Lord, I Need You

Lord I need You, when the sea of life is calm

O Lord I need you when the wind is blowing strong

Whether trials come or cease, keep me always on my knees

Lord I need You, Lord I need You

Sometimes when life seems gentle and blessings flood my way,

I turn my gaze away from you, and soon forget to pray

But when the sky grows darker and courage turns to fear

My anxious voice cries upward with words You long to hear

Lord I need You, when the sea of life is calm

O Lord I need you when the wind is blowing strong

Whether trials come or cease, keep me always on my knees

Lord I need You, Lord I need You

Lord help me to remember, I’m weak but You are strong

I cannot sing apart from You, for Lord You are my song

Although I’m prone to wander and boast in all I do

Lord keep my eyes turned upward, so I depend on You
(Ron Hamilton)

Singing this song many times over in the past 6 months has spoke to me. I realized my constant need for the Lord in my daily life. Not one days goes by that I do not need Him. Recognizing my weakness without Him has drawn to my knees to ask Him to come by side, because I need Him!

Blessings! 

The Beauty of Whitespace

Whitespace - a term I had heard only a few times before. What was it? 

This week I began a journey in learning of Spiritual Whitespace as I started reading a book by Bonnie Gray - the author of Faith Barista. 

So what is whitespace? Untouched, unmarked space, but not blank. It has beauty! A canvas longing for quiet, beauty, rest. We have been instructed to rest.

[Earnestly] remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy (withdrawn from common employment and dedicated to God). Six days you shall labor and do all your work, But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, your daughter, your manservant, your maidservant, your domestic animals, or the sojourner within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it [set it apart for His purposes]. Exodus 20:8-11 AMP

Even God in all His holiness rested after He created the earth. He, who was all-knowing, all-powerful, Supreme, needed to rest. How much more do we as fallen creatures saved by grace need to rest? We even find Jesus, amidst His calling here on earth, stepping away from His task at hand and retreating to the mountains for some time alone. He, who came to earth as an individual to die for our sins when He himself was sinless, recognized the need to step back and find that spiritual whitespace - that place of beautiful rest.

And He said to them, [[a]As for you] come away by yourselves to a deserted place, and rest a while—for many were [continually] coming and going, and they had not even leisure enough to eat. Mark 6:31 AMP.

I encourage you to find your place of rest - your spiritual whitespace. A place where you can lay aside the daily weight and find God, as He waits for you. As He desires for you to rest in Him.

I have just began my journey through this book. Join us as we take this journey of finding Spiritual Whitespace.


The beauty of whitespace!

Thursday Thoughts - Time

I'm running out of time, it seems to be my second name. 

I guess it must be me cause its always the same. 

I gotta to keep turning a little further down the line. 

It's 5 o'clock. I'm running out of time.

(Chorus from the song, "I'm Running Out of Time" by Amos Raber)

This song was running through my mine this morning, as I am starting my day. For some reason, time just flies by. But as I thought of how fast time goes from one day to another, I looked back at many of my days in a week and was reminded of a Bible verse. 

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply 

our hearts unto wisdom. Psalms 90:12 (KJV)

When my day is over, what was done for God? Do I look back over my day with regrets, when I see what I did in my day? As I reflect over the two explosions that occurred this week (Boston Marathon and fertilizer plant in West, TX), I had to stop and look at the time that I spend with my family members. Do I make it a priority to spend time with them, ask them about their day, help them with their tasks, or just be the daughter or big sister that God created me to be? 

Many families' lives have changed dramatically in the scenes that have unfolded in the last several days. Loved ones' lives were taken instantly, others were suffered massive trauma. Many families just wish they could turn back the clock and erase these disasters from their mind. But these disasters have taken place and many need to move on without loved ones. Many people will hold family close as they move on in life.

Though time with loved ones should always be of utmost importance, it has not always been this way. Such disasters often make us re-think how we are spending our time. Following such disasters, me, as well as many others will spend extra time with loved ones and let them know what they mean to us.

Take time for your loved ones today! Hold your loved ones near and let them know what they mean to you and how much you love them. No one knows what tomorrow holds. 

Praying for the families, EMTs, firefighters, police officers, governments officials, and everyone else that is involved in the situations in Boston, MA, and West, TX. May they feel the prayers of Christians around the world.

Blessings,

Andrea

Complete Commitment - Psalms 31:5

"Into thine hand I commit my spirit:

thou hast redeemed me, 

O Lord God of truth."

