He fills my life with good things : simplebooklet.com

I don’t want to start over—again! “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11) For many people, the first day of the new year is a time of wishing for a chance to do it all over. Just start again. Unfortunately, we can't. Yesterday and yesteryear are gone forever. We can only begin again, not go back. What has been done--is done. It cannot be undone. Sometimes things may be fixed/repaired, bit by bit, but a day is only lived once. The great thing about life with God, however, is knowing that He removes the past from our present. While there may be some consequences for past choices, God promises to distance us from our transgressions. Psalm 103:12. He allows us to live forgiven. And in that forgiven walk, we are free. John 8:36 We have a new life. He will help us plan a life that is totally new! His thoughts for us include hope. And with that hope, God sees a future with us in it. Today, I can choose a better future. I can ask God to show me His plan for my life and then for grace, for His help to live in that plan. I can do it because He is able to keep me from falling. Jude 1:24 Prayer: Father, I choose a better future with all the plans You have for me. Thank You for Your promises to help me.

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I am OWNED! "For thou hast possessed my reins: Thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: Marvelous are thy works; And that my soul knoweth right well.” Another translation says, “You made my whole being; you formed me in my mother’s body. I praise you because you made me in an amazing and wonderful way. What you have done is wonderful. I know this very well.” (Psalms 139:13, 140) What? God has possessed (owned) my thoughts, my impulses, my affections, and my passions from day one. He covered me in my mother's womb. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Then what is my problem? Have I never known this? Did I know it and forgot it? No. The truth is I didn't know it. I read the words but did not comprehend their meaning. Consequently, I never applied them. It is time to understand and live by the understanding that I am owned. I was bought. 1 Corinthians 6:20 clearly says so. “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. Verse 19 gives the complete thought. “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” How did I miss the totality of the connection? I have been treating my entire self as though I own me! Wrong! God purchased me at a price I could not even begin to pay. I have been misusing someone else’s property when I am generally very careful how I treat things belonging to someone else. Wow! I am more careful with things belonging to humans than I am with God prized possession--the temple, the home of His Spirit! If a person has ownership of the body of his/her spouse, how much more should the Spirit of God Himself have control over me? How many times have I sung the words to the song “I Surrender All” with tears streaming down my face? How many times have I run through my stored-up thoughts frantically searching for things I might have missed and failed to surrender? And yet, as I absorbed these words today, I realize I have flashes of anger at inconsiderate drivers, flashes of impatience with a child who doesn't understand his/her desire cannot be met instantly? And that is just the beginning of things I find when I begin to diligently search. I hear the words of many pastors, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, fruit exists: Love, joy, peace, gentleness, meekness, kindness, longsuffering, temperance, goodness, faithfulness.” Basically, if these are missing, perhaps He is not at home. God owns my emotions. They are His. So, it's time to give them back. It is time to surrender all I have taken and mismanaged and time to become a better caregiver of the Spirit’s home. He wants to live in His house. And, I want Him to stay there. Prayer: Holy Spirit, I need you. Come into my life with Your strength and Your power, please come in and stay. O Holy Spiri,t water my withered soul today. Be strength in my weakness; touch me and make me whole.

