"Twas the night before Jesus came'

"Twas the night before Jesus came, and all through the house
Not a creature was praying, not one in the house.
Their Bibles were lain on the shelf without care
in hopes that Jesus would not come there.

The children were dressing to crawl into bed,
Not once ever kneeling or bowing a head.
And Mom in her rocker with baby on her lap
Was watching the Late Show while I took a nap.

When out of the East there arose such a clatter,
I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash!

When what to my wondering eyes should appear
But angels proclaiming that Jesus was here,
With a light like the sun sending forth a bright ray
I knew in a moment this must be THE DAY!

The light of His face made me cover my head
It was Jesus! returning just like He had said.
And though I possessed worldly wisdom and wealth,
I cried when I saw Him in spite of myself.

In the Book of Life which He held in His hand
Was written the name of every saved man.
He spoke not a word as He searched for my name;
When He said"It's not here" my head hung in shame.

The people whose names had been written with love
He gathered to take to His Father above,
With those who were ready He rose without a sound
While all the rest were left standing around.

I fell to my knees, but it was too late;
I had waited too long and thus sealed my fate.
I stood and I cried as they rose out of sight;
Oh, if only I had been ready tonight.

In the words of this poem the meaning is clear;
The coming of Jesus is drawing near.
There's only one life and when comes the last call
We'll find that the Bible was true after all!

"The Goodness of God"

"The reason we breathe, to sing of His Glory!" When I think of all the many things that the Lord has done for me, I stand in awe of Him! He gave His Son for me and you!John 3:16, "For God so loved the world , that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." The Goodness of God!
It is so comforting to know that God has the best plan for each of us! Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." His goodness passes before us! In Exodus 33:19, "I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the Lord before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious , and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion." What a gracious and compassionate Lord! Isn't it exciting to expect ongoing opportunities of intimate fellowship with the Lord! In Psalm 23:6, "Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever!" God is PERFECTLY GOOD! He does good things for us! In Psalm 31:19, "How great is Your goodness, Which you have stored up for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of men!" One of the fruits of the spirit is goodness! Believers are commanded to exemplify goodness, (Gal. 6:10-"So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of faith" and in 2 Thessalonians 1:11, "To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power." Our every desire should be for goodness! There are many thing in life that you value, but the most important thing of value is your relationship with God! Cherish it, draw near, seek Him, Listen closely ( hear), receive, and apply the "goodness" in your life! I thank God for His Goodness! God is good all the time.....................!!!!!

Caleb Levi Riddle

How precious was your tiny life
Created by God divine
Handed down as a gift of His
to bless this life of mine
So short the time I had with you
here upon this earth
So sad to say tears of grief
were shed upon your birth
What should have been a joyous thing
met with excited smiles
Seemed a journey in the shadows
that lasted many miles
Your spirit had gone to be with God
before I held you, dear
So instead of smiles and joy
I greeted you with tears
I can not know the reason
your time here was so brief
But take comfort in the knowledge
that you will never know such grief
Your days will long be filled
with angel's songs so sweet
And you'll have a chance before I do
with all the saints to meet
I imagine you will dance
in the inner courts of praise
And sing your songs of joy
with tiny hands raised
You are so loved by all of us
that remain still here
We can not wait to meet you
when we finally get there
For now I say good-bye
for but a brief time
And thank you for the blessing
you are to this life of mine.

Hope in the Storms

Lamentations 3:22-26
It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassion's fail not. They are new every morning great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. Is is good that a man both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.

I am ever thankful for the eternal, unconditional love of my Father! In Lamentations we see that because of His mercy we are not destroyed by the things of this life. He is our salvation. Even in the midst of suffering and pain scripture reminds us of this unfailing, everlasting love. It gives the believer hope in the midst of the storms of life.

There is one condition of all of this. It is that we must know our Father, not know of our Father with a heart knowledge, but rather we must have a personal, intimate relationship with our Father. We must invest in this relationship, spend time with God - in His presence. We must desire His word. Lamentations tells us that the "Lord is GOOD to them that WAIT for Him". We must learn to be still and wait for Him to speak, we must seek His presence. The verses conclude that we should hope and wait for the salvation of the Lord. This is our hope: He has said that He is our salvation and strong tower and He can not lie - therefor we will pass through this storm if our focus is on him.

