Finding God in the Golf Victory of Bubba Watson

May 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Karen O’Connor:

Bubba Watson (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)

My husband and I were glued to the television during the recent 2012 Master’s Golf Tournament. I was rooting for Bubba Watson, who during that tournament won his first major championship. I liked his calm style, his deep affection for faith and family, and his love for the game. In a nutshell, I’m finding God in the victory and attitude of golf pro Bubba Watson!  

Wall Street Journal reporter John Paul Newport summed up the basis of  the media appeal of  Gary Lester “Bubba” Watson Jr.:

“He’s a natural––untutored and spontaneous . . . he was unfazed by the hoopla.”

Yes! Newport got it right. The young pro shows himself wherever he is, even while going for ‘the Green Jacket.’  I’m thinking of what Paul wrote in the bible: He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing. (Ephesians 2:10 MSG).

Bubba put it this way, when asked about the fact that he’s never had a formal golf lesson:

“I’ve been blessed  . . . where it’s all worked out for me . . .”

No one got technical with him as a boy. His father recognized his son’s talent and let him ‘play’ the game as he was growing up, finding his way while practicing and enjoying it.

This reminds me of how God is with his sons and daughters. He doesn’t ‘get technical’ with us. He gives us free will while also promising to guide us along the way. We don’t have to worry or fret.

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear  a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it”  (Isaiah 30:21).

Finding God in Bubba Watson’s victory was a cool surprise for me—not something I planned or could have imagined. It was simply another way that God made Himself known to me on a lovely Sunday afternoon. And he will do the same for you—when you least expect it.

According to Wikipedia’s entry on Bubba Watson, “Watson is a committed Christian, speaks openly about the importance of faith in his life, and devotes much of his money and time to charity.”

©Karen O’Connor. Karen is an author, writing mentor, and frequent contributor to the Finding God Daily blog. Visit Karen on the web at www.karenoconnor.com.

If you missed the tournament, view the YouTube video below, featuring a recap of Bubba Watson’s win.

2012 Masters (CBS Sports)

 

Comedy Video by the Golf Boys

You might be surprised by another video: a comedy music video performed for charity by Ben Crane, Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan and Bubba Watson:  Golf Boys – Oh Oh Oh (Official Video).  For every 100,000 views, Farmers Insurance is donating to charity via the Ben Crane initiative:

How silly would you be to raise money for charity? (Click HERE to go to that video, not embedded, so your view will count!)

On Twitter: Bubba Watson @bubbawatson, Ben Crane @bencranegolf,  Hunter Mahan @HunterMahn, and Rickie Fowler @RickieFowlerPGA.

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Finding God Daily Writers: O’Connor, Butts and Lovett

May 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Laurie Winslow Sargent:

Readers, you may have noticed how we rotate posts between nine Finding God Daily writers. Professional achievements are on our About page, but you may not realize how unique each writer’s style is, nor the amazing variety of topics they have covered!

So far we’ve posted 241 articles, with 14,131 page views (in five months) and welcomed site visitors from 121 different countries.

We are thrilled, to say the least!

All our current writers are members of AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association) as Christian authors and gifted national speakers. These busy ladies dedicate time to us between book writing and traveling because they are passionate about helping YOU find God: for the first time, or to help you grow daily in faith.

This month I’d like to profile three of our most prolific writers: Dianne Butts, Karen O’Connor, and Deborah Lovett:

Finding God Daily: Our Writers’ Specialties

 

What makes Dianne E. Butts  unique? Dianne specializes in writing about current and historical events from a biblical point of view, related to archaeology, history, prophecy, science, movies, and sometimes controversial people or issues.

Recent topics? Rick Warren, deadly DUIs, Thomas Kinkade, earthquakes, elder care, the Jesus Boat, October Baby, planet Kepler 22-b, Tim Tebow, and unplanned pregnancy. How’s that for variety?  Homeschoolers take note: there’s lots to learn from Dianne!

Karen O’Connor  specializes in humor (especially senior moments) and in the true spirit of Finding God Daily: paying attention to God in our daily lives. Who knew you could find God in a stew pot, a stick of butter, or fashion?

But Karen also writes about finding God in difficult places: in prison, helping the homeless, after tornadoes and during personal struggles including sleeplessness, discouragement, loneliness and after divorce. Karen helps us see how God is always present: we simply need to stop and pay attention.

Offering you warm encouragement is Deborah Lovett, who addresses her readers as if she is pouring out her heart to them. She challenges us to read the life-giving word of God. Click on scripture links in her articles to embark on a study of your own.

Deborah relates to many struggles you may have had, and shows how God can get people through tough times. She’s written about disappointment, failure to believe in God, spiritual battles, loss of a loved one to suicide, and God’s love.

NOTE: You can always find articles by  topic or author name using our site Search box (top right of this webpage).

By the way, our publisher, Linda Evans Shepherd, is one of the most versatile and creative people I know. You can meet her in the video below. Among a zillion other projects (including 30 books published and mentoring hundreds of AWSA authors) Linda had the vision to create Finding God Daily and other blogs, including Thinking About Suicide and GodTest, where people can find help and hope.

 Meet our founder, Linda Evans Shepherd, in the video below:

Laurie Winslow Sargent, Finding God Daily editor, has been a magazine article writer, book author and speaker since 1988. She blogs for parents at www.ParentChildPlay.com and for aspiring nonfiction writers at www.SellYourNonfiction.com. Laurie loves to kick-start each morning with a latte and the day’s Finding God Daily article, and is very grateful for our writers. 

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Finding God in Surviving Bullying

May 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment
By Linda Evans Shepherd

Finding God in Surviving Bullying

Bullying is a deep problem in our society, where kids, teens, and even adults are belittled, harassed and tormented for social, economic, physical, religious, and other reasons. Though being bullied can be emotionally devastating, it can be survived.

Below are several stories of famous celebs who not only survived being bullied, but overcame it. At the end of their stories, I’ll share tips on finding God in surviving bullying plus a trailer for the movie Bully.

Photo of Miley Cyrus (Wikipedia.com)

According to the antibullyingblog, when Miley Cyrus was a pre-teen in Tennessee there was an “Anti-Miley Club” at her school full of “big, tough girls” who bullied her.

