 29:11-13

A new ministry

What a change in my life…after being home and taking care of my family for all these years…to be going to school. In all the scenarios of my life, I would have never thought of this one. I do know that God has a plan for me. Over the last three months the Holy Spirit has been whispering continually in my ear. I have always felt like I wore an invisible pair of glasses that the Holy Spirit wanted me to look through. These “Holy Spirit” glasses, instead of “rose colored glasses”, have enabled me to see confusion, hurt, loneliness, and longing for something in the people around me. And the day I started school the Holy Spirit handed me the glasses again…"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, Because he anointed me to preach good tidings to the poor He hath sent me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovering of sight to the blind, To set at liberty them that are captive” Luke 4: 18.

There is a young woman who sits behind me in one of my classes…a warm, sweet, kind young woman…married with two young children. One day we were talking and this young woman asked me if I knew she had her first child in high school before she had gotten married. I was careful with my response and asked her how that worked for her. Did the students at school give her a hard time or treat her differently? She was very open with me and told me that she was a cheerleader, popular, and that most kids thought it was kinda cool. So I asked her how her parents felt about it…they were fine with it….her mother, at age sixteen, had her out of wedlock. She then told me that it wasn’t a big deal, she married the man she had sex with.

There is another young woman, a tiny woman with an appetite like a horse. She sits next to me and a couple of times a week I bring her a sweet treat…little bags of candy, jaw breakers, mints, etc…She is 27 and has 4 children ages 9 and under. She is friendly, positive, funny, and sincere. She has been married 4 times and keeps telling me how she just has trouble finding the right man.

There is a man, forty, divorced with one child. He lives with his parents and had a stroke two years ago and has been recovering since. He is still not 100% but works hard and wants to do well in life. He seeks me out and always wants me to check his homework. He is a nice guy....who is working hard on his life to pull it all together. He has a bad habit of using foul language around me and I jokingly correct him. It has gotten now when he uses a foul word, he immediately laughs then tells me he is sorry…he forgot I was in the room…he didn’t see me….it just slipped out. We always laugh and go on with what we were doing. He is a nice, respectful man.

What does all this have to do with anything I could be writing about? Well, I was telling my daughter, the other day, that I am concerned about these people. These kind, everyday, regular people lie heavy on my heart. I think of them, and many more good people just like them, and I feel a heaviness in my heart. Why?.... because they are really nice people, going honestly about their lives, trying day in and day out to do the right things. They live by a pretty good moral standard, they are good parents, good children.... BUT….good is not enough for eternal life. You see, they are not Christians. They have no relationship with Jesus. They don’t think they need Jesus. They don’t understand that even though they are good people, they still need to ask Jesus to be their Lord and Saviour to have eternal life. They don’t see that they need Christ in their hearts and master of their lives to gain eternity.
Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty....For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son, and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." John 6:35,40

Oh, it is easy to show a drug abuser, or a postitute or a person behind locked doors and prison bars why they need to change their lives...why they need something better. But, the people that I am coming in contact with..."Me...I don't need help in my life. I'm a pretty good husband/wife, i'm a pretty good father/mother. I am good to my parents, have a life that runs smooth most of the time...and after all, you can't expect life to be perfect, can you?" How do we minister to this particular group of people and is it being done enough in our everyday lives? Do we and are we just accepting the fate of these everyday people? In our social concern for the homeless, the drug addict, the postitute have we forgotten the person who looks socially acceptable, who acts responsibly and seems to have their life together except for the fact that they are not christians? I know, in this life here on earth, that there is a joy, a peace, a sense of longing that can only come from our heavenly Father. No matter how well you think your life is going by your own power that it is no match to having the power of God with you. And then there is a life beyond, eternal life. A life either with or without the King of Kings for all eternity. "I have come that they might hve life and have it more abundantly." John 10:10. "Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. With joy you will draw water from the well of salvation." Isaiah 12:2-3

I have realized in the last three months that I have over looked this ministry. I have seen a homeless person standing on the street corner and quickly uttered a prayer for their salvation. I have seen a television special on drug addiction or postitution and that night have prayer for those in Satan's web. But, God is showing me that there are people sitting next to me in school, in line at the grocery store, in the seat next to me at the football game that need ministering to. They need to see, by our example, the peace that can only come from God being our Father. They need to see the joy in us that is only gained through Jesus living personally with and in us. And they need words of love and friendship and salvation that come from the Holy Spirit directing and leading us.

I am going to be faithful to pray for my new friends and I am also going to start praying in the morning that the Holy Spirit show me other invisible souls that need ministering to. My prayer, that God will lead me each day will have a new line to it..."Jesus, lead me to the souls that are not yet gained by you..that seem invisible to most because they blend in so much. Paint them, Lord for me to see with a big red heart. Use me, together and led by your Holy Spirit, to plant seeds of salvation in their hearts so that I can have a reunion again one day with them in your heavenly kingdom!" Amen..

Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertainted angels without knowing it. Hebrews 13:1-2

And Blessings There Were

I must confess that this story of my life over the last six months might be a touch boring to some of you. But for my husband and I, it has been a journey, a journey of God's love for us as His children, of His protection for us, His will for our lives, and a fullfillment of His promises to us. Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me: and that [life] which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, [the faith] which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me.

So here we are, without a job, no money, we have put to bed all our contacts, and we have no idea what we are going to do. But God knows what we need.."Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" Hebrews 4:16. We did approach the throne and we tried to approach it with confidence. I have found that approaching the throne is the most important...God will give us the confidence.

It was during this period of time that others stepped in and helped us out. Family not only helped us with our bills they also supported us mentally and spiritually...asking questions but then being positive and supportive of what we were doing and thinking. My parents and sisters were concerned but postive and encouraging. And it wasn't only family. An architect, that Russell had a long working relationship with, was due a check for work he had done. He turned the check over to us as a gift...an electricial engineer that had worked on many projects with Russell also turned the payment for a job he had done over to us to help keep us on our feet. And one day as we passed by a shopping center my husband spied a friend that he had worked with on several projects. My husband pulled over into the parking lot and got out of the car to say hello. My husband's ears were greeted with words that brought new HOPE...."Hey, Russ, where in the world have you been hiding!? I've been looking all over for you. We need you."

To shorten this some, he and another past client were forming a company and going to build a multi-hotel complex with stores and restaurants. Russell had already completed the site design in November, before he was let go from his job, so he was familar with the project. After several meetings, they decided that Russell would take on the job of site manager, something on the other end of what he was used to doing but definitely challenging and could be very good for his future.

Has something happened in your life that you just knew was not a coincidence? This was one of those somethings in our life. All the pieces fit together at just the right time, with the right people, and with circumstances that we just knew were from God. Yet, we lacked confidence...but again my family was right there. We were out at a birthday lunch for a family member and Russell sat next to Dad to talk to him and I was sitting next to Mom. As the guys were deep in their discussion, Mom inquired what was going on. I shared with her and also told her my concerns. How do I know if this was really the Lord or us just wanting to get back to work. She responded with a heartful of confidence, enough for all of us. She told me that the Lord didn't part the Red Sea until the Israelites stuck their toes in the water. She told me that "Faith" is stepping out and seeing what and where the Lord leads you. She reminded me that you can't walk through a closed door but when a door opens you need to walk through it whether you stay in that room and not. And a door had definitely been opened and we decided to enter into whatever was ahead. Thank you Lord for loving, supportive parents.

Russell started work as our journey continued. There was a company that Russell really wanted to be a part of. He put in an application with them that first week that he was told he was going to be out of work. He checked back with them about every three weeks. When he was hired in this new job he even took some of the plans to this company to get a second opinion on some issues. It was his hearts desire to work for this one company yet he was willing to do what God wanted him to do. And I prayed and prayed and prayed.

Remember how I told you earlier that Russell had gotten a little restless in what he had been doing. That he was wondering if the grass was a little greener on the other side of the fence. We thought that God had brought this job to us so that Russell would have a different direction to go in..a new direction using the skills and knowledge he already had...a chance to add more diversity to his already long list of talents. Again, God used this time to show us that our knowledge is so very, very limited in relationship to His plans for us!

As the days and weeks went by, Russell became more and more frustrated. He hated what he was doing. His relationship with the two men who owned the company was in good shape but everything about the job he was growing to dislike more and more each day. He was frustrated and his confidence and mental attitude was being to show under the strain of not working, then of getting a job with high hopes, only for him to dislike the job immensely. I tried to stay constant... praying with him and for him but also reminding him that there had to be a purpose in what God was doing.

He was at his lowest point...broken and ready for God's mercy when, by mutual agreement the project was put on hold. Russell parted ways with them, as friends, but really was somewhat relieved. Yet, somehow we were not concerned anymore. We were peaceful and my husband had lost all that restlessness I had seen in him. I could see the work that had been done in both of us and had come become strengthened and assured that God was going to do what He has promised us all...to care for us, to love us, to guide us, to provide for us.

One of the last tasks for Russell to do was to go to the company that was consulting on the hotel plans, pay them and get the report. Remember this is the company that he had been hounding for five long months...the dream job....the place he is sure has a future for him. Upon entering the vice-presidents office he is greeted with.."glad you are here! I have had a letter in my briefcase for three weeks now that I want to talk to you about. It is a proposal for you to come to work for us. I haven't had time to mail it, things had been crazy around here, but I was wondering how and if you left the other job how we could make that change come about." Oh, my God! And I don't mean that in a disrespectful manner. "He did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised." Romans 4:20-21.

