Jesus IS the LIGHT!

Good Morning Friends! Thankfully loved by HIM, Thursday.  Last Sunday at our Christmas program, Pastor and his wife, gave me a Christmas gift.  I didn’t open it until   I got home and settled in…..I was very pleased as I pulled a beautiful, hand painted, glass nativity very different from anything I have seen, out of the box.  It stands about 10” high and probably 4” wide, well it looks like an “L” facing forward….gosh hope you can picture that.  Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus in the manager sit on the base, the back looked a bit like a church window….anyway, I placed it on the coffee table, thinking I must thank them tomorrow and tell them it’s beautiful.  Well, I did do that, but the week has been really hectic so I hadn’t really paid a lot of attention to it or any other Christmas decorations either….that is, until this morning.  I got up at my usual time and headed to the living room for bible and prayer time.  This morning I took the time to plug in my decorations with lights….When I had finished reading, I got up and turned off the over- head light.  As I sat back down and was snuggling in for a good visit with our Father my eyes got a glimpse of a light I didn’t recognize….Wow, the light from the candles on the mantle were reflecting through the back of my new nativity….the light was shining on Jesus…..Jesus was shining…..Jesus IS the LIGHT….the LIGHT of the world, the LIGHT of our lives, shining HIS Perfect Love on us, guiding us, protecting, uplifting….forgiving us!  JESUS the REASON FOR THE SEASON!  I sat on the edge of my chair, my eyes focused on the beauty of the shining nativity…..my heart was aglow as HIS Peace filled me….the Wonder of HIS LOVE…..Thank you Father for the giving us the LIGHT OF THE WORLD….help us to catch the glow and reflect HIS love.  

 

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the LIGHT of the world.  He who flows ME shall not walk in darkness, but have the LIGHT of LIFE.”  John 8:12.  And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.  This will be a sign to you:  You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying a manger.”…..So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  Luke 2: 8-12 & 16.

Love you all! 

Driving Through Life in the Dark

Good Morning Friends!  Totally His, Tuesday!  So, how do you like this time change?  Most people are griping about it….messed up their sleep, dark too early…I didn’t like feeding my critters in the dark last night, but I am loving driving to work in the light!  The last couple of weeks before the time change, it was plum dark on my drive in and there’s just something about driving to work in the dark that I am not crazy about.  Have to be so careful watching for deer and all the other critters out and about and frankly my vision isn’t that good in the dark, so I am really enjoying my morning drive the last couple of days.  Even today, with the clouds and rain, it was still light….makes my drive so much less stressful.  “Oh Father,”  I felt the familiar tap….”Oh yes…..I do get it.  Driving with You to light our way, the stresses are much easier to handle.”  So much of the time we drive through our lives stressed out, worried, anxious about the future, concerned about the present, troubled about our kids, family, friends, work…..dark….we are trying to drive through life in the dark….Why do we do that….we just cause ourselves so much grief and heartache that could so easily be avoided if we turned on the LIGHT!  The LIGHT of hope, peace, and love that is ours for the asking if we just go to HIM….the LIGHT of the world….the LIGHT for our lives, each one of us….individually….When we go to HIM through prayer and His word we are surrounded with LIGHT….our drive because much less stressful…oh there will always be potholes and critters to watch out for, but you will have the LIGHT of the WORLD to guide you through.  Father, thank you for lighting our way.

 

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His WONDERFUL LIGHT.  1 Peter 2:9  When Jesus spoke t the people, He said, “I am the LIGHT of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the LIGHT of LIFE.”  John 8:12.  Come, O house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord.  Isaiah 2:5.  The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.  Isaiah 60:19.  The Lord is my LIGHT and my salvation—whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?  Psalm 27:1. 

Love you all!

