beautiful Scripture

Psalm 119:129-136

(New International Version)

129 Your statutes are wonderful; therefore I obey them.
130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
131 I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands.
132 Turn to me and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name.
133 Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.
134 Redeem me from the oppression of men, that I may obey your precepts.
135 Make your face shine upon your servant and teach me your decrees.
136 Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed.

Happy May Day

Any recipient of this May Day flower basket will count themselves a lucky duck.
CRAFT MATERIALS:
Construction paper
Stapler
Tape or glue
Craft feathers
Pom-poms
Googly eyes
Time needed: Under 1 Hour
1. Hold a sheet of yellow construction paper with the shorter ends at the top and bottom. Starting at the lower right-hand corner, roll the sheet into a cone and tape or staple the overlap. Trim the top to create a rounded head on the front side. 2. Cut out scallop-shaped wings, a broad breast feather, and webbed feet from construction paper. Glue or tape the pieces in place. 3. Glue small colored tail feathers to the tip of the cone and googly eyes to the head. Finally, cut out a bill from a small folded piece of orange paper using the fold for the top edge. Attach the bottom flap to the cone, then glue a pair of mini pom-poms to the top. 4. For a hanger, make holes in opposite sides of the cone a half inch from the top. Thread a length of ribbon through the holes from inside the cone and tie each end into an overhand knot.

Bee Bouquet

Create a buzz this May Day with easy-to-make flower baskets.
CRAFT MATERIALS:
Construction paper
Stapler
Pipe cleaner
Torn strips of yellow paper
Tape or glue
Pom-poms
Googly eyes
Time needed: Under 1 Hour
1. Hold a sheet of black construction paper with the shorter ends at the top and bottom. Starting at the lower right-hand corner, roll the sheet into a cone and tape or staple the overlap. Trim the top to create a rounded head on the front side. 2. Form antennae by folding a pipe cleaner in half, stapling the bend to the back side of the head, then curl each tip around a small black pom-pom. 3. Create stripes by wrapping torn strips of yellow paper around the cone and gluing them in place. Tape or glue on paper wings and a heart-shaped paper face complete with a drawn mouth and glued-on pom-pom eyeballs topped with googly-eye pupils. 4. For a hanger, make holes in opposite sides of the cone a half inch from the top. Thread a length of ribbon through the holes from inside the cone and tie each end into an overhand knot.

another timely devotional ...for me..for sure...

What We Can't See
Marybeth Whalen

"'Don't be afraid,' the prophet answered. 'Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.' And Elisha prayed, 'O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.'" II Kings 6:16-17a (NIV)

Devotion:
Have you ever asked God to help you see what He's up to in the spiritual realm?

In II Kings 6:15-17, the prophet Elisha prays for his servant to be able to see beyond his circumstances. They are surrounded by a great army and the odds look to be overwhelmingly against them. He asks God to show the servant what is taking place beyond what the eye can see. The servant's eyes are opened to a supernatural realm and he is able to see the Lord's armies gathered to fight on their behalf. Elisha knew his servant was feeling hopeless and simply needed a different perspective.

We need eyes to see just like that servant did. Make no mistake, we are fighting a war. As Christians, we must suit up every day and face another battle. We have an enemy who wants to defeat us. And some days it seems like he gets the victory. We look around at the failing economy, the fractured families, and the fast pace of our lives and feel that the odds are overwhelmingly against us. We grow weary and feel like giving up.

In those moments we need to stop worrying and pray for a new vision. We need to ask God to change our perspective so that we can look past what we can see to what He is taking care of in the unseen. We need to remember to trust Him and to ask Him to help us see His activity--no matter how overwhelmed and unworthy we may feel. God sees us and He will send help when we need it.

The odds are never stacked against us because God is waging a battle we can't see. I love that He is always fighting on our behalf, even when we don't see it--and especially when we need it the most.
Dear Lord, please help me to remember that You are fighting even when I don't see it. Help me to have a vision for what You do daily on my behalf and not grow discouraged by the battles I face. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

God's faithfulness...

