Our God, the master artist!

Good Morning Friends!  Forever HIS Friday!  WOW!  Our God is an AWESOME God!!!  That’s all I could think this morning as I sat down to breakfast and looked out the kitchen window…the sunrise was awe-inspiring!  I hope you had a chance to see it…..the sky was alive with color, shades of pinks and lavender,  as the sun rose slowly lighting the sky….the sky appeared to be glowing…..like hot embers in the wood stove…..God’s miraculous love glowing for us, warming us in this seemingly, at times, cold world.  I sat still for a moment…pondering…..HIS LOVE for me…for each us….how could anyone deny how HE feels about us after seeing the miracle of HIS creation in the morning sky!  A perfect reminder for us that the heavens and the earth were created by HIM, for us!  We miss so many miracles of HIS creation because we are in such a hurry, or simply do not pay attention….So, this weekend, let’s slow down….open our eyes, ears, and even our noses and take in every miracle we can find!  And more importantly….let’s open our hearts and our minds to the warm glow of HIS love….I close my eyes and see vividly the morning sky….Oh Father, there’s no way we can thank you enough….we know we do not deserve YOU, but Father we praise YOU as big as YOUR little children can.

 

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.  And God said, “Let there be light, “ and there was light……And God saw that it was good.  Genesis 1.  You  alone are the Lord.  You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them.  You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship You.  Nehemiah 9:6.  He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.  He bestows rain on the earth; He sends water upon the countryside.  The lowly He sets on high, and those who mourn are lifted to safety.  Job 5:9-11.  Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him.  Psalm 34:8.  This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalm 118:24. 

 

   I want to share a quote with you that I read this morning from Gloria Gaither, “I’ve heard a lot of sermons in my day, but the best sermon I’d heard in a long time was preached in one word by a busy waitress as she poured a cup of coffee.  God has given us this.  I don’t want to miss it.   ENJOY!”  My prayer for each of you is that you are able to “ENJOY” this weekend.

Love you all!

 

Warmed by His love

Good Morning Friends!  Totally trusting in His care, Thursday!  Tuesday evening, I was disappointed when I got home and discovered that Kim hadn’t kept the fire going doing the day; he did have his reasons, but none the less, the house was cold.  While I changed, did my evening chores, cleaned up the kitchen, you know the drill, Kim worked on getting a fire started.  As soon as I could, I got into the living room and gave the fire my special “hurry  up and get hot” touch, all the while complaining about the cold.  As I poked and prodded, adding wood, Kim asked if I wanted him to start a fire in the stove in the kitchen.  No, I said, mumbling and complaining more about how cold it was in the living room, not to mention the kitchen my gosh…how in the heck was I gonna get dinner cooked in the ice box!  Again he asked, “want me to start a fire in the kitchen?”  Again,  in  my stubbornness I said, “NO!”  Just didn’t want the hassle.  Well, this scenario went on for a while longer, me poking and prodding the fire, complaining about the cold and Kim suggesting a fire in the kitchen….Finally….I shrugged off the stubborn and conceded!  Kim got up, brought some wood into the kitchen and within a few minutes had a nice fire in the old stove…..few more minutes I could feel the chill being overtaken by warm, cozy heat; my body relaxed, my toes thawed and I was energized to go take care of dinner!  As I was cooking I thought to myself….why am I so stubborn?  Why did I fight so hard against lighting a fire in the kitchen, when I knew it was the best thing to do…when I  knew the agony of a cold house would be gone if I just let him light the fire?  Why did I waste so much time complaining when if I would have just listened to him….given up my stubborn attitude and let him start a fire……Oh my Father…..OK, OK, I get it…..what needless worry, stress, anxiety, high blood pressure, grief, worry, stress, grumpy moods, hateful attitudes, anxiety we inflict upon ourselves because we fight YOU…..fight against YOUR WILL for us…..fail to TRUST and Believe, surrender, pile it all on YOU, when all we need to do is sit back, listen and be WARM….Warmed by YOUR PERFECT LOVE, INFINITE WISDOM, MERCY, GRACE and YOUR DESIRE to take care of us…guide us….comfort, and forgive us.  Father, thank you keeping YOUR FIRE of LOVE burning for us and please keep on prodding us when we are stupidly stubborn!

 

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.  God will teach us His ways, so that we may walk in His paths.  Isaiah 2:3.  The Lord longs to be gracious to you; He rises to show you compassion.  For the Lord is a God of justice.  Blessed are all who wait for Him!  Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is He who trusts in the Lord.  Proverbs 16:20.  He who trusts in the Lord will prosper.  Proverbs 28:25.  Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.  Proverbs 29:25.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.  Proverbs 3:5.

Love you all!

