"The Reluctant Follower"

 "I will make all my mountains a way." Isaiah 49:11

   "If any man would come after ME, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow ME." Luke 9:23

Dear Praying Friends and Family,

     Wow, yesterday was John Mac's 21st birthday...and it seemed like a blur.  I slept later than usual and that put my whole morning later.  John Mac called about 7:00 a.m. and asked me if i was still asleep.  I wasn't i don't think, but it hadn't been long i was awake.  I think i gathered my thoughts enough to tell him Happy Birthday.  After picking up the house some to get ready for  our housekeeper to come at 8:00 a.m. i settled in to have my time with the LORD.  John Mac had spent the night away and had a meeting at 9:00 a.m. and was home before 10:00a.m.  Yesterday was a beautiful day, and i thought i would take the "big girls," and Troy for a walk before i did anything else.  I checked my phone and there were two calls from someone the LORD brought into our lives a few months ago  whose marriage is falling apart.  I was afraid something was wrong or wronger so i called her back.  She told me the police had come that morning, kicked her door in, and ordered her and her Mom to be out of the house by that evening.  She was crying and didn't know what to do. She asked if she could come over but i was thinking today is John Mac's b'day and i was planning to make him a cherry cheesecake from scratch, and i had lots of things i wanted or needed to do.  I hadn't made a cheesecake in such a long time, and the night before had found my spring form pan rambling through the cabinets. John Mac eats hardly any sweets these days, and i wanted to do something i remembered him liking from the past.  So when my friend called and wanted to come over i had a hard time dying to self. Surely the LORD would rather me bake him a cake than help her today?  No...i was just having a hard time dying to self.  The thought occurred to me later, that i could make the cherry cheesecake and her come over...the truth is, i just didn't want her to come over.   I didn't know what to do either, but Johnny told her she needed to talk with her attorney about what had happened.  Oh the complications...divorce is so awful and heartbreaking.  No wonder GOD hates it so much when a family is ripped apart by sin.   After i got off the phone with her, i felt guilty i didn't say yes to her coming over, but I spent the rest of the morning and part of the afternoon on the phone trying to find her and her Mom a place that they might could stay for a while without having to pay too much.  GOD was gracious and gave me several names through our church family that might be possibilities for her.   In the middle of my phone calls, I told Mrs. Kelly i was going for a walk before the day got any crazier. I hooked up all three of the dogs and away we went headed for the freedom of field.  It was a beautiful morning  and the fresh air and warmth of the sunshine was so soothing to my soul'

      When i got back, this person called to see if she could borrow my camera.  The police wanted her to take a picture of the door.  I didn't really want to, but the LORD reminded me that it is HIS camera, and i  was ashamed of my selfishness especially in light of what she was going through, having to leave her home and many of the possessions it contained...not to mention her husband and child she hasn't seen in two weeks.   When she came by to get  the camera, a man from church called me back about a place she and her Mom could stay.   GOD's timing was perfect with that. I found myself surprisingly  offering if i could help her move her stuff out, and she said yes.  She asked if an hour and a half be okay.  I said perfect and that gave me just enough time to write in John Mac's birthday card, go to the store and get what i needed for the cheesecake, and bake it.  Thank you, LORD, HE made the way, when i could see no way.  She never did call, and by that time, it was time to go out for John Mac's b'day.  We met my in laws at Applebee's to celebrate with John Mac.  I was kind of out of it till we ate supper and that perked me up.  After  supper, i called this person  back and she was loading her stuff up and taking it to ULOCK.  I asked if she still needed me to help her, and she did.  I sure was wanting to write on my Friday email, but once again, GOD gave me the grace to die to self to go and help her when i had rather be doing something else.   I had never been to her house before, and when i arrived my heart was melted by her two dogs.  They reminded me so much of my own little dog, Troy, and i felt sorry for them that their home was being dismantled too.   Her Mom was there, and she relayed to me  the anger she felt when the police kicked the door in that morning. Her   attorney had told them not to go to the door...it seemed like such an injustice, and i have to keep reminding my friend that GOD will bring about HIS justice in HIS time for all that is happening to her right now.        My heart really began to soften and melt for these two women and their family who have become "friends," not exactly through my choosing, but by circumstances the LORD has allowed in their lives and ours to bring our paths together.  There were clothes all over the place, and I began to help her and her Mom load them up in the back up my Yukon. My friend has already been through this before with another husband and said it was four years before she got her stuff back...she didn't want to risk that again.  So we loaded her things up, and took them to the storage building she had rented not too far away.  After we unloaded and talked a few minutes...we both returned to her house, and loaded up her car again.  She decided not to take another load to the storage at that time, so i returned home.   On my way out, i passed my husband pulling in with boxes for her to put her stuff in. He has really led the way in reaching out to this family. This morning, i was planning to return to help her, but she already had moved the rest of her things out, and got a motel room for her and her Mom to stay temporarily.  Again, GOD made the time for me to do what i wanted to do...to write the Friday email this morning. If only i will remember these things the next time HE asks me to follow HIM...instead of worrying about my own agenda.  Luke 9:23 was one of the very first Bible verses i memorized when i became a CHRISTian and I am still working on that "If any man would come after ME, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me"...my husband does that much better than i it seems.

       If anyone is reading this and would be interested in ministering to my friend and her family, please let me know.  She was a full time wife, and Mom, only working part time during CHRISTmas to make some extra.   She has only a small income at this time, very small.  Please remember this  whole family as Satan is really coming against them.  

    Last week, i wrote about how the LORD seems to be  giving me little nudges to go back to nursing school.  I found out this week, i only have one prerequisite to take to get into my senior year of nursing school at UAH... Pre- Calculus.  Wasn't music to my ears, but John Mac being a Math Tutor at Calhoun College  may be part of GOD's grace for me to get through this class.  I certainly wasn't any help to him or Hannah Beth in their high school Math...my brain just wouldn't go there back then...so this really is a mountain to me to tackle Pre Calculus.  I  never was the best in the world at Math and a whole lot of water has gone under the bridge the past twenty one years.  John Mac has already encouraged me by showing me websites i can be studying to be prepared for the class.  I'm really still considering doing it, and praying about it and seeing the LORD seeming to confirm it through many areas. 

