Shine your Light!

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. - Matthew 5:16 (NKJV)

Have you ever really thought about this verse? I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. The thing that throws me, is the idea that my light can shine. I mean I’m not the light, Jesus is the Light, right? He says so in John 8:12 - Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” 

My first thought in reading this scripture was, “Don’t look at me. My light doesn’t shine.” As I have mediated and reflected on the words, this verse has come to mean much more to me. It isn’t so much about my light shining as it is about God being glorified. This changes the whole meaning for me. I don’t have to think about what I can do to make my light shine. Instead, I need to take note of everything thing I say and do and decide if my actions are actually glorifying God. Looking at it this way really changes things for me. It is not a prideful thing in which I want people to see how well I am doing. It is a hope and prayer that I may honor God in all that I do. This really is my heart. I may not always get it right, but it is something that I can work on and continue to get better at. 

As I think about this scripture a song comes to mind. Remember the children's song, This Little Light of Mine? There are several different versions, but I like the one by Ernie and Debbie Rettino. Here is what the first part says:

This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine. 
This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine. 
This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine. 
Everyday, everyday, everyday and every way. 
I'm going to let my little light shine. 

What a simple way to remember how we are to shine our light and how we are to glorify God. Let your light shine, and let God be glorified!

Game On VBS Reflection

My reflections today is a little different. Rather than reflecting on a scripture that I read I am reflecting on a week of Vacation Bible School (VBS). I was blessed to be able to spend last week with a group of Pre K/Kindergarten children. The ages ranged from 3 (not quite Pre K) to 6 years of age. While the 3 year olds were a bit young, we felt it was so important to include them in order to help them grow in the Lord. It was a lot of work, but such a blessing. 

It is definitely true that when God calls you to do something He surely provides. After all of the planning He really brought everything together and blessed us with a wonderful week in the Lord. It was so amazing to watch these little children, God's children, learn more about Jesus and grow in their understanding and love for Him.

Our VBS was the Game On sports theme. The scripture that was the driving force behind the week was 2 Peter 1:3. There were really two great messages behind this scripture and theme. One is that God truly provides us with everything that we need. The other is that in the big game of life we need Jesus. The bible is the rule/play book that helps us know how to live in Christ. 

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

(2 Peter 1:3 NIV)

Planning for VBS was fun, but it did take some time. I'm sharing some of the ideas I used in case anyone is still in the planning stages of their VBS or maybe just looking for some sport decoration ideas. I purchased some supplies from Party City, some from  Walmart, some from the Dollar Store, and I made a lot of the other stuff.

We used this area for pictures. It made a great backdrop. Ms Rose (my co-teacher) was wonderful enough to have a t-shirt made into a football jersey with Team Jesus written on it. She also made a Tutu for a cheerleader skirt, which with the pom poms was perfect. 

The tables we used had a football table clothe on it, which was very nice. 

Our soccer wall was a fun area. The soccer balls were plates with a soccer ball picture glued onto it. We had extra plates that the kids could throw like a Frisbee at the net. We later added labels with scriptures on them. Everyone got to take one home at the end of VBS. 

I made football jerseys for an extra football wall. I also made some little football cutouts. Everyday we chose a few scripture labels to read, attach to the footballs, and then tape to the wall.







We used this baseball area to explain the Salvation Plan. Ms Rose got together with Ms Koko, the Sunday School teacher, and put this together in a very age appropriate way. 

1st Base -  Black Heart -  is our heart full of sin. 
2nd Base - Red Heart - is for the blood that Jesus shed for the forgiveness of our sins. 
3rd Base - Green Heart - is for the new life we receive when we trust in Jesus as our savior. 
4th Base - Gold Heart - is the prize we receive when we go to heaven. HOME RUN!

I know that all of the children that attended VBS were greatly blessed, but I think that all of the music, craft, kitchen, recreation, youth helpers and teachers were blessed even more. It was a very heart warming and super great experience! 

Are Tears Prayers?

Today I read a comment that was posted on My Daily Bread in which someone having gone through some struggles mentioned learning that tears were prayers to God. Hmmmm.... I had never heard that before, but I immediately wanted to know if that was true. I wanted to know if it was biblical. It sounded true. It made sense. I mean I know that when we don’t know what to say the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and takes our groaning to God. Isn’t our crying and tears a form of groaning? I really wanted to know more. The first place I looked was on the Topical Bible website (great site). I looked at all of the scriptures that had to do with tears, but it wasn’t quite working for me. I guess I was looking for something that clearly said, "tears are prayers."

After that search didn’t pan out so well I went online and did some reading. Everything kept bringing me back to one scripture. It was Psalms 56:8.

The NKJV reads:
You number my wandering;
Put my tears into Your bottle;
Are they not in Your book?

This was still not realy clear enough for me, so I tried other versions of this verse. The NLT version finally did it for me. Here is what it says:
You keep track of all my sorrows.
You have collected all my tears in Your bottle.
You have recorded each one in Your book.

As I reflected on this translation of the verse I could see that our tears do matter to God. Through our tears we are able to communicate our sorrows to God. Isn’t that prayer? God even collects our tears and records them in His book. That is a pretty good argument for tears being a form of prayer.

