Good morning ladies! Another beautiful morning here. What a great summer we're having! Soak it all in while we can ladies so we can think back to how this feels when the 'cooler' temperatures return. But, we won't talk about that yet. I want to welcome five new ladies from our church here. We are so excited for you to join us! I love how God continues to bless and grow our group! You are all such an encouragement to me!
I have a little story for you...what's new? When we got back from Michigan late Sunday night, we came home to an empty refrigerator. We couldn't even remember the last time we did a regular grocery shopping trip. It's all been about picking up a few things as needed. So, yesterday was the day. And around here, it's pretty much at least a half day event, because the closest town with 'everything' (as we know it) is just under an hour away. Yeah, that will take some getting used to! On we went, driving through the farming towns and having a nice conversation. For the most part, our trip was successful, although there are certain items that are still missing from the shelves. That's okay, we can be flexible. My little story, and something that completely surprised me is this. We were in Walmart for just a few things that we thought would be less expensive, like some makeup I needed. First of all, the store was unlike any other Walmart we've been to. No pattern to it at all. We were told later that it had originally been a smaller store and they just kept adding onto it. Yep, that explains why we had to search for everything. Anyway, we finally found the makeup section and they had it all closed in with a cash register and counter right in that section. You could only go in and out of the makeup aisles through one opening, and there was an extra employee there just to watch people. There were also extra cameras. Confused, we asked what was happening. The cashier told us that they lose $186,000 just in that department every year. I was stunned! I worked in retail many years ago and I came across theft, but I guess I haven't thought about it much since. We had to actually make our purchase there just for those products and then cash out again later for everything else. Crazy! It made me feel uneasy just looking for the things I needed. So, a new experience for sure. All in all, though, the trip was good and we even came home with Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner! NEVER cook on a grocery night.
How are you doing? What are your plans for today? Please let me know if I can pray for you. Today, I am taking it easy and planning to take Molly for a walk in the park.
Devotion
It's a tremendous comfort to know that we can know God's heart and His plan for us because we are connected to Him by His Spirit. What a powerful devotion today! Have a WORTHWHILE WEDNESDAY ladies!
"A Step of Faith into the Unknown"
CBN Ministries, Daphne Delay
Steve Jobs once said, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.”
I imagine the devil wishes he could’ve connected the dots better before he instigated the crucifixion of Jesus. In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he said,
“…we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory" (1 Corinthians 2:7-8 NKJV).
In other words, they didn’t know His death would be our life!
And I think this principle helps us in our faith, because how many times have we been nervous to take a step of faith into the unknown? I’ll raise my hand first and say, “Many times!” But here’s what I’ve learned: for every time it felt like I was standing on the edge of a cliff with one instruction from God to step out, He met me there.
Things are hidden for two reasons: protection and protection. I repeated myself on purpose because think about the scenario Paul was speaking of — heaven’s agenda was hidden to protect it from being exploited or foiled by the enemy. But it was also hidden to protect God’s precious gift of life to man.
The good news is that things of the Spirit don’t have to remain hidden from God’s children any longer.
“As it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those love Him.’ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes the deep things of God" (1 Corinthians 2:9-10 NKJV).
Too often, we stop and marvel at verse 9 that there are innumerable things that God’s children haven’t seen or heard. On the one hand, I think that’s okay because faith marvels. But I love that we aren’t in the dark. God, through His Spirit, wants to share His heart and purpose with us. And it’s done through our relationship with the Holy Spirit.
In the natural, I agree with Steve Jobs. Without faith, we can only connect dots behind us. But we are not operating only in the natural (without faith). The Holy Spirit abides in us, while also intimately abiding with God, knowing His heart and mind. Therefore, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can take steps of genuine faith connecting dots as we move forward with Him.
The Message Translation explains this well:
“The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God’s Spirit and our spirits in open communion. Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God’s Spirit is doing, and can’t be judged by unspiritual critics. Isaiah’s question, ‘Is there anyone around who knows God’s Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?’ has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ’s Spirit" (1 Corinthians 2:14-16 MSG).
So yes, we can connect future dots when we are led by the Spirit. We hold the thoughts, feelings, and purposes of His heart within us.
