Category: Inspiration

A TRIBUTE

As I have often shared, one of the greatest gifts God has graced me with is the people I have come to know and love because of this website of ten years, and even more so through the orchestration of four books to date. The spiritual family that walks with me provides my life with encouragement and inspiration to live faithfully as we walk each other home to eternity.

My heart is still a little heavy since learning of a fourth person who I came to know more because of this ministry is now in heaven with Jesus. It was quite a shock, as I had no idea—we lived almost three hours from each other.

God, in His infinite orchestration, allowed me to be present at a gathering this week where one of her close friends was too. She recognized me and shared that our mutual friend had a totally unexpected issue on Christmas Eve that resulted in her death on December 29th. I ran across this quote that seems doubly appropriate to share.

 

 

I interpret this quote as encouragement to make every day Christmas by the way we share even the simple kindnesses and joys to brighten people’s days. We share the love of God in us with each other—and it definitely works both ways. It reminds me of the relationship we had.

 

The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.  –Proverbs 10:7  (ESV)

Then I heard a voice from the heavenly realm, saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead—the ones dying in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Holy Spirit, “they will rest from their trouble, for their deeds will live on!”  –Revelation 14:13  (TPT)

Isn’t it always difficult when we lose people in our lives, even though we know they are in a better place? Scripture encourages us to keep their memory alive—that it is a blessing to recount the treasured memories that we have. It is comforting to know that the goodness of their lives continues to live on. As my pastor says, “Gratitude is the antidote to grief.” So with a heart of gratitude for knowing my friend, to remember how she blessed me with God’s love, and to share some of her good deeds, I write from my heart.

How I continue to marvel at God’s orchestrations. I remain forever grateful for attending my first weekend retreat back in July 2015 at a lakefront center on Canandaigua Lake, where I experienced peace and joy. It was sacred ground for me and became my home away from home. I had just started writing weekly on my website in September 2014.

 

The beautiful sky at the Notre Dame Retreat House, Canandaigua Lake, NY

 

I had the privilege of helping in the kitchen for years at other retreat weekends with a certain group there. This particular lady helped with the registration. We did not interact much in the beginning years, but in 2019 she signed up to receive my weekly website reflections. We bumped into each other a few years later when she shared she was enjoying my first book that was published in 2020. It encouraged me when she said she was growing in her faith because of reading my works—that they were easy to understand and relate to.

Every now and then she would email me to let me know when a certain reflection touched her even more, and she even sent me a beautiful email with the subject line of “Here’s a heart for you.” It had a few pictures of swans that made a heart shape—by then she had read my second book, remembering how God sends me reminders of His love for me with seeing heart-shaped items.

One time she emailed me to say that I wrote a reflection (feel free to read it by clicking the blue hyperlink after finishing here) on her favorite song, “Angels Among Us,” by Alabama.  The song will always make me think of her and how she blessed my life—being an angel in my life.

In early 2024 she emailed me to say, “Just finished your latest book (God’s Compassion Illuminated). I got so much out of it. I really enjoy your writing.” After publishing my fourth book in May of 2024, God inspired me to surprise her and mail her a copy of God’s Glory Manifested. She was so kind and sent me a thank-you note that I will always treasure. I never got to ask her if she did this intentionally, but I noticed right away how she put a rainbow on the front of it.  To me, it symbolized my third book that had a rainbow on it, and inside the note, she drew a heart, which to me, represented my second book about God’s love. Her message encouraged my spirit.

 

 

 

 

Only God could orchestrate that we would unexpectedly run into each other on September 20, 2024, at the retreat center for the final time. We embraced each other with a few huge hugs since it had been so long since we had seen each other. I was there for a meeting and then stayed for the free senior luncheon (they were so gracious to let me, “at 23 years old,” stay). We ate together, enjoying each other’s company. How blessed I am that I was prompted to get a picture with her and my latest book. It is the one and only picture we took. I love knowing she is now at home enjoying God’s Glory Manifested at its finest! Only God!

