Holy Spirit you are SO Welcome here......2/5/16

Has anyone ever come to you and asked for help?  My guess is you could answer YES a few times.   Since I became a Christian, time after time…can you pray for me?  Can you drop me off to pick up my car?   Can you help me with these groceries? These all sound reasonable, they are not asking too much, right?

What you don’t know is that I was not always a Christian.  I did not know what it meant to be the hands and feet of Jesus.  I could never simply share my time, my talents or my story.  I also learned to be codependent from my alcoholic dad.  I learned to never trust anyone as they may have an angle or a way to get over on me or steal me blind.  (What does that mean anyway, can someone steal your sight?)  And finally I learned that I was never safe, I always had to have an exit plan.

Being codependent means that I take on too much when I am helping someone. I trust in my own understanding of things rather than giving it to God.  I do things that they should be doing for themselves.  I tried to endure or water-down their hurt and their punishment.  I stayed awake at nights worrying about them and their problems. 

The church was offering a Lay Counseling class, the book title they were studying read “How can I help? Caring for People without Harming them or Yourself .”  Chapter One… You must be led by the Holy Spirit not by the needs of others.   I love that. There is hope for me. When we try to help others by sharing our testimony about what God has done in our lives, we must be so careful. Why? Because the Holy Spirit works differently in other people’s lives. What might be good for us may not be good for them.  When we share our faith or our confidence in God, we could be robbing them of their reality.  Faith is described as taking hold of Christ, keeping our hold on him and never letting go. Let them grab hold of their Jesus, let him be their Rock.

Never rely on YOUR surrender to solve THEIR problems--- always rely on the Holy Spirit to guide you.  When people are rooted in their own realities nothing can shake them.

 

The Word says:

“My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” We see miraculous things happen when we act through the Holy Spirit. For me, I can trust in God, I can surrender to his purpose in my life.  I don’t have to worry anymore about others, I can just love them. I can also stop running."                                                1 Corinthians 2:4-5

Beautify our lives dear Lord,
Through your spirit day by day, That your heart may find delight In all we do and say.          (A poem by Maryann V. Shue)

Written by 

Shelly Keith

                                                    

"SONSHINE" ......February Writing by Cathy Friberg

2/1/16

All glory and praise be to God for the beautiful and abundant showers of rain He has sent us over the last few months. In our area of the state the rain has been plentiful, yet gentle, and interspersed with dry days. This has allowed the water to soak into the earth so as to prevent flooding. What a merciful and gracious God! I feel that this rain has been in response to the prayers of God's people. So many have been asking the Lord to relieve the drought in California. 

"Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; 

so shall the Lord make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain,

 to every one grass in the field." 

 Zechariah 10:1

At any rate all thanksgiving and honor goes to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

That being said, I would also like to thank the Father of Lights for the sunshine he has sent us today. As it has been grey and cloudy for the last two weeks, I realize how much I do appreciate the sunshine. I am energized and my spirits are lifted by its brightness and warmth. I was able to have my devotional time outdoors this morning. It was such a joy to be worshipping the Lord while basking in the morning light. I suddenly apprehended what a gift sunshine is to us and to all of God's plant and animal kingdoms. The greenery seems to reach up in gratitude and satisfaction toward the sun. The birds sing a glorious song whenever the sun shines brightly. It is as if all creation gives praise and thanksgiving for the gift of the sun.

While pondering these notions, the thought came to me that the Heavenly Father has also sent us the gift of His Son.Though spelled differently, the word Son as relates to Jesus Christ is in many ways similar to the bright star in the sky which we term the sun. Both are life giving. Both bring energy, joy, warmth, and light. The gift of Jesus affords us much more however. Christ's death and resurrection provide atonement for our sins and right standing before the Father. The sacrifice of God's Son Jesus offers us peace, healing, provision, protection, and most importantly eternal life!

