Tag: Faith

Journeys With God

Have you ever felt that tug, you know the one, where you felt like it was time to move on but you weren’t sure where you were supposed to go to? I know I have and when the tug starts I get a restlessness and I know that God is getting ready to do something in my life. I loved being in ministry, I had been in ministry for over ten years when I felt the restlessness. I was burned out and knew it was time for a change. It wasn’t long before God opened a door. We had been through cancer with my husband and in 2016 we had lost my mom to thyroid cancer. Looking back, I think God was preparing me for what would be a roller coaster of a ride. He opened a door for me to work at the same place as my husband. I worked there for about a year when another door opened and I went to work for a lab. God was preparing me for ministry once more. In 2019 I went back to work at the church I had previously worked at and it was such a blessing. I thought I would be working out the rest of my work days at the church. Little did I know that life would be changing once again. Because of all the construction taking place on the island where I worked, it was getting difficult to make the trip 6 days a week. What used to be a 30 minute drive was turning into a nightmare of not knowing how long it would take to get to work. I was getting restless for sure but like I stated earlier, I hadn’t planned on moving again.

You know how we only see a portion of the picture, while God sees the big picture and He knows what is up ahead. No wonder He tells us not to worry about tomorrow for tomorrow has enough of its own worries. God knew there was a time coming in which I would need to be closer to home, closer to reaching my husband in minutes and not 45 minutes to an hour or more. He opened a door. This time I was going back to work in the same place I had worked at before which was where my husband worked. Before I knew it, God opened my eyes to see why He had brought me back to a place I never thought I would work at again. At first my husband needed to have gall bladder surgery. Then after two years of not getting COVID, our whole family came down with it. Praise God we only had minor symptoms and we were able to quarantine together at home. The time was coming when my husband would need me to be seconds away as opposed to the long drive across the causeway.

My husband has graciously allowed me to share his story. You see, in the fall of 2022 my husband had a major meltdown at work and had to be hospitalized for a season. It was without a doubt one of the hardest times for not only him but for all of us. He was out of state and the only way to communicate was via snail mail and the occasional calls. I grew to dread the calls because honestly, they weren’t pleasant. He begged me to let him come home because the place he was at wasn’t quite what we thought it would be. We thought it was a faith based place and it was but it wasn’t. Yes, it was what he needed at the time but it was hard. I had to be the tough one and say “no” every time he asked me to bring him home. I received his letters out of the order he had written them but not out of the order God intended them to arrive. Twenty-one days and let me tell you they were a long twenty-one days.

Some of the letters reflected the negatives and others were a little more upbeat and hopeful. Whew the negative letters-well it definitely wasn’t my husband. He did meet some Christians there also needing to get help and they sort of hung out together when possible. There were church services on Wednesdays & Sunday afternoons and a few people did attend. On one such occasion my husband witnessed someone accepting Christ as their Lord and Savior. He witnessed another rededicating their life to Christ. He was able to share a Bible study and had someone asking him to teach them how to read the Bible. But still it was hard being apart.

I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.

Psalm 118:17

My husband’s life verse Psalm 118:17 –

Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

Nehemiah 8:10b

My life verse Nehemiah 8:10b

“For where His joy is there my strength lies and my sorrows are no more. You can’t have sorrow when you have His joy for sorrow can’t exist next to His joy.“

Jean Marie

Maybe you have a similar story whether you or someone you know. I would encourage you not to give up. As a caregiver it is probably the hardest job in the world when it is someone you love. As the one who needs a caregiver, it is the hardest thing to let go and let someone else help you. Especially when you can still function on your own for the most part. There is help out there for you both whether through seeking professional assistance or through (and to me the best and most effective help) prayer warriors and your church family. Maybe you don’t have a church family or people to pray for you. I can say this if there is one person in your life who is a Christian, trust me, they are praying for you. I am a living testimony to that. I had family praying for me after I left home and I never knew it until years later after I reconnected with my faith.

