I Love You!

Suppose one morning you never wake up, do all your friends and loved ones know you love them?
I was thinking...I could die today, tomorrow or next week, and I wondered if I had any wounds needing to be healed, friendships that needed rekindling or three words needing to be said.
Let everyone know you love them. Even if you think they don't love you back, you would be amazed at what those three little words and a smile can do.
So just in case GOD calls me home
........ I LOVE YOU!!!

Do Not Be Afraid....trust God!

JOYCE'S DEVOTIONS FOR 9-8-05
JOSHUA 1:1-9

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide:
2 "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them - to the Israelites.
3 I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.
4 Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates - all the Hittite country - to the Great Sea on the west.
5 No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.
6 Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them.
7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.
8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

I found it interesting how 39 years earlier the Israelites had an opportunity to enter the promised land, but they failed to trust God to give them victory. As a result, God didn't allow them to enter and made them wander in the desert until the disobedient generation had all died. That only left 2 that had eyewitnessed the Egyptian plagues and the exodus from Egypt left....and one was Joshua....the other Caleb.
Joshua's new job was to lead more than two million people into a strange new land and to conquer it. Without God....it would be very frightening. With God....it would be a great adventure!
Just as God was with Joshua....He is with us each and every time we face new challenges! We may not conquer a nation, but every day we face tough situations, difficult people, and temptations! However, God promises that He will never abandon us or fail to help us. By asking God to direct us we can conquer many of life's challenges.
God taught Joshua to succeed he must:
1. Be strong and courageous because the task ahead would not be easy.
2. Obey God's law.
3. Constantly read and study the Book of the Law....God's Word.
You may not succeed by the world's standards....but you will be a success in God's eyes...and His opinion is the only opinion that counts and the only one that lasts forever.


Sometimes when we ask God our WHY questions, instead of giving us answers...He gives us Himself; the Comforter! Luke 11: 13 says: Even as fathers give good gifts to their children, so our Father gives the best gift, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, to us as we ask.
There was a conversation a father had with his daughter why he wouldn't allow her to sleep over at a friends house.... and here is his response when asked why: "I can give you my reasons, but you won't like them or understand them, and you'd only argue with me. So let's just accept that this is the way it's going to be, and I am sorry you feel sad." Isn't that a little like the Lord???? We need to just accept the way it is and trust God to lead and direct us!
Often when we ask God for guidance...what we really want is a guide. A father once told his son shortly after they moved into their new house, "You can find your way to your new bedroom in the dark by simply turning on the lights in each room as you go." There was an uncertain pause, then, "But, Daddy, won't you please go with me?" We are like that child. What we need is for our Father to go with us. And He has promised to do so in His Word!
Remember God said "Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

Father,
I thank you for Your Word. I thank you for Your guidance and sending us the Holy Spirit. I know we can only move forward by Your might and power, our obedience and implanting Your Word in our heart. Keep us mindful of these three things as we go about our day, week and life. Be with Lanny at work and give him the boldness to witness for You. Be with Pastor Barry as he leads our congregation. Help him to be the leader You have called him to be and help him to remember you are with him each step he takes. I thank you, love you and need you. In Jesus' name AMEN

God is enough!

JOYCE'S DEVOTIONS FOR 9-9-05
JOSHUA 21:43-45
So the Lord gave Israel all the land He had sworn to give their forefathers, and they took possession of it and settled there.
The Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their forefathers. Not one of their enemies withstood them; the Lord handed all their enemies over to them.
Not one of all the Lord's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.

The greatest lesson a soul has to learn is that God, and God alone, is enough for all its needs. This is the lesson that all God's dealings with us are meant to teach, and this is the crowning discovery of our entire Christian life. GOD IS ENOUGH!!!! No soul can really be at rest until it has given up dependence on everything else and has been forced to depend on the Lord alone. As long as our expectation is from other things, nothing but disappointment awaits us. Feelings may change, doctrines and dogmas may be upset, the Christian work may come to nought, prayers may seem to lose their fervency, promises may seem to fail, everything that we have believed in or depended on may seem to be swept away...and only God is left ...just God, the bare God if I may be allowed the expression, simply and only God.
If God is what He would seem to be from His revealings;
if He is indeed the "God of all comfort"
if He is our shepherd
if He is really and truly our Father
if, in short, all the many aspects He has told us of His character and His ways are actually true....
then we must come to the positive conviction that He is, in Himself alone, enough for all our needs and that we may safely rest in Him absolutely and forever!
God prved faithful in fulfilling EVERY promise He had given to Israel. Fulfillment of some promises took several years, but "every one was fulfilled." His promises will be fulfilled according to His timetable, not ours, but we know that His word is sure! The more we learn of those promises God has fulfilled and continues to fulfill, the easier it is to hope for those yet to come. Sometimes we become impatient, wanting God to act in a certain way NOW! Instead, we should faithfully do what we know He wants US to do and trust HIM for the future.

