😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Jesus said…“Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find an ass tethered, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them here to me.  And if anyone should say anything to you, reply, ‘The Master has need of them.’  Then he will send them at once.”  Mathew 21:2-3. 

There is a lot of hope to be found in those two verses.  Was Jesus looking for perfect people that have their lives all together in a nice, neat little package?  No.  He’s looking for me and you…Go across the street and your will find an ass and it’s buddy.  Bring them to Me.  ‘The Master has need of them.’  You know it’s true.  We all have some donkey in us from time to time, and we all have a buddy or two that we hang out with.  So don’t be surprised when someone comes up to you, starts leading you to Jesus, and says the Master has need of you. 

Jesus is calling each and everyone of us because He has a need for us and a purpose for our lives…just as we are.  You don’t need to prepare yourself in any special way before you turn to Him.  He wants you just as you are, with all your thoughts and actions.  He knows them all, so there’s no point in trying to hide them.  If you are feeling any shame or guilt about any of your thoughts or actions, He is there to listen and lighten your burden.  Speak to Him, confessing your sins.  He is all about forgiveness and grace, and I know He has some ready and waiting for every one of us.  We just have to ask. 

It’s Holy Week.  The holiest week of the year.  And tomorrow starts the holiest three days of the year.  There is no better time then now, to reconcile yourself with our Lord.  He has need of you.

I would like to invite and encourage you to attend at lease one of the Holy Week services at your local church.  If you don’t want to go alone, you could invite your buddy to join you.  You know, the one that’s tethered next to you.  I pray that you may experience God in a very special way this Holy Week. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#CrystalLewis – People Get Ready

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  My husband, Brian is a quiet guy, who is most comfortable just staying at home, and certainly not one for initiating a conversation with someone he’s never met.  So, to my surprise, Saturday as the congregation began to leave Mass, Brian leaned over to me and said “I have to talk to someone.”  And he took off like a bolt.  I thought “What the heck is going on?”  I caught up to Brian by the alter as he was introducing himself to someone he’d never spoken to.  God had told Brian to speak with this gentleman and invite him to consider volunteering with the Kairos prison ministry.  Yeah, that may seem a little bold and intimidating having someone you’ve never met come up to you and say “Hey, God told me to talk with you about serving Him.  Oh, and by the way, He wants you to serve Him in prison.”  I guess if you’re going to get out of your comfort zone, you might as well get all the way out.  After that conversation, as we were leaving the church parking lot, Brian also told me that God had placed a friend of ours in Arkansas, on his mind, so he said a special prayer for her.  I told him he should send her a message, because I’m sure she would appreciate knowing that he said a prayer for her.  It was a couple days before she responded, when she informed us that she was down because she hurt her back and how much she appreciated the prayer.

I guess Brian had his hearing aids turned up high or maybe his Bluetooth was connected to the Holy Spirit channel.  Either way, I very much enjoy and appreciate God moments like these.  Please share your God moments with me and help to encourage others to walk by faith as God is calling them.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#Rerrain – Big God

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Sitting at Mass Sunday listening to the first reading, from the 16^th chapter of 1 Samuel, verses 1-13, I would say a not so ordinary perspective of this passage was brought to my mind.  There are multiple lessons in this passage, like:

Sometimes you have to force yourself to stop mourning and just move on.

Don’t judge someone on their appearance.

God focuses on your heart, not your appearance.

And then, this is what stood out to me:

Don’t limit what you offer God.  Present all you have and let Him choose how to best use what you have to offer.

Samuel receives word from God that God is sending him on a journey to Jesse of Bethlehem, to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king.  Upon entering Bethlehem, Samuel speaks with Jesse, consecrates Jesse and his sons and invites them to join him at the sacrifice.  And so they did.  One by one Jesse presented his sons before Samuel, but the Lord was not seeing the king He was looking for.  Finally, Samuel asks Jesse, if he had any more sons that he hadn’t presented to the Lord.  Turns out, there was still one.  Jesse sent for David, who was tending the sheep.  Upon entering the sacrifice, the Lord instructs Samuel to anoint David King.

