The Plan I Have For You

Exodus 17 8  Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim. 9  So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” 10  Joshua did as Moses [ i ] told him, [ j ] and fought against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11  So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand [ k ] down, Amalek prevailed. 12  But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sun set. 13  So Joshua [ l ] overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. I mentioned in my last blog God has been peeling away my layers like an onion.  A couple of weeks ago I was asked to fill in on a Wednesday night for our lad...

Deuteronomy 31:6  (NIV) Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." I've started to have people asking when my next blog was going to come out.  I've always let God lead the timing.  My entries have been few and far between this year.  It's not because he hasn't been speaking, and thankfully it hasn't been because I haven't been listening.  In April, I started a series of medications to control my constant dizziness and vertigo that left me feeling even worse than before.  While my heart has been filled with stories to share, my brain simply would not give me the words I needed to convey the deep love and protection sent from my heavenly father during this time. There have been lots of days that just getting through the day was an accomplishment.  My 10 minute commute to work many mornings included listening to a song that brought much com...

About three weeks ago, God laid a message on my heart about the doors he opens in our lives, and the ones he closes for us.   As I prepared to teach our ladies group Wednesday night, I had struggled with a lesson.  God gave me a great follow up to my lesson doorways:  How to Live your Life in the Hallway. We often expect when God closes a door for us, he’s supposed to immediately open another one.   I expected that 11 months ago when I made a life changing transition.  Today, I'm still standing in the hallway. We all will face those hallways in our lives, the important lesson for us is how to live during the process.  I learned a lot about that this week from 1 Samuel, and the story of David. Charles Swindoll in his book David, “I wonder how many people think that David, after he killed the giant, within a matter of a few days became the youngest king in the history of Israel?   Well in case you were one who thought that, you need to know it...

Remember that saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me?"  The truth is words can hurt.  They can tear right through the very fiber of your soul.  Sometimes its not even the words that hurt but the context in which they are said. This morning, I crafted a quick, smart reply on instant message to something that struck a cord with me.  Finger ready to hit "send," conviction hit me like a sword in my chest.  Words, they do hurt.   Deuteronomy 2:2-3 Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. I will proclaim the name of the Lord . Oh, praise the greatness of our God! These words in Deuteronomy speak of the words of God, how they should fall gently and be nourishing to the soul.  Our words should be too. Not only do we need to guard our tongues from the harmful words we say, we need to make mor...

Its been one of those weeks.  The weather has been terrible, and I just have a bad case of the blahs.  The mountains before me this week seem a little taller, and a lot more intimidating.  I have struggled to write, but I made a commitment.  So this morning, I sat down in front of my computer and prayed again for a message to share.  After reading another passage and praying for guidance, it still wasn't coming.  I decided to scan through facebook for a few minutes to clear my mind.  In my news feed was a verse: Psalm 66:5 NLT   Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles He performs for people! And below the continuing story of a family and the provision of God after a serious car accident: https://www.facebook.com/UnwrappingHisGrace Part of our responsibility as Christians is to encourage one another.  Every one of us has a story of God's amazing provision in our lives.  Today, I want you to help me write the...