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“There has no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that you may be able to bear it.” There is no experience of evil, no trial that I have received, that is uncommon to humans, but God is reliable, who will not leave me alone to be proven tested as we prove bread beyond what I have power to handle but will provide a way out with the experience so I will make it out. (1 Corinthians 10:13) In the preceding verses, Paul wrote about things that happen to all of us. When we find ourselves in the middle of a trial how often do we look for the thing God promised to provide with it—the way out? My own wail is “God, where are you? It's too much!” Like Peter on the water, I scream, “Master, save me!” We want deliverance from our tests, but God does not promise that. He promises a way to escape so I would be able to bear the test. What? I still have to go through it? I do. It seems contradictory. There is a way out, but the way out is THROUGH the test. He sees me on the other side of it. Victorious. Just as He saw Peter feeding His sheep, after Peter failed his test and denied even knowing the Savior. This verse, however, is not where it is without another purpose. It is in the middle of a talk about tests people failed and perished. The children of Israel had the same access to strength and spiritual sustenance—but they failed the same tests we face today: idolatry, fornication, tempting Christ (like our children try our patience by murmuring and complaining). They were destroyed by the thousands, and their stories were recorded to warn us. Every person is tempted when his own desires and lust carry him away. We get trapped by our own lust and desires. Imagine that! But God promised that a way out of the trap was provided in the test! Do like Joseph and flee rather than like Eve and linger near forbidden territory. Recognize the danger and your vulnerability. How quickly do we flee? Or say “no”? We tend to linger because we think we are strong enough. So, we are cautioned in verse 12: "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall." Or, let those who think they are strong enough take heed lest they fail the test. Look for the way out—and take it! Prayer: Father, when I am tempted to whine and complain about the tests I face, help me to remember your promise and look for the way out. And when I find it, give me strength to take it and walk free. It's Too Much!

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“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) “Can man by searching find out God?” (Job 11:7) I once gave myself a headache trying to figure out exactly when “in the beginning” was. Where did God come from? Where was He when “the word was made flesh and dwelt among us…”. (John 1:14) Humans tend to be inquisitive, curious. We want to know, to understand. We sense there are answers to questions we have, and we become frustrated when those answers seem to avoid or evade us. As I grew older, I slowly understood there are secret things that belong to God. (Deuteronomy 29:29) No matter how hard we search man cannot discover some things about God, the God things. We can't figure out some things about our parents, our children—even ourselves, either. There are and will remain mysteries until God decides to reveal them. God said “the just shall live by faith” (Hebrews 10:38) and that must be the conclusion. By faith I accept that God is the beginning of all things. I accept that God was at the beginning of all things and God will always be Alpha and Omega—the beginning and the end. Prayer: Father, when I have questions about those “God things” grow my faith. Help me be satisfied that when it is my time to know things you have not yet revealed to me, You will open my eyes and my understanding. Help me live by faith and trust. God Keeps Secrets

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“Brethren, if any man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spiritof meekness, considering thyself lest thou also be tempted.” (Galatians 6:1) How often do we forget those words when we see a brother or sister clearlystruggling with sin? This says “overtaken”, which can mean “caught up with and passed”. It can also mean “overwhelmed and caught off guard by a fault”, or “a moral weakness that hasn’t yet become a vice”.) When we see this struggle, we run to Matthew 18 for guidance on how to ‘handle’ the situation we observed, if we go to the Bible at all. We try to decide if we should follow those guidelines by asking someone else what they think! It becomes a comedy of errors. Matthew 18 says we are to go to the person who is struggling with sin ALONE, trying to gain our sibling. If they do not hear one person, Matthew 18 says involve two more people who are SPIRITUAL, not 2 lookie-loos and/or gossipers. Unfortunately, we who are not spiritual want to reprimand; wewant punishment. At times, we even want excommunication—IMMEDIATELY! God forbid someone we love has been wounded by the fault of someone else we are supposed to love as much! We take sides. Someone must pay—to suffer a while. Is that God’s way? No. But it is what the unspiritual want. We see it again and again in the Bible narrative. God rarely leaves His struggling child in the hands of mankind for that reason. Humans want revenge! We even tell God the punishment we want Him to give! Peter denied even knowing Christ. Still, God limited Peter’s suffering to the time Christ was in the tomb. On resurrection morning, the angel had the same message for the 10 and Peter: “he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him” Mark6:7https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2016%3A7&version=KJV . The instruction was specific: “tell the disciples and Peter”. Why? God knew that the other disciples and Peter would think Jesus was through! After all, another disciple was right there Friday night. It would have been very difficult for him to not tell what he had witnessed--the denial and Peter’s horror. watch out! Jesus knew his followers, and He knows us. By His example ofrestoration, we learn the ways of restoring others. Jesus sends for the erring, suffering servant. Not only does Jesus restore Peter to his place in the remaining 11, but He also tells Peter his continuing assignment. “When you are converted (completely changed, made over), this is the work I am giving you. If you love Me more than these, feed My sheep. Feed My lambs. Strengthen your brethren. Even as Jesus saw the test Peter would fail, He saw Peter on the other side of it—changed. He saw Peter converted and functioning from a place of strength, a place from which he could encourage and uphold the brethren. So, we get the same instruction from God through Paul: Restore your sibling. Following cautionary words Paul says, You do the work of strengthening. “Those who think you stand secure, take heed lest you fall”. (1 Corinthians 10:12) Prayer: Father, help me remember that none of us are safe untilwe are safely home. Help me heed the words: “Be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:32)

