How grand the colors we are blessed to see.
Autumn’s brilliance soon fades away;
But while there’s light and clear blue skies,
Enjoy the splendor of Autumn’s canvas
Canvas of Splendor
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Alluring Autumn
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The dogwood’s display of autumnal blaze…
Can it compare to the tulip tree’s beacon of gold?
Fruit as Sweet…
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Fruit or Vegetable?
This gallery contains 5 photos.
HOW DO YOU STAY CONNECTED TO JESUS AND BEAR MUCH FRUIT? I think the answer to the above question is simply given in God’s Holy Word, the Bible. John 15: 4 states, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you […]
14 and Counting
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23
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I’ve interrupted my series to share a special occasion with those of you who have been reading my blog.
14 years ago I had come to a point of desperation because of my numerous failed attempts to quit smoking. Not an easy feat to be free of the frequent urge to light up and puff away on cancer-sticks.
My only hope was to turn to the Lord in prayer. “God, you parted the Red Sea. You raised your Son from the dead. Where’s my miracle? If you don’t deliver me, I will be lost forever- unable to repent.”
I prayed until morning and attended the Sunday worship service. Afterwards, I asked the Pastor to pray with me.
“What do you want me to pray with you about, Virginia?”
I’m having trouble with this, that and the other thing. And, oh, something I’ve been struggling with for 26 years.”
When he finished praying, I felt shackles pop off my wrists. This chain smoker was no longer chained to smoking. I was free, free, free!
God’s power kept me from any temptation to return to the old habit, furthermore, I didn’t have withdrawal!
Now that’s a miracle!
August 23rd will always be remembered as my Spiritual Birthday. It was on this date that Jesus set me free.
Blackberry Harvest Part-3
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In my last post, I promised to tell you how you can have abundance. What is Abundance?
The on-line dictionary defines it as:
1. an extremely plentiful or over-sufficient quantity or supply
The picture above is an example of abundance. An abundance of blackberry fruit.
Similar to the blackberry abundance, is spiritual abundance.
To understand this concept better, I opened my Bible to the 15th chapter of John.
In verse 5 Jesus says, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
He didn’t say a little fruit, he said “much fruit”. That’s abundance.
Staying connected to Jesus is the key to abundance in our spiritual life.
In my next post I will expand in more detail how you can stay connected to Jesus and “bear much fruit”.
The Blackberry Harvest Part 2
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Yes, as you might guess from the picture of berries in this basket, I’m still picking blackberries. But, as I promised to tell you in the earlier post, this is what I’ve done with the bounty so far.
I baked cobblers, a blackberry kuchen served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and warm peach sauce, blackberry bars and made blackberry jam and jelly.
What an abundance of fruit!
Do you know we can have an abundance in our spiritual lives too?
What is spiritual abundance?
In my next post of the Blackberry Harvest, I will tell you how you can have abundance.
Blackberry Harvest
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The blackberries I harvested this year were incredible. In the 11 years that I have lived in my neck of the woods, I’ve never seen this “much” abundance. You may be wondering what I’ve done with the bounty.
First, let me assure you of the soundness of my mind as I tell you that I love to pluck the little jewels . That’s what they look like to me; jewels adorned with the glistening sun.When I see the berries shining in the brightness of a summer’s day and begin to gently pick the fruit, I am filled with joy and peace.
Yes, I thoroughly enjoy standing amongst the canes that randomly shoot out in graceful arches, in spite of pricks from their thorns…where the harmless snakes have slithered oh-so-close for this nature-girl’s comfort…where the birds twitter because your are in the middle of their crop, thank you very much…where the spider crawls and hang in the intricate weaving of its web…where the mosquitos buzz about, sometimes lighting to enjoy a feast of their own. I love picking the wild berries.
Have you seen blackberry branches as high as my son is tall(over 6 ft.)? If I can pull the arching branch towards me, I try to carefully extract the choicest of the plump drupes. I practice a type of yoga-gymnastics exercise as I reach into the maze of berry-laden canes and thorns, hoping to pick a better one than the last. As I hold these challenging poses, it is at this point that I find myself saying prayers for safety…”Oh God, help me not to fall into the patch.” (I don’t want to end up looking like I wrestled with an ally cat.)
I have learned to don my armour of long-sleeved jean shirts and long jean pants that cover every inch of skin on my arms, legs and ankles. I have worn gloves in the thickest of blackberry patches to lessen its prickles. However, with all my efforts to avoid the hazards of berry picking, I sit here today with a few stubborn prickles still embedded in my flesh.
To be continued…
What a thrill, to be captured in a picture with Lysa Terkeurst! The photo was taken thanks to Kathy Kingston on her intelligent phone camera, which she sent to my e-mail almost immediately.
The title of the book says a lot. To me, the title Unglued, conveys the idea of something coming apart from that which it’s attached to. Afterall, we use glue to bind things together.
Without further looking into what the book is about, I’m guessing it could be about how we may become separated from the persona of what a Christian should reflect in times of stress or crisis.
