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ORDINARY MOMENTS

ORDINARY MOMENTS

Saw an interesting report the other night on the evening news. I try to only watch about thirty minutes of the daily news, if that much, because of all the negativity. I watch just enough to “know” what is going on in the world. But this report was different and touched my heart. It was about a lady named Deanna Dikeman who had taken pictures of her parents waving goodbye since 1991 in their driveway. They were waving goodbye when she left to go to college, when she got married and moved four-hundred miles away. Pictures of them waving through the window at their only grandchild and so many more. She took pictures for 27 years! What a different, sweet legacy! Her dad passed away and she had pictures of just her mom waving from the same driveway until she passed away eight years after her dad. The last picture of that house and driveway, showed an empty driveway. Her collection of pictures is traveling all around the world, being highlighted in art galleries. 93 goodbyes in all.

Some would say that is sad, but she said the reason she is happy she took all of those pictures, is because it has helped her somehow with her own grief of losing both her parents. She said that “thru her pictures she hopes that everyone will appreciate all the ordinary moments with their dear ones. Tell your parents, you love them. Go visit them or give them a call or text them. Don’t wait until you think you will have time. You never know what might be different tomorrow.” Time is fleeting!

Years ago, I thought I had all the time in the world to call my great-aunt Lena, but actually I did not. I felt that gentle nudge, we all feel from time to time to do something. That is what I felt one day. I intended to call her. But after I went to bed that night, I remembered I had not called her. I had forgotten in all the hustle to get kids fed, bathed and tucked into bed. I thought I will just call her tomorrow. I had forgotten and put it off. It was too late. The next morning, my grandmother called and said she had found my great-aunt dead that morning. It took me a long time to forgive myself for not calling her that night before she passed! It still leaves a sadness in my heart to think about today! I learned a valuable lesson that day.

We are all getting older by the second. Because of an ordinary tragic moment, we all may not be able to get any older past today. We don’t have any idea how long we will be on this earth. James 4:13-14 reads “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit,’ whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.” Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 reads: “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die…” Talking about when the Lord will come at the end of time, Matthew 24:35-36 reads: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. But of that day and hour no one knows not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” Psalm 144:4 reads: “Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.”

We do not know when our last second on this earth will be. God only knows. We don’t know if we will see our loved ones ever again. It is always hard for me to see my Virginia daughter and family leave my home or when I leave them and fly home after visiting them. I have family close by but I don’t get to see them often. Their lives are full and busy with their own families. When I do get to see them, I get as many pictures as I can, to remember those sweet ordinary fleeting moments.

If you knew this was your last day, what would you do? Would you spend it doing and partaking of things of this world? Or would you spend it with loved ones, precious friends or spreading God’s promises. No one at the end of their life, has ever said, ‘I wish I would have worked more.’ But rather, ‘I wish I would have loved more, spent more time with loved ones.’ We live a few years and then go to our eternal home. Our loved ones and friends might die unexpectedly. All of a sudden, we don’t have any more time with them.

There are so many older people sitting in nursing homes just wanting someone to spend time with them-smile at them-play a game with them-just sit and listen. Take your children and visit them. At the congregation you attend, do you even know the older Christians. You have heard about them, but have you ever spent time with them? Job 12:12 reads: “Wisdom is with aged men, and with length of days, understanding.” We can’t just throw aside the aged. If we are smart, we will spend time with them. My aging uncle, one time, told me that the church he went to, stopped using him to teach classes or preach. I felt so sad for him and all the knowledge that He was willing to share from his heart. My dad comes with me in a wheelchair to the church I attend. Recently they brought him a microphone and he gave the opening prayer. What a blessing that was!

Is there someone you need to make amends with? Is there someone you need to forgive? Older or not? Is there someone on your heart, you have felt that gentle nudging you need to reach out to? Are you putting off coming to God? Don’t ignore the time you have right now to reach out.

One of these days you will be sorry you did not give a few minutes of your time to those who are in your lives. In the blink of an eye, they could be gone forever. Share ordinary moments with them. You will be blessed and thankful that you did! You never know when the last time you will wave or hug them will be. Don’t be standing over their gravesite regretting the things you should have said or done.

