Abba's Girl

In Revelation, we discover the beloved disciple John was exiled to Patmos. A tough Roman penal colony. Physical labor in the mines was difficult for men in their prime much less for an elderly man like John. Harsh conditions to say the least. John, the disciple who leaned on Jesus at the last supper, the man who took Mary into his home and cared for her the rest of her life at Jesus' request, the man who wrote one of the Gospels and epistles. When times are hard, do we think about John or more likely why Lord, why? Not so much why me, but WHY??? So many messages preached today leave us with the impression there will never be a storm, we will not become sick, we won't be a victim of a crime because by faith we should be living blessed lives 24/7. If that is true why was John banished to a penal colony by a Roman emperor? If that is true why Hurricane Harvey, why cancer, why violence? Because it is not true. John continued doing what he did before exile, Revelation 1: 10:   ...

Who was Haman? In the Book of Esther, we discover Haman was a descendant of Agag, the king of the Amalekites. He was a chief minister to  King Ahasuerus  AKA Xerxes, King of the Persian Empire.  Xerxes gave him a seat of honour higher than all the other nobles. Everyone at the king's gate knelt before him, well almost everyone. I have a few thoughts about Haman, in my opinion, his ego was big and his skin was thin which is many times a deadly combination. I don't know if he was always conceited or wormed his way into his elevated position and became conceited. I've always imagined him as an Eddie Haskell type on steroids type mixed with pure evil. Of course, my thoughts are just thoughts not necessarily true.   He was disgusted that Mordecai (Esther's uncle) would not bow to him. He is a favorite of the king, has money, in today's world he would exit a limo and people would be clamoring to take pictures of him. Alas, Mordecai would not honour him....

Have you ever done a favor for someone that drags on and becomes time-consuming, complicated, and downright inconvenient? If the answer is yes, what is the condition of your heart as the simple act requested by a friend or family member turns into something you did not envision? I find myself in that situation as I type. My heart condition began with positivity, sure I can do this for you. Happy to help. Then...I noticed as I invested more time than anticipated, 1st hours then days, resentment started to creep into the picture. Now a thought passes through my mind I should have __________________________. Fill in your own blank. Yesterday I rolled my eyes as I realized I was 2 1/2 weeks into it. So what were my motives when I said yes to the request? Were they pure or did I feel obligated to say yes for future harmony? If the answer is pure, did I think the favor should take an hour or two and then I was done with it? If I answered yes for future harmony was I resentful at the be...

Most of this week, before noon the temperatures have been well over 90 and by noon 100 or more. Not unusual for southeast Texas, but certainly disliked...by me! Shortly before 9:00 a.m. I went outside to water potted plants and hanging baskets.  I was not wearing my glasses or contacts so I could not see well, I will say everything was beautiful in a Monet way. As I watered I thanked the Lord for this day and a few other things. I turned around to say goodbye to my husband as he left for work when a large butterfly appeared and stayed near me, it was large enough I could see it clearly. I thanked the Lord for the butterfly and then a cool breeze blew over me. Unexpected to say the least It made a hot humid morning much more pleasant. I thanked Him for the breeze too. The breeze stopped as I turned off the water and coiled the hose. Just a butterfly and breeze or gifts from God? I think they were gifts from God.