Kathie A. Johnson

Crocodiles in My Kitchen: Believing in what you don't see

Good Morning Friends!  Wonderfully wrapped in HIS loving arms Wednesday!  You all remember Cooper and Katy right (in case you don’t Cooper 4 and Katy 3 are our “adopted” grandkids.  They live nearby)?  We live in an old farm house that we heat with wood.  We have a good air tight stove in the living room that for the most part works well, but sometimes when it is really cold we have a fire in the old stove in the kitchen…..until this year we had not done that for years.  Well, quite some time ago, Cooper took a keen interest in that stove and since we never used it we let him open the door and look in.  Well, way over a year ago, one day while playing with his new flashlight upon opening the stove door he discovered crocodiles residing there!  He was quite excited and of a course Papa and I played along with him, admiring the lovely crocks and offering pretend food for him to give them.  The next time Cooper was over, found his flashlight and went right to the stove to check his crocks….and each time we all took a look, playing along with his imagination.  This went on for month after month until finally his sister Katy had her own flashlight and was big enough to join in….Cooper opened the door and showed his sister the crocodiles.  His excitement was uncontainable and Katy joined right in with him.  Now this has been going on for over  a year, never ever do those kids come to our house whether together or alone ,that they do not check on their crocks.  We just smile and thank God for the blessing of children!  Remember the big snow and awful cold we had before Christmas?  Well, I was off work, but Coop and Katy’s mom had to work so Papa and I were keeping the kids.  It was so cold that morning that Papa thought maybe he better light a fire in the kitchen.  I cleared the top of the stove off and he built a nice fire…As he was getting it going it hit me the crocodiles!!!!   What would those babies think if they came over and a their crocks were all burned up….I asked Papa, “think I better get the crocks out and put them in something else?”  At first he laughed and said no and then decided….”yep, you better.”  So, I found an empty trash can and got a towel to cover the top….carefully (lol) I moved the crocks from the stove to the trash can!  When the kids got there we immediately explained that we had a fire in the stove, it was very hot, so they had to stay away…..but…before they could get upset….I showed them where I had moved their crocks!  They were delighted.  Immediately taking the towel off, checking them, holding them…of course we all did and then covering them up and placing them in a perfect place in the kitchen.  Sometime during that day………oh my gosh…..the discovery was almost too much for them!!!  The crocodiles had babies…..precious little baby crocodiles!  What a glorious day in LULA!  I have tried upon several occasions to move crocks and babies back to the stove, but with no luck!  For some reason they like them in the trash can in the middle of the kitchen!  I was telling my sister the croc tale the other day, gramma of 2 four year olds and a three year old, she totally understood and relished in their imagination.  I said to her, “I have been trying to figure out how to get a today out of this wonderful story.”  Immediately she responded, “Faith is believing in what you don’t see…..”  Wow!  Why didn’t I think of that??!!  Those precious children set a perfect example for our “faith” life.  We cannot see God, but with Holy Spirit filled faith we KNOW that HE is our ALL in ALL!  We cannot see HIM with our eyes, but we see HIM through the wonders around us, nature, kindnesses of others, special little blessings….the imagination of children…..Father, keep our faith strong so that we believe without seeing….trust without answers……forgive as you forgive us……LOVE others as YOU have shown us to LOVE….to remember….”Faith without works is dead…”  James: 2 17.

 

Though you have not seen Christ, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.  1 Peter 1:8-9.  It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.  Ephesians 2:8.  We live by faith, not by sight.  2 Corinthians 5:7.  Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.  Hebrews 11:1. 

Love you all!

June 10, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Magnificent Monday, loved by Him!  What fun we had on Saturday, Cooper arrived at 7 am backpack and blankie in tow….ready for a sleep over with Nana and Papa!  We had big plans to spend the night at our little cabin.  Oh goodness was he ever excited!  After we finished chores and had a little nap, Cooper and I got things ready to take to the cabin for a dinner of ribs, corn, and watermelon!  All of Cooper’s favorites.  Papa went over to Cooper’s house to find his fishing pole and found some worms that daddy had left for him!  Ice chest packed with everything we would need for an overnight, fishing pole and worms loaded, we headed to the cabin.  What a great evening we had, fishing, rock climbing and cooking out!  Gosh can that boy eat!  Once we finished eating I packed the leftovers back into the ice chest;  Papa heated a pot of water on the fire and Cooper had him a great bath in an old mineral tub on the cabin deck…..clean as a whistle, we read a couple of stories and headed to bed.  The next morning we were up early, loaded the truck with all of stuff and headed home to get ready for church.  Papa brought the ice chest into the kitchen so I good put things away….when I opened it, yuck!  I had forgotten to bring zip locks for the leftover ribs, consequently, they were floating in the melted ice water…..yucky mess!  I didn’t have a lot of time before church so I just got out the stuff that needed to be refrigerated and would take care of the rest after church.  Home from church and starting lunch, I notice that the ice chest is leaking….the yucky bbq- sauce water is on the kitchen floor oh great!  I grabbed a towel, threw it down on the floor and went back to lunch.  Cooper, noticing the towel on the floor, said Nana, “What’s this, what are you doing?”  I explained to him that the ice chest was leaking, making sure to show him the plug that the water was coming from.  I told him Nana has to get it emptied out.  I went back to lunch…..Cooper, thinking that he knew just what to do in this situation, had pulled the plug and was happily watching all the yucky water drain onto the kitchen floor!  Good Grief!!!!  I wanted to scream, but I knew he thought he was doing the right thing…..He “thought” he was doing the right thing……However, he should have asked, right…..”Nana, is it ok if I pull the plug and let the water out?”  To which I would have replied, “Yes Cooper, but we must take it outside first, then you can pull the plug.”  “Let’s go Nana, let’s take it outside right now, I want to pull the plug.”  “No, Cooper…..you have to wait.  Nana has to finish lunch first.”  HMMM, as I was cleaning up the mess and dragging the ice chest outside…..the thought struck me….How often do I do things, thinking I know best and inevitably make a big mess….for me and even those I love….If only I had gone to our Heavenly Father first……talked to Him about the situation…..and then trusting and believing that His will is always best for me….wait…..for His guidance……Father, forgive us when we take things into our own hands and make messes…..strengthen our faith so that we always, come to You first for Your perfect love and guidance.

 

I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry.  He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.   He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.  Many will see and fear and put their thrust in the Lord.  Blessed is the man who makes the Lord His trust, who does not look to proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.  Psalm 40:1-4.  This is what the Lord says, He who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it—the Lord is His name:  “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”  Jeremiah 33:2-3.  Guide me your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.  Remember, O Lord, Your great mercy and love for they are from of old.  Psalm 25:5-6. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.  James 1:5.

Love you all!