Abba's Girl

My cousin had a prayer request for his wife Cheryl and her mother Elsie. Elsie is very ill. I am praying for both Cheryl and Elsie to be filled with the peace of the Lord which transcends all understanding, for them to receive a fresh revelation of God’s love and for Elsie to be healed completely of all sickness and disease for her youth to be renewed like the eagle’s youth. In the e-mail I mentioned to Brian, I tried not to WERF out in front of him when he came to visit dad in April. I was preparing to leave for a healing conference and already excited about what the Lord was going to do that weekend. WERF is a term I first heard Norma Dearing use when she was speaking at St. John the Divine Episcopal Church in Houston years ago. WERF is defined as a Wild Eyed Religious Fanatic. You know…I werf, you werf, he she it werfs. Seriously I think we have all been or known brand new Christians who are so excited about Jesus they are WERF’s and probably need to send notes of apology to people...

Many times Christians debate about prayer. Some say to pray specifically is telling God what to do and we should pray in generalities because He knows what we need, others say pray specifically. Several saints as well as our Lord give us wonderful examples of prayer throughout the Bible. 2 years ago I decided I just had to see a Painted Bunting, though they pass very near to my home during spring migration, I have never seen one or heard of one being in the Richmond city limits. In 2006 we had Orioles that normally migrate on a different path. People from across the country were going to the Brazos Bend State Park to see them. That gave me the idea that Painted Buntings might be closer than normal. I had several Hummingbirds, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Chickadees, Gold Finches, Pine Siskin, Woodpeckers, as well as several other species of birds in my yard. So I asked the Lord to send a Painted Bunting or 2 my way, an hour later I looked in my front yard and as big as day was a female Painte...

I used to watch a British Sitcom called Keeping Up Appearances, the lead character Hyacinth Bucket’s (it’s Bouquet) vicar was featured on several episodes. One such episode, he was practicing his sermon which was to be on Loving Thy Neighbor; then he was informed Hyacinth was at the church, he decided to do the Water into Wine sermon instead. While very funny, I think it’s easy to turn off relationships with difficult people, to shut down and withdraw from them. I was convicted in Beth Moore’s Stepping Up study about isolating myself from difficult people. I am not talking about abusive or dangerous people, I am talking difficult people. I have withdrawn from 1 because she lied to me for years about little stuff and big stuff, 1 interrupts me all the time, I have not finished a sentence in years and the relative does not have a clue. She tries to finish the sentence or tells me not to judge when she has no idea what I am going to say. One relative suffers from alcoholism and does not a...

I posted fun stuff over the weekend instead of thoughts about the Lord. I will say I felt like my old self this weekend for the 1st time since I took Dad to the ER in Jan and since he arrived home 2 weeks ago. I spent several hours working in the yard…in the HEAT. He is getting better, but occasionally has bad days out of the clear and the blue. We were thrilled to be able to go out to lunch last Thurs for the 1st time since Jan 2 or so. We were able to call back and forth during the Indy 500. My aunt Maxine is dead and won’t know I abbreviated Indianapolis; that drove her nuts when someone said Indy in front of her. We stayed at her house when we attended the race several times. My dad really wanted to attend his niece and nephew’s anniversary party over the weekend and was told no by the physical therapist. I was not ready to be 2 ½ hours away from him and cancelled our plans as well. He really wants to attend church is person. His faith is strong. His attitude is good. We walked thr...

For the men and women who fought and died for our freedom.

I am watching the Indianapolis 500 (there is a commercial break), remembering how much fun I had over the years attending the race with my father and 1 of his brothers, sometimes an aunt, sometimes my husband, and some of my cousins. One of my cousins Brian and his son are there now. I do hope one year my father and I can attend the race again in person. The sound of the cars, the fans, the speed make the race so exciting. The patriotic displays in Indianapolis over Memorial weekend are spectacular. I pray we remember the men and women who are serving now and those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom since the founding of our country. I will not ask God to bless America, but I will pray that America blesses God.

