Stay focused

First PRAY, always PRAY, before you do anything else PRAY
Then AIM and STAY FOCUSED ON GOD

Never let others discourage you concerning your past. It happened, its over. Don't relive it.

Live every day one day at a time; one hour at a time.

Only God knows our future - we ourselves don't so how can another think they know?! God will not put us through more than we can bear. God knows us better than we know ourselves. We often think we can't bear anywhere near as much as He brings us to. We must have FAITH and remember to STAY FOCUSED ON GOD.

If we STAY FOCUSED ON GOD, our fears will come to pass. If we look to ourselves or if we look to another, a close friend, for our blessings, our answers, we will fail.

Only the Lord can open doors for you and me. Only the Lord is able to open the door. But we must STAY FOCUSED ON GOD. The Lord will open a door that He has prepared in advance for each of us. We must wait, we must be PATIENT. Patience is a virtue, another many of us are lacking in. Patience is hard. If we STAY FOCUSED ON GOD, everything else will follow.

When Satan is knocking at your door, say, "Jesus, could you please get that for me?"

Casting our cares on Him

I Peter 5: 1-10
"The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by constraint but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for 'God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.' Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you."

As a shepherd/pastor of a church, must be a willing servant, honest; not as a ruler, not a boss. Be humble ( I am not much, I think - what do you think Lord?) Not prideful, not thinking and acting as if you are better than another.

Casting/throwing ALL our cares/anxieties upon You. I give them to you Lord, then I take them back. I am somewhat downtrodden. I can't think how to pull myself up. Will you lift me up Lord? Help me to feel better about myself. Jimmy had the surgery and his recovery is slowly coming. But I am dismayed by the amount of television he watches when he could be into your word. I guess I shouldn't go there. It is between him and You. It seems I watched a lot of TV too when I was off; who am I to complain. Help me to stop this. Help me keep the devil away from my mind. Help me resist his mighty efforts to bring bad thoughts into my mind and control my every thought. I don't need the devil. I don't need any part of him. Only you Lord. Help me keep my mind on you Lord.

The sufferings I face are also the same or similar as others. They can be overcome. My sufferings are minor, so very minor compared to some others, but that doesn't make them less important. The sufferings are a test; life is a continual test that strengthens us in the Lord. We must keep our mind, our thoughts always on the Lord. He will bring it to pass.

Patience

Patience isn't easy. I have a hard time with it and so do a lot of others I imagine. Even my husband Jim, who by the way was released from the hospital Tuesday noon, March 21. He had major surgery March 15.

I've been reading Luke 19: 11-44 this week.

Everything we have belongs to the Lord. What do we have that the Lord needs to use? I guess to determine that, we would need to pray for Him to make it known to us. And then we should willingly make it available to Him ... have you?

Back to patience. It's a virtue, one I'm a little lacking in. Ask of God, ask in faith, without doubting, ask humbly, always. Make your request known to God, seek His will, seek His guidance. Look to Him for our all. Don't look to yourself, Don't look to other people. Only God has the answer(s).

In Luke 19: 41-44, Jesus comes through the streets of Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. Something I didn't realize is that kings/royalty ride a horse in war and a donkey in peace and that people spread their clothes in front of that individual as a sign of recognizing royalty.
When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem, He wept over what its people did not see and what would become in future days. The people did not see -- they did not open their eyes, their minds to what Jesus offered ... PEACE. They were blind to the truth, only saw what they wanted to see. To the majority of the Jewish people, Jesus was nobody special, least of all The Messiah!

It seems the Jewish people have always been in one conflict or another. They missed the mark when Jesus came and they continue to ignore His offerings of peace (with God) through salvation (His son, Jesus Christ).

Recovery is slow going

My husband Jim had a cervical tumor removed from his spinal cord just below his skull March 15. It was benign and the surgeon was able to remove a large majority of it. Praise the Lord! It was major surgery and God got us through that, with prayer from people all across the country. In some ways post-op is worse. Jim has never had surgery, other than a tonsilectomy when he was a child. He doesn't know what to expect, so he thinks he's doing terrible. He's coming off of anesthesia and being weaned off of steroids. Yesterday (Friday) he was feeling pretty good, and then today (Saturday) he was feeling pretty lousy. Says his legs feel rubbery. He has severe headaches near the incision. And he has problems taking care of "bathroom duty." I am exhausted. I work Sunday through Thursday and managed to get surgery day and the day after plus tomorrow and Monday off, but after that, its back to work I must go. I'm dreading the what if's - what if Jimmy isn't released by Monday. I shouldn't even be going there. Just concentrate on today. It's a good thing I am going to Sunday School and church tomorrow. I need lifting up big time. It helps to be able to talk to friends. Our friends everywhere are so appreciated. I love my Jimmy. I want him all better, on the mend, feeling positive, not resorting to downheartedness. His roommate Paul is not in good shape. Today he has talked often of wishing he was dead. It's off to bed and sleep I now go.

