Life's Cycle

Life is just a cycle, isn't it? Isaiah 40 says "All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever."

My 14 yr. old daughter had to experience this life cycle. She got Koda, on her 14th birthday, a pug, just what she has wanted, since, well.....in teen terms "4-ever"! We were all so happy and enjoyed him so much. But, Koda was sick. He had so many health issues. We really didn't see just how ill he was. But with patient, loving care, Kaylea cared for Koda, with all of his health problems. At 6 mons., the vet suggested putting him down. His little body kept failing him. He had no immunity, and everything seemed to attack his little black body on the outside, as well as the inside. It was the hardest thing we've had to do. You don't know what pain is until you have to watch your child hurt and know there isn't a thing you can do...............you would give anything to bear that burden for your child! We laid 'Kaylea's Koda Bear' to rest on October 8, 2008.

Though we could never replace Koda in our hearts, we knew we had to fill the void that was left. God helped me find a kennel close by that just happened to have 4 boy pugs left, and they were 8 weeks old! We were out for Fall Break so the girls and I loaded up and took a trip. I couldn't help but notice all of God's beauty around us! The colors of the leaves, the crisp clean air, the brightness of the sun with it's warmth, the blueness of the sky........it all engulfed us in the car, and to top it off, Casting Crowns was singing, "Tell me how far the east is from the west...." It couldn't have been a better morning! While we were saddened over the loss of Koda, we couldn't help but feel a renewed spirit rising up in us.

I discussed with Kaylea that we didn't 'lose' Koda, but were privileged to have him for the 6 months of his life. He taught us love and understanding, how to love something no matter their weaknesses, faults, illnesses. I told her that God chose Kaylea to get the privilege of caring for Koda. You see, most would have gotten rid of him immediately, they wouldn't have gone to all the trouble she did to care for him. He DEFINITELY knew what being loved was! God knew that Koda would find the love and compassion he would need on his short journey of life, and he knew that Kaylea would give that to Koda, and learn what loving at any cost would really mean. When we went to pick Koda, he came to her, she was drawn to him at 3 weeks old, and the day he turned 6 weeks old she brought him home.

Now God has stretched out her heart and given her another to love. His name is 'Kaylea's Reign Bo'..............we call him Bo. He is a fawn pug. And rest assured, he was picked out with that loving eye and patient hand of Kaylea's. We brought him home on October 9, 2008. He has touched our lives already, and is already part of the family! Ironically, he came to us on what would have been my dad's 84th birthday. Dad passed away 8 1/2 yrs ago.

Life's cycle. We are here today, and gone tomorrow. We better make our life count............and the only way to do that is through the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord! Some may say, it's just a dog.................and that's true, but they are God's creation, they bring joy and love into your life. I thank God that our life cycle, only truly begins when we kneel at the foot of that Old Rugged Cross and give our lives to Him, because then we receive ETERNAL life!

Prayer is the key component!

What is it that is the most important thing for a christian? What is the thing that the devil fights a christian on the most? PRAYER! Think about it for a minute. Prayer is the key to everything in our christian walk! And yet, we often times, put it way down on our list of things to do. The devil surely knows it's importance. That's why he gets us so busy, so we can be distracted. How many times do you get down to pray, and your mind drifts to those dishes that need to be washed, those clothes need that need to be ironed, that yard that needs mowing? It usually never fails for me, I get on my knees, and immediately one of my children come in to ask me a question. How many prayers have you finished lying in bed at night? If your like me, I always fall to sleep, mid prayer! I try to pray several times during the day, but I find if I don't steal time away in the early morning to get in touch with God, then at the end of the day I realize that I've not done it all day!

Satan knows how important prayer is, and he knows not to just tell us not to........why? Well, human nature of course! How many times did you do something as a kid.....or even now........just because you were told 'not to'. He has to be a little more sneaky. It's not that he just puts obstacles out there for us, he's very talented. How many times do you pray, and then get up and feel that God was a million miles away? Or, the devil tells you what a stupid prayer that was?

He's determined to keep us away from God....that's his job! If he can't have your soul, he wants to rob you of your joy and a victorious christian life! Just as food is a necessity to live, so is prayer a necessity for our spirits to live! Don't just use prayer time for "I need... or I want... time." Fellowship with Christ, talk with your father! We make time to eat.........we get hungry enough, we'll stop EVERYTHING for food...........God help us to do the same with our prayer time! It's that important!

