DAILY MIRACLES

God hasn’t spoken from a burning bush lately. Or parted the Red Sea. And at the last wedding I attended, the water didn’t turn into wine.

But God is definitely still in the business of performing miracles. Maybe we just don’t notice. Worse, maybe we take them for granted.

Who keeps the stars up in the heavens? Who keeps the Earth spinning? Who makes sure the sun stays lit? God does. And he never stops making sure the universe is running perfectly. That’s a miracle.

He stretches out the north over the void and hangs the earth on nothing. (Job 26:7 ESV)

Who keeps the oceans within the shores? Who makes the rivers run through the countryside? Who showers the earth with rain? God does. And he never stops making sure that water and with it—heat—are transferred across continents. That’s a miracle.

But what about friends and family who are ill, who have a crisis of health? Can we trust that God will provide a miracle?

Yes, even if it’s not necessarily the miracle we want.

1. When God designed our bodies, He designed a miracle, set it in place and started it working. You have heard that our bodies are entirely remade—cell-by-cell—every seven years? Science refutes part of that, saying that our brains and hearts don’t regenerate—they continue to grow. But science agrees that essentially our cells die and our bodies then create new cells. And these new cells have the miraculous possibility of health and vitality. That’s a miracle.

2. And the part where science says our brains and hearts continue to grow? That’s a miracle too, because it’s our brains and our hearts that we need most in order to seek God and love Him more.

3. Our physical lives themselves are a miracle. A baby—a whole, complete and perfect human being where none existed before. It’s a miracle.

Psalm 139:14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

After God set all the miracles in place—the universe, the Earth and our bodies, God then performed another miracle, bigger than all the rest combined. He temporarily set aside his divinity and his presence in heaven to become human for our sake. He took on the miracle of a human body, lived a miraculous life without sin, performed physical miracles for us to perceive and be able to realize his divinity. Then at death he was resurrected to give us the miracle of spiritual life in heaven with him. That’s a whole lot of miracles, all in the one life of Jesus.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

We’re not divine. We’re not able to touch the blind and give them sight or feed 1000 people with a whole-wheat muffin and some fish sticks. But our lives are miracles, nonetheless. And Jesus can use our lives to show his love to others so that they too can be children of the living God. That’s a miracle.

We praise God for the miracles He has done in the past, the ongoing miracles He set in motion, the miracles we are not even aware of and the miracles yet to come.

Want to be used by God? Want to let God perform miracles through you? It can happen, if only we believe and see the miracles happening all around and through us, every moment of every day.

MORE PRAYING NAMES

Each month I create prayers for people we love based on the meaning of their names. These additional names are then added to the ongoing list at the tab to the right titled, "PRAYING NAMES."

If you don’t find the name of your loved one listed, please leave a comment below. I’ll research it and create a prayer for a future month.

Frederick: peace ruler

Heavenly Father, I pray that Frederick will live the meaning of his name. I pray that his life will be filled with the peace that comes from you. I pray also that he will share your peace with everyone who comes into his life and that you will be the true ruler of his life. Amen.

 Sharon: flat clearing

Heavenly Father, I pray that Sharon will live the meaning of her name. I pray that you will make her way clear; free of sharp rocks that may trip her or cause her to stumble. I pray that her path will be the path you desire for her through the peaceful clearing you create. Amen.

Tessa: harvester

Heavenly Father, I pray that Tessa will live the meaning of her name. I pray that you will bless her life with every bounty and that you will ensure that she will be part of those joining you in the eternal harvest for your glory. Amen.

Warren: guard

Heavenly Father, I pray that Warren will live the meaning of his name. I pray that you will guard and protect him throughout his life and that he will be a guardian of a strong faith in you. Amen.

TO LEAP OR NOT TO LEAP

Please welcome my friend Lynn Mosher, part of "The Network" of Christian writers, who cast their writing nets for Jesus. Lynn can be found regularly at LynnMosher.com.

Standing on the edge, swimmies snug on the arms.