As Valentine's Day approaches with its thoughts of love, let's remember to thank our Creator for the love he has shown to humanity by sending his only son Jesus. The ultimate love God has demonstrated is indeed a priceless gift and worthy of our commemoration this Valentines season. 

"For God so loved the world that He gave 

His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him 

shall not perish but have eternal life."  

John 3:16

This month let's share God's love by praying for the lost and reaching out to them with the Living Word however the Holy Spirit leads.

By Cathy Friberg

Relaxation-Communication-Connection

1/30/16

An unreliable messenger can cause a lot of trouble. 

Reliable communication permits progress.

Proverbs 13:17

(TLB)

I have just returned from a 10 day vacation from Costa Rica and had the chance to do some uninterrupted thinking along with much needed relaxation.

Fifteen years ago when I first migrated to US, I was in the habit of sending long detailed emails which were received enthusiastically and replied by most which led to an ongoing dialogue.

Then came smart phones and the Facebook era which literally changed the way we communicate. Many many of my friends stopped replying as they shared their lives via FB post.  Since I did not embrace FB for at least couple of years my sometimes anguished lamentations at losing the connectivity thread was brushed off with a shocked and bewildered response “what do you mean you miss talking? I write daily on FB, how come you don’t join and stop complaining?” Finally I did just do that and I think my first post was something to the effect that I am joining under duress for I wish to stay connected. I received many “Likes” to that post, by the way.

 I used the FB messenger prolifically then, sending long messages, at first privately then in groups, and the interactive cascade of everyone penning their thoughts slowly diminished into Likes, or Smiley Faces and then that further changed to “Seen by so and so, or these many people” to allow me the gratification that my message was at least “seen” if not “read”. My expectations adjusted, and I stopped writing long messages, resorted to chatting or sending short to the point cryptic messages on the FB messenger. I trained myself to this new norm.

Then came the world of "Whatsap" bringing an explosive over communication. Initially I was ecstatic at connecting with so many overseas friends and loved how family, relatives and friends made groups. I overlooked the fact that I was nearly always 10 hours behind in checking the messages thus after actually reading the 100+ messages I would find responding to them would have been like beating a dead horse, as the group had moved on to new topic all together or they either retired to bed with flurry of good nights. Yes the flurry of greetings by each member of the group morning and night, then the forward of many images, jokes, moral stories, satires and ensuing comments were and are like a deluge of communication. Buried somewhere in this torrential exchange would be snippets of personal and useful information that my heart craved.

Going away on the vacation where I chose to unplug myself from everything, I literally felt acute withdrawal at first and felt like a machine being unplugged from the life giving social media, but In 2 days time I was not even carrying my phone anywhere with me, not even to take pictures for I was allowing my eyes to look at mother nature un-hindered by a camera lens in between. I was not tweaking and editing images but watching the show in all its glory. Walking at night my head was not bent at the neck checking the latest updates on my phone, and this allowed me to witness the majestic skies with the brilliant stars lighting and twinkling in joyful glee. I actually felt the balmy winds in my hair and body. I heard the sounds of all kinds of birds and other animals. I gave meaning to the phrase “stop to smell the roses” for I did stop, bent, touched, sniffed, or just gazed at the abundant flora and fauna of the tropics. The humming birds, the butterflies, the bees, the flies and even the mosquitoes were examined by naked eye. The color palette of Mother nature is unbelievable and forget the colorful flowers, there were so many shades of green in ordinary grass and the shrubs and the trees.  Amazing is what it is.

As I sat by the ocean the pristine beaches allowed me to hear the ceaseless hum of the water, the splashing noise of endless waves on the sandy shores, the smoothness of the retreating waves also has a mesmerizing sound to it, did you know that? I read and wrote every day and sometimes my mind would be just blank, no thoughts, no output as it absorbed hundreds of sights and sounds as inputs.  This is the time I thought about how we all want instant gratification in everything depriving ourselves of the relishing long lasting slow satiation. We want to rush through everything, even talking with each other. It has to be a forward for it sort of indicates what we want to say…. Just not in our own words. We don’t mind losing the individual touch to it, for that takes time. Copy Paste or Forward is so easy and achieves the same result. Only it does not, no it does not.