Lord, Thank you for being our honest and faithful God.....you always fulfill your promises. No one is like you. You have given us many promises in Your Word.... all for our own good. Help me to patiently wait for Your promises to be fulfilled. Sometimes I grow impatient...especially where my brother is concerned. Help me to trust in You and the fact that only You hold the future in Your hands! Help me to keep you in the drivers seat and not be a backseat driver. I love You and thank You for Your love for me and my family and Your promises to us that shows Your love.
In Christ's name....amen

FROM ROMANS 12

ROMANS 12
1 There fore I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God...this is your spiritual act of worship.
This means daily laying aside our own desires and follow Him. Putting all our energy and resources at His disposal and trusting Him to guide us. We do this out of gratitude that our sins have been forgiven.
2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is...His good, pleasing, and perfect will.
Christians are called to "not conform any longer to the pattern of this world" with its behavior and customs that are usually selfish and often corrupting. Many Christians wisely decide that much worldly behavior is off limits for them. Our refusal to conform to this world's values, however, must go even deeper than the level of behavior and customs...it must be firmly planted in our minds! "Be transformed by renewing of your mind." It is posssible to avoid most worldly customs and still be proud, covetous, selfish, stubborn, and arrogant. Only when the Holy Spirit renews, reeducates, and redirects our minds are we truly transformed.

God has a good, pleasing, and perfect plan for His children. He wants us to be transformed people with renewed minds, living to honor and obey Him! Because He wants what is only best for US, and because He gave His Son to make our new lives possible, we should joyfully give ourselves as living sacrifices for His service!

Father,
Forgive me for not spending time in Your Word. I don't know what I was thinking. I can see this morning the problem isn't with anyone else....it is getting my mind transformed and back on track with You. I need You in the morning...to be filled up to overflowing with You....that is what will set the tempo of my day. Again, forgive me and thank you for being a God of MANY chances!
In Christ's Name I pray,
Amen

Why don't we obey God?

Joyce's Devotion's for 9-7-05:
Genesis 19:1-38 Sodom & Gomorrah destroyed

Lot had lived so long and so contented among ungodly people that he was no longer a believable witness for God. He had allowed his environment to shape him, rather than he shaping his environment. Do those who know you see you as a witness for God...or are you just one of the crowd... blending in and unnoticed? Lot had compromised to the point that he was almost useless to God When he finally made a stand... no one listened! To make a difference you must first decide to be different in your faith and your conduct. There are reasons the world think the church is full of hypocrites when many are like Lot. Lot did not want to abandon his wealth, position and comfort so the angel had to grasp his hand and rush him to safety. Do we hesitate to obey? It usually stems from the false attractions of our culture's pleasures.
We need to continue to pray for the salvation of our loved ones. God's mercy toward Abraham extended to Lot and his family. Abraham pleaded for Lot and God was merciful and saved Lot.
We see two facets of God character in this story:
1. God has great patience! He had agreed to spare a wicked city for ten good people.
2. God has fierce anger! He destroyed both cities!
As we grow spiritually, we should find ourselves developing a deeper respect for God because of His anger towards sin and also a deeper love for God because of His patience when we do sin!
Lot's wife turned back to look. Clinging to the past...she was unwilling to turn completely away. Are you looking back longingly at sin while trying to move forward with God? You can't make progress with God as long as you are holding on to pieces of your old life. Jesus said it this way....no one can serve two masters.
In this pitiful sequel to this story is Lot's daughters feeling compelled to preserve the family line. Lot's tendency to compromise and his laziness and refusal to act reached it peak. He should have found right partners for his daughters long before this! Abraham's family wasn't far away! Now the two daughters stooped to incest...showing their acceptance of the morals of Sodom. We are most likely to sin when we are desperate for what we feel we must have. Lot could have spared this....but Lot thought small and didn't want to reach out of his comfort zone. Lot was a small little man with small little dreams, a small outlook, small aspirations, small faith, and small vision. The angel gave in to Lot and let Lot go where his heart was, a small little place instead of the mountain top where they had told him to flee. Then Lot's wife did exactly as she was told not to do, she looked back at the garbage heap of Sodom! She turned into a block of salt.
Salt: In its granulated form it flavors and enhances whatever it touches.
Solidified it becomes unyielding, unmovable, and useless.
Small minds and spirits take the very flavor God commanded that we sprinkle into the world ... and turn it into some legalistic, unbending monument to the death of the spirit. Small minds, small dreams, small men and women, small visions. Solidified salt in the shadow of the mountain where bushes burn and voices thunder and the finger of God carves in granite the direction to freedom!
Father God.....I pray we never get into the small mind-frame again. Help us to be open to hear and see you, Father! Take us to the mountain top! I don't want to be content in the world's environment....but I know I can't step away from the world and seclude myself either. Show us the boundaries. Help us to take a stand for You. Hear our prayers for our loved ones salvation, dear Lord! And God, help us to continue to look ahead. You have a mountain top to take us to. Help us to stay focused on that and not the rubble that lies behind us.
In Jesus Name I pray, AMEN!

MAM'S QUIET TIMES

THIS IS WHERE I AM GOING TO POST SOME OF MY BEST QUIET TIMES WITH THE LORD. I HOPE YOU ARE BLESSED.....I KNOW I WAS.