Love Is...

Children often ask, "How much do you love me?  This big?"  

"Do you love me bigger than the sky?  To the moon and back?  As much as the sand on the beach, the stars in the sky?"

Sometimes adults ask the same thing.

There are some people who cannot say the words 'I love you,' but their actions speak louder than their words. 

There are some people who say the words 'I love you,' but their actions do not reflect the words they have just spoken.

And then there are those who can both speak and show love.

So what is real love?

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a tells us what love is, and what love is not:

    Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up.

    Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

    Rejoiceth not in iniquity. but rejoiceth in the truth;

    Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

    Charity never faileth:

May my actions always back up my words, and may my words motivate my actions-

    But that's just me!

"I asked Jesus, 'How much do you love me?' 

    And Jesus said, 'This much!'

        Then He stretched out His arms and died."

            -Unknown

Mom's

"A Mother is a person seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie."  Tenneva Jordan

Mother's Day is a day when we as children (young and old) can reflect on and honor our Mom's.

I was blessed with a great Mom, and looking back I can see that I often took her for granted.

She loved each of her four children equally and selflessly.  Most times she sacrificed her own needs for our needs;  and often they were more our 'wants' than our 'needs.'

My Mom was involved in every area of our lives:

She was a Bluebird Leader, a Brownie Leader, Girl Scout Leader and a Cub Scout Leader.  She baked goodies for school functions, and chaperoned school field trips.

She never ran out of hugs and kisses, not only for her own children, but for the children in our neighborhood, and there was always room for one more person at our table no matter which one of her children brought someone home for dinner.

My friends would often tell me, 'You're lucky, you have a cool Mom!'  Funny I never really thought so...at least at the time.

My Mom was the type of person who would give you her last of anything, always saying, 'They need it more than I do.'  She served her family and those around her with joy.

But most of all-She knew Jesus.

One of her favorite things to say was, 'God is SO good!'

Even while dying from cancer.

She always knew how to look on the bright side.

Was my Mom perfect?  No.

Did we fight?  Yes.

But as I look back on my growing-up years, my Mom was an example of the Proverbs 31 Woman.  How do I know this?  Because as the Bible lists the attributes of this woman, I can see my Mom.  

How else do I know this?

Because of a promise fulfilled:

    "Her children arise up, and call her blessed-"  Proverbs 31:28a

My Mom is with her Saviour now, but I still praise the Lord for her-

    But that's just me!

"I realized when you look at your Mother, you are looking at the purest love you will ever know."

    Mitch Albom

"Only God Himself fully appreciates the influence of a Christian Mother in the molding of character in her children."  Billy Graham

Warned

Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the the wicked, fall from your own stedfastsness.  1 Peter 3:17

The other I day I took my friends children to the park.  When we arrived at our destination, I parked my car, and before allowing the children to get out of the car, I turned around in my seat to give them instructions.  I pointed to the different vehicles that were parked near us, and I pointed out the different people there, and I warned them of Stranger Danger.  I wanted them to know where they were allowed to play, and to know their boundaries.  We all had our 'buddy' and we made sure to look out for one another and to stay together.

Why?  Because sometimes danger isn't what it appears to be.  I wanted them to be aware of the environment.  I wanted them to recognize possible dangers so that they could avoid it.

The Bible is full of warnings to us as well.  "Take heed"  and "beware" verses are there for our protection.  When heeded, we are safe, when not heeded, we are often led to destruction of our own making.

God warns us of:

    Evil companions-

    Being in wrong places-

    And Sin-

The children in my care that day, heeded my warnings, and we all had a safe and wonderful time playing at the park.

When I stay close to my Saviour in His Word, and heed His Voice, I need not fear of any danger!

    But that's just me!

Beyond

Job 5:8-9  I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause:

Which doeth great things and unsearchable; marvellous things without number.

As I began my quiet time with the Lord this morning, the word 'beyond' entered my thoughts.  My prayer journal always begins with praise; my 'thank you' to God for different answers to prayer, gratefulness for all He has done for me and my family.

As I began to praise Him, I realized that the Lord always goes above and beyond all my expectations.

For those things I see and ask for, and for those things I cannot see and neglect to ask for.

Ephesians 3:20a Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think..

A verse of song comes to mind:

God only knows the time my life was threatened just today-

a wreck-less car ran out of gas, before it ran my way-

near misses all around me, accidents unknown-

though I never see with human eyes the hands that lead me home.....

(Angels by Elliot B Bannister, Gary W. Chapman, Amy Grant Hill, Michael w. Smith)

"Beyond."  I began to thank God for the things He does for me that I cannot see with my human eye.  I thank Him for His hand that gently leads the way in which I should walk, for His constant care...for all things.

God goes above and beyond for me....do I do the same for Him?

A great deal of what we 'see' depends on what we are looking for...I want to see God's hand in every area of my life...But that's just me!

"Always do more than is required of you-"  Gen. George S. Patton

Disguised

Why do we put 'sizes' on sin?  We label them as 'big' or 'small' when there really is no such thing.  A 'white lie' is still a lie.

