Jesus said, “I have told you these things so that you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble. But take heart!
                                                                John 16:33 NIV
 
 
Good morning, sweet soul, 
          Life is precious.  Each day is a gift.  Scripture teaches us to number our days.  Why?  I believe God wants us to understand that our time on earth shouldn’t be wasted in futile wishes.  I wish I had a better car.  I wish my son would behave.  I wish I . . .
          Yesterday I met with a recently bereaved widow.  She said she would like the Serenity Prayer included in her husband’s funeral service.  She cannot change the fact that her husband of 49 years is deceased.  Only acceptance will bring her peace. 
          Friends, you and I suffer when we want things to be different from what they are.  Sometimes, we need to pray for courage to continue on a difficult path we did not choose.   Wishing things were different only causes us pain.  If your tribulation is within your power to change, by all means, take the first step and the next till you resolve your difficulty. On your journey, I wish you the peace of Christ.
                                                         Linda
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I love you with an everlasting love.  Jeremiah 31:3
 
 
Good morning, sweet soul, 
 
          Happy almost Valentine’s Day!  This entire week, our minds will be on love.  Lost love.  Wishing for love.  Celebrating love for others, but I want you to try a new thought.  Celebrate love for yourself.  It’s okay.  It’s not selfish.  In fact, you are really honoring God when you love his creation. You are valuable.  Try this:  look in the mirror this morning and give yourself a big radiant grin.  Stand tall.  Be proud. And if you have fallen short, know this, God says, “I will build you up again.”  Be brave.  Be bold.  Proclaim, “I am loved by God. I am worthy.  I am wonderfully made.”  Now I want you to behave as if you are wonderful, powerful, brave, and awesome, because you are!  Come on, just try it.  Shout it from the rooftop, “God love me.  I love me.”                                                                                                                                                          And I love you too.                     Happy Valentine’s Day,                                                                                                                  Linda xo xo x
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You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God.                                                                                                                                                    Ephesians 4:22-24

Good Morning, my friend,
            How many of us would like to have a great week?  I imagine every one of you are nodding yes.  We all have challenges in our lives that could impact our attitudes, but notice our scripture, we have to put off our old self.  This implies that we have to take a deliberate action. Take off the old. The old way of thinking. The old way of reacting.  I remember the lyrics of a song by Patti LaBelle called “I got a new attitude.”


Runnin' hot,  Runnin' cold.
I was runnin' into overload.  It was extreme! I took it so high, so low, so low there was nowhere to go.


          Is that you? Aren’t you tired of running? The ups and downs in your attitude can cause you to feel like you have run a marathon.  It’s exhausting.  Well then, my friend, it’s time. Put on some swagger.  Put off that old attitude and look what happens when you put on the mind of Christ.  You can should from the rooftops, “I got a new attitude.”

I'm feelin' good from my head to my shoes.
Know where I'm goin' and I know what to do.
I've tidied up my point of view, I got a new attitude.     

                                                                Love ya,                                                                                                                                              Linda

Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Matthew 22:35-40

Hello, my dear one,
​
          Let’s make our focus this week on love. This morning I am feeling strongly blessed, and when you are bursting with the love of the Lord, you just naturally and earnestly want to share the joy.  Friend, you are loved by God just as you are.  You don’t have to earn God’s love.  You don’t have to work for His love.  And truth be told, you probably have done things to make Him sad, but Praise God, He loves you anyway. Breathe deeply and just let the Holy Spirit cleanse you, renew you, and make you whole.  Then with a big exhale, let go of stress, thoughts of failure, and regrets. 
          You are a new creation in Christ.  Every moment spent not loving your Lord, others, and yourself is a missed opportunity for joy.  Let’s let go of judgment of self and others.  Let go of condemnation.  Let go of feelings of not being enough or doing enough.  Let go of your need for perfection.  You are God’s beautiful creation and you are wonderful in His eyes.  You are enough.  Your family system is enough.  Not perfect, but enough.  Your friends are God’s gift, not perfect, but enough and deserving of your love and support. 
          This week, let’s revel in God’s acceptance and offer that unconditional love to those you encounter. Those who cross your path are put there by God for you to love and accept.  Let’s let Christ’s light and love shine brightly this week. I love you and so does God.     
                                                                   Linda

​This is the day that the Lord hath made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.                                                                                             Psalm 118:24
Hello Dear One,
          Whatever you are facing this week, please know that you have a choice to make.  You choose your thoughts and your emotions follow. I love the saying that was stuck on the side of the computer at the reception desk at Morton Plant Hospital when my mom was checking in for yet another evaluation.  I was feeling overwhelmed and tired and worried and stressed.  The sign read, “Make each day a good day even if it’s a sad day.”  And all these years later, that little sentence strikes a chord with me.  This week  Jim has two doctor appointments and surgery Friday.  What could be a stressful week is not going to get me down.  I woke with a determination to experience all this week offers with the expectation that I will experience a moment of joy.  A moment of gratitude.  A moment of pure love.   A moment of exhaled stress and peace.  And if I have a whole day of rejoicing, what a blessing!!! God is going ahead of me preparing the way, and I have to walk step by step in faith trusting.
          Friends, enjoy this week.  It’s your choice how you live it.  Linda