Matthew 7:7 reads: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you.” Even more important, don’t stand before your God one day and wish you would have, “asked, seek and knocked” for God to open His arms for you and let you in. He is always waiting for you to wave goodbye to this world and reach out to Him. Obey Him now! Don’t wait till it is too late! Don’t be standing in front of God at the end of your life, and thinking you should have spent more time with your Father in obedience to Him!

When are ordinary moments? Right now! What will you do with them?

Till next time!

                                                                        Keela

OUR INHERITANCE

Reading ‘The Prodigal Son’ the other day, about two sons and their father, I noticed something I had not seen before or heard any lessons about. In Luke 15 verses 11-32, we read of a younger son asking for his inheritance from his father. The father gave him his inheritance as he requested. The word I want you to look at in this reading is “them,” which is in all of the versions I researched. I have been a Christian for 60 years and never picked up on that word in verse 12. “…So, he divided to THEM his livelihood.” (capitalization by me) The older son, who had not asked for his inheritance, received his inheritance at the same time his brother got his! Now, I know you are saying, ‘what, you did not know that?’ Isn’t it amazing how no matter how old we are or how long we have been a Christian, that we constantly “see” new things we have never thought of before! The scripture is there for everyone, no matter what spiritual journey we are on. Psalm 21:4-5 reads “Show me Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; on You I wait all the day.”

The fact that their father gave their inheritance to both of them willingly, demonstrates his love, faith and trust that they would spend it wisely. He did not base his actions on their merit or their behavior. He was not thinking about what they would do with it or their actions, whether good or bad. They had the choice of what to do with their inheritance. He gave it all to them. Verse 12 says, “…he divided to them his livelihood.” (During ancient times, the younger son would have received half of what the elder son received. The younger son did not receive as much money from the father as his brother did. Probably a good thing as we are going to see in a minute.)

The word prodigal means: person who spends money in a reckless and imprudent way. So, it is evident by the word prodigal, that the youngest son went and spent all of his money. Verse 13 says “…journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living.” He went far away. He went where no one would know him or see what he was doing. What he did not remember was in Psalm 139:1-3, David says, “O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.” He forgot that God knows all. After he had spent all his money, a famine came to that country. So, he became in need. During this time, the older brother had been at home working. Verse 25 says “…was in the field.” The older brother had been going about his life, doing the things that were required of him and being obedient to his father.

The younger son, found a job to “…to feed the swine.” The Jewish people would look at this as an insulting job, because pigs were unclean according to the Law of Moses. He was desperate. Verse 16 says, “…he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.” Verse 17 says “…when he came to himself…” He finally realized, that even the servants at his father’s home ate abundantly, with food even left over and here he was starving. He wanted to go home. When he got home, he thought, he would tell his father “…I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”

Well, he was in for a surprise! His father saw him “…still a great way off.” And the father ran to embrace his son. He told the servants to get him the best robe, a ring, sandals and to prepare a fatted calf so they could “…be merry.” A fatted calf was usually only prepared for special occasions. The father was overjoyed that his youngest son had come back! The oldest son, heard all the merriment and asked a servant what was going on. When the servant told him, verses 28 -30 says, “But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore, his father came out and pleaded with him. So, he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.” (Underlined words by me.) What attitude would you say the oldest son had? Look at the words I underlined. I see he was jealous-all about him-selfishly only thinking about himself. Son was angry-father pleaded-and then look at all the my and I’s. He even calls his younger brother “…this son of yours…” When I read that, I can see what a child might say. With his life and his inheritance, the oldest son reminds his father that he did all he was supposed to do in service and obedience to him.

So, let’s apply some things to us today in this parable.