Cyrus was once locked in a bathroom during class: “They shoved me in. I was trapped. I banged on the door until my fists hurt. Nobody came.”

Other incidents included challenging Cyrus to a fight, which only ended when the principal stepped in. And when Cyrus wasn’t being physically abused, she was being teased. Classmates told her, “Your dad’s a one-hit wonder. You’ll never amount to anything — just like him.” Fortunately for her, Cyrus did not listen to nay-sayers, scoring the role of “Hannah Montana” and a ticket to fame and fortune.

Lady Gaga (Wikipedia.com)

Miley is not the only celeb who experienced the bully-treatment.  At a recent Monster Ball concert in New York, Lady Gaga said:

“I use to get really bullied at school…one time I got thrown in the trash. I went to the pizzeria around the corner. And you know, it was meant to be a joke, right? But these guys that some of my friends were friends with, were also friends with these other girls who really didn’t like me very much.

So the guys were like, let me put you in the trash where you belong. So they picked me up in my school skirt and they put me in the trash. I was looking up at them and trying to laugh…to act like it didn’t bother me because I didn’t want to show a sign of weakness. But really, I was holding back the tears so hard because I was so embarrassed that I was in the trash can. So I want to say to you that I am living proof that if anyone ever puts you in a (bleep) trash can, you can get the (bleep) out.”

Bill Clinton from Wikipedia.com

Even United States Presidents endured bullying. In fact, President Bill Clinton was bullied in junior high for being a “fat band boy” with bad taste in clothes, also mentioned in the antibullying blog article.

Their taunting culminated in an incident at a junior high dance: one older student teased Clinton about his carpenter’s jeans, and even hit Clinton in the jaw. But Clinton did not give the bully what he wanted, choosing to stand his ground rather than fight back or back down. Clinton shares in his memoir, My Life, “I had learned that I could take a hit and that there’s more than one way to stand against aggression.” He survived the incident, and his status as a band geek paid off, with Clinton becoming a talented and celebrated saxophone player in addition to his life in public service.

If you are being bullied, check out these tips suggested by Kids Health:

  • Ignore the bully and walk away.
  • Hold the anger.
  • Don’t get physical.
  • Practice confidence.
  • Take charge of your life.
  • Talk about it.
  • Find your (true) friends.

How to Find God in Surviving Bullying

Some of these tips are easier to achieve than others. But I think the biggest thing you can do is to decide, I will not believe the lies the bullies use to hurt me, I will trust God.

We serve a God who sees us loved, precious, redeemed, valuable and beautiful, who sent his own son to die in our place.

Try praying this prayer from my article, I am Getting Bullied from ThinkingAboutSuicide.com:

Dear Lord,

I break the lying words that people are saying about me, in the power and authority of the name and blood of Jesus. I ask that you replace those words with loving words you use to describe me; precious, loved, beautiful, smart, full of promise, a miracle, and wonderful. Give me your power, strength and truth to believe your words instead of the lies. Please block and cancel lying words and any thoughts of suicide – in the power and authority of the name and blood of Jesus. Thank you for giving me a hope and a future. In Jesus name, Amen.

So you see, it’s possible to find God in surviving bullying. Check out the new Bully movie as well as Paul Coughlin on how to Bully-proof your kids from CBN.com:

To discover more about how to have a relationship with God, go to GodTest.com.

©Linda Evans Shepherd. Linda is the President of Right to the Heart ministries, publisher of Finding God Daily, and pens many of our articles.  She’s also the author of over 30 books and a national speaker.

 

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Find God in Prophecies of Chaotic Weather

April 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Dianne E. Butts:

Finding God in Chaotic Weather: Image by Salvatore Vuono

It’s April and storm season, the time for violent weather. If we look into Scripture, it’s possible we can find God in prophecies of chaotic weather.

In Luke 21:25-26, Jesus was talking about the Signs that would come before His second coming when He comes to judge the world. He said,

“There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.”

Some people think this Bible verse could refer to increased intensity in chaotic weather patterns on earth.

We’ve certainly seen a lot of intense weather in the United States in recent years. The National Weather Service sent out strong warnings prior to and during the weekend of April 14 – 15, 2012. And tornadoes did form across the Midwest, tearing up towns like Woodward, Oklahoma.

The largest tornado outbreak ever recorded occurred just a year ago.  According to Wikipedia, the 2011 Super Outbreak, occurred from April 25 to 28, 2011 when destructive tornadoes hit Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Virginia.

The Wikipedia article says, regarding that 2011 outbreak, “In total, 353 tornadoes were confirmed by the National Weather Service in 21 states from Texas to New York and even isolated tornadoes in Canada. Widespread and destructive tornadoes occurred on each day of the outbreak, with April 27 being among the most prolific and destructive tornado days in United States history with a record 208 tornadoes touching down that day. Four of the tornadoes were destructive enough to be rated EF5 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, which is the highest ranking possible; typically these tornadoes are only recorded about once each year or less.”

The number killed as a result of those tornadoes: 346 people.

Less than a month later, on Sunday afternoon, May 22, 2011, Joplin, Missouri, was struck by an EF5 multiple-vortex tornado. “It was part of a larger late-May tornado outbreak sequence and reached a maximum width of in excess of 1 mile (1.6 km) during its path through the southern part of the city,” Wikipedia says. The number of deaths directly linked to the tornado: 160.

Jesus also mentioned “the roaring and tossing of the sea.” If you’re curious about earthquakes and tsunamis, I wrote about those in these two articles: “Find God in Prophecy about Earthquakes” and “Signs of the End Times? – Earthquakes and Tsunamis.”

Throughout the Bible we can see that, because of His great love for all people, God always sends warnings before He sends His judgments (which are disasters meant to put a stop to or slow down increased sin. His ultimate judgment will be His second coming.). But people don’t always listen. They say, “It’s not God. It’s global warming.” Do you think God is warning us through tornadoes and other disasters? If yes, are you listening? If you are, then you might find God in prophecies of chaotic weather.

© Dianne E. Butts. Dianne is a freelance writer, author, and screenwriter. Her latest book is Deliver Me is for those in an unplanned pregnancy or with one in their past, and just won “Book of the Year” at Christian Small Publisher’s Association. Her first book Dear America is now available on Kindle. Follow her writing at www.DeliverMeBook.blogspot.com.