I can make time to read my Bible, I can make time to go to church, sure the devil fights those, too, but he works hardest on prayer. I thought about washing my car...what's the key component there?....WATER! Sure I need the bucket, I need the sponge, I need the soap........ but they all do NO good, if I have no water! The water hose is there, but it is of no value if I don't turn the water on! Like the hose, our 'line' to Christ is always there.....but we have to go to Him! We can also have the hose in our hand, ready to use, mash the handle.....and NOTHING happens, no water!!! Turn around, and you'll find a kink in the hose. Sometimes we have to check up on our spiritual lives, don't we? Stop wondering why you can't seem to get a prayer through, and look behind you........there may just be a kink in your spiritual hose! The water is still there, ready to spray out the end, isn't it? Christ is ALWAYS there, whether we can 'feel' Him or not!

Keep your prayer life open! It's THAT important! How would you feel if your child went for days without saying a word to you? How would you feel if the only time your child spoke to you was to ask you for something? Sobering isn't it? Make a set time to meet with Christ.....every day! Sad to say, we are creatures of habit, and if we don't set a specific time, we will, often times, not follow through. But don't just talk with Him then..........but throughout the day! You are His child, and He can't wait to hear from you!!!!

We have a family member dying right now. We know that she's saved, and she's had a full life here on earth, but it still saddens us deeply to see her go. How sad it would be if we couldn't talk with our Heavenly Father! I'm so thankful that He can give her dying grace, and peace and comfort........and at the same time He can give us that grace and peace and comfort that we need to let her go! We love you, Nan! Thank you God for our time on earth with her, but thank you most of all for the eternity that we one day will share with her! Thank you for that open line of communication we have with the Father, all the time, any time! It doesn't matter how we pray, it's only that we pray! I'm so thankful that it doesn't have to be elequant, it can be simple, it doesn't have to be a prayer like anyone else prays, but You listen to each individual! I'm so thankful that it doesn't have to be approved by anyone, all I have to do is call out to my Heavenly Father, and You are there!!!!

When I Call

"When I call on Jesus...all things are possible. I can mount on wings like eagles and soar. When I call on Jesus...mountains are gonna fall. Cause He'll move heaven and earth to come rescue me when I call."

I know that you've probably heard this song many times, sung by many different christian artists. It is one of my favorite songs. The message is so powerful, and yet so simple.

The key word in the song is the word 'when'. See, all things are always possible with Jesus....but, it is WHEN we call that it becomes personal in OUR lives! No matter what we do, what situation, things will go on. The birds will keep on singing, the grass keeps growing, the rivers keep rolling to the ocean...life goes on...GOD'S creation moves ahead.

But, by using that little adverb 'when' as a conjunction, things begin to change for us personally. When means that it is at a point that something happens....'When I call on Jesus...' That's all we have to realize. We must realize that we have to stay focused on Christ and call His name and He will answer...He will move mountains, when necessary to rescue us.

When we 'call' someone, we are meaning to get an answer. Call means to speak loudly, or to summon...to require sombody to do something. By calling on Jesus, we are pleading for His attention to something that we cannot handle.......no matter how big or small. He'll never forsake us, He's always aware of our needs...........but He wants US to be aware, also.

We have a soul, capable of making decisions and choices. Nature works due to the heartbeat of God, but he wants us to call on Him. Why do we try so hard to fix things ourselves? Well, that's HUMAN nature, isn't it? Let's stay focused on our pathway for Christ and know to always seek Him........He's there....waiting with arms wide open.......ready to 'move heaven and earth to come rescue me when I call.'

Bloom Where You're Planted

Jeremiah 17: 7,8 says, "Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be anxious in the year of the drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."

Wow! That was sent just for me! Life is funny, isn't it? Just about the time you think you may have things figured out, things seem to change around and you are right back where you were. I know I'm prejudiced, but I wouldn't want to live anywhere else in this world but right here in Rock Spring, Ga. I absolutely love this area and am so thankful to be born and raised here. There is so much to do here, so many beautiful mountains, beautiful rivers, fast paced city life and slow country life as well. We are blessed to have churches on every corner. You'll find no better people than right here!

You know how it is as a teenager, everything is crazy, you always think that there is something better somewhere else. You get restless. How many times did you here someone say, "As soon as I grow up, I'm moving away from here!" It's not really the area as much as it is the turmoil inside them that makes them restless! I don't have to travel the world to know how lucky and privileged I am to live in such a great nation, and such a great area of the United States! I've lived here all of my life, and am raising my family here. A few years ago my dearest friend moved away and I thought I wasn't going to make it. I began to feel like I wanted to leave, too. The place she moved isn't any better, but it had one thing that I missed dearly........her. For a little while, the devil had me in a tail spin. But, life is good and having Jesus Christ is the best. I soon realized that she is where God needs her to be and I am exactly where I need to be. Our bond is not broken.........like the devil wants you to believe. If anything it is stronger! I don't envy her, I wouldn't want to live where she is.........it's not where God has planted me!

