Monthly Archives: September 2013

Every Little Thing You Do…

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Really Does Matter To God!!

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1 Corinthians 10:31

“So whether you eat or drink

or whatever you do,

do it all for the glory of God.”

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1Peter 4:10

“Each of you

should use whatever gift you have received

to serve others,

as faithful stewards

of God’s grace in its various forms.”

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Colossians 3:17

“And whatever you do,

whether in word or deed,

do it all in the Name of the Lord Jesus,

giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”

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Ephesians 2:10

“For we are God’s handiwork,

created in Christ Jesus

to do good works,

which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

You’re picking up toys on the living room floor
for the 15th time today
Matching up socks and sweeping up lost
Cheerios that got away
You put a baby on your hip and color on your lips
and head out the door
And while I may not know you I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes does it matter at all
Well let me remind you it all matters just as long as you

Do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
‘Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of Grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do

Maybe you’re that guy with the suit and tie
Maybe your shirt says your name
You may be hooking up mergers, cooking up burgers
But at the end of the day

Little stuff, big stuff, in between stuff
God sees it all the same
And while I may not know you I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes does it matter at all
Well let me remind you it all matters just as long as you do

Everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
‘Cause He made you
To do every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of Grace with every move that you make
And every little thing that you do

Well, maybe you’re sitting in math class
Maybe on a mission in the Congo
Maybe you’re working at the office
Singing along with the radio
Maybe you’re dining at a five star
Or feeding orphans in Myanmar
Anywhere and everywhere you are
Whatever you do it all matters
So do what you do and don’t ever forget to do

Everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
‘Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of Grace as you do
Everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
‘Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of Grace with every move that you make
And every little thing that you do
Every little thing you do

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This includes every Mom– smiling while wiping off the highchair, and the floor around it, yet AGAIN!!

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This includes every Teacher-cheerfully, reminding kids ONCE AGAIN to be kind to each other!

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This includes every Dad-happily playing with the kids, even AFTER a tough day at work!

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This includes every Waiter/Waitress/Salesperson/Cashier-being patient EVERY DAY with difficult customers!

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This includes every Student-Doing well in school, even when they’d rather be ANYWHERE else!

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This includes-WHOEVER YOU ARE

 And WHATEVER YOU DO

For the GOD WHO MADE YOU!

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This Includes YOU!

And EVERY LITTLE THING YOU DO

For THE GLORY OF GOD!! 

Amen!

The Fields Are White…

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What a breathtaking view from where I’m sitting!

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Matthew 13:38

The field is the world,

and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom.

The weeds are the people of the evil one,”

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Let me get a closer look!!

John 4:35

“Say not ye,

There are yet four months,

and then cometh harvest?

behold, I say unto you,

Lift up your eyes,

and look on the fields;

for they are white already to harvest.”

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Luke 10:2

“He told them,

The harvest is plentiful,

but the workers are few.

Ask the Lord of the harvest,

therefore,

to send out workers into His harvest field.'”

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The fields are white!!!

John 4:36-38

“Even now the one who reaps

draws a wage

and harvests a crop for eternal life,

so that the sower and the reaper

may be glad together.

Thus the saying

‘One sows and another reaps’

is true. 

I sent you to reap what you have not worked for.

Others have done the hard work,

and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

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Lord, let me see what You see in the fields of the world!

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Let me be as hungry as birds after a rainfall!

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To see Your Kingdom come!

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Exodus 23:16

 Celebrate the Festival of Harvest

with the first fruits of the crops

you sow in your field.

Celebrate the Festival of Ingathering

at the end of the year,

when you gather in your crops from the field.”

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Psalm 126:6

“Those who go out weeping,   

carrying seed to sow,

will return with songs of joy,   

carrying sheaves with them.”

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 John 12:32

“And I,

when I am lifted up

from the earth,

will draw all people to myself.”

Amen!

Window Shopping????

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While window shopping in Old Naples over the summer….

This was by-far my favorite window!!!

The Frog…

So dapper!

So welcoming!

“Come on in!”

He beckoned…

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Wind In The Willows – Beth Boutique, 793 5th Ave., Naples, FL 34102, (239) 643-0663

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I adored the bright, whimsical colors and patterns…

 I wanted to:

Try on the fashionable clothing,…

Read the Dare To Be Whacky book,…

Buy the beautiful hand-painted furniture …

Walk on the gorgeous carpet…

And, of course…

Cuddle with the perfectly groomed stuffed cat!

