I was listening to my car radio the other day and a favorite Pastor of mine came on with a wonderful lesson.
I was actually surprised and happy he was on the radio teaching.
His name was Ron Mehl he was the Pastor at Beaverton Four Square church, Beaverton Oregon.
There is a website called Heart of the word which is the continuation of his ministry.
https://www.compassion-ministries.org/heartnewsletter.aspx
http://www.compassion-ministries.org/products/
I always loved his teachings as he was a man on a journey fighting leukemia, always praying for healing and always trusting in God’s process and time.
He was not just here playing games, he was here to share God with who ever would listen.
He passed away many years ago but I still enjoy his teaching and listening to his very gentle voice.
The title of the talk for the day was ‘Lessons to be learned by the hero’s of old’, sharing about the prophets of the Old Testament and how we can learn from their stories.
In the book of Hebrews which is in the New Testament and in chapter 12:1-3 there is the growing and living by faith chapter that tells us we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses who have gone before us.
It is always good to remember our walk of faith has purpose.
1st thing to remember: he said recall what we have learned.
Remember the former days of our lives and how God has blessed us.
Remember how he delivered us.
Elijah heard the still small voice and listened.
Mary listened and believed in the miracle she was to be a part of.
Shadrach said going into the fires: We will not be broke down.
Each of them said, “Lord what do you want me to do?”
2nd thing to remember: he said to walk by faith and listen to the voice speaking to us.
Surrender to the plan even if we don’t understand it, we know our problem and He knows how to fix it.
3rd thing to remember: he said remember God always comes through for us, we must learn to resist great doubt.
He is faithful and will come through in his time and maybe not ours.
4th thing to remember: he said we need to learn to say, “God persist in our hearts. Teach us to be faithful.
I will trust you and will not quit even when I don’t fully understand.
No matter what I will trust in you.”
5th thing to remember: he said to stand in your faith.
Stand firm always.
As you pray for your family, your friends and others.
Remember to say,
“Lord you are the only one who can make this happen and then step back in trust.”
Daniel in the Old testament prayed and a nation was changed.
He said to remember the former days and how far we have come.
He always comes through as a rescuer for us, even when we don’t expect it to happen.
He said, learn to not ask so much and just trust him.
We are called to endure and wait, living by faith and trusting and believing.
Real love always includes sacrifice.
Sacrificial, biblical love. Giving up what we love the most.
It is not friendship love, it is love that gives deeply from a bleeding heart.
The heart of the word, giving up oneself so that others can be healed and blessed through the message.
The word for the day is TRY, there are many directions I could go with this one little three lettered word.
I remember as our children were growing up, they would get frustrated in doing something and I would say to them, “you just need to try” and soon they mastered the frustrating moment.
It is pushing oneself to do more, to do better, to risk and maybe move from your comfort zone.
To ride that bike and do it well, to dive in that water, to step foot in a plane for the first time, to learn to hike rough terrain or climb into a hot air balloon. (No I have not done that)
To write that first blog post and push publish.
To try it and to take a risk and force yourself to step in to place you have never been before.
In seven days we are heading off to our ‘favorite canoe trip.’
Four days away from noise, and words, and internet and hot showers as I like them and my favorite bed and my kitties and my comfort zone and place of safety.
The first time we were planning on going I didn’t want to.
I strongly dislike camping. I was afraid of the water.
I was not knowing what we would do in a canoe all day long.
It was not looking like any thing I would enjoy.
My husband said, “just try it.”
So we went on our first trip and you know what? I enjoyed it a lot.
I forced myself to ‘try’ something new.
I so enjoyed seeing the outdoors and feeling the wind and warmth and watching the birds fly over our heads.
I so enjoyed hearing the lapping of the water when we moved the canoe with our oars.
I sat in the quiet and felt blessed and full of peace.
I told myself it would be a new adventure and it would be an experience I could write about.
The word try is challenging.
Anytime we do something new we have a choice.
The big decision is whether we will try to do it with a good attitude.
We continued to walk on the edge of the town of Astoria.
It was about 76 degrees outside with a refreshing cool breeze.
So nice to get away from our high temps in town.
We stopped and had lunch at a brew pub.
The wait was very long as they were busy with a lot of people wanting something to eat.
The cool ‘beer’ was refreshing and the ice water was nice.
After we ate our long awaited lunch we continued our walk to other ‘view points’.
This is another water picture of the ship and the type of wood structure the seagulls were resting on.
The ships were very amazing and we could walk up close to them but not enter. It was close to the museum and if one had tickets to the museum they could enter the red boat.
We chose to not do that this time.
As we continued to walk we noticed one of the buildings had incredible art work on the outside.
Notice the kitties in the picture and the faces in the windows, it is a very interesting picture.
