Dear Lord Our Father in Heaven,

How I wish your name were still honored, Lord, across our land!

Land of the free! Home of the brave!

Our fallen soldiers are celebrated and honored across our land this Memorial Day!

We celebrate freedom because of the brave men and women who went before us, paving the path to the rights we have today!

Freedom contains the word free, but it is anything but! We know many have made the ultimate sacrifice, and some are still making sacrifices today, including those on the frontlines, those behind the lines, and those at home, praying faithfully daily for the safety and return of their loved ones.

The price has been steep for many, giving all for us as we enjoy a glorious three-day weekend with picnics and family gatherings. Please, Lord, help us remember why we gathered.

Lord, as we reflect and honor this Memorial Day, help us remember another who shed his blood so that we may also have spiritual freedom.

Because of our Lord Jesus and his sacrifice, We have freedom in you. We have the freedom to approach your throne boldly, freedom of speech and worship, and freedom from the death of the sins of destruction.

By shedding your blood, Lord Jesus, the perfect sacrifice, we are free to choose you! The ability to walk with you as we traverse life’s path and the glory of knowing we will spend eternity with you.

That’s glorious freedom!

Today, help us honor and recognize our fallen soldiers, the price they paid, and their families still pay!

All Gave Some; Some Gave All!

With much thanksgiving, let us remember! In your name, I pray. Amen

Yesterday, we met Martha cooking away in the kitchen because her brother Lazarus had his friend Jesus over, and her sister Mary was sitting at his feet, neglecting to help with the meal preparation.

In the Book of John, Chapter 11 we revisit Martha, Lazarus and Mary!

John 11:1. NLT: “A man named Lazarus was sick. He lived in Bethany with his sisters, Mary and Martha.

John 11:3 NLT: “So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, ‘Lord, your dear friend is very sick.”

John 11:4-6 NLT: “But when Jesus heard about it he said, ‘Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.’ so, although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, he stayed where he was for the next two days.”

As we read on within the chapter we read that Lazarus did indeed die!

We take back up in verse 20.

John 11:20 NLT: “When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him.

John 11:21-27NLT: “Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask.’

Jesus told her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’

‘Yes,’ Martha said, ‘he will rise when everyone else rises at the last day.’

Jesus told her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never die.” Do you believe this Martha?

Yes, Lord, she told him. ‘I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.”

We continue to read: Jesus instructs the stone of the tomb to be rolled away! Martha exclaims in fright that he’s been dead four days and the smell will be terrible!

Jesus, knowing the glory of God was about to revealed for all at the funeral to see!

Chapter 11:43 NLT: “Then Jesus shouted, ‘Lazarus come out!”

Chapter 11:44 NLT: “And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, ‘Unwrap him and let him go.”

WOW! And people say the Bible is dull; this is straight out of a horror movie! Out of the tomb walks Lazarus, who resembles a cross between a mummy and a zombie!

OK, back to having a Martha’s Heart: when we pick back up with this family, the brother has become gravely ill: what did Martha and her sister do? They sent for Jesus! We pray to Jesus! Either way, we turn to him for comfort and help!

She had witnessed the miracles Jesus had performed: healing the sick, raising the dead, giving sight to the blind, the lame walked, the deaf heard, the mute spoke, and the leper’s skin became whole again.

So, in her mind, Jesus will show up at any moment, and all will be well. She looks out her window from time to time, possibly walking to the end of her lane a time or two, hoping for a little cloud of dust to appear down the road! Another day, brother is worse, and no Jesus, fear trickles in!

Her brother dies, and it appears Jesus didn’t care! In verse 20, we read that Martha gets wind of Jesus approaching and goes out to meet him. Personally, I can picture this little Jewish woman huffing and puffing down the road mad as a wet hen!

How could he have let this happen? How could he have taken him from us? Didn’t he love him too? Jesus, Why?

Sound or feel familiar? Anger is a very normal emotion akin to death, and usually, that anger gets directed at God.