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“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and he shall lift you up”. (James 4:10)I went back to the beginning of the chapter seeking to understand why James said humble yourselves right near the middle of a lot of admonitions that I realize we pick and choose from. We like the words “humble yourselves” because they are followed by the words “He shall lift you up”. But what about the words “submit” and “resist” in verse seven? Many seem to ignore those words making it seem like they want the devil to just not be so close. There are things we really want to do, even things we know are not pleasing to God—we just still like them and plan to be delivered—one day. We dance around the verse about lust that begins in verse one, because we want to ask and receive. Period. It makes us uncomfortable when we are plainly told we ask and don't receive because our motives for asking are wrong. We give ourselves reasons, yes, even permission, to judge others. We say, “I'm not judging, I'm just inspecting the fruit”. The truth is, we inspect then we judge the type, condition of, value of, etc., of said fruit and the tree. We then feel burdened to report our findings—not to God, the one who can do anything with the tree or its fruit. We report to other humans who have the same/similar struggles. And we readily speak evil of one another. James Chapter 4 rips the cover off of it all fully exposing our true condition. He also tells us how to fix the mess we are. Humble yourself. Look at your true condition. Get real! Keep it real! You are proud, full of envy, filled with lust, adulterers and adulteresses, friends of the world! We are a mess as far as God is concerned. We make plans for a tomorrow he may see as nonexistent. We need to see and do the corrective work. We who think we stand are warned. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. How do I humble myself? Start by eliminating bragging and boasting. Be grateful. Be considerate. Stop seeking attention. Stop judging others, admit mistakes, admit being wrong, be open-minded, ask forgiveness. Simply, examine yourself. Am I fleeing fleshly lusts? Am I resisting the devil or barely giving him a gentle nudge away? Am I drawing nigh, up close to God, submitting myself to Him? Prayer: Lord, I need grace! Help me to do justly, to love mercy and choose to walk humbly with You. Help me toclothe myself with humility and wear it daily. Humble Yourself

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“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to with stand in the evil day, and having done all to stand.” (Ephesians 6:12, 13) We tend to think of this life as a war with conquering heroes, heavyartillery, cannons, bombs, fighter jets, and bombers, and at one level it is. But that is God's war and Jesus won it. We're like the soldiers on isolated bases who still fight an enemy who refuses to accept defeat--even in retreat. So, our battles are more like hand-to-hand combat: up close and personal. We wrestle in full battle armor, using grappling holds, clench fighting, throws, takedowns, and other wrestling moves trying to control the opponent. We need to win the match. We try to subdue the enemy with our superior ability—and fail. We fail because this is not human-to-human combat. It is a match of human strength to the strength of “principalities” (a state ruled by a Prince who is the ruler of darkness of this world. It is against spiritual wickedness in high places here Paul tells us the kind of enemy we face and the kind of battle it will be. He tells us the armor we will need while assuring us that we can prevail. The adversary is seeking the unwary, the unprepared, like a lion does. Do not be fooled! The enemy is an ambush predator hiding in the tall weeds of your life where he is out of sight. He is down wind, out of sniffing position and silent, so he cannot be heard. God says be sober and be vigilant. Keep all senses on high alert. Change your position, your vantage point, so you are not caught unaware. We have specific instruction on how to win when we encounter this adversary, and we will encounter him. The whole—the entire armor of God must be on not hanging nearby, not handy. Imagine a soldier on the battlefield who only keeps his protective gear handy—nearby! Oh, no! The helmet is on a case of incoming fire. The body is protected from head to toe so that when the evil day comes and the enemy seeks to overrun the position, the warrior is ready to stand and remain standing. That is the goal in human combat. It must be our spiritual goal, as well. Victory in every match, and ultimately, total defeat of the enemy. It is God’s plan for us to win every battle, every day. Prayer: Lord, I need grace! Help me to do justly, to lovemercy and choose to walk humbly with You. Help me to clothe myself with humility and wear it daily. Battle Ready

