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Thank you all for your thoughts, concerns and prayers regarding my appointment today.
Reynold and I had a good appointment with the doctor today. I even gained a couple of pounds!!! We discussed where I am right now with all the gastric stuff and while the jtube is still on the table as an option, Dr. S said he will not push for it now. PTL!!
He wants me to continue to eat what I can, supplement with Ensure and try to keep my weight above 100 lbs. I know you all probably think you wish the doctor would tell you to gain weight but sadly, food now has become like an enemy instead of something enjoyable. So guys eat something really good for me and enjoy it to the fullest!!
Wish you all could have been in the office when Dr. S turned to Reynold and did an imitation of me, saying things like, "Oh no, I have to eat something", "Oh dear what am I going to eat", etc., etc. We were all laughing. After 30 years, he knows me well and is such a loving, caring guy - am truly blessed.
Thank you sooooo much for your prayers - am extremely thankful to the Lord for the great doctor he has given me.
Caterina ..... what joy to know that you had such an upbeat doctor's appointment. Even had some good laughs with him! LOL!
I praise the Lord for answering our prayers and helping you to gain some needed weight! Thank You, Lord!!
Hugs, Rita
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
Caterina ..... what joy to know that you had such an upbeat doctor's appointment. Even had some good laughs with him! LOL!
I praise the Lord for answering our prayers and helping you to gain some needed weight! Thank You, Lord!!
Hugs, Rita
Thank you, Rita, am so very grateful to the Lord for you and everyone who is praying.
If you will, please pray for a very sweet little boy named Brayden Grohs. Was privileged to visit him at Johns Hopkins and he has NF1 as well as severe gastric problems. He desperately needs healing. Fell in love with him, he is so sweet. After my visit, he asked his mom to take him to the huge Jesus statute at the hospital so he could pray for my belly!! Was totally blown away that such a small little guy who is going through so much would think of me. Truly was humbled, brought tears to my eyes.
Oh, I can't think of a more powerful prayer than Brayden's intercession for you, Caterina! Brayden was thinking only of you (instead of the fact that he is very much in need of healing also), and a child's faith is so strong. I'm sure our Lord was greatly touched by little Brayden's faith and unselfishness!! It's a privilege to pray for this sweet little angel!
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
Oh, I can't think of a more powerful prayer than Brayden's intercession for you, Caterina! Brayden was thinking only of you (instead of the fact that he is very much in need of healing also), and a child's faith is so strong. I'm sure our Lord was greatly touched by little Brayden's faith and unselfishness!! It's a privilege to pray for this sweet little angel!
Someone has said, “God always answers our prayers, either by giving us what we ask for or by giving us something even better.” In Paul’s case, God gave him something even better.
Paul was afflicted with what he described as “a thorn in the flesh” — it was something that caused him constant pain. It was such a deep-felt difficulty that he took it fervently to God in prayer, three times pleading to have his suffering taken away.
The verse above is God’s answer to Paul.
But how was this an answer to prayer? God didn’t remove Paul’s painful burden. In fact, God told Paul that he wouldn’t remove it at all. But God’s answer to Paul’s prayer was even better: my grace is sufficient for thee.
Notice God didn’t say, “My grace is sufficient for this difficulty;” God said “My grace is sufficient for you, Paul.” Paul asked for deliverance from one ordeal, but God guaranteed him grace for every trial, throughout his life.
And, although Paul would still experience much suffering, God reminded him that this simply gave him an even greater opportunity to exalt the name of Christ. My strength, God declared, is even more evident when you are helpless. Therefore, this struggle is an opportunity for you to fulfill your purpose as a Christian, more than you ever could in a pain-free life.
Beloved, rest assured that God’s grace is still sufficient, and that his power is still being manifested through the difficulties you face in your life. What a marvelous answer to prayer this is!
For most of the 2,000-year history of the Church, only priests got to personally read the Bible, but now billions of us have access to it. In spite of this, many believers are more faithful to reading their daily newspaper than their Bibles.
It’s no wonder why we don’t grow. We can’t watch television for three hours, then read the Bible for three minutes and expect growth.
Many who claim to believe the Bible “from cover to cover” have never read it from cover to cover. But if you will read the Bible just fifteen minutes a day, you will read completely through it once a year.
SCRIPTURE:
Deuteronomy 17:19
“He should keep it with him all the time and read from it every day of his life.”
