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Life is a Gift!

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I wrote the following message for my church and I hope it blesses you to read it…

All life is a gift – no matter what circumstances are good or bad. We can accept that we are fearfully and wonderfully made, Psalm 139:14 or curse the day we were born, Job 3:1. I have felt both pulling at me. Your thoughts are what determines how your day is going to go. I believe God is good and somehow He has worked everything out for my good, Romans 8:28. I don’t understand why I have to be completely paralyzed and have constant never-ending infections.  I don’t understand why I have to be here. I am tired of suffering and I know there is a procedure that will end my life. The problem with that is, this isn’t my life to end. God gives us life and He is the One who has the right to end it, Deuteronomy 32:39.  That truth is what stops me from going through with ending my suffering. I can’t imagine standing before Jesus and Him saying, ” Wasn’t I enough?” I don’t want to finish my journey like that. I have to keep persevering onward to be  blessed with crown of life,  James 1:12. I want to lay that crown at Jesus’ feet. The key to perseverance is believing the promises that the Lord has made. The world doesn’t have any promises or know we are dearly loved by our Creator so life is disposable to people.

I wake up every day and give the day back to the Father in heaven. He already knows how it is going to go and if I want to be blessed I have to expect Him to guide me through it. You don’t know how your interactions with people will produce fruit. I have days where I am not fruit minded but survival minded. As I look back I can see that the survival days were pretty much a waste of time. We are here to love, honor, glorify and obey the Lord who gives us everything we need. Just ask!

I know that God the Father’s goal for my life and everyone else’s is to make us like Jesus His Son. You don’t learn anything when the sun is shining and all is right. Learning lessons that will last for all eternity comes from pain, trials and hardship. It is not something I like but as I take stock of where I used to be and where I am now, I can honestly say thank You for allowing this pain to the Lord. ALS has brought me many tears of sorrow but the blessings outshine the grief. Lamentations 3:31-33 is where you can see that the Lord doesn’t like to bring affliction, but it is necessary for our good.

Monday Musing

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2_Cor_4_18

Living Above Your Circumstances

I was thinking about how to live above my circumstances. I know about Paul having learned how to be content in whatever circumstances he found himself in (Philippians 4:11). I am not there yet. I have 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” on my wall, I see it every day. I am there sometimes. How can I give thanks for all my afflictions when they are causing me pain, fatigue and weariness?

I asked the Lord that question and this verse came to me: 2 Corinthians 4:18 “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”. Ok Lord I got it, keep my eyes on You! Peter walked on water towards Jesus. When he started noticing the wind, he got fearful (circumstances) and he started going down (Matthew 14:28-30). How many times have I done exactly that very thing and gotten discouraged? Too many times to count!

So, how do you live above your circumstances?

First, thank the Lord for what He has allowed. In doing this you are acknowledging His Sovereign control.

Everything that you go through is a growth opportunity. It is up to you what you do with it. It is easy to choose to be bitter and resent your trial or you can choose to embrace your chance to grow. Ask the Lord what He desires that you learn. Remember what Lamentations 3:32-33 says “Though he brings grief, he will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love. For he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to anyone.” The Lord will show you what He wants you to work on. Trust He has your good in His plan because He does (Romans 8:28)! Grow in your understanding that the Lord loves you too much to leave you a baby in your faith. Grow in trusting Him, He won’t leave you alone to face your difficult circumstances. I can testify to all these things. Finally, keep your eyes, heart and mind on what is unseen…Jesus.

What’s Up With Me today?

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I got hit with this verse this early morning!

We have our son’s Maltese Solaire this week. We enjoy Solaire and his favorite places to lay are on my hospital bed or between my feet when I am in my chair. This morning as my husband went to take a shower, Solaire came out of the bathroom and jumped on my bed. I was telling God how weary I was before the day even started. I was asking for strength to do whatever He puts in my day when Solaire appeared over my face. I barely had time to blink before Solaire gave me a Good Morning kiss on my lips and teeth! Remember I can’t move or yell. I was at Solaire’s mercy.

I laid there looking at the ceiling praying, “Father, I can’t do this. It is hard to be at people’s mercy daily but now I am at a dog’s mercy? How much longer Lord? I cannot do this!” Immediately Psalm 90:12 “So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom” popped into my head. I pondered that while I tried not to move my mouth. I certainly want a wise heart and mind for all the days I am here!

