Tag Archives: ABBA

Embrace Today

Here we are.

No (again-s) to republish.

Day 1 at home fresh from some wonderful days away.

Hubby back to the office. Laundry piled and waiting. And many other things waiting.

So where do I begin today?

Think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths.  Proverbs 3:6 [source]

A fine place to start.  :)

As we started for home yesterday I had to journal as JT drove. Sadness and heaviness was pressing in on me and I was unwilling to bear it alone. For sure our days away and the people we met was orchestrated by ABBA. No other explanation will do.

Scripture [source] says we bear one another’s burdens and we do, sometimes right away when we meet because the time together this side of Heaven is short – like just two breakfast mornings. But you share and you pray and you process sadness and heaviness with ABBA’s help and you embrace today. And you come away writing this:

 I know this weekend was You. I pray for the same sense that every day is just as much You.

Or this:

When the door of death opens and my spirit walks through, my soul no longer expresses itself through my human frailties and those who love me lose sight of me, but You don’t, ABBA. And I’m thinking the laughter You gave and even the quirky ways I enjoy Your creation, JESUS, live on – and You and I wait happily till we all meet again.

Some days we know that we know that we know our GOD brought people and time together and we are in AWE of Him and we praise and rejoice in Him! It’s so good! And then we part and the mundane begins again. NO!  Not if we remember:

Think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths.  Proverbs 3:6 [source]

Today is just as much You as the ‘weekend’, ABBA, and just as important in the Theme of Eternity.

Thank You, ABBA, for people and places, memories made and those yet to be made and missions and projects and life to live now today for Your glory alone. Thank You for rest and refreshment, for pictures kept and even those lost; thank You that all things work together for good for those who love You and are called according to Your purpose; we rest on that today and always in YESHUA’s Mighty name.
Kathie

JT

A Soldier, An Athlete, A Farmer (again)

IDOK DEVOTION FOR THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2010

A Soldier, An Athlete, A Farmer

Okay. On to today’s text – I want to continue examining 2 Timothy with you today for a few moments before we pray. 2 Timothy 2 (New King James Version)

1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3 You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. 5 And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer must be first to partake of the crops. 7 Consider what I say, and may the Lord give you understanding in all things.    

            A good soldier does not fraternize with the enemy; a good athlete follows the rules of the sport, and a good farmer enjoys the fruits (and veggies) of his harvest.

            Is any of this easy? Heck no!  It’s all out war, and hard work!  Ask any good soldier. Ask any Olympic Medalist. Ask any farmer at the end of harvest.  He will tell you it was hard work, tough going and sometimes he wondered if he’d ever make it. But he did.  And when you say was it worth it; he’ll say, “oh my yes!  These peaches are so juicy it’ll run right down your arm, and this corn on the cob is the sweetest I’ve ever tasted!”   

            If we want the spiritual maturity we were re-born to have, we will stay out of carnality.  We will not fraternize with our own flesh, the world or Satan.  We will not  bend the rules, we will embrace them as the holy protective boundaries they are, praising God every minute that He has given them to us.  And we will cultivate the soil of our hearts, plant those seeds, water them, feed them, harvest them and then … when our battles are complete, our races are run, our crops are in the barn and we see HIM standing there absolutely, totally head over heels in love with us and He says, ‘Welcome Home.  All that is Mine is yours.’ — It will be worth it all!  Can we say Amen and amen?!

Colossians 3: (New King James Version) 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. [source]

Well, it took longer than I thought, but I like it!  You are making me smile again today. I love it!  And, ABBA, I love you. Thank You, LORD GOD, for making it so; You are so good to me.  I hear what You are saying in these Wills up here.  If I want spiritual maturity I will follow Your rules, I will not walk in the flesh and I will do the work of a farmer.  It’s all about my ‘want to’ and You know in this moment oh I WANT TO, more than anything.  But You know me and I know me pretty good too – I get entangled!  But, You are helping me get entangled less and less these days.  Thank You.  I love it!  You are so Awesome!  Please don’t let this ‘taste’ leave my mouth.  And, ABBA, I figure there are some other IDOKs out there that want this too and I bet (well, You know) they are like me in that they are prone to get entangled too.  So I am asking You to keep after them too – every one of them that will say amen right about now.   This is fun and I love it but there are needs and we dare not neglect that part of ministry.   Some faces have popped up, some names linger, sweet people, precious people, hard stuff, lonely days and nights, wondering, scarcity, abundance but without peace; all this stuff.  But YOU are faithful and You are able; may it be that each one of them will experience You in faithfulness and power, in healings and restorations, and rescues and just sweet, sweet freedom from sin and bondage.  And protect our IDOK Troops again today, keep them safe, love on them so much they just feel it; move on Your Church with grace and mercy and conviction and the fresh fire of revival. Protect Israel, bring HER to the Land You have prepared for them; have mercy on the US, send conviction and grace to repent to the White House and every House I pray – all in the Name of Jesus, the One and Only. Amen and amen.

Kathie

You Name It ‘s’ (again)

IDOK DEVOTION FOR FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 2010

You Name It ‘s’

It is late as I begin.  I may not tarry. It has been a sweet, sweet day!  My Baby Girl and I had our once a month day together; we don’t often miss a month.  Anyway this time, we did lunch and a movie.  Her first time to see The Blind Side; my second – she loved it, I loved it again! 

(P.S. at this typing it is 8.28.13 and at seeing the trailer for The Blind Side AGAIN my eyes well with tears. Just saying. Have a precious day my Friends!) 

I have a least two passages of Scripture that I want to share but either would take some time to develop and that football game is gonna be over soon and like I said it’s late here in lower Alabama.  So maybe I’ll save those for next week.

For now, carry this one around with you. 

John 16:33 (Amplified Bible) I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.] [source]

            Amen and amen again!

This verse is in the midst of Jesus last training session with the Apostles before He went to the Garden and you know from there was taken to ‘trial’.  He told them tribulation, trials, distresses; frustrations were coming but that even in all of it He wanted them to have peace and confidence, to take courage, to be certain.  Be certain I HAVE overcome, He said.  For us that means even before any nasty, difficult, hard, troubling, frustrating ‘you name it’, comes upon us, Jesus has already overcome it for us.  It is for us to be confident. It is for us to value and treasure this PEACE He has given us so much that we will not forfeit it for anything or any body.    

And in this moment, my resolve is to so value You, so value holding onto to the Peace You have given me that I will not forfeit it for anything; not even for the ‘pleasure’ of sin for a season.  That’s what I feel and want right now as I sit here in the quiet.  I pray that more and more I will want it when the ‘you name its’ are screaming at me.  And I pray this for our IDOKs too. ABBA, I know I should be asleep already and I surely hope most of our IDOKs already are.   And as I think of those spoken here, You know who they are, You know the loss they are feeling, You know the sorrow of the empty chair and the vacant pillow; it grieves me, Lord, and I know it does You even more – comfort them, ABBA, be their everything to them and carry them through this.  We appreciate and we applaud You for the good reports.  Thank You.  And as so many days before we pray for our IDOK Troops; how can we say thank You for Your goodness for the protection and safe keeping of them.  Thank You. Thank You.  And so we keep asking that You keep on protecting them and that You bring each one home safe and sound.  You know who needs what and when listed here and we just trust You in Jesus Name to do it. Amen and amen.

Kathie