REFLECTION:
Daily Bible reading will keep you in range of God’s voice. This is why God instructed the kings of Israel to always keep a copy of his Word nearby: “He should keep it with him all the time and read from it every day of his life” (Deuteronomy 17:19a).
Talk About It
With what projects or hobbies do you show great discipline in your attention to them? How can you apply that same discipline to your daily Bible reading?
How do you think 15 minutes a day in God’s Word would change the way you approach your everyday life?
We, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. —2 Peter 3:13
In a TV commercial I saw recently, the kids argued in the back seat of the car about where to stop for dinner. One wanted pizza; another chicken. Mom, in the front passenger seat, said, “No, we’ll stop for a hamburger.”
Dad quickly solved the family disagreement with this idea: “We’ll stop at the buffet restaurant, and you can each have what you want and all you want.” The commercial closes with the words, “Take care of family squabbles about what’s for dinner. Go to _____ Buffet, the ‘Land of And.’”
When I saw that commercial, I thought of another “Land of And”: heaven. It is a place that will have all we need. Foremost, we will be in the very presence of Almighty God. In describing heaven, the apostle John said, “The throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it” (Rev. 22:3). Our thirsty souls will be completely satisfied from the “pure river of water of life” that proceeds from His throne (22:1), for He says to His people, “I will give . . . freely to him who thirsts” (21:6). Another “and” in this land will be the tree of life for “the healing of the nations” (22:2). What we won’t find in this Land of And are the curse (22:3), death, sorrow, and tears (21:4).
We’ll be completely satisfied in that Land of And. Are you ready to go?
There is a land of pure delight,
Where saints immortal reign;
Infinite day excludes the night,
And pleasures banish pain. —Watts
Earth—the land of trials; heaven—the land of joys.
This is an awesome message from one of my favorite teachers, James Robison of Life Today. It is a bit lengthy but well worth reading and pondering his words on God's people, the church and our obligation to the Lord to receive God's blessing.
Thought this was encouraging to ponder...
Mercy - Christ showed us the way
With a dead end before us, Christ showed us the way;
When we walked in the nighttime, Christ brought us the day.
With our faces all hidden, Christ carried our shame;
When we felt so unwanted, Christ called out our name.
With a cup that was empty, Christ brought us His well;
When facing destruction, Christ saved us from Hell.
With our fate like a leper, Christ reached out to heal;
When we lived like a phony, Christ brought what was real.
With our fists in defiance; Christ stretched out His hand;
When our footsteps were sinking, Christ helped us to stand.
With no hope of heaven, Christ came from above;
When our hearts were so empty, Christ poured out His love.
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. 1 Peter 2:9-10 NKJV
Blessed be the . . . God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation. —2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Harold and Cathy and their two sons were in a wooded area in Minnesota when a tornado touched down. Cathy described her experience to me several years later:
“My husband and older son were some distance away, but my younger son and I took cover in a cabin. We heard a sound like a hundred railroad cars and instinctively dropped to the floor in a tucked position. The cabin began to break apart, and I shut my eyes because of all the flying debris. It felt like I was going up in an elevator and then was shot into the air. I landed in a lake and clung to debris to stay afloat.”
...
Tragically, however, their younger son did not survive. Harold said of their loss: “We cried every day for 6 weeks. But we believe that God’s loving sovereignty allowed that tornado to come down where we were. And we also took comfort in the fact that our son knew the Lord.”
When a loved one is taken and we are left behind, it can create all kinds of questions. In times like these, Romans 8:28 can be of great encouragement: “We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” This couple’s trust in God’s loving sovereignty brought them comfort in the midst of their grief (2 Cor. 1:3-4). —Dennis Fisher
When we sustain a heartbreaking loss,
When grief overwhelms our soul,
The Savior who gave Himself on the cross
Reminds us that He’s in control. —D. De Haan
Our greatest comfort in sorrow is to know that God is in control.
"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the SHADOW of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff
they comfort me." Psalm 23:4
Today is Groundhog Day in America. The day in Pennsylvania when the celebration is held of the groundhog being lifted from his hiding place. If the groundhog sees his shadow it is predicted that there will be six more weeks of winter.
Like the groundhog in Pennsylvania, all of us have self-perceived shadows within ourselves. But, we come out of our cave and see our imagined shadows, we may go into a hiding hibernation from life – long-beyond six weeks, maybe for as long as six years.