Another example of how we really cant express these days. I attended a wedding and the mother of the bride had wanted everyone to write on bottom half of a A4 size page and she was going to add pictures on upper half and this booklet was to be made into a memorabilia of blessings and best wishes for the bride. I saw nearly 90% of the people struggle to write what they felt, nearly all of these wrote 2-3 lines then stopped grinning sheepishly and then mockingly at my fingers that were flying over my page. I stopped and actually felt embarrassed at myself, then slowly I got upset that why should I feel uncomfortable? I continued with my writing, and finished with ease. I looked up and saw people on their cell phones, scrolling through the vast list of forwarded messages to pick some choice poems, saying or phrases etc to add to their pages, some were looking at emojis and drawing them out.

That was the final straw for me, because I strongly feel that communication should be more than random, short texts. True the world has become smaller but we have become farther apart. True that we can reach each other so much faster than days of postal mail, but we are not really reaching inside, accessing the emotions, touching the hearts. True that we share so much instantly, but do we really share the emotions behind? No we rely on the constantly growing graphics and near perfect emoticons but the words that will give true meaning are missing. We rely too much on the fastest growing form of, visual over words, language ever based on its incredible adoption rate and speed of evolution. But one needs to stop and think and regurgitate our thoughts in words.

Hence here I am hoping to get a response from you, telling me tit bits of your life which I do not find on FB, but true connections. I want to talk.

After the long prologue I don’t think I should test your patience with other details
from my life, but let it suffice that this Costa Rica unplugged vacation has left me much calmer and clearer in mind, body and soul. I feel very connected with myself, and my family for we as a 4 member family truly talked about our past, present and future aspirations, we relived old memories even as we created more and I got to rediscover my daughters once again in their confidence as well as anxiety tinged musings. I could play the role of a parent and a friend. We talked, we laughed, we sat in comfortable silences and we truly communicated. Which is what I want from us so lets talk… you and me.