The Father’s Faithfulness
ODB RADIO: Listen Now DOWNLOAD: DownloadREAD: Psalm 107:1-16
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. . . . Great is Your faithfulness. —Lamentations 3:22-23
Hudson Taylor, the humble servant of God to China, demonstrated extraordinary trust in God’s faithfulness. In his journal he wrote:
“Our heavenly Father is a very experienced One. He knows very well that His children wake up with a good appetite every morning. . . . He sustained 3 million Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years. We do not expect He will send 3 million missionaries to China; but if He did, He would have ample means to sustain them all. . . . Depend on it, God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply.”
We may be faint and weary, but our heavenly Father is all-powerful. Our feelings may fluctuate, but He is unchangeable. Even creation itself is a record of His steadfastness. That’s why we can sing these words from a hymn by Thomas Chisholm: “Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest, sun, moon, and stars in their courses above join with all nature in manifold witness to Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.”
What an encouragement to live for Him! Our strength for the present and hope for the future are not based on the stability of our own perseverance but on the fidelity of God. No matter what our need, we can count on the Father’s faithfulness. —Paul Van Gorder
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!Morning by morning new mercies I see;All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me! —Chisholm© Renewal 1951 Hope Publishing.
He who abandons himself to God will never be abandoned by God.

i was just thinking today how the devotional booklet, Our Daily Bread...has been a "staple" in my life since my first year in Bible school...oh so many years ago....it was at that time i discovered the truth of taking time each day to be with the Lord, to love him and worship him and learn from Him in His Word.....often when in a hurry...Our Daily Bread is the "least" of my daily time with Him.....and when not in a hurry...it is a "part" of my time...but mostly it is "always" an important part of my daily devotions! i am so thankful for faithful people who have given us this devotional for so many years....i am sure they will never know, til heaven, the great impact these devotionals have had on this world....

i must admit that i have totally fallen for the online version...which is wonderful....but sometimes i miss just sitting down with the paper copy, inside the front cover of my Bible....always there, month by month...

but...technology changes the least of us, right???

Joe Stowell

What's In The Name?
“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.” Exodus 20:7
There are a lot of fun events associated with being a pastor. And while great food at church dinners and getting invited to cool events with people in your church are near the top of the list, there may be nothing that quite compares to sharing some great moments with people — like the birth of babies. But in the joy of it all, there is a problem.
When you arrive at the hospital, you encounter a weary, but thrilled, couple who hand you this tightly wrapped little bundle and then impose on you a serious ethical dilemma. Of course, you are supposed to say, “Oh, my goodness, what a pretty little girl,” or “What a handsome little boy!” The reality is that I’ve never seen a child fresh out that looks anything like handsome or pretty. (Come to think of it, I have seen three really beautiful babies.)
But once I get past the ethical dilemma by saying something like, “My, isn’t she precious,” the conversation ultimately morphs into an easier realm of interaction regarding the child’s name: “What’s the baby’s name?” . . . “That’s a great name. What does it mean?” The answers vary:
“Oh, it’s his grandfather’s name.”
“Her name means ‘Father’s delight’” or,
“We have no idea; we just chose it from a baby book!”
For most of us, names are relatively insignificant. They are easily changed into nicknames and serve basically to distinguish us from Bob or Ted. But if we look at God’s view of names in the same way, we may have trouble understanding what the big deal is about God’s name. Why would He include the importance of His name in His top-10 list of “Thou Shalt Nots”? How could diminishing His name rank up there with murder, stealing, and adultery?
It doesn’t take much digging through the Bible to realize that names are important to God. Think about Genesis, when God was often giving new names to the main characters—Abram became Abraham, Sarai became Sarah, Jacob became Israel. Each change signaled a statement from God about that individual’s character and his or her place in His plan. It wasn’t about God giving a nickname, it was about God assigning identity and worth to these individuals through the meaning of their name.
Most importantly, names are one of God’s key means of revealing His own identity and worth. He reveals His identity when He tells Moses that He is named “Yahweh,” which means, “I Am.” It means that He is eternally existent. He also identifies Himself as “Elohim,” the Almighty God, the God of great power. His names are who He is, not just what we call Him.
God’s names also describe His worth. You may be familiar with names like “Jehovah-Jireh,” meaning that He is the God who will provide. Or “El-Shaddai,” which means that He is completely sufficient. There are, in fact, 210 different names of God throughout Scripture, adding incredible richness and depth to our understanding of God’s identity, worth, and character.
Which is exactly why He takes it so seriously when we degrade His name by using it as though it weren’t sacred and lowering it to mere casual conversation as though it were ordinary. The exclamation, “Oh my God” should be an urgent prayer, not a verbal exclamation point. When we lower the name of God to drag it through a moment of anger or to use it to intimidate or manipulate, we have taken God Himself and lowered Him from His holy position. His name is intrinsically locked into who He is and what He is like. To put it simply, when we hit on His name, we have hit on Him. No wonder He is offended.
So, what’s in a name? If you’re talking about God, the answer is everything!