We have seen people go into long seclusion, pulling away, all due to the imagined shadows they perceive within themselves. In counseling, I have seen people defend their shadows almost unto death. An imagined shadow can become a very real and scary thing.
We are always much better than we think we are. We tend to be our worst judge and are more critical about ourselves than anyone else or anything.
We see our own shadows magnified with greater darkness and impending doom. Like the groundhog, perhaps we need to give ourselves a break.
But how do we do this if we have been in the shadows for so long.
We must realize that we are not in this life experience alone.
We have God's help.
God's help brings brightness to every new morning - IF WE LET GOD DO THIS.
God's help brings a new dawn, new opportunity, and new vistas for us to strive towards.
We must allow God to work in our lives by no longer holding ourselves back hiding in the imagined shadows.
In our free-will we must accept God's help as ours today.
Why do we accept it for others, but not ourselves? It is because we carry our own baggage, we do not carry the baggage of others. We can often believe bigger for other people than for ourselves because of this.
The spiritual journey is to take the spiritual truth, and wear it as our own, in our souls.
The good news – you are not who you once were. You are not your biography. As a child of God you are defined more by your potential than your past. As a child of God you have the same potential that was given to every great person.
Many people live perpetually in the shadows of past mistakes, and errors. This is not God's will for you.
As a child of God you are evolving every day into a better spiritual being. The light of God eliminates shadows.
Some of the greatest people I have ever known, were not always what you would call good people – but through the help of God they became overcomers of their shadowy past.
There comes a time my friend, in our own spiritual journey, when we must muster up the courage of God, and in a way take God's hand, to go past our shadows, out into the light of a new life. When we realize we are not going it alone, this gives us a tremendous power of overcoming. We have a God-given Divine strength.
We smile as we journey because we are doing the will of God. We move forward to fully, totally live, discovering our true selves. It is only then that new God-given abilities and gifts are revealed to us.
Today, may God be with you, and go with you, as you boldly move forward.
There's no greater love than the love of Jesus.
There's no love that's wiser,
that's stronger, that lasts longer,
that's more willing or thrilling.
There's no love more beautiful, more bountiful,
more bold, more basic and unbiased.
There's no love more caring, more sharing,
more daring to risk all in danger for sinner and stranger.
There's no love more gracious, more giving, more living,
more sacred, more selfless, more soul-satisfying,
more pure and undying.
There's no love more verifiable, more valuable,
more validating, more victorious, more glorious.
Happy Monday
Carefully Consider God's Truth
Rick Warren
When you tell God, “I want the truth more than anything else,” he will reveal his truth to you in a variety of ways, such as through creation, your conscience, and also through careful consideration.
In other words, truth is knowable. You can test it; you can experiment with it; you can prove it.
If I want to go to San Francisco, and I follow a map that takes me to San Francisco, and the next week I follow the same map to San Francisco again, eventually I figure out that the map is true.
The same is true of the Bible: If you follow its map again and again, you’ll find it to be true. You may not always like where it takes you, but it always takes you where it says it’s going to take you.
SCRIPTURE:
“Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established.” Proverbs 4:26
REFLECTION:
Often people say, “Why won’t God just write it in the sky?” Why would God do that? He gave you a brain. But most people never slow down long enough for such careful consideration. Most people just drift through life.
The Bible tells us, “Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established” (Proverbs 4:26 HCSB).
Spend some time in careful consideration and thoughtful observation, and ask yourself: “Am I on a true path?”
Had to share this....
The Christian life is a life of paradox's. We must give to receive, realize we are blind to see, become simple to be wise, suffer for gain, and die to live.
God's love is different from ours.
God doesn't just give love - He is love.
We are experts at earning the affections of friends, lovers, children, and our families. Coming face-to-face with a God who loves us unconditionally sets us off balance. It's much easier to believe, "If I go to church and read my Bible, God will love me." That makes us feel safe because it seems we can control God's love. It's scary to believe in God's unconditional love.
What if it's not true? Then the deepest desire of our hearts can never be a reality. We watch Cinderella and the prince then hope for our own version of living happily ever after. But life disappoints us, and God is our last chance to be fully, deeply loved. So we do everything possible to please Him because even though we've endured many rejections, His would be unbearable.
But God is whispering the words to our hearts we long to hear if only we can dare to believe them: "You are loved deeply, truly, always." That's the kind of crazy love that sets us free forever. God invites us to take His hand, trust His heart, and believe that the love we've been searching for all our lives is the love we've already found.
