When the ordinary becomes extraordinary

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform 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. Romans 12:1-2

As I was making my bed one morning I thought about what a routine it is. It's mundane work that must be done each morning. I guess the same could be said for washing the same dishes day after day or doing the same laundry week after week. Most of those daily chores can be done without much thought. But that particular morning I heard God's Spirit speak to my heart. With the sun rising each morning and setting each evening, God has been doing the same routine within the universe for eons. The sun comes up each morning and the moon goes through its phases each month. The seasons change each year and the cycle has continued since the beginning of time. 

What does that tell me about God? He is faithful and He expects His children to be faithful also. Psalm 136 reminds us over and over that "His love endures forever." 

Years ago God's Spirit prompted me to begin praying for the lost people in the world. I initially started with a map from an old atlas. I marked off each country as I prayed for the people who lived there. In time, I found the Every Home for Christ World Prayer Map and began praying around the world each month. I don't know how many editions of the map I have used, but I can honestly say that I have prayed around the world for at least 10 years. 

I suppose you could say that I have been faithful in prayer for the lost people of the world, but the trouble with that kind of prayer life is that you have no way of gauging answered prayer. It hasn't stopped me though, I continue to pray month after month, year after year.

While reading a devotion in The Upper Room one morning I had the distinct impression that God was showing me an answer to prayer. The devotional was written by a person living in Estonia who came to a belief in Jesus Christ only recently. As I read the devotional, I sensed that maybe this was one of those people I had been praying for faithfully for so many years. 

My ordinary prayers have been heard and God is constantly answering those requests without my being aware of the answers. The ordinary has become extraordinary. I think sometimes our Heavenly Father gives us a glimpse into the kingdom as a reminder of His faithfulness and encouragement for us to remain faithful. 

Some day I'll walk through the gates of heaven and be greeted by those who entered the kingdom because I prayed for God to reach them. I pray for Him to reveal Himself to those who are seeking Him. I know that His will is that none would perish and so I continue, in faith, to ask that He rescue the perishing and give hope to the hopeless. 

God is faithful in keeping the universe in motion, He is faithful in providing for all my needs and the very least I can do is remain faithful in prayer.

Is it time to move on?

Has God ever prompted you to look for a new job? Has He ever directed you to move to a new home or go somewhere for a ministry?

The God of the universe is the same today as when He created the world. He is still creating, He is still providing for those He created and He is still at work in the world. He has a plan for each person and He needs our cooperation in order for His plans to come to fruition. 

My husband was recently called by God into full-time ministry - it's exciting to know that we are working with God toward ministering to the needs of others, but, in this case, His call also meant that we had to move. 

In June 2012 we moved into a parsonage two hours away from our home, our son and his family and all the friends we had made over the years. It wasn't an easy thing to do, but we have been obedient and are looking forward to working with God on this new venture.

It seems like maybe it was easier for the Israelites as they traveled through the desert. God's presence was literally with them in the tabernacle. When He was ready to move on, He gave them a signal, they pulled up stakes, packed everything and hit the road. He led them in the direction He wanted them to go - no questions asked. When His presence stopped, they set up their tents, unpacked and lived their lives in that place until He was ready to move them again. They were so focused on God and what He wanted that they didn't even question Him. They just obeyed and followed His lead.

There were so many folks in the Bible who were willing to move to keep in step with God and a few who serve as a reminder of what happens when we're not obedient.

Adam and Eve are the first examples of disobedience. They had it made. They were in a direct relationship with God and He provided all they needed in the Garden of Eden until they opted to disobey Him. Soon they were packing their fig leaves and moving out of that place of safety and provision. 

Jonah was asked by God to go to Nineveh and preach repentance to the people who lived there, but instead he chose to run the other direction and we know that God soon redirected him using a large fish. God had a plan and Jonah was chosen by God to help carry-out that plan. It would have been easier for him to just do what God asked him to do, but his disobedience serves as a reminder to us. God's plans will not be thwarted.

