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Morning Devotional...


I set my face like a flint.             Isaiah 50:7
He stedfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.               Luke 9:51

History records that Aegeas crucified Andrew, Peter's brother, for his faith in Christ.

Seeing his cross before him Andrew bravely spoke, "O cross, most welcome and longed for! With a willing mind, joyfully and desirously, I come to thee, being the scholar of Him which did hang on thee: because I have always been thy lover, and have coveted to embrace thee."

Why could Andrew approach his cross with joy?

He watched the Lord approach His cross in the same manner!

"He that taketh not his cross and followeth after Me, is not worthy of Me" (Mt. 10:38).
                                                                      --Warren Henderson

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Dear Saints...I've had a full day (7/23), and just now was reading the birthday wishes and beautiful graphics from one and all!  Thank you from the bottom of my heart!  Jeanne Lee, how did you know pink was my favorite color???
Hope Karmat is feeling better now.  That "messed up" feeling is nothing to play around with!
Thank you one and all...

Shinenlite!  So glad to hear of God's wonderful mercy toward you in getting your life straightened out.  He is truely FAITHFUL- even when we are FAITHLESS.  
I feel that I must comment on one sentence of your yesterday's letter.  And please understand that I do this out of love...  I am a single woman myself, and I know because of my vulnerability how easily I could fall prey to a nice man who was only trying to be helpful.  The sentence that gives me a red flag is this:
"Tonight I am taking my laundry to Max's house and using his machines."  If Max is home - in the evening - this could give you some uninterrupted time together.  Maybe nothing would happen this time - or the next time - but my spirit tells me that you could be inviting trouble.
It is good that you are working on the anger issue.  And I praise God that you are now facing your emotions over the issues at hand.  Painful, true, but oh, so necessary!  We all love you, and pray for God's best in your life!  
One last thing I want to say before I close for the night!
To forgive someone - is to set the prisoner free
And find out that the prisoner was you.

Jenny England. 9p.m.

Pinkie....I endorse your sentiments re Jo.  I was thinking about this in bed last night and wasn't happy about it.  It's giving satan a foothold. A Christian woman shouldn't be alone in a man's home in the evenings.....She is vulnerable at this stage. I get the feeling that Jo is still seeking fulfilment in her life and Jesus promises "fulness of life"......

Jo I do continue to pray for you.  I agree with Pinkie. You can choose to listen to the Lord on this or to the lies of satan.  He is very clever at convincing people........He counterfeits!   Be very careful.............if you make a wrong move now there will be a wilderness time for you...Truly!

I do send delayed birthday greetings for you also Pinkie. I hope you had a lovely day full of blessings.

I always like to learn something new and your devotion this morning Pat regarding Andrew was new to me. thank you.

'Whatsoever ye shall ask the father in my name. He will give it you. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.'

John 16:23&24

Over twenty years ago my best friend in this world died and I was left devastated. I cried for hours on end and my heart ached beyond anything that I had ever experienced before in my life. It was almost as if an invisible hand had been plunged into my chest and had succeeded in ripping out my heart.

Many friends and relatives did their best to comfort me, but I was unable to hear their words. Nobody but nobody could enter into my loss. Life would never be the same again.

My best friend was my Dad!

He was a big powerfully built man. He had served for almost 30 years in the Police Force and he was highly regarded by everyone who knew him. Our upbringing was very strict indeed and often I rebelled against this. Part of growing up I guess. My father never raised his hand to me. He did not need to!

I had the utmost respect for him. A frown upon his face was enough for me to know that I had overstepped the mark. Though he was a big man, he was very gentle and he had a huge heart, full of love.

He showed great delight if I did anything that he approved of. He was a very emotional man, not frightened to shed a tear and not afraid to embrace us with a bear hug whenever we needed comfort.

I had no difficulty in asking my father for anything. We were not very well off in financial terms yet we never lacked anything. The only time that he would refuse my request was if it would not be for my good.

Whenever he did say no, I did think about the reasons why, and it was not long before I understood that his decision was indeed correct.

It is great to have such a relationship. It was founded on love and the union became stronger as I grew older. I loved nothing more than to see a smile of approval on his face. I learned later that whenever he had given me a row, it had hurt him more than it hurt me.