Surgery scheduled

My husband's surgery is scheduled for Wednesday, March 15, at University Hospitals in Iowa City. Time is not known at present, won't find out until next Tuesday afternoon. Dr. Matt Howard is the neurosurgeon and surgery will take 4 to 5 hours. Prayers for the doctor's skill in removing the cervical tumor and his team would be appreciated.

My thoughts, My ways

I have sometimes thought of reading Isaiah, but have not done so. However, the possibilty is getting stronger, since a few verses have made a strong impact on me. Since surgery is extremely likely for my husband, my stress level has gone up ... I reach for chocolate much more frequently that I should ... I should reach for the Bible everytime the urge for chocolate pops up its sweet head.
Anyway, the verses I find intriquing are in Isaiah 55:8-9. It says:
"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My
ways," says the Lord.
"For as the heavens are
higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher
than your wys,
And My thoughts than
your thoughts."

Love

Our interim pastor has been doing a series on love.
I Corinthians 13:4 says, "Love suffers long ... love is not easily angered ... love is patient."
The Lord patiently waits ... wanting all to repent of their sins.
If we learned to be better forgivers, we'd learn more patience.
Love is kind ... God is kind.
Love could bring unity. You'd think unity would exist in the church. You'd think love would prevail. Sometimes I think hatred, strong dislike, is more prevalent.
It's truly a shame. I need to not settle on what I hear others say. Only on what the Lord has to say ... to me. Follow and obey. Whatever the cost. I want to be His child, His beloved child, with whom He is well pleased.

Republican Christians?

In The Sunday, Feb. 26 edition of The Gazette there was a Letter to the Editor:
Republican Christians? Only if they help the poor
If you have access to it, please read it. Here is my response:

The letter writer infers that because Jesus said in Matthew 19:24 “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” Jesus is saying rich people can not enter heaven.

That’s not true. A rich young Jewish man asked Jesus what he had to do to do to have eternal life. And Jesus tells him. He must be willing to give his all and follow the Lord.

Being willing to do what the Lord commands and following through, obeying is the key.

Nowhere in the Bible does it say what you own or how rich or poor you are determines whether you will enter heaven.

There is only one way to enter heaven and that is through faith in Jesus Christ.

• Admit you are a sinner
• Believe in Jesus Christ as God’s son. He was born of God and the virgin Mary, He suffered and died on a cross for your sins and mine, He was buried and after 3 days He rose again. He became our redeemer
• Confess your faith in Jesus as your personal Savior

In Matthew 19:26, Jesus says, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Salvation is an act of God. It is not an accomplishment of human beings. Our works do not get us into heaven.

In addition, "Thou Shalt Not Kill" is not one of the Ten Commandments. "Thou Shalt Not Murder" is. There is a difference. There have been wars since time began. Read the Old Testament. Wars were prophesized and fulfilled.

Jesus is about peace. What do we know about peace?

Following Christ is not a political issue as some would make it appear. Salvation in Christ is open to all - no matter who you are, what you’ve done, where you’ve been, your financial status, sick or healthy, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Jehovah’s Witness, Methodist, Baptist, Lutheran, Catholic, etc.

Discontent

Why is there always someone who has to rock the boat, find something wrong, always complain? Why can't Christians act like Christians? Follow Christ. Christ looked for the good, His purpose was to bring us to Him and to follow Him. We don't follow. Some of us do. But I think for the most part, we do not follow. We do not obey. We only complain. I'm getting really tired of it. It's no wonder people leave.

Prayer request for my husband

My husband Jimmy has a mass/tumor about the size of a silver dollar on his spine between C1 and C2, up high just below the skull. It was thought at first something was pressing on his spine, but what is actually going on is this mass is around his spine, from the back to the front, not completely, but almost. It is a relief to know what the cause of all his left-side weakness, extreme fatique and shortness of breath is. Its still scary, but I'd do well not to dwell on that too much. I do much better if I get into the word and stay there and pray for His guidance. Jimmy continues to work, not as many hours - he does patient care, provides aide to men in their final stages of life, but he can't stand, be on his feet too many hours a day. It really wears him out. The neurosurgeon we went to today has now referred us to University Hospitals in Iowa City. Tuesday morning we go down for an evaluation with a surgeon.