|
|
Today is Friday, January 27th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2245
|
|
Today's 'korner' is a daily inspirational thought send to computers by Joel & Victoria Osteen titled "What's Your Attitude in Adversity?"
Makes me think of a conversation I had earlier this week with Jeff Farwell. Jeff met with an ag accident in the early part of last year's harvest season. He was caught in an auger and lost a portion of his left leg. We were talking in our hospital's lobby, as he made his way to one of his 'several days each week therapy', learning how to use his 'new' leg.
Jeff has gotten a lot of community 'gossip' about how positive his attitude is, in spite of his 'adversity'.
I said to him, "Jeff, I don't know if you are 'down' or not, but people are really exclaiming about your positive attitude."
"No," he said. "I am just so happy to still be here. Doctors in Des Moines sent back a note and told me that most people in my situation don't make it. I had lost 3/4 of all my blood. I am glad I am still alive!"
What's Jeff's attitude in adversity?
Very good; thank you, God!!
What's Your Attitude in Adversity?
"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior"
(Habakkuk 3:17-18, NIV)
"We all face challenges, difficulties, and times when things don't go our way. God doesn't send these storms, but He will allow us to go through certain things in order to shape our character and prove our faith. Really, it's in our times of difficulty that we grow and develop.
"God wants to use the tough times in our lives to do a work in us. He wants to strengthen and develop us. Our attitude in times of adversity is the evidence of our maturity. Are we going to treat people right even when we’re being mistreated? Are we going to stay full of joy even when the bottom falls out? Are we going to be faithful even in the dry seasons of our lives when we don't see anything good happening?
"It may take more effort. You may have to work harder to keep a good attitude, but remember, attitude is the key to your promotion. As you keep that positive attitude of faith and expectancy, even in times of adversity, God will deliver you and move you forward into the destiny He has prepared for you!
"Heavenly Father, I want to grow spiritually and be more like You. I choose to trust You in times of adversity knowing that You are working things out for my good. Renew a right attitude within me by Your Spirit. In Jesus' Name. Amen."
|
Today is Thursday, January 26th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2244
|
" REACTION to DISTRACTION "
Why is it when we are drawn into prayer
Distraction and noise can be found there?
Our minds easily wander from our good intention;
Refocusing upon Jesus is a necessary prevention.
Distraction undisciplined carries a price;
A soul's more valuable than a toss of the dice.
Wisdom can be found in the Bibles we read
The Word of God within we'd do well to heed.
Open up often to Proverbs and Psalms
The wisdom inside soothes and calms
Far better than sensual balms.
We can pray in a quiet room or a sandy beach
Listening to the Holy Spirit gently teach,
Urging us to do all that is right and good
Loving others and ourselves as Jesus would.
There seems to be much ado about nothing,
When what we ought to do is do something
That raises minds, hearts, and souls
To much higher and loftier goals.
Folding our hands or kneeling in prayer
Deep in our hearts our souls we bare,
If we come to the Father with true contrition
Confessing sins of omission and commission,
We are forgiven and must make amends
To those we've hurt in the flock He tends.
There is one Shepherd and one flock
Some day soon the gate He'll lock.
Not one more to enter, nary a one;
When the mighty trumpet blast is done
The flock of sheep will follow the Son.
Let us not be caught off guard
Nor from heaven eternally barred.
Get right with God before it's too late
Do it now; don't procrastinate.
Ready the soul with reverent care,
Stifle distraction by heartfelt prayer.
Focus upon the things of God often
Pray a hardened heart may soften.
Be a disciple and evangelize
We can do it, let's visualize
And realize
It's all about Jesus
Who loves to please us;
THANKS and PRAISE
be to
CHRIST JESUS !
© Mel Patterson, written 8-13-07
***
|
Today is Wednesday, January 25th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2243
|
|
This Bible verse talks about tackling a job. Who among us hasn't spent more time thinking about or dreading doing some job than actually doing that task. This verse and commentary tells us to 'just get started':
"Be strong and courageous
and get to work.
Don't be frightened by the size of the task,
for the Lord my God is with you;
He will not forsake you.
He will see to it that everything is finished correctly."
~ I Chronicles 28:20 LB
Bible Commentary: King David advised Solomon not to be frightened about the size of his task as king and builder of the Temple. Fear can immobilize us. The size of a job, its risks, or the pressure of the situation can cause us to freeze us to do nothing. One remedy for fear is found here---don't think about fear, just get to work. Getting started is often the most difficult and frightening part of a job.
***
|
Today is Tuesday, January 24th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2242
|
|
This is a daily devotional email (in part) forwarded to me several months ago by Kim Marker. It is written by James McDonald.
