New Blog Site

I just set up a blog for my quilting and will be setting one up for my knitting in a minute. There is a link on the side.

Know how much you can bear?

1 Cor 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, Who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Ever think when you are going through something or tempted by something that you just can't do it? Or am I the only one? Sometimes when we are in the midst of the battle we feel overwhelmed. That is the time we need to raise our hearts to God, praise Him and thank Him that because He is with us and faithful, we can go through this trial or temptation and come out on the other side even stronger because of what He has brought us through.

This verse comforts me that no matter what circumstances or situation I find myself in, God won't give me more then I can bear, as long as I cling to Him.

So the answer to the title is, as much as God allows me to go through.

Praise and Prayers needed

My daughter just called. Alexis (granddaughter with bells palsy ) woke this morning and the side of her face was totally back to normal!!! Problem? the other side is palsy now. :-(

So we are praising and praying at the same time.

Please lift her up if you think of her.

The babies

We were finally able to get a picture of the two babies!

Aren't they cute???

Ever felt like flying away?

Ps 55:6 And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away and be at rest.

Ever feel overwhelmed? Exhausted? I do today. I still have a sinus headache and so everything appears larger then life. The few dishes that need washing, the couple of loads of laundry, the 5 year old grandsons graduation from day care tonight, the supper out afterwards with the other set of grandparents, the call I got that future son-in-law got laid off this morning, etc, etc, etc.

Jn 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

This scripture tells me where to find peace. I just have to seek Him to find it.

Phil 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

I will be clinging to Phil 4:7 and to my Savior Jesus Christ today. How about you?

Has your faith ever been tested?

Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;)

Has your faith ever been tested? Mine has, many times, in many different ways, as I am sure yours has also.

This verse reminds me that He is faithful, and He has made promises to me, and to you.

But we must chose to believe Him without doubt. It is an act of our faith to believe Him when we are tested. When the answer we wanted doesn't come, or when it doesn't come in the time we would have it come.

He has always provided what He has promised, and in many remarkable ways. Not always (well most of the time it wasn't lol) the way I expected or sometimes even the way I desired. But it was always the right way. He alone is perfect. He alone has perfect timing. He alone always knows what is best for me. Even when I don't agree. ugh

Migraine

Sorry I have been gone for 3 days, but a simple sinus headache turned into one of the few migraines I have had in my life.

My daughters suffer from migraines, and I sympathize with all of you who do. I have only had about 3 in my life, and that is 3 to many. This one just hasn't wanted to let go. I am back to the sinus headache now, and praying that it is almost gone too.

So if you think of me, please lift me before the Lord.

Will hopefully be back to posting my bible readings and thoughts later today or tomorrow.

It's All in the Name

Pr 18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.

There is so much in the name of Jesus. Just right here we get a small glimpse of one of the things that are ours in the name of our Lord.

Salvation, protection, healing, deliverance, provision, the list goes on and on.

What do you need today? It is all found in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Coriolis Socks

I just finished these. The pattern is at Knitty Gritty on Diynet.com

The heel trick she does is very easy and does not have a gusset.

Two new sampler blocks done

I finished two more of the Sylvia Bridal Sampler blocks this week so far. Here are pictures of them.

I hand pieced both of these.

Great is the Lord!

Ps 48:1 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness.
:2 Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.

This is another section of scripture that we sing at church as a praise song.

All through Psalms, well all through the bible really, it tells us to praise and worship God. It is what we were designed to do. The word says if we don't praise Him the rocks will. It is what we will do in eternity. I love to praise the Lord!

I will be practicing today singing this song all day as I do other things.

Memorizing Scripture

Ps 78:6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:
:7 That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments.

It has always been important to me that my children hide scripture in their heart. I teach them very young how to use a concordance. That way if they can remember one or two words they are able to find the verse easily. My concordance after all these years from so much use is held together on the spine with duct tape lol.

I have a difficult time remembering references, but can memorize the word easily. It is important to have the word in your heart so that when you find yourself in many different situations, even if a bible is not close at hand, you can draw on the word of God for what is needed in that moment of time.

I try to memorize at least one verse a month. Now just memorizing it is good, but digging deep and learning what is meant by the verse is better. That is why we study slowly and memorize it slowly. The scriptures mean so much more to me when I spend the time to dig deeper.