Abram willingly left his homeland when God asked him to move on. Through Abraham and Sarah, God's plans for the nation of Israel were fulfilled. 

Moses tried to force God's plans to free the Israelites from forced labor sooner than God wanted and he then fled to Midian until God called him back to Egypt to free the people of Israel. 

Daniel was forced into exile in Babylon, but God had a plan for His people even in the midst of their captivity. God used Daniel's move to His glory.

Naomi and her daughter-in-law, Ruth, moved from Moab back to the land of Judah and God's plans for the lineage of a savior for the world were put in place through that move, because Ruth married Boaz and became the grandmother of David.

After Jesus was born and King Herod was seeking to kill all the children born in Bethlehem, Joseph was instructed by God in a dream to move Mary and Jesus to Egypt for their safety. They later moved to Nazareth.

The disciples were told to move when the persecution of Christians began shortly after the birth of the church. Had they stayed in Jerusalem, the "good news" wouldn't have spread throughout the world.

God definitely moves people into areas where He has plans. He moves people for a variety of reasons - some because of their disobedience, others move because of a rescue operation. Some are called to move because God needs a leader in a specific area and still others move to spread the gospel message. 

We need wisdom and discernment when we sense God asking us to relocate, start a new job or start a new ministry. The wisdom we need comes from God and as we spend time in prayer and fellowship with Him, we are assured that we are moving according to His will. 

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  (Jeremiah 29:11)

Sometimes the only way that we can really believe that God is leading us into a new pathway is by looking back. 

When a job loss prompted my husband and I to move 12 years ago, we asked for God's direction and He led us to the perfect location. Our time in that home was filled with blessings and we experienced God's provision in the midst of financial troubles. He did indeed prosper us and He gave us hope and a future. 

If God took care of us 12 years ago, we know that He will take care of us today. He hasn't changed and He knows what is best for us and all those folks we encounter. 

It is exciting to be part of God's plans and I pray that you have opportunities to "move-on" with Him.

The Desires of your Heart

I was recently asked to speak to the United Methodist Womens group of Sardinia (Ohio) United Methodist Church for their spring dinner. I was honored to speak to them but warned them that I'm a writer, not a speaker. I asked the Lord for direction on what to speak about and this is the message that He gave me...

"Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

This scripture has played an important part in my life without me even realizing it until recently.

I think it's more of a hindsight scripture - and maybe after I share my story,  you'll be able to look back over your life and have your own story to share.

For a lot of years, my husband and I were what I would call nominal Christians. We were in church every Sunday morning, we participated in Sunday school and helped with some of the duties of the church, but we weren't totally committed to Christ.

When we planned a move from our hometown of Springfield, Ohio to New Richmond, Ohio back in 1992, our hearts were changing. We prayed before we started looking for homes and asked God for His direction. We found the perfect house between Amelia and New Richmond. The house was located next door to Mt. Pisgah United Methodist Church which became a growing place for our faith. We were challenged by our pastor to spend five more minutes each day in devotional time and I took him up on the challenge.

As I spent more time each day in Bible study and devotions, the Lord really began to speak to my heart. I wanted to serve Him, but wasn't exactly sure what He wanted me to do. I was searching for His will and my heart was dedicated to Him (I was delighting myself in the Lord)

A spell of bad weather, coupled with someone's sickness, gave me an opportunity to become the message board keeper at the church. The road where we lived is a well-travelled road and I viewed the church message board as a way to reach all those folks who drove up and down our road each day. I suppose you could say that it was the "desire of my heart" to place the Word of God along that stretch of road.

Scripture tells us that God's word will not return void, but will accomplish whatever God wants it to accomplish. "As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:10-11) I truly believed that Word and I wanted to get God's Word out to the general public.

It was about the same time that I began keeping a journal and recording my prayer concerns and God gave me basic images to go along with my prayers and Bible studies. I was learning daily about the power of God and was like a sponge, just soaking up His Word.

I wanted to reach people with the good news, but the only tool that I had was the little message board and the church newsletter that I had started. When our time was over at Mt. Pisgah, we began going to Bethel United Methodist Church and I worked on the church newsletter, helped with the message board, taught a couple classes and continued journaling.

