REVIEW OF OUR LIVES IN 2010

As I think back over the past year, there have been many changes. Some were absolute miracles and blessings from God and some were heartbreaking and still are today.

I want to thank God for His protection this time last year on New Year's Eve 2009. There was no way for us to have come out of that spinning on ice in complete circles in both directions with no injuries and no wrecked vehicle without a divine hand intervening in the situation. To God I give all the glory.

We were expecting the arrival of my son's first baby in March. What we didn't know was that our daughter was also expecting but was afraid to tell us and afraid to go through a second pregnancy because of the complications with her first child. Her daughter Allison had been asking Jesus for a baby sister.

My weekly Bible Study Group continued to meet here at my home and this group of women grew and we also grew in the knowledge of our God. The times of sharing our hearts with each other and praying for one another and our families were so special. I was also able to start a Prayer Shawl Ministry in our church in the month of March. Many people have been ministered to through this ministry.

Our son's daughter Abigail came on March 31st on my daughter's birthday. Funny how God sets dates to coincide with dates. She was a beautiful baby and today she is crawling and trying to pull up to stand. I am also very blessed to be able to care for her when her mother returned to work.

We all held our breath as we waited for the arrival of our third grand-child in August, knowing of what happened with the first pregnancy. God kept his hand upon Amanda throughout her pregnancy and upon the baby.

July came and our friend Ricky, who was like a son to us, made a sudden decision to take his own life. There have been many tears over his leaving and tonight as I write this, it would have been his 35th birthday today. Ricky, my heart breaks not knowing where you are for eternity.

Ten days later, on August 4th, our daughter delivers a healthy baby boy. Nathan, our first grandson. His sister Allison had been asking Jesus for a sister. We told her Jesus knows best and He wanted her to have a brother instead. Among the heartache of the death of Ricky, there is joy in the birth of a baby. So many emotions are flowing during this time. Thankfulness for God's hand upon our daughter and upon our grand-babies that were born and mourning for Ricky.

As the fall months came we lose a few more friends to death. It's been a reality check when you get out the Christmas decorations and see a tag from a gift that our friend Juanita had given us the previous year and now she is with the Lord.

Our Pastor for the last 12 years Gary Rogers has suddenly been moved by God to another area of Oklahoma to minister. We were very blessed to have an associate Pastor Steve Lee, that agreed to take on the responsibility of continuing to lead our church. Today our church is growing in all areas with many young people coming into the faith of Jesus.

The Bible Study ended suddenly in the fall. There were many reasons for ending it even though I fought for many months to continue it, but I felt a release the night I ended it. I believe God has a plan and a step up from what we were doing here. Time will tell if this is true.

New Years Eve 2010......Tonight as I look back over the past year, I thank you God for your hand upon our family. Thank you for our parents that are still with us and for seeing them through many difficulties this year. Thank you for our friends that have remained with us.

I ask Lord, for Shalom, (Peace) to be upon my family and friends in 2011. May nothing be missing and nothing be broken. May everything be complete. Open the eyes of our hearts to see you and to become closer to you this next year as we wait for your return. In Jesus name I pray....Amen

THE MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB

I have been amazed as a Christian at the results of studying our Jewish Roots of the Bible. Not only has what I have learned deepened my relationship with my Lord and my understanding of His Word, it has at the same time made me realize how we Christians have also had blinders over our eyes.

One of the things I have read about was a time in history when no one was allowed to have a Bible to read for themselves except for the leader. All of the learning came from what the leader would tell you. We can look back on that time in history and see how absurd that was when in reality, the church today HAS BEEN very much the same way. I say HAS BEEN because more and more people are starting to dig into the Word of God in these last days for themselves not relying 'only' on what a leader may teach us.

When I first started studying my Jewish Roots, my Jewish Messiah Jesus, and the Feasts Of God, I was met with some that were skeptical and afraid that "I might get off into wrong teaching or worse...a cult." This was no different from that time in history when no one was allowed to read the Bible for themselves. But praise God, the blinders are coming off and more and more pastors, teachers, and leaders are understanding and teaching the depth of God's Word.

Today marks a very important date in the history and in the future of mankind. Today is the New Year on God's calendar. It is called many names and one of those names is Feast Of Trumpets.

It is the day God created the world. The only feast day that is marked by a New Moon, a new moon of creation that then grows into a full moon.

It is the day that Abraham bound Isaac to offer him as a sacrifice to God and the Angel of the Lord intervened and stopped him. A ram was caught in the thicket by his horn, (trumpet or shofar) that is Feast of Trumpets, then the ram was sacrificed.

And today is the next Feast day to be fulfilled by Jesus. He fulfilled Passover when He was slain, Unleaven Bread when he went into the grave, First Fruits when He rose again from the dead, and Pentecost when He sent the Holy Spirit to man. All fulfilled in their order and the next feast day to be fulfilled is Feast of Trumpets. God is a God of order!

He said in His Word that He is coming for those that are watching. Keep your eyes on the sky and keep watching whether He comes today, tomorrow, months, or years, He is coming for His Bride. And together with Jesus, we will enter into the Marriage Supper Of The Lamb.

Revelation 19:9........Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.

THE VOICE OF AN ANGEL

On August 4, 2010, we heard a shout that sounded like the voice of an angel as Nathan Rhett took his first breath here on earth and cried out.

Nathan means a gift from God and Rhett means a well spoken man.