--Devotional excerpt by Holley Gerth, from her book God's Heart for You: Embracing Your True Worth as a Woman.
Wanted to share this short and powerful message...
L.B. Cowman
A visitor at a school for the deaf was writing questions on the board for the children. Soon he wrote this sentence: "Why has God made me able to hear and speak, and made you deaf?"
The shocking sentence hit the children like a cruel slap on the face. They sat paralyzed, pondering the dreadful word "Why?" And then a little girl arose.
With her lips trembling and her eyes swimming with tears, she walked straight to the board. Picking up the chalk, she wrote with a steady hand these precious words: "YES, FATHER, FOR THIS WAS YOUR GOOD PLEASURE". (MATT. 11:26)
What a reply! It reaches up and claims an eternal truth upon which the most mature believer, and even the youngest child of God, may securely rest - the truth that God is you Father.
Good morning friends, hope this will be encouraging.
An excerpt from
The Strangest Secret
by Earl Nightingale
George Bernard Shaw said, "People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find them, they make them."
Well, it's pretty apparent, isn't it? And every person who discovered this believed (for a while) that he was the first one to work it out. We become what we think about.
Conversely, the person who has no goal, who doesn't know where he's going, and whose thoughts must therefore be thoughts of confusion, anxiety and worry - his life becomes one of frustration, fear, anxiety and worry. And if he thinks about nothing... he becomes nothing.
How does it work? Why do we become what we think about? Well, I'll tell you how it works, as far as we know. To do this, I want to tell you about a situation that parallels the human mind.
Suppose a farmer has some land, and it's good, fertile land. The land gives the farmer a choice; he may plant in that land whatever he chooses. The land doesn't care. It's up to the farmer to make the decision.
We're comparing the human mind with the land because the mind, like the land, doesn't care what you plant in it. It will return what you plant, but it doesn't care what you plant.
Now, let's say that the farmer has two seeds in his hand- one is a seed of corn, the other is nightshade, a deadly poison. He digs two little holes in the earth and he plants both seeds - one corn, the other nightshade. He covers up the holes, waters and takes care of the land...and what will happen? Invariably, the land will return what was planted.
As it's written in the Bible, "As ye sow, so shall ye reap."
Remember the land doesn't care. It will return poison in just as wonderful abundance as it will corn. So up come the two plants - one corn, one poison.
The human mind is far more fertile, far more incredible and mysterious than the land, but it works the same way. It doesn't care what we plant...success...or failure. A concrete, worthwhile goal...or confusion, misunderstanding, fear, anxiety and so on. But what we plant must return to us.
You see, the human mind is the last great unexplored continent on earth. It contains riches beyond our wildest dreams. It will return anything we want to plant.
Wishing everyone a wonderful blessed Sunday
In Your Hands
Heavenly Father, my life is in Your hands.
Yesterday, today, and forever, I am safe and secure in You.
Lord, please help me to know that You are in control.
Help me to believe You are at work in my life right now,
even when I don't see it.
Help me to trust in what I do not see,
when what I see is so painful.
Please help me to know You are taking care of my needs.
Lord, thank You for listening to my cries for help.
Thank You for loving me so much.
Help me to believe You and the promises You have made.
Forgive me when I doubt You and Your love.
I believe, Lord. Forgive me for my unbelief.
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.
Deuteronomy 31:8
How are you feeling today? Thank you for all the devotions once again.
Doing relatively okay, thanks for asking. Am looking forward to having Aaron of COLES Foundation and his family stay with us for the next few days. Aaron has a speaking engagement in Hanover, PA. Please pray that the Lord will give Aaron power to speak, move in hearts of the listeners and allow the organization to give a much needed donation. Thanks so much.
Caterina ... As always, am so blessed by the devotionals you share. Many thanks!
Have been praying for Aaron concerning his speaking engagement.
Hugs, Rita
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
Caterina ... As always, am so blessed by the devotionals you share. Many thanks!
Have been praying for Aaron concerning his speaking engagement.
Hugs, Rita
Thanks so much my dear friend, the speaking engagement went very well and the foundation received a nice donation. Also, there were people there who gave Aaron some other avenues to pursue for speaking engagements, one in particular is with a prominent wealthy business woman. Hoping the Lord will open doors and give Aaron favor.
