Cradled in His Arms

Greetings dear and precious sisters-in-Christ,

The last Wednesday of May and this month has been exceptionally stressful due to the "unexpected."

1) My brother was told that he had 4-6 months to live, to contact hospice and prepare to die. 2) My husband was told that he needed to get to Honolulu immediately and see the heart surgeon because of potential problems with fluids surrounding his heart. And I am sure that with each one of you the "unexpected" comes in so many different ways. How does one live through the "unexpected"?

Psalm 32:7-8 "Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance Selah." 8) "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye."

Oh to know that when the "unexpected" overpowers us, and we want to just hide someplace, that our Lord is our hiding place and that He will preserve you/me from trouble (even though on the outside it looks like we are not going to make it) and that He surrounds you/me with songs of deliverance. My mind imagines a mother sitting in a rocking chair holding her child in her arms and sweetly singing. And this is what the Lord is doing, holding us and singing songs. It is then that He will instruct and teach and guide. Praise thee most Sovereign Lord that the "unexpected" need not be crisis but it can be a time when You will hold us/me in Your most Holy arms.

I do not want to leave you hanging as to what happened with my brother - we prayed together, my brother walked out of the hospital, got on an airplane and is now spending time with our parents doing what he loves. He has his good days and bad days but whenever he is asked about his cancer, his reply is, "My God knows when I am going to die and I trust Him because I know I am going to heaven."

My husband saw his primary care doctor yesterday and there has been no change in the fluid surrounding his heart and was told, "no one wants to open up your chest again so continue with your recovery and hopefully it will resolve itself. We are praising the Lord that there is no change and no surgery will be done.

Most Glorious and Magnificent Lord, Hallelujah that You are our hiding place, that you preserve us from trouble. Praise thee Abba Father.
Oh Abba, how great thou art. I come this morning asking for Your Presence to permeate each dear sister-in-Christ as she encounters the "unexpected" in her life. Oh Lord may she know that You are her hiding place and that You are preserving her from trouble and may she feel Your Presence as you compass her about and may she hear You as You sing songs of deliverance. In Jesus Name, Amen

Cradled in His Arms,

LyndiaSue

P.S. I have a new flower to display this week. It is from a dear sister-in-Christ, Elise Grey, whose artwork so inspires me and so many others. Her link: LadyGrey Collections

On the Pathway

Greetings dear and precious sisters-in-Christ,

I purchased a book some time back, Passages of Light by Thomas Kinkade. Also on the cover it states, "Selected Scriptures with Reflection by Thomas Kinkade "Painter of Light."" In my room I have a picture of the Legend of the Dogwood Tree given to me as a gift from my daughter because she knew I liked the Dogwood tree.

In deciding what to post this morning these two things came together. In the book Thomas Kinkade has painted a Dogwood tree and the title of the painting is Afternoon Light, Dogwood with the passage 2 Samuel 22:31 "As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the LORD is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. The dogwood tree is planted along a lighted pathway. The pathway is curvy with the light only shining brightly in one spot.

It is so amazing to me that simple things, like trees and cobblestones and birds singing and sunlight and mountains and rain and snow and all of God's creation seem to point to the Creator. How readily we worship these things and are drawn away from the JESUS.

This cobblestoned pathway that we are on which is lined with so many beautiful and fragrant trees and flowers and grasses, is dimly lit for our LORD has made it so. It is then that we have the choice to Trust in His Word.

Oh Sovereign LORD, our shield, praise thee. Oh LORD thank You that Your way is perfect and that the Word of the Lord is proven. Oh most Holy and Righteous LORD, I pray for each dear and precious sister-in-Christ that today she would step onto that pathway and begin to Trust that Your way is Perfect and that You are a shield. May she stand firm in her faith and TRUST fully in each step that she takes being assured that You will shine Your perfect light on each step. In Jesus Name, Amen.

