HAVE YOU EVER SEEN AN ANGEL? I THINK I HAVE.

In the late 90’s my mom and I went to Kingsville, TX my old stomping grounds in which I lived for almost 4 years while Jim was in college. We loved S. Texas while we were there; the history and folks, who live the S. Texas life, were the salt of the earth. My plans to take my mom there was to show her how special S. Texans were. One such treat for S. Texans is: they love to shop in Mexico. While we lived in Kingsville they showed us the ropes on where to go and what to buy, when we traveled there. So, we planned a day trip over the border into one of Mexico’s border towns. It was always an adventure to shop and look for bargains and be a part of a different culture for a day. My plans were to visit friends in Kingsville, take her to the historical King Ranch, eat at all my favorite spots and stay at one of my friend’s home (Mary), and go shopping in Mexico while we were there. We planned to leave early in the morning for Mexico so we could get there before noon, to shop all day, leave around 4:00 for Kingsville, and this would get us back to Kingsville at a decent hour. We decided to go to Nuevo Laredo a good size border town, with easy parking on the U.S. side.  A walk over the bridge and you are there. We got up early, had breakfast and off we went. The drive from Kingsville is a couple of hours and you go through a few small towns and the last trek of the drive you are in no man’s land. You can see for miles and miles and miles. The landscape is flat with small brushy growth and you sense you are in a desert. You better make sure you have a full tank of gas after leaving the last small town, because there is nothing until you get to Nuevo Laredo. We were traveling in my mom’s fairly new T-Bird, low mileage and good on gas too. Our laid out plans were working well, we got up early and ate, drove to Nuevo Laredo, parked the car, walked over the bridge (11:30) and shopped till our hearts were content. Before we knew it, it was 3:30 and we had not eaten all day. Oh well, let’s finish shopping and we can stop and eat something on the way back to Kingsville. Our bags of treasures we found had to go through customs (which took time) and we finally got back to our car at 5:00. We were starving and had not eaten for 10 hours. The 5:00 traffic getting out of Laredo was not fun and we kept our eyes open looking for a place to pull over to eat, but nothing caught our eyes. Before I knew it we were leaving Laredo and heading into no man’s land. I assured my mom, “well… we will find something in one of those small towns before we get to Kingsville. Hang in there… we will not starve.”  The road in no man’s  land is straight as an arrow, flat as a board and you can put the petal to the metal and make some good time, so that is what I did (we were hungry). There we were traveling at the speed of about 85 miles an hour, smooth as glass, did not see anyone else on this desolate road, just me and my mom in the T-Bird cruising along in our “adventure.” About 20 minutes into our smooth as glass ride; I looked into my mirror and saw lights, blue lights on top of a police car, on my rear-end. Oh my…. Where did he come from? I could see for miles and he appeared out of the blue. So, I pull over in the “middle of Nowhere - Ville”, and proceeded to pull the gear shift into park. It would not go, it was stuck in drive. With my foot on the brake, I pulled and pushed and it was stuck. As I was trying to get this car into park the policeman came to my window and I rolled it down. He started the conversation; “Miss, Did you know you were speeding and could I please see your license and registration?” “Yes officer”, was my reply as I was tugging on the gear shift. I went on to say, “Officer my gear shift will not go into park, see… I am pulling on the stick and it is stuck.” While I am telling him my dilemma he is looking at my license and registration…then hands them back to me and says, “Pop your hood and I will see if I can manually pull it into park.” I popped the hood, the officer moves away from my window and heads to the front of the car and opens the hood. He studies for a minute, locates the gear mechanism and starts to manually pull it into park. It was stuck! He tried several times and it would not budge. The Office then closes the hood, walks over to my window and says, “Miss, You were speeding, but I am not going to give you a ticket, only a verbal warning. Please watch your speed. Where are you heading?” I told him, “We had been shopping in Nuevo Laredo all day and were heading back to Kingsville.”  He then went on the say, “Miss, please do not speed and do not stop anywhere. You go straight to Kingsville without stopping.”  “Yes sir”, was my reply. I rolled up my window, watched in my mirror as the Officer returned to his patrol car and got in it. I then pulled forth from the shoulder of the road and started driving towards Kingsville. The police officer was behind me, following at a close distance and I would from time to time, look in my mirror to see him following close behind. It must have been maybe 10 minutes, hard to say the exact time, I looked in my mirror and he was gone, disappeared in an instant. Remember we were on a straight flat road and you can see for miles. His last words of advice echoed in my mind; “do not stop, go straight to Kingsville.” My mother and I were planning and discussing how we were going to get the car fixed when we did get to Kingsville. What a mess! We finally drove into Mary’s driveway and were in Kingsville. I went to put the car into park and as smooth as a baby’s butt it went. I did it again and again and each times the same results. My mother kept that T-Bird for another 7 years and it always, without any trouble, would slide into park as smooth as a baby’s butt.  

