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A WEEK LOST

Watching the wasp continuously hit the hospital room window, made me wonder, why God created wasps. What was its purpose. Then I started thinking about the gnats, spiders, flies, roaches and mosquitoes. What were their purpose for being created by God at the beginning of time. Do you ever wonder why God allows or brings into being certain things?

I had something really weird happen to me. Because of a cut or bug bite to my cheek, that bacteria got into, my cheek, eye and neck swelled up, got red and hot on that side. My doctor immediately put me in the hospital with powerful IV antibiotics and fluids. At the end of that week, I was much better but had a hard spot that the antibiotics did not “break up.” A facial surgeon, without any type of deadening, poked a sharp pair of scissors into that area and squeezed out the yuck! That was one of the worse pains I have ever had in my life! I know it needed done and I tried to be tough. The doctor sent me home with oral antibiotics. When I am writing this, I am still not 100% better. I have since gone back to my doctor. Told him about the painful procedure and he became angry. He said that facial surgeon should have never done that. He should have deadened the area and done it in a sterile operating room instead of right there in my room. Going through that, made me wonder why and what purpose, like in creating bugs, there was in me having Erysipelas with no warning. Why did that surgeon make the choice to cause me that much pain? Why did I lose a week of my life in a hospital room?

Time goes so fast at times, doesn’t it? When you are in a hospital bed, what is right in front of your vision-a clock. Seems that time stands still, while waiting for pain meds. When my daughter and four little ones were visiting me from Virginia, those two and half weeks seemed to absolutely fly by! Of course, time does not change to slow or fast! But rather, it is our thinking-our mind set-our attitude that causes us to think of time as slow or fast. Proverbs 23:7 says “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…” At times, the week in the hospital felt like forever and then other times it seemed to go by quickly.

Have you ever pondered why bugs were made by God to bite and be annoying by buzzing around our heads-why things happen to us that stop our whole world of normalcy-or why time creeps or goes by fast?

I have never thought about this before, but think about insects as part of creation. Genesis 1:24-25 reads “Then God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind’, and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” Do you see the end of those verses “God saw that it was good.” I love dragonflies, ladybugs and butterflies. They are a beautiful creeping thing God created. The National Geographic says there are approximately 925,000 different species of bugs, intricately made for a reason. Some can be detrimental to crops and give us diseases. But others God created: to give 60% of a bird’s food-some help keep harmful organisms in check-pollinate plants-disperse fruit and seeds from plants-some clean up ours and animals waste-some antibiotics have been created by certain ants-bees give us honey and wax. So, God did create them for a purpose!

There is something else I have never thought about. The Garden of Eden, where Adam and Eve lived at the beginning of time, was perfect-no crime-no sin-disease or suffering. No bug bites to get infected. Everything and everyone lived in harmony. It wasn’t until Adam and Eve sinned, did there become the world of pain-suffering-disease-bug stings and insects buzzing around our heads!

God used bugs to punish people in the Old Testament. Exodus tells us of the plagues. Three of the ten were insects. The third plague was lice. The fourth plague was flies. The eighth was locusts. Leviticus 11:20-23 tells us about insects that can be eaten and those which could not. In Exodus 23:28, Joshua 24:12, and Deuteronomy 7:20 hornets were used to defeat other nations. God used busy little ants as an illustration of a creeping insect comparing them to a lazy person in Proverbs 6:6-11. God used insects, throughout the Bible, to help the Israelites and us, generations in the future, to learn important lessons.