On the Pathway

Dusting

Greetings dear and precious sisters-in-Christ,

I hate to dust, I'm telling you right up front, the real reason why I had children was to have them do the dusting, seriously!! It is one of those never ending jobs. And living here where we get dust particles and volcanic particles and sea salt particles the dust is even more evident. With that being said, I was listening to a sermon about reading the bible everyday. Then he asked if you read it every day or if it was sitting on a table collecting dust. Since I have heard this many times I was ready for him to go onto the next bullet point but he said something that made me pay attention, "if you have dust on your bible then you have dust here (pointing to his heart)." Wow, that really hit home. I got to thinking about God having to dust my heart. How dusty is it? At times I know that the dust is so thick that it is hard to see the actual surface. I'm so thankful that God doesn't hate dusting. I'm sure of it.

Heavenly Father, Praise You! Thank You! Oh, Sovereign Lord above all else, there is nothing that compares to You. LORD, I pray for each dear and precious sister-in-Christ today and for this week that she allow You to do the dusting of her heart. Cleanse her and she will be clean, purify her heart, restore to her the joy of Your salvation. Oh Lord that she may shine forth as Your precious child. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Being Dusted by the Divine Father,

Psalm 46: 1-3 Getting Chicken Skin

Greetings dear and precious sisters-in-Christ,

Here on the islands if something touches you in such a way as to cause extreme emotions of fear or overwhelming happiness, we say, "oh, I'm getting chicken skin." At first I could not imagine what was meant by it but really it seems a better analogy than "having goose bumps."

Now what does that have to do with my posting for the day - There seems to be fewer and fewer times that I am drawn into a situation or a conversation which causes me to get chicken skin. But night before last while reading my devotional there was this verse,(Psalm 46:1-3), "Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling." Wow, this is what the WORD says - we will not fear. And how can this be? The earth is shaking and the mountains are falling! As I was trying to take in the scene of these word pictures - I began to imaging just how emotional would I be if suddenly we started to have an earthquake and my heart began to race just thinking about it. I continued to read and a few verses later came the answer, (Col. 3:3) "Your life is hidden with Christ in God."

Yes, Jesus Christ, He is the Way, the Truth, the Life. So many times I just keep Him as the center of my salvation alone but now with the situations happening all around us it is more important than ever to remember that whatever causes us to have "chicken skin" or "goose bumps" out of fear, that we are able to stand firm because of this PROMISE - Your Life is Hidden with Christ in God."

Abba Father, oh most Sovereign Lord what words could I use to express? Thank you, oh Praise thee for Your Amazing Grace. I pray for each sister-in-Christ this day that all the doubts, disappointments, pain, and anxious thoughts which causes her to get chicken skin would be changed this day. And that when she calls upon the Name of Jesus, in that instance her life is hidden with Christ in God and then the chicken skin would be her expressions of Joy and Hope and that Peace which passes all understanding. In Jesus Name, Amen.

What an AWESOME LORD!!

Saying Excuse Me

Greetings dear and precious sisters-in-Christ,

As I was trying to steer my cart through the isles at my favorite store (those who know me very well can name the place), I realized that I was going to have to cut in front of someone. I said excuse me and did so, as I passed in front of her she said, "that was very nice,". I didn't think that she was talking to me so continued passing. She stopped me and said again, "that was very nice, I have never had anyone say that before". I was a little surprised but kept going. I had not even realized that I had said it. It was something that was so ingrained in me as a child. So what else is so engrained in me that I say it without even realizing that it has been said.

That is the way I think that it should be when it comes to the word of God. I am no where near being able to quote from memory verses as I know many of you are but I'm so thankful for the Holy Spirit who brings to mind the TRUTH at just the right moment.

Psalm 51:6 "Surely You desire truth in the inner parts; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place.

Abba Father, Praise thee. Thank You for your Word which speaks to my heart. Oh most Sovereign Lord in these times when words seems to pour forth from the lips of man, may Your words which are truth become embedded in each dear and precious sisters-in-Christ that she may be confident and bold in proclaiming that her JESUS is the TRUTH. In Jesus Name, Amen