We have reminisced many times over the years about our trip to Nuevo Laredo. We both truly believe that the Officer was an Angel in disguise. Who knows what lurked in one of those small towns that could have harmed us. Our Guardian Angel did know what lurked and we give all the thanks and praise to our Father in Heaven who cares for us and our angel who steered us back to Kingsville.

Why Do Catholic's Worship Statues and pray to the Saints?

A post from Faith Explorer Online inspired me to add to their post. I am asked this question many times and it then leads to more questions. One question..it leads many to ask, " They were all human and only God is omnipresent..He is everywhere. Humans do not have that ability. So..how can Mary pray for you and hear you, she is not omnipresent like God?"   I will share with you my thoughts today as I blog from my heart.  

Faith Explorer Online (Touching and Connecting lives) posted this on facebook: Protestants and Other Anti-Catholics say That Catholics Worship Statues and The Saints. Are Catholics Worship Images The Saints And Mary? When you have a picture of your Girl Friend in your wallet and when you miss her you take it out and look at it and even talk to it and kiss it is that idol worship ? Catholics do NOT worship statues or worship saints! A statue is merely a representation of someone who was once living, or in secular terms it can also be a sign of something, such as independence. What about that picture of your family that you have on your desk at work. Your picture helps you to remember and it brings back memories. Are you worshiping your picture every day? Of course not! Nowhere in the catholic books, Library archives, Catechism, and ancient writings that says we must worship to Mary, Saints, and Idols Praying to Saints is really asking the saints to intercede for us since they are closer to God but we do not worship them. The same way when you ask a friend to pray for you to God because you have a final test coming up. This is called intercessary prayer or asking someone to pray for you to God. To show that we are only asking to pray for us, lets take a look of the Hail Mary Prayer Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of god, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen If you notice we are only asking Mary to pray for us exactly the same when asking friend or a relative to pray for us when you are sick or has a test. We ask the Saints or Mary to pray for us because they are closer to God. In Fact Martin Luther was devoted to our Lady. You can also pray to God directly if you want. Praying to Saints is only optional like if you need extra help so your prayer will be heard by God. Veneration is showing respect or honor, not worship. Veneration of Saints is asking them for intercession. The only one worthy of worship is God, and God alone! If a Catholic did worship a statue or saint, they would be excommunicated from the church. You must remember that the Catholic Church is traced back to the apostles. They could not take a picture of Jesus and carry it around in their pocket--cameras did not exist. But in the early Church, one way of remembering was by erecting statues of those of importance, such as Jesus, Mary, etc. Why do you think that it is so odd that Catholics have statues in their churches and no other denomination does? Because Catholics carried the tradition from the early Church! If statues were so taboo by God, then why did God command Moses, while in the desert, to put a serpent on a pole? Num. 21:8 And the Lord said unto Moses, make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten when he look upon it, shall live. Then what about the construction of the Ark of the Covenant? Ex. 25:18 God said to Moses - And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat (vs. 20) And the cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and their faces shall look at one to another… 1Kings 7:23 He made also a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round all about; the height of it was five cubits, and a line of thirty cubits compassed it round about. 1Kings 7:24 And a graven work under the brim of it compassed it, for ten cubits going about the sea: there were two rows cast of chamfered sculptures. 1Kings 7:25 And it stood upon twelve oxen, of which three looked towards the north, and three towards the west, and three towards the south, and three towards the east, and the sea was above upon them, and their hinder parts were all hid within. 1Kings 7:26 And the laver was a handbreadth thick: and the brim thereof was like the brim of a cup, or the leaf of a crisped lily: it contained two thousand bates. Now, there is an instance when God forbids statues, and that is the well known incident in Exodus 32-8 when the people created a molten calf. This calf was not a reminder but it was created to be a God so that it could be worshiped. As you see, a statue is harmless if it is being used as a representation of someone or something, but when the statues becomes a God that is worshiped, then there is much harm and those who worship as such are wide open to the wrath of God. Idol Worship... This is another argument aimed against the Catholic Church since it has statues of Jesus and Mary, and other saints. Aren't all those statues in the Catholic Church the same as worshiping graven images? EXODUS 20:2-6 Ex. 20: 4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness [of any thing] that [is] in heaven above, or that [is] in the earth beneath, or that [is] in the water under the earth: 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God [am] a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth [generation] of them that hate me; 6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. First, one must understand what a graven image is in the context of the Old Testament. To make a graven image is to create an image out of some medium, such as clay or wood, and worship it as a God. The statues or pictures of Mary are not worshiped as a God. If a Catholic worships a statue of Mary as a God, they are guilty of idolatry.