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Watch your step!“Brethren, if any man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself lest thou also be tempted.” (Galatians 6:1) How often do we forget those words when we see a brother or sister clearly struggling with sin? This says “overtaken”, which can mean “caught up with and passed”. It can also mean “overwhelmed and caught off guard by a fault”, or “a moral weakness that hasn’t yet become a vice”. When we see this struggle, we run to Matthew 18 for guidance on how to ‘handle’ the situation we observed, if we go to the Bible at all. We try to decide if we should follow those guidelines by asking someone else what they think! It becomes a comedy of errors. Matthew 18 says we are to go to the person who is struggling with sin ALONE, trying to gain our sibling. If they do not hear one person, Matthew 18 says involve two more people who are SPIRITUAL, not 2 lookie-loos and/or gossipers. Unfortunately, we who are not spiritual want to reprimand; we want punishment. At times, we even want excommunication—IMMEDIATELY! God forbid someone we love has been wounded by the fault of someone else we are supposed to love as much! We take sides. Someone must pay—to suffer a while. Is that God’s way? No. But it is what the unspiritual want. We see it again and again in the Bible narrative. God rarely leaves His struggling child in the hands of mankind for that reason. Humans want revenge! We even tell God the punishment we want Him to give! Peter denied even knowing Christ. Still, God limited Peter’s suffering to the time Christ was in the tomb. On resurrection morning, the angel had the same message for the 10 and Peter: “he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him” Mark 16:7 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2016%3A7&version=KJV . The instruction was specific: “tell the disciples and Peter”. Why? God knew that the other disciples and Peter would think Jesus was through! Jesus knew his followers, and He knows us. By His example of restoration, we learn the ways of restoring others. Not only does Jesus restore Peter to his place in the remaining 11, He tells Peter his continuing assignment: When you are converted (completely changed, made over), this is the work I am giving you. If you love Me more than these, feed My sheep. Feed My lambs. Strengthen your brethren. Even as Jesus saw the test Peter would fail, He saw Peter on the other side of it—changed. He saw Peter converted and functioning from a place of strength, a place from which he could encourage and uphold the brethren. So, we get the same instruction from God through Paul: Restore your sibling. Following cautionary words Paul says, You do the work of strengthening. “Those who think you stand secure, take heed lest you fall”. (1 Corinthians 10:12) Prayer: Father, help me remember that none of us are safe until we are safely home. Help me heed the words: “Be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:32)

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Come!These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world y(John 16:33) Jesus, standing on the water, invited Peter to come. In that invitation was the thought,“Come, walk out here with Me. Never mind the wind, the water, the waves. I am here. If you sink, I have the power to save. Just come.”Step out. Keep going. In my life on a turbulent sea, the same Savior beckons to me. Come. I'm still out here. I still have the power to save. I am with you. The highest crest and the lowest trough are no match for Me. I am still the ruler, the Maker, and Master of the sea. Walk out of the boat. Step firmly, confidently on the waves. I am here. You will not sink."In this world, you will have tribulation." Trials and tests will come. BUT, "be of good cheer, I have overcome the world". That means all, not some of it. Come! Prayer: Lord, open my heart so I hear you calling. When I hear you invitation, help me respond quickly and meet you on the waters of life, trusting every step.