I have to ask myself, "Who am I actively praying for today?"
Friends Who Pray For You
"I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day." — 2 Timothy 3
"I’m more persuaded than ever that God’s work in my life is a direct answer to the prayers of people.
"When I was in high school, our pastor assigned a senior to every student in the student ministry. I was assigned to a woman named Evelyn White. All through high school I would go over to her house about once every other month, and she would say, 'Oh James, let me pray for you.' And she would place her hand on me and pray. I had never heard anyone pray like that. She would ask Him to use my life. She would pray against sin in my life. And she prayed for purity, a good attitude, and perseverance. She called out to God for me!
"The lifetime lesson I learned from Evelyn is that we don’t have to go through the Christian life alone. The Lord places friends around us, sometimes unexpected friends, who pray for us—who lift up our name before ''the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need' (Hebrews 4:16).
"Before Harvest Bible Chapel ever began, we’d be on our knees calling out to God. Do you know who we were praying for? You! We were praying that God would allow us to reach you and impact your life. Even then, we were asking God to cultivate in our hearts an understanding of what it would really mean to minister to you and to care for you (through a variety of ministries and outreaches)...
"You have friends who love you and pray for you. We are your friends and we love you and we pray for you. Persevere in doing what is right—someone is praying for you. "
"Father in heaven, What an amazing gift it is that You call Your people to pray for one another! Forgive me for not appreciating the impact others’ prayers have had on my life. Your Word says that Your Son lives to intercede for the saints. Help me to realize that when I pray for others, I am most like Your great Son, Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, Amen."
****
|
Today is Monday, January 23rd, 2012; Karen's Korner #2241
|
|
Another installment from Max; Max Lucado that is! Now that I am getting daily writings sent to my computer, you will get a dose or two, now and then!
Here are two from last week:
|
Let Him
“Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it—because it does.” I Corinthians 14:1 (The Message)
Loosen up. Don’t you have some people to hug, rocks to skip, or lips to kiss? . . .
It’s time to retire. Not from your job, just retire from your attitude. Honestly, has complaining ever made the day better? Has grumbling ever paid the bills? Has worrying about tomorrow ever changed it?
Let someone else run the world for a while.
**
You Are Not Alone
When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. Psalm 56:3
God said, “I will not forsake my people!”
The Lord is with us. And with Him near—everything is different. Everything!
Even a serious illness. Even death. You aren’t facing illness or death alone—the Lord is with you.
You may be facing marital struggles, but you aren’t facing them alone. The Lord is with you!
You may be facing debt, but you aren’t facing debt alone. The Lord is with you.
Your family may turn against you, but God won’t.
Your friends may betray you, but God won’t.
You may feel alone in the wilderness, but you are not. He is with you!
**** |
|
Today is Friday, January 20th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2240
|
|
I like it when others want to share; others want to write down their thoughts.
Someone I don't know called me a week or so ago; "Could I use what she wrote, if she mailed some writings to me?" she asked.
Send them to me.
Below is a couple of her writings; others I will be including in Karen's Korners in the weeks ahead:
"Thank You Lord for loving me.
For waking me up to the reality of the evils
I lived amidst.
Thank You for my life with You.
Thank You for blessing my life and turning it
into a life worth living.
*
Thank You Lord for blessing us with this beautiful day.
Please give us guidance so we can be beautiful Your way.
Bestow us with Your Love.
Fill our lives with love from above.
Keep us loving and kind towards our fellow man.
Help us share Your light and uplift men from darkness when we can.
Help us guide them to the pathway to You.
Help us show them the doorway that they can go through.
~ Just M.E.
Margaret
***
|
Today is Thursday, January 19th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2239
|
|
"As they (Jesus & disciples) went a woman
who wanted to be healed came up behind and touched him,
for she had been slowly bleeding for twelve years,
and could find no cure
(though she had spent everything she had on doctors).
But the instant she touched the edge of his robe,
the bleeding stopped.
"Who touched me?" Jesus asked.
Everyone denied it,
and Peter said, "Master, so many are crowding against you......."
But Jesus told him,
"No, it was someone who deliberately touched me,
for I felt healing power go out from me."
When the woman realized that Jesus knew,
she began to tremble and fell to her knees before him
and told him why she had touched him and that now she was well.
"Daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you. Go in peace."
~Luke 8:43-48 LB
*
Bible Commentary: Many people surrounded Jesus as he made his way through the crowds. It was virtually impossible to get through the mass of people, but one woman fought her way desperately through the crowd in order to touch Jesus. As soon as she did so, she was healed.
