Who doesn’t love new clothes? When our old clothes have faded or torn or do not fit anymore, and we are the most in need, we appreciate getting new clothes. Sometimes our clothes represent our culture or personality. Sometimes we wear very bright colors and festive outfits. In other countries, the clothing can make people look very different from us. In America, anything goes, so at times we all look very different. At other times we may look very much the same as someone else because we are wearing the latest trend. Sometimes we choose mew clothes just because we want to look different, better.

We choose a clothing of sorts when we choose Christ. We want something better than value in outward appearances. He changes our inside appearance and makes us a new person with a fresh start! As Christians, we put on faith clothing! When we come to Christ, we become a daughter or son of the King so we put on faith that identifies us as His child. I love this verse that tells us who we are in Christ:

Your baptism in Christ was not just washing you up for a fresh start. It also involved dressing you in an adult faith wardrobe—Christ’s life, the fulfillment of God’s original promise. In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ’s family, then you are Abraham’s famous “descendant,” heirs according to the covenant promises. Galatians 3:25-29

We adopt a new faith based on how the Lord has changed us, not on the outside, but on the inside. We look like our brothers and sisters in Christ because we wear the same faith clothing. We have a relationship with the King now! We are His family and each other’s family. We are inheritors of the promise to Abraham. We are all connected!

Don’t you love meeting new brothers and sisters in Christ? I do! One of the reasons I find it so special is, I realize we are not as different as we appear outwardly. We are not as different as the world would have us believe. Matters of fashion or outward appearances start to matter less and less, because we connect at the heart. We are unified by Christ and with Christ and in Christ. We are one.

Dear Lord,

You are such a good Father. In so many ways, You let us know how loved we are. Thank You for Your plan to make us Your sons and daughters. As we meet other sons and daughters, let us truly treat them like family, because they are. As usual, You have shown us something so precious today. Thank You for each new day that we can learn or re-learn something valuable in Your Word. We are only what You make us. We love You so much! Amen

Love and prayers to all! Have a great Monday!

Just me. Just His.

Tina

I jotted down this little poem/song after church one day because I was so moved that Jesus saves us and renames us as His. When we ask for forgiveness, He makes us a brand new creature in Him! I feel like this is what He says to us:) Verse: Bring to me your broken self, sick and ill of heart. Bring to me your sin, But don’t come to me in part. Give me all of you, everything you hold. Bring me all you’re tired of. Come into the fold. Chorus: And I will make you new, take away your burdens and your sin, make in you my likeness deep within. And I will restore you. I implore you. Broken’s not your name anymore. You’re a bloom and you are mine to adore. Dear Lord, You still do miracles every day. Help us not to forget the miracle You did in our lives, many years ago, for some of us. Renew our hearts with that fervor for You. Help us to reach out to those around us that feel broken. Give us words and love that they need from us. Help us point them to you, like someone did for us.We want to do Your will, no matter what it is. We love You so much! Amen Love and prayers to all, Just me. Just His. Tina

Just a few lines that came to me one Sunday when I was thinking of how Jesus loves us when we come to Him with all our brokenness and admit we need His help.

In a few weeks it will be time to set our clocks ahead and lose an hour. In the Fall, it will be time to gain that hour back. Some things like this have to be done on time, but other things we think we can put off until another time. For example, my puppy needs her nails clipped but I know I can get by without that chore for a bit longer. I usually need to eat on time because I know how I will feel if I don’t! I will be empty, in need, hungry, weak and tired and probably grumpy.

Being hungry physically is a lot like being hungry spiritually. Just as physical food will eventually burn up and leave us empty, so will our spiritual food, the Word of God. Before long, because we are weak or needy and it will be time to feed on God’s Word again. One meal of God’s Word a week, say Sunday at church, will not sustain us. We can go to church, hear an inspired sermon, sing great praise songs and feel on top of the world because we are totally focused on Him. But if we never feed on God’s Word other than Sunday, we will not feel spiritually strong enough to handle challenges during the week. There is good news though!