1. This is a picture of a father letting his son go his own way. The Father in this parable is God. God gives everyone the same chance to make the right choices for their lives. Whether we make the right choice of obedience or not, it is up to us. The Bible is full of men and women making bad choices and good ones. Joshua 24:15 says “…choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.” Joshua said “…but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” God gives us freewill to live our lives for the world or for God. Jesus says in Matthew 6:24 “…You cannot serve God and mammon.” (things of this world) The father had the choice to give his sons their inheritance and they each had the choice of how to use it. God has given us an inheritance in heaven, if we make the right choices on this earth.
2. The younger son did not feel worthy to be called his father’s son because of what he did. The father saw him coming and ran to him with open arms and rejoiced that he came home. That is the same with us. God created us in His image and He loves us without limits or conditions. You are His precious child. God values you so much that He sent His only Son to die upon that cruel cross of Calvary for us. It is through Christ that we find our worth, not by this world’s definition. Even though we have sinned and don’t feel that God thinks we are worthy to be His child, God is actually waiting for us to come back to Him. He is always ready, with open arms, to bring us back into His loving arms. 1John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Did you see that two-letter word “if?” We have to make the choice to return. When we come to Jesus with our mistakes, our failures or feelings of unworthiness, He is faithful to forgive us and give us hope. Not only does He immediately forgive us, but also cleanses us. He cleanses us, restores us and helps us not to live in that dark place of feeling unworthy and sinful. The father in the parable immediately ran to his son, just as our God will do for us.
3. The older brother became angry and was all about himself. In his mind, his relationship with his father was based on the works that he had been doing. But he did not have the right heart. He had never been given a party and look at all he had done. He was consumed with thoughts of equality and justice for himself. This son failed to realize that he could have enjoyed at any time a party and enjoyed all the blessings that were already given to him. We can be like that. We can keep on serving the Lord but don’t see any recognition from others or we get tired and forget that God is Who gives us recognition by His many blessings, even in the midst of trials or in our service. It all stems within our attitude. The older brother did not have a good attitude. His attitude was negative and centered on himself. We need to stop looking down on and at ourselves and look up to the One who can restore our souls with positivity and forgiveness!

The father in the parable had pleaded with the older son, to come in to the party. The father’s door was always open. God is always ready with open arms to receive us back to Him when we disobey. But He is also always there for us when we are living our lives in the right way. We are in His presence, full of His daily blessings each and every day. Matthew 7:7 says “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you.” We do have to put action into our service for the Lord. We are all worthy to be God’s child, because we were made in the image of God and God loved us so much He gave His only Son on the cross. He gives each of us grace and mercy. God’s mercy allows us to repent and reconcile with Him. His grace provides salvation and eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. He loves us no matter what our actions show.

The parable talks about an earthly inheritance from an earthly father. But our Father in heaven has given us a heavenly inheritance. God’s inheritance is what we should always strive for!

1Peter 1:3-5 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy, has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

God is always ready with open arms to forgive and welcome us back when we sin. Our inheritance is from our heavenly Father, who freely gives to each and every one of us. Who would have thought the word THEM would have “jumped” out at me!

What are you doing with and towards the inheritance your Father is giving you?

Till next time!

                                                                       Keela

(51% of American Christians plan to vote, but that leaves 49% who plan to stay at home on November 5^th. Apathy among Christian voters can be the ‘gamechanger’ for this 2024 election. It is our right and privilege to vote because of the sacrifice of our men and women now, in the past and in the future, who serve in our armed forces. Raise your voices and have the courage to vote for our God given values. Let’s make a difference! Get out and vote!)

OUR SPIRITUAL DUTY

Our duty is defined as: ‘a commitment to perform an action, whether it’s a general expectation or one that’s triggered by specific circumstances, something that one is expected or required to do by moral or legal obligation. There are a lot of obligations we face today. Legal: duty to fulfill law, and nonperformance can result in punishment or liability. Role based: A duty can be an action or task required by a person’s role or occupation. Respectful conduct: a duty that is respectful and obedient conduct that’s due a parent, superior, or elder. Tax: duty of paying taxes to the government. Moral obligation: a Christian’s duty to submit to God, live for God, and do what God calls them to do.’ (Wikipedia)

Here are some verses that prove we have duties as a Christian.