There are so many different aspects to you and your life, and I’m here to tell you that God made every piece of you.  He knows your heart and He is calling you to bring forth all that you are, so that you may do what He created you for.  Every piece of you is important.  Your puzzle will never be complete unless you bring every piece to the table to be worked and reformed into the complete picture of you.  So pickup those pieces of your life that you’ve let fall to the ground and see the amazing things God can do with you, when you are all in. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#CraigAven – Every Part of Me

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Because it’s very true, one of my favorite quotes is…”A mind once changed by an idea can never go back to it’s original form.”  I know I have mentioned this before, but the reason I bring it up today is because last week we finished watching season two of The Chosen.  I really didn’t expect I would have a reaction to the series like I have, but it’s interesting.  I’ve watched many religious based shows in the past, but this one has a lingering effect, in a good way.  I find that as I now read my Bible I’m drawing a little more from it and reading more with the writer/author in mind.  Also, seeing the looks and expressions on Jesus’ face during interaction with others is priceless.  A perfect example is last Sunday’s Gospel reading from John 4:5-42, when Jesus meets the Samaritan woman at the well.  As I heard the Gospel being proclaimed, it brought me joy to resee that moment in my mind and the pleasing look on Jesus’ face. 

Sometimes when I have a God moment, I get goosebumps, but I call them God bumps in those moments.  At one point in watching The Chosen, I got God bumps.  It was after the disciples ask Jesus how they should pray and Jesus started teaching them the Our Father prayer.  Hearing those words coming from the mouth of Jesus, WOW!  That sent a shock right through me.

Whether you are religious or not, I would suggest watching The Chosen.  It’s not just about faith, it’s about history.    

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday via email.

#TheChose

#SidewalkProphets – Chosen

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  What’s the first thing you thought of when you woke up this morning?  What was the first thing you accomplished?  Were your thoughts and actions centered around you?  Were they focused and centered on someone else?  How do the thoughts and actions that begin your day carry you through your day?  Do they ignite a fire in you?  Do they move you to action?  Do they fill you with peace? 

Is it time to rethink parts of your life.  Is it time to put the first thing first?  How is God reaching out to you and trying to get your attention?  You know what He’s calling you to.  It’s time to move.  You will not be alone.  He will only call you to the journey He is willing to travel with you.  Think deeper.  Focus.  Listen.  Keep Him first.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday.

#ConsumedByFire – First Things First

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you. Last Wednesday was Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. Spiritually, it was the worst day I’ve had in…well, I couldn’t tell you how long. The first attack happened shortly after getting ready for the day. I headed out the door with a plan of attack, but first I stopped at church for Mass. That turned out to be a really good decision, because that gave my mind time to listen to God and with one line, “You can’t unsee what you’ve seen.”, He diverted me away and protected me from Satan’s first attack.

What made my spiritual battle so bad, was that I tried to handle the second attack on my own. That one did not go well at all. Actually, I was very mad and frustrated with myself for letting it happen. As I look back on the situation, I don’t recall even considering to talk with God and ask for His help. That just really sucks. Stinkin’ thinkin’ right there, thinking I could take on Satan by myself. Bottom line…I don’t ever want to go back there again!

I hope and pray your Lent is going better than the start of mine.  And if it isn’t, take a lesson from me…Stop right now and talk with God.  He will provide what you need to defend against Satan and his team of demons.  Saint Michael the Arch Angel, defend us in battle and be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday.

#TimMcGraw – Better Than I Used to Be

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  There are days that Brian and I are on the same page, communication is great, and we get a lot accomplished.  Then, there are other days that we look at each other as if we’re speaking a foreign language and can’t get anything accomplished. 

This is another one of those times that I know I’ve read and heard something multiple times, but this time it was like a light bulb turning on.  Genesis 11:1-9 told me that there is nothing wrong with the fact that Brian and I don’t understand each other all the time.  It wasn’t by God’s original design, but due to our human nature, God had to make some corrective adjustments which lead to Him confusing our language and scattering people all over the world.  Hmmm, come to think of it, maybe that’s why we have to search the world looking for our perfect mate.

