Being a Christian is like being a pumpkin.
God picks you from the patch, takes you in, and washes all the dirt off of you.
He opens you up, touches you deep inside and scoops out all the yucky stuff … including the seeds of doubt, hate, greed and selfishness.
Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see. 2 Corinthians 5:17
May your light shine brightly today!
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| RICHARD R. GUTIERREZ, a calm leader and teacher of God's hope went peacefully to heaven while surrounded by his family in his Cypress home, November 10, 2008. A man of integrity, Richard was known for his love of God, compassion, intelligent humor, and management skills. Richard led with quiet strength; he was a constant source of wisdom for his family and friends. Born October 23, 1942 in Venezuela he was the youngest of three children. An honored US Army veteran, retired ExxonMobil executive, adoring husband of 39 years, dedicated father, loving grandpa, church leader and fervent prayer minister, Richard left nothing unfinished. Pursuing his passion to bring God's healing and restoration to people, Richard and his wife jointly founded the Healing Rooms of West Houston in 2004. He completed his life's checklist with a Master's touch. Richard was preceded in death by his parents, grandchild Jordan and is survived by his wife, Gloria, son David and wife Nichole and son John Paul and wife Sylvina, and 3 grandchildren. He is further survived by his sisters Sylvia Levy and Elvira Pifko, their husbands, and nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends. Richard will be dearly missed. His life verse was Psalm 27:1, The Lord is my light and my salvation; we thank God for his salvation through Christ Jesus. An Evening of Remembrance will be held Thursday, November 13 at 7 PM at Encourager Church, 10950 Katy Freeway. Funeral services will be held Friday at 1:30 PM at Encourager church followed by internment at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home. Donations may be sent to Encourager Church or Healing Rooms of West Houston, 10950 Katy Freeway. Houston, Texas 77043. | ||
My refrigerator serves as a backdrop for photographs of my friends and their families. Mounted in acrylic frames with magnets on the back, the pictures cover almost every square inch of available space. The nearly ninety families represented have a total of some three hundred children (not to mention scores of grandchildren).(The above was taken from "Lies Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free" by Nancy Leigh DeMoss, pages 129-131).
Recently I spent a couple of hours in an annual ritual of replacing old photos with new ones that had been sent to me during the Christmas season.
When all the photos were in place, I sat back to survey the "big picture." I reviewed some of the highlights these families have experienced over the past year. Eight had been blessed with the birth of a new baby. At least seven had a grandchild born. Seven had a son or daughter get married. Fifteen had moved. Six had made or were in the process of making a vocational change.
Nearly all the faces in these photos are smiling. But behind some of the near-perfect poses, I know there is more. Several individuals have confided a burden in relation to the physical or spiritual condition of specific family members. Three have recently buried a member of their immediate family. One couple is in the midst of an ugly divorce.
As I pondered the scene before me, I was struck with the wonder and significance of the family - for better or worse. The family is at the heart of what really matters to all of us. If things aren't well at home, every other area of life is affected. I looked to those scores of women sitting like mother hens surrounded by their brood of young ones, and I felt an enormous sense of gratitude for the willingness of those women to be givers and nurturers of life.
In the middle of all the photos, I have placed a bumper sticker you may recall seeing several years ago; "Life: What A Beautiful Choice." These women have chosen life by bearing children (something only a woman can do, I might add); and they are choosing life every day....
- with every meal they prepare;
- with every load of dirty clothes they wash;
- with every trip to the grocery store, to school, to the dentist, to piano lessons, to soccer practice, or to the shoe store;
- with every scraped knee they bandage;
- with every encouraging word they speak;
- with every night hour they spend rocking a sick or scared child;
- with every dispute they arbitrate;
- with every moment they spend building Legos, coloring, helping with math problems, reading a Bible story, or listening to a husband or child describe his day;
- with every moment they spend interceding for the spiritual growth and protection of their family.
Day in and day out, they are building a home; they are being life-givers; they are laying a foundation and building a memorial that will outlive them for generations to come; they are honoring their Creator in the greatest possible way.
“The works of the Lord are great, sought out by all those who have delight in them. His work is honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; the Lord is gracious, merciful, and full of loving compassion.” Psalm 111:2-4
Today I am thankful:
I encourage you to stop today and take time to be thankful. Take notice of the blessings, big and small, that God has graced your life with and give Him thanks! For more TT posts visit Grace Alone.
Our woes began when God was forced out of His central shrine and things were allowed to enter. Within the human heart things have taken over. ...
The roots of our hearts have grown deep into things, and we dare not pull up one rootlet lest we die. Things have become necessary to us, a development never originally intended. God's gifts now take the place of God, and the whole course of nature is upset by the monstrous substitution.
I have said that Abraham possessed nothing. Yet was not this poor man rich? Everything he had owned before was still his to enjoy: sheep, camels, herds, and goods of every sort. He had also his wife and his friends, and best of all he had his son Issac safe by his side. He had everything, but he possessed nothing. There is the spiritual secret. (emphasis mine)
Father, I want to know Thee, but my cowardly heart fears to give up its toys. I cannot part with them without inward bleeding, and I do not try to hide from Thee the terror of parting. I come trembling, but I do come. Please root from my heart all those things which I have cherished so long and which have become a very important part of my living self, so that Thou mayest enter and dwell there without a rival. Then shalt Thou make the place of Thy feet glorious. Then shall my heart have no need of the sun to shine in it, for Thyself wilt be the light of it, and there shall be no more night there. In Jesus' name. Amen. ( the prayer by Tozer at the end of the chapter.)
"Daniel answered, Blessed be the name of God forever and ever! For wisdom and might are His! He changes the times and the seasons, He removes kings and sets up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding! He reveals the deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him! I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers, Who has given me wisdom and might and has made known to me now what we desired of You, for You have made known to us the solution to the king's problem." Daniel 2:20-23
How wonderful and comforting to know that our God is in control of everything! He controls the time, the seasons, and even who is "the king" of our land! May we all diligently seek God and ask for His wisdom and might, for He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding! Have you spent time in His Word today? If you take the time to spend with Him, He will take the time to speak to you. He longs for us to seek Him....
For more encouraging and uplifting WFW posts visit 160acrewoods.
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