 

        Why can i "bow the knee" for that mountain to return to school, and have such difficulty "bowing the knee," in the  everyday things HE asks me surrender to...like helping someone out in need HE brings across my path, even my husband and kids, at times, bringing it closer to home.    This past Monday in Bible Study, Betty Dean Newman taught out of Ephesians 5:1 and reminded us to "Be imitators of GOD...and live a life of love." I know these things in my head, and i confess i don't always live up to what i know to be true in my head.  I am reminded of the good Samaritan often and how the two "religious" folks passed the man who had been beaten up and didn't stop to help him. I don't want to be like that, but i find myself making excuses often for reasons i can't take the time to just be there for this person who needs a real friend in her time of trial.    I struggle and i wrestle with that in this situation and i ask you to pray for me that i would "bow the knee," and be who GOD wants me to be to this "neighbor" GOD has brought across my path, as  HE brought the  men and Good Samaritan across the path of the man in the Bible who had been beaten and robbed and needed a "neighbor" to help him. 

Luke 10:30-37 (King James Version)

 ³⁰And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
 ³¹And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
 ³²And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
 ³³But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
 ³⁴And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
 ³⁵And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
 ³⁶Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
 ³⁷And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

   This morning, my devotion from Oswald Chamber's "My Utmost for HIS HIGHEST" really convicted me about my stubbornness and self-will.

Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? —Acts 26:14

Are you determined to have your own way in living for God? We will never be free from this trap until we are brought into the experience of the baptism of “the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). Stubbornness and self-will will always stab Jesus Christ. It may hurt no one else, but it wounds His Spirit. Whenever we are obstinate and self-willed and set on our own ambitions, we are hurting Jesus. Every time we stand on our own rights and insist that this is what we intend to do, we are persecuting Him. Whenever we rely on self-respect, we systematically disturb and grieve His Spirit. And when we finally understand that it is Jesus we have been persecuting all this time, it is the most crushing revelation ever.

Is the Word of God tremendously penetrating and sharp in me as I hand it on to you, or does my life betray the things I  profess to teach.  I may teach sanctification and yet exhibit the spirit of Satan, the very spirit that persecutes Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Jesus is conscious of only one thing— a perfect oneness with the Father. And He tells us, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). All I do should be based on a perfect oneness with Him, not on a self-willed determination to be godly. This will mean that others may use me, go around me, or completely ignore me, but if I will submit to it for His sake, I will prevent Jesus Christ from being persecuted.

    Indeed, there are more times than i would like to think, that "my life does indeed betray the things I profess to teach." Just ask those who know me best.  I am so thankful for my SAVIOR WHO died on the CROSS to forgive me for my sins, and WHOSE grace is sufficient and HIS power is made perfect in weaknesses of which i have so  many.  It is my very obstinatance and self will that the HOLY SPIRIT convicts me of and sends me to the throne of JESUS asking HIM to forgive me for my hard heart.

   I was very comforted in my Bible reading this week, as i read in Exodus 3:1-4:31 about GOD's calling Moses to go and lead HIS children out of Egypt.  Moses had every excuse in the world why he couldn't do that...good reasons all of them, like stuttering, like who would he tell the people had sent him to deliver them.  The LORD had answers for all Moses questions.  I have been questioning the LORD a lot lately, if HE really wants  me  go back to school, and work with patients like me?  I have a bunch of weaknesses, and just not sure the LORD has the right person for the job...weaknesses like scatterbrained, not a detailed person, don't know enough, not good with business matters, etc. etc.  Seems like every argument i throw up, HE has something to counter with...something like "My grace is sufficient for you, for MY power is made perfect in weakness.  Therefore i will gladly boast about my weaknesses, that the power of CHRIST may rest upon me." II Cor. 12:9.I was comforted reading about Moses and his reluctance to follow when GOD called him. 

    In choir practice Wednesday night, we sang a beautiful song, called "Lead Me, LORD, "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wMt4XrV51Q "Lead Me, LORD,"  As i am thinking about this call to return to school, and perhaps using my nursing to help others with the help that i have received in my illness, words about CHRIST leading me are really speaking to my heart these days.  I realize when HE brings someone across my path that needs my help like this friend, i'm not always the most willing follower.  In fact, i can be downright reluctant and obstinate.  I am so thankful for my FATHER WHO loves me and empowers me to do the things I wouldn't choose to do on my own.  HE is continually teaching me what it means to surrender, to die to self, and I can't do that on my own.  It has to be HIM filling me, and empowering me to do HIS will through me, whether facing the possibility of returning to school, or trusting GOD on my son's birthday with what concerns me, as i wanted to do something special for him, and yet a friend needed me too.  GOD worked it out for me to do both as i surrendered to HIM.  HE doesn't usually let us see the way before hand, but opens our path step by step.  

    I would ask you to please continue to pray for me, as i think and pray about returning to school.    Please continuing praying for John Mac as he is studying for the MCAT and preparing himself to take the test in the spring.  Every night and throughout the day, he is upstairs studying or on his bed, or at work studying, studying, studying.  Pray for Hannah Beth as she has begun taking some of her nursing classes this semester.  She is really enjoying Microbiology. She won't officially start nursing school til the fall.  Please pray for Dad as he works hard and trusts the LORD to provide for all of the ways GOD is leading in our family. We want to follow HIS leading...though it be reluctantly at times, "I will follow...I will go.  YOU have called me I will answer. Lead me, LORD I will go." 

"Lead Me, LORD"

by Wayne and Elizabeth Goodine

"It's hard to take the first step when i don't know the way.

Each turn is so uncertain, I learn to walk by faith

But you gave me a promise that YOU would never leave;

YOU will lead and guide me, LORD I do believe.

Chorus:

Lead me, LORD, I will follow.

Lead me, LORD, I will go.

YOU have called me, I will answer.  Lead me, LORD, I will go.

YOUR plans for me are perfect, I never need to fear.

For though at times I feel alone, I know that YOU are near.

My heart just longs to follow, I'm willing to obey.

Take my hand and lead me, I'll follow all the way.