Why do unexpected things happen to us that take away the precious time we have here on this earth? Do you know how to answer that? Why me? In 1999, my aunt and uncles’ home was completely destroyed in the Moore, Oklahoma tornado. When they came out of the cellar, their home was flattened. Cars crushed. They did not even have a toothbrush. The next time I saw my aunt, she said she never asked why me, but rather why not me? In Matthew 5:45 tells us “…for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Even though we are doing everything we can to obey God’s law and love others, we are still in this world with its pain and sorrow. But God gives us encouragement to keep on keeping on. Joshua 1:6 tells us “Be strong and of good courage…” and verse 9 “…Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” And from my favorite passages in Isaiah 40:28-31 “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

We, both the good and those who are evil,  are all in this life together, walking down the same streets-going through rough times that have no explanation-living with the creeping insects of this earth. Things happen to us without any type of explanation, but the difference between us and the people of this world is: we have the hope-the promise-the assurance of our God’s love when we walk our path next to His. Isaiah 41:10 says “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.” We just have to remember to lean on Him, His assurance and the peace He gives us.

Why did I get that bite or cut that got infected? Why me? The question needs to be answered, why not me! Even when we are a follower of God, rough times will come our way. I feel I have been reminded, from this scary experience, that God is with me-by my side-in those rough times. God uses our tough times to help us learn and to fulfill His purpose on this earth. Jeremiah 29-11-14 reads “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you says the Lord…” God uses what happens to us, for our good in the future and to shine a light for Him. Thank you, God!

Why did God create that wasp that kept hitting a window to its own rhythm in its mind? (I guess they have minds.) Or any of the other creeping creatures that make me run for cover? Someday, after I have left this earth, I think the seemingly nuisances of insects, will be found to cure many diseases or for other purposes. I have faith that God had a purpose for creating them. Thank you, God!

A week lost! Or was it?

Till next time!                        

                                    Keela

ENEMIES HOOK

Usually when I eat my lunch, I watch a show on tv. This day it was “Touched by an Angel” episode. Of course, the show is about angels who are brought to earth by God to help a person. This episode was about the devil working in a families’ life and those around them. The husband is deceived by a man who places bets on horses. He had received a large check right at the right time. He was overjoyed because his insurance was getting ready to expire and he had a new baby on the way. Where he worked, a man heard him talking about receiving it and how excited he was to have it. By the man and through the devils’ deceit thru him, he convinced the husband to bet his entire check on a certain horse and he could double his money. The angel assigned to him, tried to reason with him. But sadly, he was led down the wrong path, through gambling, because, of course, the horse lost the race. Then, the show focused on his pregnant wife. She was a hairdresser and while going through some boxes, she found some tallow cards. She thought why not, so she looked up how to use the cards. The angel assigned to her tried to convince her that nothing good would ever come from those cards, which were just decorated cardboard and held no power. Through a series of her “reading” the cards, they were shown “true.” One customers’ cards, said she was going to have a bad accident. She went out the door and sure enough a truck headed right towards her. But the angel pushed her out of the trucks’ way at the last minute. But the deceit was done, because she, the wife, and another customer, believed the cards were correct. The other customers’ cards told her she was going to be revisited by an ailment. She believed them, being also deceived, and went into the restroom and held a gun to her head, because she was a cancer survivor. She did not want to go through the pain and treatments again. The angel came into the bathroom and let her know he was an angel, and convinced her of the truth that she would not die of cancer and God still had work for her to do. Fast forward to, the wife went home from work to get something she had left there. When she got to the stairs to leave, a hard contraction hit her and she ended up falling down the stairs. She opened her eyes and saw a lion (the devil) standing at the top of the stairs roaring because he thought he was winning. Her angel ended up coming to her and told her she had to call out to God for help, and He would come to her rescue. Long story short, good overcame evil. Each one of the people, had made bad choices, but when they centered on God and made the choice to ask Him for help, they saw clearly the deceit the devil had fed them. And once again they were centered on God. In the show, when the wife called out to God for help, the lion growled and turned around. The end showed the devil being defeated and turned into a kitten, meowing and running away!