He knows all

Ps 139:1 O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
:2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
:3 Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
:4 For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether.

Ps 17:3 Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.

We all know that God knows all, right?

He is aware 24/7 of what we are doing, thinking, saying.

Ever say something and then wish you hadn't? Ever think something and say to yourself, I better not say that out loud? I know I have on occasion. I need to remember that He knows my thoughts also, not just what comes out of my mouth.

Today I am purposed that my mouth, and my thoughts shall not transgress.

Give Thanks

Ps 107:1 O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever.
:2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy.

Is 51:11 Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head; they shall obtain gladness and joy: and sorrow and mourning shall flee away.

We sing alot of scripture for our praise service. Is 51:11 is one of my many favorites. I love that we do that cause it is an easy way for even small children to learn to memorize scripture.

Ps 107:6 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses.

Right here in Ps 107 verses, 6, 13, 19 and 28 all say if you are in trouble, call out to the Lord for His deliverance.

Ps 107:8 Oh that men would praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
:9 For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.

Is your soul longing or hungry? Praise the Lord! He will fill it while you do!

Verse 8 is repeated in verses 15 and 21. I always feel like when God keeps repeating the same thing, it must be because He knows sometimes *I* need to hear it more then once to "get it".
So when you see something repeated in scripture think of me and pray for me.

Repeatedly throughout the scriptures we are reminded to give thanks and praise the Lord. To worship Him. It is what we will be doing in heaven.

Let's all practice today for that glorious day!

Let's praise Him today with songs, with our words and actions! What a glorious day it will be!

Glorious Impossible

I don't usually post on Sunday, but I was hand piecing a quilt block listening to a cd and just thought I would share the words to this beautiful song with you today. Happy Mothers Day !!

Glorious Impossible

See, the Virgin is delivered
In a cold and crowded stall
Mirror of the Father's glory
Lies beside her in the straw
He is Mercy's incarnation
Marvel at the miracle
For the Virgin gently holds the
Glorious Impossible

Love has come to walk on water
Turn the water into wine
Touch the leper, bless the children
Love both human and divine

Praise the wisdom of the Father
Who has spoken through His Son
Speaking still He calls us to the
Glorious Impossible

Chorus: Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Glorious Impossible

He was bruised for our transgressions
And He bears eternal scars
He was raised for our salvation
And His righteousness is ours

Praise oh praise Him, praise the glory
Of this lavished grace so full
Lift your souls now and receive the Glorious Impossible

repeat chorus

By: joe beck, carl cartee, wendy wills
performed on my cd by the gaither vocal band

A tribute of sorts to my mom

Since tomorrow is Sunday, I probably won't get online other then to check my email while I drink coffee. I always do this first to check for prayer requests. That way when I have my quiet time with God I have an updated list of who needs prayer. So feel free to email me if you are in need of prayer or know someone who is. Also I appreciate updates so I can give thanks to God for answered prayer.

Now on to why Ps 23. Well as all of you know tomorrow is Mother's Day. I have been thinking of my mom alot lately. She is never to far from my thoughts as I miss her, but as Mother's Day approaches she is even more in my thoughts. Ps 23 was her very favorite passage of scripture so when I opened my bible this morning and that is where it opened I knew this is what I should post on today. So here goes:

Ps 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

Phil 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Ps 24:1 The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof: the world, and they that dwell therein.

Have a need? Turn it over to God. He can handle it!

Ps 23:2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters:

Ez 34:15 I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God.

Rev 7:17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living foundations of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

Need food, rest, comfort? God can supply all of these.

Ps 23:3 He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His Name's sake.

Ps 5:8 Lead me, O Lord, in Thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make Thy way straight before my face.

Need restoring? Follow the way He is leading you. We know the way, but we must CHOSE to follow it.

Ps 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.

When my mom died, I was not sure where she stood with God. There had been alot of ups and downs and I just couldn't leave the bedside in the hospital room. As unknowingly I stood on one side of the bed, my sister stood on the other side and both of us were asking for a sign that she had made it to be with Jesus. The Lord gave both of us the same vision at the same time. We both saw mom walking among clouds, with her beautiful, before stroke smile! Her face was lit up with what had to be light from our Savior! We (sister and I) both opened our eyes, smiled at each other through our tears, shared what we had seen, and were able to leave the room, knowing mom was with Jesus. What a comfort that has been to me all these years since. So while I do miss my mom, and I am teary right now, I know she is healed, whole and with the Lord.