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Suddenly, I saw the cute little cat move!!

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I was mesmerized!

It’s alive!!

It’s breathing!

It’s not one of the mannequins, after all!

It’s not a prop…

It’s not just a display in the window!

It’s real!!

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I took so many photos of that beautiful cat…

From every angle…

While I watched it roaming around in that shop window…

No longer thinking about the other items…

The non-living items…

I focused only on the cat!!

I couldn’t get enough of it’s precious face…

It’s awesome lion-like tail…

It’s fluffy, white fur…

It’s four fuzzy feet!!

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And then the cat was gone!

The display was still nice…

But without the live cat in it …

It was now just an ordinary…

Empty-of-life…

Shop window!

Not all gods are alike!

Do you want to:

Try them on for size?

Read about them?

Buy into their theology?

Walk with them through life?

Cuddle with them in the time of need?

Find the God that’s Alive!

The One who Lives and Breathes!

I Have!

I can forget about non-essential items…

Non-living items…

And focus only on Jesus!!

I can’t get enough of His Precious Face…

The awesome strength of the Lion of Judah…

His Pure, White Robe of Righteousness…

His nail-scarred hands and feet!!

Not all religions are alike…

Is it alive?

Is it breathing?

Is it dead?

Is it just a display?

Is it real??

Not all churches are alike…

Some are so welcoming!

Putting on a “dapper” front…

“Come on in!”

They beckon…

But, has God left the building????

Remember, while window shopping…

Nothing’s the same without Him!!

Acts 17:28

“‘In Him we live

and move

and have our being;’

as even some of your own poets have said,

‘For we are indeed His offspring.’”

1 John 5:12

“Whoever has the Son has life;

whoever does not have the Son of God

does not have life.”

Revelation 1:18

“I am the Living One;

I was dead,

and now look,

I am alive for ever and ever!

And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”

1 Peter 6:6

“For this is the reason the Gospel was preached

even to those who are now dead,

so that they might be judged according to human standards

in regard to the body,

but live according to God in regard to the spirit.”

Hebrews 4:12

“For the Word of God

is alive and active.

Sharper than any double-edged sword,

it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit,

joints and marrow;

it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

Acts 1:11

“’Men of Galilee,’

they said,

‘why do you stand here looking into the sky?

This same Jesus,

who has been taken from you into Heaven,

will come back in the same way

you have seen Him go into Heaven.”

Amen!

On My Own !

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Everything in God’s timing…enjoy what’s He’s given at the time…delight in Him and He will give you the desires of your heart! Amen!!

The Cosmos within me!

Living on my own like a jester or clown,

Making everyone happy even when I frown.

Giving them joy and place to resent,

Even when I’m lonely with sorrowful event.

I make myself fool for happiness of others,

To make them at ease but no one really bothers.

I look down with sorrow and no one to share beside,

Always on my own with tears that are dried.

Lost on faith to have someone,

Gaining my strength to travel all alone.

I looked up to me and a thought just sway,

How did I forget? that I was born this way!

With so much of strength and confidence inside,

Why was I sad? if no one’s by my side.

All by my self I have journeyed this far,

I have the potential that can heal my scars.

Living on my own has taught many things,

Made me stronger than rocks…

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Finding … “HIM”!

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Beautiful. powerful poem!!

The Cosmos within me!

From the shade skies of thoughts, through the dark clouds of worry!

Through the mountains of uncertainty, From the sea of panic and scurry.

We journey everyday through all the turfs, and run for finding peace,

We go to seek peace in temples and churches, we never look inside us with ease.

We know many people for how they are!, But we fail to know a person closest to us.

He’s like eyelids  that protects the eyes, the only one to led us from all this fuss.

We search for him almost everywhere,in the shaded skies and deep in seas,

But wen we fail to find him and come back, we find him inside us resting in peace.

 

What to we do wen we are disturbed??

> We either go into silent place and resent OR

> We turn to God..

Have we ever tried to find answers ourselves…

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Are You Washed By The Water!?!

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John 3:5

“Jesus answered,

Very truly I tell you,

no one can enter the kingdom of God

unless they are born of water and the Spirit.'”

The story behind the song:

-Bear Rinehart-

Needtobreathe

“It’s a song about my dad.

He’s a pastor.

