I was taking a walk with my brother and mother last Saturday morning. There is a wooded walking track near my parents’ house. My right knee has been giving me some trouble so I couldn’t stay with the fast pace we were going. I told Daniel and Mama to go ahead so I wouldn’t slow them down. As I was walking, there was no one around and the woods were so still and quiet. Everything was so peaceful. The word gentle came to mind. I started thinking about verses from the Bible about gentleness.  Gentleness is something Jesus values. Gentleness is a fruit of the spirit. Gentleness helps a person find rest for their souls.

Matthew 29:11 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Titus 3:2 To speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people.

James 3:17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

Gentle is defined as having or showing a mild, kind, or tender temperament or character. Another definition is moderate in action, effect, or degree; not harsh or severe.

It is easy to lose our cool with those around us. I’m sure most of us can think of people we’ve been around who are not gentle! We’ve all gotten upset with our spouse or children at one point or another and reacted without gentleness. Tensions are probably higher than normal right now during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is easy to respond in a harsh, impatient way to people around us, especially when things are so tumultuous. Thankfully God knows we are human and far from perfect.

However, I want to be a person who responds with gentleness. How do people feel when they are around me? What words would they use to describe me? Would they say they feel refreshed or drained after being around me? My parents have a little plaque on a bookshelf that says “be a fountain, not a drain”. While no one is perfect, I hope no one leaves after being around me feeling drained! Striving to be refreshing to others is such an awesome goal to reach for! And if we can’t be refreshing, maybe at least responding to others with kind, gentle words and actions is a start.

Lord, help me respond to my family and friends with gentleness even if I’m tired or stressed. Help me to respond with gentleness even when others respond with harshness. Remind us to respond gently to others because when we do we are allowing Holy Spirit to work through us to minister to another person. Help us to come to you when we need rest for our souls so we can then be a conduit of your gentleness to others. Thank you for your gentleness with us. In Jesus name, Amen.

Your friend,

Tiffany

The following totally came to my mind this morning:  How people feel the need to be in control. Sometimes we can try all we we want, but we can’t make a person “like” us. Either they do or they don’t. We can’t make our child behave a certain way. We can try to teach, guide, correct, but it is ultimately up to them. We can’t control what happens on the job. People quit. The economy changes. We can’t control the pandemic we are in. Attempts are made to try to not spread the virus, but some have still contracted it.

So why am I saying all this? Because we are not God. Period. Should we work hard on our job? Absolutely. Should we try and be a good friend or spouse? Of course! Should we train up our children in the way they should go? Definitely! Do we need to be wise about the spread of virus especially to the vulnerable? Yes. The bottom line is we are not the ultimate authority on all of these things. God is. We should try and use wisdom with the decisions we make. It’s our job to do our best and know the One who is in control and trust Him to take care of it all. He promises that all things will work together for good to those who love Him, to those who have been called according to His purpose.

The other night I woke up with Psalm 23 playing in my head. When that happens, I feel like I should share it. The Lord is a Good Shepherd who we can trust! He’s got everything under control. We can be still and know that He is God.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Your friend,

Tiffany

Today I was thinking about my grandfather on my Dad’s side. He was a preacher and boy did he love to preach! Every Christmas, before we would open presents, he would preach about end times and the events that would happen leading up to that. I knew it was all true, but as a little kid, it always sounded like something out of a sci-fi movie! It was hard back then to imagine the world the way it is now and realize how much closer the return of Jesus really is! I am not a preacher by any means, but it is so important to make sure you know where you’d spend eternity and that you have a relationship with Jesus.

When I was missing my Papa today, I thought back to when he passed away and how we cleaned out his house. Papa (and Nanny, my grandmother) used to be part of a southern gospel singing group. They had loads of old cassette tapes stored around their house with songs they’d sung. We ran across these tapes as we were cleaning up. Me being the sentimental type, I started filling up bag after bag of these tapes to keep.  I couldn’t let them go…his voice was on them along with his songs. Now if I’m being honest, most southern gospel music isn’t really my thing, but still, like I said I didn’t want to part with his tapes.

