Saturday, December 14, 2013

Out of this world

I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. Jn. 17:6, 14, & 16 too

Jn. 8:23
Jn. 15:19

means wonderful & exciting
This pie is out of the world

And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. 1 John 5:20

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Talk about real POWER

I asked my good friend Martina to tell her, 'God got ahold of me' story!
Martina says....Have you ever thought what life would have been like had you not found Christ in your life?  Or perhaps if you don't know Him yet & wonder how this could positively affect your life!  

Thank you for letting me tell you my story. 


In my younger years, I was constantly put down, made fun of, told mean things to...until I started to rebel.  Though I grew up knowing who God was & having a love for God, I never really understood the depth of His love until I decided to give my life to Christ.  

I see now how God spared my life many times...from bullets, to misplaced objects on dark freeways, being hurt & betrayed by many, being suicidal & depressed, from alcoholism, a life of partying, several alcohol poisonings, to being diagnosed with an incurable kidney disease.


I thought I had my whole life going on, but when you're a 20-21 year old, you don't expect to be diagnosed with a disease.  When I was told about this, my world came crumbling down.  Though I was a social butterfly, inside I lived a very depressed life, turning to alcohol, partying, interacting with the wrong crowds & guys. 


After being diagnosed with the illness & subsequently being bedridden, I literally began to loose it.  I would stare at the walls everyday & sneak out whenever I could.  During this time, one day I decided to bring lunch to my sister at work (though I myself only weighing 83 lbs.).  I was tired of telling people what I was going through and honestly, I began to have such hatred in my heart for people & life that I literally saw things in black & white - I did not see colors whatsoever. 


This particular day, my sister’s co-worker, who knew what was going on in my life, asked me if I believed Christ could heal me. After being told by doctors that there was no hope, I began to believe.  It was this day that I decided to give my life to Christ.  This lady spoke things to me that only God could know...that my heart was shattered into little pieces & how God wanted to heal me from a broken heart.  I was in tears as she prayed for my kidneys.  I felt my left kidney moving on the inside.  I left that day seeing the world in color for the first time, seeing how beautiful the trees, cars, people were! 


During the time I was bedridden, I began to study the Bible and prayer over 8 hours a day for years, until one day I heard God say that the pastor had a word for me that day.  Though doubt began to arise, I quickly corrected myself saying that if it was from God, then I received it.   It came to pass, at the end of the service, the pastor said, “This is the third time that this comes to me & I can’t keep silent anymore.  Someone here is getting healed of a kidney disease.”  That day, I received my healing & even told my doctor who immediately (nicely) doubted that I was healed.


I held onto my healing scriptures for 2 years, believing & not giving up.  One day my lab results came back normal and needless to say, my doctor was speechless, remembering what I told him. 


For many years I walked in my healing, until I got into an ungodly relationship.  I chose  to compromise my walk with Christ and backslid for 7 years, from happiness & at the same time an emptiness because I was no longer walking with Christ.  I chose to follow my own dreams  I was accepted into nursing school, but, during the physical, I found out I was having kidney failure once again and this time decreasing very rapidly & things took the turn for the worse.  I was down to 10% kidney function & needed to have my transplant ASAP.  It took a process of 9 months to have the transplant.  During these 9 months, I truly thought I was going to die 3 times, as I felt my spirit lifting, so weak leaning against my bed because I didn’t have the strength to get in my bed after throwing up so many times, asking the Lord if He had something for me to do still, not to let me go.  But if He didn’t...that I was tired of fighting & to let me go home.  But God was not done with me & He is not done with you either! 


Though a long journey, it has been a journey full of faith, hope, standing on the Word & having a relationship with Him.  Today, I say thank you to a wonderful brother because I now have a healthy kidney.  I am full of His joy again!


This day is set apart to honor our Lord. So don’t be sad. The joy of the Lord makes you strong.  Nehemiah 8:10 NIRV  

I know this Word as He has delivered me from alcoholism, partying, flirting, smoking & cussing.  Now I’m forgiven, healed & filled with His love, His word, His strength, His wisdom, have wonderful friends & an amazing fiancĂ©e.  I am still a work in progress.


God is very real!  Ask Him to come into your heart & see what He will do in your life.  It is an incredible life & journey growing with the Lord!  Sure storms will arise, but you will learn that you can walk on the stormy waters & have the peace that surpasses our own understanding.