April 2012 Tornado Videos

At TornadoVideos.net, see: Update from the April 14, 2012 tornado outbreak.)

Also see this video below, showing what an amazing creator we have:

From YouTube: Top 20 Amazing Weather Phenomena

 

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Finding God in a Stick of Butter

March 22, 2012 By 1 Comment

By Karen O’Connor:

 Boaz Yiftach / FreeDigitalPhotos.net“Where did I put that butter?” my friend asked herself one afternoon as she prepared to make a batch of cookies. The half-pound she’d purchased at the market the day before was nowhere in sight. She checked the hall closet where she hung her purse. Not there. She searched her jacket pockets. Nope! With a great sigh she rummaged through the grocery bags one more time. Not!

“Time for prayer,” she muttered. Dear Lord, I need help. At that moment she slid open the drawer where she keeps her baking utensils and there it was. “I never expected to be finding God in a stick of butter,” she said laughing, “but I surely did. He’d answered my prayer in plenty of time for me to make the cookies I planned to take to my granddaughter’s open house at school.”

Fortunately, the butter was still intact. None had melted and it was now just the right consistency for her recipe.

How much God cares about us in big things and little, in world-changing events and in mundane tasks that we take for granted. Nothing is too great or too small for the God of creation. In the Bible in Jeremiah 32:41, the Lord says, “I will rejoice in doing them good . . .” If my friend through prayer was finding God in a stick of butter, just think in what amazing and funny and delightful and serious places any one of us can find him—if we seek him with all our heart.

Karen O’Connor is an author, writing mentor, and frequent contributor to the Finding God Daily blog. Visit Karen on the web at www.karenoconnor.com

It can be distressing when we can’t remember things. Thankfully, we can ask God to help us when our memory fails. But it does help to keep our sense of humor!

Enjoy the song “Remember?” in this YouTube video featuring Tom Rush, titled I Forgot.

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Finding God in Family Treasures

March 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Karen O’Connor:

“Where did you get that beautiful old quilt?  It looks hand-made,” said the silver-haired woman, as she paused in front of the glass doors of the old cherry wood bookcase that stands in the entry hall of our home. She also commented on the lovely silver serving spoons and the Fostoria glassware, as well as the old Bible and my husband’s Shirley Temple drinking cup. “What treasures!” she exclaimed. I agree. When I take a moment to enjoy these tangible links to our ancestors I am reminded that finding God in family treasures is as easy as finding him in my garden.

Each item brings me back to my parents and grandparents and in-laws, all of them men and women who loved the Lord, lived by his precepts and did their best to teach me about him through their words and example.

“I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my

blessing on your descendants” (Isaiah 44:3 the Bible)

I also enjoy going through the documents that tie my family to our ancestors: birth and baptismal certificates, marriage licenses, school report cards, and priceless photographs. Now that I’m a parent and grandparent, I hope my children and grandchildren will be finding God in family treasures and also in the words and example I leave behind.

If you want to find out how to organize and display some of the keepsakes in your family, check out this article on how to  Organize Family History Photos and Documents Into Simple Binder Scrapbooks  by Nancy Oram.

Also, if you have ever considered making your own family quilt to create a keepsake for your own descendants, here are some directions for getting started. This is one in a series of  how-to quilting videos, uploaded to YouTube by LandauerPublishing:

Karen O’Connor is an author, writing mentor, and frequent contributor to Finding God Daily blog. Visit Karen on the web at www.karenoconnor.com.

 

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Finding God at the Golden Globe Awards

January 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Karen O’Connor:

Photo by mconnor

On Saturday night I attended church, on Sunday morning watched Pastor Joel Osteen on television, then on Sunday night tuned in to the Golden Globe Awards. What a surprise to discover that finding God at the Golden Globe Awards was almost as easy as finding him at church.

I realized while listening to the various award recipients that despite what they said, the gracious hand of God was on their lives. It was he who gave them their talent for acting, writing, producing, directing. It was he who brought them into the world and guided them to this point in their lives, whether they acknowledged him or not.

One of the award announcers, Mark Wahlberg, had appeared on the CNN show, Piers Morgan Tonight, a few evenings before. I remembered him talking about his wasted years before a priest came along and helped him turn his life around. He now lives and works for God, is faithful to his wife and four children, and starts each day with prayer at his local church. He ended the interview by saying, “I am a blessed man.”

As the show and the follow-up interviews came to an end, I sat there realizing that despite the glitz and glamor of Hollywood, finding God at the Golden Globe Awards is not impossible. There are many stars who know and love God and live their lives for his glory and the good of others.

Watch this video on YouTube featuring an interview at the Golden Globes with Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt who, like Mark Wahlberg, do inspiring humanitarian and educational work in the world:

 Karen O’Connor is an award winning author and writing mentor from Watsonville, California. Visit Karen on the web at: www.karenoconnor.com

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12 Great Resolutions for the New Year to Find God, Love Others

January 1, 2012 By 2 Comments

By Deborah Lovett:

I know many people make resolutions for the New Year, but I have always made a New Year goal to apply one Scripture to my life for the year. I always seek the Lord for which verse in the Bible He wants me to apply to my life.  This year I am finding God in another New Year’s Scripture but He has given me many verses on one subject matter. So by the end of the year, 2012, I should be a SME (Subject Matter Expert!) on what it means to love one ‘another’. Perhaps you would like to join me:

 

1) Do not deceive one another. (LEVITICUS 19:11)

2) Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. (ZECHARIAH 7:9)

3) Now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you should also wash one another’s feet. (JOHN 13:14)

4) A new command I give you: love one another. (JOHN 13:34)

5) Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. (ROMANS 12:10)

6) Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. (ROMANS 12:16)

7) Therefore let us stop passing judgement on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. (ROMANS 14:13)

8)  Accept one another, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. (ROMANS 15:7)

9) Instruct one another. (ROMANS 15:14)

10)  Greet one another with a holy kiss. (ROMANS 16: 16)

11) I appeal to you brothers, in the name of our lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. (CORINTHIANS 1:10)

12) Serve one another in love. (GALATIANS 5:13)

I’ll post a dozen more for you tomorrow! May I suggest you personalize these scriptures as your own resolutions for the New Year, inserting your own name, plus whoever the Holy Spirit brings to your mind-as the ‘one another’ ?  Then make notes as to how you will apply these verses to your relationships.