In 1998 my husband was transferred to Chicago and my faith continued to grow, my journal continued to be filled with primitive images and my heart still longed to share the good news.

When we moved back to the Cincinnati area in 2000, God began to open doors of opportunity for me. He knew that I had a strong desire to pray and helped me to study everything I could about prayer. I helped an old friend work on a newsletter for her church and started putting my journal writing and images together into a devotional format. 

I was working for Health UC as part-time office help.

I remember asking God one day to find a way for me to use my experience with page layout because it was something that I really enjoyed.

Another door opened when I was asked to layout two publications for Health UC. I had to work closely with The News Democrat publisher, Steve Triplett because the paper was going to print the publications. Shortly after I finished that task, I applied for a page layout job at the newspaper and was hired. It was an answer to my prayer - God knew the desires of my heart and what seemed impossible to me, was possible for God.

As I worked for the paper, other doors opened. They discovered that I could write articles and sent me on assignments. My creative juices began to flow as I found an outlet for my "hidden desires." 

One of the assignments I'm most proud of was the series that I wrote about cancer survivors to promote the Relay for Life in Brown County, Ohio. When I received an award for that series, it was incredible. It was confirmation for me that I could really write for the Lord.

The more I wrote, the more I wanted to write and then I began to write a column for the Sunday paper. My publisher was very supportive when I asked if I could share my faith in my column. I didn't want to become known as a religious fanatic, but with the paper being delivered to every house in the county, I had a huge platform to share the good news. 

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart...

When I posted those little messages on the church board, I had no idea that one day I would be writing a column for the newspaper. When I asked God to use me, I didn't really know that I had a talent for writing. Journal entries are one thing, but writing on a daily basis for others to read is something quite different. 

I did finish my devotional book, but so far - no publisher. But God has even helped me with that desire. In May 2009, I had been let go at The News Democrat because of budget cuts and I began posting my devotionals on this blog under the title "Getting to Know God." 

I prayed about that decision also and asked God to make those God-inspired devotions reach those who needed to know about His great love for them. 

I'm happy to report that as of this week, 13,219 people have viewed my blog. Everyday between 40 - 50 people from around the world access my blog and get to read about God's love. In the three years since I started it, people from the United Kingdom, Canada, the Philippines, Australia, India, Russia, South America, the middle east, the Netherlands, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Singapore and South Africa have visited my blog. Today I am happy to say that I am sending God's Word around the world and it all started with a little message board at a little country church.

Does God know the desires of your heart? Look into your heart very closely and then be prepared when God starts fulfilling those desires. 

Jesus is the Easter lamb

Happy Easter! The focus this week for Christians around the world has been on the events in the life of Christ leading up to His death on the cross and His resurrection which we celebrate today.

I’ve spent some time this week reflecting on Passover and the Passover Lamb. The Word of God is filled with references to lambs and and the shedding of their blood. It sounds gruesome, but as the word says, “Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin.” It’s necessary and a blessing if we want a relationship with the God of the universe.

At His last supper with His disciples, Jesus blessed the cup of wine and told His disciples that it represented His blood, which was the new covenant. He also blessed the bread and asked His disciples to eat it in remembrance of Him. The communion bread represents the body of Christ and the wine represents His sinless blood.

If we compare the Jewish Passover with what Jesus accomplished on the cross, we can find so many similarities. The Passover lamb was to be slaughtered at twilight, the Jewish people had to apply the blood of the lamb to the doorposts of their homes and then eat all of the lamb. When the angel of death went throughout Egypt, it passed over the homes where the blood was applied and the first born in the homes where there was no blood all died. Jesus died on the cross in the late afternoon, His blood covered the beams of the cross which represent, to believers, a doorway to eternal life.

As believers, we symbolically eat His body and drink of His blood every time we take communion - it is an act of remembering what He did for us.