Ps 23:5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anoinest my head with oil: my cup runneth over.

Not only will He provide for you but He will make your cup overflow.

Ps 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Praise God that is where mom is right now.

In memory of my mom,
Carol 7/14/26 - 8/14/93

Comforted of God

2 Cor 1:4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

Have you been through trials or tribulations? Were you comforted of God through them? Has He led someone to you when you were in a trial that had been through it already? Has He led you to someone going through something He had brought you through already? That is how we are able to comfort others. With His help.

Here the Lord is telling us we can comfort each other through trials we all face. This is especially true if we have experienced the same type of trial. We can comfort them by showing that God led us through and will do the same for them even when things look like there is no end.

We sing this sometimes at church:


It is no secret, what God can do,
what He's done for others, He'll do for you.
With arms wide open, He'll welcome you,
It is no secret, what God can do.

Isn't that a good reminder?

bitterness

Eph 4:31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice.

I love my husband dearly. He comes second in my life only to Jesus Christ. But in 32 years of marriage there are times that I am upset with him. Sometimes it is over quickly. Sometimes it is not. This has been one of those weeks.

My husband is a procrastinator. I can be sometimes too. But I will procrastinate for an hour or so. He will for weeks or months. This drives me crazy. Especially when he will make comments about needing or wanting to do something yet he puts off doing them. Or he starts something else.

Now just so you don't get the wrong idea, he is not lazy in any way. He works 60+ hours a week and not at a desk job. Where there is something that has to be done or fixed around here he does it. But if it is something that doesn't have to be done, sometimes he starts it, then not finish it for weeks or months. This is what drives me crazy. See I am a finisher. I love to see the end of a project. I feel so accomplished when something is finished.

So this week I have been struggling with seeing 3 things that he has started in the last month that are still not finished. None of them are necessities. But as the week has progressed I have become more and more annoyed about those things not being finished. Some of the things he uses to do them are laying around and that is the real problem for me. So this morning the Lord delivered me from the bitterness that was trying to set in and I am praising Him for that.

I will move the things out of my way and when hubby is ready to work on them again I will tell him where I put them (assuming I remember lol). Until then I will rest in the Lord.

Are you patient?

Ecc 7:8 Better is the end of a thing then the beginning thereof; and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

I am the first to admit, I am not always patient. To be honest, about the only times I AM patient is when I am helping someone who is laboring. I am very patient waiting for babies to be born lol. And I am somewhat patient when fishing, although I get tired of being in one place if the fish aren't biting way before my hubby does. He is probably the most patient person I know. I see my three daughters reading this shaking their heads up and down lol. I may not be patient, but I am honest.

The word talks about patience as a fruit of the Spirit. I pray often for some. Have you ever done that? I remember 20+ years ago as a new christian being told to be careful if I prayed for patience cause it is not a pleasant thing to learn. How right that advice was. But patience is a necessary thing. God's timing is not our timing. We must wait on the Lord often for answers.

In this day and time we can get almost anything instantly. Some call that the microwave mentality. Funny thing is all I use my microwave for is steaming veggies or reheating leftovers. I much prefer food that has cooked slowly and been given time for the flavors to develop. I need to learn to feel this way about other areas of my life.

My favorite song is based on my favorite scripture. The verse is Is 40:31 and here is the song we sing at church based on that scripture.

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint, teach me Lord, teach me Lord to wait.

That says it all, I still need to learn more patience.

God's Unforeseen Plans

Ruth 1:5 And Mahlon and Chilion died also both of them; and the woman was left of her two sons and her husband.

This is talking about Naomi, Ruth's mother-in-law. Now on the surface, you have to agree this doesn't look very good. Ah, but God has a plan that she is not aware of doesn't He?

Ruth 1:16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go: and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:

Do you think God was surprised that Ruth insisted on following Naomi? Of course not! It was all part of God's unforeseen plan. While it was sad that Naomi lost her husband and sons, she was used by God to bring Ruth to the place Boaz was so they could become part of the ancestry of Jesus Christ.

So next time something unforeseen happens, good or bad, hold on to the knowledge that God's plan is at work even when we can't see it.

