Someone mailed this to me and I just love the thought provoking process it brings about!  The Bible is called the "Living Bible" because it never becomes dated.  All the problems we have in the world today are no different than in Bible times.  Even the Greeks philosophers spoke of the troubled youth, etc.  And their writings could have come about today if you did not know how long ago they were written.  I hope you enjoy the below message as much as I did.

Jesus died over 2000 years ago.
Nobody has ever referred to him as the late Jesus,
Not even the heathens.
Nowhere in history.
Nowhere has He EVER been referred to in the past tense!
He is the Living God!
When Jesus died on the cross He was thinking of you!

My Christian heart to yours, 

Kerrie

The true meaning of Christmas... Please watch the video in the sidebar all the way to the end.  If this does not make you cry I would be very surprised.  Let's put CHRIST back in CHRISTmas!  Don't be afraid to show your faith in public.

Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, " Verse 17 "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'The just shall live by faith."

My Christian Heart to yours....

Kerrie

When I first moved to S.C. I met a friend who had a local Christian TV program.  She invited me to sing and I went several times and also did call in phone counseling.  I was trained for it so I readily accepted and had some of my most rewarding experiences singing and sharing there. One of the songs I learned to sing was by a famous family group called, "The McKamey's"  They also wrote, "God on the Mountain" and my husband loved that song so much.  Here are the words to the song and there is a video in the right sidebar.  I hope this touches you as much as it did me.  It is all about having that faith in God that you can do anything when the Lord is with you, he will have "waves roll under your feet...

Matthew 14:22-33

New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Walks on the Water

²² Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. ²³ After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, ²⁴ and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
²⁵ Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. ²⁶ When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
²⁷ But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
²⁸ “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
²⁹ “Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
³¹ Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said,“why did you doubt?”
³² And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. ³³ Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

UNDER HIS FEET
       by The McKamey's

When Simon Peter, walked oppressed 
Putting his faith unto the test, 
He said Master, wilt thou bidst me come unto thee. 
Jesus said come, so Peter went, and when the faith he had was spent, Peter sank low but Jesus had waves roll under his feet.

Chorus:

Under His Feet, Under His Feet, 
There’s not a problem that you'll face He cannot meet. 
Whenever you've waded out too far in waters too deep, 
Remember when waves are over your head,
He's under your feet.

Often we faint in trials sore, can’t face our problems anymore, 
Forgetting wherever we may go, He’s been there before, 
We should look up and praise the lord
He walks the waters and the shores
The heavenly breeze and the thundering seas are under His feet.

Under His feet, under His feet 
There’s not a problem that you'll face He cannot meet. 
Whenever you've waded out too far in waters too deep, 
Remember when waves are over your head
He's under your feet.

Under His feet, under His feet 
There’s not a problem that you'll face 
He cannot meet. 
Whenever you've waded out too far in waters too deep, 
Remember when waves are over your head He's under your feet.

Thank you so much for coming today and I hope you take a blessing away with you.  Wishing you Love, Faith and Blessings...

IMPORTANCE OF JOURNALING THROUGH GRIEF...

When I lost my hubby last January 26th, I tried to cope alone and by March I needed something more.  So I signed up with the Funeral Home that took care of my hubby and I started to get Daily Affirmations in my e-mail to help me through the grief process.  I found it most comforting and was certainly helpful in changing my attitude and state of mind.  I kept a journal of the entries every day ( they will send 365 days of affirmations unless you tell them to end it).  Below is Day #177.  I like it and decided to share today's.  In journaling, I also added pictures, drawings.  I used a primer notebook with lines on half the page to write and the upper blank so I could add whatever. 

Look to the Horizon - Day #177 Remember the good times; cherish the memories, but live each day moving forward. Focus your thoughts on what is before you and how you are going to get there. "I often tell people that there are three stages you need to think about: You can't go back. You can't stay here. You must go forward," says Dr. Ray Pritchard. "There may be some good things in the past that you wish you could go back to, but in the end you have to let those go." Quotation for the Day “I was never one to patiently pick up broken fragments and glue them together again and tell myself that the mended whole was as good as new. What is broken is broken -- and I'd rather remember it as it was at its best than mend it and see the broken places as long as I lived.” - Margaret Mitchell
There really is no place to go but forward in your grief process.  You cannot regain the past or change any of the things God had planned for your life.  All things happen for a reason and since we cannot know God's mind and why this or that happens, we still concede that God in his wisdom holds the ship's wheel in the sea of life we travel.  Sometimes, I still get a rush of adrenalin at the realization that Bill is gone, like when I see a picture of him from just last year where he looked so well despite the 7 yrs. of fighting Multiple Myeloma.   Bill's 72nd Birthday It has been a hard road to admission.  At first I surrounded myself with his pictures that I kissed each night before going to bed and his urn on the dresser, I did the same.  I had a pendant made from his thumbprint that I wear every day.  My doctor said I was compensating.  Now after 10 mos. I have stopped some of these little practices that had brought me comfort in the beginning. In God is my strength and though I sometimes feel like life alone is not worth living, God speaks to my heart and I go on.  I am looking forward to the birth of our first Great Grandchild who incidentally is due the day after the anniversary of Bill's passing-what a blessing!  It will be a little girl.  Something wonderful to look forward to.  It is said that for every death there is a new life and the saying is coming true. Are you going through a loss of a loved one?  Share how you felt and how you feel now.  Writing or drawing your experiences will relieve some of the burden you bear.

                My heart to yours....

PRAISE GOD FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW♫

Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts
Praise Father Son and Holy Ghost-Amen.

1. Reasons for Praise


1. Read Psalms 103:1. What does it mean to praise God with our "inmost being?" (This is not superficial praise. This is praising God from our core - from deep inside.)