   As i close, i wanted to give you an update on Taranda Greene, Tony's wife.  She is following the LORD as HE leads her through some very dark days...but opens the way up for her step by step.  The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, which sings "Lead Me, LORD," and it was arranged by the pastor's wife, Cynthia Cymbala, has adopted Taranda as their own.  Pastor Cymbala, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle spoke at Tony's "Celebration" service back in Sept.  Taranda  sings with the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir several times throughout the year.   I received an email from Taranda earlier this week, written to all of her friends and fans, catching us up on what the LORD is doing in her life as well as John Jeffrey's and Jeff Snyder who also sang with the Greenes.  You can read that by clicking on 

http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=xub5ilcab&v=0014hlzXZJE_jtr6HT5epDWkaYa8R59_gIj23HlmJ2tutNvYhH8CyWFu8cW3RTaaYGteqKAvMwQEL7sqfPC1CHqkxAaIl0OhcTvs133L8BjSqy6Kj_88XNA-JmYDNt8WCMjC4hoRNiXD554p7Q4mn6z4bC9rGzvlfoJYgAwdJWNrpgIK3UpAptesqWX7LGnpzR_n4v8me_s_wA5oqtBJ5qJhZGI8_rs6NjMDCYcSCDDzXxsgifrXYd-gtZpVk5roCFyVsGVvmJXAogBq4HgoiqGXpz7xVZSxw8j 

    I am so thankful for what the LORD is doing in and through her precious life since Tony's homegoing to be with JESUS.  She is so real and transparent...i hope you will take time to read her newsletter, sign up for it, and become a prayer warrior for her and her two precious girls...Bella 6, and Josie, 2.  Also, please pray for Taranda's parents who are helping take care of the girls now that Taranda has moved back in with them.

    Please remember  our Women's Conference coming up March 25th and 26th.  I hope and pray that you will make plans to attend, and bring someone with you. You will be hearing more about it as the weeks progress.   If you can't come, please pray for all that GOD wants to do in the midst of the lives of those who will be a part of this great weekend.    You are so kind to remember these dear loved ones including our family in your prayers.  Thank you so very much. 

 

    You know, we haven't touched John Mac's cheesecake yet.  In the midst of yesterday's circumstances, engineered by GOD, it just hasn't happened yet...probably tomorrow, since John Mac's gone for the rest of the day today. The LORD knew i had plenty of time to make his cake...if only i would  follow HIM and not dig in my heels like "Troy" does when i take him out to use the bathroom, and want to come in before he's through.  He digs in those front feet and lets me know he doesn't want to follow me inside the house.  I can be like that too.  I love you and hope i haven't forgotten anything important...i still feel a little tired, like i didn't get quiet enough sleep last night. GOD bless you and thank you again for taking time to read the "Friday email."  I am so honored that you would take the time to do that. 

                                                                                                                              With all HIS love,

                                                                                                                                  mitzi

 

"Men ought always to pray and not to faint."

           -Luke 18:1

"Delays are not refusals; many a prayer is registered, and underneath it the words:  "My time is not yet come." GOD has a set time as well as a set purpose, and HE who orders the bounds of our habitation orders also the time of our deliverance." 

-Streams in the Desert, Jan. 24

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LiTy7ndOzw

LORD, Prepare me to be a Sanctuary

‎"Whatever your heart clings to and confides in, that is really your God." ~ Martin Luther

"Bow the Knee"

"This is GOD, our GOD forever and ever.  HE will guide us forever." Psalm 48:14

"The steps of good men are directed by the LORD.  He delights in each step they take.  If they fall it isn't fatal, for the LORD holds them with HIS hand." Ps. 37:24

Third snow of the season last night!

                                    

  Bow the Knee 

                                      

      There are moments on our journey, following the LORD,

Where GOD illumines every step we take.

There are times when circumstances make perfect sense to us,

As we try to understand each move HE makes.

When the path grows dim and our questions have no answers turn to HIM.

Chorus:

Bow the knee; trust the heart of your FATHER 

when the answers goes beyond what you can see

Bow the knee, lift your eyes toward heaven and

believe the ONE who holds eternity.

And when you don't understand the purpose of HIS plan,

In the presence of the KING, bow the knee.

There are days when clouds surround us and the rain begins to fall,

The cold and lonely winds won't cease to blow.

And there seems to be no reason for the suffering we feel; 

We are tempted to believe GOD  does not know. 

When the storms arise, Don't forget we live by faith and not by sight. 

-words and music by Chris Machen and Mike Harland

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuZltbXH9KQ

Dear Praying Friends and Family,

      A few days ago, I received my old college transcripts  from Tarrant Community College in Ft. Worth, Texas.  I went to nursing school there back in the late 1980's after Johnny and I felt called to the foreign mission field.  Johnny and i graduated the same weekend in May of 1989, he from Southwestern Seminary in Ft. Worth, and me from TCJC as it was called back then.    I was also pregnant with John Mac when i graduated, although i didn't realize it, and we were on top of the world with the blessings GOD had bestowed upon us through the completion of our studies, and the plans that lay ahead for us. Truly, GOD was  blessing very step we took and illumining our path. 

      After graduation, we moved back home for a short time to  help in the family business while Johnny waited for a church to pastor.  We didn't have to wait too long, just long enough for me to finish my nursing orientation at Decatur General Hospital in Labor and Delivery, when Indian Grave Baptist Church called Johnny to be his pastor.  Indian Grave was out in the country near Prattville, Al, and we loved the people and the location. John Mac was born there a few months after we moved in, the church was a loving flock,  and life couldn't have been much better.  Then, the LORD allowed some "plans" that we hadn't counted on....  What began as a seemingly insignificant symptom, a strange feeling in my back, would eventually lead to chronic pain first in my back and eventually migrate to all parts of my body.  With two small children to care for we were forced to leave the "mission field," of Indian Grave, after two years and return to Athens where we could be closer to family and help with the children. 

      

    I must confess to you, it wasn't so easy to "Bow the Knee," and see GOD's hand leading us when we had to leave the church in the midst of my health storms.  I felt lost, without a place of belonging, and very dissatisfied with what GOD was doing in our lives.   This wasn't in our plans.    Moving back home with a very painful and unexplainable illness, first moving in with our parents, and then to a house way out in the country far away from our families.  My brother in law had recently purchased it for a rental house, so we didn't have to pay rent but it defeated the purpose of living near family to help out...they were still far away!   Johnny went to work work in the restaurant business with his family and that was the last place either of us wanted to be.  I felt like such a failure and though i knew somewhere in the recesses of my faith, that GOD was leading us now, just as HE was before, it was difficult for me to "Bow the knee" and "trust the heart of your FATHER when the answers goes beyond what you can see."  I sure didn't understand the purpose of HIS plan that HE was asking me to "bow the knee," to and submit my will  and trust HIM.