The Lord did not forbid the making of images. In fact, God commanded Moses to shape a brazen serpent. This serpent was able to cure the people of the serpent bite, if they looked upon it Numbers 21:8

Later, when the people turned to idolatry of the serpent, Hezekiah had it destroyed (II Kings 18:4).

Here you see the balance. Images are good, if they are helpful, but not if they encourage idolatry.

Moreover, the Lord commanded that the image of two Cherubim be constructed on the top of the Ark of the Covenant on either side of the Mercy seat. Was this the sin of idolatry? I think not.

Mary is the mother of God and the saints are the friends of God. If keeping their pictures or statues helps to inspire us to a more holy life, then it is a good thing. Don't you have pictures of your family in your home? Is this idolatry?
Or when someone dies, should you destroy all images or pictures of them, lest you be guilty of worshiping them?

My thoughts: I really like the way this is all explained concerning this subject and this is the way I share my thoughts with folks when asked this question.  It always inspires another question by Protestants after you answer them.  How can Mary and all those who are in heaven hear us? They were all human and only God is omnipresent..He is everywhere. Humans do not have that ability.                                                                                                                                                                

My thoughts; We are all connected…we are One… we are all a part of His Body..through the power of the Holy Trinity. Scripture time and time again explains the mystery of Our Heavenly Father’s plan to connect us “As earth as it is in heaven.”  The Apostles’ Creed dates back to the Apostles, an ancient liturgical reading from the early church that proclaimed the faith, was before the New Testament was canonized:  It states very clearly….We believe in the Communion of Saints. Many mainstream Protestant churches say the Apostles’ Creed every Sunday during their service. Christ taught his disciples, that He is One with the Father and the Holy Spirit and if we believe in Him we become “one” in Him. If we become “one” in Him through our faith this unites us to the Holy Trinity. Eph. 5:31-32:  
Because we are members of His body. 
For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. 
This mystery is great: but I speak in regard of Christ and of the church.  Notice this scripture is about how a man and wife become “One with Christ”.. but it ends with explaining the great mystery..but I speak in regard of Christ and of His Church.

John 14: 5-11 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; how know we the way? 
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me. 
If ye had known me, ye would have known my Father also: from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 
Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 
Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and dost thou not know me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; how sayest thou, Show us the Father? 
Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I say unto you I speak not from myself: but the Father abiding in me doeth his works. 
Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.

John 14: 18-20: I will not leave you desolate: I come unto you. 
Yet a little while, and the world beholdeth me no more; but ye behold me: because I live, ye shall live also. 
In that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. 
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself unto him. 

1 Cor. 6: 15-16: Know ye not that your bodies are members of Christ? shall I then take away the members of Christ, and make them members of a harlot? God forbid. 
Or know ye not that he that is joined to a harlot is one body? for, The twain, saith he, shall become one flesh.

Luke 3: 21-22: Now it came to pass, when all the people were baptized, that, Jesus also having been baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, 
and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form, as a dove, upon him, and a voice came out of heaven, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.