And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:7 RSV


He has already paid the price for our sins on the cross.  He truly loves you & will never leave you nor forsake you, but has sent a helper, His Holy Spirit.


But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things...  John 14:26 NKJV

Jesus Christ is real!  Allow Him to touch your life today.  When you begin this new & amazing relationship with Him, and get into His Word, your life will never be the same again!  


Thank you for reading what He has done to change a life forever :)  I know you have a story, or WILL have your own story too! 

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Could it really be that simple?

TURN & SEE....
                                                   Photo by:  Jiuck  


Come out from behind the foggy haze, the veil of uncertainty. Life can be a clear and precise experience.  Do you want to see a clear view of real life?

And the Lord said to Moses, Make a fiery serpent [of bronze] and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.  


And Moses made a serpent of bronze and put it on a pole, and if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked to the serpent of bronze attentively, expectantly, with a steady and absorbing gaze], he lives. Numbers 21:8-9 AMP

I am fascinated that the Old Testament (of the Bible) is a foreshadow of the New Testament.  I sure didn't get this at the beginning of my journey.  It's a shadow of what was to come.  

We see it plainly in the story of the fiery serpent that needed to be put on a pole for healing.  Do you want to look on LIFE?  Every day we are given choices.  How wonderful is that!  We get to choose what way we will go in our lives.  The choice is yours to turn and look!  See and consider your choices.  

And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.

For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him.  John 3:14-17 NLT

To truly live is to RECEIVE His life.  Life is found in Jesus Christ, the son of God who died on the cross, the perfect sacrifice, to take away our sins. Today, will you look to Jesus and turn (make the choice to go His way) from your selfish ways (repent), and receive the new life in Him.  

Turn and see, look and live.  It is the life we were always intended for!

Sunday, September 15, 2013

In search of confidence!


Allow me a moment to brag on Emily, who makes my every visit to her salon a relaxing yet fun and don't-want-it-to-end experience.

During my appointment last week, I asked Emily if she was ever nervous about cutting someone's hair.  She gave me an emphatic no and said she is completely confident in cutting hair.   She told me her confidence comes right behind her salon chair.   

I wanted to know more, so I asked!  She told me that after a bad relationship and trying to rebuild her life, she read an article that challenged her to think of where she felt most confident.  She called it, "a place where nobody could break my smile!"  

Emily is exact in knowing her confidence is found right behind the chair, as well as her time spent with her little girl, Ellee.  She further told me that standing behind her chair, she could talk to anyone as plain as day, tell them anything on her mind & hear what was on their mind too - not thinking twice about the conversation.  No shuddering and no second guessing she said!

God has given each of you a gift.  Use it to help each other. This will show God’s loving-favor. 1 Peter 4:10 NLV

It thrills me to meet someone who knows that place…the place of confidence.  I understand it's their gift from God! I then began to laugh as I pictured Emily carrying around her chair outside of the salon and people asking her, 'Why are you carrying around a chair?"  She would simply say, "Sit down and let's talk!" ha ha

Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ.  
1 Peter 4:11 NLV

Do you recognize a confidence inside of you?  A confidence to be just who God made you to be.  The living gift you can give to others....it comes easy, you love to give your attention to it and where you feel most fulfilled.  It's something you give to others, and in turn, fills you.

Ultimately, true confidence is found in a relationship with the One who knows you best - Jesus!  He died on the cross to pay the penalty of the sin of mankind.  If you want to know Him today, choose to turn from your self-will of doing your life your way, and ask Him to take control and direct your life.

It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man.  
Psalm 118:8 NKJV






Saturday, September 7, 2013

Chasing the carrot


What does carrot dangling mean?  "It's a false bait to take advantage of you.  A carrot dangler is someone who promises something to help you out, to give you something, to introduce you to someone…and never comes through.  When you try to collect on the promise, there is always some reason why they can't give it to you right then."
- unknown

Have you ever chased a carrot, only to be let down?  

Sure, there are many outward things we can pursue and obtain in this life.  I wanted to include love & joy in the obtaining, but realized that love & joy can only be known fully through a missing link.  This link makes it pure and complete. 

