365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...LAST DAY OF SEPTEMBER!

I have always been interested in the FRUITS of the spirit. There is a great deal about FRUITS in the Bible. Matthew 7:18 says A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. This verse is repeated almost identical in Luke 6:43. For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Verse 44 A goes on to say For every tree is known by his own fruit. I want to be known for my FRUITS and the FRUITS of the spirit are the most important FRUITS we can bare. The FRUITS of the spirit are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 they are as follows, Joy, Peace, Longsuffering, Gentleness, Goodness, Faith, Meekness, and Temperance. In layman's terms...Love, Peace, Goodness, Gentleness, Faithfullness, Joy, Kindness, Patience, and Self Control. The hardest fruit to bare for most of us is probably Self Control. That is where walking in the spirit comes in. I try to always focus on that walk. Like everyone else, I am far from perfect...I am a work in progress. We all are until Jesus returns. I pray for your great success as well as my own and that we shall all bare good FRUITS...in Jesus Name Amen.

365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...SEPTEMBER IS ALMOST GONE!

One of the awesome teachings I heard in the past few days was concerning LONELINESS. Any of us who have lived or do live alone have probably felt the heartache of LONELINESS from time to time. But do you know that many people who feel extreme LONELINESS are often surrounded by people? Being lonely in a crowd is an uncomfortable feeling as anyone who has ever gone to a party or event where they didn't know anyone well can tell you. We don't often use the term wallflower any more, but still there are still many who stand on the outside looking in. Often this may be because we don't feel we fit in or we feel inadequate, or we are somewhere that we really shouldn't so we are uncomfortable...but did you know God made each and every one of us unique. How awesome is that! Not only do we each have a distinctly different fingerprint, which is amazing in and of itself, but we have different combinations of DNA, personality traits, habits, etc. I may have my mothers hair and eye color, but I may not share her personality or talents. When we feel LONELINESS creeping  up on us it is easy to fall back on emotions that make us feel like an outsider but God loves and cherishes us just the way we are. The best thing is we are never alone. Deuteronomy 31:6 tells us that God will never leave us nor forsake us. I also thought about what Joyce Meyer said when she stated, "Lonely desperate people do desperate things." I have thought about that before because I know people, and I am sure you all do as well, who are in unhealthy relationships because they just don't want to feel lonely. This is not just opposite sex relationships...it could be one of your "Girls" or one of your "Boys." I often consider that when the wrong people try to be involved in my life. Not only do we have our Heavenly Father with us always but we also have the ability to become our own best friend. When you are in a season of LONELINESS spend time with God and take the time to get to know yourself better. You can also spend quality time with others who might be experiencing LONELINESS, such as an elderly neighbor or do some volunteer work at a nursing home or hospital. I always try to see my glass half full and not half empty so at least no one is disturbing me with this or that and the only time schedule I have...is my own...smiles. Next time you are tempted to fall into the despair of LONELINESS, stop take a deep breath, go do something you enjoy, talk to God, dance, read...in other words...just redirect those feelings into something positive and remember just because you are alone...you don't have to be lonely! Stay blessed and stay well.

365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...SEPTEMBER IS ALMOST GONE!

It is hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that these are the last few days of September. Although October is still technically Fall...I always remember it as the onset of very cool weather. Okay cool to me can mean 70-75. Once your blood thins you feel the cool weather differently. When it is mid to high 70's here, people start wearing Winter clothing, boots, heavy jackets and hoodies, sweaters, the whole nine yards. I am not quite that bad yet...mainly because as much as I love being hot...I don't enjoy being all bundled up. The first year I was here I didn't wear a coat until January...now when October comes I always find myself wondering if I should actually buy a Winter coat. The one I had has a broken zipper and I haven't replaced it in years. Another thought on my mind is my 365 Word Journey is winding down. In the beginning I was not certain I would make it one week much less 9 months. God gave me STAMINA, PERSEVERANCE, and a great desire to keep PRESSING ON. Sometimes the best way around a mountain is through. Just because something is challenging doesn't mean we should give up. I heard some amazing teachings this weekend which I will share with you in the coming week. Have a happy and blessed new week and keep PRESSING ON!

365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...SEPTEMBER IS WINDING DOWN!

