And He said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (Matthew 17: 20-21 NASB) You can not experience the fullness of your relationship with God if you are holding out on Him. He has so much to offer to His children. He holds nothing back from us. He gave it all and He wants us to live in the complete and total freedom that being related to Him bestows on us. But we hold onto our 'stuff' like we can deal with it on our own. Like He can't handle it. Lik...
"I am nothing but sharp edges and splinters.. shards of a splattered and shattered faith, using those shanks and points to keep His love at a distance so I don't have to face Him. Yet He allows Himself to be pierced and bloodied once again as He draws me close, holding me in His arms of love and grace and pulling those spears and swords into His own body and heart as He covers me. How can He stand it? How can He stand me?" I wrote these words one 2:00 a.m. morning several years ago. It was a time when my life was broken, and I felt that I had nothing left to give. Nothing but pain. Looking back, I see the hand of God in my life, shaping me and changing me into the person He created me to be. Growing me. Growing my faith. Growing my confidence and trust in Him. The following hymn (written by Elisha Hoffman) comes to my mind with new understanding of the lyrics. I laid my life in the hands of Jesus. He has not ...
In response to the question: “Who was your childhood hero?” My brother. Greg. He developed polio when he was about 6 months old. He had to have surgeries, wear a brace and eventually a shoe that was built up to make up the difference in his legs. He began having seizures when he was about 13/14. But he was such a fighter. He never let his disability bring him down. Funny. I never thought of him as being disabled. He couldn't play organized sports but he was always riding his bike, flying kites, playing a spontaneous game of football or catch. He taught himself how to play the guitar and he was fantastically good on it. It was a passion for him. Wherever we lived (we were an Army family) he organized a band and was constantly playing. He turned everyone he met into a friend. He loved to read and introduced me to everything from Marvel comic books to Tolkien. He graduated from college and was just beginning to start a career when he passed away at the age of 24. He gave me s...
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