Psalms 31:5

Here we find the Psalmist committing Himself to the Lord and what He has planned for His life. This is not the only time we find this particular commitment in the Bible. We also find it in the lives of at least two others in the Bible.

We encounter it as Jesus hung on the cross: 

“And when Jesus had cried with a loud

voice, he said, Father, into thy hands

I commend my spirit: and having

said thus, he gave up the ghost.”

Luke 23:46

And also Stephen uttered these last words as he was stoned to death:

“And they stoned Stephen, calling upon

God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive

my spirit.” Acts 7:59

In all three occasions, we find complete surrender. In two of the three occasions we find surrender, even in the face of death: my Lord and Stephen. Such a commitment is a complete surrender, no matter the costs. David was committed because his spirit had been redeemed. To him, his redemption was of great value. A value that was so great, it required a full, complete surrender.

So what about me, what about you? Jesus has paid the ultimate price for redemption – his life of the cross. What does that mean to you and me? We have been redeemed when in reality, we were doomed to die and we deserved every bit of our punishment. But amidst the punishment we deserved, God looked down on His people, His heart filled with compassion for the dear ones that He had intricately created. Each individual soul meant so much to Him and it hurt Him to know that without a Redeemer, each one would die…but the story doesn’t end there. Praise God!

He sent a Redeemer. His beloved & Only Son!

I tremble when I recognize what I deserved, but by the grace of God, I have been saved. Seeing this, I realize that my daily life needs to be in complete surrender to the One who redeemed me. Such surrender is a daily moment by moment surrender to the perfect Will of God. My cry should equal that of the Psalmist:

“Into thine hand I commit my spirit:

thou hast redeemed me, 

O Lord God of truth."

Psalms 31:5

Am I committed to God’s story? Or am I determined to have my own story?

My heart's cry - I surrender all!

Blessings as you surrender! Pray for me! I am praying for you!

Andrea

No, I haven't disappeared...

It has been a little over a week since I have posted, but God has been good. It's in times like these that I am reminded of "Why did I ever doubt that He would be there for me"? God has been speaking to me through my surroundings, many of which I have captured through my photographic lens.

"This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalms 118:24

Oh what a blessing to get up and see the sun come up - realizing that God has given me one more day this side of eternity to serve Him, to praise His name, to see His beauty, to share His love. Why wouldn't I desire to praise Him?

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven:" Ecc. 3:1

As I stepped outside the other day, I found that the trees are pushing new buds due to warm weather. In looking at the picture later, I was challenged in my daily walk with Christ. Does my life show new growth? Or does it appear to be dying?

"A time to be born, and a time to die...

a time to plant, and time to pluck up that which is planted." Ecc 3:2

"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:" Isaiah 55:10

Just as rain watereth the ground, so is God's Word to my soul. Do I look forward to meditating in His word each day? Do I drink His promises in like a parched soil? Do I accept His rebuke and apply the remedy as one applies fertilizer to the soil?

Blessings to all!
Andrea

And yes, I am still going through the Psalms. Lord willing, I will post on what He has been teaching me later in the week, maybe the weekend.

God's Will for My Life

A common question:

What is God's Will for my life?

We desire to know His Will when we come to the crossroads of choosing a career, a life partner, whether or not to serve in the home mission field or move to a foreign mission...These three are just a few of the many decisions that we look to God for wisdom. 

Discerning His Will is a way of life for the Christian.

He is to be my first counsel, not my emergency backup. In failing to daily acknowledge Him, my life counts for little. God is playing an immense part in my life and I have a part to play as well. 

His will is to be my priority!

We are His - My body, my life is His. I have been brought with a price. As a daughter of His, I am responsible to glorify Him with my body, my life and to do the will of God. They are not rightfully my own. My Father has purchased them!(John 4:34, I Corinthians 6:19-20) His purchase is His gift to me (Ephesians 2:8-10)

The Five "C's" of receiving God's Will

Conversion:
Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. John 12:24

Commitment:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12: 1-2

Confession:
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. James 5:16

Concern:
Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. Ephesians 5:17

Compliance:
Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eye-service, as men-pleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons. Colossians 3:22-25

Blessings as you seek God's Will this week!
Andrea

To Play with Fire...

Ever since the beginning of time, Satan has tried to cause people to succumb to his plans. 

In Genesis 3, we find him, as a serpent, tempting Eve with the fruit

from the "Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,"

the very fruit that God commanded Adam and Eve to not partake.