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

Every morning, it is time to be fed from His Word. Before the enemy attacks with the lie that we do not have time to read even one verse, it is time to read God’s Word. When we are afraid, confused or stressed, it is time to read God’s Word. Even reading one verse when we are rushed sets our focus on God. It honors God that we do the best we can and feed regularly on His Word. He does not expect us to be perfect but be comforted and realize that He is perfect for our needs and always there to help us.

Dear Jesus,

Thank You for always, being our rock, our spiritual fount of wisdom that never lets us down.. We know that nothing the world supplies, no book or knowledge or self-control can make us right with You. We can’t be good enough or strong enough on our own and You do not expect that. Thank You for loving us as we are, imperfect! When we feel weak spiritually, nudge us that it is time to pickup the Bible. Guide us to pick it up daily and meditate on Your goodness and ability to sustain us. Please remind us, when our ways or attitudes start to look like the world’s, to feed more on Your Word. It is the only thing that truly satisfies our longings. We ask these things in Your precious and holy name, so we may honor You, not ourselves. We love You for always! Amen

Love and prayers to all. Have a great Monday.

Just me. Just His.

Tina

Did you ever have something good happen in your life for which you didn’t know who to give credit to? A long time ago, I received an unexpected raise and promotion. It came out of left field to me. Of course, I thanked my boss, but I wondered…was it God that made it happen? There were other deserving employees, after all…

I remember thanking God in a Bible study one evening. As other people thanked Him for blessings, I did too. I honestly told the group, ” I dont know whether God is responsible for my promotion or not, but I better give Him credit just in case!” Everyone laughed, but I was serious:)

Since then, I’ve grown to learn that God allows or disallows things in our lives and deserves credit for eveything. We should thank Him for what He doesn’t give as what He does give, because we trust His plan.

So now, whether I have a trial or a blessing, I try to remember this verse…

 Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Here is a poem I wrote about getting rid of a headache. Everything is a reason to thank Him:)

Love and prayers to all,

Just me. Just His.

Tina

As the season of Lent is upon us, I cannot help but think about all that I need to improve on or be more grateful for. There is just something about my personality that likes to be challenged constantly. That can be a plus and a minus. On the plus side, I am always trying something new and on the minus side of the equation, I do not tend to stick to things long-term. Like all the times I was trying to teach myself the flute, then making soap, then drawing, then making ornaments and crafts and the list goes on. If there was an award for starting new hobbies, I would win a prize.

But you know what? Only by the Lord guiding me, I have, for almost fifty years, stuck with my favorite relationship in the world. I still love to spend time with or talk about Jesus! I did nothing to earn His love and I knew very little about Him at first, but over the years, He and I have honed our relationship. He teaches me what I am doing wrong and I obey His guidance. He gives and I am grateful.

A relationship with Jesus is a lifetime learning process. We never arrive at the ultimate end of all we can learn from Him. He never runs out of things to teach us that we are meant to share with others. I love the tone of these verses as they lay out a syllabus of sorts of what our teacher, Jesus, and our Father God expect from us.

And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. 1 John 2: 3-5

Even the simplest reminders like this can spark change in us when our desire is to be all that we can be for Jesus and God. That is what the verse does for me. It sparks a challenge to really “know Him” better “keep His Word” and let God perfect His love in me. What a wonderful focus!

So, as we go through 40 days of Lent, remembering Jesus’ 40 days in the desert alone,maybe we can focus on being alone. With no phone, tv or any distractions nearby, we can give Him our full attention. What if we didn’t ask for anything but just thanked Him for being with us? More time in His presence will change us, change me. It is not about what Jesus can do or give us. He has already done all He can. It is about what we can give Him more of, that we value. ..time and ourselves.

If you happen to be a parent, you know how valuable time is with your grown-up children. You need no gifts or prizes from them. Time with them is the most precious thing they can give you. The Lord is no different! He loves us so much and just wants us to be with Him. We do not need to use fancy words or presents, but in His presence, let Him speak. He just wants us to abide in His love, out of love for Him. How simple but oh, how sweet.

Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. John 15:9

Dear Jesus,

We know You love to be with Your Father, as His child. We love to be with You the same way. We get too busy, though, keeping up with the pace of life. Our hearts are considering all You gave us on the cross and we are so grateful. We want to spend more time in Your loving presence. We want to abide with You.Thank You for always being there. We look forward to being alone with You more and focusing on our greatest and most favorite hobby, coming into Your presence. Amen

Love and prayers to all,

Just me. Just His.

Tina

You know the story of the Pharaoh who would not let the Israelites go, even though God told him to, through Moses and Aaron? Why didn’t the Pharaoh do the right thing? The Bible says it was because Pharaoh had a hard heart, that he would not release the Israelites , but it also says that God Himself hardened Pharaoh’s heart. That whole “hardening” idea made me think. Why would God tell Moses to tell Pharaoh to do something that God already knew he would not do? Why would God keep Pharaoh from doing the right thing by hardening His heart? And wasn’t Pharaoh’s heart already hard? The answer to these questions is found in this verse:

And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. Exodus 33:19

We do not need to understand God’s reasons. Easier said than done, right? Like me, have you wondered why you have the trial you have or why your plans do not succeed the way you expect them to? As for me, I think it is because I like to know what is going to happen. God had given me many opportunities to see things His way by NOT allowing things to happen. Our expectations and our will can get in the way of His will, which gets top billing. He has been showing me where I need to obey more and expect only what He allows, for His reasons. God sees our obedience as His glory. He deserves it after all:)

I don’t believe Moses and Aaron understood all of God’s commands to them concerning the Pharaoh, but they exalted the Lord anyway, by obeying Him. They knew who He was, their God. Do we need any more reason to obey and exalt God? Like Moses and Aaron, we can trust God because He is Lord and deserves to be glorified.

And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD.” And they did so. Exodus 14:4

I see a loving reason in this story. God wants to bring more people to Him. He wants the Egyptians to know Him. If He feels He has to harden a heart to bring Egyptians into knowledge of who He is, isn’t that a good result? It shows His perogative as God, to do what He wants to do, because He loves us all. We can doubt Him and trust our own reasoning, or we can give Him our doubts and trust HIM. In exalting God, we are saying we know why He does what He does. He is God. He is loving. He has loving reasons that we cannot see, and that is okay. We know He loves us and He is good!

Just a thought… If we believe we know exactly why God does everything He does, who are we exalting? Maybe ourselves?

Dear God,

Thank You for being such a just and fair God. Because we are human, we fail at times to give You glory for all that you do. Like the Pharaoh, our hearts can become hard and we may exalt and trust our own opinions more than Yours . When we fall short, feel free to remind us that You are God, so that when You ask us to do something for You , we do it fully and with Your glory in mind. Fill us with the courage and ability to do Your will on earth, even when we do not totally understand it. We love You so much and ask that You bless us with opportunities to serve You more. Amen

Love and prayers to all! Have a great Thursday! Stay safe if you have snow and ice like we do here!

Just me. Just His.

Tina

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message,and the message is heard through the word about Christ. Romans 10:17

Sometimes we cannot see the next step to take or the next decision to make. Sometimes we feel afraid because we do not know what God has in store for us. We feel life would be easier if we knew the answers to our questions.  Faith is the answer we need!

Faith does not come by knowing the future. It comes by knowing God. A step at a time in the right direction, towards God, is always our best option!

Here is a poem I wrote when I was questioning my decisions and uncertain future. It felt like I was trying to see through the fog, then the Lord shone the way.I had to accept small amounts of light at a time, just enough for each day:)

Faith in the Fog

Lord, I cannot find my way for fog has shrouded me.
Will You please just take my hand or help my eyes to see?

I cannot find which way to go when daytime feels like night.
Because You have no dark in You, I need to use Your light.

If You will lead me, show me please, just what you’d have me do.
No matter what the task may be, my answer,now, is “yes” to You.