Ready, set, JUMP!

Caught by Dad.

Paddle to the edge.

Climb the ladder.

Stand on the edge again.

Ready, set, JUMP! 

Those were the days when the kids were very young and we took them swimming. They loved to leap from the side of the pool and be caught by their dad.

But let’s back up a bit. Did they love jumping in at first? No way! In fact, they were quite apprehensive, even frightened. But after a bazillion times of ‟Come on, I’ll catch you,” their built up trust in their father and they leaped, recognizing the safety of his open arms, and their fears dissipated.

What about us? Are we ready to take a leap off that spiritual edge into the scary unknown of obeying some command or new action given by the Lord? Or do we believe it to be so difficult that we talk ourselves out of obedience?

Do we permit our past to shove us into the back of the closet of self-preservation? Do we accept the attempts of the Ol’ Fear-monger to paralyze us with fear, immobilizing us in our present?

We always have a choice. To get started in whatever task the Lord calls us to do, we must choose to overcome what holds us back and take that step or leap of faith.

However, the Lord never gives us courage for that first step. He leaves that initial decision up to us. He may nudge us with a bazillion come-ons, but we have to take that first step of faith, or leap of faith, as the case may be. Just as those down through the ages have done.

Noah stepped out in total faith. Actually, he took a giant leap! Build a what? Because it’s going to do what? What is rain? And what’s a cubit? Did others laugh at him? I’m most certain they did.

Has God led you to do something so outrageous that it appears ridiculous to you? Stepping out may seem laughable to you but it will cost you, and possibly others, dearly if you do not obey.

Did it seem impossible to the Israelites when they were hemmed in on all sides, the Pharaoh’s rattling chariots closing in behind them, the mountain heights looming on either side of them, and the sea’s heaving waves in front of them?

Do what? Go forward? What about the water? Go into it? Beyond the bounds of possibility, right? Has God asked you to do something that seems hopeless to accomplish? He will make a way, you know.

And there’s Abraham. Obeying the Lord by leaving where he lived and going to an unknown land. “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise.” (Hebrews 11:8-9a NKJV)

Not even knowing where he was going! But to activate that promise of God, Abraham placed one foot in front of the other. In my quirky mind, I hear the words to the song in the cartoon Santa Claus is Coming to Town...

Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking cross the floor
Put one foot in front of the other
And soon you’ll be walking out the door.

Has God been nudging you to do something but you’ve hesitated or ignored Him? If you are apprehensive, even frightened to take that first step or leap of faith, trust in your Father, take the plunge, recognize the safety of His open arms, and your fears will dissipate.

To leap or not to leap? Go ahead...be courageous! Take the leap! See what happens!

Lynn Mosher lives with her hubby (since 1966) in their Kentucky nest, emptied of three chicklets and embraced three giggly grand-chicklets and an inherited dog. Lynn’s passion is to encourage others and glorify the Lord with her writing. Stop by for a refill at her website, Heading Home,http://lynnmosher.com.

COURAGE

The definition of courage is “the ability to face danger, difficulty, uncertainty, or pain without being overcome by fear or being deflected from a chosen course of action.” 

After that definition was this handy example:

She must pluck up courage and tell him the truth.

(Bing.com/Dictionary)

Further down the page I spotted a synonym for courage: pluck.

en.wikipedia.org

Think Loony Toons’ Plucky Duck.

Did you see it? The word “pluck” as it relates to courage, is both a verb and a noun. We just need to pluck up (do it) the pluck (courage) in order to be plucky (courageous).

Face our fears; don’t be overcome by them and—voila—we have courage.

Now that we have a new image to hold in our minds. Let’s all be plucky ducks for Jesus.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for the encouragement we have through you. Please help us encourage each other in all things. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? In what area do you need to become a plucky duck?

THE 10 + 1 BUILDING BLOCKS OF RELATIONSHIPS: TRUST

This is a guest post from Chris Vonada. Chris is an aspiring author and professional geologist, who enjoys reading, running, anything outdoors, ravel, family, friends, music and life! He writes about his passions at I'm Just Thinkin' . His latest book Believe...and You Say? is available at Amazon.com.

"Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships." Stephen Covey

If I can't trust you and you don't trust me our relationship is pre-determined to be pretty shallow.

I hope to share with you today why and how you should be very interested in building trust in your most treasured relationships...

Trust... what exactly is it?

In relationships, trust is the confidence that someone else is going to behave in a way or manner that we anticipate, i.e., that they're going to do what we expect them to do. Repetitive actions that are trustworthy within a relationship result in a sense of security. This can work in reverse, too, when reinforced behaviors or reaffirming actions occur in an opposite direction.

Trust is known to increase the quality of life and enhances one's interpersonal relationships. Being in positive, healthy relationships where there is trust builds our "subjective well-being", or life satisfaction, optimism and happiness within an individual. Happy people are skilled at building and nurturing these good relationships.

When a relationship is built on trust, it's built on knowing that we have the other person's best interests in mind. That's it, I've got your back. We can depend on them for all of the other building blocks, or essential elements that we need to share a healthy relationship. Trust works to form an enduring bond between two people. Deep, meaningful love and intimacy are not likely to happen in the absence of trust in a relationship.

We can build trust in a relationship by:

- Recognizing that trust takes energy, time and commitment. You have to be attentive to another person's needs, at times putting their needs above your own selfish desires.

- Identifying a weakness that the other person struggles with, and then strive to help them with it, never exploiting it.

- Being willing to be vulnerable. Building true trust requires that we are vulnerable to the point that we learn through experience that we can rely on someone else. It's not all that comfortable of a feeling, at first, especially if someone has breached your trust in the past. Always remember that fear and worry are the tricks of the evil one. And remember to take it slow.

- Remember also that independence works counter to intimacy and trust. If you want to be independent that's fine, but realize that to reach the many advantages of closeness in your relationships, you'll have to learn to be dependent on other people. Both independence and trust and important, just remember that you'll need both to thrive in our world. And don't ever forget God made man to be amongst others in fellowship and community.

"Trust is to human relationships what faith is to gospel living. It is the beginning place, the foundation upon which more can be built. Where trust is, love can flourish." Barbara Smith

When we have these relationships, there is less anxiety. At times of difficulty it is comforting to know there is someone else who cares about you and your situation. They're there to help you, and that draws you closer together. This is a relationship that lasts and where we find deep contentedness  and unconditional love... the stuff that Jesus showed us. Why wouldn't we want to experience this deep, meaningful feeling?

PERCHING ON "THE" ROCK

When our kids were little, we had a hassock. You know—an ottoman, a padded footstool. It was great for resting your feet and sitting on. But best of all, it was part of one of my kids' favorite games.

They’d run around the room chasing after each other and nothing. Then suddenly, one of them would race over to the hassock, fling themselves across it and shout, “My rock!” Then they’d be off again chasing and racing.

Eighteen years later, they sometimes sit down or claim something and yell, “My rock!” Accompanied with laughs. It still makes their father and mother smile!

My bible reading this morning took me to Psalm 28:1: To you I call, O Lord my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me.

  

Tuesday I wrote about Psalm 27:5 wherein God sets us upon a rock—safe and sound and high up with Him.

Today’s verse reminds me that not only are we up safe and sound with Him, that rock he has perched us on? It’s Him!

Just as my precious kids chased about the room before falling, giggling on our hassock and claiming it as their own, so too can I fall happily upon the Rock and claim Jesus as my own.

And just as doing so made my children’s father and mother smile, falling upon the Rock of Jesus surely makes my Heavenly Father smile.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father you are our rock and our salvation. Thank you that you see us as your children when we fall upon you and delight in you. Thank you for loving us that much. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you have a favorite scripture or song about God, our Rock? 

PERCHING ON ROCKS

This morning’s bible reading took me to Psalm 27:5

“…he will set me high upon a rock.”