Colossians 3:23 “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men.”

Hebrews 13:17 “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account.”

Micah 6:8 “He has shown you, o man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”

Ephesians 2:10 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

1Peter 4:9-10 “Be hospitable to one another, without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

Romans 13:1 “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.” And verse 7: “Render therefore to all their due; taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.” (Of course, if the governing authorities are telling us to do something against God, we are to follow God’s commands. See Daniel chapter 3. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were three Jewish men who refused to bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar’s idol and were thrown into a furnace of fire.). If you have not read about these courageous men of God, sit down with your Bible and read their amazing story.)

2Chronicles 7:14 “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Proverbs 29:2 “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when a wicked man rules, the people groan.”

Exodus 18:21 “Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.”

2Timothy 4:3 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers, and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”

Deuteronomy 28:43 “The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. He shall lend to you but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail.”

I quoted all those scriptures to lead to this conclusion. We are about to vote to elect a new president. Of course, I am not about to tell you how to vote for. Some say there is no perfect candidate and say they are not going to vote at all. In our last presidential election, 25 million Christians did not vote. Wow! As Christians, let us rely on the Bible and God’s grace to discern how we should vote. We are to vote according to Christian morality, values and on God given principles.

As in all things in our lives, pray for guidance to be soberminded, focused and rational, before we go to the poles and exert our duty of voting. Pray for our nation as a whole with whoever is chosen. Pray for a spiritual rebirth.

Sitting at home or not sending in our ballots, is not the right answer as Christians. It is so important for us to stand on God’s truths. We have to vote for the person who has more of the same values as we do which are given us by God’s Word, the Bible.

God’s power has never depended on who is president. He will still have all and final power. Matthew 28:18 says “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

Remember, that God will still be in control, no matter what the results are of this presidential election! He is still sitting on His throne! We have to place our confidence, faith and trust in Him.

So finally, GO VOTE! As Christians, it is our spiritual duty! To God be the glory!

Till next time!

                                                                    Keela

THROWING SEED

Sometimes, those of us who write a blog, have a podcast, write a book, get up as a preacher or those who share with others about Jesus, wonder if anyone is listening. You don’t see any results of your hard work and love for the Lord. We all live in a microwave society. We want results and answers right now. We want to know we have actually served God in a way, that throwing the seed out there, helps others and turns their lives towards God. Our faithfulness to God, to continue, is tested.

Faithfulness is defined as: obedience over a long period of time-steadfast in affection or allegiance-firm adherence to promises or in observance of a duty-a place of trust and loyalty. It is not just simply belief but also strong conviction on our part to a certain commitment, no matter what the result. We have to have love-longsuffering-patience-endurance-steadfastness-dedication.

In Hebrews 11:1 we learn, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” This verse is a description of what faith does: the substance or reality of hope and evidence of what we can’t see. Faith itself proves that what is unseen is real. This chapter continues to tell us about the heroes of faith. So many faithful people thru the ages, who did not even see the promise of a Savior.

James 5:17-18 tells us about a man named Elijah. He prayed to God and said to Ahab, a very wicked king, that there would not be rain on the land for three and half years, causing a drought. Ahab called Elijah, “…a troubler of Israel…” and “…my enemy…” During this time, Elijah took care of a widow and her son. (read 1Kings 17-18) Elijah also had a victory at Mount Carmel, seizing the idols and priests of Baal, executing them and burning the idols. Rain was brought back to the land. So, he was busy for the Lord “throwing seed.” But then, in chapter 19, Jezebel (Ahab’s wife) threatened to kill Elijah. So, he ran for his life. Which brings him into depression and the Bible shows how God took care of him. If you have never read this story before, take some time to read it. One fact it shows is that even a man of God can become down and lose hope after sowing seed for the Lord. And also shows, God is faithful to His promises, if we just don’t give up. Such an amazing read and testimony of Elijah’s faithfulness during the visual and invisible acts of God. So many lessons to be learned.

