This past weekend was the Spartanburg UMW District Retreat at Lake Junaluska, NC. It is always wonderful, but this year was the best ever (for me). There were times the Holy Spirit simply filled up the room. Never has Psalm 121 been more on target.
"I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord who made Heaven and Earth".

Thursday arthritis began to flare up in my foot. and by Friday I could hardly walk. By Saturday, every step I took caused me to wince. But God...have you ever noticed how many times we say "but God"? The Israelites were trapped against the Red Sea, but God parted the waters and they passed through. I thought the anguish of losing my mentor in the faith, my precious mother-in-law, so unexpectedly would swallow me up, but God's strength is made perfect in weakness.

Truly it was His strength that carried me through the weekend. Sunday morning I woke up with no pain in my feet. Today is Tuesday and I still have no pain in my feet. What's more, another of our group was suffering with severe back pain. She also woke up on Sunday without pain. The response to the breakout sessions was overwhelming; never have I heard so many positive comments. However, the most significant thing to me was the unity of Spirit and the bond of peace that we experienced(see Eph. 4:3). I have such love for my sisters from across the upstate and I can feel that I am loved as well.

How do we bring this mountaintop experience home with us? We come back to jobs, kids, homework, housework and a gazillion other things that distract us, occupy our mind. The best way is to start your day with Him, even if it is just 5 minutes. Put into practice Psalm 46:10, Be still and know that I am God. This is something that is very hard for me. All my life "inconsistancy" has been my biggest hindrance, but God... there it is again, but God! But God is faithful. Living the Christian life is not always easy. We have to come down from the mountain and put into practice the things that we have experienced there.

Oswald Chambers says that we need to take the first step in obedience. Sometimes it is hard to do the thing we know we ought to do. When that happens, take one step in obedience. Often all you have to do is "set your will", "determine", or as Paul says "reckon" that you will do the thing.
A good example is morning devotions. My flesh cries out, "Just 10 more minutes!" and my aching joints whisper, "Just roll over and go back to sleep." The first step of obedience is to sit up on the side of the bed and put my feet on the floor. I have done my part: obedience, and God's grace floods my soul. . When we got saved, our responsibility was to say "yes, Lord" and God did the rest. It is the same with all obedience. Make yourself available to God, say "yes, Lord" and leave everything else with Him.


Col. 3:16 tells us, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. We learn to recognize God's attributes as well as His character. If it is our intention to follow Jesus, we must emulate Him. Treat others the way He did, reading our Bibles is imperative.. The Word of God nourishes the Spirit within us. The Word strengthens our spiritual muscles. Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.(Psa.119:105)

May your day be filled with the Light and Love of Jesus.

Well, let's try this again. I can't believe my last blog entry was April of 2010! I promise to be more consistent this time.

I have been boning up on John because the new Beth Moore Bible Study, which is on John, starts in 2 weeks. Now, I've read John--more than once. My favorite verses are in John 1. But this morning was like a clean slate, ready to have new and fresh ideas written on it. Of course, the Holy Spirit did not disappoint.

We need to realize that God is millinia beyond our comprehension. We also need to realize that from the beginning God wanted to have a relationship with us. In Genesis, we are told how God came into the Garden in the evening and walked with Adam and Eve.

On to my favorite verses, John 1:1,14 (1)"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (14)And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. "

God wanted us to understand His character and attributes so He robed Himself in flesh; He literally put on flesh and became one of us. The Greek word for became in this context means to receive being, to begin to be. The very nature and character of God came into the world as human. This did not make Him any less God.

As we read about Jesus we learn about His character from the things that He did. He healed, He was kind, He was compassionate, He was not partial. The miracles that He performed were not to prove that He is God but to show us how He wants to interact with us. The first miracle was at a wedding feast...with people, taking part in their celebration. 2011 is no different. God wants to have a relationship with each of us, and believe me there is nothing like it!!!

One of the translations that just blew me away is in verse 14, "The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us". This is so cool. The Greek work for dwell in this context is skēnoō and it means to pitch your tent. God is not traveling along side removed from our person, but with us in the sense of "I've got your back".

We have lots of great sermons and lessons about how we are to act and what we are to do. These are great because we are exhorted to exemplify the teachings of Jesus. Oh, but there is so much more to it. In John 10:10, Jesus said, "...I am come that they might have life, and that they might have [it] more abundantly. "

Life is a series of ups and downs, sometimes more downs than ups. But if God has our backs what in the world can stand against us?