Each day is a gift from God no matter how it starts!

solaire bed

 

 

The Key to an Un-Rushed Christmas

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unrushed
The Rhythm of Rush by Lysa Terkeurst
Not too long ago, I stood at the sink trying to ease the stabbing feeling of stress. I had so much pulling at me. I found myself rushing my husband in conversation. Rushing my kids out the door. Rushing to the next thing and then the next. Rushing to make dinner and then rushing my people through dinner. Exhaustion gnawed deep places in my heart, demanding me to slow down. But how? I’ve made my decisions and now my decisions have made me. Me—this shell of a woman caught in the rush of endless demands.Ever felt like you’ve set your life to the rhythm of rush? Sometimes it takes stepping out of the rush to see things. Not too long after the day I stood at the sink drowning in life, I went to the Holy Land. It was a trip I’d longed to take for years. But as the day to leave marched closer and closer, I wished I’d scheduled it later—another time, a time when life didn’t feel so busy. But the trip was booked, so I went. And I’m forever glad I did. In the Holy Land, busy took a break from chasing me.

This trip forced me to “unrush,” and I discovered I like who I am so much better when I’m not set to the wrong rhythm. I also learned so much about Jesus. His life. His decisions. His lessons. And do you know what the most impactful lesson was for me, personally? Jesus never rushed. He set His life to the rhythm of connection and compassion. With great intentionality Jesus stayed unrushed. This is what I want.
Double Coma
Jesus never rushed
Double Coma
As I stood at my sink that day, this is what I was longing for but didn’t know it. Like Jesus, I must unrush my pace for connection and compassion to take place. As I walked many of the same places Jesus walked, I was struck so profoundly by this. He knew pressure. He knew stress. People pulled at Him everywhere He went. Crowds demanded sermons. Individuals begged for healing. The disciples wanted leadership. Friends wanted time with Him. The religious rulers wanted answers. There was an entire world to save with such limited time.Yet, He didn’t rush. He talked with the woman at the well. He reached out His hand, making contact, and healed the leper. He felt the touch of the woman with the issue of blood and stopped for her. Do you see it? Connection and compassion were central to every interaction. And then for those with whom Jesus was the closest? That’s when He was the most unrushed.

While I was in the Holy Land, I visited the site that’s recorded in Matthew 16:13–20. In the shadow of a pagan temple hustling with unspeakable acts and human sacrifices, Jesus pointed and said, “I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.” He connected truth with Peter’s calling. He compassionately assured Peter that the church would prevail.

I’m sure Peter recalled this conversation many, many times. It must have given him the courage to become one of the most pivotal church leaders in history. And he had this conversation to remember, because Jesus wasn’t too busy to have it. The Lord walked three days out of His way to make one point with Peter. It would seem Jesus was unrushed so He could be incredibly intentional and laser focused on connection and compassion.

If I were reading this right now, I would probably think, That’s great you went to the Holy Land and it helped unrush you, but I can’t do that right now. I understand. So, let this truth from Jesus’ life come to you. It’s not the location that changed me. It was the revelation. Jesus didn’t rush, so neither should I. Tomorrow we’ll talk about an unrushed perspective. But for now, let’s end by praying this very simple three-word prayer: “Lord, unrush me.”

Attitudes

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I struggle with my attitude. Do you? I forget it is my choice not my circumstances that determines how my day is going to go.

In his book Strengthening Your Grip, Pastor Charles Swindoll described the power of attitudes:

“I believe the single most important decision I can make on a day-to-day basis is my attitude choice. It’s more important than my past. It’s more important than my education or my bankroll or my success or my failures. My attitude choice is more important than my fame or my pain or what others think or say about me or my position or my circumstances. Attitudes keep me going or cripple my progress. Attitude alone fuels my fire or assaults my hope.”

What will you choose today? I am going to choose thankfulness, love, faith, submission, and contentment today!

Read Jesus Calling by Sarah Young here!

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I was looking around for free ebooks and found Jesus Calling, Finding Peace in His Presence by Sarah Young! Better yet it is on this website in the sidebar for you to enjoy too!

Win, win!

Answered prayer…

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I have been asking God to be delivered from my sinus pseudomonas bacterial infections for years. Right now my entire head hurts including my eyes. In the wee hours this morning, I was praying again for deliverance from my suffering. When I was praying, unconfessed sin entered my mind. I heard teaching yesterday by James MacDonald on the series “Where is God when I need Him.” God answers prayers in four ways: 1. Are you talking to Me? Psalm 66:18 says, I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. Isaiah 59:1-2 says, Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. Unconfessed sin is the thing that makes prayers go nowhere. 2. Yes. 3. No. 4. Wait.