What a difference between the crowds that contact Jesus and the few that reach out and touch him! Many people are faintly familiar with him, but nothing in their lives is changed or bettered because of this vague acquaintance. It is only the touch of faith that releases God's healing power.
Are you only slightly acquainted with God, or are you reaching out to him in faith, knowing that touching him will bring healing for your soul and spirit?
******
|
Today is Wednesday, January 18th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2238
|
|
By now, readers are probably getting the idea that I don't always 'tune in' a radio broadcast or television show. Sometimes I get in the middle of them, when I am driving or when I am moving through the remote offerings.
It happened to me again last week when I landed in the middle of a Dr. David Jeremiah television broadcast. I don't know the name of his message nor the name of the book from which he was quoting.
He was mentioning that sometimes our words and those we repeat, without knowing the facts, but can discourage us.
Here were a couple:
" People today aren't as interested in attending church as they are choosing instead, going to sporting events!"
FACT: "Each Sunday in the United States, 102 million people attend church. Annually, 94 million people attend all professional sporting events combined.
Did you catch that? Per week verses per year!
* Young people just don't attend church today. It's all older people."
FACT: "For every 100 people between the ages of 70 - 79; there are 170 people attending church in the United States who are between the ages of 20 - 29."
He had a list of facts like that. Very positive; not those that we tend to repeat from one to another - without necessarily knowing the true numbers. (I'll have to confess: I am one of those 'repeaters'.)
If you want to verify those couple of items, you'll have to contact Dr. David Jeremiah and his ministry. I was just a 'stop by' viewer.
|
Today is Tuesday, January 17th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2237
|
|
Some thoughts written by former Clarion resident Chris Lousias; enjoy:
The Righteous Judge
Most Christians have heard that if you want to be sure that you are praying the will of God that we should take a Bible verse or two and pray it from a personal perspective. Because it is the absolute Word from God’s mouth, we are sure to be in His will.
So when we pray for our children as they leave for school we might pray “Dear Lord take my precious ones and shelter them under your protective wing today.” Or maybe for some illness that won’t let up, we will pray “by His stripes we are healed”. Those are all prayers under the will of God, but really they don’t take much of any action on our part, they are mostly receiving end prayers.
What do you suppose would happen if we started praying scriptures like Psalm 9:7-8 which says: “The LORD reigns forever; he has established his throne for judgment. He will judge the world in righteousness; he will govern the peoples with justice. “
So maybe our prayer would be something like this:
“Father God, judge me righteously Lord for the deeds I do today, in Jesus’ name, amen.”
Perfectly acceptable for praying the will of God, but when we step out that door today what will our day be like knowing what we just prayed and the implications of what we prayed? This prayer takes a concerted effort on our part to live a Kingdom life, a life that truly will glorify God and prove his sovereign reign in our life.
Instead of frustration we will show patience and compassion on the first day check-out girl at Walmart.Instead of gossip, we will stay our mouth with intimate knowledge of a situation that we know of first hand. (Did it ever occur to anyone that there is more “power” in being able to NOT speculate on what is going on around us then to be the first one to spew what we half know?”
Instead of erupting with negative speech and discouraging our spouses and families' we will lift them up and seek peace in the household.
Let's be an active participant in the one little sentence prayer we prayed that morning for those of us who BELIEVE in the power of our God to answer the prayers that are in His will!
I challenge all of us today to pray a prayer that we have to take an active role in.
A prayer that will truly glorify God because of the way we interact in His Kingdom; a prayer that puts God on the receiving end.
***
|
Today is Monday, January 16th, 2012; Karen's Korner #2236
|
|
A couple of the sayings from the small, table book titled "A Book of Joy" by Thomas Kinkade:
"The supreme happiness of life
is the conviction
that we are loved."
~ Victor Hugo
*
"Give yourself a perk:
Condition yourself for joy
by doing little things
that you love on a regular basis."
~ Thomas Kinkade
*
"I've learned from experience
that the greatest part of our happiness
or misery
depends on our dispositions
not our circumstances."
~ Martha Washington
*
"Surely goodness and mercy
shall follow me
all the days of my life;
and I will dwell
in the house of the Lord
forever."
~Psalm 23:6 KJV
*
"Happiness is the realization
of God in the heart.
Happiness is the result of praise and thanksgiving,
of faith, of acceptance, a quiet tranquil realization
of the love of God."
~ White Eagle
*
"You don't need long distance to revel
in natural beauty.
All you have to do ,
most of the time,
is go outside and look at the sky."
~ Thomas Kinkade
***
|
|