I often make comparisons with Dad's love for me and that of my heavenly Father. All too often I have been guilty of viewing a frowning providence, seeking comfort in Christ as though Christ and the Father were of different opinions! This has caused me many a problem in my Christian life.

It is impossible for Christ and the Father to be on different wavelengths. (Forgive my language.) It is strange to think that I can believe that Christ looks upon me in a different way to that of His Father.

There is nothing sweeter to my soul than seeing a smiling providence, enjoying access and boldness at the Throne of Grace and being able - like Moses – to talk face to face with my Father. It can only be done when my relationship with Him is correct, founded on the atonement of Christ.

The Lord knew that His disciples were soon to be devastated by His death on the cross. He therefore encourages them with these words, 'ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.'

Every good and every perfect gift has been purchased for us through the sacrifice of Christ. Not only does an eternity with our Beloved await us at death, we need lack nothing in this world if only we ask the Father in faith.

A word of warning here! Although God honours faith, His gifts are not as a direct result of our faith! It is all of grace. As sinners we have the ability to believe in something that may be contrary to God's Will. We may call this faith, however a petition contrary to God's Word will never be granted.

I prayed earnestly for over a decade that God would open up a way for me to serve Him in Romania. At the time I believed that I was praying in faith. I was wrong! It was a hard and painful lesson to learn. What is not of faith is sin.

Having children of my own now it gives me tremendous joy and satisfaction to be able to answer their requests when it is within my power and means to do so. Sometimes I have to say no and that hurts, yet I am sure that they will learn as I did, that when I say no to them, I am really telling them that I love them too much to spoil them by saying yes.

If we then being evil know how to give good gifts to our children, how much more is our heavenly Father willing to give what is good to those who walk uprightly.

It may help to ask yourself these questions before making your request:-

Will my request glorify God?
Is what I am asking for according to His Will? Test this against Scripture.

Answering these two simple questions should remove doubt from your request.

I am often happier seeking God's blessing on other Christians. For example - I pray for revival in our Islands. For some reason I have a greater boldness when praying for God to work mightily through His Pastors in their various congregations than I would if I had some involvement in the process.  He has chosen these men for this time. May they in turn view fields white for harvest.

I also have a greater confidence when asking the Lord to heal Jerry and Larry than I do when asking the same for myself!

We are to approach Him with every confidence, knowing our sins forgiven and our adoption sure. There are times when I believe that we are too timid in our approach.

He Himself demands us to come with boldness. Let us pay heed to that today and ask a great God for great things and expect to receive them. 'Ask and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.'

LOL

Your brother in Christ

Iain

Monring all.
Another wonderful devotional, Pat. Thank you.

Iain:
I appreciate your writing this morning, Especially that you are willing to share the relationship you had with your father. The concept of God as "Father" was a difficult one for me, as my relationsihp with my earthly father wasn't that great. it took a while for me to separate the two and accept the love God as my Father was offering me.

Jennie & Pinkie:
I thank you for your encouragement and concern. I understand how you could think that my going to Max's home alone could be opening a door to disaster, however, this is an area of my walk in which I am fully aware of the potential for other motives to be present .
I have not even healed from the divorce yet, and the friends I have of the opposite sex respect me enough to know that I am not interested in anything other than friendship. Believe it or not, there are still men in this world who are able to help a single woman without trying to take advantage of them in any way.
I will take your comments in the heart with which they are presented and keep my spiritual ears open for His still small voice to guide and direct me.

[size=10]IF YOU FIND YOU'RE GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION...REMEMBER, GOD ALLOWS U-TURNS.[/size][/color]
"Open our eyes that we may turn from darkness to light..." Acts 26:18

"I'm not happy, I'm cheerful. There's a difference. A happy woman has no cares. A cheerful woman has cares but has learned how to deal with them."
Beverly Sills

From "Mama Get the Hammer..."
by Barbara Johnson

Have a blessed day everyone!!!

I had a good day yesterday. In fact, a young man sat at the next table beside me at lunch and struck up a conversation. It ends up that he's minister of music at a great church here in town. We shared some interesting stories of how we know that God intervened directly in our lives. It ended up that, of course, I shared that he had made my birthday lunch special, for enjoying spontaneous conversation with a fellow believer was SUCH a joy. I moved to the payment desk and was handing the man behind the counter my money when a strong arm thrust a bill in front of mine and the young man said, "Today's her birthday - I'm paying!" How sweet of him!