Happy  New Year! May you find God by loving one another this year.

© Deborah Lovett. (www.DeborahLovett.com) Deborah is an International Speaker for Women’s Events, Retreats, and Conferences and the author of Gushing Springs, a Bible Study on the “Woman at the Well.”

 

Enjoy this beautiful music  with escalating harmony,  in this YouTube video: Love One Another (The Greatest Commands) with singing by the Acapella FC Alumni Chorus:

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Finding God When You Feel Trapped

December 28, 2011 By 1 Comment

By Linda Evans Shepherd

Photo used by permission from Istock.com

Do you feel trapped by a situation or problem?  An expert on this issue might be Nicholas White who was once trapped in a New York City elevator for 40 hours in October 1999, before a voice from the elevator intercom finally asked, “Is anybody in there?”

Before he was rescued, Nicholas, tried everything he could think of to get out.  He even pried open the elevator doors to discover that a brick wall blocked his escape. He ran the alarms repeatedly, called for help and even tried prayer.

Perhaps you can relate to Nicholas’ plight because of unresolved problems you are experiencing. So the question is, what do you do when you feel trapped?  How do you cope when your search for solutions leads you to brick walls that block your escape? Interestingly, someone posed this question to the experience project forum.  I was intrigued by an answer from ‘jason’ who said:

“Had exact same problem. … Said to God: God ! What’s at the real bottom of this nonsense in my life. He said: Pray for your enemies FORGIVENESS. Before that I was like; stupid Bible, tells you to pray for your enemies but don’t say WHAT ! Yeah, I know Jesus prayed for his enemies’ forgiveness on the cross but that were a little different weren’t it. I mean; he went and prayed in a mountain. Should I do that too ? Anyhows, I always do and BAM homelessness/restlessness/financial burden cares etc. ALL GONE !”

Do we have to feel trapped forever?  No, and that’s the good news.  Even White was eventually rescued from that elevator. I believe you will be rescued too, especially if you pay attention to Jason’s advice to forgive your enemies.

I don’t know Mr. White, and I don’t know how he processed his emotional trauma following his ordeal.  However, I do know that when he walked into the elevator that Friday night, planning to return to his office following a smoke break, he walked from one life into another. He’s no longer employed by the magazine he worked for before his smoke break.  He’s also received what he called a ‘low’ settlement that didn’t stretch to cover all his bills, and he’s experienced other setbacks.  However, I would recommend to him or to anyone who feels trapped or traumatized by their own brick walls to give it up to God, to forgive, and to allow God’s presence more deeply into your life. If you don’t know how to do that, check out the survey questions on GodTest.com to help you discover hope.

In the meantime, remember, “Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.”  Palms 31:24.

To see a time lapse of Mr. White’s ordeal, go to:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_bMhNI_TY8

Linda Evans Shepherd, the President of Right to the Heart, is also the publisher of Finding God Daily, and pens many of the articles.  She’s been married for over 30 years and has two children.  She’s also the author of over 30 books, including: When You Don’t Know What to Pray, How to Talk to God About Anything.

 

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Finding God When You’re Thinking About Suicide

December 27, 2011 By 2 Comments

By: Deborah Lovett

Stinkin’ thinkin’ is what Joyce Meyers refers to it as. That is when you are thinking about things that steal the joy from those who love you, listen to the lies of the enemy of your own soul saying you are ruined and unloved, and things that destroy your life. So how can you be finding God when you are thinking about suicide?

If you can find a Bible you can find God. If you can find a phone and call the suicide hotline, you can find someone who wants to talk to you about your problems, which could be God’s intervention.

You see, in May 2008 my sister took her own life because she forgot she was loved by so many. She listened to the lies of the enemy that reminded  her she had lost everything: her children, her husband, her home, her job, and her reputation over and over. That kind of stinkin’ thinkin’ can make you crazy. She had no idea of the aftershocks that would occur after she died. If she could have known how much we were to suffer because of losing her, I know she would never had wanted to hurt us that much. It has been like a tsunami whose waves of grief never end.

I don’t know why my sister made the horrible decision to give up, but I do know that God tried to get to her to stay by sending someone that offered to take her to church the same day. The lady said, “I knocked and she never answered.” My sister chose not to answer the door. You see there is always a choice. If you are thinking about trying to take your own life, remember that suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem that the devil wants you to believe is a permanent problem with no solution, which is  actually a lie from the pit of hell. Yes, you may have problems, but believe me my God is in the miracle making business and the worst situations are not even a challenge for Him. Take Jesus for example: they spit on him, whipped him, crucified him, and it looked absolutely hopeless. Yet three days later God raised him from the dead.  I know, I know, you are thinking but that was JESUS. Well, listen up: God does not play favorites. If you will give God three days of life, (we have been commanded not to murder) just three sunrises, I believe He will intervene in your life someway, somehow. All you need to do is listen, submit to His voice, and open the door when He knocks or sends someone to your door.

You can also choose to not replay the video of darkness in your head over and over. As hard as it is to believe, you can choose to restart your life and begin to think about how God wants to actually bless you. Not only does He want to bless you, He has blessings waiting on you! You can begin by saying the name of Jesus, because the Word of God says there is POWER in the name of Jesus.

So if you are thinking about suicide, you can be finding God, life, blessing, and a new life instead if you will only believe and have the faith of a mustard seed.

I don’t know you, but I want you to know you are not alone. God is with you and I love you even though I have never met you. I really do! You see love is not based on what you do or don’t do, it is based on the command to love your neighbors just as Jesus loved us.  I am begging you not to hurt those you love, or yourself. Let the sun come up another day. Reach out, call someone, open a Bible, go to church, call your doctor, go to the hospital, do anything BUT stinkin’ thinkin’. The devil has taken enough from you already, don’t give him the satisfaction of your life too. God wants you to live and He has a purpose and plan for it. Just believe.

You can sign up for 10 days of encouragement that comes into your email box at GodTest, by clicking HERE.  For more helps, check out the resources at GodTest.com.