2. Read Psalms 103:2. I often hear people say we should praise God "because of who He is." What additional reason does the Psalmist give us to praise God? (He gives us benefits! This seems a selfish reason to give praise, but it is natural (and easy) to praise someone who helps us.)


3. Read Psalms 103:3-5. What is the Psalmist describing? (The previously mentioned benefits that God gives us!)
2. 
   
1. Thomas Ken (1637-1711) was an Englishman and an ordained Anglican priest. He served as Rector of several parishes, was briefly chaplain to Princess Mary, and later to the British fleet. He published many poems, along with a Manual fo Prayers.
3. 
   After his parents died, Thomas was enrolled by his sister into an all- boy's school, Winchester College. He would return to the same school as Chaplain many years later. In order to motivate his students in their devotions, Thomas wrote a three stanza hymn -- one verse to be sung upon waking and one before bed. The third verse was to be sung at midnight, if a boy found sleep difficult.
   
   Today, the writing of this hymn may seem an innovative way to motivate teenage boys. In Thomas' day however, the writing of this hymn for such a purpose was somewhat revolutionary. For centuries hymns of the church were sung only by monks. Although at this point in history protestant churches in some countries were beginning to introduce hymns into congregational singing, it would be several years before England would officially sanction the practice (See: History of Hymns). For this reason, Thomas Ken has been called 'England's first hymnist.'
   
   The refrain to all three verses of Thomas' hymn has since become one of the most widely-sung songs in the world, and is referred to in many circles simply as, The Doxology
   
   Towards the end of his life, Thomas Ken was imprisoned by King James II, for his forward Protestant thinking. Upon his release, he quietly retired from the priesthood and went to live with some friends until his death, on March 11, 1711. When he was buried at sunrise, The Doxology was sung at his funeral.
4. 
   

The doxology.  Powerful words, powerful music.  Praising God from whom all blessings flow today.  Count your blessings, write them down, embrace them, embrace the Lord.  Blessed Sunday to you all.

Church Steeple Auburn, NY by Dan Marquart

Day is done,Gone the sun,
From the Lakes,From the hills,
From the sky,
All is well.  Safely rest.
God is nigh. 

When I was a little girl, I sang Taps on the stage of Seward Grade School in Auburn NY.  I echoed the trumpet player who was in the balcony of the auditorium and he would play a line, then I would sing it.  I learned the words like this:
Day is done, gone the sun, from the earth, from the sea, from the sky.  All is well, safely rest, God is nigh.

So I do not know what is correct.  But I love it and it touches my heart whenever I hear it.  I think my son's photo of the sunset with silhouetted church steeple is so appropriate.  I love sunsets and feel always that they are God saying "Good Night" to we mortals...

Information on line:

"If anyone can be said to have composed 'Taps,' it was Brig. Gen. Daniel Butterfield, Commander of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, during the American Civil War. Dissatisfied with the customary firing of three rifle volleys at the conclusion of burials during battle and also needing a method of ceremonially imparting meaning to the end of a soldier's day, he likely altered an older piece known as "Tattoo," a French bugle call used to signal "lights out," into the call we now know as 'Taps.' (Alternatively, he wrote the whole thing from scratch, a possibility not at all supported by his lack of musical background and ability.)

Whether he wrote it straight from the cuff or improvised something new by rearranging an older work, Butterfield brought 'Taps' into being. With the help of his bugler, Oliver W. Norton of Chicago, the concept was transformed into its present form. "Taps" was quickly taken up by both sides of the conflict, and within months was being sounded by buglers in both Union and Confederate forces.
Then as now, 'Taps' serves as a vital component in ceremonies honoring military dead. It is also understood by American servicemen as an end-of-day 'lights out' signal."

I am taking a Bible Study of 7 wks. duration on the life of David.  Most interesting.  I have been to 3 sessions already.  Have you been studying any particular person in the Bible?  It is like finding your roots.  How we got to here from there.  Remember that the Great Commission is to spread the work of God to all the earth.  It can be done.

This is one of my son's paintings.

To me it speaks:  The hands of God holding the Light of the world.  I do not know what Dan meant it to be as he did not name it but I so loved it that I wanted to share with you.

HOW GREAT THOU ART

Pondering the magnitude, greatness and glory of our Lord is overwhelming to say the least.  But how wonderful that he communicates with you and with me.  His presence is with us every day as promised in the Resurrection   "I will never leave you" promised the Son of God.

Do you rush through your days failing to remember that God is with you, that he can solve any problem, that he is a constant reinforcement, if you only ...Listen.  As I have mentioned before, I wrote a note a few years ago on my desk blotter that says, "Shhh, God is speaking..."  Just to remind myself that if I be still, I will hear or "feel" the Lord and His Son speaking to my heart.  When you are so full of the Lord, there is no room for sorrow or trouble.  Remember just how great He is.

Below is a picture of the cross at Belin Church in Murrells Inlet, SC that my daughter took at the Blessing of the Inlet, an annual May event.  Beyond are the ocean marshes so beautiful to see.

 My husband passed in January of this year of cancer and one of his requests was for a friend to play the bagpipes at his memorial service.  Well, the friend was out of town and could not play and I felt sad about it even though they played a CD of Pipers at the Service.

Well, when we went to the Blessing of the Inlet, there were pipers leading the minister on the walk aside the church to the back where he would give the blessing.  They stopped right in front of where I was standing and played Amazing Grace!  I felt so blessed!  My daughter  took these photos.  Thank you Barbie for this wonderful memory.


MY GOD, HOW GREAT THOU ART!


Thank you for coming this beautiful Sunday and may God reach down and touch your head with a blessing for today.  Be still so you may hear and feel...

My Christian heart to yours....