Highlighting God's Presence to Inspire Your Life!
It is a simple yet profound statement voiced by a dear friend, Lilly, the wife of Greg Pedroza, whom I wrote about last week.
It brings me comfort to think of how God works in the ordinary events of our lives. When we live in faith, we know that God is both preparing and orchestrating the events in our lives for our own good and His glory. Often times, I think we might not see the truth until, in hindsight, we take time to reflect on how things worked out. Continue reading “PREPARING US”
A dear friend, Greg Pedroza, shared that inspirational quote. I have written about him more than a few times because of the way he focuses on the positive despite seemingly negative circumstances. His life example inspires me to want to be more resolute in my faith so that I, too, can live with confidence that, whatever my circumstances, God is to be glorified. Continue reading “STEPPING STONES”
God’s first gift to us was this world and all of creation that is in it.
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. –Colossians 1:16-17 (NLT)
God created the heavens, the earth, and everything in them: the sun and the moon, the light, the waters, the dry land, the vegetation, the birds, and the livestock, to name a few. He filled the earth with everything good, each in their own way giving praise and glory to Him. Continue reading “THE CREATOR’S GIFTS”
Our God is so amazing! I never grow weary of sharing God’s goodness that I see, even with the little details of our lives.
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. – 1 John 4:16 (NIV)
Did you catch that powerful three-word sentence? “God IS love!” He is love itself. I believe one of our purposes in life is to become more like God—to be love—to others and to ourselves. We are continually growing in love as we continue to trust God as He takes us into deeper waters in our faith journey.
A great truth I heard and believe in is:
Continue reading “GOD’S GOODNESS”
A recent adventure I was on included a couple artistic events, which are always a challenge for me. I admit I am not much of an artist or musician on this side of heaven.
Before the painting class began, I noticed one instructor tracing a sloth on canvases for a future class. I went over and jokingly said, “I think you should trace all the canvases” as I explained my apprehension with painting well.
I felt hopeful that I could be more successful because when the instructor began, he said to relax, he would walk us through everything, and he would come around if we needed help. I will be honest and share that I did end up struggling about a third of the way through. Another instructor came over and helped me get back on track. He also encouraged us by saying three statements that resonated with me and are applicable to our ordinary lives. Continue reading “OUR JOURNEYS”
It is inspiring to see how God is involved in our lives, even in the smallest of details. I read something simple yet, in my eyes, an “only God” moment.
I had not realized that God’s orchestrations of the first and last person to hold Jesus were both named Joseph. When Jesus was born, Joseph, His “foster” father, held him. Following His death, the last person to hold Jesus was Joseph of Arimathea. The Bible doesn’t give us much information about these two men and neither one is quoted directly. Yet they had a significant role in Jesus’ life—the privilege of holding Jesus at such pivotal times in His life. It seems like a full-circle moment to me. Continue reading “THE JOSEPHS”
I had the blessing of attending a retreat recently, and one of the exercises we did was to break into small groups. We had three questions to reflect on and share, if desired, in our group and then with the whole group.
The first question was, “What has surprised you so far?” It was interesting to hear the variety of answers, since, as we know, God made each of us a little different and unique in our own way. We all have different perspectives, usually based on the experiences we’ve had. I like to hear people’s thoughts, which often reveal more of their stories.
The question echoed in my mind for a while, which made me think about how we never know what God will orchestrate in our lives. As I am more of an introvert, I was proud that I did speak up in our small group and share what surprised me. I shared how God surprised me with the relationships that I formed in less than twenty-four hours. I didn’t go into detail in my group, but it started with sharing a book with a presenter the first night before I even heard him speak. It was that little inkling I had to share a book then instead of waiting until the next day.
Much to my surprise the next day, I noticed he had the book with him as we went into the chapel before heading to breakfast. He told me he had already read two reflections. It was a lovely surprise that he sat at my table for breakfast. Towards the end, we were the two remaining people at the table and had a blessed encounter, sharing similar stories as tears filled my eyes listening to him. As we walked to the next event, he shared how perfect God’s orchestration was for this moment in time. We had a few more sacred encounters throughout the day that were God’s gifts—His surprises in our lives.