Lifeway had Bible software on sale last week, so I ordered it...it arrived yesterday. The package was sitting on my front porch when I arrived home from work. I am excited and looking forward to using it. We usually are excited about a new Bible Study, new computer, a new pastor/minister/priest...after a few weeks, the excitement tends to fade. (Just like the new toys at Christmas.) What can we do to remain excited about the Lord and His word? I would love to hear your responses. Please post a comment or send e-mail. I think the answer is to continue to grow in relationship with our Lord. Psalm 119:18 says: Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Your law. If we pray for our relationship with Jesus to grow deeper it will, it won't always be Holy Ghost chill bumps, but it will be filled with perfect love, His perfect love. God is eager to give you a heart filled with fire for His Son. Tell Him you want it more than blessing or your daily bread. We do not have to set...

This week so many of my friends have lost loved ones to cancer and a long time prayer partner of mine died Tues after a long battle with cancer. In a community not far from me, a little girl was run over by the next door neighbor whose wife and children were in the car, the little girl's father was watching from 2 or 3 houses down the street, all those lives traumatized, but thankfully with the grace of Jesus they can be healed. Today I heard a Christian singer's little girl was run over by her brother. A good friend has a major problem with her daughter. My friend and her husband are heartbroken. I know it seems sometimes seems we are hit from all sides and we think Lord, what is going on here? From my own experience, attacks are fierce just before we receive a breakthrough in a matter, a long awaited answer to prayer. Stay focused on Jesus and stay in prayer, the answer is coming. In times like these, we must intentionally wear our armor and call on the Holy Spirit to protect...

I did this exercise at a conference several years ago, it is powerful, you will be set free from the bondage of unforgiveness. Norma Dearing's father in law, the late Father Dearing taught her this exercise, I have since led many women through it in small groups after teaching on forgiveness...seeing people set free is a beautiful thing! Part 1: Hold your hands in the air, palms up, hands cupped like you are filling them with water. Hold up to the Lord all the things a person has done that bother you or has hurt you. Pretend you are stacking them up in your hands. When you are finished with your list, turn your hands over in a symbolic release to the Lord. Then pray something similar to: Lord Jesus, I give you each one of these things and ask that you take them and pour your love and healing power through them. I thank you, Lord, that you have the power and grace to redeem them. I ask you, Lord to release the pain and hurt that has been involved which each one of these things (List...

Through the Grace of Jesus and with His love, Corrie ten Boom forgave not only the man who betrayed her family, but a guard from Ravensbruck. This is her testimony: It was in a church in Munich that I saw him, a balding heavy-set man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands. People were filing out of the basement room where I had just spoken. It was 1947 and I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives. And that's when I saw him, working his way forward against the others. One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones. It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights, the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor, the shame of walking naked past this man. I could see my sister's frail form ahead of me, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin. Betsie, how thin you were! Betsie and I had been arrested for conc...

If we choose not to forgive we are sinning just as the person who committed the offense is in sin. If we remain angry and offended we are sinning and we usually commit more sin by telling people about it, fuming about it, and holding a grudge about it. We are also giving the offender a position of power over us and we are in bondage to them. If we turn the anger inward, it is toxic waste and will make us sick one way or another - physically, emotionally, spiritually or a combination of all 3. In prayer ministry I often meet people who are depressed because they have turned the anger inward. I also meet people who are angry over something that never happened. I am not suggesting you tell the parents of a murdered child or a rape victim they have to forgive the day after the tragedy. I am not saying it is easy. I am saying with God's grace and only with His grace, it is possible and He tells us we must forgive. Forgiveness may come in an instant, it may be a process. These are but a...

I don't have a story of forgiveness as dramatic as Corrie ten Boom forgiving the man who betrayed her family, but the story I am sharing hurt me badly at the time. In 1999 one of my dear friend's was diagnosed with cancer. I had known David since 8 th grade. He had become friends with my husband and I was friends with his wife Dana. We spent many evenings out with them and when their daughter arrived we spent many evenings at their house. Then their son arrived and we spent less time together but Dana and I talked on the phone frequently. As David became more ill, Dana became more stressed, she also told me David did not want to talk to me. That hurt, but hey, he was ill, and in my book that meant he could talk and spend time with the loved ones of his choice. His family was in prayer, our priest was praying, my friends and I were praying and even fasting occasionally. This is one time in my life, I must say I never saw a prayer answered, but I know they were. At the beginning...