Anyway, a few days later, as I was sitting there listening to Papa’s music, I came across a tape with “The Old Apple Tree” written on it. I thought the title sounded interesting, so I put the tape in the tape player and turned it on. I fell in love with the song…even if it is southern gospel! I love the song because it describes how the Lord loves us. No matter what we’ve done, he’s always there waiting for us to come home. We love Him because he first loved us. It’s never to late to come home. In times like these, it’s so good to remember our true home is in Heaven. Here’s a link to the song. It’s so good! (If you are a person who cries easily, grab a tissue.)

YouTube

So he got up and went to his father.  But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

Luke 15:20

We love him because he first loved us.

1 John 4:19

Your friend,

Tiffany

Murry and I watched “I Still Believe” recently.  The song “Find Me In the River” by Delirious was in one part of the movie. Murry and I had not heard the song in years, but we love it and the band. Anyway, I haven’t been able to get the song out of my head since we watched the movie. The lyrics are really good and are about someone seeking God in the middle of some type of hardship maybe in repentance or maybe just due to the fact that they need and want more of Jesus. I thought about our world and how much we need to press into God right now and trust Him to get us through this COVID19. I totally believe He will! We may have to “wait in the river” for a while, but we can trust Him. It may not be on our timeline, but He’ll do it!

And we know that ALL things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28

Your friend,

Tiffany

YouTube

Lyrics to Find Me In The River

Find me in the River

Find me on my knees

I’ve walked against the water

Now I’m waiting if you please

We’ve longed to see the roses

But never felt the thorns

And bought our pretty crowns

But never paid the price

Find me in the River

Find me there

Find me on my knees with my soul laid bare

Even though you’re gone

And I’m cracked and dry

Find me in the River

I’m waiting here

Find me in the River

Find me on my knees

I’ve walked against the water

Now I’m waiting if you please

We didn’t count on suffering

We didn’t count on pain

But if there are blessings in the valley

Then in the River I will wait

Find me in the River

Find me there

Find me on my knees with my soul laid bare

Even though you’re gone

And I’m cracked and dry

Find me in the River

I’m waiting here

Find me in the river

Find me there

Find me on my knees with my soul laid bare

Even though you’re gone

And I’m cracked and dry

Find me in the river

I’m waiting here for you

Come find me here…

Find me in the River…

Find me here for you…

Oh wash over me…

Find me here

Today one of Robbie’s stories in reading was about Glenn Cunningham, a man who set the world record for running the fastest mile in 1934. Apparently, Glenn’s legs had been badly burned in a fire when he was eight, to the point that doctors said he would never walk again. Glenn was determined to prove them wrong, however, he not only couldn’t walk, but also had no feeling in his legs. Glenn began to pray that his legs would hurt so at least he would feel something. Eventually he began to feel the sensation of pain, and one day he was able to stand alone. Unfortunately, the pain got worse and worse. Glenn thought to himself, if he could just run, the pain wouldn’t matter, because he’d be focusing so hard on running, he wouldn’t notice. So Glenn began running which indeed kept his mind off the pain. First, he won a local one mile race, then trained for other races, and finally went on to win the world record for the mile in 1934, which was truly a miracle.  He had so much determination and perseverance, even while in pain. He never quit. He never stopped trying to become better. He didn’t let his obstacles keep him from going to a higher level. I loved his story! But the best part was the verse at the end. I needed it today…..

“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

Galatians 6:9

Your friend,

Tiffany

Cool side note- In the 1940’s Glenn opened the Glenn Cunningham Youth Ranch in Kansas, where he and his wife helped 10,000 needy and abused children.

I woke up this morning at 4:52am with these verses playing in my head! It was so clear! So I wrote them down and went back to sleep! Anyway, just wanted to give a word of encouragement. If you feel like who you are and your role in life are not important, let this be a reminder that you are indispensable (which means absolutely necessary)! Even if you feel weak at times, you matter and you have a purpose! God’s power is made perfect in weakness.

1 Corinthians 12:22

On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable.

2 Corinthians 12:9

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Your friend,

Tiffany

I wrote the following on Friday 1/3/2020

Landon’s been out of school for 15 days today. Three days left until school starts back and I can hardly wait! (Does that make me a terrible Mom? Just being real here!) So far today Landon wet the bed/floor twice, poured a bag of dog food out on the floor, and shattered the blades of an oscillating fan all over his room by putting an unknown object (don’t know what) into the fan while it was on! Not to mention breaking random toys. This was all before noon. I’m thankful to say he didn’t get hurt in all of this. Landon’s guardian angels seriously work overtime to keep that baby safe!