See with your heart, not your mind: Psalm 73:26

Good Morning Friends!  Thankfully His, Thursday!  Went into the bathroom at break like I always do, looked at the ceramic tiles on the wall in front of me like I always do….But today I saw things on that wall I had never seen before…..the wall was the same as it had always been, but today I saw….goodness me, I saw a big animal….wolf like, his features were quite distinct, large head, muscular shoulders, perky ears and eyes wide-open…..at first I thought you are crazy you have looked at that wall a million times and never seen anything but ceramic tile…..today you are seeing a large animal.  I stared at the wall, moving my eyes over a larger area and I saw more animal-like shapes….My mood thus far today had been very sullen….tired, worn down emotionally and spiritually….the sickness and grief in my family….getting to me…..I just sat looking at the forms that appeared life-like to me…..the thought came to me….it wasn’t my eyes seeing those shapes….it was my mind……my mood…..as I sighed, feeling heavy, I felt a gentle tap…..”My child….you are seeing with your mind….not with your heart…..Your heart is Mine and if you open it to Me I will help you SEE through the grief, the sickness, I will lighten your load…..SEE ME with your heart and I will lift your mind, your body….you will know joy through hope in ME.”  Sighing I felt HIS touch again…as if HE had HIS arms around me, under my arms, pulling me up…..lighter…I felt lighter….”Now precious child, simply be still…..be still and let ME lift you out of your darkness into MY LIGHT of LOVE…..be still and know that I am God, I love you and will carry you….open your heart to ME and you will SEE.”  Thank you Father……

 

My flesh and my heart may fail, bug God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  Psalm 73:26. In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.  Psalm 5:3. The mind of the sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace…Romans 8:6a.  God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea.  Psalm 46:1-2.  Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.  The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.  Psalm 46:10-11.  In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His Holy name.  Psalm 33:21.

Love  you all!  “Rejoice in the Lord….always!”

 

April 16, 2013

Good Morning Friends!  Thankfully His, Tuesday!  Last night Kim had call a phone call from our grandson Brayden in California.  Brayden was reading Papa Kim the very first report he had ever written.  The subject….pick your hero and write about him/her.  Well, guess who Brayden wrote about!  Yep, his Papa Kim….he read, “My hero is my Papa Kim……because he is a fireman.  He is a fireman, he helps his community,  and he saves lives……that’s why he is my hero!  I am proud of my Papa Kim.”   I didn’t hear the whole report, but that is what I could get from Papa Kim…….He was so proud, beaming like a bright light, smiling from ear to ear, so he could hardly speak.  Gosh, can you just imagine…..a tribute like that from your 7 (8 tomorrow) year old grandson.  His hero, Papa Kim.  After his call I started thinking who I would write about if I was given that assignment…..people in my life came to mind first…my mom, my brother Sam, my husband…..then I thought of some biblical persons….David slaying Goliath, Daniel in the lion’s den, how about all the apostles dying because they would never deny their faith……dying…I thought of Brayden’ s report….how Papa Kim saves lives……..yes Papa Kim and all firemen do have the opportunity at times to save lives and I am so thankful for all the people that risk their lives for others in their jobs…..And then the LIGHT came on….the LIGHT of the WORLD is my hero……Jesus our Savior, our Good Shepherd, our Best Friend….HOLY…without blame….born in a stable…..DIED FOR US!  He didn’t risk HIS life….HE GAVE IT…..WILLINGLY!  For you and for me…….Really, Hero is not nearly BIG enough to call our JESUS!!!!  We are so blessed!  By grace we have been saved……Father, my goodness how we so miss the LIGHT so often, forgive us!  Thank you for YOUR gift to us…YOUR only Son, our Savior…….Father, thank you for precious grandchildren that help us to see the LIGHT and bless our lives in such very special ways.  All Praise, Honor, and Glory to You!!!!!

God so loved the world that He GAVE His ONE and ONLY Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.  John 3:16.   Help us, O God our Savior, for the glory of Your name; deliver us and forgive our sins for You name’s sake.  Psalm 79:9  Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.  You ha e filled my heart with great joy than when their grain and new wine abound.  Psalm 4:6-7.  The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in His suffering in order that we may also share in His glory.  Romans 8:16—17. 