 

 

When I shared with a friend, he reminded me to be grateful for the blessing of helping her grow in her faith as she journeyed home to the Lord. That is the positive that I will try to focus on, as I will miss hearing from her and seeing her on this earth.

 

Three lessons that I learned from my friendship with this lady:

*There is beauty in letting others know how they impact our lives.

*A short email, text, or snail mail note is priceless.

*See the beauty of people’s hearts—the God in them.

 

Be encouraged this week to…
… make every day Christmas  Day.
… be loved by God through others.
… offer even the strangers a smile or friendly greeting.
… walk hand-in-hand  with others.
… share God’s love with all.
… keep the memories alive of those who are in eternity.
… enjoy the present moment with others—you never know when it will be the last.
… look for opportunities to help others grow in their faith.

 

REFLECTION:

Whose memory do you keep alive?
How can you let God love others through you, making it Christmas for someone?

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.  –Psalm 116:15  (NIV)

NOTE: I will be taking a few weeks off for special family time. Stop by anytime to read a reflection or two!

HIGH-FIVE

When is the last time you did a high-five to yourself? I hope you are not thinking Christine, have you lost your mind? Rest assured I have not, and I hope you will agree after reading further.

To high-five myself was something I heard in passing at a retreat. There was not really an explanation given other than saying to do it in front of a mirror. So truth be told, I tried it for the first time a few days later. Guess what happened? I ended up smiling at what I saw in the mirror, which surprised me. Continue reading “HIGH-FIVE”

LAY DOWN CROSSES

As we all know from the experience of living on this earth, crosses are a normal occurrence in life. I think it is a natural part of life because we know that Jesus, who was both divine and human, dealt with one of the biggest crosses of all time. Jesus carried and suffered upon a cross in His humanity, with His cross being both physical and figurative at the same time as He carried the weight of all our sins on His shoulders.

 

Finally Pilate handed him [Jesus] over to them to be crucified. So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.  –John 19:16-18  (NIV) Continue reading “LAY DOWN CROSSES”

THE DIVINE

 

It was a quote a person shared after reading one of my books; a way of life that we can live out daily.

Merriam-Webster.com defines “divine” as “of, relating to, or proceeding directly from God.”

Do you agree that in the ordinary of life we see the divine—how God is present in all of life? God takes the ordinary and the everyday things and transforms them by His presence.

 

I always say the truth that I am just a simple, ordinary gal who does not hold any advanced degree or prestigious role in this world. I am quiet, always thinking too much, and am happiest when serving or helping others even in the small ways. Yes, I’m happy in my little world enjoying the simple joys of life.

Yet, I have always seen special orchestrations in our lives—how the little things are meaningful, which helps us see goodness in this world. I believe deep in my heart that this goodness is part of the divine, who is God.

When God inspired me to start this website over ten years ago, the purpose was to highlight His presence in the ordinary of our lives. Putting my thoughts to the written word helps them stop from just running through my head.

 

 

 

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.  –Matthew 4:18-22  (NIV)

How interesting to see that Jesus, both divine and human, called as His first followers simple, ordinary men who were fishermen. These men, who became known as His disciples, met the divine in the ordinariness of their life of being fishermen. We too have opportunities throughout our days when the divine is meeting us in the ordinary of our lives.

 

Now he [Jesus] had to go through Samaria. So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?”  (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”  –John 4:4-10, 25-26  (NIV)

Jesus is always working out divine orchestrations. This Samaritan woman was doing the ordinary task of getting water from the town well when she had a face-to-face encounter that changed her life forever. She encountered the Messiah who loved her despite living a sinful life—so much so that she changed her life from that day forward. Jesus is always waiting to encounter us in the ordinary circumstances of our lives.

 

These people had the distinct privilege of being alive at the same time as Jesus walked this earth—of meeting the divine in person. How fortunate we are to be alive in this day and age, having the Holy Spirit to guide and lead us—thus  having the opportunity of meeting the divine every day in our lives.

 

Photo courtesy of Sharon Tate Soberon under Creative Commons License (CC BY-ND 2.0) 

 

What are some ways we see the divine in the ordinary of our lives?

The chance encounter of running into people we haven’t seen in a long time.