Written by
Nandita Bhatnagar

The "I AM"…A January writing by Catherine Craig

1/25/16

Recently, my husband, Jeff, and I had a discussion. I felt that the thoughts shared were worth writing down for others to read.

~~~~~~~~~~

Feeling almost a sense of grief, I stared down at my favorite eyeglasses with their cracked frames resting in my palm. Directing my words across the breakfast table to my husband, I said, “These glasses won’t ever be quite the same again, no matter how carefully we glue them.”

“You’re right,” he answered. Shaking his head and taking them from me to inspect, Jeff added, “Stress has already done its work. The gap has widened. It won’t take much to sever the band of remaining adhesive.

“You know, I think we – people – are like these spectacles,” I commented, taking a sip from my now cooled cup of tea. When he looked up, I tried to explain. “Each of us has been fractured by life’s tragedies and disappointments, broken like shattered teacups again and again.” I paused to gather my thoughts and put them into words. “I think that we as women are aware of those cracks deep down. We hold at bay those things that might open up the old wounds.”

Jeff stopped fiddling with the eyeglasses and laid them down on the table. “Men do the same. Those of us who are in touch with our feelings, that is.” 

“Okay, thanks,” I acknowledged his concession with a smile, and then suggested. “Let’s take that statement up a notch. I wonder. When it is God who heals those deep inner wounds, the damage disappears, almost as if it never existed. In comparison, we also fight to keep those wounds from resurfacing, as if they’re something to be ashamed of. ”

“I can picture that,” said my husband, taking a sip of his also now cooled cup of coffee as his brown eyes widened with understanding. “I can see that cup whole and complete.”

“Let’s develop this a bit more before we go onto something else, okay?” At his nod, I said, “God is self-sufficient, right?” He smiled, waiting. “He calls himself the “I am”  - “I am – Healer,” “I am – Provider,” “I am – your Refuge,” “I am – a very present help in time of need.” These are all examples; his names define both who he is and how he relates to us. But,” I groped for words, “what if I took the same viewpoint in reverse? “I am ____ in him,” or “I have ____ in him. Like two pieces of a puzzle,” I said and, feeling the strength of the illustration, interlocked the fingers of both my hands together, “I am complete in him. I don’t have to go to other things or people to complete me, or to be safe!"

"I think you have to be careful how you phrase that," Jeff responded. The words "I am ____" denote pride in self, but if your intent is that the emphasis is on God – not self – and that he is the source of everything, then that's a good thing."

"Yes, of course. That's what I mean." After a brief pause, I added, "Conversely, not only is embracing God's sufficiency a cure, it is also a preventative." Desiring to end our discussion and move on into the day, I said, "As I grow in my relationship with God and learn how to trust him in the circumstances of my life, I reach out to things and people that will fail me less and less. As a result, the likelihood of my being shattered by life’s let-down’s at all is diminished.”

"I agree," he affirmed. "That makes sense. You know what?”

“What?” I asked and grinned back.

“That might justify our searching for that PDF buried in the computer. Remember?” he asked. “It explains God's Names and from where they originated in the Bible. But first, before anything," he added with a smile, "I'm up for a fresh pot of coffee. You game for some tea?"

"You bet!" I answered, gently placed the injured eyeglasses in their solid case, and then snapped the lid shut.     

SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD...January Writing by Cathy Friberg

1/2/16

I haven't been to a doughnut shop in, oh..........  20 years or more. Yet, on Christmas morning my husband and I found ourselves at "Maple Leaf Doughnuts." It proved to be the only place nearby where we could buy a cup of coffee. We sat in a booth, chatting, laughing, and  checking our cell phones for updates from the power company. 

The electricity had gone off at over a hundred homes in our area. PG&E  was checking out the situation. Our kids were coming in from out of town for Christmas dinner. My prospects for preparing for our guests were looking bleak. 

Without electricity I couldn't work on cooking the lasagna. My carpets looked forsaken with bits of dust and lint scattered all about. With no power the vacuum would not be coming to the rescue. Worst of all it, was freezing in our house! I think the luxury I missed most was being able to brew a cup of comforting hot coffee. So off my husband and I went in search of a cup of java. All the coffee shops and restaurants were closed because of the holiday, so we gratefully settled for the doughnut spot at the plaza.

Many things went racing through my mind when I initially realized that we had no electricity. I was bombarded emotionally with a million "what ifs." I felt frustrated and angry. At that point I turned to the Lord. After seeking the Lord with praise, prayer and reading the word, I was flooded with peace. I began to count my blessings and could once again think clearly. That is when the idea of leaving the house to have coffee with my husband came to me. With a fresh outlook I was able to have a mini "date" with my spouse on Christmas morning. 

During my prayer time the Holy Spirit reminded me that in the natural realm, a lack of

power negatively affects so many areas of our lives. I was also impressed that on the spiritual level, being disconnected from God's power is even more devastating. When we are not in communion and fellowship with the Lord, we are left to our own blind perceptions and weak devices. We are rendered virtually ineffective in the Kingdom of God. 

"I am the vine; you are the branches. 

If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit;

apart from me you can do nothing."

John 15:5

I am so thankful for God's grace. It is such a blessing to be able to turn to Him in all our trials, big or small.

"Then call on me when you are in trouble,
and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory."
Psalm 50:15  

When we seek the Lord we forsake the carnal mind and instead receive the mind of Christ. 

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, says the  Lord.
And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine."
Isaiah 55:8

As it turned out our electricity was restored within a few hours. The Lord multiplied my time and all the chores were completed. We had a blessed time with our children. The Lord is so faithful to works all things out when we turn to Him and place everything in His hands. 

By Cathy Friberg