Thanksgiving Celebration

Thanksgiving was an especially extra happy day for our family. My husband had been feeling downright awful this week. He wound up going home from work feeling nauseous, weak, and in a lot of pain. It was all he could do to move around. He went to the doctor and they drew blood, checked him over but couldn’t seem to find anything wrong. They gave him a prescription for the nauseousness and sent him home. Later that evening he received a call from the doctor’s office; they wanted him to return to the office the next day to pick up paper work and have a CT scan to check for pancreatitis. Apparently his levels were up and they were concerned. By this time, he had been hurting for several days, and moving around was a struggle for him. I asked him if he wanted me to take him but he said he could manage. So the next day he goes to have the scan. I had asked my sister, who happens to my prayer warrior sister, to pray. I also sent out a prayer request asking our church family to pray for negative results. Our prayers were answered! His test came back clear. This took place on Nov. 24th, the day before our 23rd wedding anniversary, which happened to fall on Thanksgiving day this year. 💕

Praise the Lord! Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

Psalm 106:1

We still don’t know what is causing him to feel bad, he still feels weak, and is in pain although it has eased up a little. We’re praying he can get in to see a pain management doctor before the end of the year.

And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.

Matthew 21:22

God bless!

Devotional ~ The Stone

David was just a youth when he faced the Philistine. He had gone, at his father’s request, to check on his brothers who were with Saul fighting the Philistines. What he heard was the fear running through the camp. He had faith and knew the Lord was on their side and that He would deliver them from the enemy. With Saul’s permission, David took the tools he was comfortable with, little as they were compared to the armor and weapons of the Philistine, and faced the enemy.

David stated what he was going to do and did it. He trusted the Lord to win the battle and he was obedient, going into battle believing the Lord would deliver him from the Philistine just as He had when David faced lions and bears while tending the flock. Because of his obedience and his faith in the Lord, David prevailed.

Just as David prevailed against overwhelming odds, we too can prevail when facing seemingly difficult situations when we trust in the Lord. David went on to become a king. What can you accomplish when you are obedient to what the Lord has for you to do?

Lord, May we be like David, obeying and trusting in You when we go into battle remembering that You have already won. Amen.

~Former Things Have Passed…

Have you ever said or did something and you wished for a do over? I know I have and I imagine you probably have too. If you think the world is in chaos now, imagine what it would be like if all you had to do was hit a button and start all over. I imagine chaos wouldn’t begin to describe what would happen. But God knew what could happen if He allowed us to make mistakes and then have a do over.

He tells us that the old things are gone but there are new things that He will bring forth even before they takes root. And when you think about that, that alone should make you want to know more about Him. Not just know about Him, but to get to know Him. To develop a personal relationship with Him. Our God created the universe, the planets and stars, and this beautiful planet full of mystery and hidden treasures. He did all of that and yet He takes the time to tell us about the things that will be coming before it happens. He didn’t have to tell us anything. In fact, He didn’t even have to make mention of it in His word but it was important enough that it made in there. Maybe He wanted us to realize that while we can’t change the past we can grab hold of the new. I pray you have a blessed and joyful day.

A New Day

Faith complete trust or confidence in someone.

Growing up as child, I never really quite grasped the meaning of faith. We went to church for awhile, and as a young child, I just accepted that the Bible was God’s word and God didn’t lie. By the time I was a young adult, life happened, and my rocky foundation of faith dwindled. Faith? What was that? Trust? Not likely.

Thank God, He did not give up on me. He put people in my path that would eventually lead me right back into His arms. Some that surprisingly I never would have thought in a hundred years had anything to do with the Lord. But they did in their own rocky way.

We were not present when God created the worlds. But we know that He did. We cannot explain it nor do we have to. It’s okay that we don’t have all the answers. His word tells us that He spoke the worlds into being. Everything in His word is truth. God cannot lie. He spoke the worlds into existence. Can you imagine? Now, I like to paint. When I look at a blank canvas the possibilities of what I can paint are endless. But I cannot speak the painting into existence. No matter how hard I try it just isn’t going to happen. Look around you, everything you see God created. He spoke every little thing into existence right down to those creepy critters that we may not appreciate. 😣 We may not know why they exist but God does. He created them. Anything that I can paint already exists. Flowers, plants, buildings, anything at all can be painted because it is visible. I can plant a garden but I did not create it. It already existed in the seeds that the Father spoke into existence. And you know what? He already knows what each plant will look like.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.

Psalm 33:6

It’s a new day. What are you going to do with it?