    I still don't understand all the purposes of HIS plan for bringing us back home instead of letting us serve somewhere on  foreign mission field or even in a church full time...and i won't on this side of heaven.  But I praise HIM and I thank HIM for HIS marvelous wisdom and that HIS ways are higher than mine. 

    "For MY thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways MY ways," declares the LORD.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are MY ways higher than your ways, and MY thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9

    I mentioned when i began writing that i received my transcript earlier this week from the college i received my nursing degree.   One of the questions i've wondered about through the years is why did the LORD lead me to go to nursing school?  Not sure the answer to that either, but i'm so glad HE did for many reasons.  Through it all, the LORD has enabled me to keep my nursing license current and i'm thankful for that...it was really difficult when the kids were little and i was sick,  and then when the kids were big and i was still sick and sensitive to smells, but GOD made the way for me to go to those seminars.  Now you can do everything at home if you want to through online studies or reading booklets for CEU's.  That's a blessing. 

Kid's playing in snow on CHRISTmas Day.

     A few months ago a little seed was planted in my heart by a friend that maybe i could use my nursing to  do some consulting in the field the LORD has had me "majoring" in the past 20 years, that of environmental illness.  I prayed the LORD would take the thoughts away if it wasn't from HIM, but if it was to lead me and guide me and show me the way.  Well, HE hasn't taken the thoughts away, in fact it seems to be mushrooming of sorts with GOD giving me the opportunity to teach a class at our church about things that are making us sick in our environment and ways to protect ourselves.  The LORD continues to bring people in my path to help along this line.  At the suggestion of my husband and doctor, i'm exploring the possibility of continuing my nursing education.  When Johnny first suggested to me to go further with my nursing, my first response was "No." I had no interest in doing that whatsoever.  Besides, with my sensitivities, sitting in a classroom, or doing clinicals in a hospital isn't something i could do for long periods at a time.   After my doctor suggested i might go back, i was in my joy room where i have my quiet time each day and just felt like the LORD was saying to me, "I want you to surrender to this if this is MY will for you."  I don't know if it is or not, but I "bowed the knee," in my heart, and surrendered right then and there to the "possibility" of going back to school.  Now, Johnny doesn't remember mentioning it to  me about going back to school :). 

       I called UAH, our local university,  just to inquire about the possibility of going back, and at UAH you do most of the courses online (well, that's one way of not having to sit in a smelly classroom)  and if i did ever consider the nurse practitioner degree, i can  do my clinicals where i choose...hummm, that sounded appealing.   Then there's this little thing called money....my friend Wanda called me earlier in the week to tell me she read about scholarships for women over 40 going back to school...i checked up on it, and i definitely qualify.  While i was checking on line i saw a bunch of other places to apply for scholarships for women like me.

    In the meantime...i continue to pray, continue to seek GOD's wisdom, not just about going back to school, but the possibility  of doing some kind of environmental nursing/consulting.  I spoke with my doctor here today, and she was very encouraging and supportive.  Much more so than i would have thought unless the LORD was opening the doors for me to walk in a path HE has for me.  

    Amazing the verses and ways the LORD has spoken to me this week through my quiet times with HIM:

    I am reading the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis during my Quiet Times each morning.  This story has encouraged me so much on my journey as Joseph had a lot of years he couldn't understand why GOD was allowing him to go through so much suffering.  His story of serving the LORD right where GOD had him, encourages me so much. GOD had him in prison for many long years when he was falsely accused of sexual advances by Potiphar's wife.  Joseph waited patiently on GOD to deliver him and GOD did making Joseph second in command in all of Egypt.  GOD used Joseph to deliver his own family as well as countless others in times of famine. His story has been such a great encouragement and inspiration to me through the years as i wrestled with the path GOD had led me down at times, often feeling very much a prisoner of my own body...waiting for the LORD to deliver me.

    This morning in "Streams in the Desert," it referred to Joseph and the way GOD works in and through our lives.

 

God never uses anybody to a large degree, until after He breaks that one all to pieces. Joseph had more sorrow than all the other sons of Jacob, and it led him out into a ministry of bread for all nations. For this reason, the Holy Spirit said of him, "Joseph is a fruitful bough...by a well, whose branches run over the wall" (Gen. 49:22). It takes sorrow to widen the soul. --The Heavenly Life

     Think of your own life, are not those you go to in trouble those who have suffered the most?   I mentioned last week about the three doctors GOD has used to help me the most in this past of environmental illness and suffering have been those who have suffered the most with environmental illness themselves.  GOD broke them to make them even greater Physicians than they would have been if they had been left whole so that they might be a fruitful bough and bring healing to folks like me who couldn't find the answers in regular traditional medicine.  The things that i have been so faithfully taught from these doctors and their staffs that have so patiently worked with me, are burning in my heart to share with others.   GOD took me to Dallas broken in health 11 years ago.  Is HE returning my health now to be a medical missionary amongst my own people?  I don't know the answer to that, but i'm searching to see if this is what the LORD has for me and for those GOD wants to help through the things i have learned and continue to.   I wondered in the wilderness for many, many years, and i know what's it's like to feel hopeless except for knowing "all things work together for good,"  day after day...praying that GOD will help you make it through another day, waking up in the morning and knowing you were facing the whole day ahead of you in some type of discomfort and or pain.  It is this "brokeness," that builds compassion in us to reach out to others who are struggling.  

    In my devo from Streams this morning, i was reminded of how GOD uses sorrow and suffering to change us and to make us a "fruitful bough" to others.