daily bread followed by some musings

Thunderstorm Thoughts
ODB RADIO: Listen Now DOWNLOAD: DownloadREAD: Matthew 8:23-27
The God of peace will be with you. —Philippians 4:9
I laugh every time I hear the radio commercial that has a woman shouting to her friend in conversation. She’s trying to talk above the sounds of the thunderstorm in her own head. Ever since a storm damaged part of her home, that’s all she hears because her insurance company isn’t taking care of her claims.
I’ve heard thunderstorms in my head, and maybe you have too. It happens when a tragedy occurs—to us, to someone close to us, or to someone we hear about in the news. Our minds become a tempest of “what if” questions. We focus on all the possible bad outcomes. Our fear, worry, and trust in God fluctuate as we wait, we pray, we grieve, and we wonder what the Lord will do.
It’s natural for us to be fearful in a storm (literal or figurative). The disciples had Jesus right there in the boat with them, yet they were afraid (Matt. 8:23-27). He used the calming of the storm as a lesson to show them who He was—a powerful God who also cares for them.
We wish that Jesus would always calm the storms of our life as He calmed the storm for the disciples that day. But we can find moments of peace when we’re anchored to the truth that He’s in the boat with us and He cares. —Anne Cetas
Fierce drives the storm, but wind and wavesWithin His hand are held,And trusting His omnipotenceMy fears are sweetly quelled. —Brown
To realize the worth of the anchor, we need to feel the stress of the storm.

wow! this really touched me today...i have to admit...i have had a lot of "thunderstorms" in my head lately...sometimes they drive me to the brink of pure panic...i guess especially over the political environment as of late...i must admit..it scares me..and it scares me to death...it is not a light feeling...it is a heavy heavy feeling...i KNOW God is with me, watching over me and taking care of my best interest daily, second by second...BUT i don't always FEEL like he is.....i tend to wander down the path of "what if's" and find myself at the brink of a DARK HOLE.....it is then that i must snap to attention and "crawl" back to my Saviour...and get that child-like trust back in place!

i believe that christians will be tested to their core in the next few years.....and i am guessing that my own panic is because i do not WANT to go down this road...i want life to be simple, uncomplicated, and lovely....i like life THAT way.....but i fear it will not be.....what i need is the child-like faith as i mentioned before...to put my hand into God's hand and follow, trust, and believe. this is easily written, easily said but NOT easily done in most cases!...wow...just think, in the devotion, above, the disciples had Jesus right there in the boat WITH them...they could touch and feel him...let alone SEE him with their eyes!...they could SPEAK to Him, FACE to FACE! and yet they were scared to death! i have always said as somewhat of a "joke", if you will, that if "only" i could touch Jesus...if only i could SEE Jesus...and yet....here these disciples were...with all the "if onlys" and they were still scared!...now we would like to say to them....YOU IDIOTS! what more could you ask for???...we , in the modern century wish we could have HIM here with us to touch, to speak to, let alone SEE Him....and you had him in the midst of the storm...right there IN THE BOAT ...and YET you panicked!.......

well people.....we are IDIOTS too.......for we have every bit of power, protection, and strength from Jesus as those disciples did, YET we do not trust....and therefore we do not obey... ONE DAY...we shall SEE HIM...FACE to FACE.......oh glorious day!

great video

http://www.foxnews.com/video/index.html?playerId=videolandingpage&streamingFormat=FLASH&referralObject=4347816&referralPlaylistId=playlist

Daily Bread devotional...good!

The Bus Driver
ODB RADIO: Listen Now DOWNLOAD: DownloadREAD: 1 John 4:7-12
Be imitators of God . . . and walk in love. —Ephesians 5:1-2
In the middle of carting 70 pieces of luggage, an electronic piano, and other equipment through airports and on and off a tour bus, it’s easy to wonder, “Why are we doing this?”
Taking 28 teenagers on an 11-day ministry trip to a land across the ocean is not easy. But at the end of the trip our bus driver, who had carted us all over England and Scotland, grabbed the bus microphone and in tears thanked the kids for how wonderful they had been. Then after we got home, he e-mailed us to say how much he appreciated the thank you cards the kids had written to him—many of which contained the gospel.
Although the students ministered to hundreds through song during the trip, perhaps it was the bus driver who most benefited from their Christlikeness. In Ephesians we are told to be imitators of God and to walk in love (Eph. 5:1-2). Others see God in us when we show love to one another (1 John 4:12). The bus driver saw Jesus in the students and told them that they might just convert him to faith in Christ. Maybe it was for this man that we took that trip.
Why do you do what you do? Whose life are you affecting? Sometimes it’s not our target audience that we impact most. Sometimes it’s the bus drivers of the world. —Dave Branon
Lord, may I be a shining lightFor all the world to seeYour goodness and Your love displayedAs You reach out through me. —Sper

