I Called Her Mommy

Margaret10 Comments

My birthday is today, and for the first time in my life, the one who gave me life will not wish me a happy birthday.  My first “first” without my precious mama.  It has been fourteen days since she left us.  Fourteen days was also about how long I had to accept the idea of her leaving.  Now, fourteen days later, I am no closer to being “used to it” than the day I was told it was cancer. 

Cancer.  Metastatic adenocarcinoma…what an obnoxious diagnosis.  Obviously, she had cancer long before we knew it.  By the time we found out, she was earnestly awaiting her home-going.  She loved us, there is never a doubt about that.  But she longed for heaven; she was ready to finish the race. She truly did fight the good fight and keep the faith. 

Mom was one of the strongest women you could ever meet, though she never realized her strength. Over the years, she suffered so much with physical ailments, chronic pain, and severe allergies, even to the medicines that could have possibly helped her.  Through it all, she didn’t complain.

She had a close, personal walk with God.  She was always listening for His voice, and she heard it, often in ways we don’t think of hearing from God.  Nothing excited her more than talking about her experiences with Him.  Jesus was her passion.  She left a legacy of handwritten journals dating back, I suppose, to the early 1990s.  My family and I will be soaking in the treasure trove of words she wrote for many months, if not years. 

She was a prayer general.  If you were sick or had a problem, you would have wanted her to approach the throne of God on your behalf.  The world is a colder place without her, but her prayers are still powerfully working on our behalf.  If ever you want to do something for your family, cover them in prayer.  It is an eternal thing you do when you pray.

She was always looking out for us, her children and grandchildren. She was so giving and generous.  And she was wise, offering godly counsel…I wish I had heard her long before I finally begin to listen. 

I am thankful for all the years I had with her.  Thankful for the life lessons she taught me, and will teach me still through her written words. Thankful that she is not suffering any longer.  I am thankful that we know Jesus, and we know that she is with Him; she is healed, at peace, and joyful.  In God’s great mercy, He has given me the path to peace in the midst of this great storm. His grace is sufficient. For this, I am most grateful. 

I am grateful that the waves of grief cannot drown me because I have an anchor, the Savior in whose arms my mom is now resting.  He securely holds me, and He gives me the promise that I will see her again.

In her final hours, I spent a little time alone with her, just talking.  I don’t know for sure that she heard me, but I like to think she did.  I recited the 23rd Psalm.  I made her some promises, including the pledge to pick up her mantle and continue to pray for her children and grandchildren. I assured her we would be fine and it was okay for her to go be with Jesus.  I sang Dottie Rambo’s “Sheltered in the Arms of God” to her…just the second verse and chorus. 

Soon I shall hear the call from Heaven’s portals,
“Come home, My child, it’s the last mile you must trod.”
I’ll fall asleep and wake in God’s new heaven
For I’m sheltered in the arms of God…

For some reason, that night I couldn’t think of the first verse…now I think I know why…it was for me:

I feel the touch of hands so kind and tender,
They’re leading me in paths that I must trod.
I’ll have no fear, for Jesus walks beside me,
For I’m sheltered in the arms of God
So let the storms rage high,
The dark clouds rise,
They won’t worry me,
For I’m sheltered safe within the arms of God.
He walks with me,
And naught of earth shall harm me,
For I’m sheltered in the arms of God.

We Are Not Defeated…No Matter What Happens

Margaret2 Comments
Topsail Beach, NC

Today starts 21 days free of the chains of social media.   Funny thing about chains, they are choices repeatedly made…my own choices. I’ve wasted a lot of precious time over the years mindlessly perusing social media sites that are hostile to my way of thinking.

I won’t miss it,
and it won’t miss me. 

One thing that no one is missing, unfortunately, is the confusion and turmoil plaguing our country. (And I’m not talking about the corona plague.)   I have a feeling politics are nowhere near finished with us, and likely will get worse before it gets better. There is still a battle raging, and God is very involved. There are believers who will continue to seek His will for our Nation, others will stand aside or stand in the way.

I’ve seen 2 Chronicles 7:14 posted a lot social medial lately.  Some people seem to think that God can only move on this nation if the unsaved turn from their wicked ways.  Perhaps they do not know just how much prayer has gone up for America, and not just from Americans…years of prayer, fasting, and seeking Him from a faithful remnant to a faithful God.  It’s not over. God has heard the prayers of His children.

Now if you’ve posted that scripture on your Facebook timeline or other social media, don’t go thinking I’m judging how you think.  But I do see how some are thinking.  They are waiting for non-believers to act like Christians, and that’s not going to happen.  Deceived people are convinced they are right.

Cades Cove

I wish I knew God’s immediate plans for ending the chaos in America, but I do not.  I know He is not sitting on the throne wringing His hands, ready to throw in the proverbial towel and lift His protective hand from us.  No matter what He allows, still I will trust Him, seek Him, serve Him, and love Him.  And still, He is faithful, merciful, loving, and long-suffering. 

