Tempted

I found my self tempted this week.
Fear and worry are uncharacteristic for me.
I was really trapped.
Along with these temptations came self- pity, apathy, complacency and depression!
Yuk! What a glorious week ,huh?
Throw in there a few sleepless nights and the newest virus in town and I was pretty useless. Sigh.
Well, I've made a decision….
I will PASS this test.
I will not be defeated in Jesus' name!
I will press on and press in and I will believe!
God is more than able to deliver me from these earthly things. (Thank you for these trials Lord.)
Let God arise and His enemies be scattered!!!!
Do I hear the sound of victory?

Yes! Christ is King- not me!
God is bigger than our failures.
Don't stay down. Let Him lift you up!

Your companion in tribulation AND glory,
Holly

Storms Of Life- George MacDonald

Here is a quote from one of my favorite authors, the late George MacDonald~

Sometimes a thunderbolt will shoot from a clear sky; and sometimes into the life of a peaceful individual, without warning of gathered storm, something terrible will fall. And from that moment everything is changed. That life is no more what it was. Better it ought to be, worse it may be. The result depends on the life itself and its response to the evading storm of trouble. Forever after, its spiritual weather is altered. But for the one who believes in God, such rending and frightful catastrophes never come but where they are turned around for good in his own life and in other lives he touches. ~ End quote

Unanswered Prayer

Do you have an unanswered prayer?
Have you lost heart?
Don't give up!
If we can believe that God saved us from sin,
we can believe that He will answer that old stubborn prayer.
Is it His will that He answer that prayer?
Oh yes, it is and we know it. It's not bigger than God is it?
Nope! Not bigger than God!

Let's press in and press on, but most of all- let's believe!
He delights in hearing and answering our prayers.

It's Who Ya Know!

I am convinced that it does not matter what you believe.

It is WHO you believe in that matters!

Down through out church history, Christians have killed one another because of what they believed or didn't believe! They never killed another Christian because of WHO they believed in. It's the same today... Churches flaming one another... discussion board members insulting one another ... because what they believe, is more important to them than JESUS- because what they believe, is more important than the person that the Spirit of Jesus is dwelling in. Religion can take on so many disguises.

I don't care what your creed is or what you consider your essentials to be. Do you know the Lord Jesus? Are you following Him? Are you His disciple? That's all that matters to me. To be honest, that doesn't really matter to me either- because if you don't know Him now, I believe you will someday and we will be worshipping him together.

Count It All Joy

Are you ready to count it all joy this morning?
Count it all joy!

Count what all joy, you say?
Our trials! Trials test our faith and exercise our faith.
The working or exercising of our faith works patience.
We all want patience right?
If we let patience work or have its way,
we'll be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
Wow... Wanting nothing. Sounds good, doesn't it?
We have to yield to those trials though, so patience can work. Those are the rules.

Try this- the next time you find yourself in a trial or a trying experience, tell the Lord "thank you" for it.
Say, "I thank you for this trial, Lord.
Please help me to yield to it, learn from it and worship you in it."
Then tell the Lord how wonderful He is and sing Him a song!
It's a beautiful experience to see a trial change from pain to triumph when we can give up our rights to comfort and suffer with Christ. That's when we will suddenly feel joy leap in our soul like a well of water springing up.
It's glorious!!!
It's His will for you.
Let's allow Him to mould us and shape us for His service today-no matter WHAT it takes. Are you ready? God is with you!

*James 1:2-4

No Sap?

"If there is no sap in the tree, it will not bear fruit"

This little proverb clearly illuminates an ongoing problem among many of us . We see a lack of obedience in our lives and so then condemnation comes. We try and try and try and we are left all tired out and ready to give up.

Dear friends, the secret is in the sap! "Trying" to bear fruit is fruitless, frustrating work! Our Lord Jesus Christ, through His Spirit, is the one who produces the fruit- not us! It's hopeless without Him!

If we try to do it, we will always come up short.
It is through Him abiding in us- and us abiding in Him that we are able to walk as He walked; because now, He walks in us!
If we can grab hold of that truth- it will set us free from the burden of an endless list of do's and don'ts!

So many times our focus gets off of Him and onto us.
"I should be doing better" we say.
Oh no, *I* is NOT the answer!
It is by His Spirit in us that we can obey.
God loves to produce fruit! He can't help but do so.
Our hope must be fixed completely on Him and on His grace- not on our ability to do better.
We must not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead! It's all about God... It's all about HIM!

Discouraged?

How are you doing today?
Are you feeling down, dull or discouraged?
The Father's will, is for His children to rise above all the things of the earthly realm and set their mind on things above.

Let Him set your mind on the heavenly things today.
It is so worth it!
His Spirit was given to us
that we might walk as Jesus walked.
So that He could walk in our steps.
Let's walk worthy of Him today.
We can do this by giving Him our all.
Hold nothing back from Him.
Look to Him to be your all.

He has called you and redeemed you
and translated you into the kingdom of His dear Son.
It is a true and complete salvation.
He saved you from sin and it's ravaging affects.
He called you, that you might be free from the law of sin and death. Sin has no dominion over you.

