Tag: #christianblog

THE PILGRIMAGE OF LIFE

Thanks to a sermon I heard recently, I was inspired to watch a movie entitled The Way. God is good like that with His never-ending ripple effect of how everything in life is connected. We can learn something from everything that happens if we are open to it.

I won’t share much about the movie in case you feel inspired to watch it yourself. I enjoyed it. A simple synopsis is a father unexpectedly finds himself walking the Camino de Santiago, which is a roughly 500-mile trek. He meets a few people along the way, and they end up traveling together. The father is challenged on his journey and is changed by the end of it. Continue reading “THE PILGRIMAGE OF LIFE”

GOD DAY

I want to share a simple yet profound thought, which I heard at a recent day retreat I attended. It will also serve as a challenge for us this week.

What does it mean when we say, “Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, good night, or even good day” to someone?

I believe in all these cases we are expressing “good wishes” to the person for whatever time of day it is.

Don’t we wish even more for the person? Continue reading “GOD DAY”

HOLY ENCOUNTERS

My spirit was renewed this week by experiencing some holy encounters. It was great to be able to visit one of my holy places, a retreat house on Canandaigua Lake, NY. The drive up was perfect weather though it rained most of the day. On the bright side, I was able to walk outside a few times, dodging the lighter raindrops.

 

My ride was graced with this beautiful morning sky.

 

When I arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to learn the day included a speaker. I thought it was a quiet day of reflection, spending the time however one chooses to. Continue reading “HOLY ENCOUNTERS”

SEPTEMBER REFLECTIONS

The month of September is special to me for multiple reasons. September is the month God planned for me to make my entrance into this world. In His infinite goodness, God created me and fashioned me in my mother’s womb. He wants all of us to know, love, and glorify Him by our lives on earth and to spend eternity with Him.

I have been blessed to know the Lord throughout my entire life and have felt the most growth in my relationship with Him during the last few years. As I have journeyed through the years, His presence in my life has taken on a deeper relationship. God’s great love is what I have experienced so powerfully recently with the way He reveals Himself to me.

 

 

I was reminded of these verses from the story of Esther: Continue reading “SEPTEMBER REFLECTIONS”

THE BODY OF CHRIST

A friend and I recently shared a few thoughts about the Body of Christ that have made me reflect more on that phrase and what it means in our lives.

Who is the head of the Body of Christ? The One who was before everything in this world.

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything.  –Colossians 1:15-18  (NLT)

Who are the members of the Body of Christ?  We who believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
Continue reading “THE BODY OF CHRIST”

EXPECTATIONS

I have recently been thinking a lot about “expectations.”

The Google definition that best represents expectations for me is:  “the act or state of looking forward or anticipating.”

  • How many times do we live with expectations and are disappointed when what we want does not happen?
  • How often are our expectations related to what we believe someone else should or will do for us?
  • How realistic are our expectations? Continue reading “EXPECTATIONS”

SHINE BRIGHTLY

I read something this week that inspired these thoughts.

Consider an old-fashioned flashlight that uses batteries to shine a light for you to see.

*What do we do with a flashlight that starts to grow dim or stops working? Do we just throw it away?
 No, we put in fresh batteries.

*What do we do when someone messes up in life and is in a dark space not shining their light?
We come alongside to help them.

*What if the person’s light still doesn’t shine?
  We keep shining our light and sit with them patiently, sharing God’s love. Continue reading “SHINE BRIGHTLY”

THE POWER OF THOUGHTS

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.”  –John 14:1  (NLT)

Jesus spoke these words to His disciples after He told them He would only be with them a little longer.  He knew the appointed time for Him to return to God was coming quickly.  Jesus did not want their hearts to be troubled while they waited to be reunited with Him in heaven.  They needed to trust God in everything.

Jesus knew the disciples would be sad and scared of being alone, so He stressed the importance of trusting in God.  He wanted them to have a positive attitude, trust, and not dwell on the negative. Continue reading “THE POWER OF THOUGHTS”

PATCHES OF GODLIGHT

“Any patch of sunlight in a wood will show you something about the sun which you could never get from reading books on astronomy. These pure and spontaneous pleasures are ‘patches of Godlight’ in the woods of our experience.” ― C.S. Lewis

 

A friend shared this quote with me.  It has been a good exercise thinking about what it means to me personally.  I believe we each might have a different interpretation based on our life experiences. Continue reading “PATCHES OF GODLIGHT”

THE POWER SOURCE

Our area has experienced sudden thunderstorms the last few weeks.  When they are accompanied by rainbows, it always makes me smile with seeing God’s goodness.  The latest was a severe thunderstorm with 75+ mph winds about 9:45 pm, which downed trees in the area and left us without power for almost a full day.  We were grateful it was only for one day, as there were people who were without power for three days. Continue reading “THE POWER SOURCE”