This verse is dear to me. I am learning more to look to Father for everything. I would not have made it through the initial onslaught of my storm had I not hid in my Father's arms and stayed at the foot of the throne. Even now, I find my favorite place is before his throne in prayer or focused on His face as I walk.

Our God Is In Control by Steven Curtis Chapman

Get Rid of the Junk

As you read this scripture ask God to open your heart to His word and to make you able to receive that which he has for you - it may be a little hard to swallow.


Psalm 119:37-40 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things, and revive me in your ways (or give me life in your word NLT). Establish your word to your servant, who is devoted to fearing you. Turn away my reproach which I dread, For your judgments are good. Behold, I long for Your laws, Revive me in your righteousness. (NKJV)

I began this morning with my bible studies and this verse struck me. "Turn my eyes from look at worthless things and give me LIFE in YOUR WORD".

How many "worthless things", I began to wonder, have I let slip into my life and distract me from my mission - that ordained by God task at hand - the work I am called to?

How many seemingly small things distract me from His precepts or laws and keep me focused on a task that is menial and has no eternal value. And if these things were distracting me what was my cost in this world?

So, as God does, he began to show me areas of worthlessness that creep into our lives, some of these I struggle with, some you may struggle with...this list is general and by no means complete.

(1) Your job and the acquisition of worldly things.
Have you allowed your job to consume most of your time?___________________
Is it to provide and be satisfied or has it become more, do you have to work
more hours or longer hours to pay for all your stuff?____________________
(Did you fall into the trap of instant gratification, this is so easy to do. Have you justified it because the kids need new clothes, we have to have this vehicle, a bigger house would be nice, that game system or newest electronic would make life easier, etc.)
(2) The pursuit of too many activities.
This can be all things, church related, school related, work related, hobbies, sports, etc. Anything that consumes your time to spend with the Lord and make more worthwhile the relationships in your life.
Is there anything you can cut out? ________________________________________
(Have you justified it as my children need this activity to be well-rounded it will develop character, I don't want my children left out. Or I need this time alone. Or I know I'm really busy but it's all church stuff it's all for the Lord - Do not get me wrong or get the wrong idea - I am all for church activities that cause us to grow in the Lord. However, if these activities are pressing out personal time with the Lord they become empty. They are only fulfilling and worthwhile when God is involved and leading you. They will only bless you with God involved - otherwise they are empty acts.)
(3) Housework. I know, right, but for some of us having things in order and always caught up give us a since of accomplishment, and they are often times a way to control our environment.
Does the drive to perfection in your environment crowd out time for God and those you love? __________________________________________________________________
(will you fold the laundry, sweep the floor, vacuum, etc. in order to keep it all nice when the Holy Spirit is calling for alone time, will you do these things even if you know you need to invest in relationships of those in your family and justify it that there will be time later)
(4) Television.
Do you set aside time to watch your favorite television show no matter what?
even if it means no study for the Lord? ____________________________________
(Do you justify it as a time to relax....)
(5) The computer/cellphone/facebook, etc.
Do these things eat up large chunks of your times, distracting you from those around you and your time with the Lord? ____________________________________

Worthless things - ANYTHING that distracts us from God and from those things with kingdom and eternal significance. Remember ladies the enemy comes to seek, steal, and destroy. He wants your time and relationship with God first and foremost, once he distract you from this all the other areas are left wide open. He then goes for the marriage relationship between husband and wife: breaking down communication, causing conflict and misunderstanding, bringing in diverse temptations. Then are the internal relationships. He wants mothers to neglect personal time with their children by substituting it with activities and busyness so there is no real personal, devoted time - Do you really know your child's heart? When is the last time they invited you into their world? When was the last time you stopped what you were doing just to look them in the eye and really hear from your heart what they were saying to you - invested in them personally?

Worthless things - time eaters - the distractions and deceptions of the world/the enemy.