Satan likes to pretty up sin.  He likes to confuse the definition of sin by suggesting that there really isn't anything wrong with it, he whispers in our ears, 'That's not so bad.'  Satan can muddle our discernment to the point where we can no longer see sin for what it is:  SIN.

The other day, my husband and I were driving to the store, and we passed a tree that had a massive growth on it's side.  When I first saw it, I thought it was some type of nest, or maybe even just a knot that had grown on the bark of the tree, but my husband said it was a fungus!  This type of fungus grows on trees when a fungal spore comes in contact with a 'susceptible' host.  It attaches itself to the host and begins to grow, making it one with the host.  This fungus even begins to 'look' like it's host.  This fungus was the same color and texture of the bark of the tree.

Webster's Dictionary defines susceptible as this:  Open, subject or un-resistant to influence.

Sin will work the same way in our lives if we are not careful!  Worldly influences will enter our thoughts and minds and our actions will begin to change.  Mutate to a point where others cannot tell if we are a Child of God.  If we do not identify sin as sin, it will creep into our lives in disguise.  It will attach itself to us and become a part of us.  It can go unnoticed until one day it becomes a hideous growth on our character.

Psalms 1:1 explains this downward progression.

So what can we do?  We need to realize that we cannot trust our hearts.  Jeremiah 17:9 says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked:  who can know it?"

Consider your ways and turn to God's way:  Psalm 119:59 "I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies."

See sin as it truly is, SIN.

I want to be so close to my Saviour that I won't be susceptible to sins disguises....

    But that's just me!

"Sin slyly insinuates itself and by slow degrees prevails, therefore must we carefully guard against it."  Charles Spurgeon

Man's Applause

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service-Romans 12:1

I have a hard time with Public Praise.  Why?  Romans 7:18a, For I know that in me (that is, my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing:

I want to crawl under the nearest chair when someone wants to recognize me for something I have done because I know that all the 'good' in me is the Lord's doing.  If I have accomplished anything, it's because of the Lord in me, doing His good work.

All the praise belongs to my Saviour.

So, why do we do the things we do?  Has our Christian Service come down to gold stickers, pats on our backs, and praises from men?

Do we love the praise of men more than the praise of God?  John 12:43

Is it for men to see?  Or is it unto the Lord?  Colossians 3:23-24

If it's for man, you will have your earthly reward.  Matthew 6:1-3

Me, I'd rather wait and get my heavenly reward from Jesus, that way I can lay my rewards back down at my Saviour's feet for His honor and for His glory.  After all-that's where they all belong anyway-

    But that's just me!

I'd rather have Jesus than men's applause,

I'd rather be faithful to His dear cause,

I'd rather have Jesus than world wide fame,

I'd rather be true, to His Holy Name.

Than to be the king of a vast domain,

or be held in sin's dread sway-

I'd rather have Jesus than anything,

this world affords today.

Lyrics by Rhea. F. Miller, Music by George Beverly Shea

Pets

Yesterday was one of the hardest days of my life.

But let me start at the beginning...

Six years ago my husband and I decided to get a dog.  Knowing we wanted a Labrador, we began our search.  It led us to a Pet Store, where there was one litter of Black Labs.  We requested a female, but the Clerk said there were only males left.  Imagine our surprise when there was one sweet little girl found among all the boys!  We knew right away she was the one we would be taking home with us.  It was Christmas Eve.

For the past six years Belle has seen us through many Seasons of our life.  Through joy and through sorrow.  She was a smart, faithful friend, and a gentle companion.  She was always wanting a hug and a kiss, and she gave them right back to us!  She wanted to be by our sides continually.  She made us laugh and brought joy into our lives.  She helped me through the death of my Mom and the death of my Sister.  She was my help when I was sick and my company when I was lonely.

Many times while kneeling at the foot of my bed, praying to God, she would be sitting beside me.  My constant friend.

A few months back she hurt her leg and would require TPLO surgery.  It would be thousands of dollars, months of recovery, and no guarantee she would wake up from her surgery.  So we decided to put her on pain medicine.  After three months, concerns for her liver and kidneys arose, and she was in a lot of pain.  

A hard decision was made.  Do we want her in pain for our own selfish reasons, or was it time to let her go?

And that brings me to yesterday.

We decided to let her go. 

"A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast:"  Proverbs 12:10a

As I cradled Belle's head in my lap and kissed her nose as she left this world, I knew that the Lord was with me in my grief.  I knew His angels were already ministering to me, helping me get through this and I knew that the Lord was already collecting my tears.  (Psalm 56:8)

Through pain, I could still thank God for giving me such a special gift.

Someone once said, "Having a dog will bless you with the happiest days of your life, and one of the worst days."  I believe that to be true-

    But that's just me.

"I've heard it said, this too shall pass,

The joy will come, that the hurt won't last,

So I will trust that within His grasp,

I am not alone-

For He will not let go."  Lyrics by Laura Story

Her ears were often the first thing to catch my tears.....Elizabeth Barrett Browning

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."  A.A. Milne