I stood for quite some time just looking at each detail, it was amazing to see the creative pictures.
A very cool red door was nearby one of the pictures it brought a whimsical look to the building for sure.
The trip was fun and we had great times of chatting and sharing together. Another day of our coast trip to Astoria.
The flag on the ferry boat waving in the wind reminding me always to say “God bless our America.”
This last weekend we took a day off and went ‘sight seeing’ on the Oregon Coast.
My favorite place to go.
Our journey included a drive to Gearheart which is a lovely little beach town full of quaint little beach homes nestled among the sand and grass. Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture of them.
After doing a bit of geocaching which the guys love to do we headed on to Astoria.
In Astoria we were amazed to find some wonderful ships on the water just moving so slow through the waves and current I could have watched them all day long.
They were large in size and amazing to look at then we walked down the trolley car track to see other ships. Here I am walking down the track watching my steps on the uneven wood.
As we headed to the other side of the tracks to see more we enjoyed the cool wind in our faces.
This is the trolley car when it’s picking up people along the route.
We were going to ride it then decided to just walk the track to our next viewpoint.
The trolley was very crowded.
We came around the corner and as we were looking over the waters view point I looked up and saw this mother seagull protecting her babies. She stood up and made all kind of noise to let us know we were close.
We had never seen a seagull and babies in a ‘nesting rest’ spot before it was very fun to see.
The babies had their soft feathers and it only looked like it was two of them. High on a perch over the waters edge on a large piece of wood. They were very cute and very quiet.
The ferry we were heading to see was this one, a Coast Guard ferry we were not allowed to enter.
It was very pretty sitting in all it’s glory against the blue water and landscaping.
Here is another large ship in the water. Amazing to see as it moved slowly into the channel.
At one point in time there were four of them waiting to enter the channel many miles away from where we were standing. So big this picture does not show how large it really was.
This is the top of the ferry boat. Amazing and very high.
If you look closely there are four ships out there far away from us.
The top of one of the ships we were standing next to not far from the very high Astoria bridge.
It was amazing to see the barge ships come through that very high passage way. We watched them move so slowly and yet so guided by a plan and a destination. Amazing to be a part of and watch and very refreshing out in the wind by the water.
It didn’t take me long to think of this song and this lady when I saw the word for the day.
We are blessed beyond all blessings because in our land and in our country.
We are free.
Free to walk down the road and shop in any store.
Free to write words on a blog on cyber space.
Free to worship in whatever church we choose.
Free to say and think whatever we decide.
Free to drive down any road on any road trip.
Free to ask for coffee or tea or pie or donuts.
We are free.
May we never ever forget how precious that is.
Now sit back and enjoy this wonderful song by Lynda Randall.
The word for the day is: Hope
I have a deep appreciation for this word.
Without it, we despair and we anguish over what is taking place without anything better changing for us.
Hope gives a refreshment.
The Bible says: Hope deferred makes a heart faint.
That means when we make it wait and wait with no idea of change we get sad.
Hope: the Spanish version is Esperansa.
We used to have a patient who came into the pharmacy where I worked and her name was Hope. I always loved it and when I asked her the Spanish version it was so pretty when she said it with her beautiful accent.
Dictionary.com says: it is expectation – the feeling that what is wanted can be had and or event’s will turn out for the best. I can certainly relate to that one after watching my husband go through a full knee replacement recently.
The expectation that he would be able to walk without pain and to exercise without deep distress.
It was a trust issue and also an expectancy on our part to see ‘how he would feel’ after the recovery process.
It has not disappointed us.
Sometimes the hope it takes for us to receive what we have been waiting and longing for is our ‘reward.’
We hope our children will turn out to be ‘good citizen’s and great parents’.
We hope our health will hold up till our retirement days so we can travel and do fun activities.
We hope our money will hold out so we can be free from anxiety and worry and do all that we ‘hope’ to do.
So much to hope for, may our heart’s not become faint as we wait to see what is a head of us.
Hope is also my ‘word’ for the year.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12
The word chosen to write about this week turned out to be favorite.
Dictionary.com says: it is regarded as a special favor or preference.
When I think of favorite I tend to think of things that make us happy.
Feeling safe, comfortable and warm is a favorite of mine, although right now in the midst of a heat wave we don’t need to be warm.
It reminds me of the song in the Sound of music movie when Julie Andrews sings, these are a few of my ‘favorite’ things.
In the fall my choice of clothing is sweat pants or jeans with no elastic around the waist.
Then I add a v-neck 3/4 sleeved pull on shirt and warm socks.
If given the choice of desserts my favorite is warm marionberry pie.
If given the choice of what I would like to do, my favorite place is to go to the beach.
If given a dish of ice cream my favorite is pure chocolate by haggen dazz made with few ingredients and deep rich chocolate.