Worthless things - things that appear valuable, necessary or require justification; while devaluing those things of highest importance.

O, Lord, today bring me to my knees. Cause me to see you. This life that is common I lay on your alter. Show me the worthless things I have allowed to creep into my life. Lord, I acknowledge that I am prone to wonder, that I am easily distracted. Lord, I need your strenght. Show me these worthless things and help me to control them, to leave them behind - to place you and the things of eternal significance in front. Thank you Lord for your help. - Amen

Ladies, God has intended great things in each of our lives. I pray that the "worthless" things don't pile up, turning our focus from that which is truly important. Redeem the time! Let's clean house today - pack up those worthless things! Let's put God first, then our jobs, our acquisitions, our activities/hobbies, will fall into proper perspective no longer having bloated importance.

Redeem the time!

Sacrifice of Praise

I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving, And will call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord Now in the presence of all His people, In the courts of the Lord's house, In the midst of you, O Jerusalem. PRAISE THE LORD! Psalm 119:17-19

I have come to understand this verse in a whole new way since burying Caleb on November 5th. It was my deepest desire to be back in church, to be surrounded by God's people, to worship him. Nothing, however, prepared me for the profound effect that the worship time would have on me.

If I have learned nothing else through this pregnancy and this physical loss of a child it is the grace of God. I have seen this first hand and have been changed by it. I can testify of His goodness - because it is real to me, tangible, I lived it and experienced it - I saw it in the physical and in the spiritual. I can with a clear conscience say I am not angry with God and I don't even question his will in all this. That being said, the pain is still sharp and real, and in this world I can't understand His will. I can not see what He is working in my life - my prayer is that my life is more beautiful because of Him in it, that I have lived and continue to live in such a way as to reflect the God I have come to know more intimately and personally through this trial - That I give him glory and honor which are due him.

However, when the praise music begins and I begin to pray and to sing something happens. As I sing about God's goodness, I praise Him for all that He truly is - as I stand face to face with those realities in the courts of the God most high something happens. All that pain, all that loss, all that ache comes rushing back. My breath catches in my throat, my heart feels squeezed, my eyes fill up and I struggle to keep composure. I struggle with the desire to run up to the alter and lay down weeping before a God that means so much to me that He has given so much that I simply do not deserve.

My praise has become a sacrifice - it hurts, it costs me my comfort - it is no longer all feel-good, fluff. For the first time in my life, I think, I fully realize the impact of grace, the beautifully tragic gift that was laid out for someone who is totally unworthy and will never be worthy. My pain, my loss, my dreams, those things I prayed for that will not be in this earth - all that falls away and I am overwhelmed, consumed.

A sacrifice of praise is the choice in the midst of your pain, suffering, turmoil, heartache, brokenness to come into the House of the Lord and offer up what you know to be true (praise of who He is, thankfulness for what He has done and what He is) even when it sometimes feels so distant.

The sacrifice is costly - it means to do it when you don't feel like it, when it would be easier to stay out of the courts of praise because the pain is so sharp and your throat closes up, your eyes overflow, and you feel again that intense breaking of your heart, your shattered dreams and aching soul.

This choice causes you to look directly on Christ - in all His glory and sacrifice - causes your heart to acknowledge the grace of God that is being lavishly poured out upon you. In the midst of this praise God brings you close to him and begins to comfort and heal you. He gathers you in His arms, wipes away the tears, and whispers his love: "My daughter, you are precious. This pain will come to pass, and in it will be something more beautiful. My heart aches with you, for you, but remember I am able to deliver you...I've loved you since before time began, known you by name and numbered your days and set your path - I can see the end..."

Through the sacrifice we are made more beautiful and we see the spiritual made manifest in this physical world. We are consumed by His love, grace, and mercy - and we are forever changed by the encounter.

I know this time of praise may be hard for a long time to come. The physical world takes time to heal. I am so thankful, for being able to enter the gates of thanksgiving, to come into the Courts of God most High and to lift praises - even if they come from a broken wounded heart that simply doesn't understand.