Beth

Are You a Funnel or a Jar?

Habits for life, Heavenly Habits 2 Responses »

May 072013

Bet you never thought you would be compared to a funnel or a jar, did you? Well as believers we have the choice to be either one or the other. Both the funnel and the jar were created for a purpose, but it is up to us how we use them.

Jars hold things; water, food, juice, nuts and bolts, medicine–I could go on and on. Funnels on the other hand were not meant to hold anything, they help us to pour a substance from one container to another. You can’t pour something into a funnel and expect it to stay there; it is going to flow out the bottom and if there isn’t a vessel in place to catch it, you will have a mess. Jars on the other hand are great for holding things, but if it isn’t properly sterilized, liquids or food that stay too long will spoil and grow all sorts of terrible stuff.

It’s the same with us; God created us for a purpose, but it is up to us whether we fulfill our purpose or not. Are you being a jar; just letting Him pour and pour into you until you are full. That’s alright for a while, but what happens when God wants to put something new in you? Are you so full of old stuff, that you can’t hold the new?

On the other hand, if you are a funnel, then you are allowing the things God pours into you, to flow out to those around you who are in need. Paul tells us, “we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” (2 Cor. 4:7) We are a vessel created to be a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. Our purpose is to spread the Word of God and His love to everyone we meet. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ep. 2:10)

When God comforts you, it so that you can comfort the hurting around you. When he blesses you financially, it is so you can be a blessing to those in need. He heals you, whether it is physically, mentally or spiritually, in order for you to tell others what He has done for you and give them hope that He will meet their needs also. Some people will go anywhere, anytime just to hear the Word preached or taught. They take notes and have all kinds of books and CDs, filling themselves with knowledge; but, what good is all that knowledge if it is never shared. Sooner or later it becomes stale and dry. When you are a funnel you don’t have to worry about running out. When God sees you are allowing Him to flow through you, instead of trying to hide Him away, then He will continually pour living water through you and refresh the thirsty world.

So what’ll it be, funnel or jar? Let’s all sing together, “let it FLOW, let it FLOW, let it FLOW.”

~ Written by Beth, “My husband of 46 years and I recently retired from full time ministry and we are looking forward to discovering what God has in store for the next part of our journey. I am a very proud mother and grandmother and I love to encourage others through the word and my life experiences. My life verse is Psalm 118:24 – This is the day that the Lord has made; I choose to rejoice and be glad in it.”

“This Day”

Habits for life, Heavenly Habits 1 Response »

Apr 042013

It is the beginning of a brand new day; a crisp, sunny morning and I have no idea what this day will hold, but I do know the one who holds ME. My Life Verse is Psalm 118:24, “This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” The Message Bible says it this way: “This is the very day God acted–let’s celebrate and be festive.” I know some people do their devotions in the morning, some like to pray and read the word at night; everyone is different, but my best time has always been as soon as I wake up and I always finish my prayers claiming that verse. It is a reminder to me of the choices I need to make each day.

When Joshua was getting ready to lead the children of Israel into the promised land he made a very important statement; “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15) Each person had to decide for themselves whether they were going to follow Almighty God or the false god’s of the nations they were going in to conquer. Joshua didn’t want there to be any question who he was serving, so he made his decision clear to all the people. Do those around you know what your decision is?

In order to be saved you must make the choice to receive Jesus as your Savior; a one time, life altering decision; but each and every day you are faced with choices in your relationship with Him. When I am closing my prayer time I say it this way, “This is the day that the Lord has made for me, and I CHOOSE to rejoice and be glad in it.” By making that statement, I am setting the tone for my entire day. I can begin the day with worry or by remembering that God is in control of whatever comes into my life, and everything that happens has been filtered through his love. Yesterday is past, I can’t do anything about it; tomorrow is not even promised, so why spend time worrying. God has created THIS DAY, so it is my decision to make the most of it.

Each and everyday you can make a choice to…

LOVE–He loved you and gave Jesus to die in your place, so love Him and others.
TRUST–Jesus promised never to leave you or forsake you.
OBEY–His will is to give you hope and a future.
FOLLOW–He will lead you every step of the way.
REJOICE–God chose you!
GIVE THANKS–For all the wonderful blessings you have received.

Our lives are made up of CHOICES: life or death; worry or trust; love or hate; joy or sorrow; forgiveness or bitterness. Each day we are given a chance to start over, we receive a fresh start. THIS IS A BRAND NEW DAY, will you rejoice and be glad in it? The CHOICE is yours.

~written by Beth

“And The Fruit of the Spirit is…”

Habits for a Happy Mom, Habits for a Happy Wife, Habits for life, Heavenly Habits 1 Response »

Feb 052013

Much of what I share today is from a study in my Women’s Study Bible. It blessed me so much, I wanted to share it with you! In Galatians chapter 5, Paul is writing about walking in the Spirit. Verse 16 tells us that when we “walk in the Spirit, we shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Then in verses 19-21 he tells us what the works of the flesh are and that if we walk in them we will not inherit the kingdom of God. Note he says, “if we walk in them.” Everyone messes up from time to time, but Paul is talking about a lifestyle of walking in the flesh.