We all have to realize that God has a purpose for each of us, there are no accidents or coincidences! There's enough love and blessings for everyone. Don't worry when you don't understand what is going on in your life, or around you.......if you are a child of the King, then your roots are spread to the river.....and even in times of drought, you don't have to fear.......He is with you always, no matter where you are!

I am honored and privileged to be born right here in North Georgia! (In my opinion the absolute best place to be). And you know what.....if He were to tell me to go to Africa tomorrow, I would go with a smile on my face, and be glad to tell you just how wonderful a place it is to live there........why?...........because I am like that tree planted by the river with my roots spread, no matter where I am I will not 'cease from yielding fruit'. My hope is in the Lord, I trust Him, He will never forsake me. Praise His name that no matter what choices we make, His 'river' will NEVER run dry, He is always there to strengthen us...we've just got to bloom where we are planted!

"They That wait...."

"Hast thou not known? has thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." --Isaiah 40: 28-31

That is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. It has helped me so many times when I thought I was at the end of my rope. I've studied it over and over and it never gets old, and often I learn something new. Isn't God's Word amazing!

Recently I was looking at the passage.........something that I've seen before, held onto before, counted on before....jumped out at me in a different way. Verse 31 tells us to wait upon the Lord to renew our strength. Okay, I've always seen that, and have quoted it many, many times. But this time I really focused on the word wait. What does that mean?


Well, I've looked in several dictionaries, american, greek, hebrew. They all kept coming back to this, doing nothing, expecting something to happen. That got my thoughts churning. Wow....let that soak in...doing NOTHING but EXPECTING something to happen!

Before when I've meditated on these verses, I waited on the Lord, waited for my prayer to go through, waited on my prayer to be answered. But I've seen 'wait' as this: I thought of it as perhaps a waiting room, just sitting, wishing away the seconds, minutes, hours, until you got the news you were waiting for. Have you ever been there? It's the most tiresome 'nothing' you'll ever do.

Then I watched my daughter's 5 month old puppy the other night. He has a lot of food allergies. He can only eat chicken, lamb, and rice. That's all! He has learned what the word 'chicken' is and boy, you say that word to him and he gets all bent out of shape! My daughter was eating some chicken fingers and he was so excited. He was at her chair with his front paws up beside her legs, tail wagging, eyes totally on her, and I think I saw a little bit of drool in the corner of his mouth! It didn't matter what was going on in the house, he had his eye on my daughter, and her chicken. I even called his name, and he might've given me a quick glance, but he was right back looking at her so intently. He never whined, never wimpered, but stayed quietly by her side. And you know what....he was rewarded with a savory piece of her chicken!

Let me tell you, that hit me like a ton of bricks!!!! What am I doing?? I'm sitting around, twiddling my thumbs.........waiting, just waiting. Often getting tired, bored and distracted! That's not what the Bible means!

Don't give your burden to Christ and then sit on the curb waiting for the answer! Let's change out the word wait for another word "...they that FIXATE upon the Lord shall renew their strength..." My daughter's little pug was wanting a bite of her chicken, and he let her know that. BUT, he was fixated on her. He didn't let anything distract him. He patiently was fixated on her, and he was rewarded!

In order to get renewed strength, I must bring my burdens to the Lord, but instead of just sitting, I must fixate upon Him, keep my focus on Him, stay in His Word, and just as little Koda received his chicken, I will receive my renewed strength! You see, if Koda had passively waited, he might not have been there to get that delicious chicken bite. He would've gotten bored, maybe have fallen asleep, or turned his attention elsewhere. But, because he fixated upon his master...actively waited....he was rewarded!

Forever, oh Lord, do I want to fixate upon you so that I will never miss those nuggets that you so freely give!

First Day of School, Aug. 5, 2008!

Wow!! I can't believe it! Today Kaylea begins her freshman year in high school, and Riley begins her 6th grade year at the middle school! Where does the time go? Seems like only yesterday I was taking a picture of Kaylea with her little backpack before she went to preschool, and had Riley still in diapers!!!!

They are wonderful girls, I am so proud of them. I am so blessed to have them in my life! Kaylea is now on the volleyball team, she's so excited! Go Trojans!!!

