Joy in the Journeys

Does Jesus really care or understand?  Allow me to share a story with you.....   Let me begin this way. There have been questioning times in my life where this question has come to the forefront of my life.  How about you?  It nags and nags me until I start feeling guilty.  Then I feel guilty that I feel guilty and am questioning.  What a merry-go-round!!    About a year ago I  went through this game (if I dare call it that).  There was a time that I wondered how my rent would be paid because of a massive amount of unexpected bills.  First, I was mad. Then anxious and fearful. THEN, I decided to take it before the Lord.  Why do I generally take it to the Lord as the last resort?  A big hmmmmm....   At the time I had a part time job valet parking at a local hospital.  You would think that tips would be good; not the case.  One day I picked up a car to deliver it to its owner.  She had a Christian ra...

       Each new year brings with it, for me, a time of self-evaluation and goal setting.  As I have evaluated last year and the first months of 2020, I find I am not happy with some areas.  One such area is my spiritual growth and walk with Jesus.  I have found myself trying to fool my closest friends, loved ones, myself and Jesus.  How silly, trying to fool Jesus, or anyone for that matter. I am only fooling myself.  I imagine Him looking at me and saying, "now Susan, what are you doing?"  This year I have been broken and sometimes briefly lost my hope and joy.  Life brings hardships and challenges.  How we face these makes all the difference between a life of anger, resentment, weariness, fear, OR thankfulness, joy and a realization that Jesus is in control and nothing touches me except those things that have passed through His nail scarred hands. Jesus can fix the messes I find myself in.  I learned a long time ag...

            I recently took a spiritual gifts assessment after many years.   The results gave me my three top gifts, one of which was evangelism.   I scoffed a bit at this one because I usually think of those with the gift of evangelism as being missionaries or people who go door-to-door talking with people and handing out tracts.   Or, perhaps, someone who drives around in their car with a loud speaker blaring out “Jesus saves”. Many you have done some of these things.   I know I have.   I don’t usually think of simply sharing my faith as evangelism.   You may think this too.   However, this morning changed my view.          I just had to get out of the house so I decided to drive to a local coffee shop early this morning.  I took my Kindle with me to do some reading and enjoy the weather.  I decided to sit outside – no one was there.  I had been reading for...

       Have you ever looked back on the past to consider something you did or said, and couldn't believe it?  But yet, there it was, in black and white.  Sometimes I do that with my writing. Today I came across something I wrote about two years ago. Funny, how I still seem to struggle with the same areas in my life.  My foolishness, my frame of mind, my arrogance, my temporary loss of passion for the things Jesus has called me to do.  Here are the words I wrote then....perhaps you are feeling somewhat the same as me?     " When my hands, soul and heart are tired of trusting those who let me down, Jesus I give You everything. When I see what a hypocrite I am, how lost I feel, and I fail to go in the direction You have called me to, please bring me down to where I need to be...at Your feet.   Take all my passion for temporal things and all my lies about who I think I am because I never knew what freedom was until you rescued...

      For me,  finances have been tight, as I am sure they are with you.  This a difficult and trying time we are in. I found about a year ago that I had to take on a job after not working for five years since my retirement.  I was hoping to be able to quit this job early this year, but I have not been able to.  Ugh. I have been unable to give as much as I had been.  This is breaking my heart as giving is what I love to do.  I have been disappointed in myself and have felt that the Lord is disappointed with me, also.  Just at the right time, my pastor spoke on  2 Corinthians 9: 6-15 which says that each one must give as he has decided in his heart to give.  Well,  initially this confirmed my guilty feelings.  But, wait!! He went on to say that these verses are not about money.  The word heart here means understanding grace.  The Lord doesn't care about how much money I make....He cares about my heart an...