The day ended with a bit of excitement, though. My daughter had taken me to a really nice restaurant - sort-of a trendy, gourmet type place with funky art on the walls, VERY efficient and friendly wait staff, etc.

I needed to go to the ladies room. So, just as I got there, a lady was attempting to go into the door of the restroom, and before my very eyes, she simply went limp and slid down the door and was lying there unconscious!

I checked for pulse first, then headed straight to the kitchen and asked someone to call 911. She was revived, treated, and her party left and I returned to our table.

I've had CPR training twice and actually did save a man once, but I'm thankful that was not called for in last evening's events.

All's well that ends well, I suppose. I hope she's doing okay this morning.

Ruth Ann

Oh, my goodness, Ruth Ann!  What an experience!  I'm so glad that the lady is ok.

Did you see all of your birthday greetings in yesterday's thread?

Good morning everyone!  It was a long day yesterday, and my mom, sister and I all came home rather red and sunburnt!  But it was a nice, relaxing day with friends and family.

Pat-I didn't get your message the other night until today, I'm sorry.  I'll give you a call this week though, we have to find a time we're both free.

God bless you all, and have a great day.  Jen.

That's ok, Jen.  Today, Marie Stuart is coming over.  She's on her way now.

TTYL

Yes, and I sincerely appreciate the nice greetings. Y'all are special to me - you lift my spirits when I'm down, pray for my requests faithfully, and rejoice when there are victories.

May God's blessings be on EACH of you!

Ruth Ann Bice

Ruth Ann - I thank our Father that you were in the right place at the right time - both times.  You were in the right place/time for Him to bless you, and you were in the right place/time for Him to use you.  Praise God!  He loves and uses you!
How wonderful, Iain, that we are learning the love of our Father!  I know the loss you felt - I lost my father while attending seminary, had to fly from coast to coast to see him before he passed away in the hospital.  But yet he came to Jesus Christ in that last two weeks of his life!  I shall see him again!
It's hard, isn't it, to learn the love of God.  He is awesome, majestic, far above all in this world, yet so great as to be concerned even for our tiny cares!  Oh let us learn the majesty of our God - that He's really GOD.

Pat & Iain  wonderful thoughts to take with me today.

Today like yesterday is beautiful, I was out visiting and had visitors yesterday and I hope to spend this day doing some of the same to nice for house work it can wait for another day.

WELCOME k A T R O
Have a great day everyone

RUTH

Good Morning everyone. Wonderful devotions this morning. I didn't know my earthly biological father very well, only saw him very few times in a very young life.

My step-father was a perfectionest and if I wasn't perfect I got yelled at a lot.

So my Heavenly Father has become most precious to me. I call on Him for everything and depend on Him for everything.

To have a Father to trust in who knows my every need before I know it is the most precious gift I could ever have received.

I don't understand why He loves me so much that He gave His only begotten Son for my salvation, but I accept that unconditional love.

Just talking about Him brings the tears welling up in my eyes. God is so good, and He is good all the time.

TTYL

Hi everyone.  It is just a glorious day here in Georgia with blue sky and bright sun.  I think we may have a couple of days without rain, which we sort of need to dry out a bit.  God is good to us with the rain and the clear skies.

Iain, your devotional related to our earthly and then Heavenly father is very meaningful to me today.  I always had great respect for my father although he could be very difficult on occasions.  We developed a much better relationship after I grew up and he finally had time.  Even the many hours spent sitting with him in the hospitals and nursing home were special times that brought us even closer.  It is wonderful to know that we have a heavenly father who cares for us so much.

Ruth Ann, you had quite a day yesterday.  It sounds like one you will remember for a long time.  

Welcome Katrio.  I look forward to getting to know you better.

Shinenlite, you express so well and I am so glad to see you working out some of the problems you have been facing.  We are all pulling for you and care what happens to you.

Jeanne, hope you are not working too hard this week.  I expect you will be glad when the week in finished and you can relax.

It is time for me to leave for my treatment but will try to get back later.  Today completes week 6 of the 7 weeks.