No carrot dangling here!  No state of uncertainty with this promise, but a sure thing.  Here is a promise of love & joy perfected.

If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love…these things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.  John 15:10-11

This is not a fleeting love or joy but one that is a continual discovery.  A love & joy that can be known through the one who IS love & joy in totality.  

The link to this promise is found through Jesus who paid the ultimate price of death on the cross, to pay the penalty for the sin of humanity.  

If you do not know Him yet, repent (choose to turn from your sin) and ask Him to come into your heart and be your everything.  To lose your life is to gain it!  The promise of His joy & peace is for those who believe in Him. 

And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God... John 17:3 


Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Don't be like them!

Wisdom?  



Mom has given me a few one-liners of wisdom that have stuck with me & helped in many circumstances of life. Hope it will be helpful to you too :)

Some years ago while I was in bible school, I was sharing an apartment with a friend.  I wanted to show her my gratitude by words and my actions, always looking for the opportunity to help her in whatever she needed. 

This particular day, I was stuck at the mall and called my friend for a simple ride from the mall to our home.  Her behavior proved to be quite odd as she rudely rejected me for thinking I would ask such a thing of her.  Stunned by her attitude, I chose not to retaliate.

I eventually made it home and immediately called my Mom because I wanted to express my hurt from what seemed like harsh words spoken to the innocent (me!).  It was as though my mother did not even hear my complaint and said to me, "Don't YOU be like them."  Imagine! "Don't YOU be like them" is what I got.  She didn't try to make me feel better, but instead was telling me that I was going to have to choose the...well you know, the 'high road' (the hard road).  YES! The hard road, which is difficult but leads to LIFE.

Just recently, while reading a scrippy, I found the very words she spoke to me and did a little inside dance over it, knowing it to be true!

Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.  Matt. 6:8 NIV

If He is telling us to not be like 'them', then 'who' is He telling us to be like?  Imitators of HIM!

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do.  Ephesians 5:1 NLT

For those who have decided to follow Jesus, we are to be imitators of Him and not those who choose to follow their own ways of decisions.  They only have the dim light of their nature to guide them.  It would be shameful for us to do as they do when we have a divine revelation for direction from above.

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

I can't get no satisfaction

Surely you have heard the song by Mick Jagger which conveys his feelings of dissatisfaction through the words in his song.

I can't get no satisfaction
I can't get no satisfaction

Cause I try and I try and I try 
and I can't get no, I can't get no

When I'm drivin' in my car
And that man comes on the radio
He's tellin' me more and more a
bout some useless information
Supposed to fire my imagination
I can't get no, oh no no no
Hey hey hey, that's what I say

We have so many things to desire in this world! Yet, with all the 'getting' we are still not satisfied.  What is the missing ingredient to fill us continually with the happiness of life we crave?

The Word suggests that we can decide on true life fulfillment.

Why spend money on what is not food? Why work for what does not satisfy you?

 Listen carefully to Me. Then you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the richest food there is.Listen and come to Me. Pay attention to Me.  Then you will 
live. 
I will make a covenant with you that will last forever. I will give you My faithful love.
Isaiah 55:2-3 NIRV

On what terms is happiness offered to us?  On the basis of making the choice to not only listen to, but also in choosing to come to Him as your answer. We cannot find satisfaction anywhere but in knowing Him.  It does not matter what substitute you may search for to fill the longing, after it is attained, there is an emptiness that follows.
  
"All the wealth and pleasure in the world will not yield solid comfort and content to the should.  They do not satisfy even the appetites of the body; for all is vanity and vexation.  Let the disappointments we meet with the world, help to drive us to Christ, and to seek for satisfaction in  Him only." Matthew Henry


Will you make the choice today to listen and come to Him so you will know true satisfaction?



Friday, August 9, 2013

Prisoner?

My brother John is behind bars.  Is he a prisoner?  


Is it possible that there are two types of prisons?  One behind bars and one without bars?

Though not confined behind the bars of a correctional institute, many may find themselves in a prison in their life...a prison of selfishness, laziness, alcohol, drugs, etc.  I believe many are in internal prisons, barred up in the thoughts of their minds, unable to escape.  And though from the outside, it may seem that life if fine...they suffer in an inward turmoil.  Is this prison not sometimes more confining than the the state of a prison with bars, security & fences?    

