We had tea together, talked together, and now we were praying together. The older woman sitting at the table with me had acknowledged she had never invited Christ into her life. Her tears flowed easily as we prayed. After the Amen, I asked, “Wouldn’t you like to invite Christ into your life right now?” She shook her head “No,” and said, “It just can’t be that easy.”
Oh, my friends, receiving Jesus Christ as your Savior is that easy. Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and will sup with him.” The coming in part is uncomplicated. A simple invitation, “Come on in.” It’s the sup part that can get complicated. When Christ comes in, He comes to stay. He wants to live with you forever, a permanent roommate! That means your life is very likely to change. Life changes even with an earthly roommate, but now you have a heavenly roommate living right inside of you, one who knows ALL. And this roommate wants to take charge, so changes will definitely be coming. When we receive Christ, our vision seems to change. We see things in a new light. Our desires change. The “must haves” lose their luster. At times, the changes can be a little frightening or confusing, but the best part is We are never alone again. He will always be with us. If you have never invited Christ into your life, I would urge you to do it now. It really is that easy. It just takes a simple, “Come on in.” Then get ready for the ride of your life!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17).

Marilyn Heavilin

Did you ever just have a YUCKY day?

The day started in a normal way…coming in to work today after being off for two days and I was excited about being back and jumping back in. Well, as you can tell from the title it seemed that all my phone calls I answered were strange, odd and unusual. Then after chatting with a few people the day seemed to become more difficult. Then I received an email that was the icing on the cake.

This could probably describe most anyone’s day at home, work or school. I had to take a moment to pray that God would keep my words kind and my attitude in check. Did you ever just want to yell at everyone because you were having a bad day? Maybe we feel that if we are having a bad day then everyone needs to also.

I came across someone else having the same type of day. It is amazing how when we are in these situations we want to have every one join in with us. Woe… (I had to stop myself, smile at this person and politely walk away). This could have been a bad moment and a time for Satan to jump in where he does not need to be. Two Christians comparing the stuff of the day can turn into a bad situation.

On that same day I also received another email…titled, ” Do you encourage each staff member, each day?” from the Christian Chamber of Commerce (Steve Marr, Business Proverbs, Daily Wisdom for the Workplace). This saved the day!! The scripture listed was

Hebrews 3:13, NASB

“…encourage one another day after day…”

So I decided to email someone that had done a great job over the weekend and send them some encouragement. Also, I found two other people and did a kind deed for them.

I am a big advocate of encouragement…maybe I need it more than most. But I tell you a kind word, smile, hug (not my favorite), a little note, an offer to get a cup of coffee etc…can make a persons day.

I did find that it I turned my day around when I encouraged someone. Since the Lord has instructed us to encourage one another, we should be doing this often.

What a way to make my day seem brighter….to see someone get a smile from encouragement that I passed on to them. I made a point the rest of the day that I was not giving into my yucky day and that I would look for opportunities to bring a smile to someone face.

Psalm 37:7

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Lynn

Many years ago, a woman from our church with various health issues struggled periodically with depression. I remember her husband sharing that there were times when she literally would reach heavenward and imagined herself holding God’s hand. Isaiah 40:10 & 13, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand…For I, the LORD your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.'”
What a wonderful picture of taking God at His word and a promise that we can literally hold on to.
When God seems far away, remember this promise, reach out and grip the hand of God.

Diane

As long as I can remember, I have not liked my reaction to sudden problems or sudden change. My long-term reaction has been fine, but it seems I had to “process” the problem or change before I could have an appropriate reaction. Sometimes my immediate reaction has been intense anger. Recently, I once again took my problem to the Lord. I asked Him to help me have a better immediate reaction to problems. I knew the verse, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.” (Luke 6:45) I didn’t like what I understood from that verse. If I was having negative or angry reactions, it meant my heart was full of negativity and anger. I cleansed my heart before the Lord, but I still didn’t like my initial response to problems. The Lord helped me see that even while my heart was clear, I had acquired a learned response to problems. So I asked the Lord to teach me how to have a better response.
I remembered a story my friend Diana told of her little son Jimmy. One day she heard him use a “bad” word. She was shocked that such words could come out of the mouth of this innocent child. She explained to Jimmy that he needed to find a new word to express himself when he was upset, a word that was more acceptable in their home. Shortly she was able to observe her son in an upsetting situation, and she heard him express his unhappiness with “Oh, chocolate doughnuts!
I was thinking of Jimmy as I asked the Lord for a new response. “Oops” came to me. Have you ever tried to say “Oops” without smiling or giggling? I think it is impossible. We have had several “Oops” moments in the past week, and the negative reactions still rear their ugly head occasionally, but “Oops” is beginning to take hold. There have been times when one “Oops” wouldn’t do and I have heard myself say, “Oops, oops, oops,” but the climate is shifting in our home.
How about you? What is your heart filled with? Do you need a cleansed heart or a new word? Ask and it will be given.

“Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that which he alloweth” (Romans 14:22).

Marilyn Heavilin

Because of a little Bug….

“…making the most of every opportunity…”

Ephesians 5:16a

Yesterday while sitting in church, there was a new person sitting in front of me. During the announcements they called out her name and announced that she was saved at our Vacation Bible School. WOW….and we think VBS is just for kids.

I made a point after the meeting was over to reach out my hand to introduce myself and say welcome her to the Chapel and to the Family of God. She was excited to share her new found faith with me.

When I asked her what was the one thought that made her realize that she needed to be saved she said “it was the bugs”. We had a bug theme program this year and at one of the closing messages (where the parents are invited to sit in on the message), the speaker talked about relating about bugs.

He was referring to how if we wanted to talk to a bug we would need to become one of them. Then he referred it to how God became man and became one of us to share His Love and Salvation with mankind.

This one little story of a bug was the trigger for her to realize she needed a Savior.

We need to watch our words; we need to be on guard at every opportunity…you never know when what we say will introduce someone to the Lord.

How many times have we passed up an opportunity to share the Gospel with someone? We struggle with “I don’t know what to say” or “I was just afraid”. This time it was only the words of a little bug (oh how simple) to touch a heart. Ladies let us remember that we need to be a missionary and on fire for the Lord at all times.
Romans 15:20a (New International Version)
“It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known.”
Share your faith with someone today!!! Make this verse your verse for today.

Lynn

ZOOM, ZOOM, ZOOM,…..SWISH, SWISH,SWISH, AND SOMETIMES BOOM, BANG, CRASH.

These are the sounds one hears if you are a spectator at the Indianapolis 500 Car Race or at a NASCAR event. It is very difficult to hear anyone talk or speak and impossible to carry on a conversation under these conditions.

In our lives today, we are often so busy living in the fast lane that we fail to hear what the Lord is saying to us. Noise drives out the still quiet voice of His Word and Spirit to our hearts.

We zoom, swish, and sometimes boom and bang with activities, programs, etc…thinking all of them are vitally important and extremely essential. Let us stop and remember that Isa. 30:15 “in quietness and confidence will be your strength.”`

b. shoppy

One morning, before anyone else was even up; I was struggling with ungodly thoughts. You know the ones I mean — negative, lies, conjecture, imaginations, unjust, impure, ugly, angry, bitter, etc. Basically the opposite of that which Philippians 4:8 commands us to think about. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-meditate on these things.”
It doesn’t take long to get on that runaway train heading down the wrong track in our minds. Perhaps it is rehearsing someone’s offense against us, or the disappointment of someone not keeping their word, or guilt and shame from past choices, or your finances or relationships; and the list goes on and on.
If you have ever tried to not think about something it is that very thing that tends to fight for center stage in our mind. Just saying, “I’m not going to think about that” usually lasts milliseconds. Sometimes it feels impossible to stop particular thoughts. Yet, it must be possible. Romans 12:2, “…do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”
That particular morning I cried out to God for His mercy that He would show me how to deal with such an aggressive and resilient enemy. Within moments He led me to Philippians 4:8. I started solidifying that verse in my mind which I knew in general for years. Each time during the day and since that I found my thoughts going where they ought not, I recalled this verse to mind. It has been an effective tool in knocking the “power” out of wrong thoughts.
Try it. You will find that you are one step closer to renewing your mind.