He just uh, he went through –

if you know anything about how preachers are,

they just…

You know,

there’s a lot of stuff that gets said in the church.

There was some stuff that got said at our church

that actually turned out to not be true

when it all came out, or whatever.

I just thought it was a cool thing

that my dad kept his integrity throughout that whole situation.

Yeah, and we put sort of a gospel feel to it.

There’s a gospel choir on the record that we recorded.

And yeah. It’s one of my favorites too.”

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Even when the rain falls

Even when the flood starts rising

Even when the storm comes

I am washed by the water

Daddy was a preacher

She was his wife

Just tryin’ to make the world a little better

You know, shine a light

People started talking

Trying to hear their own voice

Those people tried to accuse my father

Said he made the wrong choice

Though it might be painful

You know that time will always tell

Those people have long since gone

My father never failed

Even when the rain falls

Even when the flood starts rising

Even when the storm comes

I am washed by the water

Even if the Earth crumbles under my feet

Even if the ones I love turn around and crucify me

I won’t never ever let you down

Won’t fall, won’t fall, won’t fall

as long as you’re around me

Even when the rain falls

Even when the flood starts rising

Even when the storm comes

I am washed by the water

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Hebrews 10:22

“…let us draw near to God

with a sincere heart

and with the full assurance that faith brings,

having our hearts sprinkled

to cleanse us from a guilty conscience

and having our bodies washed with pure water.”

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Ephesians 5:25-26

“…just as Christ loved the Church

and gave Himself up for Her 

to make Her Holy,

cleansing Her

by the washing with water

through the Word,”

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John 13:5-11

“After that, He poured water into a basin

and began to wash His disciples’ feet,

drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.

He came to Simon Peter,

who said to Him,

‘Lord, are you going to wash my feet?’

Jesus replied,

You do not realize now what I am doing,

but later you will understand.’

No,’ said Peter, ‘You shall never wash my feet.’

Jesus answered, ‘Unless I wash you,

you have no part with Me.’

‘Then, Lord,’

Simon Peter replied,

‘not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!’

 Jesus answered,

Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet;

their whole body is clean.

And you are clean,

though not every one of you.

For He knew who was going to betray Him,

and that was why He said not every one was clean.”

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Isaiah 12:2-3

“‘…Surely God is my salvation;   

I will trust and not be afraid.

The Lord, the Lord himself,

is my strength and my defense;   

He has become my salvation.’

With joy you will draw water   

from the wells of salvation.”

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John 4:14

“…but whoever drinks the water I give them

will never thirst.

Indeed, the water I give them

will become in them

a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

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John 7:38-39

“‘Whoever believes in Me,

as Scripture has said,

rivers of living water

will flow from within them.’

By this He meant the Spirit,

whom those who believed in Him were later to receive.

Up to that time the Spirit had not been given,

since Jesus had not yet been glorified.”

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Revelation 22:1-2

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life,

as clear as crystal,

flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb

down the middle of the great street of the city.

On each side of the river stood the Tree Of Life,

bearing twelve crops of fruit,

yielding its fruit every month.

And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.”

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Revelation 22:17

The Spirit and the bride say,

‘Come!’

And let the one who hears say,

‘Come!’

Let the one who is thirsty come;

and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.”

Amen!

Opposites Attract!

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I received this e-mail awhile ago:

 

“Ladies this e-mail will answer all your questions…

 

Men Are Different!

 

They think differently…

Talk differently…

Are interested…

Or not interested…

In different things!

The sooner we realize it the better off we’ll be…

And the easier it will be to get along…

 

Why Men Are Seldom Depressed!

Men are just happier people:

Their last name stays put…

The garage is all theirs…

Wedding plans take care of themselves…

Chocolate is just another snack…

They can be President…

Car mechanics tell them the truth…

Same work, more pay…

Wrinkles add character…

Wedding dress $5000. Tux rental-$100…

New shoes don’t cut, blister, or mangle your feet…

One mood all the time…

Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat…

A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase…

They can open all their own jars…

They get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness…

Three pairs of shoes are more than enough…

They are unable to see wrinkles in their clothes..

They don’t need to put on a new face every day…

The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades…

They only have to shave their face and neck…

They can play with toys all their life.

One wallet and one pair of shoes!  One color for all seasons…

They can ‘do’ their nails with a pocket knife…

They have freedom of choice concerning growing a mustache…

They can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives on December 24th in 25 minutes…

 

No wonder men are happier!!  Ha!

