(((((Hugs to Everyone, and God Bless)))))
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Posted on 12/31/2018 8:06:30 PM PST by JustAmy
Thank the Lord! You are back.!!!I have been off the net protecting my back...I am SO glad to “see” You!
It’s lovely here too, but there are still YUGE piles of dirty snow everywhere. It’s going to take a long time to melt.
Love it!!
Awwwwwww So cute, ML!
Thank you Meg! I am happy to be back
:-)
It would be be beautiful here if the wind weren’t still howling. I don’t even want to go outside.
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Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 23–25; Mark 14:1–26
She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Genesis 29:35 Today's Scripture & Insight:
In a TV program, young adults posed as high school students to better understand the lives of teenagers. They discovered that social media plays a central role in how teens measure their self-worth. One participant observed, “[The students’] self-value is attached to social media—it’s dependent on how many ‘likes’ they get on a photo.” This need for acceptance by others can drive young people to extreme behavior online.
The longing for being accepted by others has always been there. In Genesis 29, Leah understandably yearns for the love of her husband Jacob. It’s reflected in the names of her first three sons—all capturing her loneliness (vv. 31–34). But, sadly, there’s no indication that Jacob ever gave her the acceptance she craved.
With the birth of her fourth child, Leah turned to God instead of her husband, naming her fourth son Judah, which means, “praise” (v. 35). Leah, it seems, finally chose to find her significance in God. She became part of God’s salvation story: Judah was the ancestor of King David and, later, Jesus.
We can try to find our significance in many ways and things, but only in Jesus do we find our identity as children of God, co-heirs with Christ, and those who will dwell eternally with our heavenly Father. As Paul wrote, nothing in this world compares with the “surpassing worth of knowing Christ” (Philippians 3:8).
In what or whom have you been striving to gain your value and acceptance? How does faith in Jesus open the door to your true identity?
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So adorable! Thanks, MEG!
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 26–27; Mark 14:27–53
By faith [Moses] left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. Hebrews 11:27 Today's Scripture & Insight:
Working in the corporate world allowed me to interact with many talented and levelheaded people. However, one project led by an out-of-town supervisor was an exception. Regardless of our team’s progress, this manager harshly criticized our work and demanded more effort during each weekly status phone call. These run-ins left me discouraged and fearful. At times, I wanted to quit.
It’s possible that Moses felt like quitting when he encountered Pharaoh during the plague of darkness. God had hurled eight other epic disasters at Egypt, and Pharaoh finally exploded, “[Moses,] get out of my sight! Make sure you do not appear before me again! The day you see my face you will die” (Exodus 10:28).
Despite this threat, Moses eventually was used by God to free the Israelites from Pharaoh’s control. “[By faith] Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27 nlt). Moses overcame Pharaoh by believing that God would keep His promise of deliverance (Exodus 3:17).
Today, we can rely on the promise that God is with us in every situation, supporting us through His Holy Spirit. He helps us resist the pressure of intimidation and wrong responses to it by granting us supernatural power, love, and self-control (2 Timothy 1:7). The Spirit provides the courage we need to keep going and to follow God’s leading in our lives.
What types of situations upset you? How can you rely on God?
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Hello FRiends, hope you are all having a great day.
: )
All is well here. Kind of chilly, but nothing like you’ve had. Can you see the ground yet?
Yes lots of bare ground and mountains of snow slowly getting smaller. Had a late day snow squall, with sunset shining through it. Very strange weather. Was 60 on Thursday, today around 40, then brief blizzard.
Cat:
a pygmy lion who loves mice,
hates dogs,
and patronizes human beings.
Oliver Herford
Happy Caturday!
Bible in a Year: Deuteronomy 28–29; Mark 14:54–72
In humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. Philippians 2:3–4 Today's Scripture & Insight:
On the verge of making team history, University of Iowa basketball star Jordan Bohannon intentionally missed the free throw that would have broken a twenty-five-year-old school record. Why? In 1993, days after Iowa’s Chris Street had made thirty-four free throws in a row, he lost his life in a car crash. Bohannon chose to honor Street’s memory by not breaking his record.
Bohannon showed a keen awareness of things more important than his own advancement. We see similar values in the life of the young warrior David. Hiding in a cave with his ragtag army, David longed for a drink from the well in his hometown of Bethlehem, but the dreaded Philistines occupied the area (2 Samuel 23:14–15).
In a stunning act of bravery, three of David’s warriors “broke through the Philistine lines,” got the water, and brought it to David. But David couldn’t bring himself to drink it. Instead, he “poured it out before the Lord,” saying, “Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?” (vv. 16–17).
In a world that often rewards those who seize whatever they can grasp, how powerful acts of love and sacrifice can be! Such deeds are much more than mere symbols.
Instead of advancing your own agenda, how can you celebrate someone else and their efforts? How do our acts of love reflect God’s own?
I am so looking forward to it!
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WEARING RED ON FRIDAY