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“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) “Can man by searching find out God?” (Job 11:7)The simple answer is: No. I once gave myself a headache trying to figure out exactly when “in the beginning” was. Where did God come from? Where was He when “the word was made flesh and dwelt among us…”. (John 1:14) Humans, especially children, tend to be inquisitive, curious. We want to know, to understand. We sense there are answers to questions we have, and we become frustrated when they seem to avoid or evade us.As I grew older, I slowly understood there are secret things that belong to God. (Deuteronomy 29:29) No matter how hard we search man cannot discover some things about God, the God things. We can't figure out some things about our parents, our children—even ourselves. There are and will remain mysteries until God decides to reveal them. God said, “the just shall live by faith”, (Hebrews 10:38) and that must be the conclusion. By faith I accept that God is the beginning of all things. God was at the beginning of all things and God will always be. Alpha, Omega, Beginning and Ending. Prayer: Father, when I have questions about those “God things” grow my faith. Help me be satisfied that when it is my time to know things you have not yet revealed to me, You will open my eyes and my understanding. Help me live by faith and trust.IWanna Know

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"For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17, 18) There are times I've wondered exactly how much affliction God thinks I can handle. I have wondered how much all humans really can bear, too. A difficult pregnancy? A stillborn baby? Preterm delivery? Abuse? Being divorced when I was more in love than ever? Cancer diagnosis? Rebellious teenagers? A parent's death? A sibling's death? Serious injuries from a vehicle accident? An unexpected pink slip--downsized out of the job? Family members turn away? Eviction? The car broke down when there is no money to repair it? When any, many, or all of these "afflictions" belong to you, in desperation, most of us consider bailing out. "I have had enough! I'm done!" But no one would understand suicide. Maybe a temporary escape? No. Alcohol and other drugs do not eliminate the reality of what happened. It is still there--tomorrow. "Okay, God! Obviously, you don't think this is too much, but seriously? You must have your people confused! I AM NOT JOB!" But what if I am? What if YOU are? We look at Job's trial and say "NOPE, not me! I am not the one!" What if God has been looking at me, looking at you, and saying to all the host of Heaven--and the devil himself: "Have you considered my servant (Your Name)? Job 1:8 If you KNEW God had chosen you, would that change what you would decide you really could bear? Would you give thanks for being chosen for that load? That trial? Would you still ask, "Why me? Why THIS?" And if not you, who would you rather it happened to? Who would you prefer to have had to carry a load that had been designed for you? In the middle of fiery trials, Jesus still says, "MY burden is light." (Matthew 11:30) When your boat is about to be swamped by the ferocity of the storm on the lake of your life, He still whispers, "Be not afraid." (Matthew 14:27) God calls us to live, to thrive where we are planted. He enables us to go through. He calls us to live and thrive in the crucible. That is the life He has chosen. Realizing that, I find comfort in the words: "When He hath tried me, I will come forth as pure gold."(Job 23:10) I am being purified in the fire of affliction. "..our light affliction, which is but for a moment..." (2Corinthians 4:17). So, from my crucible, I cry out, "Lord Change Me!" Prayer: Lord, help me trust that you do know how much is enough. What Is ‘Light’ About Affliction?