Ok, so you are saying, what does that have to do with anything that we are going through? It has everything to do with us today! The devil and hell are not talked about by the tv evangelists and some preachers in the church. They are all so wrapped up in trying to make us “feel” better about ourselves through emotion. If you have been reading my blogs, you realize that I am an encourager. That is the way God “wired” me. I feel there is so much media availability today that our young are pushed into feeling bad about themselves, worthless, so sinful that they feel they cannot change now and will continue in sin, others become depressed because of so much comparison with others. That is all deceit from the devil! I published a ladies’ study guide, “God’s Beauty Plan,” to encourage young and older women that God made us beautiful inside and created us for a purpose. I feel that is something that is necessary for our generation and generations to come. But I feel we also need to teach others about the darkness of sin and where that will lead. There is a lot of availability today because of media, and the deceit from the devil is only going to get worse.

The devil is a liar. Jesus tells us in John 8:43-44 “…you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the very beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources for he is a liar and the father of it.” He works on our weakness’. He makes us believe what is not true. Both angels with the people in the show saw and talked to, conveyed to them of God’s love; showed them there is a power of evil, an invisible power, which can pull us into its vises and cause us to go down a wrong path to destruction; told them that it only takes a moment of weakness for the devil to work his way into our lives; we put our faith in worldly things instead of our God and Father; the devil works through people that he already has under his power; he works through what fears us the most; the angel told the wife, who had been alone after her fall, the devil was trying to cause her to lose her baby, because he knew God was going to do great things through the child  (couldn’t that be said about the children who are killed thru abortion); the devil had them right where he wanted them, looking at the things of the world and they were trusting in them.

Because of lack of your time and space, here are a list of verses in the bible I want you to turn to and find the truth of the vices of the devil. (1 Peter 5:8, Genesis 3:1, 14-15, 1 John 3:8, 2 Corinthians 11:3, Acts 5:4-5, John 10:10, James 4:7; Luke 22:1-6, Job 1:6-7, Revelations 2:8-17, Matthew 4:1-11, Ephesians 6:12, 2 Corinthians 11:14, Hebrews 2:14, 2 Timothy 2:26.) And if those verses do not convince you, I want to quote a few verses that tell us there is actually a hell. Matthew 10:28, Jesus says, “…do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Talking about the parable of the tares in previous verses, Jesus says in Matthew 13:38-42, “…the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore, as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 8:12 says the sinful will be “…cast out into outer darkness…” Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus tells us that those who have not been faithful will “…go away into everlasting punishment…” In Luke 16:19-31 talking about the rich man who was in hell saw Lazarus in heaven and wanted Lazarus to just give him a fingerful of water “…and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame…” There are so many other verses also, but you get the idea. I just know hell is not where I want to be. So, let’s look at how we can keep from letting the devil win and take us to live with him for eternity.

John 8:31-32 Jesus says, “…if you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Back to the verses above about hell in Matthew 25:46, those verses also tell us, at the end of that verse “…the righteous into eternal life.” Romans 2:7, Paul is talking about God’s righteous judgment. “…eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seed for glory, honor and immortality…” Revelations 21:3-4 “…God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Read the rest of that chapter which gives us an idea of heaven. Of course, we cannot understand how wonderful it will be there! We will know how beautiful and peaceful it will be when we get there. (I for one, am not going to say to God, ‘I thought the gates were made of pearl.’ He would say ‘how did she get in here?’) The verses simply are telling us that heaven will be beyond our understanding. I sure want to go there, don’t you? Hell does not seem so inviting now that we have “seen” the glory of heaven, does it?

Thank you for listening about the show I watched. It just implanted in my heart how deceiving the devil can be, telling us lies to cause us to fall into ‘his web.’ The negativity that runs through your mind and heart needs to be replaced by our God, through His word that give us His positivity, hope, confidence, promises, and realization that we are made in His image. We just need to have a servant heart, be obedient to His word, share our faith, keep our heart full of the promise of a heaven, which is beyond our human understanding. When the angels in the show revealed they were angels, a light formed around them, showing that light comes from God. Behind the devil was only darkness waiting for then.  John 1:4-5 says “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” The Light is our God. The darkness is the devil himself.