Why does he heal some and not others? I do not know if anyone has that answer, but the closest I can get is Ecclesiastes 3: “A Time For Everything.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1 NLT: For everything, there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.

3:2: “A time to be born and a time to die.”

3:4: “A time to laugh and a time to cry.”

It goes on. But, upon returning to Martha, I believe we can learn from her!

How!

We can march boldly to the throne heartbroken, angry, lost, and hurt!

We can sit and ask him all our questions and know he will hear and comfort us!

We can be honest and be ourselves with him because He already knows us better than we know ourselves.

We can not see into the heavens, but we must trust our Lord and his ways even when they don’t make sense or align with our hopes and prayers. We must trust in Him!

Remember, we are only on one side of the cross! 😌

I’m an Eastern Star, and one of the star’s five points belongs to Martha. I have sat in her emerald green chair for two different years, and in doing so, I have made a discovery!

I have a Martha’s heart! Martha was real! Not only was she a real person, but she was also real with Jesus.

You see, Martha was a sister to one of Jesus’ best friends, Lazarus! So, Martha was used to Jesus hanging around, that he was like just one of the other guys, but of course, He was not!

Here’s where it gets good! Martha knew Jesus as Christ and followed and believed in “The Way,” but she also knew him as a friend. ❤️

Luke 10:38-42 NLT: “As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come help me.’

But, the Lord said to her, ‘My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

I feel sorry for Martha; she’s got 12 disciples: Jesus, her brother, her sister, and who knows who else to feed. She’s in the kitchen up to her armpits cooking, peeling, roasting, and it’s hot; she’s sweating, tired, and has the martyr role going on.

Can you picture it? I can. I have been in Martha’s shoes, busy in the kitchen while everyone else is in my front room; I grew up in the kitchen with my grandma, hearing the Martha grumble as she toiled away cooking the holiday meal while everyone else had fun in the other room!

I love that Martha bustled right before Jesus and let her heart, feelings, and attitude show. I love that she had a close enough relationship with him to be honest, to be herself! Might we learn from Martha?

We are learning and practicing real, honest prayers with Jesus And real, honest talking, walking, and working relationships with Jesus. We need to take away the essential part of this message, and that’s Jesus explaining to Martha that the trappings of this world are secondary to learning the message of Christ and his loving gift of salvation.

I will stop here as this is the first part of a two-part message about being a Martha…

Dear Lord Jesus,

Thank you for loving us, Marthas, the hens that cluck around her chicks striving to get it all done, get it all right, and for wearing ourselves out trying to be! Thank you for your message telling us to slow down, look up, reflect on your peace and love, and take a breath. Thank you, Lord, for you! In your glorious name Lord Jesus, I pray! Amen 😌

Dear Lord, Good Morning,

I’ve been looking out my window this morning as I converse with you. It’s my quiet time; it’s our time. A time I’ve come to cherish.

A time to reflect! Lord, I humbly ask for each of us a quiet moment somewhere within our day to reflect on all the beauty you have placed in our lives. For a moment in our day to seek your beauty and to release our trials and cares.

For each one of us, that beauty varies. The beauty of your grandchildren’s smile, the array of colors splashed across the yard, the bunnies who enjoy eating the colorful splashes. Whatever our landscape or beauty holds, help us, Lord, to stop, appreciate, and take a deep cleansing breath.

Lord, please help us to slow down, allowing us the time to reflect upon you and your beautiful hand in our lives. You are there in our storms and the whisper of the breeze that passes by our faces. Please help us know you, recognize you, and to feel you in the beauty around us.

Reveal you to us! Open our eyes, Lord, so we might find joy in the simple, quiet, slow, and now! Thank you for teaching us by your word to live today, right now, because we aren’t assured of tomorrow. Yesterday is over; help us to learn from its lessons. Lord, help us overcome the past, live today, and be ready for tomorrow.