The Holy Trinity is unity and no doubt a mystery and we are a part of the mystery in the unity. I think this is beautiful to see how our Heavenly Father orchestrated His Kingdom to be connected. It is through the Holy Trinity. We are not alone. Those that are in His presence are pouring out prayers for us all on earth.   

                                                                                                                                                              Rev. 5: 6-8 And I saw in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, having seven horns, and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent forth into all the earth.
And he came, and he taketh it out of the right hand of him that sat on the throne.
And when he had taken the book, the four living creatures and the four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having each one a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

We are “one” in His Kingdom, connected together within the loving arms of the Holy Trinity. One of my favorite scripture stories where I can visualize this communion is in Rev. Not only does this story teach the unity of the Holy Trinity, it is a vision of Heaven and Earth coming together and partaking of the Holy Eucharist.                                                                                                                                                            

 Rev. 19: 6-10: And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunders, saying, Hallelujah: for the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigneth.
Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and let us give the glory unto him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
And it was given unto her that she should array herself in fine linen, bright and pure: for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they that are bidden to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are true words of God.
And I fell down before his feet to worship him. And he saith unto me, See thou do it not: I am a fellow-servant with thee and with thy brethren that hold the testimony of Jesus: worship God; for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The Lord’s Prayer is answered in our lives when we pray: Matt. 6: 7-14,  Your Kingdom come..Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Being an ex-Protestant, I know the Protestants view of the Lord’s Supper and it is only a memory to remember. They do not understand that a miracle takes place, and our Lord is present in the Eucharist and we are at the wedding feast every time we attend Mass. They look at this passage as a promise to be a part of the wedding feast when He returns. Not understanding His Kingdom was ushered in with the resurrection. Jesus speaks more about this wonderful gift He will be giving His church to be united in the Kingdom (heaven and earth) in the Gospel of John. The Eucharist unites us as “one” when we partake. John 6 26-27:  Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw signs, but because ye ate of the loaves, and were filled. 
Work not for the food which perisheth, but for the food which abideth unto eternal life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him the Father, even God, hath sealed. 

John 6: 54-58: He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life: and I will raise him up at the last day. 
For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 
He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood abideth in me, and I in him. 
As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father; so he that eateth me, he also shall live because of me. 
This is the bread which came down out of heaven: not as the fathers ate, and died; he that eateth this bread shall live forever. 6:60-67: Many therefore of his disciples, when the heard this, said, This is a hard saying; who can hear it? 
But Jesus knowing in himself that his disciples murmured at this, said unto them, Doth this cause you to stumble? 
What then if ye should behold the Son of man ascending where he was before? 
It is the spirit that giveth life; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, are are life. 
But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who it was that should betray him. 
And he said, For this cause have I said unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it be given unto him of the Father.
Upon this many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him. 
Jesus said therefore unto the twelve, Would ye also go away?

To all my church family all around the world and to my family in heaven..Mother Mary and all the angels and saints..pray for us and we look forward every time we go to Mass seeing all of you in the  Eucharist, the Wedding Feast of the Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world. Thank-you Jesus!

Rembrandt's "The Prodigal Son/Father"

Facebook has been a wonderful tool for us, it has opened a door to learn from others, “the huge picture” of who Christ is to this big ole’ world. We have chosen wisely folks from all over the world that share this love of Christ… that we may share with them and in turn they can share with us. One such person we have become FB friends with lives in Malta and he is an artist. He posted something so interesting and thought provoking… I just had to share it. I asked him to post it on my wall, so I could share it with all my FB friends.  He was more than willing, but it would not post as a new post. He was able to post it in an area of one of my old post? I then tried to cut and paste it as a new post and it would not copy.. hmmmmm what is going on here? I guess his privacy settings have created this problem? I was so determined to post this….so I painstakingly hand wrote it…then typed it. Why? I am crazy for Sacred Art! Did you know that before there was television, radio and the printing press folks were entertained by artist and learned about things, “like” faith and God. This is what our Artist friend in Malta shared and we just thought it was so cool! Update 11/01/11: Tony has a blog now and you have to visit it: http://wordofgodalmighty.blogspot.com/2011/10/sacrifice-of-holy-eucharist.html

This is what he wrote this morning to us and sharing so you can understand  “why” we wanted to share w/you. “Very Good Morning in the Lord. I shall try and post it as you asked., but, remember J&J, everybody's Life Story IS interesting and there is a lot one can learn from each other. Re Sacred Art, whenever I have a commission or paint a subject for my one satisfaction (very rarely), I always pray and meditate before I start, and try to put all my knowledge of the Scripture in the painting. God bless us all.”