Rejoice in the fact that you can know
the living and most powerful of all Beings.
You can be in Him and He is in you.
Awesome! Amazing! Tremendous and glorious!!!!
Offer up yourself as a living sacrifice unto God today.
Let him live through you today and shine through you so that you might be light and salt to the earth.

That's My Dad!

Do you want to be like Jesus? I do.
I didn't have a daddy when I was a little girl. There was no big man to look up to and think, "That's my dad!"
But now I have a Daddy- a Heavenly One.
And I want to be JUST like Him when I grow up.

Do you want to grow up? I do.
I want to grow into the image of the Son.
I remember reading the gospels for the very first time after I was converted. I drank in every word about Jesus.
Finally, I had found a man that I could trust!
Not only was He one that I could trust but He was one that I could follow! And to think that the spirit of this wonderful man wants to somehow live in me! He wants me to be His temple! Wow. ~

War Stories

How's the battle going?
Do you feel like you've had all that you can take but then more came? That's my war story....

Theeeere I was... crawling along... tongue hanging out...
sun beating down... thinking I was done for... and here came more missiles!!!
"What?!"
I asked God to STOP those missiles but they just kept coming and coming and coming! I just didn't know how I could possibly battle in my weakened condition...

Well, I came to a place of realization that God was wanting me to learn a new level of warfare.
He's certainly not wanting me to fail.
He's wanting me to perk up and fight more aggressively and skillfully! Our Father doesn't want us to be the spoiled baby of the family that never has to do anything hard!
He wants us full of His Spirit and His wisdom.
He wants us strong and mighty in battle.
He wants us full of faith and confidence that we have been redeemed and that we shall triumph in HIM gloriously!

But... then that temptation comes to just crawl in a hole and let the battle pass by...
We peeeeeeek our head out of the fox hole... and guess what? There's the battle! Just waiting with its hands on its hips!
So, we might as well get it over with. Right?!

Dear soldiers, Jesus knows. He understands. He prayed that if it were the Father's will that the cup would pass from Him.
And although your battle may not be equal to a crucifixion,
it's still YOUR battle and it's making you sweat! It's hard!

Pour your heart out to Jesus and tell Him how scared you get at times. He's helped you before and He'll keep helping you.
But as we grow in Christ, there are times that it seems like He's left us to fight alone. But He hasn't. He said He'll never leave us or forsake us. That's a promise. But He wants every one of us to be mature and valuable soldiers in His kingdom and the only way that happens is to let us fight some battles- even hard ones- bloody ones! Where we even might get horribly wounded! Yikes!
But ~sigh~ we'll learn.

I wish I never had to learn things the hard way, but I have. Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered and so will I. And so will you. Let Him teach you how to war.

Farewell, comrades.
I'm praying for you.

Exhort Others

May I exhort you today to exhort others?
Are you exhorting others already? Good!
The scriptures mention exhorting one another daily...

I think there are many ways to exhort.
There's definitely a bit of risk involved.
You might say something wrong!
But hey- you just might and most probably will- say something very right!
You're a believer aren't you?
You have the Spirit of God- right?

Are you sharing your real self with others?
Or are you hiding?
Are you sharing the Lord?
This is true fellowship.

* Let us work toward the equipping of the saints.

All Things Through Christ

Just a gentle reminder that you CAN do all things through Christ which strengthens you. Every single thing that He has called you to and that He has asked you to do and allowed for you- YOU CAN DO- one day at a time.
If it doesn't seem like the strength or grace is there to do it, throw yourself upon the rock and be broken. Healing is always there for the broken hearted.

Welcome To October!

Fall is here! It won't be long and this will be the type of view
that I'll have from my house. The Appalachian hills will be covered with color! I love Fall. Maybe it's because my Birthday is in the Fall or maybe it's because I hate summer... I don't know but I'm glad Fall is here. My morning walks are now invigorating instead of a drain. I look forward to playing with my wood cook stove and I'm already collecting and pressing fallen leaves with my young son.

I hope you'll find encouragement here, this month. Many of these posts came out the desperateness of my own heart at one time or another. Through those desperate times, I came to know the Lord more. It's my prayer that you will, too.

A friend who cares,

Holly

Faith

~Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. ~

Never give up!
Are you saying, "Oh, But it hurts!"
Ahhhh... here's the key:

We all have something that we're praying about and hoping for. BUT don't make the thing you're hoping for into an idol.
Don't make "the thing" more important than your true God.
We shouldn't have the attitude that we can't REALLY be happy until "it' comes true.
Our peace, joy, and reason for living HAS to be in the Lord Jesus Christ-
NO MATTER what's going on around you.
He's the only Way we'll ever truly be happy.

I want to join with you in prayer today-
Whatever it is you're hoping for- if it is truly God's will- that He will bring it to pass.

And then- you press on!
Confidently go on in the knowledge that we serve the God of all creation. And remember- He's REALLY GOOD and He's really good at answering prayers.

Never Let Go Of Your Hand

Please believe the words of this song today.