When I was in 8th grade I went to see The Hiding Place at the Meyerland Cinema across the street from school one afternoon. Movies were a real treat for me, my parents didn't spend money on entertainment very often, though we had plenty of good times. I think they spent most of their money on my education at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church & School and on ballet lessons. I knew The Hiding Place was a movie based on Corrie ten Boom's life. I had a little knowledge about what the soldiers endured during World War II, but I didn't know what civilians endured during the War, nor did I know how many brave people helped the Jews. I was so moved by the ten Boom's sacrifice as they demonstrated love to the unloved people and the Jews in the Netherlands. What an example of living for the Lord. I remember crying during the movie. I then asked for the book for Christmas or my birthday and read it as quickly as I could. I cried and cried for the ten Booms and all the people wh...

The jungle I am referring to is my yard. I like to work in my yard, I usually do all the yard work , though with my father having been hospitalized from January through last week, my husband has done the mowing and edging. Nothing has been weeded or pruned in months. The shrubs are overgrown, the flower beds are full of weeds. I am surprised the neighbors have not started a petition. It didn't take long to become overgrown. I can only imagine the number of plants being choked out or experiencing limited growth due to weeds. Parts of my life have been choked out due to the cares of life. I have not exercised in months, since the 1st week of January. This was the year I was going to read the Bible in 1 year. I read it, and continue to do a Bible Study, but I will not read the entire Bible by year's end. This was the year my husband & I were going to lose weight. What a joke, we ate so many crummy meals out of vending machines, we gained weight and are as teens say ginormous (...

Maybe it's because I never paid attention to the magazines situated at the end of the check out aisles at grocery stores when I was growing up (I was reading Dance Magazine, Bazaar, Glamor, and Vogue back in the day.), but it really seems there are more gossip magazines these days. I might be wrong, I remember National Inquirer and Star from my youth, they were more like the magazine inserts in the Sunday edition of the Houston Chronicle back then. Christians work to avoid gossip like the plague but we see it with our eyes on the magazine racks, we hear it on TV, so many tabloid shows, even serious news shows on cable devote time to gossip, but they report it as news not gossip. I think when we are surrounded on all sides by gossip, it makes it harder to keep our mouths closed and not report the latest fact about some one's marriage, wayward child, drunk mother etc. (Much gossip is spread in the guise of prayer requests...) The Bible has a lot to say about the words of our mo...

A small Bible Study meets in my home on Tues nights, we have a simple meal and get down to the study, and meanwhile my husband evacuates. It has become a joke between us as well as my Bible Study sisters. When it's their turn to provide the meal, they usually have something for him to eat as well. Yesterday he called me from Sam's Club and asked what we were having for dinner. I said baked potatoes and a mixed green salad. He asked if I had tomatoes, I said no they were too sickly looking to buy. I had radishes and feta cheese to add to the salad. He bought grape tomatoes for us and a strawberry lemon cake. (He chose that cake because I dislike it and would not be tempted to eat a piece of it.) The little sweet, caring things he does like this mean so much to me. He was not raised in a family that was kind to one another, the adults were out for themselves and the children were left to fend for themselves. We still have our moments as any married couple does, but thanks to our ...

Yesterday I listened to a story about a 10 year old boy, he stole his mother's credit card, stole the passwords to the cable TV parent control and ordered adult movies, he then got her computer passwords ordered adult videos on line and was not caught for 2 t 3 weeks. The boy is 10... The mother laughed about the situation. I had chills as I listened. I had been waiting for the - we are taking him to Christian counseling, we have removed cable TV from the home, etc. Nothing, she laughed. She didn't punish him at all. I am stunned she laughed, I am stunned a 10 year old has these desires as well as the drive to steal, I am stunned he knew how to order movies. I believe everything the Bible says about the end times, though I do not look for end time signs under every cornflake, I do believe we are seeing II Tim 3 unfold around us, I don't know of a time in history parents didn't parent to the extent we see today, children killing children as well as their parents. Mothe...

Yesterday I joined a group of people from my former church and prayed over a young lady having surgery today at Texas Children's ' Hospital, she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. I cried a lot yesterday afternoon, I yelled to the Lord...I am tired of people especially children being attacked by satan in the form of cancer. So many people at my former church not to mention around the world stricken with this terrible disease. I know this is not the Lord's plan for His people. He loves us, Jer 29:11 tells us: For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Psalm 130 tells us we are fully redeemed, not kinda redeemed, but fully redeemed. Gal 3:12-14 states: The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them."Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone...