I guess as I think about it, my tears and prayers always go together. I know that when I am hurting I cry out to the amazing, wonderful, almighty God of this world. I know that He hears my prayers and will not forsake me. My prayer as I reflect on tears is that God will take every tear shed of both believers and nonbelievers and use those tears to draw them near to Him. We are so blessed that God cares and is watching over us through both good times and bad.

God be with you and bless you always! Amen

My Soul Cries Out

Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
(Psalms 42:11 KJV)

I’ve been working on memorizing scripture, which is not going so well, because I’m really bad at it, but anyways this was the scripture that I pulled up today. I get daily scriptures emailed to me, then I save my favorites to a bible verse file. This is really helpful, since memorizing them doesn’t always go so well. This morning I went with one of the first emails I had saved and this was the scripture that it took me to. 

This scripture was perfect, because my countenance was definitely a little off this morning. I felt like I had major PMS, but I no longer have that issue, so I knew that wasn’t it. I really do love this piece of scripture when I am feeling out of sorts. It is really a good reminder to me that my Spirit is under attack. I need to examine why I am feeling the way I am feeling. Why is my countenance (attitude, outlook, emotions, demeanor, composure) not in line with God’s desire for me? When I feel this way I know that I am not reaping the fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, long  suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, & temperance). Instead I am void of them.

My solution? Well, it was to read and really meditate on this piece of scripture; realize that I was under attack; and pray. This helped me pretty quickly, but I also got out and did something fun. I went for a ride with my husband on our ATVs. In doing this I stopped dwelling on the way I was feeling and just turned it all over to God. I have to say that right now my soul is no longer disquieted and my countenance is doing much better. As I write I am enjoying the fruits of the Spirit.

God bless you and may you enjoy the fruits of the Spirit today as well. 

Waiting on God

Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14 ESV)

This morning’s reading of Our Daily Bread got me thinking and reflecting on waiting. Like most people, I don’t like waiting. I don’t like to wait in line; wait for a phone call; wait for dinner time; and other kinds of daily waiting situations, but there are times when it is extremely hard for me to wait. It is hard when I know someone needs God’s healing, especially if that person is a member of my family or even myself. It is hard for me to wait on God’s plan when I see someone having a difficult time (financially, living situation, heartbreak, etc.). What am I waiting for? I am waiting for God to intervene, for God to “fix it,” for God to make everything better. Is this too much to ask, to hope for, to expect? No, I don’t think so, because I know that God is an awesome and powerful God, so what is my problem?

My problem is that, while I trust God, I don’t always remember that His timing is perfect; that His plan is perfect; that He is in control. Why can’t I get this? I know it to be true, and once things are back on track I can always see how God worked it all for the good. I don’t have all of the answers, which is why I am simply reflecting, but I know that I want and need to continue to grow in this area. I find the scripture noted above to be helpful, but here are couple more scriptures that I want and need to meditate on to help me grow in the area of waiting on God. Maybe they will help you too.

But as for me, I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. (Micah 7:7 ESV)

But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31 ESV)

Faith Like a Mustard Seed

He (Jesus) replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matt 17:20 NIV)

I read this scripture a couple of days ago and have been reflecting on it ever since. I, like most people, take this verse to refer to the size of the mustard seed. The mustard seed is one of the tiniest seeds there are, so we just need to have a small amount of faith, even as small as the mustard seed and we are good to go. That thought has always comforted me, because during difficult times I have always been able to measure my faith and claim to have at least that much. But, is that really what this means? In this New International Version (NIV) that seems to be what is being said “if you have faith as small as a mustard seed.”

I decided to delve a little deeper into this verse, looking at other versions, and doing some other readings. The thing that popped out was the idea of it not being the size of our faith, but to be like or as a mustard seed, doing what it does. The mustard seed, again one of the tiniest seeds, grows into a huge tree. This is amazing! If I look at the New King James (NKJ) version which says,“If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed,” then I get a clearer sense that my faith is to be more than small in size. It is to continue to grow. How is this done? Like a mustard seed being planted in the rich soil, I must plant myself in the word of God, in the church, in prayer, and in my walk with God, so that my faith will be nourished and continue to grow. This thought too blesses my heart. With the growing of my faith, maybe the next time I run into difficult times I can proclaim to have faith as great as a mustard TREE rather than just a mustard seed.  

Praying that we may all have great faith! God Bless!!!

Be Still

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! (Psalms 46:10 KJV)

I know that it isn’t just me, even though it feels like it, but why is it so hard to just stop and wait on God? Why can’t I just be still? Whenever things start getting a little crazy in life my first reaction is to try to make things happen, to try and take control, but it doesn’t get me very far. I feel more like I am running in place, feeling exhausted, and having nothing to show for all of my effort.

Well, the good new is that I don’t have to try and fix things on my own. I know, I need to remember this more often, but it is true. God is so awesome and incredibly great. He is the answer. He is strong enough and faithful enough to take care of all of my worries. I just need to be still and trust in Him. I love the contemporary version of this verse,

Our God says, “Calm down, and learn that I am God! All nations on earth will honor me.”

My prayer is that we put this to the test. Calm down and learn (understand and know) that our God is an almighty God and we can trust in Him.