     

                                     

"Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better"(Eccles. 7:3). When sorrow comes under the power of Divine grace, it works out a manifold ministry in our lives. Sorrow reveals unknown depths in the soul, and unknown capabilities of experience and service. Gay, trifling people are always shallow, and never suspect the little meannesses in their nature. Sorrow is God's plowshare that turns up and subsoils the depths of the soul, that it may yield richer harvests. If we had never fallen, or were in a glorified state, then the strong torrents of Divine joy would be the normal force to open up all our souls' capacities; but in a fallen world, sorrow, with despair taken out of it, is the chosen power to reveal ourselves to ourselves. Hence it is sorrow that makes us think deeply, long, and soberly. Sorrow makes us go slower and more considerately, and introspect our motives and dispositions. It is sorrow that opens up within us the capacities of the heavenly life, and it is sorrow that makes us willing to launch our capacities on a boundless sea of service for God and our fellows. We may suppose a class of indolent people living at the base of a great mountain range, who had never ventured to explore the valleys and canyons back in the mountains; and some day, when a great thunderstorm goes careening through the mountains, it turns the hidden glens into echoing trumpets, and reveals the inner recesses of the valley, like the convolutions of a monster shell, and then the dwellers at the foot of the hills are astonished at the labyrinths and unexplored recesses of a region so near by, and yet so little known. So it is with many souls who indolently live on the outer edge of their own natures until great thunderstorms of sorrow reveal hidden depths within that were never hitherto suspected. God never uses anybody to a large degree, until after He breaks that one all to pieces. Joseph had more sorrow than all the other sons of Jacob, and it led him out into a ministry of bread for all nations. For this reason, the Holy Spirit said of him, "Joseph is a fruitful bough--by a well, whose branches run over the wall" (Gen. 49:22). It takes sorrow to widen the soul. --The Heavenly Life The dark brown mould's upturned  By the sharp-pointed plow;  And I've a lesson learned. My life is but a field,  Stretched out beneath God's sky,  Some harvest rich to yield. Where grows the golden grain?  Where faith? Where sympathy?  In a furrow cut by pain. --Afaltbie D. Babcock Every person and every nation must take lessons in God's school of adversity. "We can say, 'Blessed is night, for it reveals to us the stars.' In the same way we can say, 'Blessed is sorrow, for it reveals God's comfort.' The floods washed away home and mill, all the poor man had in the world. But as he stood on the scene of his loss, after the water had subsided, broken-hearted and discouraged, he saw something shining in the bank which the waters had washed bare. 'It looks like gold,' he said. It was gold. The flood which had beggared him made him rich. So it is ofttimes in life." --H. C. Trumbull Snowman the kids and i made on CHRISTmas morning...it was a WHITE CHRISTmas!    Last week, i promised i would try to get you the words to "Changed," the song i used in last  Friday's email.  It really touched my heart singing it in choir.  Indeed GOD changes each one of us from the inside out when we come to HIM in faith and repentance, and continues to change us throughout our lives through spending time  in HIS WORD,  and our circumstances HE "engineers for us." Sometimes we would not choose the circumstances GOD chooses to change us, but HE asks us to wait and trust HIM.   I pray that you will be blessed by this song as much as i have been and worship our great GOD WHO loves us so much "HE gave HIS only SON that whosoever believes in HIM shall not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

                                                      "Changed," by Tom Fettke 

"Many times my heart has questioned, the reason I was living for,

    The pleasures of this world were leaving me, wanting more, something more.

    Then YOU gave me life's true meaning  Not caring where my life had been;

    YOU reached out to me with YOUR mercy, And I will never, never look back again.

    Chorus:

     "I've been changed by YOUR glory, I've changed by YOUR mercy,

      I've been change by YOUR marvelous grace;

      I've been changed cause YOU love me, I've been changed' cause YOU want me,

      I've been changed by the power of YOUR name.  I will never be the same, I've been changed.

     Now tell me where, where would I be without YOU?  And tell me what kind of future would I have,

     If you had not come to my rescue, And given me just one more chance?

   

      I am so thankful for the "Change" CHRIST has brought to me and you through HIS death and resurrection. HE continued to speak to my heart about the "changes" HE makes in our lives through these powerful words:

"JESUS came to do radical heart surgery-to cleanse and transform us from the inside out by the power of HIS death and resurrection." Nancy Leigh DeMoss

"We were buried therefore with HIM by baptism into death, in order that, just as CHRIST was raised from the dead by the glory of the FATHER, we too might walk in newness of life." Rom. 6:4

"As we linger in GOD's presence, we are transformed into HIS likeness." Nancy Leigh DeMoss

"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the LORD, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.  For this comes from the LORD who is the SPIRIT." 2 Cor. 3:18

"GOD doesn't want us to masquerade.  He wants us to be metamorphosed -to be transformed from the inside out into the likeness of the LORD JESUS." Nancy Leigh DeMoss

"Beloved, we are GOD's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared but we know that when HE appears we shall be like HIM, because we shall see HIM as HE is."  1 John 3:2

        

     This week in choir practice we sang the song, "Bow the Knee."  Right away, as the LORD touched my heart with these words, i felt led to share this beautiful song with you and encourage your heart.   As CHRIST "changes," us, HE is continually teaching us to "Bow the Knee," and surrender to HIS LORDship in our lives...to trust HIM, moment by moment with our todays that sometimes seems so jumbled up, and our tomorrows that without HIM seem so fearful and uncertain.  HE loves us so very much, and HE knows what it means to "Bow the Knee."  He left HIS glorious home in heaven to come to earth to live in poverty, be persecuted, and die on the cross for your sins and mine.  HE submitted to HIS FATHER's will that we might have eternal life.   We are called to follow in HIS steps that others might have life through our death to self.  Because of HIS surrender to the cross, you and I have victory over sin and death, and the power to "Bow the Knee."  HE is the ONE WHO is the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE.  No man comes to the FATHER except through HIM," John 14:6.   Our KING requires us to "Bow the Knee," in complete surrender to HIM...not because HE is a ruthless dictator, but because HE loves us and knows what is for our good, others good and HIS glory.  HE asks each one of to trust HIM and  "Bow the Knee."  This is a different video of "Bow the Knee," from the first one...it is very powerful also.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9z6l1PXsFE, 

Celebrating GOD's goodness in our lives...John  Mac graduating from college and Hannah Beth's 19th Birthday...thank you, JESUS, "GREAT is YOUR FAITHFULNESS."

