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Posted on 01/01/2024 3:15:48 PM PST by luvie
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LOL!
Well, I might have spoken too soon. It seems that hubby just bought some stuff to make fig jam/jelly/preserves...or whatever it becomes. 🙀
We’ll see.......LOL!
Bible in a Year :
We love because he first loved us.
When she was struck by cancer, Elsie was prepared to go home to heaven to be with Jesus. But she recovered, though the disease left her immobile. It also left her wondering why God had spared her life. “What good can I do?” she asked Him. “I don’t have much money or skills, and I can’t walk. How can I be useful to You?”
Then she found small, simple ways to serve others, especially her home cleaners who were migrants. She bought them food or gave them a few dollars whenever she saw them. These cash gifts were small, yet they went a long way toward helping the workers make ends meet. As she did so, she found God providing for her: friends and relatives gave her gifts and money, enabling her to bless others in return.
As she shared her story, I couldn’t help but think of how Elsie was truly putting into practice the call to love one another in 1 John 4:19: “We love because he first loved us” as well as the truth of Acts 20:35, which reminds us that “it is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Elsie gave because she received and was in turn encouraged as she gave. Yet it took little more from her than a loving, grateful heart and a readiness to offer what she had—which God multiplied in a virtuous circle of giving and receiving. Let’s ask Him to give us a thankful and generous heart to give as He leads us! Reflect & Pray
What have you received from God? How can you encourage someone in a simple yet meaningful way today?
Dear Father, thank You for Your gifts in my life. Please give me a heart to love others just as You’ve loved me.
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Nice house!
😊
I did that once. Once.
I couldn’t get the concept of breathing under water. It was just unnatural. I had to quit. And the view was beautiful in the South China Sea.
The cat carrier that I had converted had gotten in bad shape out in the weather, and the top collapsed, so this was the solution. She was hesitant at first, but she’s coming around.
I did it once also. Mike and I renewed our vows 35 ft under water. LOL!
The next time i tried, I had all the gear on, but just couldn’t do it.
The first time was so nice...but Then I chickened out on the second time.
Maybe you over-thought it the second time like I did. LOL!
Very unique way to renew the vows, though. What did you wear?
A wetsuit, of course!
Bible in a Year :
Sing the praises of the Lord, you his faithful people.
Susy wept as she sat outside the hospital’s intensive care unit—waves of paralyzing fear sweeping over her. The tiny lungs of her two-month-old baby were filled with fluid, and doctors said they were doing their best to save him but gave no guarantees. At that moment she says she “felt the sweet, gentle nudging of the Holy Spirit reminding [her] to worship God.” With no strength to sing, she played praise songs on her phone over the next three days in the hospital. As she worshiped, she found hope and peace. Today, she says the experience taught her that “worship doesn’t change God, but it definitely changes you.”
Facing desperate circumstances, David called out to God in prayer and praise (Psalm 30:8). One commentator notes that the psalmist prayed “for grace issued in praise and transformation.” God turned David’s “wailing into dancing” and he declared that he would “praise [God] forever”—in all circumstances (vv. 11-12). While it can be hard to praise God during painful times, it can lead to transformation. From despair to hope, from fear to faith. And He can use our example to encourage and transform others (vv. 4-5).
Susy’s baby boy was restored to health by God’s grace. While not all challenges in life will end as we hope they will, He can transform us and fill us with renewed joy (v. 11) as we worship Him even in our pain.
Reflect & Pray
How might worshiping God as you endure pain affect you? How might your example affect others?
Dear God, please transform me even as I worship You in my pain and difficulties.
Bible in a Year :
We love because he first loved us.
When she was struck by cancer, Elsie was prepared to go home to heaven to be with Jesus. But she recovered, though the disease left her immobile. It also left her wondering why God had spared her life. “What good can I do?” she asked Him. “I don’t have much money or skills, and I can’t walk. How can I be useful to You?”
Then she found small, simple ways to serve others, especially her home cleaners who were migrants. She bought them food or gave them a few dollars whenever she saw them. These cash gifts were small, yet they went a long way toward helping the workers make ends meet. As she did so, she found God providing for her: friends and relatives gave her gifts and money, enabling her to bless others in return.
As she shared her story, I couldn’t help but think of how Elsie was truly putting into practice the call to love one another in 1 John 4:19: “We love because he first loved us” as well as the truth of Acts 20:35, which reminds us that “it is more blessed to give than to receive.”
Elsie gave because she received and was in turn encouraged as she gave. Yet it took little more from her than a loving, grateful heart and a readiness to offer what she had—which God multiplied in a virtuous circle of giving and receiving. Let’s ask Him to give us a thankful and generous heart to give as He leads us!
Reflect & Pray
What have you received from God? How can you encourage someone in a simple yet meaningful way today?
Dear Father, thank You for Your gifts in my life. Please give me a heart to love others just as You’ve loved me.
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Sounds like a plan!
Bible in a Year :
Live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way.
As I prepared for my mom’s celebration of life service, I prayed for the right words to describe her “hyphen years”—the years between her birth and death. I reflected on the good and not-so-good times in our relationship. I praised God for the day my mom accepted Jesus as her Savior after she saw Him “changing” me. I thanked Him for helping us grow in faith together and for the people who shared how my mom encouraged and prayed for them while showering them with kindness. My imperfect mom enjoyed a meaningful hyphen—a life well-lived for Jesus.
Not one believer in Jesus is perfect. However, the Holy Spirit can enable us to “live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way” (Colossians 1:10). According to the apostle Paul, the church of Colossae was known for their faith and love (vv. 3-6). The Holy Spirit gave them “wisdom and understanding” and empowered them to “[bear] fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (vv. 9-10). As Paul prayed for and praised those believers, he proclaimed the name of Jesus, the one “in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (v. 14).
When we surrender to the Holy Spirit, we too can grow in our knowledge of God, love Him and people, spread the gospel, and enjoy a meaningful hyphen—a life well-lived for Jesus.
Reflect & Pray
What qualities characterized a person you know who lived a meaningful life? How can you enjoy living such a life this week?
Holy Spirit, please give me more opportunities to share Jesus with others as I enjoy a meaningful life.
For further study, read A Resilient Life: Strength for Today from the Sermon on the Mount.
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