Quote Of The Day

Story of the day:  5,4,3,2,1

Yesterday I spoke to my brother on the phone.  Most of you know that he is a police officer for Dallas and his job entails many scary moments.  The night before last he responded to a call that most police officers dread.  He was called in for a father that had been drinking and was completely out of control.  The father had a loaded weapon and was threatening the life of his wife and two small children.     

As my brother arrived on the scene and called for backup, he started to survey the situation and luckily the mother and small daughter had escaped the ordeal.  The father did however manage to take his three year old son hostage. At that point, my brother, along with his Lieutenant, decided to call in Dallas Swat, because what started as a domestic dispute, turned quickly into a hostage situation.    As I continued to talk to my brother on the phone, I could tell in his voice that things didn’t go exactly the way that they hoped.  My brother said that when Dallas Swat decided to enter the home, it was like something seen on T.V.  They counted down from 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, and along with flares, the breaking of windows, doors, and other things, they entered the house only to find that the father had shot the son.     

The Swat team took the lifeless baby and handed him over to EMS.  At that point, my brother said a quick prayer and asked God to heal the baby or take the baby home to Heaven if he wasn’t going to be alright. I asked my brother how often do situations like this occur? My brother, called to what he thought would be a routine call and seemed like a normal situation, turned quickly.  He said, “Christy, some police officer’s will go their entire career and never see this!”  If any of you know my brother, he loves kids so much!  He loves people just as much, and when situations like this arise, it tears at his heart knowing that these things happen.  He says that he loves being a police officer and loves to take care of the people that deserve to be in jail, it’s when he gets the calls about the kids that truly just breaks him down.   

 Earlier that morning before he went to work that night, my brother and I had a long talk about trying to be in control of situations. We talked about things that we can’t control such as death.  We talked about how we want to hold on to things with both hands like our family and friends. We said, we think that by holding things in our grip as tightly as we possibly can, that things will be alright. But God shared with us that whatever it is that we are holding onto so tightly, can still be pulled from our tightly closed hands.  These things are all in God’s control and as much as my brother did everything that he could humanly possibly do to try to ensure that everyone lived, ultimately my brother had to turn it over to God. You see, most of the time, we wake up, and assume that the day is going to be a normal day, but our day could turn into something that we were not prepared for.  Although we may do everything humanly possible that we can, to ensure that “we try and get it right”, ultimately it’s all in God’s Hands and He is the Ultimate Decision maker over things in our life and for our life! 

Quote of the day:  Virginia Stem Owens 

“We come into this world with our fingers curled and only slowly, by repeated practice, do we learn to open our hands. It takes a great deal of dying to get us ready to live.” 

Bible Verse of the day:  Matthew 6:27;34 

And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?  So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own.  Today’s trouble is enough for today. 

Prayer: 

Dear Heavenly Father, There are so many times that I worry about my kids or family and friends.  I worry about things that I can’t control.  It is now that I come to You and pray for comfort in knowing that I am only wasting valuable energy when I could be doing things that help out with the Kingdom.  I pray for my brother and the situation that he is going through and to heal his heart.  I especially pray for the mom who lost her son yesterday.  I pray that You comfort her and bring her peace to know that her son is with You.  I pray for my family and friends that You protect them and guide them.  Lord, if I am only here in this world for today, may I live it the way that You designed me to live it.  I pray to always be reminded of how precious life is and that we are never guaranteed tomorrow. In Jesus Name I pray, 

Amen 

Running On A Flat Tire

   Most drivers experience a flat in their driving lifetime.  Whether it is a bicycle or a car, this will happen.  I was talking to a friend yesterday and she noticed that her tire was flat.  Her and her husband were talking about what ways to fix it.  They suggested possibly using the jack and putting on the spare tire.  She thought for a moment and wasn’t sure if the spare was flat.  Most flats occur because of slow leaks.  It can take time for the air to completely come out of the tire.  As I was looking up the meaning of the word tire on dictionary.com, I came across two different definitions. The first, is the tire’s main purpose is to serve “as a ring or band of rubber, wither solid or hollow and inflated, or of metal, placed over the rim of a wheel to provide traction, resistance to wear, or other desirable properties.  The second definition is to “reduce or exhaust the strength of, as by exertion;make weary; fatigue”.  I have always known what the two different definitions mean, but have never used them in the same scenario.  God is good that way.  Most of the times, we don’t take a second glance at our tire (life) and we assume that it is okay.  Unaware to the naked eye, sometimes there may be a slow leak in it.  Some people have been known to drive on the slow leaked tire, but eventually, the tire will tire, or give out.  Same is so very true of our walk with the Lord.  We will drive on our tire (life) for so very long, and not check it for any slow leaks that it may have.  After a while of everything that “we” are doing, our tire (life) will tire.  We won’t be able to drive (work for God) if our tire has a leak, which possibly could lead to a blowout. 

