"You're invited to relax today"

Isn’t that great advice from that chocolate wrapper up there?

Hey!  What if that wrapper could be a “rapper” instead?

Hmmm….

“Chocolate is my name

Rappin’ is my game

Relaxin’ is my thing…”  Maybe not…

But, one thing this wrapper did do right, is remind me of this verse.  I added explanations in brackets:

“Do not be anxious about anything [Relax!], but in everything [EV-ER-RY-THING!], by prayer and petition [Petition = over and over again.  Isn't that nice of God to want the hear the same old requests over and over again?  I would get bored.  It shows how much He loves us], with thanksgiving [don't forget to be thankful], present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6

Here it is in my own words: “Be anxious for nothing. Pray about everything. Give thanks to God.”

What’s in it for you and me if we do this?  Peace!  See? It promises it in the next verse:

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil 4:7

Yay!!

So, let’s take that chocolate’s advice and the Bible’s.  Let’s pray:

Click the puppy to see where I got his picture on Flickr

Father, thank you for inviting us to pray to You.  Here’s all the things I’m anxious about: ____________________________

_____________________________.  (List as many as come to mind).

You are BIG!  Bigger than my problems.  So, I put them in your hands.  Please work out all the details.  In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

There.  Feeling a little more relaxed?  Good.  Remember, you can pray again if you start to feel anxious again.

The invitation is for forever, and ever, over and over again.  =]

P.S. Do you know the One who made chocolate?  If not, click on the pic below to be introduced:

“

"Catch snowflakes on your tongue."

"Strangers", from Igniter Media. Click to see mre videos on their site

I just watched this video by Igniter Media.  I really liked it. 

“Visit Igniter Media to watch more inspiring, funny, challenging videos.  They are the ones who made, “A Social Network Christmas”  that showed up all over Facebook last year, and I posted it here on Gloriadelia.  I REALLY liked that one, too.

"Hagar and Ishmael seeking water" by Hermine F. Schafer, 1964. Click pic for source

“Thereafter, Hagar used another name to refer to the LORD, who had spoken to her. She said, “You are the God who sees me.”  She also said, “Have I truly seen the One who sees me?” Genesis 16:13

El-Roi, the God who sees.

The book of Genesis tells the story of Hagar, a single mother, who was cast out into the desert by the father of her only son.  With no one to see or to even care for them, mother and son were dying of thirst.   But, Someone saw.  Someone noticed them and helped them.

That same Someone is still in the noticing business today.  His eyes are cast on the outcast.

He notices the deaf woman/man/child sitting alone at a family gathering, ignored by the hearing people all around her.

He notices the one struggling to get in and out of a bathroom stall, trying to manage with crutches and a cast.  While others pass her/him by, God sees.  God cares.

He sees the old woman sitting by herself in the busy coffee shop, staring out the window, sipping her tea.  He notices, do we?

El-Roi, the God who sees, sees me.  Sees you.  Oh, may he give us eyes to see one another, too.  To notice.  To stop.  To listen.  To care.

Click pic for Flickr source

Let’s pray:

Oh, Father, you see.  Thank you for noticing me, for calling me by name, and saying, “Child you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1 NLT)

Give me your eyes to notice.  Give me your heart to care.    In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Question:  Do you know the one who knows You?  Unlike Santa, he really does “see you when you’re sleeping.  He know when you’re awake…..”  Wanna meet him?  Click the link below for a brief introduction.

"Hand in Hand" see photo source below

Hand in Hand picture from:  http://julischkaa.deviantart.com/art/hand-in-hand-163459644

click pic for source

By the President of the United States of America [Abraham Lincoln].

A Proclamation.

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies.

click pic for source

To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature,

click pic for source

that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity,

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which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict;

click pic for source

while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough,

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the shuttle or the ship;

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the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased,

New York," Broadway Street scene with pedestrians, carriages, and shops", click pic for source

notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People.

I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.

And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

The signature of President Abraham Lincoln is seen on a handwritten note, dated July 7, 1863 ( click pic for source)

Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln

William H. Seward,
Secretary of State

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

click pic for source

borrowed from: http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/thanks.htm

I just clicked my mouse a second ago and Voi la!  Schnazzy!

Oh, if only it were that easy for me!

I need new hair — click! Lose those wrinkles! — Click!

And what about my insides?  All those bad attitudes and hang-ups? Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Done! Now I am perfect…sigh.

Well, here’s something I click on regularly that has changed my insides, steadily, steadily, day-by-day.

I’m talking about www.Bluletterbible.com.

BlueLetterBible (click pic for source)

The Bible online. (I know that’s a fragment, Lizzy (my daughter, the English nerd) in case you happen to be reading this, but sometimes fragments are more dramatic!)

Here, click on the pink link and take a gander yourself: Blueletterbible  (“gander” means “take a look”, in case any of you post-moderns happen to be reading this) (post-modern means…oh, forget it. Google!)

