Another milestone - #5700!

This morning I was looking back at some previous Karen's Korners. This one is from about the same time of year, but 14 years ago. Amazingly, the more things change; the more they stay the same!

Today is Friday, September 26th, 2014; Karen's Korner #2910

Many times life is more difficult than we can handle on our own. We need extra POWER; God is the only one who can give us more of what we need.

So many verses in the Bible tell us of His Power, and how He shares that power with us, as His Children.

Here's one:

"Do you not know? Have you not heard?

"The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.

"He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases power of the weak.

"Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint."

~ Isaiah 40:28 - 31

*

Bible Commentary:  "Even the strongest people get tired at times, but God's power and strength never diminish. He is never too tired or too busy to help and listen. His strength is our source of strength. When you feel all of life crushing you and you cannot go another step, remember that you can call upon God to renew your strength.

We all need regular times to listen to God. Waiting on the Lord is expecting his promised strength to help us rise above life's distractions and difficulties. Listening to God helps us to be prepared for when he speaks to us, to be patient when he asks us to wait, and to expect him to fulfill the promises found in his Word."

***

A couple of verses from Psalm 139; the chapter is written by David. The theme:  "God is all-seeing, all-knowing, all-holy, all-present. God knows us. God is with us, and His greatest gift is to allow us to know Him."

 If you have the time today or in the next few days, read the whole chapter (23 verses). It has a lot to say about how God views you/us

In case you need a good kick-off to your weekend (who doesn't!):

"How precious it is, Lord, to realize that you are thinking about me constantly!

I can't even count the how many times a day your thoughts turn towards m.

And when I waken in the morning, you are still thinking of me!"

~ Psalm 139:17, 18 LAB

Bible Commentary: "When someone you love is thinking about you all the time, it comforts you. God is concerned to keep us from failing and to catch us if we fall. If he thinks abut us this much, shouldn't we find time to think about him each day?"

Thank you, God,
for who You are
and how much You think of,
and love, us!

***

For fun!

Side Notes, vertical sayings from the margins in the August/September OUR IOWA magazine.

“A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition.”

*

“Don’t try to learn the tricks of the trade until you have learned the trade.”

*

“When love adorns a home, other decorations are secondary.”

*

“Education is a wonderful thing, if you couldn’t sign your name, you’d have to pay cash.”

*

“The most truly generous persons are those who give silently without hope of praise or reward.”

*

”They say love is the best investment; the more you give, the more you get in return.”

~ Audrey Hepburn

*

“When a resort owner insists they are biting, make sure he’s talking about fish, not mosquitoes.”

****

One day last week I was on my way to town. Went to the machine shed where my car and pick up are housed.

Pushed the button to open my shed door. Nothing. Pushed again nothing.

What am I going to do? Had someone disconnected the electrical cord?
I looked again.

Good grief. I was pushing the ‘closed’ button!

Pushed the 'open' button. Door opened!

I need to ‘trust God’, with things like this. And everything else!

“Trust the Lord completely;
Don’t ever trust yourself.
In everything you do,
Put God first,
And He will direct your
And crown your efforts with success.”
~ Proverbs 3:5 & 6 LAB

Thank You, God, for taking care of every step I take!!
 
 

This is an exciting day!

I (we in our area) have several people in our lives with medical needs for which we can pray!

Nancy and Alina are having surgeries. Cooper continues to heal after a tragic can accident several weeks ago.

Let’s pray together this morning:

Heavenly Father,

We are so happy to have a Heavenly Father

To Whom we can pray and give all of our cares and worries!

Thank You for loving each one of us so much

And that you care for each of us more than we can care for ourselves!

Thank You for doctors and everyone associated with medical care.

Guide each of their hands as they give the care that each one needs.

We have so many things for which we can be grateful.

Will you wrap Your loving arms around Nancy, Alina, and Cooper right now!

Guide their healing process.

We have no idea how prayer works

But we know that it works!!

And be with each of their families as they sit through each surgery

Plus as they wait the individual outcomes.

Help each one of us to continue to look to You

The Author of Life, Love, and Care.

In the Name of Your Son Jesus

 Who makes all things possible.

A writing sent this morning from Max Lucado.

Have a great weekend!

THE LORD GIVES A WORD

"For six long weeks Elijah had walked across the wilderness of Sinai. Finally he reached and began to ascend Mt. Horeb. Elijah was in search of God.

"And, according to 1 Kings 19:9 (NKJV), “the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’” Elijah answered with a complaint. I did everything you told me to do, but your people have rejected your covenants and killed your prophets. I’m the only one left in the country, and now they want to kill me too.

"Well, the Lord gave Elijah a word. According to verse 12, our Creator spoke to the prophet with a still, small voice. He will speak a word to you as well. Let his Word, living and active, speak to you. Open your Bible and listen."

***

Always something to learn when we read the Bible.

The ‘theme’ for Psalm112 is “The advantages of having faith in God. God guards the minds of actions of those who follow His commands.

Here is one of them:

“He (she) does not fear bad news, nor live in dread of what may happen. For he (she) is settled in his (her) mind that Jehovah will take care of him (her).”
~ Psalm 112:7 LAB
*

Bible Commentary on this verse:  “We all want to live without fear; our heroes are fearless, people who take on all dangers and overcome them. The psalmist (writer) teaches us that fear of God can lead to a fearless life. To fear God means to respect and reverence him as the almighty Lord. When we trust God completely to take care of us, we will find that our other fears---even death itself---will subside.”
 

***

This morning I finished reading Philippians chapter 3. The last verse talks about believers getting new bodies some day.

I am 80 now! Me and my friends, whether we have medical diagnoses or not, we are at a place where our bodies aren't working quite like they used to.

Must be of interest to me. I have used it in Karen's Korner in 2019 and 2022. No matter. It is good news!!

"When He (Jesus) comes back He will take these dying bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like His own, using the same mighty power that He will use to conquer all else everywhere."

~ Philippians 3:21 LAB

*

Bible Commentary:  "The bodies we receive when we are raised from the dead will be like Christ's resurrected body. We will still have our own personalities and individualities, but these will be perfected through Christ's work. The Bible does not say what our resurrected bodies will be able to do, but we know they will be perfect, without sickness or disease.

****

Today's writing by Sarah Young taken from "Jesus Calling:  Enjoying Peace in His Presence":

"Rest in me, My Child. This time devoted to Me is meant to be peaceful, not stressful. You don't have to perform in order to receive My Love. I have boundless, unconditional Love for you. How it grieves Me to see My children working for Love:  trying harder and harder, yet never feeling good enough to be loved.

"Be careful that your devotion to Me does not become another form of works. I want you to come into My Presence joyfully and confidently. You have nothing to fear, for you wear My own righteousness. Gaze into My eyes, and you will see no condemnation, only Love and delight in the one I see. Be blessed as My Face shines radiantly upon you, giving you Peace."

~ Taken from John 15:13; Zephaniah 3:17; Numbers 6:25-26

***

I continue my journey of reading various books of the Bible. Right now my trek has taken by to the short book of Philippians.

Each chapter has a different topic of JOY:

• Joy in suffering;
• Joy in serving;
• Joy in believing;
• Joy in giving

Joy is not necessarily a feeling. It is something that is packed in to each one of us Christian believers. It is one of God’s gifts to us from the Holy Spirit.

Last week, two local teenagers were involved in a serious traffic accident. One of the boys is still in the hospital and will remain there recovering for a long time. So please pray for him! And for the family.

The Bible says in Chapter 3, verse one:

“Whatever happens,
Dear friends,
Be glad in the Lord”