    Here are a few tips to help out with your flat tire (life). Step 1, stop driving on your tire. If you continue to drive on the tire that has no air (Bible/prayer), it eventually will blowout because of exhaustion.   You need to get the tire fixed.  Step 2, Find the cause of the flat. Are you serving the Lord and not getting the air (Bible/prayer) that you need everyday.  Remember, you can drive on the tire for a while, but eventually it will need air (Bible/Prayer) to continue.  The air (Bible/prayer) is there to fill you up when you have gone flat.  Step 3, patch up the puncture or hole (ask for forgivness). Don’t try to do it on your own or use your air to fill your tire (life), because you will continue to drive on the flat tire with your air.  As soon as you do this, immediately begin filling your tire with God’s air (Bible/prayer).  God will inflate your tire with His air, and your tire (life) will tire no more. Step 4, begin driving again (serving God and others). 

Quote of the day:  Arthur W. Pink 

Real prayer is communion with God, so that there will be common thoughts between His mind and ours.  What is needed is for Him to fill our hearts with His thoughts, and then His desires will become our desires flowing back to Him.

Bible Verse of the day:  Genesis 2:7 

then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. 

Prayer: 

Dear God, Sometimes I get so very tired.  I pray during these times that I check for any slow leaks that may be happening.  I ask that when my tire starts to leak that I don’t continue to drive on my air, but come to You so that my tire won’t leak any more.  I know that when it does leak, it’s because I am not using Your air. As soon as I notice Your air start to leave, and I am becoming flat, to get to Your service station for some of Your air or I will have a blowout. In Your Holy and Precious Name I pray, 

Amen

Story of the day:  Planting Seeds

This past Saturday, Jeff and I spent most of the day working in the yard and we decided to plant some seeds (flowers).  As he and I dug all of the holes for the seeds and a fence around the garden, Jeff and I noticed some big weeds that were dwelling in the garden. He and I began digging each one out, to the point that he got a huge blister in his hand.  Although the pain was intensifying with every dig, he kept on digging and getting the holes ready for the seeds (flowers), knowing that if we didn’t remove the weeds, the seeds (flowers) would not be able to grow and possibly could die if the weeds took over.  We also wanted to make sure that the seeds (flowers) would be planted quickly so that they could start taking root immediately. Everyday, we are all planting seeds into our lives.  Some seeds become beautiful flowers, trees, bushes, or plants, but some of the seeds that we planted may be taken over by weeds of sin in our lives.  As you begin to see the flowers start to grow (faith/your walk with God), you need to become aware of any weeds that may be present in your life.  As soon as the weeds are spotted, you must pull them out very quickly or they will spread like wild fire and will kill all of the seeds that you may have planted.  God wants us to plant the seeds of faith so that we can become like the beautiful flowers, plants, or bushes that He created us to be, but when sin interferes with the planting of God’s Seeds into our lives, we can become a big weed which will consume the beautifulness that God created. So, take care of your seeds, by watering/feeding them (Bible), talking to them (prayer), and pulling out weeds (sin), and you will see your flowers (faith) grow. 

Quote of the day (Leo Buscaglia) 

The fact that I can plant a seed and it becomes a flower, share a bit of knowledge and it becomes another’s, smile at someone and receive a smile in return, are to me continual spiritual exercises. 

Bible Verse of the day (Mark 4:31-32) 

It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade. 

Prayer: 

Dear God, Today I want to plant Your Word into my life.  I ask that You show me any weeds that are visible to me or that may be hiding, so that with Your help I can pull them out immediately and ask for forgiveness. I know that sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between a flower and a week, so I ask to please show me the weeds that I may think are flowers in my life.  Let my seeds of faith start to take root and grow so that they can become what You create them to be.  I thank You for today and the wisdom to speak the Words that You have given to me.   In Your Son’s Holy and Precious Name I pray, 

Amen