While this is an age of which most of us have never seen the likes, we cannot get caught up in the spirit of fear that is trying to envelop us. Keep praying and looking up. We are not “done for” just yet.

Great Smoky Mountains

Reeling and Flailing

Margaret1 Comment

Often, distractions win in the battle for my attention, and I find my focus on the things of this world.  As if the news is not bad enough on its own, media sensationalizes headlines, and if I’m not focused, they reel me in, leaving me flailing in a sea of deception.  I don’t suggest we bury our heads in the proverbial sand with what is happening around us, but we can’t let the world’s busyness and duplicity steal our focus from where it should be. 

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 

2 Corinthians 4:18 NIV

It takes real effort to remain focused in the hostile environment of politics, pandemics, and lies designed to sideline us and thwart our purpose. We must take the fiery darts of the enemy captive the moment they infiltrate our minds.  Otherwise, those flaming arrows will take us down a path where it is sometimes incredibly hard to find our way back.
“…and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.“
(2 Corinthians 10:5). 

What has your focus?  No matter how big a problem is, never forget that He, indeed, is in control, and He will forever sit on the throne, the foundation of which is justice and righteousness.

The Deception of Racism

Margaret6 Comments
Cone Flower (North Alabama)

Having a discussion about racism is dangerous territory.  Emotions run high from the start, and so many people feel as if they have been just as mistreated as the next person.  People are angry! Christians can’t agree, so we don’t talk about it, at least not for very long.

The deception is much more complex than just the way people are treated.  Everyone has room to grow, to change, to understand, to concede, and to forgive. These things do not come from a behavior change, but a heart change.  The tactic of the devil in this thing called racism is to keep us divided and get our eyes on each other instead of God. Our enemy knows the only way to conquer the deception of racism is by the revelation of Christ Jesus in the hearts of His people.  Lack of knowledge is destroying us. 

Christians must refocus on Jesus and not be so attuned to the evil around us. Cable news and social media definitely keeps us plugged into the pollution.  We cannot afford to keep feeding ourselves on chaos! Now more than ever, we need to seek His face. 

When You said, “Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness...

Psalm 27:8; Matthew 6:33

When we come together seeking His face and not outside acceptance, we will find justice poured out from a righteous God, infinitely better than any counterfeit justice the world can give.  When we put God first in our lives, setting aside the traditions of denominations and the chains of religiosity, the blessings that follow are far beyond social justice…it is supernatural justice!  And believe me, after forgiveness, once mercy and grace is received, we want justice!

If we obey Jesus’s commandment to love one another as He loves us, lives will be transformed.  We can’t continue to let how we feel and what our natural eyes see drown out the voice of the Father, who is no respecter of persons.  If there is hate and mistrust against a brother or sister in Christ, skin color is not the issue, the heart is. Who can change hearts?  God.  We look to Him to change us!

Unfair is unfair. A hurt is a hurt. Discrimination is wrong. An injustice is an injustice. It doesn’t matter what body God placed you in, that was His choice! Our bodies are just our shell! The person is who is inside. What a terrible injustice to deny a person love based on the packaging in which we arrive on this earth! Rest assured, God does not like injustice! Isaiah 59:16: “…The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice.”

Until God’s people realize the origin of racism, we will never put out the spreading flames or stop the destruction.  Division is a tactic of our enemy who kills, steals, and destroys, and when we try to fix the issue by the standards and definitions of the world, we are helping him. We are not fighting flesh and blood! The end of the age is just too close for Christians to be sidelined by skin color. The world is lost and dying, and Christians must bring the light that is Jesus to them. How can we do that if we believe lies about each other? It’s not just skin color! It’s Church of Christ against Pentecostals, Baptists against Methodists. We MUST come together as ONE BODY. Denominations separate God’s people, but He has called us to be in one accord, it’s mentioned all through the Bible.

__________________________________________

It’s time for much PRAYER.
Then we must continue with PRAYER,
and then more PRAYER.
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Do you want to know what happens with much prayer?  Repentant hearts.   What comes from repentant hearts?  Relationship with our Heavenly Father.   When we have true relationship with the Father, it will infiltrate into the rest of our lives and encompass our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ.  It will then spill out of the church and into the world.  A coming together of the Children of God!   The church should have always shown the world how to love each other.  But we aren’t doing that.  We’re showing the world more of what they already have.

The only way to stand up to racism is on our knees.  Our altars need to be full of people without labels calling out for Truth until we see each other as God sees us. There is no place in the body of Christ for discrimination. I wish churches would begin having old fashioned prayer meetings again, where people who are willing to fast and pray for our nation come together with the sole purpose of entering boldly before the Throne of God!  Praying His will, seeking heart changes, learning to submit to Him, and finding unity in the family of God.  A meeting for prayer, not discussion. Sadly, too many people do not like to attend prayer meetings, but they do like to talk, and the devil really likes that in us. 

Cone Flowers (North Alabama)