Quote from: Iain on July 24, 2003, 05:04:06 AM
I also have a greater confidence when asking the Lord to heal Jerry and Larry than I do when asking the same for myself!

I am the same way, Iain!  But recently God has shown Himself strong in the healing of my body, and it has built my faith to ask for healing of other problems in my body!  I know He is able!

Hello!  It is another hectic week for me here.  It is our fair week, and my son Jim, who lives in Cheyenne, Wyoming called and said his daughter Katy, wanted to come spend some time with me.  That was a special treat, as Katy now lives in Seattle, Washington with her mom, and is one of those many kids who fly back and forth between parents.  Not an ideal situation, but Katy seems pretty well adjusted.

Anyway-----Jim brought her on Tuesday night, so yesterday was a really full day!  She did her very first oil painting; we went swimming; went to the fair; stopped in Hugoton to see Abby for a minute, then on to Boise City, Oklahoma to return her to her Dad. (He was visiting his Dad there.)  They were leaving to go back to Cheyenne this morning.  On the way back home, I stopped and picked up Abby, so she is here with me now.  We will have a very full day again, with a trip out to the fair, and staying for the county-wide free barbecue dinner tonight!  Whew!

It is always good to come here and read the devotionals and all the comments, and to see how my cyber friends are doing.  I love you all!

Karma, I'm so glad you are feeling better!  That yuckky stuff is NO FUN at all.

Ruth Ann and Pinkie, belated Happy Birthday greetings to you, and I wish for you God's richest blessings!  Ruth Ann, it was good you were there to summon help for that lady in the restaurant so quickly!

Jo, keep looking up!  We are all praying for you!

Larry, I hope so much that these treatments will bring you long lasting benefits, and that you will feel stronger and stronger!

Prayers also for our Iain and Jerry!!  We want all of you healthy, joyful, and prosperous.

I will try to get back later today.  I wish you all a most wonderful day in the Lord!

WELCOME TO CP
KATRIO

Come on in and tell us about yourself. We are glad you came to join us.

WELCOME, KATRIO!

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We are so glad you found us. Come on in and tell us about yourself.

I have posted an update in Have Your Prayed about it?

KATRIO!
      &
KAVEY!!!
Dads?  My husband and I were ones that felt if you worked 50 weeks, you deserved 2 weeks vacation.  In 1980, we asked my parents to go with us.  Big Bend National Park, Palo Duro Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands, Petrified Forest, Painted Desert, Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Black Canyon of the Gunnison River, Royal Gorge, Rocky Mountain National Park, to mention a few.  We had a great time for 3 weeks.  The next year, I asked my husband where he wanted to go.  He said he didn't care but wanted to ask my Mom and Dad again!!!!  So they went on vacation with us each year until Dad was killed in an accident in 1987.  Then Mom went with us a few times after that.  Now, I don't remember what year it was but one of those years I realized that my parents were my BEST friends.  That was the most wonderful feeling to think that I cherish them so much that I felt they were the BEST friends one could possibly have.  I thank God for that feeling.  I feel their presence today watching over me as well as my heavenly Father.

Just a quick stop in.  I AM going to get to bed earlier tonight.  I love all of you.  I love reading your posts and even love the thoughts of those who are lurking and NOT posting.  God Bless All of You!!

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'Life is easier than you think--all you have to do is this:  accept the impossible, do without the indispensable, bear the intolerable, and be able to smile at anything.'

Etta Sue, good to see you posting again.  I hope you're feeling better, and getting enough rest.

I have to tell you all something funny.  We were driving the other day, and my siblings are used to hearing terms from us, like, "that scared me," or "you gave me a heart attack".  Well, my mom hit the brakes, and from the carseat in the back we hear, "mom...you gave me a scarediac".  Kids are so adorable!

I am tuckered right out, I went to aquafit, a deep water exercise with my sister tonight.  I'll see you all in the morning, God bless you.  Jen.

Pinkie, choosing pink for your birthday greeting must have been just a lucky guess!

It's sure been a busy week and today was no different, but at least the time goes quickly.  Of course, then the evening flies by, too.  I won't be sorry, though to have the other girl back from vacation.

I'll check the rest of CP out and then...  Book 5 is calling.