If someone knows me they know and realize I am a one who likes to stay at home.
My favorite place to relax in.
I love the fall and the cool autumn days mixed with the beauty of turning leaves.
I love Christmas and the festivities and traditions.
We can have favorite songs, cars or animals.
It is just a simple choice for us.
To say, these are a few of my favorite things.
The word for the day was Dream.
Dictionary.com says to dream is an aspiration or goal, a wild or vain fancy, most desirable; ideal.
It also means in a dream state as in sleep; a succession of visions or images or memories while in a sleeping state.
Have you ever had a dream that seemed so real when you woke up you had to look around and get your self re-oriented as to where you are and who you are with?
The first definition is a real one for me as we are making plans for retirement.
We dream of a vacation at the beach without a time limit to come home, where we are able to relax and explore unseen areas of the coast range in a newly purchased motor home.
We dream of a cruise to Alaska or a trip to England where we can wander the hillsides and explore the castles, enjoy the gardens and delicate foods.
Dream is such a big word.
It can also be a hurtful one carrying intense power, in the past I have had terrible bad dreams on the level of nightmare. They were very disturbing and very upsetting.
Sometimes with an intense theme.
I didn’t want to sleep the next few nights after those horrible scenes.
I would go to bed with quiet music playing by my bed so I could sleep with ‘gentle’ thoughts.
When thinking about this word, I also think of Martin Luther King, saying, “I have a dream”.
In this time and age of ‘uncertainty’ and intense drama, maybe his dream for peace and quiet is a very much needed one right now for all of us.
The word for the day is dream.
What does that word stir within your heart and spirit?
A question to think about on this ‘challenging word prompt’.
Fear: dictionary.com says it is a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger.
To feel apprehensive or uneasy.
We have all had those moments of fear.
Where your heart pounds, and your emotions go all crazy and you are on high alert, I had that intense feeling one time when someone came to my front door.
As a rule I do not open the front door when my husband is not home.
On this day, it was clear to me there was a man outside the door and he was knocking and I was beginning to feel the anxiety and the fear of his hard pounding on the door.
He rang the door bell and then I could tell he was trying to talk to me as I stood right close on the the other side of the front door.
I waited and watched for the knob to turn telling me he might be trying to come in, I could feel my heart pounding and the ‘fear’ rising within me.
As he kept talking outside the door, I ignored the words garbled through a metal thickness.
Feeling somewhat safe but also feeling very anxious as I wished for him to leave.
Earlier in the day I had gone shopping and apparently shut the door before taking my keys out of the key holes. He apparently was trying to tell me the keys were still in the door.
After I figured that out, I realized my false ‘feeling of safety’ and my real fear of him walking in.
When we are really fearful we must trust in the process and stay calm, because sometimes the problem is bigger or different than we can even imagine.
It is distressing, yes, it is a feeling of uneasy emotions.
Fear, just the mention of the word brings feelings and emotions.
This week I heard of my oldest grand daughter going to the river and swimming without anyone knowing about it, not a wise thing to do for a teenager.
Immediately I felt fear for her, for us and for the potential dangerous situation.
We had no idea she was even near a river and we didn’t even know who she was with.
I called her mom and told her I was fearful of this situation and upset that we didn’t know.
I have to trust in the process of letting go and yet I also have to know my fears are real for her.
The word for the day is Fear: “When I am afraid, I will trust in you.” ~ Psalm 56:3 ~
Sometimes that is the only thing we can do in this very dangerous world we live in.
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Philipians 4:13
I can do everything through him who gives me strength. ==================== Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow." Courage is not the absence of fear but it's taking action in the midst of it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A diamond is a chunk of coal that made good under pressure.
It's your heart, not the dictionary that gives meaning to your words. Matthew 12:34 (msg) version.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Below you will find a few of my favorite websites or blogs. They have given me encouragement and challenged me on this journey.
Ann Voskamp's blog A holy Experience This image of a bleeding heart represents a journey of healing from brokenness to wholeness. Some of my favorite books: One thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp
Married over 46 years and entered into my 65th year of life.
I am a mother of two and grandmother of six and mom to two very spoiled kitties. I love to worship and encourage and of course write whenever I can find a topic or subject to share about.
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Thank you for visiting my blog.
I hope you find it encouraging and that it gives you
'Something to think about'. The vision for this is to challenge the reader into a new and different way of thinking. I appreciate and always value your comments. Having others walk alongside and join in the sharing is part of the process.
Thank you for joining me... on this journey. As we get encouraged ~ Lord help us to encourage others. "And the day came when the risk to remain a tight bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." Anais Nin my blog button The crosses are found on a beach at Winema Christian Camp on the Oregon coast.. a place to relax and find God in the process. My favorite place ....to rest and restore my spirit.
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