I hope that encourages you as much as it does me this morning.

A bird in the nest

Do you see her? She decided that hubby's shelf unit would be a great place to build a nest and lay her egg. There is only one but she is taking good care of it.

A family's journey with Bell's Palsy

When was the last time you walked around the store/school/restaurant and did not judge some one's intelligence by their appearance-physically or by dress? What caused their physical "abnormality"? Genetic? Accident? Seventh Nerve Trauma (Bell's Palsy)?
Until Feb 24, 2007 my daughter Alexis "looked normal", "looked intelligent" had a beautiful smile. Was she the same 8 year old that she was before Feb 24? Yes, yet my biggest fears have been that people would judge her intelligence by her seventh nerve and would the nerve recover. I previously worked for 2 different eye doctors and had seen Bell's Palsy before. I saw patients before, during, and after Bell's Palsy yet I still judged a person's intelligence by their physical appearance. Now as a manager of my father in law's Piggly Wiggly in a very "country" town (you know what that usually means) I still found myself judging people.
Mama would ask my every time we spoke "how is Alexis? Is it getting better? Any improvements?" and I would always answer "no". Then I would say "well the doctor's and Buffy (my good friend) notice a difference but I see her everyday and when she's tired so I guess it is very little improvements."
One afternoon while talking to Mama on the way to pick her up, it hit me (an epiphany?). My fear is Alexis will be judged by her appearance the same way I judged others. If I didn't want my child's intelligence to be judged by others on how her face looked then why was I judging others? People who know her know that she is the same girl. People who don't know her need to know that they are missing out on one terrific girl.
Within a week I noticed MAJOR improvements. The nerve regenerates at a rate of 1-2 millimeters per day. I saw one inch of her right eyebrow move over night. The corner of her mouth went up when she smiled. It's been a few weeks but I still notice improvements everyday (even though they are not as major). If she had to have Bell's Palsy, I'm glad it happened now and not when she is 13 and kids are at their cruelest. I've read that there is a 4-14% chance of recurrence and that they happen about 10 years apart. By that time she'll be 18 and will hopefully have some of the same friends she has now and they'll remember that she is still the smart, sweet, loving girl she always was.
Is she the same girl she was before Feb 24, 2007? I hope not. I hope she has learned not to judge a person by their "beauty" or physical appearance. I know I have.

"Mom" chiming in here. I would always ask how Alexis was doing and if any improvement so that I could update all the people praying for her. Am I sorry this happen to my little sweetheart? Definitely, but you know the word says God will bring beauty from ashes, and because of the changes He is making in my daughter, I know that He is in control. Isn't it amazing that once my daughter saw what He was trying to show her in this that the improvement started? Doesn't that just bless you? It does me! I am posting a picture of what our sweet Alexis looks like now, and as soon as Keri finds and emails me one taken right before the Bells Palsy I will post it. She wants everyone to see the before and after. And of course once the healing is 100% we will post that also.

I hope that if someone is dealing with a situation like this you will find encouragement that God is in control, and He will bring you through whatever you are dealing with right now. Remember He will never leave you nor forsake you. He will change you and sometimes the changes aren't pleasant to go through. But He will be there with you. He isn't finished with any of us yet.

Phil 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

The pictures show her smiling, closing her eyes and smiling, and making funny faces. The final picture with the smile is since the improvements.

God is our covering

As you have probably figured out I am going through Ps 91. Every year I revisit Ps 91 and Pr 31.

Ps 91:4 He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust; His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Deut 32:11 As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings.

Have you ever seen a mama chicken with her babies? We raised chickens for a while. She fluffs up her feathers and the babies all go under them. She appears to be sitting on them, but really they are hiding in her feathers. She will protect them with her life. God wants to protect us just as that mama hen wants to protect her babies.

Once a few years ago, I was going through a really hard time. The Lord showed me a vision if you will. It was an eagle. The eagle spread its wings and I was right there next to its heart hidden from view unless it spread its wings. The Lord showed me that He was that eagle and even though it appeared that things were out of control, He was in control and I could rest in Him and He would bring me through, and He did.