Love you all!

December 18, 2012

Good Morning Friends!  Totally wrapped in His loving arms, Tuesday!  The verses below are from Luke 2, King James Version.  Even though for most of my daily reading I use the New International Version of God’s holy word, the story of our Savior’s birth I love to read in the King James.  The words I am most intrigued by today is “swaddling clothes.”  I have read that verse, Luke 2:7 all of my life, but never until this year has it touched my heart in such a warm and loving way!  The reason being, my great grandson Tucker; Tucker’s mommy has “swaddled” him since he was born.  She actually has swaddling blankets……Tucker is most at peace, calm and secure when he is “swaddled”…wrapped tightly in his warm blanket….now I mean real tight, his little arms are inside the blanket too…..Tucker loves to be swaddled!  Now my Hailey might think that swaddling is a new concept…that the “swaddling blanket” is a current concept, but take a look at verse 7…..Mary wrapped baby Jesus in “swaddling clothes”  now is that awesome or what!  2012 years ago, Mary wrapped Jesus in a “swaddling blanket.”  When I read that this morning….a quiet peace and warmth went over me……I thought of baby Jesus wrapped tightly, looking like a little burrito, just like my precious Tucker…..Oh my……that’s when the “light” came on….the LIGHT of Jesus LOVE……the LIGHT of JESUS LOVE “swaddles” us….He takes us in His arms and wraps us ever so tightly….cuddles us…comforts us….protects us…forgives us…..Swaddled in His arms we are at peace, calm and secure….Thank you Father for the gift of Your only Son….for Your love that swaddles us in His Perfect love….Your Son the light of the world!  And Father, thank you for the precious gift of grandchildren and great grandchildren. 

⁴ And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

⁵ To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

⁶ And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

⁷ And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Jesus said, “A new command I give you:  Love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  John 13:34.  Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  Ephesians 5:2.  In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name.  Psalm 33:21.

Love you all!

December 5, 2012

Good Morning Friends!  Warmly wrapped in the glow of His love, Wednesday!  Goodness can you believe the difference in our temperatures this morning!  Crazy isn’t it?!  I could tell when I went to my car at 5 yesterday the temp was dropping…got home to a chill in the house….I was happy to change into sweats after the last few warm days.  After a visit with Tucker, Kim and I settled in to have dinner and a little TV…”Hmmm,” Kim said, “bet we should light a fire, gonna be a lot cooler in the morning.”  We sat there a few more minutes, but as reached down to pull my blankie over my feet, I said to Kim.  “Yep, I think I will start a fire….could be quit chilly in the morning.”  There’s something about starting a fire that soothes me….crumpling the newspaper, a few pine cones, and then the logs….the glow of the fire soon warms the house…I like it.  As we headed to bed we tossed in a couple more logs so we would be sure and be cozy in the morning.  Sure thing, when I got up this morning it was 37, but the house was warm….after stirring the coals and adding a few more logs I settled into my chair to have my morning chat with our Heavenly Father……the light from the stove was comforting and the room was toasty warm……I chuckled to myself….”wonder if there was a fire, a comforting light in the stable the night that Jesus was born….”   Wow…….I had to laugh at myself I as thought of the tiny baby in the manger…wondering if there was heat and light for him…...SURE WAS… the brightest, warmest, glowing light there is….Jesus the LIGHT of the world…..Jesus the tiny baby in the manager that died on the cross for us…..Jesus’ light gives us life.  Thank  you Father for the gift of light and life through your Son Jesus.  Help us to shine with His love so that others will find their way to You.

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  John 8:12.  The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?  Psalm 27:1.  “Arise, shine, for your LIGHT has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.  Isaiah 60:1.  Jesus said, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and rise your Father in heaven.”  Matthew 5:16.  For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.  2 Corinthians 4:6.  Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart.  Psalm 97:11.  Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice!  Philippians 4:4.

Love you all!