You’re here with me; now I can see to walk within Your glow.
With faith in fog, I’ll follow You wherever you may go.

Dear Father,

We need hand-holding at times. As children do, we feel safer that way. We trust You to guide us in Your will because You already know our future.Thank You for Your light that we can walk within. As you give light, we will walk confidently in it. We love You so much. You are faithful! Amen

Love and prayers to all,

Just me. Just His.

Tina

In Mark chapter one there is a fascinating story. It seems pretty straightforward at first, but there is more depth to this story than meets the eye. In Mark 1:40, a leper came to Jesus:

And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” 

The man was so desperate that he purposely sought Jesus, the only One who could cleanse Him. He kneeled down, in the begging position and looked up to the One He knew could cleanse Him. He wasn’t asking IF Jesus could heal Him, but if it was Jesus’ will to do so. That is faith! Success depended on faith and Jesus’ will. It wasn’t the power of the man to ask effectively, because he only said a few words. It was the effective power that the man knew Jesus had. That is a great model for us to follow! So how did Jesus respond?

Moved with pity, He stretched out His hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. Mark 1:41-42

Doesn’t this remind you of the salvation experience? As sinners, we come to Jesus on purpose, knowing He can cleanse and forgive us, and our cleansing depends on His will. He is very willing to do that for anyone! Instantly, Jesus cleanses us and gives us a whole new life, much like the leper. Can you imagine how much his life changed? Everything was different for him. In those days, a leper was considered unclean and was not to be touched. Only Jesus, out of compassion, was willing and touched the “unclean” man. After cleansing Him, Jesus told the man not to tell anyone but to go to the priest. I wondered why Jesus told Him that. Wouldn’t spreading the Word give Him glory and give God glory?

Barnes Notes on the Bible says, “The law of Moses required that a man who was healed of the leprosy should be pronounced clean by the priest before he could be admitted again to the privileges of the congregation.” Now it makes sense! The leper needed a pronouncement by a priest, who people would consider as one able to determine when healing had occurred. Then the leper could freely be among his brothers and sisters in Christ again! I can feel His joy! Though Jesus asked him not to, the leper could not help but tell everyone he met what Jesus had done. I think Jesus wanted the pronouncement by the priest so the cleansing would be regarded as a real and holy thing, not just some talk that others may not believe from a supposed “former leper.”

We are all “former lepers” of sorts. We used to be unclean, but through Jesus’ blood and will, we are made new! How can we not tell everyone we meet about it? Like the leper who witnessed his own miracle, how can we keep that miracle to ourselves? Like the leper, when we have a need of huge proportions, do we go straight to Jesus already knowing what He can do and simply ask for His will?

A personal note…I had a doctor’s appointment yesterday that surprised me. As I was talking to the triage nurse, she asked about my usual activities. I told her I write a devotion each day, then eat breakfast and so on. I didn’t get to finish what I was saying because she latched on to the fact that she really “needed to start those up again.”( her devotions) She was a Christian! She told me she kept her Bible in a certain place where she could see it every day but she didn’t read it consistently. We talked a little more about my health and before she left the room she asked about the site for my devotions. She purposely sought out a way to get closer to Jesus. It was so precious to me, having been in the position of seeking so many times. Whether she knew it or not, she encouraged me to reach out more. People are seeking Jesus or more of Jesus. We are all in a state of needing Him.

Dear Jesus,

We just read how You cleansed a leper. You touched his un-cleanness and he was instantly changed. If there be any cleansing needed in our hearts, will You clean it also? Sometimes things and attitudes sneak in our lives that do not exactly glorify You. Like You did with the leper, please heal us of it all with Your touch. We would love the opportunity to tell others about what You have done for us. In the doctor’s office, grocery store or mall, we will reach out and love others with our cleansed heart. Help us to be compassionate like You are and love others deeply. We ask these things in order to honor You, our most holy and wonderful Savior. We love You so much! Amen

Love and prayers to all!

Just me. Just His.

Tina