So glad and thankful to hear such a happy outcome!!
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
Good morning, dear friends, hope this will encourage you.
TO SERVE, NOT TO BE SERVED
"The Son of man came not to be served but to serve…” Matthew 20:28
To paraphrase Pres. Kennedy – Ask not what the church can do for you,
but what you can do for God, through the church.
Too many people go to church today to see what that church can do for
them. They wait with spiritual arms folded to see how they are treated.
They look to the minister to serve them.
True church is a place where you give back, for it is the hallmark of the
spiritual experience.
There is a great story that took place at Union Seminary. This is a story
about a seminary student on his first day. He arrived in a taxi, got out,
and looked around. He looked up the steps of the seminary, and standing
there at the top of the steps was a man with gray hair in a short-sleeved
shirt.
He asked the man, "Do you work here?”
The man said, “Yes.”
The seminary student said, "I have some bags down here in this cab. Could
you come down and carry these bags up to room 309?"
The gray-haired gentlemen did not say a word. He just walked down the
steps, opened up the trunk of the cab, and lifted all the heavy suitcases.
The man carried the bags up the first steps, and then climbed three
stories to room 309, while the young, vital seminary student carried a
very light briefcase with probably a paper or two in it, and a raincoat
over his arm.
The student followed the man to room 309 and reached into his pocket to
give the man a quarter for helping him. The man said, "Oh no, that is all
right. Keep your money." Then he smiled and left.
The next day was the first day of ministerial training. The student
looked up on the stage and there in robes was the gray-haired gentlemen,
leading the communion service which began the activities at Union
seminary. This was the illustrious Dr. Henry Sloan Coffin.
The ministerial student sitting there, whispered, "Who is that guy?"
“Why that is Dr. Coffin, the president of the university."
The longest walk that this ministerial student ever made was after that
service. He went to the front and started to apologize for how arrogant
he was. The great scholar got a big smile on his face, and said, "The Son
of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and we must do likewise."
Many years later, this ministerial student said, that of the three years
of training he received, that was the most valuable lesson.
The basic premise of Christianity is to serve, NOT to be served!
For those of you are facebook, my sweet YAWAG husband just posted several pictures of Aaron, Moireen and the girls along with the a shot of the back of the motor home with Cole's picture.
Dear friends, would appreciate your prayers - was admitted to the hospital last night because of severe stomach pain/vomiting, etc. Tests were done and a bowel blockage was found on the both sides of the small intestine. Thanks so much.
Dear friends, would appreciate your prayers - was admitted to the hospital last night because of severe stomach pain/vomiting, etc. Tests were done and a bowel blockage was found on the both sides of the small intestine. Thanks so much.
I'm so sorry, Caterina!! Thank you for letting us know!
I'll be praying for you and Reynold. May the Lord surround both of you with His comfort and peace and may He place His healing hand on you, Caterina!
Love, Rita
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
Thanks for your prayers. Am still in the hospital, they just inserted a gastric tube to hopefully give relief to my tummy. The tech was so sweet and gentle. Noticed a picture of a precious little baby girl on her ID and she said it was her daughter that sadly passed away. My heart broke for her.
Hello Caterina .... it's so good to hear from you. How sad about the sweet tech's little girl! What a heartbreak.
Praying that the Lord will keep you as pain-free as possible and will speed your recovery, sweet friend!
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
Caterina is out of surgery. The doctor is pleased and is hopeful that this might help her overall gastric problems, but won't know for a while. He removed scar tissue which was causing a blockage. She is still groggy and will be in considerable pain for a day or so, but is so relieved that it is over. Thank you all for your prayers.
Caterina is out of surgery. The doctor is pleased and is hopeful that this might help her overall gastric problems, but won't know for a while. He removed scar tissue which was causing a blockage. She is still groggy and will be in considerable pain for a day or so, but is so relieved that it is over. Thank you all for your prayers.
Many thanks for your update, Reynold!
How wonderful to learn that the doctor is thinking that this surgery may be a help to Caterina's ongoing gastric problems! Please let her know that her papercrafting friends are supporting her in prayer!
~ Rita
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
It's great to get another update! We're missing you on the forums, Caterina!
I'm praying for your healing and comfort and that you'll soon be well enough to return home!
Hugs, Rita
__________________
"But God demonstrated His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us ... being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him." Romans 5:8 & 9
My mind not only wanders, it sometimes leaves completely
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