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Being a job supervisor is challenging! Without ever planning it, that position can be enslaving –for anyone. Especially for the first-time supervisor. It seems the place can’t run without “you”. At least that’s what happened to me. When I was on vacation—the phone rang. If I was at home sick, the phone rang. "Ms. Alethea, how do we…?" "We can’t find…." I worked 12-18 hour days to keep things going and downtime was only on the weekend. And, Fridays in the fall and winter I left around 4 pm. I was thankful for sunset! Yes, I needed the money from overtime hours, but once salaried, there was no extra benefit to longer hours. But, I was valuable to my company. They said they couldn't do it without me. I had no time to think or do anything else, however. I lost contact with my children, trying to provide for them. We stopped functioning as a family. “I have to go to work!” My “treasure” became the job without me realizing it. My focus was on keeping the job so I could provide for them/us when God was the Provider of even the job! It wasn’t worth the losses we suffered and still suffer because of misplaced loyalty. Others had determined my value and my focus. In my personal life, I did the same thing. Others evaluated my writing, music, crochet, gardening, and parenting. Subtly, they encroached upon my worth and how good I could feel about myself. They determined my worth. They evaluated ME! Slowly, my self-worth became dependent upon what another human concluded. I forgot my Father sees me differently. His evaluation is from the inside out—not outside in. The Spirit gave me the gifts my Father wanted me to have, so I could glorify Him. He looks at the way I use these gifts but does not place my VALUE to HIM there. My Father saw my worth—determined it from eternity past and purchased me in my raw state. He paid with His life! I have value because I am His prized and cherished possession. That changes everything! I am His. When I see through His love, His choice, I know I am of inestimable value to my Creator. I must give account to Him alone. How do I care for His property? Protect His property? I was bought with a price so I must glorify Him. His opinion is what I must seek primarily and let Him be in control of the opinions of others. PRAYER: Lord, help me remember the price You paid for me, and the only value I need to consider is Yours. What am I Worth? For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matthew 6:21)

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I need to survive!" That's what many people say when things aren't going well in their lives, or their relationships. But must "my" survival be at the expense of others? In the ‘normal’ sense, what many tend to think is this: in order for one to survive, the other must be destroyed. It’s about me and mine. Well, you and yours must die or suffer lack in order that I--and mine--survive. Seriously? No, but I am saddened to remember that at one point in my life, I functioned as if that were the way I believed things should be. I recall that as a young single parent, I found myself so focused on making sure me and mine just "made it" from day to day and week to week that I couldn't see there were others struggling just as hard as I was all around me. One day I invited several women and their families to have dinner with me and my family. It was through our after-dinner conversation that I realized other single parents in our church community had needs very similar to mine. As a result, my house became a hub for nearly weekly dinners. . I endeavored to make sure that all of the children who came had at least that one meal each week. Eventually, I was able to talk with our pastor about the many pressing challenges his single-parent families faced, and he was able to change their situations were handled. In the process of doing for others, I discovered the wrongness of self first. I must learn to trust that He is the Provider, the Sustainer of all. It is His job to take care of me and mine—as well as you and yours. That is what my parents patterned for me by their lives of giving; I just missed something and failed to apply their example to my life. So often self doesn’t even function out of wanting its own good. Self will actually destroy itself! We call it “self-destructive”. So, we say “I have to survive!” God did not create me to survive, though. He created me to thrive! There is a huge difference. For me to thrive, I must change my understanding of my own need. Survival is exclusive, thriving is inclusive. In survival mode, I rarely see beyond myself. Thriving helps me see myself and others and how we come through life together. God tells me, “I am Jehovah”. I read the words without understanding. I (solo/alone/without the need of any other ‘thing’) AM (existence independent of any other thing) JEHOVAH (the God who provides). PROVIDES (gives freely/liberally). This understanding demands that I get out of SELF mode. I must get to submission, humility, and trust. He never intended for me to take care of myself or provide for myself! Self-reliance is one of the enemy’s favorite tricks. I must let go. Let God do His work so I can thrive! PRAYER: Lord, remind me that self has to die so You can handle all of the things you allow to come my way. Help me allow You to be Jehovah. I’ve gotta survive“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” (Philippians 2:3, 4)

