"Hallelujah! Praise God in his holy house of worship,
praise him under the open skies;
Praise him for his acts of power,
praise him for his magnificent greatness;
Praise with a blast on the trumpet,
praise by strumming soft strings;
Praise him with castanets and dance,
praise him with banjo and flute;
Praise him with cymbals and a big bass drum,
praise him with fiddles and mandolin.
Let every living, breathing creature praise God!
Hallelujah!"
Psalm 150

Much-Afraid

by Missy Grant

“As she looked down into the depths of the valley, the heart of Much-Afraid went numb. For the first time on the journey she actually asked herself if she ought not have attempted to follow the Shepherd. How could one follow a person who asked so much, who demanded such impossible things, who took everything?”

I had two families I love experience tragedy this past week. Actually, it was the same night and the calls came minutes apart. My normal mode is to run to the scriptures – which I did – and pray – which I did, but I also read through the book Hinds’ Feet on High Places over the weekend. I first read this book in high school and have pulled it out fairly regularly over the ensuing years.

I was struck with the above quote. I have had many moments in my life where I have stood looking down into the depths of the valley and gone numb. Where I prayed with everything I had for the path to go up to the high places – only to discover the path wound down into the depths. How about you? Are you doing any valley gazing?

I was recently asked by someone to define faith…many scriptures come to mind, but I think faith is best defined this way, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Your will be done….And being in agony He was praying fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. When He rose from prayer…” (Luke 22:42,44-45)

Faith is the action of our heart to allow for the painful journey to unfold. To be in agony – yet pray fervently, “Not My will, but Your will…” – to allow the blood to flow freely, and to know we will arise.

“How little she had imagined when first she set out on that strange journey, what lay ahead of her and the things which she would be called upon to pass through. So for a long time she sat silent-remembering, wondering and thankful. At last she put her hand in his and said softly, “My Lord, I will tell you what I learned…”

Heavenly Father…you broke my heart this past week, but because of the blood of your Son, I can say those words to you and know your heart broke as well. May we pray like your Son! May we have faith that takes action in our hearts. May we take hold of your hand and share our heart with you. Amen

Out Of The Blue

by Sue Donaldson

How great that we have the advantage to communicate quickly and immediately to people all over the world. Last night Bethany was bantering back and forth on email with Jeff D’Jernes – the Wycliffe translator she will be working with in Papua New Guinea this summer. How great that it’s so fast and free!

However, there’s still nothing like the spot of encouragement sent through the old-fashioned US Post Office. Isn’t it amazing when we open the snail- mail box, and in the midst of bills and ads, we come across a handwritten note. A little archaic, I realize, but a lovely piece of stationery – handmade or otherwise – can make someone’s day.

Paul wrote a lot in his day, and one encouraging note he sent to his buddy, Philemon, was a case in point:

“Every time your name comes up in my prayers, I say, ‘Oh, thank You, God!’ I keep hearing of the love and faith you have for the master Jesus, which brims over to other Christians. And I keep praying that this faith we hold in common keeps showing up in the good things we do, and that people recognize Christ in all of it. Friend, you have no idea how good your love makes me feel…” (Philemon 4-7 The Message)

I don’t say this to add guilt to your already full file of guilt – better known as your “good intentions file.” (We all have one – and sometimes I can even find it…) But, my wonderful sister-in-law, Anne, showed me her new filing system and first on the list was her: OOTB file – “Out of the Blue.”

In this file she keeps her note cards, stickers, and ideas to send to a friend and relative – so that they will be blessed with a note– right “out of the blue.” Isn’t that a great idea? And, I know it works because I received a handmade note from Anne which included 3 of her favorite teabags – plus, loving, encouraging words (“Friend, you have no idea how good your love makes me feel…”)

Part of every day needs to include good works and words that refresh the hearts of the saints. Let’s get that OOTB file started – I’ll see you at Staples.

Father,

Help us not to forget to build up each other – get us organized – for Your sake and each others’. May we recognize You in all of it.

Amen.

by Peggy Brown

If you are reading this on Monday, I am on my way home from a week camping in Yosemite. I am sure I will have a lot to tell you when I get home, since as I write this, the rain is falling and the snow is melting. That bodes well for some wonderful waterfall action!!

Here are some verses to ponder.....until next week.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. Then he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light "day" and the darkness "night." And evening passed and morning came, marking the first day. Then God said, “Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth.” And that is what happened. God made this space to separate the waters of the earth from the waters of the heavens. God called the space “sky.” And evening passed and morning came, marking the second day.” Genesis 1

God's Breath

by Cindy Frauenheim

At the Women’s Salad Supper this week, I was really blessed by singing the hymn Breathe on Me, Breath of God. I have sung it many times before, but this time I almost felt His breath as I took in those simple yet profound words. The words became my prayer. This morning I dug out the words again to sing it in the privacy of my kitchen, alone. I cannot sing well at all, and am not given to breaking out in song, so this is really a rare thing for me to do! Later I sang it as I drove to and from errands.