See here on video the Kellie Borden story. She had real problems and contemplated suicide, but Jesus Christ changed her life.

by Deborah Lovett. (www.DeborahLovett.com) Deborah is an International Speaker for Women’s Events, Retreats, and Conferences and the author of Gushing Springs, a Bible Study on the “Woman at the Well.”

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Finding God in a Failed Celebrity Marriage

December 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Lane Jordan:

 

Perhaps it’s time to start finding God in marriages and let’s start with the $10 million wedding of Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries.

Huh?  Didn’t Kim, 72 days after the wedding, file for a divorce?  And didn’t Humphries file for an annulment shortly thereafter as if to say, “The marriage never even happened?”

Yes, and the whole thing breaks my heart.  I’m worried too that young people will look at Kim and Kris’s example and get the idea that marriage isn’t sacred, but simply an act in this play called ‘life’.

But I believe there has to be more to marriage and the choices and decisions we make.

To find the answers to lasting happiness, perhaps we need to start finding God and his perspective about our lives, relationships, and choices.  Could it be that apart from Him, and the owner’s manual He gave us in what we call the Bible, we simply cannot make wise decisions?

The truth is, tapping into God’s wisdom has proven to be key for many successful marriages and lives.

Hopefully, Kim and Kris will turn from their own ways and start finding God in ways that will bring them happiness in marriages that last a lifetime.

Click HERE. 

Related Post: Finding God in a Shared Heartbeat  (On a 72 YEAR marriage)

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Finding God in a Christmas Tree Ornament

December 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Laurie Winslow Sargent:

 

Photo by markmiller

Unpacking Christmas decorations every year is a treat for me, Many ornaments have specific memories of  places or events attached to them.  The little wooden fishing boat and carved salmon remind me of our family’s time living in the Pacific Northwest. A tiny framed photo of my son as a preschooler snuggling his baby sister in her Baby’s First Christmas sweatshirt brings back sweet memories from eons ago. (My son is now twenty-five and the baby twenty-one. Sigh.)  Sometimes I’m finding God in a Christmas tree ornament  with obvious Christian themes, including one tiny nativity scene, cross-stitched by my mother in law.

One ornament I own has always confused me a bit, due to its oddity. It’s a metal sailboat, with a weather vane below it, arrows pointing N, S, W and E. It’s oversized, at about  5” high. I’ve never quite figured out how to put it on the tree, other than to perch it precariously between branches. I have no concrete memory of where it came from. Yet it’s nicely crafted and invokes thoughts of my husband’s love for sailing. So on the tree I’ve  set it, every year, for over ten years.

One recent Christmas, a deeper, more significant meaning became attached to this odd ornament.  I had been feeling homesick for Washington State. I was unwrapping the sailboat weather vane from white tissue paper I was suddenly startled. I ran to the kitchen, and held the mini-sailboat up to the kitchen window. Through the window, atop our garage, was—is–a mirror image. A metal sailboat with a  weather vane beneath it, complete with directional arrows, N, S  W and E.  (You can see it in the above photo.)

Although we had lived in the house for several ears, and I knew the garage ornament was there, I’d never made the connection. The sailboat weather vane on the garage had been placed there by the previous owners.

That’s odd too. At least the tree ornament we had gotten somewhere near the Pacific coast. But we now live amidst the cornfields of Iowa. A sailboat anything is a rare site. The garage ornament may have been one thing that attracted us to the house.  But I’d never thought about how truly strange that is, so  I called the previous owner to find out a bit more about where it came from.

She had purchased it on a vacation to Atlantic coast. I became amused at the thought that years ago, when buying it, she had no idea she was actually buying it for us.  Our house has a few other peculiarities that seem tailor-made for the Sargent family. There is  built-in wall unit, designed perfectly to hold our huge travel mug collection—also symbols of direction in our lives, because we have mugs representing places we have lived.  Strangest of all is that the street that runs behind our property, a street only two blocks long,  has the same name as the tiny town my kids were born in: in Washington State.

I also consider the significance of  weather vanes. (You might enjoy learning about the history of weather vanes on Wikipedia.) When in the Northwest, we had no idea we’d someday move to Iowa. When my husband was offered a job here, after much prayer, we decided that no matter where–North, South, West or East–God would be there to direct us.

Yet as you can see, just  as my faith in that began to waver and I longed for our former stomping grounds, I received, via a special memento, a beautiful reminder that God continues to direct my path. He intended for us to be in this home,  this neighborhood, at this time. I’ve felt even more confidence in that since the day of finding God in a Christmas tree ornament.

And now for a little humor!  You may also be finding fun in a Christmas ornament! On YouTube, Ornaments is an award-winning 3D computer animated short story about a mischievous Christmas tree decoration with a hunger for some milk and cookies. By Aaron Erimez.

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Finding God in ‘Silent Night’

December 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

by Dianne Neal Matthews

The familiar carol “Silent Night” was performed for the first time on December 24, 1818. Joseph Mohr, a young priest in Austria, wrote the original six stanzas for the song in German. On Christmas Eve, he took the words to his friend, musician and schoolteacher Franz Gruber, and asked him to write a melody and guitar accompaniment. Every year since then, people all over the world have been finding God in ‘Silent Night’.

On that long-ago night at Midnight Mass at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf, the two men sang “Stille Nacht! Heilige Nacht!” backed by the small choir repeating the last two lines in harmony. Sometime later, an organ repairman took a copy of the composition home with him, and the carol began to circulate around the world. “Silent Night” has now been translated into hundreds of languages and is sung by millions ­every­ Christmas season in every setting imaginable.

We forget that God sometimes moves powerfully in quiet, humble settings. A Christmas carol that has touched the hearts of people around the world arose from a modest curate and a musician known ­only within their village. In a similar way, God stepped into our world through a baby born in a stable in an obscure village. This event, which would change the world forever, occurred in quietness and humility except for the host of angels praising God in the sky before the shepherds.

When another Bible character Elijah needed a touch from God, God sent a mighty windstorm, an earthquake, and a fire. But the Lord wasn’t in any of these. God’s presence came in a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:11-12), soothing and refreshing the weary prophet’s soul. Our modern Christmas celebrations are often like a powerful windstorm or earthquake, full of too much noise and clamor. And God is often lacking in them. What many of us need for Christmas isn’t more gifts or activities, but a silent night so we won’t miss finding God in his gentle whisper.