 

     The HOLY SPIRIT has quietly spoken to my heart about "Bowing the Knee," this week in my Quiet Time.   I thought it was amazing in my Daily Bible reading this morning  was a verse with the exact phrase "Bow the Knee," referring to Joseph's sudden rise to power  from prison and the people "Bowing the Knee," to Joseph.  Genesis 41:43.  Joseph is a type of CHRIST in the Old Testament, and this is a picture of us, "Bowing our Knee," to JESUS, our KING of KINGS and LORD of LORDs.   It's coming at me from all directions to submit myself to the LORD, through my husband, through HIS WORD,  through circumstances to "Bow the Knee."    Please pray for me as i seek GOD's will about this "seed" in my heart. I don't want to go back to school, and I may not need to...i've been in "school" a long time and continue to be...the school of suffering.   But if HE has that for me, i want to "Bow the Knee."  Please pray for  our family as we continue to seek the LORD for direction in several different areas in our lives...pray that we will "Bow the Knee," to HIS will for us...not just outwardly but wholeheartedly.   Knowing that the LORD is our SHEPHERD, and HE is going to get us where HE knows is best for us and HIS perfect plan and will for our lives brings great comfort to me.    I pray that these words will encourage your heart  where the LORD has you walking and asking you to "Bow the Knee."  Thank you so much for taking time to read and listen to what the HOLY SPIRIT has been speaking to my heart about this week.  GOD bless each and every one of you!

                                                                           With all HIS love,

                                                                                mitzi

     "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge HIM and HE will direct thy paths." Pro. 3:5-6

     "GOD guides us by our ordinary choices, and if we are going to choose what HE does not want, HE will check and we must heed." Oswald Chambers

     "As long as I consider my personal temperament, and think about what I am fitted for, I shall never hear the call of GOD.  But when I am brought into relationship with GOD, I am in the condition Isaiah was in...to be brought into the zone of the call of GOD is to be profoundly altered."  My Utmost for HIS Highest, Oswald Chambers

"When we want to know GOD's will there are three things which always concur:

     1) Inward impulse

    2) the WORD of GOD

    3) the trend of circumstances

   -GOD in the heart, impelling your forward.  GOD in the BOOK, corroborating whatever HE says in the heart; and GOD in circumstances, which are always indicative of HIS will.  Never start until these three things agree."  Springs in the Valley

    "Our LORD is longing to help us to a new discovery, or rather rediscovery of an entirely different and gloriously powerful ministry, through  prayer and intercession and wonders why we are so slow and unwillingly to be shown it!  Hannah Hurnard,

 

    GOD specializes in the impossible, so that when the victory is won and the task is complete, we cannot take any credit.  As soon as we think we can handle it on our own, we become useless to HIM.  We have to be willing to get out of the way, to let GOD take over and let HIM overshadow us."  Nancy Leigh DeMoss

   "Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from GOD." 2 Cor. 3:4-5

P.S. It began snowing about 6:00 p.m. tonight (last night).  As i wrote big, white fluffy flakes were falling from the sky...the ground is covered once again, just as the blood of JESUS covers our sins, and makes us white as snow.    Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!  The pictures are from  CHRISTmas Day,  what a blessing to have a White CHRISTmas and from our latest snow, last night!  Thank you, LORD!

    

   

"Changed"

"Now thanks be unto GOD WHO always leads us forth to triumph with the ANOINTED ONE, and WHO diffuses by us the fragrance of the knowledge of HIM in every place." 2 Cor. 2:14

"Delight yourself in the LORD, and HE will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

Cypress Trees beside our house

Dear Praying Friends and Family,

     Last week, i was  trying to figure out how our family might manage to spend some time together on a little trip before Hannah Beth leaves to go back to school this weekend.  I really wanted to head up to Gatlinburg, but the funds weren't there.  I was having a hard time not being envious of our neighbor's on both side gone, okay i was i confess. One took their family to Arizona to the Grand Canyon and to the National Championship game with Auburn playing Oregon...War Eagle!   Our other neighbor's are "snowbirds" down in Miami.  Then we have other friends who took their whole family to Gatlinburg for their CHRISTmas present.  I'm thinking why didn't we think of that before CHRISTmas?  Well, i through up a quick prayer and asked the LORD if it be HIS will, if HE would somehow make a way we could spend some time together and it not cost much.  Well, HE did that in a way that only HE can...HE let it snow Sunday night, 9 inches, and close down everything so we could all spend time together at home!  Wow...i know HE didn't let it snow just for me, but i think it's neat the way HE gave me the desires of my heart, along with the snow.  We did have some fun times playing Rook together, watching TV and eating several bowls of hot soup i made, Brunswick (sort of) stew, and  Chicken Noodle Soup...both sure did hit the spot in this cold, snowy weather.  It wasn't all fun and games as Hannah Beth got sick on Monday, along with Johnny, and then John Mac on Weds, and today i am not feeling well.  But, i thank the LORD for the time we've had together, all under one roof,  for a few days... and I didn't have to wrestle with sleeping in smelly rooms or a cold car...family vacation, designed by GOD!  Thank you, LORD!  Today, everyone but me is feeling  much better.  They are all gone here there and yonder...HB is making us for lost time with friends she wanted to visit while she's home and the men are working. So thankful GOD kept me up and going for the first part of the week and i did get to enjoy the beautiful, beautiful snow and to be able to care for my family.  I took several long walks in the snow with the "Big Girls," Dixie and Midnight, and enjoyed watching our neighborhood boys build an igloo out in the field nearby...i even got to crawl inside and sit a spell.  It was really neat until Dixie and Midnight found their way in, and made things a little too cozy.

 Neighborhood boys working on "igloo" in the field nearby

 Last night, i was starting to feel badly and getting rather cranky when the kids were asking for PB and J  sandwiches while i was washing the last of the supper dishes.  Hannah Beth said, "Mom, aren't you glad you feel needed again like when we were little?" Hum, i don't think i answered that...but i finished the dishes, hit the sauna, and headed to bed early.

    

     This morning as i was laying in bed and thinking about what to write today, my mind was thinking about several different things the LORD has been working in my life...not only recently, but as i was reminded in my time with JESUS this morning, HE has been working very diligently the past several years to "Change," me.  HE "changed," me when i was 19 and I surrendered my life to CHRIST at a youth revival at Central Baptist in Decatur, Al.  I didn't even pray the "sinner's prayer," but i did walk up the aisle in the power of the HOLY SPIRIT, with a desire to surrender my heart and life to CHRIST...and was not expecting what would happen next.  I felt the weight of my sin gone from my shoulder's, and a joy I'd never known...a joy that has remained in my heart through thick and thin.  I instantly wanted to read the Bible and study it in a way that i never had before, and be with GOD's people in church, and be separated from my sinful way of life.  "I had been changed..."by the blood of the LAMB WHO gave HIS life for your sins and mine on the Cross of Calvary.