There is a way of escape to true freedom that surpasses anything that man could possibly strum up.  There is a freedom from self that is so freeing like a weight that has been lifted off the shoulders! 

This freedom can only be found by accepting the One who gave His life for each one of us that we could find and know eternal life through Him, Jesus.
And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.  Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.  John 8:32, 36 NKJV

Please hear my heart, as I speak from one who knows a family member behind bars, as well as myself who was once a prisoner to darkness.  I understand and know that true freedom can be found in Christ. 

Here is part of a letter I received from my brother John today.  John told me that Jesus is his best friend, who truly understands him (as of April 2013).  I feel his experience will reveal that, though he is still behind bars, he is a free man.

You know, before I came to the Lord, I thought I knew everything there was to know, and had all the answers.  Well, the Lord proved me wrong and I am so glad for that because the Lord teaches me something new every day.  And what's so good about it is He teaches me things about myself whether they are good or bad.  That's what I like about the Lord is He doesn't hold anything back because He wants us to learn everything we can about Him. 

Do you want to know this freedom - the freedom to be and know the real you?  You can!  It is found in a relationship with the One who created you. Accept that He paid the price on the cross for your sins, and allow Him to come into your heart and set you free from the prison cell!  It is said in scripture about Jesus...

The Lord has anointed me to tell the good news to poor people.  He has sent me to comfort those whose hearts have been broken.  He has sent me to announce freedom for those who have been captured.  He wants me to set prisoners free from their dark prisons.  Isaiah 61:1 NIRV


New web @ www.simplewithsyd.com


Saturday, August 3, 2013

the letter ended...


home is wherever you are.  

This was the end of a beautiful love letter from my husband to me.  I wondered...did he literally mean home was any place 'I' was, and not a physical home?  

Over the years, I have come to better understand that home is where your heart is (given to).   

What does home mean to you?  Is it a place or a person?  People long to be at home; your home is whatever place you long to be.  Home is a place of rest, security….of love.  

While reading the scrippys (His Word), I began to see that Jesus wants to make His home with us, in our hearts.  He wants us to know His friendship and love so that no matter where we are, we will be at home! This takes place through our covenant (like a marriage) with Him.   

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey My teaching.  My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them."  John 14:23 NIV

Do you want to know Him?  Open the door of your heart.  He is one open door away :)

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Revelation 3:20 NIV

 web @ www.simplewithsyd.com

Friday, July 12, 2013

Loose lips sink ships



Even though it has been 20+ years, I still remember a time at my Mom's house like it was yesterday.   It was 5:30am and I was reading in James, chapter 3.  

I jumped out of my seat and went running down the hallways to my mother's room.  Mom was clearly asleep and my one-sided, enthusiastic conversation went something like this:

"MOM?!!  Are you up?!!.....I was just reading in James 3.  Loose lips sink ships!  LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS!!"

What are we speaking to one another, and in the hearing of others?  We either speak life or death - that's the power of the tongue.   


We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.

When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal.  Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go.  Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.  James 3:2-5 NIV

I had certainly heard this phrase before, but now I saw it in the Word.  Loose lips sink ships.  I found out that this phrase was coined as a slogan during WWII as part of the US Office of War Information's attempt to limit the possibility of people inadvertently giving useful information to enemy spies.

Do you realize that there is an enemy in this world who is looking for the opportunity to get us to agree with his side?  One tactic is through our tongue, as the tongue gets us into trouble because we forget to monitor what it is we are saying.

Loose lips can cost us to lose part of life and the life of our hearers.  Do you want to be a life-giver or a life-taker, by your words? 

Saturday, July 6, 2013

is carrot cake.....

....so incredibly yummy that it is not of this world to you?  

Maybe you would consider a certain relationship you have as not of this world


I wonder if this is because we think a particular thing or person is almost too good for this world as we know it?  Could it be that out of this world is something that is extra-ordinary? 

I find it fascinating that Jesus spoke of something that was truly out of this world.  It might surprise you to know that He considered US to be not of this world! 
 
This is what I command you:  that you love one another.  If the world hates you, know that it hated Me before it hated you.