Lord, Jehovah Nissi: Our banner: Our God, who goes before us. Jehovah Ra’ah: Our Shepherd: Our God, who cares and watches over us. Jehovah Rapha: Our healer, God who heals our bodies, minds, and land. Jehovah Jireh: Our Supplier, Our God who supplies our every need. Jehovah El Roi: Our God Who sees, we are never out of his sight. He is always with us. Jehovah Shalom: God of Peace! May He Reign!

Lord, you are the God of Plenty! You are more than enough to see to our needs, help us reflect on that, and walk in the knowledge of! Thank you, Lord, for loving and being with us each new day!

As I begin my day, I take you with me! In your name, Lord Jesus, I, with humble thanksgiving, commit this prayer. ☺️❤️

Here’s your weather forecast for the Pacific Northwest! It’s going to rain!

Hosea 6:3 NLT: “Oh, that we might know the Lord! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn or the coming of rains in early spring.”

In the ESV translation, the last part of this verse reads, “He will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth.”

As I was pondering this verse, I discovered a few great things!

First, let us know and press on to know the Lord!

When we get to know and spend time with someone, that person’s character traits can often become our own! So, Hosea advises us to know the Lord, allowing his character traits to rub off on us! How do we do that by spending time with him? Spend time in prayer; prayer is simply talking to God and receiving him! Reading, listening, learning to shut out the world’s noise and your brain static, and tuning into what the Holy Spirit might be saying.

The Lord is great to hang out with! You should give the perfect friendship a try; He’s there and available 24/7!

Second, He will come to us as surely as the arrival of dawn!

Put: we can rely on, count on, and depend on the Lord to be with us, see us, and hear us as surely as we can depend on the arrival of a new day!

Thirdly, He will come to us as showers, as spring rains!

What do spring rains accomplish?

Spring, a time when the earth comes back to life, the rains play a major part of rebirth!

The spring rains nourish the soil and plant life, helping all things in nature to grow and flourish!

The spring rains fill water barrels, cisterns, and buckets, supplying our rivers, lakes, creeks, and streams with fresh refills.

Spring rains clean, refresh, renew, and brighten everything in its path! The landscape is always so vibrant after a spring cleansing!

Do any of these words noted above sound similar to the experience and relationship we receive from Jesus? I thought so, too!

So, the next time your spirit feels a little dry and crusty, arid and barren, lost and forgotten, I advise you to look up to the rainmaker and ask for a refreshing spring rain. You’ll be glad you did, and no umbrella is required.

Have a blessed day! ☔️☺️

Good Morning Lord, Our Father In Heaven:

As I was reading this morning, one of the scriptures resonated with me, and it’s a perfect way to start a prayer, a day, and a new week.

2 Chronicles 7:14 NLT: “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.”

Lord, we turn to you today seeking your guidance and your direction. Lord, when you ask us to humble ourselves, you aren’t asking us to lower ourselves to no self-esteem or self-worth, but instead, you are asking us to recognize our dependence on you and to sit at your feet in true honesty.

To seek your face as we look at ours in the mirror, not to observe the lines and wrinkles that appear more frequently each morning, but the us within. We turn to you for clarity in our misguided thoughts and actions, and your help realigns us with you.

You help us turn from our wicked ways! Wicked Ways sounds like something out of a horror story or movie, but you, Lord, are talking about our thoughts, judgments, attitudes, honesty, compassion, and, yes, what idols we may worship. No, not the carved wooded statues on the mantle or the Asherah poles of olden days, but money, status, fame, notoriety, self-importance, etc.

If we turn from these ways and turn to you, your word tells us you will hear from heaven, forgive our sins, and heal our land! What a beautiful promise.

First, you will hear from heaven, assuring us once again that you are always there when we turn to you in prayer. Second, you will forgive our sins, freeing us from the invisible chains that bind us. And, third, you will restore our land; whatever we have lost due to carelessness, lack, or circumstances, you are there, you are always with us, and if we set our hearts on you and put our hope, faith, and trust in you, you will restore that and much more.