    CHRIST  works in all HIS children's lives to "change" us, not just salvation, which "Ye must be born again," as CHRIST told Nicodemus, but also, once HE has given new life in CHRIST, HE shapes and molds us to be more like CHRIST, a process the Bible calls sanctification. Through that process, that often comes through circumstances and suffering in our lives, GOD shapes us and gets us to the places HE wants to use us to do HIS work here on earth.

 

‎"I've learned that all of life here is a preparation for life in heaven and also that all of life here is the LORD's work." Elisabeth Elliot, www.elisabethelliot.org

     GOD often does use suffering in our lives to prepare us, to educate us and equip us with compassion, patience, wisdom, perseverance  and other qualities to help others coming behind us.    HE uses the very things that we despise and want to just get out of as fast as possible, to help us "become more than conquerors through HIM that loved us." Romans 8:37 

     Joseph in the Old Testament is a great example of one WHOM GOD  orchestrated his circumstances to allow great rejection from his brothers,  to be sold into slavery, falsely accused of sexual advances, and thrown into prison for around twelve years for those false accusations.  Joseph's life seemed to be going nowhere and he could have gotten easily discouraged.  I'm sure he did at times, we all do, though the Bible doesn't say that.   But we know the rest of the story.  GOD was preparing Joseph to be second in command of all of Egypt, and to save his people and the Egyptians from death in the time of famine.  When Joseph's brother's were forced to go to Egypt in search of food, and discovered that the brother they had sold into slavery was second in command and had the power to kill them, he told them, "...you meant it for evil, but GOD meant it for good."  Joseph, because of the humility and spiritually discerning heart GOD had developed in him in those long years of suffering, understood that GOD had a higher purpose for his sufferings...they were not for nothing as Elisabeth Elliot used to say, www.elisabethelliot.org.  Joseph was not mad or bitter at his brothers because of what they had done to him...he had long forgiven them, and because of that he was free to see the higher purposes that GOD was working beyond his circumstances.

Me and "sweet pea" inside the igloo.

     This week I have been reflecting upon the journey that the LORD has brought me on...I wasn't rejected by my brothers and sold into slavery, but GOD has orchestrated and allowed some very difficult health issues to be a part of my journey.  HE has brought so much good from it, and I praise HIM for that.  I praise HIM for the doctors who HE has used to help me figure out this web of struggles, and give me understanding into the problems I have and the ways to recover my health.  Those doctors, Dr. William Rea, Dr. Katherine Henry, and Dr. Sherry Rogers, have all paid a great and dear price in their own health and education to learn  the methods to help others like me to get well.  Thinking of there struggles, I am reminded of a poem I read several years ago, "When GOD Wants to Drill A Man".     

When God Wants to Drill a Man

When God wants to drill a man,

And thrill a man,

And skill a man

When God wants to mold a man

To play the noblest part;

When He yearns with all His heart

To create so great and bold a man

That all the world shall be amazed,

Watch His methods, watch His ways!

How He ruthlessly perfects

Whom He royally elects!

How He hammers him and hurts him,

And with mighty blows converts him

Into trial shapes of clay which

Only God understands;

While his tortured heart is crying

And he lifts beseeching hands!

How He bends but never breaks

When his good He undertakes;

How He uses whom He chooses,

And which every purpose fuses him;

By every act induces him

To try His splendor out-

God knows what He's about.

    

     Each of the doctors i mentioned above went through a great deal of personal suffering foryears, and some continue too, to get them in the position of learning and building other life lessons in their soul so that they could help others like me who seem to fall through the cracks of traditional medicine.  These doctors treat patients from all over the world because of the knowledge GOD has given them in their great suffering.  I read the quote below this week in "Streams in the Desert," and it is so true, no matter what kind of suffering you may be undergoing:

The burden of suffering seems a tombstone hung about our necks, while in reality it is only the weight which is necessary to keep down the diver while he is hunting for pearls. --Richter 

   I am so thankful that GOD in HIS wisdom, allowed these doctors to go through the suffering they did, so they would stay down long enough to find the "health cures," for folks like me that suffer from chemical sensitivities.  These doctors to me are a real example of GOD taking something that was an "enemy," and "capturing it" and turning it into a great victory as i read in  "Streams in the Desert," earlier this week.

"In all these things we are more than conquerors, through HIM that loved us." Romans 8:37

     

     This is more than victory.  This is a triumph so complete that we have not only escaped defeat and destruction, but we have destroyed our enemies and won a spoil so rich and valuable that we can thank GOD that the battle ever came.  How can we be "more than conquerors"?  We can get out of the conflict a spiritual discipline that will greatly strengthen our faith and establish our spiritual character.  Temptation is necessary to settle and confirm us in the spiritual life.  It is like the fire which burns in the colors of mineral painting, or like winds that cause the mighty cedars of the mountain to strike more deeply in the soil.  Our spiritual conflicts are among our choicest blessings, and our great adversary is used to train us for his ultimate defeat.  The ancient Phrygians had a legend that every time they conquered an enemy the victor absorbed the physical strength of his victim and added so much more to his own strength and valor.  So temptation victoriously met double our spiritual strength and equipment.  It is possible thus not only to defeat our enemy, but to capture him and make him fight in our ranks.  The prophet Isaiah speaks of flying on the shoulders of the Philistines (Is. 11:14).  These Philistines were their deadly foes, but the figure suggested that they would be enable not only to conquer the Philistines, but to use them to carry the victors on their shoulders for further triumphs.  Just as the wise sailor can use a head wind to carry him forward by tacking and taking advantage of its impelling force;  so it is possible for us in our spiritual life through the victorious grace of GOD to turn to account the things that seem most unfriendly and unfavorable, and to be able to say continually, "The things that were against me happened to the furtherance of the gospel."  -From Life More Abundantly

     A noted scientist observing that "early voyagers fancied that the coral-building animals instinctively built upon the great circles of the Atoll Islands to afford themselves protection in the inner parts," has disproved this fancy by showing that the insect builders can only live and thrive fronting the open ocean, and in a highly aerated foam of its resistless billows.  So it has been commonly thought that protected ease is the most favorable condition of life, whereas all the noblest and strongest lives prove on the contrary that the endurance of hardship is the making of the men, and the factor that distinguishes between existence and vigorous vitality.  Hardship makes character.