My first flash of imagining was me…standing on a rock in the middle of a large, calm lake. Look, here comes Jesus, walking toward me…walking on the water, of course.

Then I looked and saw thousands of rocks poking up through the water—a believer in Christ perched on each one.

Then I saw a roaring ocean, scattered with more rocks—sharp ones. And more Christians perched above the waves. Again Christ moved across the water, whispering calm to the frothy turmoil.

And suddenly I was atop a mountain. Dizzying heights, but me, securely anchored to a rocky promontory overlooking a spectacular view of the valley below. There I was. There all of us were—securely standing upon a rock; each of us firmly planted upon the mountain with God.

A vision sent by God?

Or the active imaginings of a creative person.

Either way, it was a powerful image. God sets us high upon a rock for our safety, for our protection and so we can better see and appreciate His glory.

Perching on rocks with Jesus. How cool is that?

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for being a place of safety where we can dwell with you. Please remind us to open our eyes and see you there with us in all your glory. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Can you share a time when you were reading scripture and something morphed from words into a vivid picture that made the promise more real?

CAROL’S GEMS: APRIL BIRTHSTONE—THE DIAMOND

Every month has a birthstone. The birthstone for April is the diamond. And it reminds me of Jesus.

Have you ever seen a diamond in the rough? It’s not so thrilling. It resembles simple quartz—often dull and full of spots.

Sort of like us, before Jesus takes hold of our hearts and cleans us up from the inside out.

The diamond represents faithfulness, love, and purity, which is why the stone is traditionally used in engagement and wedding rings. But in gemstone symbolism, the diamond also symbolizes eternity. As does Jesus.

When shopping for diamonds, buyers are cautioned to always look for the “four Cs.” Those are color, clarity, carat, and cut. By focusing on the four Cs, a buyer can be assured of getting the best quality in this precious stone.

But as Christians, we too have the 4 Cs. They are the cross, Calvary, covenant, and command. And they are more precious than the most precious diamond.

The diamond is also the stone that represents a monarch’s sixtieth anniversary. Remember, Queen Elizabeth’s “Diamond Jubilee” last year? It celebrated her reign as Queen of England for the past 60 years.  There’s a bit of confusion relating to diamonds though, since they represent 60 years for royalty and 75 years for everybody else.

Tomorrow, I turn 60. Fortunately, as an adopted daughter of the King of the Universe, that means I’m royalty. It also means it’s my diamond jubilee. I don’t have to wait until I’m 75.

Then again, every day lived under God’s reign is a jubilee!

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for adopting us into your family. Thank you for making us royalty in your sight. Thank you that every day lived in your love is a jubilee! Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you know any diamonds in the rough who need some polishing? Is there anyone in your life who sparkles with Jesus’ love?

Q1 GOAL REVIEW

Wow. The first quarter of 2013 went fast!

How did I do on those resolutions, goals, focus I set in January?

How did you do?

As for my writing goals, Q1 was to be the quarter of learning the technicalities of self-publishing. 

As such, I revised and formatted Wielding the Sword of God and published it on Amazon as a kindle book, linking back here to my blog for print-out-able charts. I also finished up my book proposal for I am Esther in preparation for querying agents in Q2 and have begun reformatting my website CarolPetersonAuthor.com  to encourage and help promote authors and book lovers. The revamping is still in progress.

I’d love to hear from folks about what they’d like to see there in terms of reading, writing, teaching, sharing, life as it relates to words or The Word.

But I’d like to hear from you—here and now—about how you’re doing on what you’d like to accomplish in 2013. Where is God leading you? What’s on your heart? What road do you need to take to reach your destination?

Time is going to pass whether you work on your goals or not. You might as well do something so that at the end of next quarter you can say: “Yes! I did it! Onward.”

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, we are so thankful for the time you’ve given us here on Earth and for the desire and talents to reach goals. Please encourage us, help us encourage each other and open our minds to the encouragement you send through others. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Your turn. How are you doing on your resolutions, goals and focus this year?