The final encounter was the next morning, when I was leaving early. I woke up early and couldn’t fall back asleep. I heard the birds singing at 6 a.m. and hopped out of bed, thinking I should go see the sunrise that I knew was about 6:30 a.m. I had a wonderful time walking with the view of the lake and horizon before getting a few pictures of the beautiful sunrise. I spent a few minutes in the chapel before heading to the kitchen to eat a little breakfast before I left. God’s surprise was for the presenter to come into the dining area as I was finishing my food. He sent me off with a powerful blessing and prayer, which was the perfect ending to the weekend.
A beautiful sunrise surprise at the retreat.
Another surprise from God was discovering the lady in the room next to me, whom I had met at this place back in 2021. As we started talking more, we remembered sharing some of our stories and realized we had met. What a blessed surprise to reconnect and catch up!
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” –Isaiah 55:8-9 (NLT)
I believe this verse supports the idea that God is a God of surprises. We tend to think in more human ways that we have control over so much, but I believe that God is the true orchestrator. God is omniscient and is the Creator of the heavens and earth and everything that is in them. His mind is way above ours, and He knows how everything fits together. What a beautiful verse of encouragement to help us put our faith and trust in our Mighty God!
Photo courtesy of BK under Creative Commons License (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Does it surprise you that…
…God chose Moses, a stutterer, to speak to the Israelites?
…Abraham and Sarah conceived a child in their old age, John the Baptist, who would baptize Jesus?
…Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin?
…Jesus ate with sinners and prostitutes?
…Peter denied knowing Jesus three times, yet he was the rock upon which Jesus started the church?
…God sent His only Son, Jesus, to die and rise from the dead to save us from our sins?
A heart surprise after seeing the sunrise.
REFLECTION:
What surprise has God provided in your life recently?
Have you seen how God has worked through ordinary you?
He chose the lowly, the laughable in the world’s eyes—nobodies—so that he would shame the somebodies. For he chose what is regarded as insignificant in order to supersede what is regarded as prominent, so that there would be no place for prideful boasting in God’s presence. –1 Corinthians 1:28-29 (TPT)
Note: I will not post a reflection next week. Feel free to stop by and check out any reflections! God bless~
Have you ever felt small and insignificant? Like you were all alone, though you know the truth of God’s Word that He is always with you, leading and guiding? Don’t we sometimes let our feelings triumph over the reality we might need to be reminded of?
As I was traveling to the Christian Literary Awards in Arlington, TX, recently, I kind of felt small and insignificant while walking amid a sea of people at the airports. Two of the three airports were massive, and there were crowds of people everywhere.
The trio of Joy & Company – Meeting my publisher for the third time
It was a little less crowded at the baggage claim, where I waited for my bag. As I stepped away to find the hotel shuttle area, God sent me this heart reminder. Continue reading “THE SPARROWS”
What a beautiful experience it was to have witnessed the total solar eclipse that occurred on April 8, 2024, at Lake Ontario. It was an unexpected sacred moment in time—a true God moment and encounter that made me marvel at the God of the universe who made the heavens and the earth.
When we first arrived, the sun was out and the weather was cooperating so we just needed a light jacket. We could see the whole sun with the solar glasses on. Some clouds started rolling in, and the sky got a little darker. But just in time, God graced us with being able to see the eclipse clearly as the clouds started moving from the area where the sun was.
Our friends had a set list for the few hours of the event, which was perfectly timed with the different phases of the eclipse. We all agreed to be in total silence during the totality of time to soak in the sacredness of the moment. Continue reading “SOLAR ECLIPSE”
Many Christians recently celebrated Palm Sunday, which commemorates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in all four Gospels. This entry would lead to Jesus’ death and resurrection from the dead a week later.
The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!” –John 12:12-13 (NIV)