God in his wisdom knew what we needed to be strengthened, to be stretched, to be brought closer to Him. He knew what was needed to bring us where we needed to be according to His plan. And he knew how to bring us there! Like the words he spoke to Abraham.."God himself will provide the lamb" Genesis 22:8, we have been brought to a deeper level of understanding that God's provision is true, wonderful, and good. We will be tested with trials but we, as His children, will also be blessed with unspeakable glory.

Russell started his dream job, May 22, 2006, and he is grateful, peaceful, humbled, and blessed. And the journey has one more part that has more to do about myself than it does with Russell. That will be in my next post. But, for now, know that I am writing this out of obedience to God...."Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples". 1 Chronicles 16: 12, 24. I am going to declare His glory, His blessings, His grace, His mercy, His love, and His works to all.....for to Him all glory and honor be given.

Amen!

Journey in Faith and Trust...part 2

Since this is part 2 let's jump right in especially since I can hardly wait to share with you...boy, have I missed this!!!

So, there we were without a job for the first time in 34 years and again on the front lines of "God, what do you want for our lives!" This is a place, that for us is not very comfortable...we find it hard to trust. Not that we don't believe...we do believe that God can and will take care of our every need but we get confused that we are not listening or following correctly so we agonize over everything.

So, for the first month or so Russell went to everyone that knew his name and asked for a job. At first, he was very positive and had alot of interviews. One thing that God revealed to us was what a great reputation Russell had. Over and over God showed us that the life Russell had led, being set apart from alot of what the world thinks business should be, had become a blessing in a well-though of reputation. But many great interviews and still no job offers! As each day passed, I became more and more convicted that this had alot more to do with a plan that God had for us and alot less with employment and paying bills. "It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect...He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down and make me great. You broaden the path beneath me so that my ankles do not turn." Psalm 18:32, 34-36. Oh, yes...this was not just a bad break in life...God had a plan for us and for our future!

There is a story in 1 Samuel that tells about Saul's father Kisk asking Saul to go out and look for Kisk's lost donkeys. Saul takes a servant with him and out they go. After searching for three days and having no luck in finding his father's donkeys the servant suggests that they talk to Samuel, the great seer. Of course, going to see Samuel was all part of God's plan for Saul. The great prophet Samuel was expecting Saul and was waiting on him. Samuel had been told by God that Saul was the man that was going to be annointed as king. "I am the seer," Samuel replied. "Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is in your heart." 1 Samuel 9:19.

God was using the loss of the family's donkeys to bring Saul into his destiny. If it had not been important to Saul to find those donkeys he would have never gone to Samuel. As for us, we were motivated to seek God for our future because of the loss of something we valued...our livelihod. We were driven to seek God, knowing that we had a desire for something we could not get on our own. We knew we needed to seek God for direction, healing and provision.

Don't let me misled you...we are not the Billy Graham family! We are just regular people, thrown into one of those situations in which you realize how much you need God and how little you can do on your own. We did not spend our days smiling and talking about how great life is...we were not confident in our future and we had to keep repeating to ourselves and each other to "Trust God....HE WILL TAKE CARE OF US!" Most of the talks with our family (Mom and Dad) started out with a postive note,"Oh, we are fine...Russell had another interview today and it looked really good." and about halfway through it was, "We know God has something out there for us...I mean don't you think that too! I mean he does have something for us..I least we hope he has something for us...okay, yes, He has something for us don't you think?" As I said, we are not the Billy Graham family!!!

And we did pray...I would go with Russell to job interviews and sit in the car, on more than 1/2 dozen occasions for 3-4 hours... read my bible and pray. I was brought to the place that the only part I was able to play was encourager and prayer warrior. And pray I did...not that he would get one job or another but we had been brought to the place that I was able to pray that God would protect my husband and bring him the job that would glorify our King the most. Bring Russell the job that was the place that God wanted us in. In my heart I knew that it was be a long journey...that God had allowed this to happen to us for a reason and the job was going to come in His time, when the work He wanted to complete in us was finished. God had shown me that there was a restlessness in my husband...a big part of him was tied up and bound in always doing what was right for the family but Russell wanted to see what else there was for him in life...wasn't there something bigger, better, more exciting he could be doing with ten hours a day every day of the week? Yes, after 34 years of working he definetly wanted or so he thought something different.

Well, it seems this is going to turn into a novel....this is what happens when you don't write for three months. I guess I will stop here and Monday pick up with part 3. I have so much more that I think the Lord wants me to say...there I go again...am I sure I am hearing Him or it is just that I like to write? Does He want me to share all of this or it is just important to me because I lived it? You see what I mean...God wants me to share this journey and share is what I am going to do!!!

Peace to you all and have a wonderful weekend full of God's blessings...

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. Psalm 19:1-4

A Journey of Faith and Trust

Greetings to you all from the Here and After!!!

When I started writing about my "Here", my life that I loved and had only known it to be one way for about 20 years, and the "After", the part of life that was upon me but not what I wanted or loved or even knew anything about.....well, let me say this...I thought that was about the hardest journey I was going to be thrust into. I have felt for some time that I was wandering in the desert....trying to hear God's voice, trying to feel that there was a place for me in this life...that God had a purpose and a plan for me for the next 25-30 years but I was struggling.

As I wandered through this desert of mine, I found that there where many mothers who felt the same as I...felt a loss....felt old...used up...struggled with what is our purpose now! As I sit here writing this I still don't have many answers, mostly still questions and will continue to try to work through the questions while writing... but one thing I know for sure is that God continues to stretch us, to test us, to challenge us even when we think we don't have it in us, "And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. I Corth. 10:13

And stretch me he has! I have been gone for some months and I would like to share with you some of what has been happening in our little world..."We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened tha we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On Him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us , as you help us by our prayers. 2 Corinthians 1:8b-11a.

I will probably write about this on a few posts because there is so much to share...so much to witness to...so much of a testimony. Okay, here goes....my husband went to work the week of Christmas and was informed that his boss had decided that the engineering part of the business was tooo much stress on him so he was going to shut it down. First of all this is a man my husband has worked for on a part-time basis since 1994, then my husband left a twenty year career as a fireman in 2000 to work for this man full-time. My husband ran the engineering part of the business, never had any sort of problems on the job with his boss and we even thought we were somewhat friends. When my husband's boss married a Russian woman and they were away and needed a cat picked up from an airport 3 hours away and then cared for until they returned.. we were the ones that they asked the favor of. The four of us had been out together socially...dinner several times and even one night we went out line-dancing together.

His boss only had the highest of praise for my husband and frequently they would go to lunch and discuss clients, work, and the intimate details of the business. At one time this man even made my husband a vice-president on paper of one of his companies. The week this news of termination came up they had shared lunch together just days before, discussed future plans for the company and some big projects that my husband might pursue. Not one word of folding the business...not one single word. I might sound bitter but let me assure you I am not...I think really, really disillusioned is a much better word. Even with the termination there was alot of dishonesty...he told my husband that they would need to close out the projects being that my husband was the only one who knew what was going on. He gave my husband the impression that there would be work and a paycheck for about another month or so....after one week we were given a final two-week paycheck and asked to clean out the office. No severence pay...no time to look for another job....just a really hard taste of life to swallow at the New Year.

This might not sound like such bad news to some...maybe many of you have lost your jobs and gone on to bigger and better things. But for my husband, it was hard, real hard! He has worked since he was fourteen years old and had never been let go from his job. For him and alot of men, their work is their identity...helps them define how they are as a parent, a husband, a provider. He is also part of that generation that believes that if you work hard, are honest, and give the company your all you will be there forever and be rewarded in the end. I know that the world is changing in that..that people in their thirties do change jobs about every seven years...look for different opportunites and want to diversify...but they are of a different generation.

So, we started the new year without a job and our mental state was not very good. As the days turned into weeks and the weeks turned into months we tried not to despair but it was a daily battle. Why is it when we need God the most we seem to have such a hard time coming to Him!!There is one scripture I kept coming to "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect." 1 Corinthians 15:10 . I am..my husband and I both are...one of God's children, stained with sin, but washed clean with the self-sacrificing blood of Christ. We are far from perfect...sometimes we stumble, sometimes we roll....like we fell from the top of the hill...rolling, rolling, rolling...unable to stop and by our own strength, pick ourselves up. That, I have found is when God reaches out his strong, wide, loving hands and sweeps us up in mid-roll...dusts us off and sets us back on our feet on sturdy, level ground! It is only by HIS GRACE and NOT WITHOUT EFFECT that when we are weak He gives us strength.

There is so much I want to share....so much God has shown me..so much protection, so many lessons learned, so much love that has been shared with us. I want to put down in writing the testimony that this journey has brought to us and as the scriptures tell us.."I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong--that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith". Romans 1:11-12.

I want to thank you for your e-mails, your prayers and for showing your love for me....there are times when we are unable to share all but you have shown real christian love. Not knowing what was going on but e-mailing, checking in, sending messages all shows your deep love and committment for the circumstances of others. There is no possible way for me to express how very much it has meant....how comforting it has been and it was a testimony to us that there are people in life that really care about us and our life...Thank you from the deepest part of my heart and soul.

And don't despair....Colette will be back tomorrow with Part 2 of "The Here and After's" Journey in Faith and Trust....after all isn't that what life is!!!!

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:15-16