The result of partaking of the fruit:

Banished from the Garden of Eden

Later we see Satan at work as the children travel towards the promise land. Time and time again, we find them complaining. Sometimes for water, sometimes for food, sometimes because of the length of the journey.

The result of their complaining:

Wandered in the wilderness forty years, causing many to perish

Still through time, we still find Satan determined to get ahead.

This time we find him coming to Christ in the wilderness, however the outcome here was different!

He recognized Satan and He rebuked him: 

"Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy 

God, and him only shalt thou serve." Matt 4: 10

Just as Satan tempted those in times past, he is still just as busy today, determined to cause one of us fall.

He paints the sin as a beautiful fruit, but behind the skin is the "fire" 

that will devour us: gossip, lies, covetousness, jealousy, malice, hatred...the list goes on and on.

However, as Christ, we need not succumb to the tactics of Satan. Just as Christ called out to His Heavenly Father, so do we need to call on our Heavenly Father for help. He hears each one of us when we call.

"Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, 

and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice." Psalms 55.17

Let us not succumb to the "fire" of Satan, but rather be 

victors in Christ, as Christ was!

Blessings!

Andrea

Protection...

As I drove 19 miles from work to my home; a trip that on an average day takes 35-40 minutes, however one that tonight took 70-75 minutes, I was reminded of the protection that daily surrounds us. You see, tonight the temperatures had dropped 19°F and the roads were covered in white. The Lord had sent SNOW for us to enjoy!

Beautiful snow: captured a year ago

As I slowly made my way home on the treacherous roads, many verses came to mind. "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father." Matt 10.29. Amidst the billions of people that fill this earth, I was reminded that He sees each individual traffic predicament that we encounter. And not just tonight, but every day as we go about daily activities, He shelters us with His protection. On an average, I travel 300+ miles in a week (no extracurricular, just necessities). I was struck to the core when I reflected at how little I thank Him for His protection. Each of my living moments is made possible by His protection. Serious?! Sobering?! Embarrassing?! Frightening?! Yes, to each of those and the many more adjectives that one can think of in response to those questions.

Or what about the spiritual battle that we find in our lives? So often, in my human mind, I forget that, with God at my side, I armed with all the protection I need. For "if God be for us, who can be against us...for I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:31, 38-39. God's protection, in such a time, is His armor.  Way too often, I attempt to do it on my own and with my own shabby armor. I forget that He is waiting to help me, if only I ask. When I face my next battle, will I reach for my shabby outfit or will I cling to the promise of God and stand tall, attired with His Armor. Am I continuously ready for the battle, attired in God's protection? Or do I wait for the moment when I find myself surrounded and then struggle to prepare for battle?

I have been challenged to the core to remember the protection that surrounds me and to thank my Lord daily for His guiding in my life. I may never know what might have happened if I would have left 10 minutes earlier or forgot to take the moment to pray. 

Stay strong!

Andrea

ATTITUDES...

In serving Christ Jesus, we as His children are to follow in His footsteps to wherever and in whatever situation, including our attitudes. I don't know about all of you, but for me, many times my attitudes can be one of my biggest downfalls in my Christian life. If we are His children, fully surrendered to Him, why do we struggle with right attitudes?

1. Satan is determined to gain control!

Satan cannot stand it that we desire to serve the Lord and go to Heaven. He is determined to knock us down by aiming His fiery darts at our weakest part. If he can cripple us in our weakness, he can gain better ground if we become down and out.

2. It reflects who we are!

Psalms 23:7 tells us that as "he thinketh in his heart, so is he" and Ephesians 4:22 reminds us to put off the former man. In dealing with a bad attitude, it has revealed to me the cold, hard truth that I have not totally put  off the old man in showing what is truly in my heart.

As daughters/sons of God, you and I each desire to "let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus" as Paul had challenged the church at Philippi. This requires action on our part. Are we totally ready to submit it to Him, and allow Him to work in our lives, even if it causes pain? As with our physical body, pain can also reveal healing in our spiritual body.

In identifying our bad attitudes, we than become responsible to repent of our actions/thoughts and submit them to the power of our Lord. Upon submitting them to Christ, we have now created room in our life to fill our lives with positive and good attitudes.

These verses concerning attitudes struck very close home this week and I realized that I had allowed bad attitudes to creep into my life. Satan was determine to control my thought life under his thumb, but praise God, with the strength that we have through Christ, we can be VICTORS!

Blessings to all! Serve Him fully today, tomorrow, and until He returns!