I have heard it said that Jesus is the “glue”. The spiritual glue that keeps us fastened to the redemptive work he finished on the cross. The work that required the sacrifice of his life in order to save our souls. He paid the punishment for our sins through his stripes, suffering, shame, and death. His blood was shed to wash away ours sins and is the foundation of God’s redemptive plan for all of mankind.
This is what we cling to, his righteousness. When we invite him into our hearts and receive the forgiveness of our sins, we are clothed in his righteousness.
But when we don’t reflect that we belong to him, our identity with him becomes unglued. This is what the people around us may see at times. “She isn’t a Christian, did you hear what she said when that car cut in front of her without signaling?” ” That Sunday School teacher just yelled at her pupil for getting out of line. Is that what a Christian acts like?” “She just blew up in the middle of a PTA meeting and told the board members where to go for shade. (In other words, where the sun doesn’t shine.”)
What keeps us glued or together as a Christian is yielding to the Holy Spirit’s control and operating in his power to produce the fruits of the spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23 NIV)
Isn’t it difficult in the midst of the “moment”? In a moment of anger when we blurt what we feel instead of saying what we know we should.
Most of us know that a wise answer spoken in the right place at the right time has a peaceable result. but do we always do that? I humbly admit that I don’t always shine.
In fact, I said something at the wrong time to the wrong person just last night. After the revival of the She Speaks Conference and Sunday evening service.
I had just met a guest at a reception in a family member’s honor and she was using God’s name in a flippant manner. Within 5 minutes, a different word was added to his name. I don’t think I know the variety of “fig” this person was referring to. I was floored by what was said.
I immediately turned around and this time that new variety of fig was left off. I said, “We have gotten away with keeping God’s name holy lately.”
I can tell you the person I said it to put up a wall and retreated in a different area away from me.
God did not need me to defend his honor. And he did not need me to ruin the opportunity to lead someone closer to him. I did the opposite.
I thank God for his forgiveness and that he will help me yield to him in the next opportunity. Sometimes, we need to learn a thing or two, like extending to others the Grace with which we’ve been lavished. And to pray silently, allowing the Holy Spirit to work in others and at the same time, ourselves.
With more opportunities of yielding to the Holy Spirit, comes more opportunities to stay glued and look like the Christians we claim to be and to be used for his Glory.
What have you learned that will help in some of the unglued moments you’ve experienced?
I’ll be giving an overview of this book soon, so stop by to find out what “unglued” is about.
You Shall Be Free Indeed
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“If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.”(John 8:36 NIV)
Does the typical high school teen living in today’s society realize they need a Savior and that they can experience true freedom? There may be many high school students who are unaware that they are bound by sin and addiction.
When I was attending highschool years ago, I didn’t have a clue, but God did. He sent 2 older teens, a boy and a girl, to talk to me one day while I remained behind in the cafeteria. Most everyone else had gone to the gymnasium for a pep assembly. But there I sat alone, feeling a bit forlorn.
“May we sit down and talk to you?” I was surprised and answered in the affirmative.
They continued, “Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior?”
I replied, “I know He died on the cross for our sins. I go to confession, Mass and take communion every Sunday.” I became uncomfortable when I realized I had sin in my life and thought that others were aware of the fact. As I look back to that period of time, I think what I was sensing was the conviction of the Holy Spirit.
“Do you want to know him and know that your sins are forgiven?”
I am sad to say after praying with the two witnesses, I did not go on to live a Christian lifestyle. I remained stuck in my selfish ways. I continued to drift in and out of various churches throughout the years and later and concluded that I had been hindering the Lord.
I found a Holiness denomination that taught sanctification. I wanted God to take control of my failed attempts and to be free from an addiction that, at best, leads to sickness and death.
One night, in desperation, I cried out to God.
“God, I need your help. You know how many times I’ve tried to stop this habit. You parted the Red Sea. You raised your Son from the dead. Where’s my miracle? If I can’t be free from this, I will remain unrepentant and lost forever. Please help me.”
I prayed and fasted until morning. After the worship service, I asked the pastor to pray with me at the altar.
“What do you want me to pray with you about, Virginia?” he asked.
I recited a list of the everyday problems then added, “And something I’ve been struggling with for 26 years.”
As soon as he finished praying, I physically felt fetters pop off my wrists. The chains of addiction no longer kept me in bondage. Jesus set me free! I felt lighter than air and that I was on a carpet ride; high and lifted up. There was an invisible spiritual force shield all around me. I had no withdrawal or temptation because of God’s power. And he has continued to keep me free nearly 15 years! What’s more, God delivered my husband 6 months later. The miracle passed over to him. And it’s because God’s word says, “And the two shall become one flesh”, that we both benefitted being set free from the same addiction.
I am free from sin, addiction and the consequences of the fall of mankind, which is eternal death! Jesus’ death on the cross brought true freedom from sin and death. “… you shall be free indeed.” Let freedom ring!
EverGreen 
Written
on 09/03/2012