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“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Galatians 6:9) But why does it always seem to take so long to get to something that God has promised? Waiting is part of the journey to the season. Just as one season follows another on schedules we cannot see precisely, we learn to look for signs of change. Crocuses and robins signal the nearness of spring. We look for them. We look for melting snow and warmer days, and say, “It’s coming!” All of a sudden the forsythia, Japanese magnolia, and other early-blooming trees put forth blossoms. Pussy willows abound by the creeks, daffodils, and hyacinths burst into bloom. Jonquils, Jack-in-the-pulpits, lady slippers, and trillium announce that the long winter has passed. So it is with the seasons in which we will reap in life. If we have worked the ground and planted seeds, a crop will spring up—the growing seasons will follow. And after that the season of reaping. If we grow weary along the way, we could easily miss a time of necessary action. (If weeding is not done when plants are growing in the spring, the gardener risks losing young sprouts.) So it is on our faith journeys. There is a time to let the land rest and restore, a time to break up the ground, preparing to plant. By planting carefully, sowing good seeds through communicating with God, and studying His Word, we build faith and trust. When necessary, we weed out the things that might damage the crop and watch for signs that the time of harvest draws nigh. It will come. God promised—"While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter and day and night shall not cease." Gen 8:22 There WILL BE planting and there will be harvest. Don’t lose courage or become despondent; don’t relax your grip, and The season of reaping is ahead of you—PRESS ON! PRAYER: Father, sometimes I get weary of waiting. Thank You for Your promise that my time of reaping will come. Help me learn patience and grow my trust while I wait. When EXACTLY is ‘Due Season’?Let Alethea not be weary in well-doing because she will reap. “IN DUE SEASON”. When exactly is that? Evidently, it is not now, since I am still waiting for, not reaping the thing I have been waiting for. Just like a child sitting in the back seat asks, “Are we there yet?” “How much longer until we get there?” We believe the scripture, “Let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season we SHALL reap if we faint not." But we keep asking-- when exactly IS that? When does “due season” come? How will we know when we are IN that place? We want to hurry up and get there—we want to get to the reaping part. Even as adults we grow weary of waiting. We get tired of the amount of time it’s taking to get “there”. I realize that just as I long for spring in the middle of winter, and snow in the blazing sun and sweltering heat of summer, I have to wait, TRUSTING that one life season will follow another. Each season comes when it is due. Right on time. We think of “due season” as EVENTUALLY. Well, it is—but in this verse, there is God’s promise. If I don’t grow weary (tired) in well-doing (doing the right thing) I will (certainly) reap (gather a harvest) when the season of reaping comes--if I faint not (don’t lose consciousness for a short time; if I don’t lose my grip). “IN DUE SEASON”.

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“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:6) If I am not feeling full, why not? Am I looking for the wrong thing—a feeling of fullness, a feeling of being satisfied or am I just not hungry anymore in the way we feel about physical food and hunger, or is that the wrong application? There is a blessing Jesus promised to those who hunger and thirst after righteousness—a specific thing. They shall be filled. That's his promise. Hunger and thirst here seems more like a craving that nothing else will satisfy. Do I feel a discomfort or weakness caused by a lack of food coupled with a desire to eat—hunger? The noun or the verb? To have a strong desire or craving for something? Or is it both? There are times in each day when I have had that physical feeling—weak from lack of food with no accompanying desire to eat. I have been thirsty for a specific beverage that water did not satisfy. We are designed to feel physical hunger daily, and most of us feel that lack of nourishment several times a day. We feel parched when we don’t consume enough water. From birth, those longings are present. We seek until we find the things that satisfy the desire for a period, and then desire returns. We are created for daily need for sustenance. Not a one and done. Imagine that! And, the same God who promised to supply our need for food and water, promises to fill us with moral rightness with Him, when we crave it enough to search for it. PRAYER: Father, As I often frantically search for the things that will satisfy and quench my physical hunger and thirst, help me seek Your righteousness as diligently so I can be filled. Starving yet?