 

Nicknames: 

If Laura, Kate and Sarah go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Kate and Sarah…

If Mike, Dave, and John go out for lunch, they will affectionately call each other Fat Boy, Bubba and Wildman…

 

Eating Out: 

When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $20, even though it’s only for $32.50.  None of them will have anything smaller, and none will actually admit they want change back…

When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators…

 

Money

A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs…

A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn’t need, but it’s on sale…

 

Bathrooms

A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel…

The average number of items in the typical woman’s bathroom is 337…A man would not be able to identify more than 20 of these items…

 

Arguments:  A woman has the last word in any argument…

Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument…

 

Future:

A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband…

A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife…

 

Marriage:

A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn’t…

A man marries a woman expecting that she won’t change, but she does…

 

Dressing Up:

A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash,

answer the phone, or go get the mail…

A man will dress up for weddings and funerals…

 

Natural:

Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed…

Women somehow deteriorate during the night…

 

Offspring:

Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments, romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears, hopes, and dreams…

A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house…

 

Though For The Day:

A married man should forget his mistakes. There’s no use in two people remembering the same thing!

 

P.S.  Read about relationships:

 

Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus by John Gray, Ph.D.

http://www.marsvenus.com/

 

Laughing Your Way To A Happy Marriage by Pastor Mark Gungor

http://markgungor.com/

 

Men and Women

Most can’t agree:

On what a “lazy” Sunday afternoon looks like…

What “straighten up the house” entails…

How long “working on the car” takes…

Or what, “I’ll be ready in five minutes!” really means…

Just the other day…

I was listening as my husband spoke on the phone to his good friend, Dave…

“Oh, No!!!  What did you do, Davie???

Your new puppy?  Big mess?  While you were out playing golf?  And she was at church? 

And the volume in your house is on ‘MUTE!!!?!’

Oh, No! Georgie can’t help you with this one, Buddy!!!

Why???  Because no matter what you say or do…you’re wrong!!!

So, just say you’re sorry and be done with it!!

I’m telling you, Friend…

It’s a grey area!!  With women!”

So, by now I’m laughing, because I can’t hear Davie’s end of the conversation…

But I have an answer, nonetheless!

“Swallow you’re pride…

Say you’re sorry…

Put your ‘puppy tail’ between your legs…

And beg for forgiveness!!”

My husband conveys my message and says…

“Doesn’t matter if she said you could go…

Clean up the mess!!”

See???

Opposites!!!

Thank God they attract!

But both men and women can agree on our love for Jesus!!

And how we need His love for us!

Don’t you find that amazing???

In our household…

I’m not a morning person…He is!

I do the paperwork…He can’t!

He’s super observant…I’m not!

I’m a clean-up-as-you-go cook…He’s messy and doesn’t care!

He’s trained to handle a crisis…I melt down!

But…

It’s okay, because…

Jesus and I are opposites, too!

And Opposites Attract!!!

Yipee!!

I’m weak…He’s strong!

I’m human…He’s divine!

I’m selfish…He’s selfless!

He’s sinless!

He’s love!!

He’s Holy!

God’s the Creator!

God’s perfect!

God never changes!

God never fails!

Lord, I Can’t Get Over You!

Men and women are opposites…

And they disagree on many things…

But somehow in Jesus…

We all find what we need!

We all seem to agree!!

Men and women from all walks of life…

 Every country…

 People who can’t agree on politics…

Or the economy…

 Or even on which of our major world problems to try solve first…

Can agree that we adore the love of our Savior for us!

It’s amazing!

We can meet someone totally different from us…

  And still just know that they possess the love of Jesus…

That They Have His Heart!

Psalm 8:4

“What is mankind that You are mindful of them,
    human beings that You care for them?

You love like no other…
Not anything that I do…
You forgive me…
I choose to stay here with You!

Hold me…
Closer…
Can’t lose this moment…
You’re love has covered me!

And now I can’t get over You!

I just can’t get over You

Arms of my Father…
Grace can be found…
Lay my fears down…
Not the same anymore…
Changed from the inside out..
Heart is beating…

Can’t get over the way…
Your love stays the same…

All the time…
You stay the same…
My song remains…

Oh, Lord…

Nothing I can’t do…
Except get over You!

I’ll never get over You!!

Amen!

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