Have you seen the devastation of the earthly fire that went ramped throughout Maui, Hawaii? The peoples’ earthly processions all gone. Their city in ruins-like a war zone. Hell is not going to even be like that. IT WILL BE WORSE!

My happy place is sitting by the ocean sitting in silence watching-listening-feeling those beautiful waves, especially with my grandkids.  Heaven is not going to even be like that. IT WILL BE BETTER!

We have to reach out to God, like the ‘angels’ on the show above told the people. We have to seek Him. It is our choice. One of my favorite verses in the bible is, 2 Chronicles7:14 “…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.” I want that don’t you? One bit of positivity here, is that if the devil keeps working on you, then he has not gotten you by his hook. Put on your armor and fight the devil. (Ephesians 6)

So, reach out to God, serve Him, help those in need, shine your light for others to see. The devil will flee from you because you are in the light and not in his darkness. Make it a mission for the rest of your life to not listen to the darkness of the devils lies, who is the enemy who can get you into his hook. But rather fall into the loving arms of the one who shines His light for all to come to him and can only show you love and peace-our Father God!

Till next time!

                                                                     Keela

A TOUCH OF FAITH

In Mark 5, we read of a man named Jarius whose 12-year-old daughter was dying. He came to Jesus begging Him to go to his daughter to help her live. While on this journey to save Jarius daughter, we read of a woman with “…a flow of blood…” She had this for 12 years! (I thought it kind of interesting that she had this ailment as long as Jarius daughter had been alive. Just thinking!) Read Leviticus 15:19-30. Women were considered impure, during that certain time of month. But she had this for 12 years! Her uncleanness continued this whole time. She could not touch anyone or anything without cleaning and had to go to the priest and have him offer sacrifice for her at the end of her monthly flow of blood. But she had not had an end; she continued unclean, year after year. As a woman, I cannot even fathom how embarrassing-how isolating-how painful-how abandoned-how alone-how rejected-how destitute-how broken-how ashamed-how desperate-how frustrated she must have felt. She had to have felt defined by her illness. It controlled her life in what she could and could not do. I am sure she was most likely anemic, fatigued and worn out physically. (Of course, her flow must not have been heavy or she would have died because of the loss of so much blood.) But needless to say, she was limited in who she could interact with and what she could do or touch. Verse 26 says she “…had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.” She had many expensive treatments trying to find healing, but she ended up getting worse. I read a commentary that one treatment the doctors would use at this time in history, was to carry the ashes of an ostrich egg and that could heal you. I imagine if we were in her shoes, we would have tried about anything too.

Verse 24, says “…a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.” I envision it like being at a conference or a concert with a lot of people. I have been to many where the crowd is shoulder to shoulder in the concourse. This unnamed woman, had deep faith in Jesus and pushed her way through this crowd to get to Jesus. According to law, everyone she touched became unclean. She felt if she could just touch Jesus’ garment, she would be healed. She was disobeying law by touching others and would even make Jesus unclean by touching His garment. Yet she knew Jesus had healed so many and she was desperate, through her faith, to touch His clothes. She knew that through Jesus she had hope! The hope of an unrestricted future! If only we could have that much faith. There are so many times in my life, I have tried so hard to solve an issue within my human realm. There was one time, I just did not have the money to pay my water bill. The water department did not want to hear my “sob story.” If I didn’t pay, they would turn my water off. I went to a relative and they did not have the money. I went home and through many tears, I prayed to God to help us. I didn’t know what to do. The next day, an unexpected check was in the mail. I was able to pay the water bill. Does that happen every time we don’t have hope of solving an issue in our lives? Of course not. But I think back to it and wonder why I did not go to my heavenly Father in the first place. Isn’t it human nature to try to figure things out ourselves and then when we are exhausted from worry and stress, we turn to Him? Just like a father watching his child trying to put together a Lego set. The child is struggling but does not want any help. But then when the child realizes that he needs help, he turns to his father.