So this morning, we humbly sit before you, asking for your gentle, loving presence as we start our week, the Holy Spirit’s guidance as we speak, and your mighty strength as we walk.

In this prayer with thanksgiving, I commit in your beautiful name, Lord Jesus, Amen! 😌

2 Corinthians 5:7 ESV: “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”

What does that mean?

It means that when we walk with Jesus, we have a unique lens on the world. However, with any eyesight that requires special lenses to see better, we must put on glasses or contacts.

Faith is our spiritual glasses! Faith in our Lord changes how we view life, situations, circumstances, and unexpected changes. It’s trusting God’s word of security over your challenges or mountains. It’s looking at a bleak scenario and seeing an opportunity for God to do amazing things in our world.

Romans 10:17 ESV: “So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Faith is a muscle that increases in strength the more it’s used, and faith is nourished by hearing the word of Christ: sermons, podcasts, testimonies, crusades, revivals, etc. And listening through the word of Christ, this is reading his word daily: the Bible, devotions, books, blogs, audios, etc.”

Hebrews 11:1 ESV: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

When faced with life challenges, roadblocks, setbacks, startovers, not enough, or too much of it, it is easy to focus on the need, the issue, the overload, the dread, and the fear!

Instead, this is when we need to refocus on what God has to say!

I need: Philippians 4:19 ESV: “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

I’m Scared: Deuteronomy 31:6 ESV: “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

I’m Tired: Isaiah 40:31 ESV: “But they who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

I’m Sick: Matthew 9:35 ESV: “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.”

James 5:15 ESV: “And he said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

I’m Sad/Broken: Psalm 34:18 ESV: “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

I’m Lonely: Psalm 25:16 ESV: “Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.”

John 15:15 ESV: “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my father I have made known to you.”

The Lord gives us his word and promises and gives his life for ours. He is always with us; all we have to do is look up and invite him into our lives, world, and circumstances. He’s there, I promise.

Now, please do your part; take the scriptures and thank him!

Thank you, Lord, for supplying all my needs.

Thank you, Lord, that I never walk alone, so I do not fear, for you are always with me.

Lord, I thank you for your strength because I don’t think I can make it alone.

Thank you, Lord, for you are my mighty healer and physician.

I’m thanking you Lord for being bigger than my depression, bigger than this dark cloud that has settled above me. I thank you for your beautiful light that shines upon my darkness.

I thank you, Lord, for being my best friend, loving me more than I love myself, being with me and listening when I talk, and sending the Holy Spirit to dwell within me that I always walk in communication with you.

Thank you, Jesus, for always knowing my needs and waiting for me to turn to you. Thank you for always being there, thank you for your love, thank you for being in my life, and thank you for my life!

And this, my friends, is how we walk by faith, not sight!

Put on your glasses its a new day! 😎

I have started a quick look at my favorite scriptures book. I can grab, open, and breathe in God’s words of comfort and steady reminders instantly, read, and continue!

I seldom sleep through the night, and often, if my mind is full, I find it hard to settle in and drift back to sleep. I fight my lists, thoughts, cares, dreads, and worries.

So, instead, I have been grabbing my little notebook with my God jottings. I take a few quiet moments to read, calming and changing my thoughts, thus enabling me to float back into blissful sleep.

Alongside scriptures assuring me that God will supply my needs and is always with me, I thought some scriptures of His comfort would be great additions to our peaceful arsenal and my little book.

Isaiah 41:10 ESV: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Isaiah 49:13 ESV: “Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion on his afflicted.

And will have compassion on his afflicted!

Do you ever find, as you read scripture, that you forget that it was breathed and written for you? All of God’s promises are for you, me, and us!

We are his children; he loves us more than we can fathom!

Psalm 23:6 ESV: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

Romans 8:28 ESV: “And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Isaiah 66:13 ESV: “As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted Jerusalem.”