Seeing miracles happen before our eyes, like someone having a feeding tube for eight months and suddenly being able to swallow again, or giving parents the strength to care for a physically challenged child in their home.

Observing a total solar eclipse with God’s perfect timing in providing a break in the clouds.

The miracle of new life, whether people, animals, or flowers.

Someone turning their life over to Jesus.

Seeing a special reminder of God’s love in our lives such as hearts, rainbows, or cloud shapes.

In receiving an unexpected hug from a toddler.

Looking into the eyes of a person near death.

When experiencing a sunrise or sunset.

Soaking in the view of a vast ocean.

In having clean water to drink and bathe with.

When standing in faith in prayer with other people.

 

How can we be more open to seeing the divine in the ordinary?

Start each day with gratitude for waking up to a new day.

Asking God to help you see His presence in the little details.

Be totally present in the moments with other people.

Giving thanks to God throughout the day for being in control of life.

Reflecting on God’s goodness that you see  throughout the day.

 

 

Be encouraged this week to…
… be more aware of the divine meeting with the daily ordinary events of life.
… see the presence of the divine each day.
… seek the divine’s assistance in a difficult situation.
… pray to see the divine in all of humanity, even those who hurt you.

 

REFLECTION:

When did you see the divine show up to help you through a negative circumstance?
How have you experienced the divine with another person?

 

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.  –2 Peter 1:3-4  (NIV)

HOLY SPIRIT ARRIVAL

When I was excitedly recounting a “God moment” story to a deacon friend of mine, he shared this quote he coined that fits for today’s reflection.

 

 

Vocabulary.com defines coincidence as “an event that might have been arranged although it was really accidental.” Continue reading “HOLY SPIRIT ARRIVAL”

GREATNESS

What is your initial thought when I ask, “What makes someone great?”

 

Is someone great if they…

… have a PhD?

… are a millionaire?

… won an Olympic medal?

… are a brilliant composer?

 

Notice that with all these cases people’s greatness is measured by what they have accomplished outwardly in their lives.

What if we were to measure true greatness as who we become that starts inwardly and not by what we do outwardly? Continue reading “GREATNESS”

TEAMWORK

I have been reflecting on a beautiful sermon I heard this week that helped inspire these thoughts. I’m in awe of thinking about God and how he made everything in this world different yet with commonalities. I think a good case in point is to look at us as individual people, church communities, and sports teams.

 

SPORTS TEAMS

*GOAL: Work with one another to achieve a win.

*CHOSEN: Coaches pick the cream of the crop.

*POSITION: Each player usually has one specific position they excel at.

*TEAM: Every team member puts forth their best effort to succeed—sometimes sitting on the sidelines. Continue reading “TEAMWORK”

CELEBRATING #500

My heart is overflowing with joy today to celebrate God’s faithfulness and goodness with this being hopetoinspireyou.com’s 500th reflection! I am in total awe of being God’s beloved daughter, whom He has provided with weekly inspiration to share about Him in the ordinary of life throughout the last ten years plus.

It was an “only God moment” to see this thought that is perfect for today as I reflect on this grand adventure God has orchestrated:

 

 

Continue reading “CELEBRATING #500”

CHANGING THE PRESENT

A friend shared these words of wisdom that I found inspiring and beneficial to reflect upon. I hope you will too.

 

 

  Continue reading “CHANGING THE PRESENT”

THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

Have you viewed the song, “The Twelve Days of Christmas” as just a fun tune, thinking of the physical gifts mentioned, or have you viewed it through a spiritual lens? Thanks to a prayer group I’m involved with, I became more aware of the spiritual meaning behind the song, which I found interesting.

The Twelve Days of Christmas is a festive Christian season that starts with the celebration of Jesus’ birth on December 25 and runs for twelve days. The twelfth day celebrates the Epiphany, which is when the Magi visited baby Jesus, bringing the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The twelve days were a time of rededication and renewal. Children received small, simple, and usually symbolic gifts of faith.

 

What are the hidden Christian symbols found in The Twelve Days of Christmas that we can reflect on? Continue reading “THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS”