Talent Contest
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Posted:Jun 7, 2010 8:24 am
Last Updated:Jun 8, 2010 3:35 am 5339 Views
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TELEVISION SHOWS LIKE American Idol have become a global phenomenon...
Millions wait anxiously to find out who will be the next singer eliminated in the musical talent hunt.
Some call it "a new concept in entertainment," but it's hardly a new idea. As a girl, I remember watching Ted Mack's Original amateur Hour. That show was followed by the bizarre talent hunt The Gong Show in the 70s, and then by Star Search in the 80s. It is an ongoing theme of television to search for someone unknown and make him or her famous.
Dreams of fame and fortune, however, are not at the heart of the search that is truly timeless. That search is God's own pursuit of hearts that are available for His work in the world. In Isaiah, the Lord asks: "Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us? And then we read Isaiah's ready response: 'Here am I! Send me' (6:8 ).
God is not seeking the most qualified or talented; rather, He is seeking hearts that are surrendered to Him. He is seeking those who are available, dependable, and willing to be used. In those lives, God will show Himself strong, and He will be glorified. Are you available?
God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called.
Here I am Lord....send me!
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Parable Of The Sparrows
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Posted:Jun 7, 2010 8:13 am
Last Updated:Jun 8, 2010 5:05 pm 5500 Views
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"If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.." Colossians 3 verses 1 and 2
Once upon a time a loaf of bread fell from a bakery truck and as it hit the ground a crumb broke loose. Three sparrows all eyed the crumb and swooped down to grab it, but began fighting over it.
Eventually one of the sparrows succeeded in scooping up the crumb in its beak and flew away with it–hotly pursued by the other two sparrows. A frenzied aerial fracas took place until the crumb was completely consumed.
The only thing these sparrows saw was the crumb. None noticed the loaf still on the ground.
How often we consume our energies squabbling over trivialities while the true riches of life go unnoticed and escape us. And how often we concentrate our energies on non-essential issues while the needs of the hurting are neglected and the lost go to hell!
Think about it darlin' 
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Galilean Grace (Part 2 of 3)
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Posted:Jun 6, 2010 4:13 pm
Last Updated:Jun 7, 2010 5:18 pm 5345 Views
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When You Let God Down
by Max Lucado
This wasn’t the first night that Peter had spent on the Sea of Galilee. After all, he was a fisherman. He, like the others, worked at night. He knew the fish would feed near the surface during the cool of the night and return to the deep during the day. No, this wasn’t the first night Peter had spent on the Sea of Galilee. Nor was it the first night he had caught nothing.
There was that time years before …
Most mornings Peter and his partners would sell their fish, repair their nets, and head home to rest with a bag of money and a feeling of satisfaction. This particular morning there was no money. There was no satisfaction. They had worked all through the night but had nothing to show for it except weary backs and worn nets.
And, what’s worse, everyone knew it. Every morning the shore would become a market as the villagers came to buy their fish, but that day there were no fish.
Jesus was there that morning, teaching. As the people pressed there was little room for him to stand, so he asked Peter if his boat could be a platform. Peter agreed, maybe thinking the boat might as well be put to some good use.
Peter listens as Jesus teaches. It’s good to hear something other than the slapping of waves. When Jesus finishes with the crowd, he turns to Peter. He has another request. He wants to go fishing. “Take the boat into deep water, and put your nets in the water to catch some fish” (Luke 5:4).
Peter groans. The last thing he wants to do is fish. The boat is clean. The nets are ready to dry. The sun is up and he is tired. It’s time to go home. Besides, everyone is watching. They’ve already seen him come back empty-handed once. And, what’s more, what does Jesus know about fishing?
So Peter speaks, “Master, we worked hard all night trying to catch fish” (v. 5).
Mark the weariness in the words.
“We worked hard.” Scraping the hull. Carrying the nets. Pulling the oars. Throwing the nets high into the moonlit sky. Listening as they slap on the surface of the water.
“All night.” The sky had gone from burnt orange to midnight black to morning gold. The hours had passed as slowly as the fleets of clouds before the moon. The fishermen’s conversation had stilled and their shoulders ached. While the village slept, the men worked. All … night … long.
“Trying to catch fish.” The night’s events had been rhythmic: net swung and tossed high till it spread itself against the sky. Then wait. Let it sink. Pull it in. Do it again. Throw. Pull. Throw. Pull. Throw. Pull. Every toss had been a prayer. But every drag of the empty net had come back unanswered. Even the net sighed as the men pulled it out and prepared to throw it again.
For twelve hours they’d fished. And now … now Jesus is wanting to fish some more? And not just off the shore, but in the deep?
Peter sees his friends shrug their shoulders. He looks at the people on the beach watching him. He doesn’t know what to do. Jesus may know a lot about a lot, but Peter knows about fishing. Peter knows when to work and when to quit. He knows there is a time to go on and a time to get out.
Common sense said it was time to get out. Logic said cut your losses and go home. Experience said pack it up and get some rest. But Jesus said, “We can try again if you want.”
The most difficult journey is back to the place where you failed.
Jesus knows that. That’s why he volunteers to go along. “The first outing was solo; this time I’ll be with you. Try it again, this time with me on board.”
And Peter reluctantly agrees to try again. “But you say to put the nets in the water, so I will” (Luke 5:5). It didn’t make any sense, but he’d been around this Nazarene enough to know that his presence made a difference. That wedding in Cana? That sick of the royal ruler? It’s as if Jesus carried his own deck to the table.
So the oars dip again and the boat goes out. The anchor is set and the nets fly once more.
Peter watches as the net sinks, and he waits. He waits until the net spreads as far as his rope allows. The fishermen are quiet. Peter is quiet. Jesus is quiet. Suddenly the rope yanks. The net, heavy with fish, almost pulls Peter overboard.
“John, James!” he yells. “Come quick!”
Soon the boats are so full of fish that the port side rim dips close to the surface. Peter, ankle deep in flopping silver, turns to look at Jesus, only to find that Jesus is looking at him.
That’s when he realizes who Jesus is.
What an odd place to meet God–on a fishing boat on a small sea in a remote country! But such is the practice of the God who comes into our world. Such is the encounter experienced by those who are willing to try again … with him.
Peter’s life was never again the same after that catch.
From He Still Moves Stones: Everyone Needs a Miracle
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Don't Break Your Own Heart
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Posted:Jun 6, 2010 6:28 am
Last Updated:Jun 8, 2010 3:22 pm 5760 Views
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Titus 2 verses 3 through 5 "Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and , to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God."
"Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands as you would unto the Lord". Unto the Lord! What? You mean to tell me Elizabeth, I'm to submit to my husband as I do Jesus? Yes ma'am that's what God's Word says. Gulp! That is a hard pill for some of us women to swallow, isn't it. But God's Word says Sarah even called her husband Lord. Now I'm going to say go that far but God has put the husband over the wife and Christ over him. That's the order it should be. Not always the way it is but should be.
I believe God's Word is true and I was a submissive wife! I was submissive to my husband but he wasn't submissive to God, he didn't even 'know' Him. For the 8 years I was married I submitted to my husband and didn't attend 'church'. And for this God blessed us in many ways. Most everybody would tell me to go anyway, to defy my husband and God's Word but I refused to listen and chose God's Word and was so blessed in so many ways. Yes, my marriage is now over but it was doomed from the start. He loved something more than me...whiskey!"O' whiskey, if you were a woman", I know some of you country music lovers have heard that song before. The whiskey took complete control after he retired and he got mentally and verbally abusive. The Lover of my soul said, "Enough is enough!" and released me from my marriage. I tried for years but we were unequally yoked and turkeys and eagles just cannot run together. I was in rebellion when I married him. I broke my own heart! I was lonely and got tired of waiting on God to bring someone to me so I went out into the highways and byways and found one for myself. BIG MISTAKE! One I won't make again! I have totally submitted myself to my Beloved. He is all I need and He's all I want! He tells me He will be my husband, my best friend, and my Lover. What? Lover? Don't believe me, read the Songs of Solomon.
Going off on a bunny trail here.  Ladies please use my experience NOT to do as I did......WAIT ON GOD! Don't break your own heart! He knows the desires of your heart so much better than you do and I promise He wants you to have the very best and yes, as a of the King and of The Most high God.....YOU DESERVE THE BEST! And anything worth having is worth waiting for. Right?
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Blessed
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Posted:Jun 5, 2010 6:29 am
Last Updated:Jun 5, 2010 6:30 am 5165 Views
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I am blessed! I am blessed! I am blessed!
I am so blessed to have y'all in my life!
Someone here blesses me every day!
I thank God for you all!
I pray God's blessings fall on each one of you like rain!
All is well within my soul....Hallelujah!
And yes, this is pointing to Jesus
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James 1 verse 17
Be well, be happy, be blessed! 
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I Need Prayer
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Posted:Jun 4, 2010 2:15 pm
Last Updated:Jun 6, 2010 3:41 pm 6842 Views
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Wall Of Prayer
There are walls made by man built by frail and human hands that an enemy can scale and get to you.
But there is one protecting me from my greatest enemy It’s a wall that satan can’t break through.
Chorus
Sometimes a wall of grace sometimes a wall of faith Other times it’s sweet mercy that I need.
But the one for which I long it makes all the others strong. I need a wall of prayer surrounding me.
Oh my brother when I’m weak would you stand instead for me and pray a fortress ‘round me strong that can’t be moved.
And I promise you today when I bow my knees to pray I’ll do my best to build a wall of prayer for you.
Sweet hour of prayer sweet hour of prayer that calls me from a world of care.
But the one for which I long it makes all the others strong.
I need a wall of prayer surrounding me.
I need a wall of prayer surrounding me.
Borrowed from the McKameys
Please pray for me, I fill as if the enemy is trying to push me into a black hole of depression. It seems as if I'm hanging on by the skin of my teeth. It seems as if my prayers are bouncing off the ceiling. Thank you and God bless you!
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No More Blogs
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Posted:Jun 4, 2010 6:50 am
Last Updated:Jun 4, 2010 9:19 pm 5588 Views
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....from me unless they point to Jesus!
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The Cave People
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Posted:Jun 4, 2010 5:48 am
Last Updated:Dec 16, 2025 3:54 pm 5126 Views
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by Max Lucado
He came to the world that was His own, but His own people did not accept Him.
John 1 verse 11
LONG AGO, OR maybe not so long ago, there was a tribe in a dark, cold cavern.
The cave dwellers would huddle together and cry against the chill. Loud and long they wailed. It was all they did. It was all they knew to do. The sounds in the cave were mournful, but the people didn't know it, for they had never known joy. The spirit in the cave was death, but the people didn't know it, for they had never known life.
But then, one day, they heard a different voice. "I have heard your cries," it announced. "I have felt your chill and seen your darkness. I have come to help."
The cave people grew quiet. They had never heard this voice. Hope sounded strange to their ears. "How can we know you have come to help?"
"Trust me," he answered. "I have what you need."
The cave people peered through the darkness at the figure of the stranger. He was stacking something, then stooping and stacking more.
"What are you doing?" one cried, nervous.
The stranger didn't answer.
"What are you making?" one shouted even louder.
Still no response.
"Tell us!" demanded a third.
The visitor stood and spoke in the direction of the voices. "I have what you need." With that he turned to the pile at his feet and lit it. Wood ignited, flames erupted, and light filled the cavern.
The cave people turned away in fear. "Put it out!" they cried. "It hurts to see it."
"Light always hurts before it helps," he answered. "Step closer. The pain will soon pass."
"Not I," declared a voice.
"Nor I," agreed a second.
"Only a fool would risk exposing his eyes to such light."
The stranger stood next to the fire. "Would you prefer the darkness? Would you prefer the cold? Don't consult your fears. Take a step of faith."
For a long time no one spoke. The people hovered in groups covering their eyes. The fire builder stood next to the fire. "It's warm here," he invited.
"He's right," one from behind him announced. "It's warmer." The stranger turned and saw a figure slowly stepping toward the fire. "I can open my eyes now," she proclaimed. "I can see."
"Come closer," invited the fire builder.
She did. She stepped into the ring of light. "It's so warm!" She extended her hands and sighed as her chill began to pass.
"Come, everyone! Feel the warmth," she invited.
"Silence, woman!" cried one of the cave dwellers. "Dare you lead us into your folly? Leave us. Leave us and take your light with you."
She turned to the stranger. "Why won't they come?"
"They choose the chill, for though it's cold, it's what they know. They'd rather be cold than change."
"And live in the dark?"
"And live in the dark."
The now-warm woman stood silent. Looking first at the dark, then at the man.