Matthew 11:28 ESV: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

And finally:

Romans 15:13 ESV: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

I pray for you a day filled with joy, peace, and abundant hope! Have a fantastic day, and Be blessed! 😌

We all need friends. Friends come in all shapes, sizes, and colors; there are the funny ones, the serious ones, the ones you can get into trouble with, the shoulder to cry on friends, the vacation friends, the golf friend, the sewing friend, the book sharing friend, the list goes on forever friends.

Our closest friend may be our spouse, partner, children, parent, co-worker, or neighbor. We may have friends we talk to once a year, but what fun those catch-up times are. We might still be blessed to keep in touch with the friends we grew up with—those from back home who share our childhood memories or the new friends we’ve made in the different locations of our lives.

Proverbs 27:17 ESV: “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.”

Proverbs 27:9 ESV: “Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from earnest counsel.”

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 ESV: “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fail, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!”

We all can have a friend who will never leave us, is always there to pick us up when we fall, always has an open ear when we need to talk, and a shoulder when we need to cry. That Friend is Jesus!

Proverbs 18:24 ESV: “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Guess who that friend is? Yep, it’s Jesus!

John 15:15 ESV: “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

James 2:23 ESV: “And the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness-and he was called a friend of God.”

Deuteronomy 31:6 ESV: “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes before you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

Dear Lord Jesus,

I ask you to come into my heart; be my Lord, Savior, and Best Friend. I believe you died for my sins. I am a sinner, but in you, I am set free. And in your name, I am blessed with eternity in heaven alongside you. Please write my name under yours in The Book of Life. I long to walk with you, talk with you, and, most of all, hear your counsel. In your name, I pray. Amen! 😌❤️

Psalm104:24-25 ESV: “O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Here is the sea, great and wide, which teems with creatures innumerable, living things both small and great.”

For the past few weeks, God has been watering his gardens, soaking the earth with rains from heaven followed by the warmth of the Sun. Seeds are bursting forth new life, and rebirth is everywhere.

I’ve been spending these sunny days tending to my yard while relaxing and enjoying the fruits of my labor. Nature always makes me feel close to God! It only seems natural as he created the very ground we walk on.

Philippians 4:8 ESV: “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

It seems like the perfect time to focus on God’s beauty. He is all around us and within the creations of his world, our world he gave to us to enjoy.

The skies are vivid shades of blue. The rivers run rapidly, and the creeks are bubbling joyfully on the green grassy banks. The wildflowers are in bloom everywhere we look: along the highways and byways, the meadows and fields ablaze with color, sitting next to the cool, dark, shady forests with all their majesty.

There are birds of every color, size, and sound. The geese in their regimen honk as they fly overhead. Mr and Mrs. Robin putter around the yard as they shop for home decor and food for their babies. The tiny Wrens splash around as they gleefully bathe themselves in their birdbath. Or, The fluffy bunnies with their big brown eyes cautiously nibbling in the sweet clover and the ever-inquisitive squirrels and chipmunks who have discovered the stash of sunflower seeds.

Then, there is the utopia of our oceans. God went to town with his creativity and the glorious colors of the creatures and plant life under the sea! Fish are swimming around that would rival the most beautiful of flowers. There is a whole other world within the depths of the waters God holds in the palms if his hands.

Isaiah 40:12 NLT: “Who else has held the oceans in his hand? Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers? Who else knows the weight of the earth or has weighed the mountains and hills on a scale?”

It’s exciting to actually be a part of God’s creations. We are God’s creations.

Genesis 1:27 ESV: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

We are created in his image and intended to walk in unity with the Lord God, our creator. We only need to stop long enough to notice and take the time to smell the flowers, share, and enjoy the beauty he has blessed us with.

As the weather becomes nicer each day, summer finally makes her decent. I hope you will take the time to enjoy the beauty God has given you and ask him to join you in your walk. He will point out things you might never have noticed; there are surprises around every curve of every path. Explore, and I hope you enjoy your day! ❤️☀️☺️