NEVER LET GO OF YOUR HAND
BY DON FRANSICO


I know what you’ve been hearing
I’ve seen you hide your fears
Embarrassed by your weaknesses
Afraid to let me near
I wish you knew how much I long
For you to understand
No matter what may happen child-
I’ll never let go of your hand


I know you’ve been forsaken
By all you’ve known before
When you failed their expectations
They frowned and closed the door
But even though your heart itself
Should loose the will to stand
No matter what may happen child-
I’ll never let go of your hand


The life that I have given you- No one can take away
I’ve sealed it with my Spirit, blood and word
The everlasting Father has made His covenant with you
And He’s stronger than the world you’ve seen and heard


So don’t you fear to show them
All the love I have for you
I’ll be with you everywhere
In everything you do
And even if you do it wrong and miss the joy I planned
No matter what may happen child I’ll never let go of your hand

Please Don't Give Up!

Please don't give up!
The journey isn't over yet.
Please don't give up the fight.
I know it's hard- It's really, really hard!
But you *can* go on.
You can do it- You really can!
You can do it through Christ.
God really *does* care.
He knows your pain

and He knows your weaknesses.
God loves you, precious lamb.
Keep following the Good Shepherd.
I'm praying for you.

Let God Arise

Let God arise and all your enemies be scattered!

Through your God, you shall do valiantly,
for it is He that shall tread down your enemies!

You are more than a conqueror through Him that loves you- therefore greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world!

God always causes you to triumph in Christ and no weapon that is formed against you shall prosper!

If God our Father be for you, who can be against you?
No one!

So be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might because you are on the winning side!

*Faith is the victory- His faith!

Jesus Never Fails

I was reminded of this simple song this morning:

Jesus never fails
Never, never fails
I'm glad, so glad
Jesus never fails

It doesn't matter what it is!
Doubt says "but this is different".
Nope! Not true. Jesus is true and He never fails.
What ever it is today,
let's cast it all over on the Lord.
He can handle it.
He never fails!

Worthy Vessels

Don't think you're not worthy to be used by God.
You are a cleansed vessel for the Master's use.
You are more than a conqueror!
Doubts might come in and say that you are

too much of a failure to reach out to anyone else.
Don't you believe it!
Let our Father, the Father of lights,
fill you with the oil of His Spirit today.
Let Him make you a shinning lamp for His glory.
You are so delightfully precious to God.
He wants to see you shine.

Arise Shine!

Arise shine for thy light is come

Arise shine for thy Light is come

And the glory of the Lord is risen

The glory of the Lord is come

The glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.



Arise people!

We have been given a great Light!

The Light has come!

The things which were hidden have been uncovered.

God's heart and plan have been revealed!

Mysteries have been solved.

We don't have to wait and wait for some great day to dawn!

It is here!

The Forest Floor

My Lord has given me a forest to tend.

It's a secret garden type of forest and I have loads of fun working in it! It seems as though there is more dead wood than live wood there. My young son and I laughingly refer to it as "dead wood forest". But then we tell our selves that we must think positively and believe for the good wood.

Every time I'm working out there, I feel an excitement in my spirit, soul and body. (Until the next day when I'm teeeeribly sore!) I pull down strong, dead branches out of the tree limbs. They have been trapped there for years and years. Sometimes I have to pull REALLY hard before that death looses its hold and then the branch comes crashing down as I tuck my head and laugh. The whole tree is shaken and sometimes other dead branches that were trapped there come crashing down too.

Fun!

Then there are the vines. Vines, vines, vines. They are long, overgrown, bossy vines that tangle and choke the tress and bushes. You can hardly tell the tree from the vine! Although the vines are lighter and never come crashing down, they take even more work because they twist and turn and go all through the trees. They want to become a part of the tree. I pull, pull, pull, and then SNAP! The tree is free!

It is incredibly rewarding work.

Then there's dry, dry, doubly dead branches that are ALL OVER the ground. They have to be collected, too and cast into the fire. You can hardly walk through the forest as long as they are lying around.

Then finally, I rake up all the small branches, bark, twigs, leaves, dead grass, weeds and trash. Ah-h-h-h. The forest is clean from top to bottom!

Now you probably have guessed that the Lord has spoken to me through my work and perhaps HE has already spoken to you, too. Mainly- dead works have to go! They are worth nothing. They weigh on us and the good life that God wants us to have. When the dead works are moved out of the way, the good life can flourish.

The little twisty vines that strangle our life in Christ have got to go, too. They are not so noticeable all the time but they are there. They quietly do their spoiling work and they must be pulled down. Our life needs to be exchanged for HIS.

Then there's the obvious useless, stumbling logs that are in our path or maybe our eye... Yup! Gotta go!
Finally- He wants to plow, and cleanse us down to our very depths so that new life can spring up EVERY WHERE! He wants HIS fresh and invigorating life to flow through every part of our being! He wants us FULL of HIS life - full of HIM with nothing hindering!! Life is so much better than death!

I want to totally yield myself to HIM today and let HIM tend to me; to thoroughly purge me right down to the forest floor.
If you also want this, I must prepare you, you will be shaken but it will be GOOD!