Little bit about this Artist that I copied from his profile:

Am a full-time artist/painter. Participated in numerous exhibitions, both locally and abroad. I produced, to date, over 800 works. These are found in Museums and Private Collections in U'K., Germany, Australia, Canada, Ireland, California, Italy, New York, Scotland and Spain, besides Malta.
I am interested in History of Art, appreciate Classical Music and Gregorian Chant.
I take great interest in the study of the Holy Scripture and study of Biblical Commentaries. I hold weekly talks on the Sunday Gospel, with special reference to the contemporary life of Jesus, the Jewish History and Culture so as to understand better the message found in the Bible, a lot of hard work and study.

His Post we loved: Rembrandt, is here reminding us of Prophet Isaiah's words: "Can a mother forget her child ? Even if she does, I will never forget him. His name is written on the palm of my hand."

Why have I chosen, as my Profile Photo, a reproduction of Rembrandt’s famous ‘Prodigal Son/Father Father’ A very straight forward answer because it is ‘The story of my life’, not to say “Everybody life.’ I believe that this is the best photo, snapshot, I could produce, of my being… hugged and welcomed with LOVE by my MUM and DAD. “Ah, those were the days”, some might answer. You are right to say so, with one slight correction, these are the days. I returned Home when ever I decide to, and with God’s help, and still be warmly hugged by Mum and Dad. Now let’s get one thing is this possible? I am, ‘Thank be to God,’ 76 years old, ‘so how on earth am I going to be welcomed and hugged by Mum and Dad? Certainly, because in God we find the Maternal and Paternal love. The repentant son represents each and every one of us, as long as we return to the Father’s house. We are always welcomed back, and what a welcome that would be. That is the message of this well known Parable, which many scholars believe, was Christ favorite.

We have, for sure, very often misbehaved and acted insensibly and, I dare say, without showing any sign of responsibility towards ‘Mum’ and ‘Dad’, and they, for sure deserve better, we are much indebted to them.

This message is found for the hidden a message. Just look at the pair of hands, and arms of the old man the father. They are different from each other. Look at them well. The left hand is surely a man’s hand, strong, virile, muscular,, note the shadows on the back of the son, he is using pressure, he is encouraging him, inspiring him with hope and the start of a new life, sort of. ‘Come on get up, don’t worry, we shall start anew, be brave.’ This is surely the father’s behavior.

Now look at the other hand, on the right. That is not a man’s hand, that, for sure is a woman’s hand ‘full of’  grace, genteel, refined, using little or no pressure, as if patting the face of her new born babe, scarcely touching him, and yet full of love and consolation. The fingers, unlike the man’s are close to each other. Yes, here you, and I, have found Mum and Dad, in God’s embracing love, that’s what I meant when I said in God we find the Maternal and Paternal love.

Rembrandt is here reminding us of Prophet Isaiah’s word, “can a mother forget her child? Even if she does, I will never forget him. His name is written on the palm of my hand.”

DO YOU HAVE JOY?

I wrote the following in 2005 the summer we had all the hurricanes hitting the gulf coast which included Katrina. The impact it had on our area was felt...many victims found refuge in our town. It brought our community together to help feed and give shelter to those who lost their homes. Felt a need to post it as a reminder. Pray for those in Japan and also for all those that are sick and lonely and dear to our hearts.