Is there something you are going through right now? Rest in Him, pray, give Him the situation, and when you are finished giving it to Him, leave it there. I know, that is the hard part. We always give it to Him, but we pick it back up on our way out. Why is that I wonder? Do we not believe He can handle it? He is faithful and just. He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above anything we can imagine. Or could it be we are afraid that He won't handle it the way we want it handled? ouch. I pray if there is something in your or my life that we need/want God to handle that we will give it to Him today and leave it there.

Deliverance

Ps 91:3 Surely He shall deeliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from teh noisome pestilence.

Deliverence is a promise from God when we live according to His will.

Just last week He delivered my hubby and son from what would have been a very serious accident. Hubby had just picked up son from work and they were coming home. It was a very stormy night. A car and truck on the cross road (hubby was first in line at a red light) had an accident with the car made a turn and the truck slammed into it. The car started spinning and was headed directly for the front of our van. At the last moment the car spun to the side of our van instead of hitting it. When the car came to a stop hubby immediately put the van in park and ran to check on the lady in the car as he could see the man in truck was ok. Just shaken up. She appeared to be very shaken up but ok. Fortunately there was a policeman right behind hubby at the light. Once again God delivered my family in time of need! Isn't God good?

Dwelling with God

Ps 91:1 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
:2 I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge, and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust.

You can't casually relate to God. The 91st Psalm has many promises and provisions but it is not a magical formula. There are requirements in there too. It works only if you believe it, claim it, and meet the conditions. Just like all of God's word.

It doesn't promise no problems, but that God will be with you through the problems.

First requirement is that you dwell in the secret place of the Most High.

Ps 91:9 Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;

Ps 91:14 Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he hath known my Name.

You must know who God is for you to be able to trust Him.

God is known by many names in verses 1 and 2. Most High, Almighty, Lord, God, my Fortress, my Refuge.

Ps 65:4 Blessed is the man whom Thou chooset, and causest to approach unto Thee, that he may dwell in Thy courts; we shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house, even of Thy holy temple.

Dwelling means more then visiting. It is where you live.

Ps 24:3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in His holy place?
:4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

You may know all the songs, all the scriptures, but if your heart isn't right with God none of that matters.

Clean hands represents innocence of evil.

Ps 43:3 O send out Thy light and truth; let them lead me; let them bring me unto Thy holy hill, and to Thy tabernacles.

Does the word ever convict you? What do you do about it? Do you turn to God or away from God?

God isn't going to come down to you. He makes it possible for you to go to Him.

Heb 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Ps 27:4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple.

Jer 29:13 And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.

Deut 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find Him, if thou seek Him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

Ps 36:7 How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Thy wings.

Is 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee; because he trusteth in Thee.
:4 Trust ye in the Lord for ever; for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength.

Need peace or strength? I do, and here it tells us how to get it.

Gooey Butter Cake

My youngest daughter has been asking me for this recipe all week. So finally here it is.

Cake
1 (18.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
1 egg
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
Filling
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 (16-ounce) box confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside.
Still using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese until smooth; add eggs and vanilla. Dump in confectioners' sugar and beat well. Reduce speed of mixer and slowly pour in butter. Mix well.
Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Don't be afraid to make a judgment call on the cooking time, because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don't bake it past that point!
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares

Diligence

Pr 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

Ps 64:1 They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search; both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep.

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him; for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.

In the dictionary the definition for diligent is: showing painstaking effort and application in whatever is undertaken; industrious.

Here we are told to keep our heart, search our heart and thoughts and seek Him diligently.

It seems like alot and that it would be difficult to do right? But if you think about it, if we do the last part, seek Him diligently, the rest will happen almost automatically won't it?

If we are truly seeking Him that will keep our heart and thoughts where they need to be all the time. I don't know about you, but I get attacked alot through my thoughts. You know the kind, it won't matter if I watch this show even though there is some bad language, I can handle it, or how about, I am tired so will miss church just this week. Or how about this one, I don't have time to do a bible study/devotion today, there is just so much I need to do, maybe later. Well if you are anything like me later rarely comes. When it does, it has it's own problems, and therefore excuses. Also ever notice how once you miss church or spending time daily in study with the Lord it is so much easier to skip it the next day or next week? Or is this just me?

So this morning when I asked the Lord what I should study and He immediately gave me diligence I knew it was so that He could change me.

May I (and you) keep my (and your) heart and thoughts with diligence today and every day.

Now I am off to diligently clean my home LOL.