Something I want to bring to your attention about the story of Elijah is this. In the reading of James, we are told, “And he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.” Have you ever thought about that last part? When it actually rained, fruit was produced even though there was not rain for three and half years! During those years, there was actually someone scattering seed. People who had faith in God to continue on feeding the land with seed, believing, having faith, that God would provide for them. If no one had been scattering the seed during that three and half years, there would not be any seed to produce with the awaited rain. We might look around and don’t see anything coming from our efforts teaching others about Jesus and we quit. Even when we don’t see any visual effects of our continued faithfulness, God is working in the unseen. Our seeds are not going to waste!

1Corinthians 3:6-8 says “I (Paul) planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So, then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.” Paul had started the church in Corinth. Apollos continued the ministry after Paul left. Both men were only servants through whom God worked. They could not boast about the increase or number of seeds thrown, because God GIVES THE INCREASE. Only God brings unbelievers to Himself, and works through our faithfulness when we do our part.

We must follow God’s commands, even when we don’t see any results. We are going to have doubts, like Elijah had, but if we must continue on down the path of faithfulness that our seed will take hold and produce fruit, even through those doubts we might have. It is our responsibility to do our job no matter what the results, for God will reward us for our efforts, and the quality and faithfulness of our work. We get so caught up in the things we have not seen yet that it causes us to question God’s faithfulness.

You may be saying that you don’t have enough faith to accomplish anything for the Lord. You don’t even think you can scatter any seed for Him. Matthew 17:20-21 says “…If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” Mustard seeds are usually about 1 to 2 millimeters (an inch is defined as exactly 25.4 millimeters) in diameter. It is so tiny, one of the smallest seeds on the planet, and yet it grows into a towering and outstretched tree. The measure of our faithfulness and the impact it brings is up to God and the obedience of the receiver. We can have a ripple effect on others, even when what we do is not seen by man.

Our largest faithfulness is in our everyday lives: at the grocery store-cleaning up after our children at home-cleaning the church building-making sure the lights and heat or air conditioning are on before people arrive to services-the tone of our voice during telephone calls and texts-the smile we give to an elderly person. I could go on and on with selfless acts we can do. When my husband was sick, he told me that he couldn’t do anything for the Lord any more. I sat down and wrote down and gave him 100 things he could still do sitting at his computer. We can all show our faithfulness to our God each and every day, even when no one is around, even when it seems hard.

We let our external circumstances define the internal temperature of our faith. Being faithful to God is not contingent on your circumstances. When you think that, the devil is working on you! 

Continue to throw out that seed, whether you are a blogger, podcaster, or person living their best life in faithfulness to the Lord. There is someone needing and waiting to receive that seed. Robert Louis Stevenson said ‘Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seed you plant.’ The result of your actions may never be seen by you, but keep throwing that seed! God will reward you one day!

Till next time!

                                                                     Keela

THE FEELING OF SINKING INTO THE DEEP

The feeling that there is something wrong with you. The feeling that something is pressing on your chest and it wants to pull you down into the abyss. The feeling of overwhelming sadness that no matter what you do, you keep failing to bring the light back into your life. The feeling of sheer emptiness causing loss of or more eating, trying to do away with or fill up to feel whole again. The feeling of sadness, even if you try to figure out why and there is no real reason, because you have all you need. The feeling of wanting to curl up in a ball-stay home alone-stay in bed. The feeling no one cares, even though you know that is not true. The feeling you just want to sit and stare into space, not feeling or thinking about anything or anyone. The feeling you are not worthy to live this life, because you don’t think your life has any value or meaning to others. The feeling that you don’t want to participate in activities that you have always enjoyed before and had interest in. The feeling of hopelessness. The feeling that you have become very negative about everything. The feeling you can’t remember things or function or concentrate. The feeling of fatigue that affects you mentally and physically. The feeling you can’t talk to anyone about how you are feeling because it will bring so much judgement. The feeling that this earth would be better if you weren’t in it. The feeling of wanting to sink into the deep and never surface again.