Sept 13, 2005

To my friends and family... just a note to encourage, wherever you may be? With trials and hardships we all experience in this life, sending a reminder that we do have a hope. The hurricane aftermath and many other situations I know of concerning friends and family who are sick or struggling prompted this writing. The Lord reminded me of several testimonies in His written word that encourages our faith and this is the reason for me sending this to you. I pray it will encourage you this day as it has encouraged me. Galatians 6: 2: Carry each other’s burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

The book of Philippians was written by Paul, remember Paul’s history? He was once Saul the religious zealous Jew who killed early believers because of their faith in Christ. Jesus loved Saul, “ right where he was“. Acts 9: 3-6, As he reached Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him, he fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? Who are you, Lord? Saul asked. I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied." Pondering on this verse I wonder how many prayers were being prayed by the new Christian community to our Father for help in safety and protection from Saul. I wonder how many early saints, “such as Peter, John and Matthew “ were on their knees praying for Saul’s conversion and asking the Father to forgive him, just as Christ was hanging on the cross, asking the Father to forgive us, “ for we do not know what we do” Luke 23: 34. See the hope we have for our friends and family who have not come to know Christ as of yet? For those who are not living as the Lord would have them, God does have a purpose and a plan for each one of them... Just keep pleading in prayer.

Paul wrote the book of Philippians while in prison. Even though he was writing in prison this writing is filled with joy. The words “joy” or rejoice” are used fourteen times. Philippians 4:11-13: I am saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances, I know what it is to be in need, & I know what it is to have plenty, I have learned the secret of being content in any & every situation, whether well or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Paul writes in chapter 1, starting in verse 3, I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this , that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. As I ponder this writing in scripture, I picture Paul in prison and the atmosphere in which he is living. Is Paul cold or is he hot as he writes, do they let him use the bathroom elsewhere, does he have a bed or does he sleep on the hard ground, how much food do they feed him or is he hungry? I then think of the prisons in my life and none can compare. What a testimony in hope with Paul’s life, while in prison he is encouraging us on the outside. He knows the hope we have in Our Lord and he is reassuring us that whatever our situation is in life, God will not abandon us. Our Lord started a purpose, a reason to live out our allotted time and He will be with us to completion. Whether we are in prison, grieving, hurting, sick, fearful of the future or whatever.... Paul while in prison again writes to Timothy, 2 Timothy 4: 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith... Many Christian circles talk about faith and if you only have faith things will work to our advantage. Paul’s faith was that of, “things would workout to God’s glory and God’s purpose for Paul life”. Even in prison he encourages us with his faith and the fruits of joy and rest are very evident in his testimony. What a testimony!

Another great man in the Bible that had ups and downs in this old world was King David and he shares in Psalms 112:6-7 Surely he will never be shaken, a righteous man will be remembered forever He will have no fear of bad news his heart is steadfast trusting in the Lord. Psalms 46: 2 God is our refuge & strength an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way & the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though it’s waters roar & foam & the mountains quake with surging.

Jeremiah was a young man called by God. His first 20 years under Josiah, a good king who tried to bring the people back to God, gave Jeremiah his learning field a good start. After this Jeremiah was often in danger because of God message for God’s people. Through it all God protected Jeremiah so Jeremiah could continue God’s plan and purpose. Jeremiah 29: 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you & not harm you, plans to give you hope & a future....

In closing my thoughts to God in prayer:

Heavenly Father thank-you for your word and the encouragement it gives us. Teach us, Help us all to have the faith as Paul, David and Jeremiah. In time of need, give us your power and grace to keep our eyes on you and show us your joy. We pray for the joy of the Lord in our lives, even in our own personal prisons. We need the joy that is complete, a joy that endures, a joy that can only come from You. Lead us all in the race You have set before us and give us Your strength to finish it as you would have us. Teach us all,” the secret” you taught Paul while in prison of being content in any and every situation. Gently guide us and show us where we need to grow in you. Sanctify us with the work of your Spirit and through belief in the truth. Lord you have the answers to life and help us to listen. I pray for all those who are without a home due to the hurricane. Be with them all and meet their needs daily. I pray for my love ones that are sick, heal them, but most of all give them Your Joy. For my loved ones who have lost a precious loved one and are grieving, Lord I pray you touch their minds and hearts and show them, their future in the race. Give them the strength each day they need and encourage them with Your love. Give us all Joy and a Faith that will continue to grow in You and that endures forever........ AMEN

Love To All, Julie