Don’t know if I’ll share…didn’t want to be a complainer…but I would like to encourage someone…you can make it….whatever it is…you can do it…not with your strength, but His. Philippians 4:13

Sunday 1/5/2020

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

I heard this verse just as clearly as anything today in my spirit during praise and worship at church. I wondered if God wanted me to share all of the above then the pastor said the same scripture again in his sermon so it was confirmation to me to share the verse and what I wrote above for someone… His grace is sufficient for you. I don’t know what you’re facing. Maybe it’s something very difficult and you feel like you’re praying and nothing changes. Maybe it’s a circumstance/problem that that you’ve faced for years and never feel like you can get past it. If we could do what He called us to do on our own, why would we need Him? It’s His strength that carries us. His grace is sufficient. Am I saying that everything is going to be easy peasy? Nope. Am I saying that you’ll understand on this side of Heaven? Nope. But what I am saying is that He’s there.  He’ll never leave you. He’ll give you what you need at the right moment, just when you need it.

Definition of grace-

(in Christian belief) the free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings.

• a divinely given talent or blessing.

plural noun: graces

“the graces of the Holy Spirit”

• the condition or fact of being favored by someone.

Definition of sufficient-

enough; adequate.

Your friend,

Tiffany

“Fully known and loved by you” are some lyrics from a song I heard recently (Known, by Tauren Wells) and it brought some thoughts to mind about the richness of God’s love and reminded me of the following quote:

To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.

~Timothy Keller

Have you ever thought about how human love just cannot compare to the love of Father God and His son, Jesus.  Sometimes people fail us in their ability to understand us. Sometimes they fail us in their ability to love us. Sometimes they love us, but don’t understand us. Sometimes they understand us, but don’t love us. But the Lord understands us better than we understand ourselves AND loves us more than we can imagine. When I heard this song, I thought it was just beautiful. Jesus’ love is perfect. We are truly known (understood) and loved by Him. There is nothing greater.

Jeremiah 31:3

The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”

Titus 3:4-5

But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit

Psalm 32:8

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

John 10:14-15

I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.

Your friend,

Tiffany

Why is it so hard to be thankful in life when something bad happens? Did the good things in life change? Did the bad circumstance change the blessings/goodness God has given us?

Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song. For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods. 

Psalm 95:2-3

It’s a shift in perspective that causes us to focus on the negative thing. When things are going the way we want, we’re happy, we feel good. It’s easy to be thankful. Let something we don’t like happen then suddenly we’re having a bad day, we’re in a bad mood and we don’t feel like being thankful.

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

But none of this changes who God is, His character, His goodness. I’m not saying all this because I’ve arrived or anything, quite the opposite! This morning we woke up to quite a mess in Landon’s room! He has a toilet in his room. Let’s just say he didn’t make it to the toilet last night. I wish I could say this was a once in a while thing, but it’s more like an every other day thing.

In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

1 Peter 1:6-7

Also, we accidentally left Landon’s closet unlocked last night. Landon’s closet has not one but two locks on it….for good reason. One of those reasons is safety. We keep his chest of drawers locked in the closet so he can’t climb on top of it and tip it over. And Landon LOVES to climb. The other reason we keep his closet locked is so he can’t remove every article of clothing and item from the closet and throw it on the floor which he also LOVES to do! So it was a little overwhelming to see the disaster in his room this morning!

All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

1 Corinthians 4:15-16

So today, if I’m honest, it was a little harder to come up with something to be thankful for. I’m human. But today I am choosing to be thankful for Landon. I’m thankful for his strength, his physical health, his energy, and his smile. He helps me focus on what’s really important. He helps me remember Who gives me strength every day. I can do nothing on my own. He reminds me to have an eternal perspective. One day it will all make sense. Landon reminded me today that true thankfulness doesn’t depend on circumstances. It is based on who God is. And God is good all the time.

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service.

1 Timothy 1:12

Your friend,

Tiffany