I tried thinking about everything that could possibly be unconfessed sin. Finally, I prayed to be shown what I was doing that was so offensive to the Lord. I told Him my sinuses don’t wait so could I know now?

My answer came by way of my nurse Jedonne. She was talking about keeping the Sabbath. The more she said, the more my spirit grieved. I am guilty of not giving my worship and thoughts to the Lord for 24 hours every week. You might say Michele, how do you actually do any work? My mind is filled with lists, projects, banking, my dōTERRA business and a thousand other things. I do not give the Lord my mind like I ought to every week.

I got my unconfessed sin revealed to me quickly. Now, I resolve to give the Lord what I should have done all along. How about you? What is your unconfessed sin blocking God from hearing and acting on your prayers?

I expect to see sinus relief soon, praise the Lord!

My prayer today & Stream’s in the Desert

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I want to see God in everything like I used to do. It seems like my circumstances are always getting in the way blocking my sight to anything other than me. I poured that out to the Lord as I prepared my heart to pray. Here is today’s Streams in the Desert as my answer to prayer.

“It is the Lord: let him do what seems to him good” (1 Sam. 3:18)

See God in everything, and God will calm and color all that thou dost see!” It may be that the circumstances of our sorrows will not be removed, their condition will remain unchanged; but if Christ, as Lord and Master of our life, is brought into our grief and gloom, “HE will compass us about with songs of deliverance.” To see HIM, and to be sure that His wisdom cannot err, His power cannot fail, His love can never change; to know that even His direst dealings with us are for our deepest spiritual gain, is to be able to say, in the midst of bereavement, sorrow, pain, and loss, “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath, taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Nothing else but seeing God in everything will make us loving and patient with those who annoy and trouble us. They will be to us then only instruments for accomplishing His tender and wise purposes toward us, and we shall even find ourselves at last inwardly thanking them for the blessings they bring us. Nothing else will completely put an end to all murmuring or rebelling thoughts.
–H. W. Smith

“Give me a new idea,” I said,
While musing on a sleepless bed;
“A new idea that’ll bring to earth
A balm for souls of priceless worth;
That’ll give men thoughts of things above,
And teach them how to serve and love,
That’ll banish every selfish thought,
And rid men of the sins they’ve fought.”
The new thought came, just how, I’ll tell:
‘Twas when on bended knee I fell,
And sought from HIM who knows full well
The way our sorrow to expel.
SEE GOD IN ALL THINGS, great and small,
And give HIM praise whate’er befall,
In life or death, in pain or woe,
See God, and overcome thy foe.

I saw HIM in the morning light,
HE made the day shine clear and bright;
I saw HIM in the noontide hour,
And gained from HIM refreshing shower.
At eventide, when worn and sad,
HE gave me help, and made me glad.
At midnight, when on tossing bed
My weary soul to sleep HE led.
I saw HIM when great losses came,
And found HE loved me just the same.
When heavy loads I had to bear,
I found HE lightened every care.
By sickness, sorrow, sore distress,
HE calmed my mind and gave me rest.
HE’S filled my heart with gladsome praise
Since I gave HIM the upward gaze.

‘Twas new to me, yet old to some,
This thought that to me has become
A revelation of the way
We all should live throughout the day;
For as each day unfolds its light,
We’ll walk by faith and not by sight.
Life will, indeed, a blessing bring,
If we SEE GOD IN EVERYTHING.”
–A. E. Finn

ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

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I have been contemplating what to write about and truthfully wondered if anyone would read it!

So, Here goes! This past week and weekend I have been humbled and kind of embarrassed at all the people dumping cold water over their heads in my honor. I am grateful that ALS is being recognized finally! In my 17+ years of dealing with ALS, I haven’t seen anything like the response to the Ice Bucket Challenge. This has given worldly hope to the 30,000 people who have this cruel and fatal disease.

The problem I have with the millions going to The ALS Association or Project ALS is they both do embryonic stem cell research. As much as I want to get up and move, I wouldn’t accept any treatment from embryonic stem cells. I have been encouraging people to donate to Cell Therapy Foundation. http://www.celltherapyfoundation.org/ Cell Therapy Foundation uses Adult Stem Cells for research, this is acceptable to me.

Here is my favorite ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Bucket video! My hubby Scott!

Scott Challenge

My updated website finally!

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I can’t hardly believe it! This website was 14 years old and needed a make over. Tell me honestly if you remember anything that you liked from the old and want to see it here!

I plan on writing more about what God has been teaching me soon..