Category Archives: Hope

October 11, 2013 · 9:50 pm

Mom Without a Red Cape

For as the heavens are high above the earth,
 So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
 As far as the east is from the west,
 So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
  As a father pities his children,
 So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
  For He knows our frame;
 He remembers that we are dust.

                                                                      Psalm 103: 11-14

I sat in the living room, my eyes glued on the clock, with tears streaming down my face.  My fifteen year old heart had been broken by a super cute boy named Joe.  I had been stood-up for the first time.  Joe had not called or shown up for our date.  This happened during the seventies when cell phones and text messages had not been yet dreamed up.

“What are you crying about?”  my mom said.

“Joe did not show up or call.  He was supposed to be here at 7:00 and it is now way past 7:30!”  I said, tears gushing.

“Pshhh! “ she smirked, “You think that is heartbreak—wait till you get older and find out what heartbreak really feels like.”  She walked off to her bedroom. Continue reading →

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October 4, 2013 · 11:19 pm

We Are His Hands and Feet

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Matthew 22:36-40

Jesus was asked,

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus surprised them all by replying,

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

This is the first and greatest commandment.  

And the second is like it:

Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the

Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Continue reading →

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October 4, 2013 · 9:48 pm

I Wish You Enough

imageRecently, I overheard a Father and daughter in their last moments together at the airport.  They had announced the departure.Standing near the security gate, they hugged and the Father said, ‘I love you, and I wish you enough.’The daughter replied, ‘Dad, our life together has been more than enough.  Your love is all I ever needed.  I wish you enough, too, Dad.’They kissed and the daughter left.  The Father walked over to the window where I was seated.  Standing there I could see he wanted and needed to cry.  I   tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by asking, ‘Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?”Yes, I have,’ I replied.  ‘Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever good-bye?’.. Continue reading →

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September 4, 2013 · 1:20 am

Must Think First

image“Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Jesus said.

What a relief, it is the Master!  Peter thought. Everyone on the boat thought it was a ghost they saw walking towards them on the water, but he knew better.  He knew it could only be Jesus.

“Lord, if that is you tell me to come out to you on the water.”

“Come!” Jesus said.

A chill ran through Peter’s spine.  Jesus was telling him to walk out to him on the water!   Peter was aware of the other disciples shocked silence as he swung his leg over the side of the rocking boat.

No problem!  He thought.  He was sure of all the disciples; he was the one with the deepest connection and the strongest bond!  He would even die for Jesus!

After all, hadn’t it been only his name Jesus had changed from Simon to Peter.  Solid-as-rock-Peter.  And hadn’t he been the one that correctly declared that Jesus was the Messiah, The Son of the Living God; when Jesus asked him who he thought Jesus was? Continue reading →

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August 31, 2013 · 1:29 am

Shine on!

imageWhen we look at the bright glistening ball in the sky at night, we forget that the moon is a huge hunk of grey rock that does not have a light of its own.  Its silvery glow comes from the sun’s brilliant rays reaching the face of the moon which then reflect off, giving us a nightlight in the sky.

There are some nights that the moon brightens up the whole landscape around us.  It is especially spectacular when there is snow on the ground.

Sometimes we only see a quarter-moon, a half-moon, a three-quarter moon, or that sliver some call God’s finger nail. Continue reading →

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August 28, 2013 · 7:38 pm

Seriously, Who’s Got the Biggest Problem?

I was not able to write a post yesterday as usual (Tuesday) because I had two days of a migraine. Brutal! Here is my Tuesday post. 🙂

I have friend I will call Sandy. I met her about thirteen years ago when a little dog I was fostering snuck out of my yard. Sandy had recently moved in next door and offered to help me find the dog. We have both long since moved from that neighborhood, but we stay in touch. I consider Sandy a good friend.

Sandy feels bad about herself much too often, even more so when she is depressed. She has dealt with mean criticism and ugly labels throughout her life. She has been ridiculed and called names.

The thing is that because Sandy’s parents were heavy alcohol drinkers, Sandy suffers some of the symptoms of from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS).

Continue reading →

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August 24, 2013 · 1:37 am

Living in a Warzone

I have never been one to watch too many fantasy movies but was encouraged to by the way “Waking the Dead,” a book by John Eldridge, uses these as analogies to help readers understand the struggle we all live under.

John Eldridge, does not encourage readers to watch fantasy movies. He encourages us to wake up to the understanding that spiritual war is all around us and gravely affects our everyday life.  The last thing the enemy wants from a Christ follower is success or to have anything good we attribute to God.  He wants to keep us in a struggle so that we are not living up to our God-given potential, but instead we are as frustrated, disappointed, depressed and discouraged as possible.

I rented the Hobbit.   Have you ever seen it?

As I watched it, I envisioned the dwarfs as the Israelites and Thorin as King David back in Old Testament times and King Jesus now and in the future.  There are numerous attacks by forces of evil.

The way the forces of evil are depicted in the movie, I can clearly imagine this is what the invisible spiritual warfare is like all around us, but the majority of us remain as unaware to it as Bilbo, though we are indeed deeply affected. Continue reading →

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August 23, 2013 · 6:18 pm

Heart Support

As I have mentioned before, my former married life was excruciatingly painful. I often felt overwhelmed and badly in need of an emotionally supportive friend at home. God sent that supportive friend in the form of a dog.

Annie and me 1997.

Annie and me 1997.

God knew what He was doing when he made dogs. Annie was the best friend a person could want. It was spring of 1986. My three children then were five and under. As an avid animal lover, I jumped at the chance to get a lapdog when I heard there was a litter of designer-puppies. Free! They turned out to be a Lhasa-apso-terrier-mix. The owner did not want to deal with selling the mixed-breed pups. For over a week I begged my then-husband to give a puppy a try until he finally conceded, but was adamant he didn’t want this dog, he wanted a Doberman.

There was only one female left by the time we got the puppy. She was blonde, very affectionate and cuddly, with a curled, shaggy tail.

The kids and I were exhilarated when we brought her home. Months before we knew of the litter, I told the kids someday I wanted a girl dog named Annie. After that, my two year old son told everyone “My doggy name Annie,” so we named this puppy Annie.

Continue reading →

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August 21, 2013 · 12:19 am

True Love Never Fails

1st Corinthians 13:1-13

The Love Chapter

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If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing.

 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud  or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.  It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. Continue reading →

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August 13, 2013 · 12:49 am

What If Your Troubles Are Hidden Blessings

imageI found a beautiful song that helps everything make so much sense.  It is called “Blessings”  The music is absolutely lovely, but the words are priceless and speak miles and miles of wisdom.  I hope you get to listen to this song and that it will bless you as much as if has blessed me!  This person who wrote the lyrics, Laura Story, she gets it!  She was there. Her dream marriage came under fire as she and her husband battled for his health.*

As for me, I spent years angry at God for all the heartache and physical pain in my life. I felt cursed and I blamed Him for it.

In Matthew 17:20   Jesus said, “ I tell you, if you have faith as small as a tiny mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

This verse greatly frustrated me because I know Jesus doesn’t lie.

I had faith the size of coconuts,  yet the mountains weren’t moving.

And, everything–even ordinary things, just seemed impossible! Continue reading →

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