Oh, worship the King!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Holy, Holy, Holy
is the Lord God Almighty,
who was, and is, and is to come.
Revelation 4:8b
"In worship we become preoccupied with the Lord. We don't watch something happen, we participate in it. It's coming to a place in our life, either alone, with a few or with many, where we "connect" with the living God. It is almost as though we could reach out and touch Him." Pastor Chuck Swindoll from, The Living Insights Study Bible.
You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for You created all things,
and by Your will they were created
and have their being.
Revelation 4:11
Join today with brothers and sisters across this world . . . Worship the KING!!!!!!!!
Monday, November 30, 2015
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
God’s
Glory
The glory of
God is the manifestation of all His attributes and character; all that He
is and says and does. Everything about God is glorious, and
the highest activity of man is to glorify God (Matthew 5:16).
All who trust
Christ share His glory today and will see His glory in heaven (John 17:22-24).
quote by Warren Wiersbe, With the Word.
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
Praying that the Lord will shine His beauty on us today and establish the work of our hands for us. (Psalm 90:17)
Praising Him that we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works He gives us to do today. (Ephesians 2:10)
Praising Him that we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works He gives us to do today. (Ephesians 2:10)
For Him ~ for His glory!!!
Monday, August 3, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey
Beauty in the midst of the Ashes
This past weekend I was in the mountains staying at Ridgecrest in the Swannanoa Valley. You may recall several months ago that the area surrounding the Conference Center was hit hard by a wild fire. A lot of the surrounding mountains at Ridgecrest were destroyed by the fire. The Lord protected the buildings on the property, but much of the acreage was marred.
On a walk near the lake on the property I saw many charred trees, but the cool thing was the way new growth was coming up at the base of so many of those trees. New, beautiful, brilliantly colored green leaves were peaking out amidst the ashes. Such a vivid picture of how God amazingly takes a life that has been burned, scarred in countless ways by others, or often as a result of bad choices and gives hope, forgiveness, mercy and grace through Christ and lets His beauty shine through.
"to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair." Isaiah 61:3
This past weekend I was in the mountains staying at Ridgecrest in the Swannanoa Valley. You may recall several months ago that the area surrounding the Conference Center was hit hard by a wild fire. A lot of the surrounding mountains at Ridgecrest were destroyed by the fire. The Lord protected the buildings on the property, but much of the acreage was marred.
On a walk near the lake on the property I saw many charred trees, but the cool thing was the way new growth was coming up at the base of so many of those trees. New, beautiful, brilliantly colored green leaves were peaking out amidst the ashes. Such a vivid picture of how God amazingly takes a life that has been burned, scarred in countless ways by others, or often as a result of bad choices and gives hope, forgiveness, mercy and grace through Christ and lets His beauty shine through.
"to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair." Isaiah 61:3
Friday, July 31, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey
"In prayer, I give myself to God; in the Word, God gives Himself to me."
Andrew Murray
Oh that we would all be still, stop talking and listen to Him as He speaks through His powerful, transforming Truth!!!
Andrew Murray
Oh that we would all be still, stop talking and listen to Him as He speaks through His powerful, transforming Truth!!!
Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10
Monday, July 20, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
Morning Praise . . . You will fill me with JOY in Your presence Psalm 16:11
Love starting my day with the Lord ~ sitting on our deck, Bible open, cup of coffee in hand, listening as the birds chirp, watching the squirrels scamper about and seeing an occasional deer with a cute little fawn walking through the yard. Definitely puts a smile on my face.
It wasn't always like this. When my kids were little sitting quietly most days wasn't an option ~ lol. I didn't use my kids as an excuse though, I simply asked the Lord to give me creative ways to spend with Him and He did. It didn't work out perfectly all the time, but my faithful God knew my heart and my desire.
I'm continually amazed that He delights in spending time with me and that He too enjoys our special time together. Holy, Almighty God longs for each of us to spend time in His presence. He welcomes ALL who come to Him through His Son, Jesus and fills us with joy when we come. Jesus, the One and Only, provided the way for us to have full access to God. (Hebrews 4:14-15) God, the Creator of the universe. What a privilege to spend time Him!!! Time worshiping, seeking His face and bringing to Him all the cares and concerns for the day.
Not only does He welcome us, but He says that we may confidently come to Him. "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence." Confidence ~ firm trust. Complete trust in the One who will never leave us or forsake us. The One who listens to our every cry, hears our sighs and accepts our prayers. (Psalm 5:1-3,9; Psalm 6:9; Psalm 8:10) I love what Charles Spurgeon says about prayer, "God will accept it, think of it and grant it in the way and time His loving wisdom judges best."