"Will you leave the fire?" he asked.
She paused, then answered, "I cannot. I cannot bear the cold." Then she spoke again. "But nor can I bear the thought of my people in darkness."
"You don't have to," he responded, reaching into the fire and removing a stick. "Carry this to your people. Tell them the light is here, and the light is warm. Tell them the light is for all who desire it."
And so she took the small flame and stepped into the shadows.
From A Gentle Thunder
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Galilean Grace (Part 1)
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Posted:May 31, 2010 1:56 pm
Last Updated:Jun 1, 2010 4:29 am 5392 Views
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When You Let God Down
by Max Lucado
The Sun was in the water before Peter noticed it–a wavy circle of gold on the surface of the sea. A fisherman is usually the first to spot the sun rising over the crest of the hills. It means his night of labor is finally over.
But not for this fisherman. Though the light reflected on the lake, the darkness lingered in Peter’s heart. The wind chilled, but he didn’t feel it. His friends slept soundly, but he didn’t care. The nets at his feet were empty, the sea had been a miser, but Peter
wasn’t thinking about that.
His thoughts were far from the Sea of Galilee. His mind was in Jerusalem, reliving an anguished night. As the boat rocked, his memories raced:
the clanking of the Roman guard,
the flash of a sword and the duck of a head,
a touch for Malchus, a rebuke for Peter,
soldiers leading Jesus away.
“What was I thinking?” Peter mumbled to himself as he stared at the bottom of the boat. Why did I run?
Peter had run; he had turned his back on his dearest friend and run. We don’t know where. Peter may not have known where. He found a hole, a hut, an abandoned shed–he found a place to hide and he hid.
He had bragged, “Everyone else may stumble … but I will not” (Matt. 26:33). Yet he did. Peter did what he swore he wouldn’t do. He had tumbled face first into the pit of his own fears. And there he sat. All he could hear was his hollow promise. Everyone else may stumble … but I will not. Everyone else … I will not. I will not. I will not. A war raged within the fisherman.
At that moment the instinct to survive collided with his allegiance to Christ, and for just a moment allegiance won. Peter stood and stepped out of hiding and followed the noise till he saw the torch-lit jury in the courtyard of Caiaphas.
He stopped near a fire and warmed his hands. The fire sparked with irony. The night had been cold. The fire was hot. But Peter was neither. He was lukewarm.
“Peter followed at a distance,” Luke described (22:54 NIV).
He was loyal … from a distance. That night he went close enough to see, but not close enough to be seen. The problem was, Peter was seen. Other people near the fire recognized him. “You were with him,” they had challenged. “You were with the Nazarene.” Three times people said it, and each time Peter denied it. And each time Jesus heard it.
Please understand that the main character in this drama of denial is not Peter, but Jesus. Jesus, who knows the hearts of all people, knew the denial of his friend. Three times the salt of Peter’s betrayal stung the wounds of the Messiah.
How do I know Jesus knew? Because of what he did. Then “the Lord turned and looked straight at Peter” (Luke 22:61 NIV). When the rooster crowed, Jesus turned. His eyes searched for Peter and they found him. At that moment there were no soldiers, no accusers, no priests. At that predawn moment in Jerusalem there were only two people–Jesus and Peter.
Peter would never forget that look. Though Jesus’ face was already bloody and bruised, his eyes were firm and focused. They were a scalpel, laying bare Peter’s heart. Though the look had lasted only a moment, it lasted forever.
And now, days later on the Sea of Galilee, the look still seared. It wasn’t the resurrection that occupied his thoughts. It wasn’t the empty tomb. It wasn’t the defeat of death. It was the eyes of Jesus seeing his failure. Peter knew them well. He’d seen them before. In fact he’d seen them on this very lake. (to be continued)
From He Still Moves Stones: Everyone Needs a Miracle
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You Think God's Not At Work
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Posted:May 30, 2010 7:09 am
Last Updated:May 31, 2010 5:02 am 5385 Views
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Copy and paste this into your search engine. Our God is an awesome God!
v=FENH6WoBVwo
Isaiah 54 verses 16-17
"See, it is I who created the blacksmith who fans the coals into flame and forges a weapon fit for its work. And it is I who have created the destroyer to work havoc; no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from Me," declares the LORD.
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