When the whole world had one language and a common speech, they worked together, made bricks and baked them, and built a “tower that reaches the heavens”, so that they could make a name for themselves.  It’s still true today, we try to rely on our own knowledge, understanding, and abilities to better ourselves, so that we can stand above the crowd, have better things, and call attention to ourselves.  This draws us back 8 chapters in Genesis 3:5-6 when Eve chooses to eat the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden, so that she could gain wisdom and as the serpent said, “you will be like God, knowing good and evil”.  First of all, God created us, we didn’t create Him.  And second, He knows all of our strengths, weaknesses and what we can and cannot handle.  Some people may look at this as if God is just trying to control us, but I believe He cares so much for us, that He is trying to protect us from ourselves.  We can certainly be our own worst enemies.  Our God is a God of relationship.  He wants us to do this life with Him.  And when we choose to walk this journey with Him, we are able to see and better understand the loving and compassionate ways the Lord moves about in our lives. 

So the next time you find that your speech is getting confused and not understandable, take a step back and ask yourself…”Am I doing this on my own, for my own glorification and to draw attention to me?”  If the answer is “yes”, pause a moment, humbly ask the Lord for His guidance and wisdom.  He’s more than willing to share, if you ask.

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday.

#ElevationWorship&MaverickCity – Build Your Church

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Well, it took 30 minutes to start, restart, and restart my computer again so that it would work for me to write to you today.  Why would it need to start three times before it would work?  I don’t know.  The inner workings of a computer are a mystery to me, yet I come back to it time and again, blindly believing it will be there and ready to do what I need it to at the very moment I want it to happen.  Does this sound a bit like your prayer life?  You start, restart, and restart again.  Not really understanding the inner workings and mystery of prayer, yet you come back time and again blindly believing it will be there and ready to do what you want it to at the very moment you want it to happen?  Are you approaching prayer with wishful thinking of what you want to happen or confidence to boldly accept the guidance you are given and move forward?  I would guess the majority of us would answer…”That depends on the prayer.”  I would also guess to say that everyone of us pray a combination of both prayer styles. 

When I sat down to write to you today, I wanted to talk with you about Luke 2: 8-20 which shares with us the experience of the angels announcing to the shepherds that the Messiah had been born, in the City of David.  You know, just a short walk from where they were.  So the angel of the Lord shows up, not by itself, but accompanied by the glory of the Lord shining all around them.  I believe I would have felt the same way the shepherds did, for the Bible says that “they were terrified”.  The angel assures them not to be afraid and delivers the message of the birth of our Savior.  Upon delivering this message, suddenly “a multitude of the heavenly host” shows up and start praising God.  I think by the time the “heavenly host” showed up, I would be in a full on state of “What the heck is happening here?” and “Ohhh, the lights area so pretty.”

That angel must have been pretty convincing, being that the shepherds left the fields and went in haste to Bethlehem.  Haste, excessive speed or urgency of movement or action.  When God sends you a message, do you pursue it in haste?

After they spent some time with Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus, the shepherds started telling everyone who would listen, about the angel, the message, the heavenly host, Mary, Joseph, and the infant Savior.  Luke tells us that “all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them”.  We have the Bible and know how the story ends, so we can see that this point in time was a pivotal starting point to the amazing life of Christ.  But what was it that the shepherds truly experienced?  I mean really…this tiny baby, in a stable, wrapped in bands of cloth.  Do you think they were like…”Whew!  I can’t wait for the next 30 years to see Him in action.”?  What those shepherds experienced was the intangible.  They experienced the wisdom of the Spirit, not wisdom of the flesh.  It was precisely the intangible wisdom of the Spirit that left the shepherds glorifying and praising God for all they had heard, seen, and experienced.  The wisdom of the Spirit will take you beyond the realm of flesh and the key to opening that door is prayer. 

So, I ask you.  How will you approach prayer?  Will it be with wishful thinking of what you want to happen or with confidence to boldly accept the guidance you are given to move forward by and in faith?