The other day I walked into the utility room to grab the broom and sweep the kitchen. The broom was no where to be found. I searched every room in the house, the front porch, and the garage. I called my husband and asked him if he had seen the broom (it did not cross my mind to ask if he had used it), he said he used it to sweep out his boat and did not know what he did with it. I am not into man bashing, I love my husband, but in all seriousness how do you lose a broom, a standard O Cedar broom with a bright yellow broomstick? It must have made it's way to one of the company vehicles. A couple of days later I went to Target and bought a Clorox broom with dustpan because it was on sale. As I pushed the shopping cart down the aisle, I passed the Spic n Span and smiled, thinking back to 1986 and the cleaning incident which I blogged about earlier this year. I decided to look up the word broom on http://www.biblegateway.com/ , broom only appears a few times, mainly in connection with ...

Last night I had several things to do around the house after work. At 5:05pm I went outside to water potted plants, it was our first really hot day. 2008 has been cool and windy...until yesterday... I went inside after watering to begin laundry and the power went out, I called Centerpoint Energy they said the problem should be repaired by 8pm. I thought...where we will go for dinner. My husband came home and asked why I had not turned any lights on, he sat on the love seat and said I am so full from lunch, I won't eat dinner tonight...note to self scratch going out to dinner. I worked on my Bible Study while it was still light then went into the den to talk with my husband. We talked about the Episcopal Church, politics, my father's continued healing, our dogs, and plans for the weekend. I prayed off and on through out the evening. I kept thinking about Jesus when he said: I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of l...

If I could still do a cartwheel, I would do a cartwheel for the Lord. (if I did a cartwheel, we might have to call Life Flite) My dad is home from the hospital...I never would have guessed as I raced him to the ER at St. Luke's 01/08/08 he would just now be back home. I will definitely do some singing and praise dancing tonight! I am so filled with joy, I can barely type...in the words of a great psalmist: Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!

In America we have the debate over the phrase One Nation Under God... Do you think our forefathers would be shocked we are so free in America we have become stupid and are sowing ourselves into bondage? Our forefathers and their families paid a high price for our freedom... Psalm 33: 10-20 tells us this: The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth- he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in h...

I feel a real burden to pray for the USA. If any of you are sensing this, please comment and let me know what the Lord is impressing on your hearts. We all know we need to pray for the country, but I am sensing something deep similar to the day I was on vacation in CO for my 20 th wedding anniversary. The feeling I had just days before Katrina formed in the Gulf. We need our country to come to repentance . The Lord God Almighty gave us geography which has kept us safe from combat on our shores in WWI and WWII. He has given us minerals, oil, forests, and food which we seem to take for granted. We have been given much and as a result much is required. Please pray: for our nation to repent for our sins as a nation against God for our leaders to make decisions which are right in the Lord's eyes, most especially decisions which involve Israel for the Church in America to preach the Gospel with boldness in truth and love for the Church to be relevant for protection from our enemies for ...

We are physically and spiritually held together by the power of the Cross..

I am in a Bible study group of darling women, we are 1/2 way through Beth Moore's Psalm of Ascent Study. (A wonderful study) She has us say each psalm out loud, work it which means highlighting verses which speak to us, write notes in the margin, circle all references to the Lord, etc. We then turn the psalm into a personal prayer. I have prayed Scripture prayers for years, I really recommend this type of prayer especially for ongoing situations. I thought about how many times in life, we say it, work it, pray it...but not necessarily in a holy way. I was listening to a woman talking on her cell phone as we were in an elevator. She was saying it and working it, I could tell she had called everybody in her circle of friends about how Susie Q had done her wrong. Over the years I have had people request I pray an unholy prayer for them. For example someone said I am angry with Susie Q, the Lord knows why, He will not make me forgive her, please pray she loses her job. Of course I did ...

There are times I can definitely tell I am the daughter of a retired police officer. For example, I always have my keys in my hand before I leave a building and walk to my car. (Served me well when I was mugged years ago, I had no purse or driver's license, but I had a key to open my car door and a key to start the car - remember using a key to open the trunk and car door?) I look at people around me in parking lots, stores, etc. I am not paranoid, just aware crime happens. I saw a situation at the post office today few noticed, but an elderly lady did not close out the automatic postal machine, dishonest people could have bought stamps and shipped packages on her credit card. There has been a prominent news story in Houston the last 2 days regarding a man who was killed by a Houston police officer. The victim was pulled over by police, gave them his CIA ID and then drove off and led police on a lengthy chase. No one understands why he ran. The policeman's daughter thing kicked...