My first inclination tonight was to give in to the laptop issues I was encountering and just give up on writing. In my spirit however, I felt to push on. I did and God gave me what I needed. I just watched the Prime Minister of India commit to making sure every citizen of India has a toilet by 2019. Did they just say a toilet? I will admit I was a bit taken aback. I mean I am fully aware of poverty around the world. I just never thought about the lack of something so basic as a toilet. Even where there is no running water available I somehow envisioned bathrooms with toilets...primitive perhaps...but there. Like the Prime Minister said (paraphrased), we sometimes forget how BLESSED we are. I try to focus on what I have and not what I don't have. When we look at life through the eyes of others instead of our own, we will see how BLESSED we truly are. Our children complain about going to school, but many children don't have that privilege. In America, we are BLESSED to at least have 12 years of learning. Looking into the eyes of children, teens, and adults who have no hope is heart wrenching. People with great ideas and knowledge with no way to express it. I know amazing artists that don't have paper or pencils, much less canvas and paint. I know of others who may or may not have one meal each day. I know still others who would have loved to finish school, or even had the chance to attend at all. There are footballers, scholars, teachers, scientists, doctors, pastors, and even prime ministers and presidents behind those empty eyes that lack hope. Indeed we are BLESSED. We are our brothers keeper. No matter how insignificant we may feel handing a dollar to someone who needs it, or partnering with a ministry that gives globally, or giving encouragement to someone who needs it desperately...we can all do something. Stay BLESSED...but...pass it on.

See what we can do together----->globalcitizen.org

365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...SEPTEMBER IS WINDING DOWN!

Talk about healthy! The Lord blessed me with a great report when my blood work came back. God is so good. Everything came back good to perfect! It wasn't that I was worried...the fact was I had not given it another thought. I thought I was just getting my thyroid levels checked. I even got my flu shot today. Early for once. Last year I didn't get one at all, but when I do its always at the tip end of flu season. This year I am prepared! There are many scriptures in the Bible concerning health. Many refer to healing, but God never intended us to fall ill. Adam and Eve changed all that of course. Most of us would like be like Job, after he was healed, his health was restored and he felt young again. 
(Job 33:25); (Psalm 23:3) The Bible says I was (we are) FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY made. (Psalm 139:14) I don't know about you...but I want to stay that way or at least repair what's not by Gods grace. Above all keep your soul in good health. 
(3 John 2 CEV) This is my foremost goal. Now if I could just get a few more workouts in...smiles.

365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...SEPTEMBER IS WINDING DOWN!

Today has not been the best day for me. I believe the enemy is using my neighbors to disturb my sleep. Far fetched? I think not. There is an enemy and he comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. (John 10:10) Of course when I am extremely tired nothing seems to go well. The laptop has been so bad the past 2 days adding to my discomfort. I am trying not to give into any stress promoting EMOTIONS. I am not focusing on the negative aspects of today though. I am learning new things and working through the EMOTIONS I was feeling. One thing I have learned in life...there is always someone worse off than me. EMOTIONS can be a good thing, but often we let them cripple us. I will not...I am stronger than that...God gave me (all of us) self control. I just have to lean on Him. God may not change my neighbors, but I know He can change me so that I will be able to sleep in spite of all their noise. I pray tonight I will...in Jesus Name Amen.

365 WORDS...ONE WORD AT A TIME...SEPTEMBER IS WINDING DOWN!

I must say today was a perfect day! Plenty of sunshine, big fluffy clouds, bright blue skies, and a light breeze. If this is Fall...I am lovin' it! 

Did you ever decide to fall off the HEALTH wagon just for a day...on purpose? That was me today. I think it was not to be however, because everything I wanted was not on the available! How unfair is that? Lol. I said okay Lord, if you don't want me to have it, I won't. Not that God dictates what we eat or don't eat all the time, but if you are like me, it will snowball. I tend to get stuck on certain foods once I eat them once and will continue until I am sick of that food. A slice of cake just might trigger that. God certainly knows me better than I know myself. One area of focus during my 365 Word Journey, besides my spiritual HEALTH, was to pay more attention to my physical HEALTH. I believe that Spiritual, Physical, and Mental HEALTH all work together as one and when they are off kilter we get out of sync, especially spiritually and it begins to affect our total HEALTH and well-being. There was a time, a couple years ago, when I was either missed making appointments or I was canceling them. That is long since a thing of the past. Even my physician noticed last year before she left. Now I am considering making optometrist and dentist appointments. I will also look into finding a better physician since my replacement one doesn't do a thing but fill my prescriptions. That means that particular office only cares about the copay. Take care of your HEALTH, its all we have. I believe God expects us to use self control and make healthy choices. Don't wait until January to do something about your HEALTH start today. May God bless you.