This devotion is adapted from Dianne’s book, One Year on This Day (Tyndale House 2005). Used with permission.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOHqKhCY1_U

(Vienna Boys’ Choir singing “Stille Nacht”)

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Finding God in an Unplanned Pregnancy

December 9, 2011 By 5 Comments

Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy

Perhaps the most famous unwed mother was Mary, the mother of Jesus, who found God asking her to carry His Son. According to the new book, Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy, by author Dianne E. Butts, both women and men are finding God in an unplanned pregnancy.

In the book, several women and men describe finding Jesus Christ and accepting Him as Savior after they came to grips with crisis pregnancies, some which ended in abortion.

One reviewer of the book, Denise of Ramblings of a California Couponer  wrote, “I had an unplanned teen pregnancy myself. I could completely relate to many of the stories contained in the book and it reminded me of where I’ve been and how far I’ve come with Christ in my life.”

In another review, The Jolly Blogger wrote, “This book is not just for teenagers going through unplanned pregnancies… I had two. …During my first unplanned pregnancy, my fiancé (who was then my boyfriend) had been pressuring me to abort. We went to Planned Parenthood and someone said to me, ‘It is YOUR body. Whatever you decide to do, it is your choice.’ Naturally, most people might have taken that as encouragement to go ahead and abort, but for me, it was encouragement to keep my child because I was totally against the alternative. Now we have a beautiful daughter who will be turning 5 next month.”

The Jolly Blogger knows from her own experience that, “The most important thing for a person experiencing an unplanned pregnancy is a safe and loving environment — a place where no one is going to pressure you to make a certain decision and a place where you won’t be judged. From what I read, the setting for these stories provided that kind of atmosphere. The other important component is resources! It really is amazing how many resources exist within a community — unbeknownst to many! The stigma can be very overwhelming, especially if you’ve never asked for help before.”

On the Amazon.com page for this book, reviewer Kathy S related: “Overall this book is an excellent resource for anyone involved in an unplanned pregnancy including pregnant women, their partners, parents, grandparents, friends, family, and those involved in the work of crisis pregnancy centers.”

If you’re in an unplanned pregnancy and need help or just want to talk to someone, you can find one of these compassionate, confidential, nonjudgmental pregnancy centers near you at www.Optionline.org.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, was not the only unwed mother in the Christmas story. Her cousin Elizabeth was married but, incredibly, was also in her own unplanned pregnancy in her old age. Yet her joy in Mary’s pregnancy gave her strength, as you can see:

 ”At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:39-45, NIV Bible)

 

Through Mary’s willingness to carry and give birth to God-come-in-the-flesh, we are all finding God in an unplanned pregnancy.

You can find out more about the book  Deliver Me: Hope, Help, & Healing through True Stories of Unplanned Pregnancy at www.DeliverMeBook.com. The opening text on that webpage captures well the feelings many women have who discover they are expecting a baby, yet feel ill-prepared:

She stares at the test strip…

. . . palms clammy, breathing uneven.

She’s never felt more alone.

Tears blur her vision. Panic edges in.

 

Here’s the book trailer, to help you see how this book can help:

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Finding God While Holiday Shopping

December 8, 2011 By 1 Comment

By Karen O’Connor:

I hustled through the mall, walking in and out of various stores, eager to locate the perfect gifts for family and friends. In addition to finding presents for these special people I was also finding God while holiday shopping. What a nice surprise that was. I saw his love in the faces of people I encountered, his creativity displayed in the decorations and music, and his spirit reflected in the joy of seeing children and parents spend time together.

These examples of God’s presence helped me to calm down and slow my pace, realizing that He would lead me to where I wanted and needed to go. In the Bible it says:

“The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him” (Psalm 37:23)

So why was I so consumed with checking things off my to-do list? It would all work out if I kept my focus on God and listened for his gentle leading—even when shopping for gifts.

I took some time to enjoy the visual feast and the happy sounds all around me. And I took a short break at a little café where I sipped a latte, made a list—and checked it twice––before carrying on. Finding God while holiday shopping made the entire process fun and special.

Enjoy this video from My Family Club in the UK, on how to make the most of your shopping day, whether you’re spending pounds, dollars, or any other currency.  If you have a tip of your own on how to make shopping less stressful, more joyful or more God-focused, we’d love your Comment.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lA2WnKgV3XY

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Finding God While Making Christmas Cookies

December 6, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Karen O’Connor

As I rolled out the dough, I thought of my dear mother and suddenly I was finding God while making Christmas cookies—the ones Mom was famous for. She always made the holidays a special time for our family, decorating the house with garlands, berries, and candy canes. And as we sat around the festive table, she and Dad prayed: reminding us of the meaning of the season. When I think of her I know that God is near.

Do you, too, have a special Christmas cookie recipe that triggers memories of  family and faith?

You may enjoy adding these two recipes to your Christmas traditions: my mom’s Butter Horns, and Chef Carboni’s almond shortbread Christmas Cookies.

 

Butter Horns

Dough:

1 c. butter (softened)

2 c. flour (white or wheat)

1 egg yolk, slightly beaten

3/4 c. light sour cream

Filling:

3/4 c. sugar

1 t. cinnamon

3/4 c. finely chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans)

 

Directions:

Cut butter into flour. Combine egg yolk and sour cream. Blend with flour mixture. Form into ball and cover with waxed paper. Chill in refrigerator overnight or for several hours before baking.

Divide dough into three parts. Roll each part into a circle about 12” in diameter. Cut each circle into 16 wedges with knife or pizza cutter.

Prepare the filling. Combine sugar, cinnamon and nuts. Sprinkle mixture over the dough. Roll each wedge, starting with the wide end, shaping it into crescents.

Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes until light brown. Remove from cookie sheet to cool. Dust with powdered sugar.

Pass the plate!

As the air fills with the luscious aroma of baking, and perhaps the sound of  holiday hymns,  you too may be finding God while making Christmas cookies.