Do we feel Jesus is the last resort? Even though, the answer is not as evident, like in my water bill, and the answer might be no-still trust God that He has your best interests for you-He is your only answer and hope-not our last resort! In the illustration about the woman with blood issue, she had spent all the money she had-tried many treatments-she had even gotten worse. But then she realized and had faith and hope that Jesus could heal her. She pushed her way to Him. She reached out to Him. She knew He was her only true hope. She had to put action into her faith!

Verses 29-30 say, “Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.  And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched My clothes?” Did you see the word immediately, twice in that verse? As soon as she touched Jesus’ garment, her illness was gone. Jesus immediately knew that by touching His garment, someone had been healed. The disciples were like, what? Telling Jesus, He was surrounded by people. Of course, someone touched Him. I am sure there were many who needed healing in this crowd, but there was something different about the one who touched Him.

This woman was courageous and had true faith in Jesus. She was “so hungry” for Jesus and His love and power, that she pushed herself through that huge crowd. Jesus wanted to correct any mistaken notion she may have had about her healing. It was not any magical quality of His clothing, but His divine will that had made her well. Verse 33 says that she was afraid and trembling but “…she fell to the ground and told Him the whole truth.” As a woman, don’t you feel how embarrassed she was to tell Jesus everything, in front of this crowd. Jesus gave her His entire attention. Jesus tenderly called her “…daughter…” This is the only time in scripture that Jesus calls any woman, daughter. Jesus was tender and compassionate to her and her situation. Jesus makes known to her and the people around observing this, that it was because she had deep faith, that she was healed. Faith itself does not heal; rather, it is the proper object of that faith, Jesus, who heals and we have to put into action our faith by reaching out to Him.

So, what are some of the things we can learn from this story in the Bible for us today? I am sure there are many, but quickly I want to tell you two, that I see.  First, she reached out to Jesus. When we are going through trials and feel helpless-hopeless-broken-abused-angry-worthless-alone-depressed- suicidal-we have to reach out to Jesus through prayer. We hold onto so much “stuff” and don’t reach out for Him. We have to come to the feet of Jesus, just like this woman did, and tell our truth through faith. Doesn’t God already know what we are going through anyway? He wants us to take the action of coming to Him in humility of faith. God can give you peace, so you can take one more step. Have you ever found that if you pour your heart out to Jesus in prayer, that you feel better-more peaceful. The same is true if we talk our truth to a trusted friend. When we hold those negative feelings within our hearts, those feelings will “eat us up.”

Second, how did this woman even know about Jesus? Verse 27 says “When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd…” Someone had told her or she heard someone talking about Jesus. This shows that we need to tell others about Jesus. There are so many “things” a person will turn to in the pain, if they do not have faith in Jesus. Alcohol-drugs-sex-possessions-worldly people. Those people, that someone choses to turn to, needs to be us. We need to be ready, at any time, to let others know of the light that Jesus can give them and their trial. Matthew 28:19-20 says “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Jesus commands us to teach others and let them know of the saving grace and the love that comes from our Father. If the woman with the flow of blood, had not heard about Jesus, I wonder if she would have had this medical condition till the day she died. She would not have known how to have faith in Jesus and the fact that He has the power to save!

This woman was unnamed, but then Jesus called her “…daughter…” How comforted she must have felt! How free, she had to have felt, of all those burdens, that issue of blood had given her! We are also freed from sin through Jesus’ death on the cross. We just have to kneel before Him and honestly pour out our truth! And shine our light for others to be led to God!

This outcast woman became a precious daughter of her Lord! We, as women, are also blessed to be called a daughter of the King! What a simple touch of faith can do!

Till next time!                                  Keela

(Oh, and by the way, Jarius’ daughter was raised from the dead!)

A PILLAR OF SALT

“Remember Lot’s wife.”

-Luke 17:32-

Three simple words with so much meaning. The scriptures before the one quoted above have been talking about the day of judgment. The verses before say “In that day, he who is on the housetop, and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise, the one who is in the field, let him not turn back.” 