In verses 22-24 Paul tells us what the fruit of the Spirit is. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace , longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”

Some of you may be wondering what the “fruit of the Spirit” is. The fruit is the Godly attributes of those who “walk in the Spirit.” As the Holy Spirit works in a believer, he or she becomes more and more like Christ in character and actions. Every believer can manifest the fruit of the Spirit, not just the spiritually mature.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit affects the life of a believer in three distinct ways. It affects the believer’s relationship with God, others, and self. As our relationship with the Lord deepens, we begin to develop unselfish love. A love that puts the needs of others before our own. True joy comes as we realize how much Jesus loves us and all the wonderful things He has done for us and desires to give us. We experience lasting peace as we take our eyes off our problems and focus on Jesus. As we begin to build relationships with others, there is the constant challenge to reflect the love of Jesus through patience, kindness and goodness. It is not easy, but as the Holy Spirit manifests Himself through us, we can do it. And lastly, as we mature spiritually we discover an inner strength. This inner strength results in a life characterized by faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.

The fruit of the Holy Spirit is not necessary for salvation, but these godly virtues are evidence of salvation and the change that has taken place in us. The life of Christ is manifested in us by the fruit of the Spirit and the ministry of Christ is accomplished by the gifts of the Spirit. The gifts of the Spirit will never operate as effectively in us as God wants them to until we are manifesting the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. As the Spirit works through us not only do we receive the blessings of God, but we also reflect His character to all whom we encounter.

So the questions we need to ask ourselves today are: What fruit are we bearing? Are we walking in the Spirit or are we fulfilling the lust of the flesh? God has provided the Holy Spirit to enable us to reflect His character, so let’s start walking!

Hearts and Trees: Art, Handicrafts and Nature Study for your Homeschool

Don’t Be Like the Frog

Heavenly Habits No Responses »

Nov 272012

“Don’t Be Like the Frog”

I have told the story of the frog that boiled to death before, but in the times we are living in, I think it bears repeating. There once was a frog that fell into a container of water. Now frogs love water, so he decided to just make himself comfortable and not worry about getting out. Well, someone came along and set a fire under the pot, but since he was on the inside of the pot and couldn’t see them, he didn’t realize anything had happened until it was too late. If the water had been hot when he fell in, he would have jumped right out; but it was a comfortable temperature so he just kept right on swimming. Before long he felt it getting warmer and soon his legs wouldn’t work right and he felt himself begin to sink. By the time he understood the danger he was in, it was too late, he had been cooked and served for dinner.

Believe it or not, we are a lot like that frog. We get ourselves into trouble and don’t even realize it at first. We start watching a movie or TV show that has questionable language or content, but we figure, we’re adults, we can handle it. Or, we start playing video games that are violent and before we know it, we need even more violence to make it exciting. Maybe an image comes across the TV or computer screen of nudity or sexual content and we figure just once won’t hurt us, but the more you allow these sexual images or bad language into your mind the more of a hold it gets on you and before you know it, it doesn’t bother you anymore to see nudity, men kissing men, women kissing women or couples engaged in sexual activities. And, you even let a bad word slip out occasionally. The more we are subjected to these things, the more desensitized we become. The more like the world we become; and just like to frog, before we realize what is happening we are spiritually dead.

Jesus warned us in Matthew 24:43, “If the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.” No one sets out to sin, but remember “Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14). He makes sin look very attractive and appealing, that is why Jesus also told us to, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matt. 26:41).

So my friend, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world” (1 Pet. 5:8-9).

When temptation comes, just jump right out of the way, “God is faithful and he will make a way of escape for you” (1 Cor. 10:13).

Help, Lord, Help!

Heavenly Habits 1 Response »

Nov 082012

(picture: Mount Ararat, –Wikipedia)

“Help, Lord, Help!”

The mountains call to me. Sometimes I get a longing in my soul to ride through them and just stop and look out over the beauty and awesomeness of what God has created. And you know what, He created all of it just for us to enjoy. Imagine that, God created it all because He loves us and wanted to bless us. When I am in the mountains I just feel the majesty and glory of God more than any other place I have ever been. Maybe that is why I love the 121st chapter of Psalm so much. Let’s take a look at it for a few minutes.

Psalms 121:1 - I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help?

Where does your help come from. We know it doesn’t come from the physical mountains; but looking up causes us to think more about God, our Creator and Redeemer.

2 My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

The Mighty One who created everything is the only one who can give you the help you need, and He is ready to help you, if you will just cry out to Him.

3 He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.

He will hold you tight and won’t allow you to fail in your time of trouble. He doesn’t sleep, He is always on guard, watching over you.

4 Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.

Just as God’s love for the children of Israel never stopped, so His love for you will never end and He has promised to always be with you. As much as our parents loved us, they couldn’t stay awake all the time to protect us, but God can.

5 The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade at your right hand.

God will keep you safe under the shelter of His loving arms and He will be the relief you need when the heat of battle and the storms of life come against you.

6 The sun shall not strike you by day, Nor the moon by night.

God, Himself will be your hiding place; He will cover you with His feathers and hide you under His wings. His presence will be a blanket of peace for your soul.

7 The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.

NO weapon or plan, that the enemy forms against you, is going to prosper. God will turn them all to your good. It may look bad in the beginning, but just hold on, your turn-around is coming.

8 The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore.

It doesn’t matter whether you are coming, going or staying put; God will preserve you and protect you today and every day of your life. And when your time on this earth is up, He will receive you into heaven, where you will live in His presence forever and ever and ever. Amen!

~ Written by Beth. “My husband of 46 years and I recently retired from full time ministry and we are looking forward to discovering what God has in store for the next part of our journey. I am a very proud mother and grandmother and I love to encourage others through the word and my life experiences. My life verse is Psalm 118:24 – This is the day that the Lord has made; I choose to rejoice and be glad in it.”~~Beth

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