But you don’t have to click to grow, you can flip open the nearest Bible, and if you happen to do this every day, you will grOW!!

Reminds me of a catchy song kids would sing in Sunday School: 

“Read your Bible (their little hands are open in front of them like a book), pray every day (hands folded now in front)…pray every day…pray every day…Read your Bible (hands open again), pray every day, and you’ll grow (forgot to mention they start out squatted down, so now they start to stand), grow (stand a little higher), grow! (Jump!!).

“Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation…” 1 Peter 2:1

Do you know the Lord?  Click the pic below for a quick introduction.  Maybe it’s time to jump!

see below for picture source from Flickr

picture from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/73239326@N00/3012018175/sizes/z/in/photostream/

Love this song.  Especially the first line, “When I lose my way and I forget my name, remind me who I am.”

And who am I? Who are you, if you’ve made the life-altering step to ask Jesus into Your heart? We are “Forgiven”, “Redeemed”, “Beloved”. Love it.

And this song becomes all the more encouraging when you hear the singer, Jason Gray, talk about a major struggle in his life….

Do you know the Lord? Are you “willing to give Him your broken little mess of a life..” so “Jesus can make music out of it, something beautiful?” Click the pic below for a quick introduction. Come on. He’ll change your name to “Beloved”…

see below for image source.

pic borrowed from "Bruce Fong's Blog", click to visit

I hate to wait.  Don’t you?  When I pray, I want an answer RIGHT NOW!  But, sometimes, waiting — as hard as it is — may be part of the answer.

Are you waiting for your heavenly Father to tell you what to do next?  to fix a broken relationship? to provide this or that important thing?  Well, while you wait, you can still serve Him.  You can still worship Him.  You can still love Him.  That’s what this song by John Waller reminded me of today.

Lyrics to While I’m Waiting :

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience
While I’m waiting
I will serve You
While I’m waiting
I will worship
While I’m waiting
I will not faint
I’ll be running the race
Even while I wait

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it’s not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will serve you while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting on You, Lord

image from Amazon

I found this poem in  Moonlight on the Amazon , a book about missionary life in Brazil:

Without Him…

The boat don’t float
The goat don’t bleat
The beat don’t rhyme
The time don’t tick

The eye don’t see
The tree don’t grow
The foe don’t flee
The sea don’t roll

The voice don’t sing
The king don’t reign
The rain don’t fall
The ball don’t bounce

The ounce don’t weigh
The day don’t break
The steak don’t grill
The pill don’t help

The hunch don’t pay
The hay don’t pitch
The stitch don’t hold
The cold don’t end

The wound don’t heal
The meal don’t serve
The nerve don’t hold
The bold don’t pray

The house don’t stand
The band don’t laugh
The calf don’t rope
The boat don’t float
Nope…

The boat won’t float.

clic pic for source

Let’s pray:

Jesus, please be the Captain of my  boat.  I know it won’t float without You at the helm.

May You be first in my heart, first in my thoughts.

Thank you that I can cast all my anxieties on You because You care for me. (1peter 5:7)
Here’s the worries that threaten to sink my faith:
[fill in the blank, take your time.  Don't forget the little naggy things.  They can tangle up to form quite a block in the river]______________________________________________________________

Thank you that I can trust You with these concerns, no matter how big, or small.  May my  boat float smoothly today.  In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Oops!  I accidentally posted this when it wasn’t finished!  Oh, well.  Maybe someone needed to hear it as is.  

“eat this scroll” Reminds me of the verse we read in Jeremiah, “Thy words were found by me and I ate them, and your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart…” (Jer. 15:16) And also this verse “The ordinances of the Lord…are more precious than gold, sweeter also than honey from the comb.” (Psalm 19:9-10) and this verse, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8) People talk about eating their words, but that’s because they said something bad. We’re encouraged to eat God’s words because they are “sweeter than honey”. Interesting.

I love that scene.  It perfectly illustrates this verse, which, coincidentally, was  insight gained in the belly of a big fish:

“Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.” Jonah 2:9

Remember Jonah?  He tried to run away from God and — gulp! — into the belly of a big fish went Jonah for a few humbling days.

Sometimes our best insight comes in the dark.

What worthless idols are you clinging to?  Maybe you should listen to Dory and Jonah — “Let go!”

"It's time to let go!" click pic for source

Let’s pray:

Father, thank you for speaking to us, even through cartoons. 

I would like to let go now of these worthless idols:______________________________.  

I’d like to take a leap of faith and fall back into your arms.  It’s safe there.  I know You have a plan.

In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen!

“For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the Lord.  “plans for your welfare, and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”  Jeremiah 29:11

Hanging around in the dark?  Click the pic below to meet someone worth clinging to.

"Hang in there!" see pic source below

“Hang in there!” source:      http://bitchslapmrng.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/hang-in-there.jpg