These are some feelings of depression. I have had some before and I am sure you have too.  My husband suffered with depression for ten years, two of those years in bed 24-7. My husband even came to the point of neglecting his hygiene; not showering for days on end. Feeling sad-depressed is a normal reaction to certain events in life such as the death of a loved one, work issues, financial problems, isolation from family, health problems causing you to not be able to function normally, ending of a relationship or any number of other things that we can be incumbered with in this world. These feelings are normal, a part of us, a part of being human. (There is a book in the Bible called Lamentations, after all!)

 The problem comes when we find ourselves feeling these feelings for 6 months or more and they seem to intensify, even causing some to lean towards suicide. When this happens, a medical professional can help. Years ago, people who were depressed were thought to be possessed by the devil. They were put in irons in prison, beaten, starved, subjected to bloodletting, electrical shock or put into deplorable crazy houses, (as they were called.) In the 50’s, there were antidepressant drugs introduced. Depression was starting to be known as a medical condition-a chemical imbalance.

 In the past, these feelings were thought to be something that a person should be able to cure themselves and it was wrong to seek medical help if you were a Christian. But that is NOT true. Depression can be a chemical imbalance in the brain, genetic vulnerability, stressful life events. Seeking medical help and Christian counseling to talk through your feelings and getting medicine to help control them, is a must if you find yourself in depression for a long period of time. NOTHING to be ASHAMED of!

I was in a “funk” recently. It has been a year since I have seen my daughters’ family, my grandkids, my son-in-law. They are growing up without their Nana. I felt deep sadness. Also, my dad moved into my home. My life has changed dramatically. So many responsibilities, needs and doctor visits. But God has helped me through His Word and special friends, to work towards healing. Isn’t that what we are to do when we go through a trial? Isaiah 26:4 tells us “Trust in the Lord forever, for in YAH, the Lord, is everlasting strength.” Or as some versions say “Rock.” Go to Him first! He is so strong to uplift us if we just reach out to Him. I am guilty of trying to figure things out by myself and THEN turn to God. I could have saved myself so much aggravation and stress if I would have just looked upward to heaven, instead of downward to this earth! Go to God’s Word and search for help. Here are a few verses which I have turned to which have led me to healing and peace.

Isaiah 41:10 “Fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”

Psalm 40:1-3 “I waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps, He has put a new song in my mouth-Praise to our God; many will see it and fear and will trust in the Lord.”

Psalm 34:17-18 “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near, to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit.”

1Peter 5:6-7 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”

Matthew 11:28 (Jesus is speaking) “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

When you feel the deep pain of depression, turn to these verses and let them sink into your heart deeply to help sooth your heart and soul.

There are so many other verses to lean onto. Great people of the Bible suffered with this illness. Seems like I turn to the book of Psalm and hear David, who shares his honest heartfelt feelings with us and his cries out to God. Elijah in 1Kings 19, is depressed when he was on the run and God’s angels minister to him. There are other examples too. God lets us know through these examples, that being depressed is normal. It is part of living in this broken world. Jesus shared His pain to God in the garden, “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” (Luke 22:44) Jesus gives us the example of turning to God in deep heart felt prayer. God has created men and women with the knowledge to help heal the brokenhearted and the scientists who can create the medicine that can help. God also shares with us His healing power, the way to peace.

Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God’ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” And verses 8-9 “…whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy-meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Come to God as you are in your agony. Reach out to others. Start a journal and write out your feelings. Think on positive instead of negative. There are more people out there that suffer with depression than we think, because they are ashamed to let others know their pain. After and during the pandemic, it was predicted that 25% of people were affected with depression, throughout the world. Use the God given resources we now have for this epidemic of deep pain.

When you feel that you are sinking into the deep abyss of depression, reach out to God and He will lead your steps to healing. When you realize those feelings, you have that you are sinking into a deep depression, reach out. You are not and have never been alone!

Till next time!

                                                 Keela

(I want you to know readers, that I am here for you. I don’t always have the answers, but I can listen and not judge. I don’t have medical training, just life and God training and I keep things people tell me close to my heart and do not share. You can contact me at: keelight@sbcglobal.net)