Enjoy also this helpful and entertaining You Tube video, with Chef Matteo Carboni of the Academia Barilla Culinary School, on how to make almond shortbread cookies you can tie onto your Christmas tree.

You can find that recipe here: Christmas Cookies

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Finding God in a Shared Heartbeat

December 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By Laurie Winslow Sargent

Photo by Aimee Sargent

Over 250,000 hits on various YouTube videos. A million page views–in one day–on one news site. What makes the story about  Gordon and Norma Jeager, married 72 years, so striking?

For starters: the couple died together, within about an hour of each other. Most unusual was that while Norma was still alive, Gordon  stopped breathing, yet his monitor still indicated a heartbeat. Medical staff  realized the monitor was instead registering Norma’s heartbeat, as she held her husband’s hand.  As I ponder the significance of this, I’m finding God in a shared heartbeat.

The mystery of  Mark 10:8 ,  in the Yeagers’ final moments, was played out in real life:

 

“…and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one.” (NIV Bible)

I also think this story fascinates people because many, especially those whose lives have been touched by divorce, wonder exactly how a couple can stick  ‘til–death-do-they-part for 72 years. Over seven decades!  As someone married now for 32 years, I say you take it one decade at a time—a year at a time—a month at a time.

The current of commitment must run deep. But I also believe shared memories and faith entwine a couple tightly. All it takes is a wink, a hand motion and a phrase to remind a spouse of a funny shared memory. A  sad look and a nod on the anniversary of a painful day is immediately understood; a hug ensues because both spouses “get it”. They tap into identical memory banks.  Shared joy and shared pain lead to bonding.  As years and memories multiply, the potential for 72  years of marriage seems no mystery at all to me.

I don’t want to unduly romanticize the Yeagers’ deaths, from a traffic accident that also injured another family. Grave concerns about the safety of elderly drivers on the road are valid.  Hearing the Yeager story did prompt me to check on my own parents’ driving safety. Yet that story also inspired me in my relationship with my spouse.

I think that one reason the Yeager’s relationship (instead of all circumstances of their deaths) has been the primary focus in the news is that it reflects a universal longing: for long-term loving relationships. It’s hard to beat a marriage lasting nearly 3/4 of a century!

Ironically, I live only 40 minutes away from the Yeager home in Iowa, yet I’ve seen comments on videos about the Yeagers  from places as far away as Norway (where I also once lived). You never know what mysteries may lie in in your own backyard. Or how people across the world may be drawn together as a result.

Here’s a KCCI news video about this couple, which I hope leads you also to finding God in a shared heartbeat.

You can also view on YouTube a montage of family memories for this couple, set to music.  If you are in a long-term marriage yourself, what are you doing to keep it strong?  If not, is this what you long for?

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Finding God in Texas Ghost Towns

December 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Dianne E. Butts

In the worst yearlong drought ever recorded in Texas, lakes are receding and exposing prehistoric skulls, graveyards, and 1800s towns including the concrete foundation of a church. That’s why some adventurers are finding God in Texas ghost towns, beneath depleted lakes.

 “Most people in Texas probably didn’t realize what was under these lakes,” said Pat Mercado-Allinger, the Texas Historical Commission’s archaeological division director in the article: Depleted Texas lakes expose ghost towns, graves , posted on MSNBC.com on 11/20/11.  Most of the region’s lakes were  man-made and many have dropped by more than a dozen feet, the article said.

One underwater town was known as Bluffton, Texas. One man whose great-great-great grandfather helped establish Bluffton, said his research showed 389 graves were moved starting in 1931 before construction of the dam began. That’s also the year old-Bluffton’s 40 or 50 residents started moving several miles west to the current Bluffton, which today sits at a lonely highway intersection and has a convenience store and a post office. The required move was devastating to residents who had no choice but to abandon ranches and pecan trees.

Apparently not all the graves were moved as several 1880s era marble headstones are now visible. Across the state the receding waters have revealed other finds, including “the skull of an American Indian buried for hundreds or thousands of years” and “a small cemetery that appears to contain the graves of freed slaves,” the article said. “A century-old church has emerged at Falcon Lake, which straddles the Texas-Mexico border on the Rio Grande.”

These individuals may be gone and their families and anyone who remembered them may also be gone, but they are not forgotten. The LORD God knows every human being who has ever existed, and there is a day coming when we will all be gathered before Him. In order for each of us to be resurrected in bodily form, as the Bible states, God has to know where every atom and every molecule that formed every human being is. And He can pull them back together to form our bodies once again.

Jesus said in Matthew 25, “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world… Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels… Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life” (NIV vs. 31-34, 41, 46).

The people who worshiped God at that now-century-old Christian church at the bottom of Falcon Lake knew this. They are not forgotten by God. A remnant of their faith remains in the foundation of their church now seen by people of our time. And so as people today find that concrete foundation, they are finding God in Texas ghost towns.

See this Fox 7 News video clip on how the town of Bluffton Texas was uncovered as Lake Buchanan receded.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKruOOhdyds

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Finding God In Christ

November 30, 2011 By 1 Comment

By: Deborah Lovett

Leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” John 4:28-29

This is one of those HUGE aha moments! Now, tell the truth, have you ever noticed that before? That the woman at the well forgot her reason for coming to the well in the first place, leaving her water jar behind? Also the woman who came at the hottest hour of the day, when no others came to draw water, in order to escape ridicule, embarrassment, and the haughty stares of others, was now speaking to an entire town. Astonishing! She was finding God in Christ the Messiah!

How did she get from point A to point Z; from needing and hiding; to overflowing and sharing? Simple enough; one little trip to the well; one run in with a Man who wouldn’t turn her away or use and abuse her; one large gulp of the “Living Water.”

Hers was a supernatural, divine meeting for sure. Most assuredly, had a human being confronted her about her past, the outcome would have been fear, disappointment, shame and condemnation. Not so with Jesus. He was accepting of her and still had compassion. He did not look to punish her but rather to set her free from her past. And so He does, through His unspeakable gift of grace and mercy that brings eternal life and transforms even the hardest of hearts.

Can you imagine the freedom she felt? Knowing she had been cleansed from her past, and that her daily mundane trip to the well, usually alone and uneventful had turned into an experience, an adventure that would change her life forever? Oh, how I wish I could have been there that day!