     "Now thanks be unto GOD WHO always leads us forth to triumph with the Anointed One, and WHO diffuses by us the fragrance of the knowledge of HIM in very place" (2 Cor. 2:14). 

    As I reflect on my own health journey, i know that I have been entrusted a great blessing and responsibility to take the knowledge I have learned and continue to learn and share it with others who are suffering.   I have been talking with my husband, my doctor, and others and asking the LORD to show me what HE would have me to do in this next season of my life.  When my husband and I felt called to the foreign mission field, i went to nursing school, with the thoughts of preparing me to minister in a third world country.  Because of my illness, those desires were not fulfilled, but now i'm thinking perhaps GOD wants to use my nursing and the education HE has taught me to be a " medical missionary" here among my own people.  GOD has recently opened up the opportunity for me to teach a class at our church based on the book, "Detoxify or Die," by Dr. Sherry Rogers, www.prestigepublishing,com.  Pray for me, that I would be able to communicate clearly  to those the LORD brings to the class what is making us sick, and the pathway HE has for us to become well.  This book so clearly explains what my doctors in Texas have been teaching me for years and I want to share that knowledge with others.  There are also some other areas i feel the LORD is leading me to pursue, and I ask you to pray for me...that i would have the courage to step out in faith what HE is leading me to do.  I know this, my life has been "Changed," through my health struggles.  Changed for the good, and I thank GOD for HIS marvelous plan in my life and yours.  I thank HIM for the suffering and the blessings and education that have enriched me so much.  I thank HIM for the wonderful people, many of you who receive this email, whom I have been privilege to meet and become friends and be encouraged by your lives on this journey, as you have walked on a similar path to mine.

Midnight walking in the woods

      This past week at church, our choir sang the song, "Changed," by Tom Fettke.  I was unable to attend choir practice on Wednesday night, so i wasn't real familiar with the song, except for the short time we practiced Sunday morning before church.  Br. Ryan, our music minister had gone over it with the pianist and organist during our orchestra practice, and you could tell he was really into it.  Later on, he told the choir that he had already had such a worshipful experience just practicing that morning with them.  As i watched Br. Ryan worship HIS LORD while we sang it that morning, and sang the words, "I've been changed..." my heart filled with joy thinking of how the LORD has changed me...first by giving me "a new heart with new and right desires...and a new SPIRIT...to obey MY laws and do whatever I command." 

Some things have been easier than others for me to obey in.  GOD has had to work with this rebellious stubborn heart to get me to obey...and do whatever HE commands in some areas. He has had to "discipline," this gal, and sometimes those blows sure do hurt:).  But i know that my loving heavenly FATHER does it for my good, and for HIS glory, and for the good of others.

 

 "No discipline seems pleasant at the time but painful, but afterwards it yields a harvest of righteousness for those who have been trained by it.' Hebrews 12:11 

   I'm sorry, i couldn't find the lyrics to "Changed," or find it on youtube...i'll try to get the lyrics to that powerful  song that so beautifully proclaims what CHRIST does in us when we come to HIM in faith and repentance and HE changes us...HE makes us a new creature in CHRIST JESUS. 

     

     For GOD so loved the world that HE gave HIS only SON that whosoever believes in HIM shall not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

      Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. II Cor. 5:17

     If anyone is reading this and realizes that they haven't been "changed," in CHRIST JESUS, my prayer is that you will ask HIM to change you today.  Ask HIM to forgive you of your sins, and surrender your life to HIM.  You may say i'm not that bad of a person...have you ever broken even one of the 10 commandments?  Of course, we all have...The Bible says,  "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of GOD."  Romans 3:23   It also says, "Today is the day of salvation...2 Cor. 6:2" and "do not harden your hearts..."Heb. 3:8.  "Believe in the LORD JESUS CHRIST and you shall be saved." Acts 16:31.  I sure would be honored if you would let me know if JESUS has changed you today and made you HIS child.

      Thank you for listening to my heart...and thank you for your prayers, not only for me, but our family as we are seeking the LORD's wisdom and direction in many areas of our lives it seems.  GOD bless you, and thank you again so much for your wonderful CHRISTmas cards and letters.  I am really enjoying taking time each morning in my prayer time, and reading over the letters and cards and praying for you.  I am feeling better today, thankfully, than i did yesterday when i started this email, but still feel like staying in and laying low.  There's still a great deal of that 9 inches of snow on the ground...it's supposed to get above freezing today so that will melt a lot of it.  It sure has been beautiful...i shoveled snow for the first time this week i think, along with John Mac.  My feet came out from under me on some ice in the driveway, and I landed on my rumpus!  Sometimes it's a special blessing from the LORD to have that extra padding back there...so thankful i didn't break anything!  

                                                                       With all HIS love,

                                                                                       mitzi

Below are some articles i thought you might be interested in: One is an article about a new book that Glenn Beck is coming out with describing how he is involved in New Age religion, and he is fully Mormon.  Brannon Howse is warning us that he is a false prophet....as the Bible warns us about over and over to stay away from in 1 John, Jude and other places.

  

The other website  is John McTernan's blogsite.   He has a wealth of information almost nightly on his sight to help you understand what's going on in our world in light of a Biblical worldview, and prophecy.  He also has some great nutrition articles on his site among other articles of interest. 

Hope you'll take time to check out both of these sites and book mark them on your favorites. GOD bless you!

        

     http://www.worldviewweekend.com/worldview-times/article.php?articleid=6809,  

     http://www.johnmcternan.name

 
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"Pray in the SPIRIT on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.  With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." Eph. 6:18

"Prayer lays hold of God's plan and becomes the link between His will and its accomplishment on earth. Things happen which would not happen without prayer. Let's not forget that. Amazing things happen, and we are given the privilege of being the channels of the Holy Spirit's prayer." Elisabeth Elliot, www.elisabethelliot.org  

"We Are So Blessed" 

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jREx4JBzR0