If you belonged to the world, the world would treat you with affection and would love you as its own. But because you are not of the world [no longer one with it], but I have chosen (selected) you out of the world, the world hates (detests) you.  John 15:17-19 AMP

It sure seems like a bit much for the natural mind to conceive, right?  But Jesus said that those who believed in Him and received Him become of another world - not the world that we only see with natural eyesight.  What world?  A world that is from above, a spiritual seeing and knowing, not natural but super natural. 

You can hear the sound of the wind, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.  John 3:8

This is just what He meant when speaking of those who are born again.  To receive a new life in Him, not from the natural birth of a mother, but a new birth by His Spirit.  

Are YOU of this world?

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Do you have what it takes?

Are you a person of endurance?  What does it take to endure? 

Endurance brings an image to mind of winning and shining!  I think of the exhilarating feeling, a high sense of finishing a race & the heightened feeling of accomplishment.   

Side note to what I'm talking about here.  Can I tell you that I am smiling over the fact that my husband told me that he is memorizing 1 Corinthians 13 (known as the love chapter).  It is quite endearing to me to sit with the Bible on my lap, listening to my husband recite the scrippys to me, that is never-changing about love.  As I listen to him speak, I cannot seem to get past this scrippy: 


Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.  1 Corinthians 13:6 NLT

The word endure has been jumping out at me for the last week.  

Endurance, to me, is that of the triathlete - someone who has given up many hours to train, given up sleep & relationships (temporarily) to accomplish the goal - to finish the race they have committed to do. We applaud those who have so disciplined/conditioned themselves to accomplish such a goal. 

While thinking on the training of the triathlete, I got an eye-opening thought of a far greater illustration of endurance.

For the joy that was set before Him (Jesus) endured the cross.           Hebrews 12:2 NKJV

This is the ultimate show of endurance.  Because of His great love for us, He endured the suffering of the cross.  It was all for us so that we could regain our rightful relationship with Him.  Talk about endurance!    


While I am slightly jealous (for lack of my own self-disciple) of the endurance of the triathlete,  I will say, I am far more intrigued and wowed by the self-sacrifice of Jesus, for the sake of others.   ENDURANCE perfected. 

Sunday, June 9, 2013

At your wits end?

Psalm 107 could seem quite gloomy with such phrases likes 'they wandered in the wilderness,' 'they sat in darkness,' 'they reeled to and fro,' but don't be disheartened, there is something more wonderful here!

They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses.  He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; so He guides them to their desired haven.  Psalm 107:27-30 NKJV

I love when I find phrases in the Bible I've heard others say, but didn't know where they originated.  Do you wonder where people get these phrases too?  
I was quite excited to stumble across the phrase 'at their wits end.'   Not sure if you know this, but nothing is new under the sun, and this truth is right there for the grabbings, to understand what to do in this particular situation. God never left us to work it out alone.  He provided the guide, His word, for us.  

Today, are you at your wits end?  Are you frustrated and uncertain as to what the next step is for your life?  A person in this condition (at their wits end) should not be surprised that they are in a position that almost renders them useless to progress forward. 

Do you see what the psalm says?  They are at the end of the line, they have had enough and have nowhere else to go.  THEN....almost like it dawned on them and they thought, "I can't do this on my own!  Help God!"  He never moves from His position to be with us, but we are the ones who move away because of our own self-sufficiency.  They (you) cry for help, determined, and He is there in that very moment.  He calms the storm you are experiencing.  He speaks, "quite, and says, "peace!"  And the turmoil comes under His control, not your control, and He brings you to a place of calmness, a place where you can think clear thoughts.

Seek the help of the One who made you and let Him calm the storm of your life.  He wants you to realize you cannot do it alone.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

What face do you have on?


Those who look to Him are radiant, their faces are never covered with shame.  Psalm 34:5 NIV

Radiant caught my eye in this scrippy.  A big smile came across my face when I looked further into the original meaning of radiant.  It means to SPARKLE!   The immediate thought of my girl friend (sparkle girl, you know who you are) inspired me to jot a quick thought. 

When we bring an image of our friend to mind, we don't have to second guess who we know them to be.  The true person of the heart, the inward person, shows on their face and is known by us as well as others.  Are they cheery, words full of life, or perhaps a downward smile with negative, life-taking words?


Just as water mirrors your face, so your face mirrors your heart.  Proverbs 27:19 MSG

 * It is understood, however, that we all go through trials of life when our hearts are heavy.