Andrea

#8...An Upward Call

This post was an email update that was sent out during my time spent in Nicaragua from 2009 to 2011. I started posting them here when some of my friends who had not received them, wanted to see and hear about the work there. You can access the entire list here.

Blessings to all my fellow pilgrims in the journey of life before us. This past week I was challenged by “a life of walking in step with Christ” I have been studying the book “El Llamado Supremo” (The Upward Call) by John Coblentz. Some of the areas that I read about today were - “NOTHING in this world is worth the loss of our souls” and “In avoiding to take up our cross, we are giving up our right to eternal life” Both of these points are definitely points that need serious consideration. Are you... am I... going to hang on to this little thing, even though it will result in losing our souls? Are we afraid to take up the cross because it is uncomfortable...hard…brings opposition? Or are we going to step up to the plate, ready to follow Christ at any cost...through any opposition?

Since the last update, we have had a number of visitors. Each one was a blessing in each of their special ways. Before Laura's sister left, Gloria Martin &; Alyssa Zimmerman arrived on the 1st. However they spent most of their time in Leon, but they spent Thursday, the 7th, with us. That day we went to Lake Asososca in the afternoon. The above picture is at the lookout, looking down to the lake and out across the surrounding area. It was quite a hike to and from the lake but I enjoyed my time. That day as well, Merle & Pauline Gingrich and LeRoy, Anna, & Shirlene Martin arrived for a short visit. It was great to see friends from my home area. Even though their stay was short, it was great to be able to see them in León in Thursday night and here in La Palmerita Sunday night. They left Monday the 11th and the Keystone Singles arrived from Waslala. On Wednesday the 13th, they spent the day in La Palmerita cleaning the church and working at Jason's house. The girls painted the outside of the kitchen and the guys built his stove and did some cementing. 

Moving the pila into the kitchen

The guys then went and got the pila for his kitchen and moved it in. Mykel, Maria Luisa's son, came along out to help the guys. 

Maykel troweling a step off the walkway

On Sunday afternoon, we here in El Terrero were invited into León to spend the afternoon and evening with the León staff & Keystone Singles at the beach. Randy & Laura and I went in to spend time there with them. I enjoyed my time a lot, talking with some of the girls that I got to know better. It was great to be able to meet them all and also see some familar faces. 

The setting sun

As the coming evening approached, I began to take pictures of the ocean and the evening sky. Thanks to some people in the group who showed me what some of the settings mean and how to take certain pictures, I got some wonderful pictures on the night sky.

The Keystone Singles

The singles left Monday and we now have Daryl & Andrea Martin and their family in our presence. We went to Managua yesterday afternoon and stopped at Price-Smart for some groceries before getting supper and then heading to the airport to pick up Daryl & Andrea. Coming home from Managua, I rode on the back of the truck amongst the luggage. That was one of the best rides because it was dark all around and the sky was full of bright stars. !The beauty of God's marvelous works! Also Sheila Burkholder flew in Monday and this week Dwight & Heidi Fox (Krista's brother & family) will be coming to live in León and help with the maintenance of vehicles and houses.

As far as my life and things I have been doing – Tuesday the 12th I spent the morning in Malpaisillo with Maria Luisa. She is needing to take it easy as she was in the hospital because she had went into labor. I went in that morning on the bus, figuring I could help her with her work. However we spent most of the morning in the clinic, as they needed to do some tests. I did enjoy my time with her that morning. On Wednesday afternoon the 13th, I said good-bye to my dear housemate and friend for the next 2-1/2 weeks. She went home to visit and also for Dawn Stauffer's wedding. She will be coming back February 1st and I know it will great to have her back . I have been teaching Wednesday night & Sunday morning classes and they have been going pretty good. Sometimes I wonder if the children are getting anything out of the lesson because I have to stop and tell them to listen, but when I quiz them as I am reading and at the end of the lesson, they can give the correct answers. I just pray that I might be the example that God wants me to be to them and the many others that I come in contact with.

I would now like to introduce to you this young man that is our neighbor boy. His name is Yader and he lives with his aunts and cousins in a large house. His father lives in Managua. I am not totally sure of his age, but he is a young man that needs our prayers. He is not always in the best of company.

Yader eating a limón with chile

I just want to thank you all for sending cards and letters. I have enjoyed each one of them and so far everything that people said they sent to the Managua address has come through. God bless you all as you continue praying & support!

Blessings to you through out your week,

Andrea