Witnessing is not just something a Christian says, but what he is.

the 2009 Easter Egg Hunt!

we had our "annual" egg hunt again this year on the 11th in Heidi's neighborhood. last year we had it in the area around the lake and gazebo, which was beautiful...but it was taken this year...so we ventured to the clubhouse/pool area and claimed our hunting grounds, which actually turned out to be a better place to "hide" the eggs!

the weather was cold and threatening rain...but our spirits were HIGH and we forged on!

the favorite eggs were those with MONEY in them...hmmmm.......a little "young" for money hunger, don't you think??? ha!.......of course, along the way were their silly antics and playing...so cute!

we had planned to have a picnic meal, with red checked cloths and ALL...but the weather changed that plan...we ate our picnic lunches in the warmth of Heidi's kitchen......and so goes the plans for the "first" picnic of the year!...

John 3:16

John 3:16

A little boy was selling newspapers on the corner, the people were in and out of the cold. The little boy was so cold that he wasn't trying to sell many papers. He walked up to a policeman and said, 'Mister, you wouldn't happen to know where a poor boy could find a warm place to sleep tonight would you ? You see, I sleep in a box up around the corner there and down the alley and it's awful cold in there for tonight. Sure would be nice to have a warm place to stay.' The policeman looked down at the little boy and said, 'You go down the street to that big white house and you knock on the door. When they come out the door you just say John 3:16, and they will let you in.' So he did. He walked up the steps and knocked on the door, and a lady answered. He looked up and said, 'John 3:16.' The lady said, 'Come on in, Son.' She took him in and she sat him down in a split bottom rocker in front of a great big old fireplace, and she went off. The boy sat there for a while and thought to himself: John 3:16...I don't understand it, but it sure makes a cold boy warm. Later she came back and asked him 'Are you hungry ? ' He said, 'Well, just a little. I haven't eaten in a couple of days, and I guess I could stand a little bit of food,' The lady took him in the kitchen and sat him down to a table full of wonderful food. He ate and ate until he couldn't eat any more. Then he thought to himself: John 3:16 ...Boy, I sure don't understand it but it sure makes a hungry boy full. She took him upstairs to a bathroom to a huge bathtub filled with warm water, and he sat there and soaked for a while. As he soaked, he thought to himself: John 3:16 .. I sure don't understand it, but it sure makes a dirty boy clean. You know, I've not had a bath, a real bath, in my whole life. The only bath I ever had was when I stood in front of that big old fire hydrant as they flushed it out.
The lady came in and got him. She took him to a room, tucked him into a big old feather bed, pulled the covers up around his neck, kissed him goodnight and turned out the lights. As he lay in the darkness and looked out the window at the snow coming down on that cold night, he thought to himself: John 3:16 ...I don't understand it but it sure makes a tired boy rested. The next morning the lady came back up and took him down again to that same big table full of food. After he ate, she took him back to that same big old split bottom rocker in front of the fireplace and picked up a big old Bible. She sat down in front of him and looked into his young face. 'Do you understand John 3:16 ? ' she asked gently. He replied, 'No, Ma'am, I don't. The first time I ever heard it was last night when the policeman told me to use it,' She opened the Bible to John 3:16 and began to explain to him about Jesus . Right there, in front of that big old fireplace, he gave his heart and life to Jesus.. He sat there and thought: John 3:16 -- don't understand it, but it sure makes a lost boy feel safe. You know, I have to confess I don't understand it either, how God was willing to send His Son to die for me, and how Jesus would agree to do such a thing. I don't understand the agony of the Father and every angel in heaven as they watched Jesus suffer and die. I don't understand the intense love for ME that kept Jesus on the cross till the end. I don't understand it, but it sure does make life worth living.

John 3:16

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life