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“The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying: Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” (Jeremiah 31:3) Are you still playing “He loves me, He loves me not” with God? Are there days you are sure He loves you, and others you are not so sure? If that is how you go through your days, I have GOOD NEWS for you! You can stop pulling petals from your daisy. Go ahead. Put it down. He said He loves you with an everlasting love. And everlasting means FOREVER. You are loved by God--forever. Period. So why do any of us question the constancy, the infallibility of the love God professes for us? Is it possible that because we see how easily we break promises, how often we change loyalties that we think He is like us? Thankfully, God is not like us! He does not lie; He cannot fail. We can trust Him and trust His word. Fortunately for us, this verse also says He draws us. Jesus died for us while we were still sinning against God. He loved us before we knew Him, before we chose Him. That’s some kind of love! Too many of us have never experienced the kind of love we can count on 100%. How many people have experienced the kind of love that looks specifically for them—by name, physical characteristics, everything that makes us “us”—the way God does? He loves you. Prayer: Father, whenever I feel unworthy of it, help me to still trust that Your love for me will not fail. HE LOVES ME, HE LOVES ME NOT

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“Cast thy burden upon the Lord and He shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” (Psalms 55:22) Sometimes even good things get heavy. When we are shopping, carrying packages from one store to the next, the weight becomes wearisome. We grab a cart, a basket to share the load. If others are with us who are big enough and strong enough to help, we share our load with them. Too often this verse says to the reader, just give God the stuff you are tired of carrying, the bad stuff of life—after all, we can carry the good stuff. At least, we don’t think we can’t carry the good things in life. We are God’s kids. And as kids, we generally think we can carrymore than we actually can or should. Cast—toss the load upon the Lord. Why? So He can sustain us—so He can keep us going, so He can strengthen us, support us. It is so easy to say “I’ve got it!”, “I can do it!” God wants to be a part of our lives. He wants to share. When He is supporting us, sharing the load, our knees won’t buckle beneath the weight. The words to the song “What a friend” call it a privilege to carry our sins and griefs “and stuff” to God in prayer. We needlessly carry things. We are invited, so many times to come and get rest—my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Take the weight of yesterday’s failures and tomorrow’s fears. Hide me, cover me, wash me, cleanse me through and through. Prayer: Lord, help me release my load. Help me to trust that You really do know exactly how much I can bear. Chunk it!

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“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally,, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him.” (James 1:5) There is no excuse! We all know there are things we just do not know. Truthfully, a deficiency or total absence of it—ASK God for it. Why? He gives it liberally. LIBERALLY! That’s in large or generous amounts. You ask for it, and He isn’t stingy in supplying what you asked for! When we are hungry and are being served, we are sometimes asked how much we want. Rarely do we say “Just a little, please!” No! We tend to say things like: “Be liberal!” “Be generous!” “Pour it on!” That’s what James says God does when we ask without us saying the words. He gives good gifts to those who just ask. He doesn’t criticize us for what we don’t have or don’t have enough of. One definition says, “The word itself implies we deserve to be scolded, berated, “justifiable grounds.” So even when there is wisdom we COULD have gained already, ask. It is still available. Why do we struggle, then? Students, teachers, parents—all of us. The Creator of all offers us the very thing that was with Him in the beginning. In fact, if Eve had not listened to the serpent and eaten the forbidden fruit (trying to get something on her own), God would have liberally given her all the wisdom she asked for. Prov. 8:22-31 says wisdom was with God—a ‘she’ that is somehow a part of everything He created—the paths celestial orders (Paths of celestial orbit) the word of the heavenly bodies of light, animals recognized their kind. Growing plants knew their growth limits. When the temple was to built, the necessary wisdom for each skill was given –imprinted in the gene pool, so they could create out of God’s brain, so to speak. God told Moses ‘see that you take them after the pattern which was showed thee in the mount. Before they call I will answer! God knew people would whine about what they didn’t know— God has not changed—yesterday, today and forever He remains the same. Ask and grow in the wisdom provided. Prayer: Father, help me come to You for the wisdom I need in every situation I face. Help for Dummies 101

He fills my life with good things

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