Breathe on me, Breath of God,

Fill me with life anew,

That I may love what Thou dost love,

And do what Thou wouldst do.

Breathe on me, Breath of God,

Until my heart is pure,

Until my will is one with Thine,

To do and to endure.

Breathe on me, Breath of God,

Till I am wholly Thine,

Until this earthly part of me

Glows with Thy fire divine.

Breathe on me, Breath of God,

So shall I never die,

But live with Thee the perfect life

Of Thine eternity.

I especially want to meditate on the first two verses and how the hymn points me to the enabling breath of God. If I am to love, act, will, and endure in ways pleasing to God – in His ways – then I must have His breath upon me. I cannot just decide that I want to love others and be Christ-like out of my own strength and initiative.

^“…for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Philippians 2:13

God working in me is his Holy Spirit – breath has long been associated with the concept of the Holy Spirit. I love the promise that God is even shaping my desires. I just need to yield to his life-giving breath. His spirit also enables me to endure – both in the sense of enduring hard things, and in the sense of persevering and standing firm in the truth. So I am encouraged to ask daily for a fresh breath from the Lord. I need to be filled with His Spirit to be about His business.

Lord, thank you for your breath that creates and fills with life. Thank you that your breath in me gives me the desire and ability to love and live according to your will. May I daily yield to your Spirit, from my first moments of consciousness each morning. And may you fill me more and more so that I end up “glowing with your fire” to those around me.

"I look up to the mountains; does my strength come from mountains?
No, my strength comes from God,
who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.

He won't let you stumble,
your Guardian God won't fall asleep.
Not on your life! Israel's
Guardian will never doze or sleep.

God's your Guardian,
right at your side to protect you—
Shielding you from sunstroke,
sheltering you from moonstroke.

God guards you from every evil,
he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
he guards you now, he guards you always."

psalm 121 (The Message)

The Queen and Her Court

by Missy Grant

“Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion's carcass. In it was a swarm of bees and some honey” Judges 14:8

Ok, I admit, that is an odd scripture to open a devotional with, but lets see where the Lord takes us.

I like bees (as long as they don’t sting me). I do not like wasps, or yellow jackets or hornets, but bees….they hold a different spot in my heart. I think it has much to do with Winnie The Pooh and his ongoing desire to meet his hunger needs with pots (or paws full) of the golden syrup. Winnie….he has had many adventures in his pursuit of the sticky, flower scented drippings from the bees. I have not given much thought to bees lately. As a matter of fact, I have not given them any thought until last evening. Why this evening you ask? Well, all the bees in the universe descended onto the trampoline in my backyard. I do not exaggerate. Apparently the queen decided to take an afternoon siesta on our springy, black mat of fun and every bee within shouting distance came to party.

There have been several suggestions made on how to break up the party of fun taking place in the backyard – everything from call your local exterminator (you do not want to know the cost…), to “Let’s blast them with the hose”, to the calmer…”leave them be (no pun intended). They will swarm again and leave”. Seriously, if the queen doesn’t take her royal backside to a castle fit for her majesty, I may just be the one with the water hose.

As I was having a brief meltdown, the Lord reminded me of the story of Samson and the bees which took up residence in a lion carcass. A carcass that was created when Samson killed the lion as it attacked him in a vineyard. There was a slight problem with Samson and this lion. Samson had taken the vow of a Nazirite and was forbidden to touch the carcass of this animal. He not only touched it, but ate sweet honey from the hive of bees which had taken up residence in the carcass. Then to make matters worse, he withheld this information from his parents and shared the honey with them.

It made me ask the question, what in your life are you “hiding”? What seemingly inconsequential act, word, or behavior has you eating honey out of a forbidden container? What are the results of your eating out of the forbidden container? Hmmnn…now we are hitting the heart. You know the expression, “confession is good for the soul.” Well, confession is necessary soul food - confession between you and the Lord that is. He desires for you to walk in His ways, but when we stumble, he has provided the path back to Him…also known as the blood of Christ. It is time to stop hiding.

Try this… “Lord, you know my heart, you know my contrary ways, you know my ‘hiding’ place. Help me this day Lord, to not hide from you. Let me taste the fruits of Your Spirit – the fruits that set me free. Thank you Lord. For how your creation reminds us that there is only one way to the hive…and that is through the blood of your precious Son. Amen.”