Why come? "So that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Everyone of us have needs. God never discriminates. He beautifully invites ALL to come to Him and take His mercy and grace, freely offered. He gives it to us at the right time, in the right way and in the right proportion. His mercy ~ His grace ~ from His extravagant heart of love.
His desire for us is that we come to Him, the strong tower. (Proverbs 18:10)
He graciously waits . . . for me. He graciously waits . . . for you. (Isaiah 30:18-21)
Let us then approach God's throne of grace
with confidence,
so that we may receive mercy and find grace
to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey
Encouraging your kids with Scripture Songs
Love how music touches hearts and lives in an amazing way!!! Several years ago we completed Let the Children Come. Songs born out of my quiet times with the Lord.
God has used this CD around the world for His glory. His Word ~ His tunes ~ for such a time as this.
Would love for you to have this for your family. Check out:
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/DianneHart
Love how music touches hearts and lives in an amazing way!!! Several years ago we completed Let the Children Come. Songs born out of my quiet times with the Lord.
God has used this CD around the world for His glory. His Word ~ His tunes ~ for such a time as this.
Would love for you to have this for your family. Check out:
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/DianneHart
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
Do words matter????
Absolutely!!! Words either build up or tear down. More than ever, we need to do a little re-evaluating of our own words. Does our speech come from a heart filled with rejoicing, kindness, love or with anger, bitterness, disappointment or frustration? Is Christ pleased with what He hears or do we grieve His heart?
It seems lately, we are bombarded with those who use bad language and think nothing of it ~ Christian or Non-Christian. No wonder our kids in our culture talk the way they do. Where is the example??? Without fail, every time I look at Facebook, listen to the News, watch TV programs, or hear some of my friends talk, I see/hear LOTS of words that definitely do not build up.
If we have received Christ as our Savior, we are held to a higher standard because we serve a Holy God. In Ephesians 4:22-24, it says, You were taught, with regard to the former way of like, to put off the old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds; to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Our speech should reflect and represent Him well. (Ephesians 4:29-32, 5:1-4,8-10; Proverbs 22:11; Matthew 12:36, 1 Timothy 4:12) In what ways have or should your speech change?
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul reminds us that we are to be living sacrifices. Therefore, I urge you brothers (sisters), in view of God's mercy (that should be enough to stop us in our tracks right there) to offer your bodies (every part ~ mouth included) as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- this is our spiritual act of worship (worship is a lifestyle and it shows how much we love and reverence God). Do not be conformed any longer (we may have been there, but we are challenged not to stay there) to the pattern of this world (Psalm 1:1-3), but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- His good, pleasing and perfect will. It's action on our part. It's one thing to believe, but it's another thing to put into practice what we believe. Often times we simply make excuses, rather than trusting Christ to help us clean up our words.
Maybe it's not bad language you deal with, maybe it's simply unkind words to family, friends or co-workers. I love this quote by Warren Wiersbe: "Let your words be controlled by His Word and God will make your words valuable." Who can discern his errors: Forgive my hidden faults. Keep Your servant from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, innocent of transgressions. Psalm 19:12-13
Absolutely!!! Words either build up or tear down. More than ever, we need to do a little re-evaluating of our own words. Does our speech come from a heart filled with rejoicing, kindness, love or with anger, bitterness, disappointment or frustration? Is Christ pleased with what He hears or do we grieve His heart?
It seems lately, we are bombarded with those who use bad language and think nothing of it ~ Christian or Non-Christian. No wonder our kids in our culture talk the way they do. Where is the example??? Without fail, every time I look at Facebook, listen to the News, watch TV programs, or hear some of my friends talk, I see/hear LOTS of words that definitely do not build up.
If we have received Christ as our Savior, we are held to a higher standard because we serve a Holy God. In Ephesians 4:22-24, it says, You were taught, with regard to the former way of like, to put off the old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds; to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Our speech should reflect and represent Him well. (Ephesians 4:29-32, 5:1-4,8-10; Proverbs 22:11; Matthew 12:36, 1 Timothy 4:12) In what ways have or should your speech change?
In Romans 12:1-2, Paul reminds us that we are to be living sacrifices. Therefore, I urge you brothers (sisters), in view of God's mercy (that should be enough to stop us in our tracks right there) to offer your bodies (every part ~ mouth included) as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God -- this is our spiritual act of worship (worship is a lifestyle and it shows how much we love and reverence God). Do not be conformed any longer (we may have been there, but we are challenged not to stay there) to the pattern of this world (Psalm 1:1-3), but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is -- His good, pleasing and perfect will. It's action on our part. It's one thing to believe, but it's another thing to put into practice what we believe. Often times we simply make excuses, rather than trusting Christ to help us clean up our words.