His sister Allison had started asking Jesus for a baby and her prayer was answered.

Our family was blessed four months earlier with a grand-daughter named Abigail.

This time, only one trip to the hospital instead of 13 with no complications. God is so faithful to let my daughter redeem the time that an expecting mother should cherish when she is carrying a child.

My prayer over each one of my grandchildren is that they will always serve the Lord and be a light for Jesus. That they would have the favor of God upon their lives.

OVERS!!!!!

I remember as a child playing a game or trying to make an image in the sand or trying to build something and when it didn't turn out as we planned we would yell "OVERS" and try it again.
There are times in life when we can have 'overs' when the outcome isn't what we anticipated.

Yet there are times in life when things are final and no 'overs' are granted. Yesterday was a day I truly wished we could have overs. Someone we loved very much in a moment of despair and anger decided to take his own life. In just a split second, he's gone. In death, there are no overs. It's final. If only we could have overs, so much would be said. If we could have forseen the outcome of that day, he would still be here living today.

Yesterday, when so many hearts were broken, and a life ended on earth, the birds did not quit singing, the sun did not stop shining, and the flowers did not stop blooming. The living keep on living because God is life. Those he left behind will go on living but with a void in our life and with much sorrow for a long time. I know if he could see the outcome of his decision, he would want overs too.

I thank God that He is so merciful even when we experience the death of a loved one. Because He is life....and in our sorrow, we still experience life all around us. Children laughing, birds singing, flowers blooming and tomorrow the sun will rise again.

Once a day is gone, you will never experience that day again. But oh how I wish we could have overs for yesterday.

The Book Is Still Open For Membership

When I got married almost 35 years ago, I moved from my hometown to my husband's hometown. Although I visit my hometown quite frequently, I lost contact with so many people I used to know. Recently I joined Facebook and have been getting in contact with so many people that I knew and grew up with. It has been so exciting to see pictures of friends and family and to talk with them and get re-aquainted. To be able to type in a name and find someone I had forgotten about for years and to make contact with them and find out about their lives...what they are doing now.....how many children and grandchildren they now have.

Facebook has not only been a way to find someone I used to know, but it has been a way to express my faith in God with others and they with me. It has been a way to let some of them know how important they were in my life. One friend in particular named Karron, I was able to let her know how much I loved art class with her in Jr. High. She was a pastor's daughter and everyday when we got in art class, she would start telling us about different things in the Bible. Karron played an important part in my love for the Lord.

Facebook......it reminds me of another book that will one day soon be opened. The Book of Life! Will I be able to check this book in heaven to find family and friends to see if they made it?????

What joy I will experience when I make contact with them!!! I'll be able to sit down with them and tell them how they made a difference in my life just as I told Karron a few days ago.

Facebook....it reminds me of that Book of Life that my name is written in and because of that I will soon see Jesus face to face in person and not on a computer.

Revelation 20:12...And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.

Revelation 20:15...And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.

Facebook.....what a wonderful way to tell all my friends and family about Jesus and about another book they need to join.. The Book Of Life!

I pray that all you that read this will have your name inscribed in the Book Of Life and someday we will get to meet each other face to face.

Little Prayer Warrior

I couldn't resist posting this one!! Abigail Hope had her first pictures taken with a photographer and she wasn't even a month old at the time of this snapshot. When I saw the picture I couldn't believe it. Her mother Brandi, my daughter-in-love, said that when the photographer got ready to snap the picture, Abigail raised her hands and put them together as if praying.

Like Feathers in the Wind

In a small Jewish village in the Ukraine, a young man became angry with the rabbi. In his anger, he shared a lie with one friend, speaking evil of the rabbi. As is typical, particularly in a small town, the one man told another, who told his wife, who told her sister, and eventually the rabbi himself heard the story. The rabbi was deeply hurt by the lies being told; but could do nothing to counter the now widespread story.

After a few weeks, the young man realized he had been wrong to be angry at the rabbi, and even more wrong to have told the story about the rabbi. With a truly repentant heart, he went to the rabbi and confessed both his anger and the lie he had told. He offered to do anything to repair the damage he had done. The rabbi offered the young man one simple task. The young man was overjoyed and gladly asked what he must do. The rabbi told him to go home and get a feather pillow, take it to the center of town on a windy day, and cut it open. Once all the feathers had been scattered by the wind, he told the young man to simply walk around and gather up each and every feather and return it to the pillow case.

The young man's countenance dropped, and he told the rabbi that such an assignment was impossible. The rabbi shook his head and told the young man that just as it was impossible to regather the feathers, so it was impossible to regather the lie he had spread. The Rabbi could and would forgive the young man, but the damage could never be completely undone.

(Whenever you speak evil of another, three people are hurt. First, the person you are speaking about is hurt. Second, you hurt yourself when you speak evil about another. You pollute your own thoughts by focusing on the evil, and you also tarnish your image, as people come to know you as one who spreads a bad report--a gossip. Third, you hurt the person you tell. You pollute their mind and their image of the other person, and you tempt them to continue the gossip train and share this same evil report with others. Remember, all three people are damaged, even if the evil report is true!)

The rabbis teach that the only time it is permissible to share an evil truth, or we might say "bad report," about someone is when not doing so will cause damage to the person you might tell.

Story taken from BRIDGES FOR PEACE Israel Teaching Letter titled GUARD YOUR TONGUE.