Good Morning, Dear One,
          Tomorrow begin a new year. For some of us, we are excited anticipating new adventures and fun-filled experiences.  Others are fearful.   I must admit I am filled with a bit of trepidation, especially with Jim’s back issues and pending surgery. I try to take one day at a time.  But when I focus my attention on God’s promises, I become more hopeful and strength fills my spirit and I can (most days) wake with joy.
          This is the truth of Scripture.  Our God is an awesome God who will never leave you nor forsake you and gives power to the weak. I am including some of my favorite scriptures to meditate upon and it is my prayer that you will draw strength and hope for the new year as you meditate upon the Truth of God’s Word and promises.  
          I wish you joy!  Happy New Year!
                                     Linda
 
 
POWER SCRIPTURES

The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God! — Psalm 68:35

Trust in the Lord forever, for in… the Lord is everlasting strength. — Isaiah 26:4

If God is your strength, and yet within you there is weakness, what do you do? Just believing what the Bible says about the might and power of God doesn’t overcome weakness. The apostle James reminds us that “even the demons believe – and tremble! — James 2:19


Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. — Isaiah 40:28-29, emphasis added

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. — Isaiah 41:10, emphasis added
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​For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding [and] eternal weight of glory.     2 Corinthians 4:17
 
Hello dear one,
 
        Two days till Christmas.  While the bells are ringing and children are singing and you are. . .stressed?  Sad?  Or maybe feeling jolly? Whatever you are feeling in this moment, know that this is just a moment. Trials will come.  They will pass.  Pain will come, and this too shall pass.  And sometimes, the sweetest moments happen. 
 
        This life is incredible. And, we don’t want to miss it.  Each moment matters.  Don’t numb out of life by constant business. Or overeating.  Or drinking to dull the pain.  Pause right now.   Silence is calming.   And stillness is bliss.  “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).  God is with you in this moment, the hard and the beautiful.  Acknowledge His Presence and be thankful.  Christmas is about the birth of our Savior.   Not the roasted chestnuts.  Not the wreath on the door or the cookies in the oven. Not the presents under the tree.  Christmas is about God’s Gift for you.  “For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11).  Please dear one, pause this very moment and remember the reason for the season.  And may you find joy in this moment!                                           
                                                 Merry Christmas,  Linda

“If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done” (Ecclesiastes 11:4 TLB).
 
Hello Friend,
 
          Wow, does that scripture speak to me in a big way!  Having just moved into our new home, nothing is perfect.  Good news, the garage is almost empty of boxes.  Yahoo! The bad news, they are now scattered all over the house in the various rooms in which they will eventually find a home.  A little over a week till Christmas, and for a neat freak like me who borders on ODC,  I have to let go of perfection.  If we are to celebrate Christmas with friends and family, I must strengthen my spine and bite the bullet, and let go, and any other cliché you can think of.  Christ will come in spite of the mess.  Amidst the mess. And just maybe, if we let Him, bring peace to our hearts.
 
          So dear one, in order to celebrate the birth of our Lord, what do you need to accept that will not be perfect this year? Perhaps, money is an issue and the presents must be downsized.  Or, maybe one of the grown children will not be able to travel to visit.  Or, maybe your relationship is on the rocks and tension swirls in each moment.  Sometimes, we wait to feel the Christmas spirit when circumstances are better—when things settle down.  My friend, there are always going to be challenges.  It’s part of life.  So, my advice to myself and to you is, don’t wait for the perfect.  Do whatever you need to do to put Christ back into Christmas and into your heart. 
                                                          Linda
 
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10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

Good morning, friend,
​
          If there is a single word that describes what Christmas is all about, it’s the little word “joy.”   Several of our favorite carols mention it: “Joy to the world, the Lord is come.”  “O come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant.”
 
          I get it if you are not feeling it yet.  The joy.  Two weeks before Christmas is a hustle, bustle time.  So much to do.  So little time left.  I feel the stress also.  No tree, no lights, no cookies, and boxes still down the middle of the garage awaiting unpacking and looming like a monster each time I open the door.
 
           But, as Christians, we understand that Christmas is more than the trappings and wrappings.  It is about the Savior being born in a little town of Bethlehem.   It is about God’s love.  Don’t stress. Choose the “must do’s” realistically.  And let the rest go.  Christmas will come to my house even without the tree.   Joy comes from within.  Cherish this time and view each moment as sacred. Keep your focus on the reason for the season.   So, come all ye faithful, be joyful and triumphant.  God loves you and so do I.  I wish you peace in your heart and precious joy to the full and overflowing.     Linda