Spiritual Dehydration

Have you ever been thirsty? Silly question, huh? Of course, we have all been thirsty! There's nothing I enjoy more than a big ole glass of ice water after I've come in from a run! It does something for me that nothing else can do at that particular moment! Sure, a cool fan in front of my face feels really good........but that ice water does something for me that the fan cannot! You see, the water cools me from the inside out. The fan is only external! Are you seeing the spiritual connection I'm making here? We can do so much to change our outward appearance. We want to do better, so we clean up the 'outward man'. We cut our hair, change our clothes, stop drinking, stop smoking, stop cursing.........but you see, that's all just temporary, that's all just external. BUT....if we get a drink of the Holy Spirit.........that changes us from the inside out!

Have you ever wondered why we need water to survive? Well, our bodies are made up of mostly water. Approximately 85% of your brain, 80% of your blood, and 70% of your muscle is water. Every cell in your body needs water to live. Water helps remove the dangerous toxins that your body takes in from the air you breathe, the food you eat, and the chemicals used in the various products you use on your hair and skin. Water also cushions your joints and carries oxygen and nutrients into all your cells, as well as regulates your body temperature. You need water to keep your metabolism working correctly. For this to happen, there is a certain level of water in each of our bodies that we need to maintain. If we don't keep that amount, our bodies will start to dehydrate. Water is vital to our livelihood!

Water is often used in the Bible as an example of the Holy Spirit. Just like water is vital to our physical bodies, Christ is vital to our spiritual bodies. I'm reminded of the story in John, chapter 4, of the Samaritan woman at the well. Jesus was at the well when she came to it, and he asked for a drink. She could not understand why a Jew would ask this of a Samaritan, because they had no dealings with each other. Verse 10 says, "Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would hav given thee living water." He goes on in verses 13 and 14 to say, "Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosover drinketh of this water shall thirst again; But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."

This physical body takes in water and it tastes so good, and makes us feel so much better....but, go to work again, start sweating again......what happens? We get thirsty all over again! The 'fix' is only temporary, we have to find more water to quench our thirst! I'm so glad that Christ gladly took my place on the cross and shed his blood for me, that as a 7 year old little girl, I gladly asked Him into my heart..........and now the 'well of water' dwells within me that gives me everlasting life! Thank you, Jesus!!!

But wait..........the title is called 'spiritual dehydration', isn't it? If I have the 'well of water springing up into everlasting life' within me, then how can I get spiritually dehydrated, right? Yes, I believe in eternal salvation, John 3:16 tells me that, but we can drift away from where we should be on our spiritual walk. It doesn't mean we are 'lost' again, or that the well has dried up within us, it simply means we have gone astray.........we have backslidden. And while I am at it....let me say, this is a DAILY battle that we must face, physically and spiritually!

If we withhold water for a day from our physical body, we will start to see some physical signs of dehydration. It starts slow, and for a while people will not be able to notice, but keep withholding the water, and everyone will eventually know! Your blood pressure will start dropping, blood clots may form, your kidney function will be impaired, your skin starts to dry, you head begins to hurt......just to name a few...........without intervention, you will die!

If we withhold 'spiritual' water for a day, you will start seeing 'spiritual' changes in us as well! What is 'spiritual' water, you ask..........it's daily reading the Bible and daily prayers! At first, no one can see a difference, but given time without it, they will! You get 'cold'. You begin to see everything in a critical spirit. Those things that were sinful to you, begin to not look so bad. You begin to find excuses for staying home instead of being at church. Before long, you are completely out of fellowship with Christ and right where the devil wants you......spiritually dehydrated..........and if you don't change things.......you will spiritually die!

What can we do about it? Well, when that first sign of thirst hits us.....what do we do? We go to the nearest sink and pour us a glass of water. As we drink it, to anyone else's eye, we look the same, they can't see any difference. But we can feel it can't we? I come in all hot and sweaty from running, and to feel that cool wetness go over my tongue and down my parched throat, and into my stomach........it makes a difference in me! My family can't see it, but I sure can! Before long though, my family begins to see that I'm not sweating anymore, my face isn't as red, and I'm not panting like I was before! Same thing spiritually! We start our day off in God's Word and in prayer. No one can see any 'difference' in us. But hold on, let the troubles and trials of this world hit us........and it will definitely show if we've been in contact with God, won't it?

God, please help me to realize just how much more the importance of spiritual hydration is for me, even more than physical hydration. Keep me close to that wonderful fountain that you placed in my soul on February 27, 1977. Help me to stay sensitive to your guidance, that when I feel the tug of spiritual thirst, that I can quickly restore my soul through, You, Oh, Lord. Thank you for sharing your Word with us, and giving us your Holy Spirit!

'There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Immanuael's veins. And sinners plunge beneath that flood, lose all their guilty stains! Lose all their guilty stains, lose all their guilty stains....and sinners plunge beneath that flood, lose all their guilty stains!!"