I find it interesting that people are referred to as sheep throughout the Bible and Jesus is referred to as the Lamb of God. If we think of Him as a lamb, we think of a meek, helpless, docile creature. But the Bible reminds us in 1 Corinthians 1:27, “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.”

Jesus could have become the King of the World when He walked on the earth, but that wasn’t the reason He was here. He came to offer salvation to the rest of us weak sheep. The only way He could do that was to become a “sheep” himself.

If that was the end of the story, it would be kind of sad, but His resurrection was a demonstration of God’s power and Jesus’ willingness to die for our sins was the ultimate in obedience to God.

The good news is that Jesus will come back again, but not as a meek lamb. The next time that Jesus sets His feet on the earth, it will be as a conquering king and all of those who believe in Him and have accepted His gift of forgiveness will join with Him when He returns.

That is the message of Easter - we serve a king who willingly died for us. We serve a king who has overcome sin and death. Our King Jesus is alive and well and just waiting for the right moment to return and set up His government on earth.

He is risen! He is risen indeed!

Surrender to Christ

I can't remember a time when I didn't believe in Jesus Christ. As a child, my parents taught me about Christ, I went to Sunday school each week and truly loved Jesus, but there was still something missing. I had the love of Jesus in my heart, but it wasn't until later in life that I finally gave up control of my life and let God's Holy Spirit take over.

We can have head knowledge about what Jesus did on Calvary, but that knowledge has to become personal because we were created by a relational God. He wants to play a part in our everyday, walking around through the world life.

I was 42 years old when I finally got it! 

I had more time on my hands than ever before and was challenged by my pastor to spend an extra five minutes each day reading God's Word. I devoted the first part of each morning to reading the Bible and the Upper Room Devotional book. I started writing down the scriptures that spoke to my heart. I didn't realize it at the time, but I was filling my heart with God's Word and that enabled His Spirit to begin a good work in me.

I can't tell you the exact date, but one day all of the sins I'd ever committed flashed before me and just like Isaiah (Isaiah 6:1-5) I felt completely ruined. It seemed that there was no hope for someone as sinful as me. Repentance was the necessary first step toward a new relationship with God.

Suddenly, the selfless act of Christ dying on the cross took on new, personal meaning for me. He died for my sins - my sins! He didn't have to do it, but His love for me was so great that He chose to cover my sins. 

I went to my knees that day in my living room and surrendered my life to Him. My prayers of gratitude seemed to flow for hours. I just kept repeating to God that if I stayed on my knees before Him for the rest of my life, it wouldn't be long enough to thank Him for what He had done for me. 

My life was changed, my heart was changed - I was still the same old me, but there was now a lightness within me that is almost impossible to explain. In that short span of time - probably about an hour - I knew that I would never be the same.

God's Holy Spirit had been waiting for me to surrender and now He could guide and direct my paths.

I had an assurance that I would spend eternity with God and it was the most freeing experience of my life.

I don't want to mislead you into thinking that my life has been a bed of roses since that encounter, but from the moment that I surrendered my life to Christ completely, I have felt the presence of God with me through all of life's ups and downs. I'm not in this alone.

There is an old hymn written by Charles Wesley that best expresses this new personal relationship. I want to share the words with you.

And Can It Be?

And can it be that I should gain an intrest in the Saviors blood? 

Died He for me, who caused His pain? 

For me, who Him to death pursued? 

Amazing love! How can it be, that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

Long my imprisoned spirit lay. 

Fast bound in sin and nature's night: Thine eye diffused a quick'ning ray, I woke, the dungeon flamed with light. 

My chains fell off; My heart was free. 

I rose, went forth and followed Thee. 

Amazing love! How can it be, that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

If you don't have Christ in your heart, if you haven't really surrendered your life to Him but you'd like to, I suggest you start by reading these verses in Romans 3:23, 6:23, 5:8 and 10:8-10.

After you've asked for forgiveness and have truly repented of your sins, invite God's Spirit to take control of your life. You will never regret it.

Keep reading God's Word because it is your best defense!