Maybe it's not bad language you deal with, maybe it's simply unkind words to family, friends or co-workers. I love this quote by Warren Wiersbe: "Let your words be controlled by His Word and God will make your words valuable." Who can discern his errors: Forgive my hidden faults. Keep Your servant from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, innocent of transgressions. Psalm 19:12-13
May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing
in Your sight, O LORD,
my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19:14
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey
Psalm Praise
The Psalms are my go to book. No matter your circumstances, whether joyful, sad, disappointed or with whatever curve life throws, God always uses the Psalms to get your focus fully on Him and His sufficiency.
The Lord has given me the privilege of mentoring a couple of ladies right now. The place we go each week is the Psalms. It's one of the best books in the Bible to show you who God is. Each week we take one Psalm and find as many things about God, our amazing Creator as we can. Using the Alphabet Praise method, we put Who He is, His characteristic or what He does by the appropriate letter.
For example, from Psalm 5:
A ~ Abhors bloodthirsty and deceitful men
B ~ Bless the righteous
C
D ~ Does not take pleasure in evil or wickedness, Destroys those who tell lies
E
F
G~ Gives ear to my sighing
H ~ Hears my voice
I
J
K ~ King
L ~ Listens to my cry for help, Leads
M ~ Merciful, Makes straight our way before us
N
O
P ~ Protector
Q
R ~ Righteousness, Refuge
S ~ Spreads His Protection over all who take refuge in Him, Shield
T
U
V
W
x
Y ~ Your presence, Your favor
Z
During the week the ladies read the Psalm daily and praise Him for who He reveals Himself to them, often times writing a personal prayer of thanksgiving using these characteristics. When we meet, we talk about what we found out, then spend time praising Him together.
I would encourage you to try this method ~ use it with your kids this summer. Let them find out who God is from His Word. What this does is keeps you from wondering who God is or "I think God is" to I know who He is.
The Psalms are my go to book. No matter your circumstances, whether joyful, sad, disappointed or with whatever curve life throws, God always uses the Psalms to get your focus fully on Him and His sufficiency.
The Lord has given me the privilege of mentoring a couple of ladies right now. The place we go each week is the Psalms. It's one of the best books in the Bible to show you who God is. Each week we take one Psalm and find as many things about God, our amazing Creator as we can. Using the Alphabet Praise method, we put Who He is, His characteristic or what He does by the appropriate letter.
For example, from Psalm 5:
A ~ Abhors bloodthirsty and deceitful men
B ~ Bless the righteous
C
D ~ Does not take pleasure in evil or wickedness, Destroys those who tell lies
E
F
G~ Gives ear to my sighing
H ~ Hears my voice
I
J
K ~ King
L ~ Listens to my cry for help, Leads
M ~ Merciful, Makes straight our way before us
N
O
P ~ Protector
Q
R ~ Righteousness, Refuge
S ~ Spreads His Protection over all who take refuge in Him, Shield
T
U
V
W
x
Y ~ Your presence, Your favor
Z
During the week the ladies read the Psalm daily and praise Him for who He reveals Himself to them, often times writing a personal prayer of thanksgiving using these characteristics. When we meet, we talk about what we found out, then spend time praising Him together.
I would encourage you to try this method ~ use it with your kids this summer. Let them find out who God is from His Word. What this does is keeps you from wondering who God is or "I think God is" to I know who He is.
But let all who take refuge I You be glad;
let them ever sing for you.
spread Your protection over them,
that those who love Your name may rejoice in You.
For surely, O LORD, You bless the righteous;
You surround them with Your favor as with a shield.
Psalm 5:11-12
Monday, May 4, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
This morning I had
something I needed to take over to my friend’s house. Ordinarily I would have gotten in my car and
driven the less than one mile away ~ lol.
Instead, I decided to walk. It
was a gorgeous morning, birds chirping happily, the wind gently blowing the
leaves on the trees along with all the other simple everyday noises. A few cars were going by and a few planes
flying high in the beautiful, Carolina
blue sky.
As I walked down one of our neighborhood streets to
her house, I began to praise the Lord for the day; taking the time to enjoy the
surrounding beauty of my Creator, God.
It was such a lovely, beautiful time with Him.
I had a great visit with my friend and then it was time to be on my way.
On the way back I
looked at the street ahead of me. It was
great going down to my friend’s house,
but I wasn’t looking forward to the walk back up. The street is known by some of us as “heart
attack hill.” As I started walking, I
happened to notice a few places along the way where trees shaded the
street. So, rather than focusing on
having to walk UP the hill, I began focusing on the shaded areas.