Diane

My Bible reading has been in I and II Kings recently. As each King is named the Bible often reads “He did evil in the eyes of the Lord,” or “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord.” Often times the father went one way and the son went the opposite. We want to think if we do right, our children will do right as well, but it isn’t always so. What makes the difference?
I read a verse in Deuteronomy 11:2 that says “Remember today that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the Lord your God.” Throughout that chapter, we are reminded repeatedly that our children were not there to see the miracles of God or the discipline of God.
Have you shared with your children what your life was like before you received Christ? Have there been consequences of that life? Have you told them of the times, even as a Christian, when you blew it completely? Have you told them of the times you were disciplined by God?
Children need to know why we follow God’s word. What has happened when we haven’t followed God’s plan? Our children need to know that we have experienced the discipline of the Lord and because of that we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He loves us. He cared enough about us to allow us to experience His discipline.
I have learned that nothing we do is unforgivable, but many things are irreparable. We cannot undo a broken marriage, an abortion, or the loss of virginity. However, we can always be forgiven even though the consequences of our acts can seldom be removed.
Make sure you let your children know of the faithfulness of God.

“Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deuteronomy 11:18-19).

Marilyn Heavilin

My dad celebrated his 80th birthday in December. Growing up he had a number of sayings that I still recall today. When we asked where he was going, he would say, “Buffalo Raceway, wanna go along?” (That never sounded like too much fun so we declined -then he was free to go to the hardware store alone). When we played pass-the-buck, he’d say, “Don’t be an alibi-ike”. When we talked too much are said something foolish, he’d say, “It is better to be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and prove it.” I was reminded again of Dad’s wise words when I came across Proverbs 17:28, “Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; when he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.”
Have you ever said something that you wish you could take back? Perhaps you realized after saying it that it really sounded worse out loud than it did in your head. Now that we have email to contend with the problem has grown. More often than I care to admit, I have sent an email that I wish I could take back. It really is no better than harsh verbal words because emails exist somewhere forever. You may delete them but they lurk somewhere in cyberspace.
Harsh or inappropriate words can leave a lasting impression on the person whose ears heard them. In my 15 years of counseling I have heard many, many individuals recount the exact words spoken to them 10, 15, 30 years ago which continue to affect them today.
Brian, our computer guru, sent an email to our entire staff a few weeks ago on email etiquette and the one pointer that struck home for me and that I have tried to put into practice is to not write anything in email that you would not write on a post card. That is great advice and I think can keep us from undo offenses. If we took that same principle and applied it to our verbal words it could serve as a potent grid through which we pass our thoughts and words.
It took me years to learn that not every thing that pops into my silly, little head needs to come out of my mouth.
Sometimes we need to just keep our thoughts to ourselves.
Sometimes the wise thing to do is to be quiet.
Can you identify?

Diane

A KIND word… a lost art.

“…encourage one another day after day…” Hebrews 3:13, NASB

WOW, is this a thing in the PAST…have we forgotten how to share a kind word. I don’t know if something is in the air lately or not, but kind words are not.

You know the saying if you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all. My mother drilled that in our heads growing up. She also taught us to put our selves in someone else’s place to try and understand why they do what they do etc….

Within the past 2 weeks I have had 2 times where someone give me “the finger” (not sure how to say that more politely). I have had people makes jokes in front of me at someone else’s expense. I have even walked around just at the supermarket witnessing things that I can not believe.

I am now even seeing this in the Christian circles….Sisters, please be kind one to another.

“…encourage one another day after day…” Hebrews 3:13, NASB
Proverbs 12:25 (New International Version)
“An anxious heart weighs a man down,
but a kind word cheers him up.”
Titus 2:5 (New International Version)
“to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind”
Zechariah 1:13 (New International Version)
“So the LORD spoke kind and comforting words…”
I guess some of us (if you are like me) need kind words spoken. Did you ever notice when you ask someone something with a kind word and voice that they are so willing to work with you and help you.
The older I get the more I see how kind words can make or break a situation. I really don’t think that any of us want to be spoken to in harsh words yet we tend to speak this way to our fellow brothers and sisters. Let’s not forget that our husbands and children are also our brothers and sisters in Christ. I heard a speaker refer to this one time and it made me think twice on how I speak to my sons (brothers in Christ) even when discipline needs to take place.
Share a kind word with someone today and build them up.

Lynn