Abba's Girl

One passage which always speaks to me is from Luke 22, beginning with verse 39: Jesus went out as usual (some versions say as was his habit) to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, Jesus said to them, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation." He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. "Why are you sleeping?" he asked them. "Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation." Two things always strike me about this passage: Jesus prayed for the cup to be taken from Him, but not my will but Yours be done. Ultimatel...

I know John 10:10 is true, Jesus said, " The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full ." I also believe with every fiber of my being I Peter 2:24: He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed I know numerous people who have received healing from the Lord, whether it's healing of their emotions, their bodies, their spirits, or a combination of all 3. Many people ask me why their loved one was not healed. I don't know. But I do know it was not because: 1. Miracles were only for the early church 2. Their faith was not strong enough 3. God wants to teach us something by giving them a disease God can take evil and use if for His glory, but to give us a disease would be cruel and contrary to His nature. In Him there is no darkness or evil. The world is sick, fallen, and evil. I ask you to keep up your shield of ...

The Gospel of John says the church is to be the bride of Christ...I am so thankful that Scripture says Christ returns for a church without spot or blemish (see Eph 5) because many in the church (we are all sinners saved by grace) never hear the Gospel proclaimed in truth and love. They hear a diluted feel good message that never mentions sin, repentence, or the need for our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ. God's power will transform us into this holy bride. To fully understand what the Bible is talking about when it tells us that Christians will be the bride of Christ, we need to grasp the Jewish wedding custom of Jesus' time on earth. The Jewish wedding process started with an agreement between 2 fathers, 1 deciding to allow his daughter to marry the other’s son. In a public ceremony, the couple announced their intentions to get married, initiating the betrothal period. This betrothal period lasted about a year, during which the groom returned to his father’s house and began pr...

I Peter 1:18-19 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. The people of Israel had observed the Passover for roughly fifteen centuries when Jesus had His last supper with the disciples. Christ not only observed the ancient memorial of Passover, He instituted something new, a Covenant by which we are reconciled to our Heavenly Father. Luke 22:15 tells us that Jesus had given much thought to the Passover meal "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer." I wonder if we can fully grasp the significance of the evening with our finite minds. Our perception can be deeply marked by how we perceive Jesus. Is He a name which means nothing significant to us, is Jesus the name of a teacher who lived 2000 years ago, or is He our Risen Lord & Savior. Our Messiah...our De...

Take a few minutes to absorb verses 1-4 of Psalm 103: 1 My soul, praise the LORD, and all that is within me, praise His holy name. 2 My soul, praise the LORD, and do not forget all His benefits. 3 He forgives all your sin; He heals all your diseases. 4 He redeems your life from the Pit; He crowns you with faithful love and compassion. The Lord forgives all of our sin, He heals all of our diseases, He redeems us from the pit, and He crowns us with faithful love and compassion...some versions say loving kindness and compassion. Do we believe this with every fiber of our being? If so, are we praising Him? Praise is a powerful weapon as we go through our daily walk with the Lord. Try praising Him through out the day. It will not only bless the Lord, it will bless you too.

As I waited at St. Luke's valet parking last night, I watched many families waiting for their cars as well. One thing struck me, as soon as the children saw their car pull into the drive way they were so excited. Their parents cautioned them to stand on the sidewalk. It made me think about 2 things: 1) How excited as Christians are we about our Salvation on any given day? Is Jesus our 1st love or is it time to return to our 1st love and do the things we used to do? Are you still excited to get into God's Word? Rev 2 says: You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 2) How many times has our Father cautioned us lately and we have disregarded the Holy Spirit? We were busy doing our thing and not listening...