As I walked from
one shade to another, the Lord beautifully reminded me how He watches over me
and is the shade at my right hand. What
a comforting promise and one that is for all who have trusted in Christ as
their Savior.
The LORD watches over you – the LORD is your shade at your
right hand. Psalm 121:5
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
Hannah ~ a woman of persistent prayer and powerful praise!!!
Most of you already know the story of Hannah from 1 Samuel 1:1-28; 2:1-26. She longed for a child, but for many years she remained barren. That did not stop her from praying ~ instead she continued to cry out to God, the only ONE who could help her. She was taunted by Peninnah. misunderstood by her husband, Elkanah and Eli the prophet, but not by God.
I love the words of Dianne Neal Matthews in the book, The One Year Women of the Bible:
"We may not struggle with infertility, like Hannah, we all have some deep, unfulfilled longing. It may be disappointment with our marriage or with our singleness. We may ache over a wayward child or a troubled relationship with a friend or relative We may long for a change in our job, environment, home situation, or personality.
God wants us to pour out our hearts to Him as Hannah did. Like Elkanah, God also wants us to be satisfied with Him alone. When we learn to give God first place in our lives, our hearts will long to know Him and please Him above all else. Then we can rest assured that He will either grant our desires or change them so that they are in alignment with His will for us."
Hannah:
~ Focus was off herself and on the power of her God (Exodus 15:11)
~ Rested in His deliverance over her enemies who taunted her (Psalm 3:8)
~ Praised Him for His holiness and the strong foundation she had in Him her Rock
(Deuteronomy 32:3-4)
~ Waited on her God who saw her situation and was well aware of her struggles
(Genesis 16:1-14)
~ Trusted Him to bring deliverance (Psalm 107:6
~ Knew He would guard and guide her (Isaiah 58:11)
~ Recognized His strength and exalted Him as her King (Psalm 24)
Most of you already know the story of Hannah from 1 Samuel 1:1-28; 2:1-26. She longed for a child, but for many years she remained barren. That did not stop her from praying ~ instead she continued to cry out to God, the only ONE who could help her. She was taunted by Peninnah. misunderstood by her husband, Elkanah and Eli the prophet, but not by God.
I love the words of Dianne Neal Matthews in the book, The One Year Women of the Bible:
"We may not struggle with infertility, like Hannah, we all have some deep, unfulfilled longing. It may be disappointment with our marriage or with our singleness. We may ache over a wayward child or a troubled relationship with a friend or relative We may long for a change in our job, environment, home situation, or personality.
God wants us to pour out our hearts to Him as Hannah did. Like Elkanah, God also wants us to be satisfied with Him alone. When we learn to give God first place in our lives, our hearts will long to know Him and please Him above all else. Then we can rest assured that He will either grant our desires or change them so that they are in alignment with His will for us."
Hannah:
~ Focus was off herself and on the power of her God (Exodus 15:11)
~ Rested in His deliverance over her enemies who taunted her (Psalm 3:8)
~ Praised Him for His holiness and the strong foundation she had in Him her Rock
(Deuteronomy 32:3-4)
~ Waited on her God who saw her situation and was well aware of her struggles
(Genesis 16:1-14)
~ Trusted Him to bring deliverance (Psalm 107:6
~ Knew He would guard and guide her (Isaiah 58:11)
~ Recognized His strength and exalted Him as her King (Psalm 24)
Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may
receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16
receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16
Monday, March 2, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
"God is not waiting to show us strong in His behalf,
but Himself strong in our behalf.
That makes a lot of difference.
He is not out to demonstrate what we can do
but what He can do.
Vance Havner
Oh, Sovereign Lord . . . NOTHING is too hard for You.
Oh, Sovereign Lord . . . NOTHING is too hard for You.
Jeremiah 32:17
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Encouragement . . . for the Journey 2015
Love looking out at the beautiful snow falling ever so gently in our yard today. The flakes are light and fluffy ~ as it hits your face.
He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. Psalm 147:16
I love even more, how the Lord refreshes me when I am in His Word. His Truth ~ refreshes us in our weariness ~ lifts us up when the storms of life surround us ~ fills us with joy indescribable ~ gives us direction and floods us with lasting peace.
He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for His name's sake. Psalm 23:3
He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. Psalm 147:16
I love even more, how the Lord refreshes me when I am in His Word. His Truth ~ refreshes us in our weariness ~ lifts us up when the storms of life surround us ~ fills us with joy indescribable ~ gives us direction and floods us with lasting peace.
He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for His name's sake. Psalm 23:3
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