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday.

#JeremyCamp – Walk By Faith

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  When Brian and I owned our lawn care and landscaping company we worked side by side from sun up to sun down, and then we got to go home together.  We were with each other 24/7.  Spending that much time together, side by side in a truck, on the worksite, and at home, you quickly discern each other’s strengths and who should take the lead on different aspects of a particular project.  To this day, we say that “We work great, separately together.”  In other words, we each know our part, focusing on specific tasks, to accomplish the overall goal.  Brian and I are a good example of opposites attracting, but there is some middle ground in which we both have a similar strength, in which we end up butting heads on opposite approaches to accomplishing the task and goal. 

During those many hours together, Brian and I also had the opportunity to have many conversations that we never would have, if we worked separate jobs.  Because of these conversations, we grew to know each other on a much deeper level than we would have otherwise.  In the same way, as you and I work through the ins and outs of life, in the moment, we often don’t know where that situation might take us or how it is preparing us for future events; until we experience that future moment and look back with a bit of a smirk on our face and say to God, “Oh, I see what You did there.”   Honestly, I enjoy those moments.  I very much enjoy working jigsaw puzzles and that’s what those moments remind me of.  It’s like when you spend hours or even days looking for a particular piece.  When that one piece is placed in the puzzle, it brings fullness and clarity to that particular area, even though there are still gaps in the puzzle. 

That’s how I’ve been feeling lately about our home build.  The pieces certainly aren’t going together nearly as quickly as we expected and wanted.  There are still plenty of gaps in this puzzle.  But I also know there will be a tipping point at which this project will, all of the sudden take off and 10 pieces suddenly drop into place and the picture will start revealing itself. 

Your relationship with God can often feel that way as well.  You spend hours searching and trying to discern, but they bring you to gaps and sometimes even potholes.  Even though discouragement may fill your hours, don’t stop spending time with God.  When you put in that consistent “Side by Side” time, you will get to know each other extremely well.  You will begin to realize who’s strengths work best in different situations and know when to take the lead and when to follow.  Together you will fill the gaps and reveal the picture of your life. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday.

#JordanFeliz – Next to Me

😎🐫🎤 Christ’s peace and presence be with you.  Reading an introduction to the Gospel of Luke in The Word On Fire Bible, it states:

“There are no unimportant parts in Scripture, no “skippable” verses not worth reading.  Read Luke’s words with a careful eye, and open heart, and a soul begging for the information.  And keep a notebook handy, because this physician is telling stories within the stories, providing medicine within the medicine—all “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:17).”

It’s interesting to me, how our mind can be focused on certain aspects of our reading and at the same time block out other aspects.  Reading through the Bible multiple times presents an opportunity to discover treasures that we either missed or maybe just don’t remember from the last time we read that chapter or section of the Bible.  Case in point, as I read Luke 1:1-4, I thought to myself…”How did you miss that before?” 

“Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.”

Luke investigated everything carefully to create an orderly account of events, for the purpose of proclaiming the truth about the Lord to Theophilus.  Luke wrote this, what we now call the Gospel of Luke, for the purpose of one man to read it and believe in the Lord.  Can you even come close to imagining how may people have read or heard the Gospel of Luke?  What Luke did is no easy challenge in today’s times with the use of technology.  That was an incredible undertaking that is easily forgotten or maybe not even thought about.  All that effort and time Luke put into this research for Theophilus, was also meant specifically for you.  As the introduction stated, “There are no unimportant parts in Scripture, no “skippable” verses not worth reading.”  Experience the history, the grace, the love that flows through Luke’s words to reach your very soul, so that you may KNOW the truth.  The Lord is your cornerstone.  The rock on which you can stand and survive every attack that will try to shake you to your core. 

Bless others and be blessed.

Shelly  :0)

If the Lord has touched you in some way with His message today, I ask that you pay it forward by sharing this message, so that you and He may also bless others.  Click subscribe to receive your message every Wednesday.

#TheWordOnFireBible

#TobyMac – Cornerstone