“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you” (John 15:7). We are supposed to experience lots of answered prayer. John 15:7 is not some little Bible verse, it is reality. If it’s familiar to you, read it as if you’ve never heard it before, maybe try another version of the Bible. “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you” (John 15:7). At one point in my liife on a scale of one to ten based on my perception of His response, I could have rated my prayer life a 1.5 for content but 8.9 for form because as an Episcopalan I knew lots of pretty prayer words. I prayed all the usual bless and protect us prayers, the laundry list of prayers, and let's not forget my teenage years...Lord curfew is in 5 minutes, please don't let any lights turn red or I will be late and then I will be grounded. I never asked for the big stuff...are you kidding, she has stage 4 cancer, you want me to pra...

Unfortunately I have been to the St Luke's Episcopal Hospital's ER twice in the last 6 weeks because my father has been very ill. He was re-admitted after being released 3 days earlier to a skilled care facility which did not take care of his medical needs. Occasionally I find myself (after 4 or 5 hours) listening to other people's conversations whether it's medical staff or family members in the waiting room. I don't mean to do so, but I suppose I am bored and have lost focus. I have heard some of the most glorious Christian testimonies as well as some of the poorest theology known to man. I have conversed with some of the dearest people and listened to people blashpeme the Lord and thought Lord, get ready I am going to ask You to bind that guy's mouth because I am tired of the curse words. Then I feel the conviction to pray for the person because the Lord is not real to the person, He is their favorite curse word. Many people pray in faith and expect miracles....

“They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen” (Romans 1:25). It is hard for saved Christians to avoid the pitfalls of idolatry upon occasion much less those who do not know Jesus. But it seems young people today are exceptionally vulnerable as they are bombarded with images all the time. It seems the idolator and the idolized human self destruct. I am thinking of young celebrities in Hollywood who begin their careers on track and become so used to being told yes they do not see their behavior spinning out of control. Many young people try to emulate the behavior of the starlets and end up emotionally, spiritually, and mentally empty and sin sick, addicted to drugs and alcohol, weighed down by the guilt of unholy relationships. In Romans 1, the apostle Paul condemns the human race for dumping the truth of God; he says that we should have seen God’s invisible attributes which are displayed in the ...

I have attended the Episcopal Church nearly all my life, was baptized into it as an infant...what many Episcopalians boast as being a cradle Episcopalian, though I don't comprehend the boast, I mean really who cares. The denomination is in such uproar because we are straying from the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ. What's so great about being Episcopalian. It's great being a Christian saved by grace. Our Presiding Bishop (leader of church in America) does not believe Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, nor does much of the leadership and many do not believe the word of God is divine. It has recently come to my attention the Presiding Bishop does not want women of other denominations to be members of the Daughters of the King. I don't get it. With her belief system, why would she care if a kangaroo is a member of the Episcopal Church or the Daughters of the King. The Archbishop of Canterbury wants to establish Sharia law in the UK to help with social cohesion....

For the 2nd time since I took my father to the ER at St. Luke's 01/08 I am very fatigued. Part of me wants to go to bed now and not get up for several days, though I know this is not the answer. I know I need to get into the Word and be refreshed. I know cranking up the praise music will refresh me. I also know our Lord is ever faithful, He never fails us, I stand on covnenant promises He made to me when I received salvation. I am so thankful my father is saved. I am thankful for the 3 huge miracles my father received when he had surgery 01/09. I know there are more miracles to come. He will live at home with my mother again in good health. The attacks against him have been fierce...but the battle was won on the Cross. Sickness and disease were defeated when the Lord God Almighty, Yaweh resurrected His Son Jesus Christ from the grave. I know the Joy of the Lord is our strength. I know that no matter what happens here on earth, our real home is heaven and one day we will dance on s...

I am amazed at the self help section in bookstores...what a lucrative industry, especially if a celebrity endorses a book or self help method. I often hear Christians say God helps those who help themselves...You would think this was the the 11th commandment or maybe the final beatitude because so many people think that line is in the Bible. We can clean up our attitudes and actions temporarily (think resolutions), but lasting change is possible only through Jesus Christ. When His Spirit is living in us, we can be shaped into successful followers of God. Romans 4:14-18 gives us the promise and hope that through Christ we are changed. 14For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. Slaves to Righteousness 15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which le...