It’s just a matter of faith.
I have a little story for you...what's new? When we got back from Michigan late Sunday night, we came home to an empty refrigerator. We couldn't even remember the last time we did a regular grocery shopping trip. It's all been about picking up a few things as needed. So, yesterday was the day. And around here, it's pretty much at least a half day event, because the closest town with 'everything' (as we know it) is just under an hour away. Yeah, that will take some getting used to! On we went, driving through the farming towns and having a nice conversation. For the most part, our trip was successful, although there are certain items that are still missing from the shelves. That's okay, we can be flexible. My little story, and something that completely surprised me is this. We were in Walmart for just a few things that we thought would be less expensive, like some makeup I needed. First of all, the store was unlike any other Walmart we've been to. No pattern to it at all. We were told later that it had originally been a smaller store and they just kept adding onto it. Yep, that explains why we had to search for everything. Anyway, we finally found the makeup section and they had it all closed in with a cash register and counter right in that section. You could only go in and out of the makeup aisles through one opening, and there was an extra employee there just to watch people. There were also extra cameras. Confused, we asked what was happening. The cashier told us that they lose $186,000 just in that department every year. I was stunned! I worked in retail many years ago and I came across theft, but I guess I haven't thought about it much since. We had to actually make our purchase there just for those products and then cash out again later for everything else. Crazy! It made me feel uneasy just looking for the things I needed. So, a new experience for sure. All in all, though, the trip was good and we even came home with Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner! NEVER cook on a grocery night.
How are you doing? What are your plans for today? Please let me know if I can pray for you. Today, I am taking it easy and planning to take Molly for a walk in the park.
Devotion
It's a tremendous comfort to know that we can know God's heart and His plan for us because we are connected to Him by His Spirit. What a powerful devotion today! Have a WORTHWHILE WEDNESDAY ladies!
"A Step of Faith into the Unknown"
CBN Ministries, Daphne Delay
Steve Jobs once said, “You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.”
I imagine the devil wishes he could’ve connected the dots better before he instigated the crucifixion of Jesus. In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he said,
“…we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory" (1 Corinthians 2:7-8 NKJV).
In other words, they didn’t know His death would be our life!
And I think this principle helps us in our faith, because how many times have we been nervous to take a step of faith into the unknown? I’ll raise my hand first and say, “Many times!” But here’s what I’ve learned: for every time it felt like I was standing on the edge of a cliff with one instruction from God to step out, He met me there.
Things are hidden for two reasons: protection and protection. I repeated myself on purpose because think about the scenario Paul was speaking of — heaven’s agenda was hidden to protect it from being exploited or foiled by the enemy. But it was also hidden to protect God’s precious gift of life to man.
The good news is that things of the Spirit don’t have to remain hidden from God’s children any longer.
“As it is written: ‘Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those love Him.’ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes the deep things of God" (1 Corinthians 2:9-10 NKJV).
Too often, we stop and marvel at verse 9 that there are innumerable things that God’s children haven’t seen or heard. On the one hand, I think that’s okay because faith marvels. But I love that we aren’t in the dark. God, through His Spirit, wants to share His heart and purpose with us. And it’s done through our relationship with the Holy Spirit.
In the natural, I agree with Steve Jobs. Without faith, we can only connect dots behind us. But we are not operating only in the natural (without faith). The Holy Spirit abides in us, while also intimately abiding with God, knowing His heart and mind. Therefore, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can take steps of genuine faith connecting dots as we move forward with Him.
The Message Translation explains this well:
“The unspiritual self, just as it is by nature, can’t receive the gifts of God’s Spirit. There’s no capacity for them. They seem like so much silliness. Spirit can be known only by spirit—God’s Spirit and our spirits in open communion. Spiritually alive, we have access to everything God’s Spirit is doing, and can’t be judged by unspiritual critics. Isaiah’s question, ‘Is there anyone around who knows God’s Spirit, anyone who knows what he is doing?’ has been answered: Christ knows, and we have Christ’s Spirit" (1 Corinthians 2:14-16 MSG).
So yes, we can connect future dots when we are led by the Spirit. We hold the thoughts, feelings, and purposes of His heart within us.
It’s just a matter of faith.
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