“Remember Lot’s wife.” Out of about 170 women in the bible, this is the only one we are TOLD to remember. Why Lot’s wife? We are not even told her name! The story of Lot and his family fleeing Sodom and Gomorrah is in Genesis 19. These two cities had become so evil that God was going to destroy them. Abraham was told by God that these cities would be destroyed. Abraham knew his brother’s son, Lot and family, lived in Sodom. He asked God if there were 50 righteous, all the way down to 10, if He would still destroy the city. Two angels visited Lot and told him that the cities were going to be destroyed and told him to get his family and leave. His sons-in-law thought he was joking. Lot lingered and the angels actually had to take their hands and lead them out of the city. Lot, his wife and two daughters ran to the city of Zoar. “…the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the Lord out of the heavens. He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But his wife looked back behind her, and she became a pillar of salt.”

The command by God, was simple “Do not look behind you…” (v. 17) But yet Lot’s wife turned her head and looked back. Was she reluctant to leave? Why do you think she turned back? I am sure when God destroyed those cities there was a lot of noise from the inhabitants and the actual fire that destroyed them. Was she just wanting to see what was happening? Was she remembering the friends she had that lived in her city? Was she thinking of all she had left behind? No matter what she was thinking, she disobeyed God. She was reluctant to leave. Her destruction was sudden. Nothing was left of her but a mineral heap. She was calcified and stuck right there, with no future.

 So, what can we learn from this? There are so many lessons we can take from this. I want to center on the fact that God does not want us stuck in our past but rather onward to our future! The verse we started out with in Luke, represents Lot’s wife as those who are attached to earthly things, those whose hearts are still in this world. Like Lot’s wife, such people will perish.

I have heard so many people say, before covid and after covid. People are stuck back in how they want things in this world to be, but we will never go back to before we had the crippling disease of covid. There are so many things that we can look back and keep ourselves stuck in past times. Maybe, you are like me and your mate has passed away, you wish you could change things you said to them or how you treated them-your child has grown up and has left home, you are at a crossroad of what to do now-you have had financial failure and want to go back and do things differently-your health has gotten worse because of bad choices you have made in your past-you have gotten older and cannot live the busy life you use to, you feel insignificant-you remember a time in history when there were not so many mass shootings and the fear out in the world today was not present. You look back to happier times, times of laughter, times of prosperity, a time you could get up in the morning and not feel painful.

We all look back and remember better times, but you can also look back and see that now, you are in a better place in your life-a better season. We can remember and use our past to propel us into the future! We can remember and use those mistakes we made to make a better future for ourselves and others! We can remember and help others- “…go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15) Second Corinthians 1:4 tells us that we can comfort those who have had the same struggles, just like God has comforted us when we go thru them. We can use our past, instead of being stuck there, to help others and make a brighter future for ourselves!

In a way, I can understand Lot’s wife. If my home was on fire, I would look at it and remember all the THINGS that were being burned up by the fire. But if my God would have told me to not look back, I hope I would have had the strength to not look back! Otherwise, I would be stuck in the past, like she was.

We can be haunted by the past or we can learn from it and go towards our future! Lot’s wife was not allowed that option. Some people are like her and just stay stuck. My husband was like that. During those ten years he was mentally and physically sick, he was stuck in his past. He blamed himself for our financial troubles, because of his illness. He became severely depressed because of this blame, which he put on himself. He did not remember the things of the past, when he was a preacher, elder, deacon, or leader in Boy Scouts. He did not remember the positives in his life or all the people who he had touched, from his past. He only looked at his physical handicaps and what we had lost, supposedly because of himself. He remained in that, stuck in the past handicap for the rest of his life. How sad! I tried so many ways and times to get him to realize that he should not be stuck in those past “failures” and that he still had a life to live, just in a different way. But not me-others-therapy could get him to become “unstuck” from those negative thoughts of his past.