Returning home

There is just  something about this time of year that makes home extra-special. The time change has many of us returning home from our work day in darkness, but if you're lucky enough to have someone waiting for you, the lights may be shining in the darkness, welcoming you back from a long, hard day.

I can remember walking up the street toward my home when I was a kid and to see the kitchen light shining in the darkness was always so comforting. I knew that my mom would be in the kitchen cooking up dinner and the house would be filled with the smells of something tasty. The house would also be warm and toasty, a nice change from the chilly autumn air. My family was there, the people who loved me the most and soon we would all be crowded around the kitchen table sharing the events of our day with one another.

As I drove up our driveway the other evening, the memories of my childhood popped into my mind and created a warm, cozy feeling. The lights were welcoming me home and although my mom wasn't in the kitchen cooking, my husband was busy preparing dinner and it smelled wonderful when I walked through the door. We spent the evening sharing the highlights and low points of our day. The feeling of being loved and cared for was the same as that of my childhood.

As a Christian, I've often imagined what it will be like when I leave this old world behind and enter the gates of Heaven. I expect it to be a homecoming of "epic proportions." The warm, cozy feelings I've had on this earth are just a preview of what awaits me there.

Jesus said that he was going to prepare a place for His disciples and that we would one day spend eternity with Him. 

I'm not sure what my heavenly dwelling will look like, but I know that when I arrive there, I'll just know that I've arrived home. I don't think we'll need lights to illuminate the darkness, the Bible says that we won't even need the sun because God himself will illuminate the Holy City. There will be plenty of loving people waiting to greet me and I'll be enveloped in a loving environment.

Thanksgiving was observed in homes across our nation in November. I'm sure that many of the gatherings were filled with happy reunions and loving conversation, but there were also many stress-filled family gatherings. Many folks who had no family to celebrate the day with or those who were estranged from their families. 

Not everyone has memories of homes filled with love and acceptance. There are many folks who have missed out on a welcome hug as they return home. If you know someone like that, include them in your own celebrations. If they turn down the invitation, fix them a plate and deliver it to them. Find a way to create a beautiful memory for them. Sometimes memories are all we need to make it through the day. 

Joyful, joyful we adore Thee

Joy is such a small little word, but it is an amazing word - the dictionary describes it this way: It is an emotion evoked by well-being, success or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires; a state of happiness or felicity. Other words to describe joy include delight, gaiety, bliss - the word joy is derived from the Latin word gaudia which is akin to the Greek word to rejoice.

As I ponder the word joy this third week of Advent, it seems that all those definitions fit with the plans that God had when He sent Jesus to earth. The life, death and resurrection of Christ has evoked in believers a sense of well-being; God himself must have experienced great joy when Christ agreed to come and live among mankind and willingly die for the sins of the world because reconciliation was what He had desired for mankind and we have great joy and can rejoice because of the great love that God has shown us in making a way for us to inherit eternal life. 

The birth of Christ is cause for rejoicing - it should give us a sense of complete joy.

The Bible is full of joy from the beginning to the end. In the Old Testament the Israelites would often shout for joy, sing with joy and hold joyful celebrations - the angels have been known to shout for joy and bring news of great joy, even the unborn can leap for joy and the trees of the field can sing for joy.

God can fill us with joy, clothe us with joy, anoint us with the oil of joy and crown us with everlasting joy. Joy can be found within a city and entire nations can be joyful.

However, just because we have been joyful doesn't mean that we will always stay joyful - the Bible also warns us that joy can come to an end, it can be replaced with panic, it can wither away. 

Is there any hope for us when we lose our joy? Yes, because the Bible also says that joy can be restored - we can bring joy to others and other Christians can be our joy. Joy can also overtake us when we least expect it!

Even trials can produce joy within us: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,  because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4

My mom used to say that happiness was a state of mind, we could choose to be happy no matter what the circumstances in our lives and I believe that we can choose to be joyful no matter what! The Bible tells us to be joyful always - not just when things are going our way, but 24/7. We have a lot to be joyful about, sometimes we just need a reminder.