Bloom with Jesus!

Difficulties are God's errands; and when we are sent upon them, we should esteem it a proof of God's confidence,—as a compliment from God. ~Henry Ward Beecher  I recently joined a new social media platform. When I post on other platforms such as Twitter and Facebook, I make the same post there. After a few weeks of posting, I received messages to stop. These complaints were followed by messages from other followers asking me not to stop. As of today, the only reply I made on the platform was to the person who requested that I continue posting. I thanked her and let her know I would persist,  because people need encouragement. I didn't address the opposition simply because I didn't want to start an unnecessary fight.  I am used to resistance from time to time, but I wonder why they stop and read the posts if they dislike them. Each post looks similar to the one above.  Bloom with Jesus is always at the top, and my logo at the bottom.  The background picture and ...

Sometimes life gets crazy messy, like my house while we were waiting on new flooring. We ordered vinyl flooring for the office and carpet for the bedroom. They estimated it would be about three weeks before it arrived. I saw no hurry to empty either room and paint. After all, I had plenty of time. My three weeks turned into about ten days, and I had very little notice they were coming to install the office flooring. I literally dumped piles of papers into boxes as I cleared the desks and closet so I could paint, before the new flooring was installed. Before the office was back together, I also had to empty the bedroom, which made for an even bigger mess! We had piles in every corner and small furniture on top larger items. It’s not always our piles of paper, our closets, and drawers that create the disasters in life. Messy can come from emotional stress, or difficult decisions. Family disputes or unexpected tragedies. You fill in the blank. What part of your life is crazy messy or has ...

  I still remember the phone call I received from my sister while on vacation several years ago. She called to inform me that our nephew Heath had embezzled money from the family farm to support his addiction to prescription narcotics. Though many of us were suspicious or even knew there was a problem, we ignored the signs. We did not realize how horrible his addiction had become. Now several years later, if you ask Heath about this day, he will describe it as the best and worst day of his life. The fall—The moment Heath’s world crashed down as the truth was revealed. Since Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit there has been sin in the world. You and I are no exception. Though it seemed Heath’s sin was huge at the time, we all fall short of the glory of God. As the day unfolded Heath was given two options. He could leave the family farm and admit himself to rehab, or he could face criminal charges. With the unbelievable grace shown to him, he wept a sigh of relief. His drug addicti...

  Your Branches We recently visited De Leon Springs state park in Florida. It was a beautiful setting with a natural spring and many huge old trees filled with moss. It was relaxing to take a walk through the trees, see the wild azaleas in bloom, and just sit on a bench and soak in the sunshine. Unfortunately, you weren’t in Florida with me, but hopefully you can relate by the picture of the trees covered with moss. How are your branches? Do you feel as if they are bending down under a heavy load of moss? Before I left Ohio, I felt like the tree in the picture. My branches were bending under a heavy load. Nothing specific, just everyday life and busyness. Fortunately, some R&R and sunshine has restored my body and I feel like some of the moss has been removed. Thankfully the Son-shine has also renewed my soul this past week. We can either prune our branches or God will do it for us! What I mean is, where are your priorities. Is Jesus part of your day-to-day routine? We can eith...

  My friend signs her notes KOKO, which means keep on keeping on. In other words, when life is difficult, stay the course, don’t give up, go the extra mile, and keep being a witness for Christ. In some respects, KOKO is easier on paper than it is in person. There are times when we get weary and struggle in our faith. In those moments of frustration or discouragement, we need to dig deep within ourselves for the motivation to continue. Walking the Christian road alone is not sufficient in itself. We need to lean on one another, and tap into our faith in Jesus for strength. The early Christians had incredible faith and endurance. They are true examples of KOKO. If they had given up, would the Christian church exist today? Paul and Silas were among those who suffered for Christ. They were on their way to the house of prayer when a young slave girl repeatedly mocked them. After several days of her repeated chanting, Paul demanded that the evil spirit leave the girl in the name of Jesus...

  Whenever I have a fortune cookie, I have to read the fortune. Most of them are more of a puzzle than they are wisdom, but on occasion I receive one that makes me think. This fortune has been sitting on my desk for a couple of weeks, and I have read it periodically. “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” I believe it is important to live a life of gratitude, but I would like to rephrase the fortune for you. “Gratitude toward Jesus is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.” After all, where would we be without a Savior! When you realize that without Jesus you are nothing and have nothing, it puts a whole new twist on the fortune. Paul is very poignant about this fact in these words. I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had...