So, what is the main point we can learn from “Remember Lot’s wife” in Luke 17? Do not let yourself be stuck in your past failures or wishes that you could go back! Sure, when I look back at my past, there are so many happenings-failures I wish I could go back and change. But I do not dwell on them in such a way that I cannot go into my future! I am not by any means perfect but have tried to learn from the past and live the rest of my life in service for the Lord, using the past to help (especially women) others to know that there is hope and they are not alone in their earthly struggles.

Paul in Philippians 3:13-14 tells us, “…forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul is one of those who could get stuck in his past. He had sought out and killed so many people who were serving the Lord. But yet he learned from those past atrocities and became a warrior for the Lord. He did not look back and become stuck. Rather he looked forward to his future, in which he could serve God and would be with the Lord one day in heaven.

When you are driving you cannot look back all the time or you are going to run into someone or something. You will be hurt! So, take heart- “remember Lot’s wife” and do not look back. She became a pillar of salt, forever in a pile of remembrances. Don’t become stuck in your past. It is human to look back and feel the pain, but don’t stay stuck there. Rather, learn from your past, and look forward, like Paul did to a better future knowing you are headed to heaven one day to be with the Lord! Respect the past, with eyes towards your future!

God tells us in Jeremiah 29:11-13, that He has a hopeful future for us. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

A pillar of salt. What a way to be remembered!

Till next time!                                                          Keela

ABOVE ALL

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (NKJ)

-Ephesians 3:20-21-

My mother’s favorited verse in the bible. What powerful, reassuring words!  This verse shows the majesty, the power, the actions above understanding, from our mighty God. The verse before it, tells us there is no way, in our limited knowledge, that we can understand the love He has for us. The word exceedingly, in the above verse, means: extremely. The word abundantly means: in large quantities, plentifully. Above all means: more so than anything else.

I feel like we try to limit the power of God. I feel God works in our lives every day in so many different glorious ways, whether we know it or not. There is no way we can understand the depth of that power. The Old Testament and New Testament tell us so many stories of men and women who experienced the unbelievable power of God in their lives. Let’s look at one of them.

In the book of 1 Samuel 17, is the story of David and Goliath. The Israelites were afraid of this giant. (verse 24) Manuscripts say he was 6 ft. 9 in. When David went up against Goliath, he did not wear any armor. It was too big and heavy. He could not even walk with it on! (verse 39) David only used a sling and a stone. Hit the giant smack in between the eyes and it sunk in and killed him. Did David all of a sudden pick up some stones and a sling and just hoped he met the target? How in the world could that have happened with just a simple, young shepherd? Well, you know the answer. God showed His power thru this young man in his life previously. So, David had the confidence that God would be with him now. The rest of the nation looked at Goliath and said he was too big to kill. David looked at Goliath and said he is too big to be missed! Verse 45-46 says, David talking, “…I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand…” How could David, a mere shepherd boy, have had such confidence? Well, let’s look at some reasons and then apply them to our lives and the confidence WE should have in the Lord being able to do more than we can even imagine.

David was a young shepherd. We sometimes think of a shepherd being meek and without strength. But in reality, a shepherd has to protect the sheep from all kinds of danger and predators. He loved his sheep. Looked for lost ones. A shepherds sheep hear his voice and recognize it. The shepherd guides them. Jesus is known as the shepherd. John 10:27-28 says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish and no one will snatch them from my hand.” Jesus guides us, He protects us, He reaches out to us when we are lost and need help. In David’s case as a shepherd, this chapter tells us that a lion and a bear had come against his sheep. He had killed them with his bare hands! (verses 34-35) Thru the years before Goliath, God had been preparing David for this victory over this giant. He had probably used a sling shot and stones to kill off animals who were threatening his sheep. He would have had time to think, out under the stars, while taking care of those sheep and he grew in faith and confidence of his mighty God. David had time under those stars to think and prepare himself, realizing the mighty power of God. He knew that God was the reason for his victory over the bear and the lion. Verse 38 says, “…the Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine…” Because David saw the works the Lord HAD done thru him, he had confidence and faith that God would help him NOW with this giant! He knew that God was working through him “…according to the power that works in us…”