Oh, but we can! We can meet Jesus at the Well of Living Water everyday. No exceptions to the rule. We can take our water bottles, cups or buckets full of guilt, confusion, humiliation, worry, fear or inadequacies and leave them there with Him-just like the Samaritan woman. We can walk away in faith knowing He already knows the whole story – plus more. We can be filled with His Spirit, so we too can pour forth to others. Just, GO in faith, ASK through prayer, and RECEIVE His best!

The outcome of receiving His best is the secret to becoming a true Woman of the Well yourself. This means you become who God says you are, not who the other ridiculing women, or men that you bump into each day say you are. Here is what the Word of God says you are, straight from the Well, for whenever you choose to leave your water pots behind in faith and believe:


Ephesians 1:7 I am forgiven all my sins and washed in the blood.
2 Corinthians 5:17 I am a new creature.
1 Corinthians 6:19 I am the temple of the Holy Spirit.
Colossians 1:13 I am delivered from the power of darkness.
Ephesians 6:10 I am strong in the Lord.
Ephesians 1:4 I am holy and without blame before Him.
Ephesians 1:6 I am accepted in Christ.
Colossians 1:12 I am qualified to share in His inheritance.
Revelation 21:7 I am victorious.
Romans 6:2,11 I am dead to sin.
Jeremiah 31:3 I am loved with an everlasting love.
John 8:31-33 I am set free!
Colossians 2:12 I am raised up with Christ and seated in the heavenly places.
Romans 8:37 I am more than a conqueror!
1 Thessalonians 1:4 I am beloved of God.
1 John 5:18 I am born of God and the evil one does not touch me.
Romans 8:17 I am a joint heir with Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:18 I am reconciled to God.
Deuteronomy 28:2 I am overtaken with blessings!
Ephesians 1:13 I am sealed with the promise of the Holy Spirit.
Colossians 2:10 I am complete in Christ.
Romans 8:1 I am free from condemnation.
Colossians 2:7 I am firmly rooted, built up, strengthened in the faith, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Philippians 1:6 I am being changed into His image.
Philippians 4:19 I have all my needs met by God according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 2:16 I have the mind of Christ.
John 6:47 I have everlasting life.
John 10:10 I have abundant life.
Philippians 4:7 I have the peace of God which passes understanding.
Ephesians 2:18 I have access to the Father by one Spirit.
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Jesus Christ.
John 14:12 I shall do even greater works than Christ Jesus.
1 John 4:4 I possess the Greater One in me because greater is He in me than he who is in the world.
John 10:14 I know God’s voice.
Colossians 1:27 Christ is in me the hope of glory!

Jesus, meet me today. Take the water bottle of things I “think” I need or want and in exchange give me that same Living Water you offered the Samaritan woman many years ago. I have faith that you will not turn me away, judge me, or punish me, but that you will be compassionate and loving in an unconditional way. Help me to receive all that you have for me today by faith and to take it to others in a loving way that glorifies You. Amen.

SPLASHING FOR Him as I am finding God in Christ today!

Watch this modern monologue depicting the woman at the well:

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Finding God in a Bird

November 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

By: Deborah Lovett 

Here’s how I am finding God in a bird.

My dear friend suggested I get a bird. She commented on how peaceful and calming they were. Thoughts of a partridge and a pear tree started rolling around in my head. I thought how cool: finding God in a bird at Christmas time! So I asked for a bird this past Christmas. However, my family talked me out of it, reminding me of our animal house; two horses, two cats, and our 135 lb. golden retriever! Instead I received a bird book for Christmas; not hardly the same, but hey, it was a nice thought.

God stepped in though, as He knows the desires of our hearts. He sent me a cardinal. Yes, my very own red bird! And seeing I am from Ohio, and that the Cardinal is our state bird, I could only smile at His attention to details. Bird, cardinal, red, Christmas…oh my!

It came and perched himself on my kitchen screen daily, spreading his tail feathers for all to see. The whole thing was pretty impressive.

After watching him for a while, I noticed he had a daily custom. First, he perched on the kitchen screen, then he would fly to the kitchen door and bang his head up against it a few times as if trying to get in for dinner. (Don’t let this fool you–it’s was probably take out or microwaved!) Then he flew off. At first I thought, “Wow, God sent me a beautiful, peaceful bird.” After a while, I realized He sent me a bird with mental problems.

Since I never beckoned my redbird with a feeder or food, I did a little research and found out they love sunflower seeds. So I started spreading some seeds out, hoping to spare it some aggravation. Sorry to say, it continued its practice of perching, banging and only then, stopping to get a bite to eat. Honestly, it was a bit frustrating.

Then to my surprise, little redbird found himself a girlfriend. That’s right, I am guessing God sent me an early Valentines gift? So I named them, Lucy and Desi, and am proud of my lovebirds from heaven. But Lucy has some explaining to do, because she bangs her head up against the door window right along with Desi!

So what insights can we glean from this whole experience? First off, God wants to give us the desires of our hearts, one-way or another. It is not always the way we think, for His thoughts are so much higher and deeper than ours. Secondly, Lucy is following a birdbrain! Monkey see, monkey do, only in this case, bird see, bird do. We tend to follow others too easily and we need to be observant of who we are following. We cannot call ourselves followers of Jesus Christ if we are following someone else. Thirdly, we too can bang our heads up against the wall, or in the case of the birds, the door, looking for food. The only difference is that we are looking for answers, love, protection, comfort, satisfaction or even some kindness, through status, power, addictions, money, attention, our children, our husbands, or even our ministries. Our food is so very accessible as well. The Word of God! We are blessed to have it so readily available.

Who are you following today? Are you banging your head against the wall, looking for answers? Is there confusion all around you? Do you feel as if you are on the outside of God’s family looking in? Have you neglected reading and soaking in God’s Word?

Perhaps we all need to be finding God in a bird, or maybe a pair of red cardinals to remind us to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us through God’s Word this coming year.
It is well with my soul, (and my birds!) May I suggest a One Year Bible for Christmas this year?

While we recommend that you read the Bible next year, why not start by reviewing the Bible in a minute?

Also, enjoy the cardinal starring in Jingle Birds, this Youtube video:

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