Isn’t that true in your life as well? When I prayed that we wouldn’t have to lose our home from foreclosure and we lost it anyway, I did not understand. I had truly prayed in faith and confidence that somehow this would not happen to us. Now as I look back, I see why God answered my prayer with a no. We had thirteen steps in and out of our house. My husband, as time went on, had trouble getting up and down those steps. When he passed away, we had been renting a one level duplex without any stairs. If I would have still had that house, my kids and I would have to dish out a lot of money to fix it up and go through the hard process of trying to sell a home. God DID answer my prayer! Just not the way I thought. We pray asking God for something. But this verse even says what we are thinking. Even in our thoughts, when nothing makes sense to us, God can take care of us for our future. Even when we did not know that we needed Him. God takes care of us, answering us, working for our future, even when we don’t know what we will need. “…Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think…”

Sometimes we treat God as a means to the goal, but God is going to use the deficiencies and happenings in our lives to show who He is and to show He is all powerful and truly in control for our good and for His purposes.

God can lead us just like He did David. We may not understand. We might ask why. We are like a sheep that needs to be led, because God can see the whole picture of our future. I am so comforted in the knowledge that He takes care of me, even when I can’t see. The verses before the ones at the beginning, are talking about the mystery that was revealed. The fact that Jews and Gentiles, all men and women, no matter what race, have God’s power to serve Him “…to all generations, forever and ever.” Thank you, God, as we can stand in Your presence and feel the trust and confidence that you have for us.  God has all power and “…to Him be glory…”

Even if we have had God say no to a prayer we have fervently prayed for, we have to realize that God is still working for our good. We have to have trust and faith in God and look back at the things that have been answered no and actually see that God did answer our prayers. Just not in our human vision of the now and the future. God knows what our life looks like in the future. We don’t know what our future holds, but we know Who holds the future. He is preparing us in the past and today for our tomorrows. Don’t put your hopes and faith in this world. Romans 8:31 reads “…if God is for us, who can be against us.” Don’t limitin your human mind the power that God gives us. Remember that He is always for us.  

Do not put a limit on God’s “…power that works in us…” He can work through you, a follower of His law. We can be assured by His power because God demonstrated this power when He raised Jesus Christ from the dead and placed him in a position of excellence far above any other power. God is always helping us every day. Maybe you are struggling: financially-with an addiction-pain physically or mentally-as a tired mother changing, it seems like, millions of diapers- working at a job that you don’t like. God is right there. He is helping us learn through the struggles, to give us strength-to give us patience-to give us a brighter future, even if it doesn’t seem possible or make sense. He does so much for us above all we can fathom. He can cause things to happen in our lives, that we never thought possible or even dreamed of. He puts His power, through the scriptures, in us, to fight against the devil and this world.

Now as I look back on my life and the stressful-painful-unbelievable things I have been through, I thank God for them. He helped me to rely solely on Him. He helped me become stronger in the faith. He taught me patience. He taught me sympathy for others going through the same struggles and that I need to tell my story so I can help others. He has truly blessed me beyond comprehension. He helped me realize that He can do exceedingly abundantly above all more than I could ever visualize for my life, because of the past events that I went through. I can rest in the knowledge of my past, knowing that God has been working through my struggles, using them for my future.

Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and put your hopes and faith in the One who “…is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think…” To Him be the glory!

Till next time!                                            Keela

(It will be a few weeks before I post another blog. My daughter, my four grandkids and two dogs are headed to my house, (from Virginia to Missouri) Saturday and Sunday. Please pray for their safe journey. Her Navy hubby has been deployed for nine months! They will be here two and half weeks! I have not seen them for just a little over a year, so needless to say I will be in my happy place! Thank you, our God! After they go home, I will fill you all in about the fun we had!)