Praise Him! "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but
the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts
knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God." (Romans 8:26-27 KJV)
In all that you do lift your life up to the Lord in prayer. Thank
Him in the valley's as well as in the good times. No matter what we face today - Jesus is right by our side ...
turn to Him. Sometimes we may not understand that valley - but the Lord will always walk right through it with us.
I hope you all have a great weekend. Invite someone
to church with you this Sunday. If you do not go to church, pray that the Lord will lead you to a Church that stands
firm on His Word. Please continue to lift each other up in prayer especially those around you that need emotional healing.
Love, Tracy
Laying It All Down!
"And when he
was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that
the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save
us: we perish. And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds
and the sea; and there was a great calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds
and the sea obey him!" (Matthew 8:23-27 KJV)
When I read this verse, I thought about all the times that I have
prayed for something, yet did not believe that God would answer my prayer. Thinking Oh, this is not meant to be or I
could never do that. When I read this, I realize how much I limit God. When we pray, we have to just surrender
it all to Him and know that He is God and He will lead us down a path that is going to Glorify Him and we will be blessed
for our obedience!
Whatever
you are facing today ... turn to Jesus and call upon His name! He loves you and His way should be our way. Have
a blessed Thursday. In addition to your own needs, please continue to pray for others around you. Love, Tracy
Pray to Forgive!
"And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have
somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one
owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me
therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And
he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged. And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest
thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears,
and wiped them with the hairs of her head. Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased
to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. Wherefore
I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth
little. And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven. And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves,
Who is this that forgiveth sins also? And he said to the woman, Thy faith
hath saved thee; go in peace." (Luke 7:40-50 KJV)
I love the book of Luke.
I look at this verse and apply it to my life today ... how many of us are so judgmental when it comes to sin. What we
don't see or can't understand in our minds that to the Lord, a sin like murder is not different from adultery, telling
a lie, stealing etc. They are all the same to the Lord. When someone who commits murder later comes to Jesus with
a repetitive heart he/she is saved and forgiven - they are set free from the bondage of that sin. It is like that verse,
where Jesus says, "you are forgiven, go and sin no more." That is what repentance is - not committing that
same sin again. You can't just say, Lord I am sorry and not mean business with God. He knows our hearts.
I was thinking about the Hobbs family this week. I am praying not only for Kimberly's family, but for the man who
was drunk when he hit her and his family. One horrible decision, meant tragedy for two families - I pray that the Lord
grabs a hold of his heart and through this tragedy he is drawn closer to Jesus. I pray that through this tragedy the
Lord embraces the Hobbs family through the love of friends around them and they are not consumed with bitterness for this
man.
Only the Lord knows what are days are ... I hope with each day we desire to draw closer to Him, I pray
with each decision I make that it is something that will not only be pleasing to God, but will draw me closer to His Word
and that I am a better example for my children. I hope that if someday I am faced with a valley that I do not harbor
bitterness in my heart and that Jesus' light will shine and I can show love and forgiveness. Life goes by so quickly.
Let you light shine for Christ. I was talking to someone yesterday and the comment was made that "so and so is
50 something years old, they will never change" You know, I was wrong when I said that - it really is never too
late to change our ways if we have the desire to change that is!
I
hope you all have a blessed Wednesday. Please pray for Rachel Stone (health issues) and please also pray for Gill who
leaves on a mission trip today for 6 months in Ethiopia. Continue to remember Presley Melton, Ms. Ruskowski, Bobbie Hanlon as well
as the Hobbs and Craven Families. Thank you all. Love, Tracy
Living for Christ "He replied, "Isaiah
was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
" 'These people honor me with their
lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.
'You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men." And he said to them: "You
have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions! For Moses said, 'Honor
your father and your mother, 'and, 'Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death. But you say
that if a man says to his father or mother: 'Whatever help you might otherwise have received from me is Corban' (that
is, a gift devoted to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. Thus you nullify the word of
God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that." Again Jesus
called the crowd to him and said, "Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean'
by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.' (Mark 7:6-15
NIV)
I was reading this verse this morning
and I was thinking about all the times I say things that are not pleasing to God. It crushes my soul when I do that,
however unintentional, it happens. I like how the Message puts this - Jesus answered, "Isaiah was right about frauds
like you, hit the bull's-eye in fact:
These people make a big show of saying the right thing, but their
heart isn't in it. They act like they are worshiping me, but they don't mean it. They just use me as
a cover for teaching whatever suits their fancy, Ditching God's command and taking up the latest fads."
I like how the writer puts verses 9-13, "He went on,
"Well, good for you. You get rid of God's command so you won't be inconvenienced in following the religious fashions!
Moses said, 'Respect your father and mother,' and, 'Anyone denouncing father or mother should be killed.'
But you weasel out of that by saying that it's perfectly acceptable to say to father or mother, 'Gift! What I owed
you I've given as a gift to God,' thus relieving yourselves of obligation to father or mother. You scratch out God's
Word and scrawl a whim in its place. You do a lot of things like this." THEN ...(in 14-16) Jesus called the crowd together
again and said, "Listen now, all of you” take this to heart. It's not what you swallow that pollutes your life;
it's what you vomit” that's the real pollution."
Whatever
we put into our hearts and minds will come out of our mouths. I was telling my friends yesterday, I have been watching
a TV program for years and with each year the show develops more and more filth! I refuse to watch it anymore.
Garbage in ... garbage out. What are we putting our minds today. Are we teaching our children this way?
Especially when it comes to TV or Movies, do we actually take a stand and say, no, you are not going to watch that program
or see that movie because it goes against what we believe?! Or do we let our children watch anything just out of convenience
or because we don't want to embarrass them in front of their peers? Wouldn't you rather teach our young people
today how to handle peer pressure - by not giving in to worldly desires. Then to let them go through life thinking
well, if it embarrasses me, I can just pretend it is OK because everyone else thinks it is OK. Take a stand for Christ!
It is never too late to teach yourself and your children right from wrong.
The
time is now. We have to stop living in the fear of what other people will think of us and start living in the realization
that it only matters what Jesus thinks of us. Think about the prayers you pray each day, are they mere
words or they the words and intentions of our hearts? I hope you all have a blessed day! I have two friends that
have Dad's that need prayer, their Dad's names are Fred Brown and Jack Cannady. Please remember these two
men in prayer the Lord knows their needs. Also continue to remember Presley as she starts therapy from home. I
am sure this will be a long road for her, but I know they feel so blessed for what they have. I love you all.
Love, Tracy
Glory To God In The Highest!
"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all
people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be
a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with
the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace,
good will toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one
to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which
is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us." (Luke 2:10-15 KJV)
 As we approach the Holiday season let us not forget the true meaning that we celebrate Christmas.
As I was reading this verse this morning I was thinking about 2 Christmas programs my children like to watch each year.
One is a classic ... A Charlie Brown Christmas. I must admit, I cry each year when we watch it. I don't know
if it is Linus's soft voice as He tells his friends the true meaning of Christmas or if it is the thoughts I have about
how much we get caught up in buying gifts and kind of just minimize why we are actually celebrating that day. The birth
of Jesus Christ, who came to share the Good news and die for all who come to know Him and accept Him as their Savior!
It kind of amazes me how some people do go all out at Christmas celebrating a day of giving gifts instead of sharing with
their children the true meaning of Christ's Birth. Each year I pray that more and more people will start new traditions
with their families celebrating the Birth of Christ. Some read the Christmas story on Christmas Eve, some have a birthday
cake to celebrate His birth, others just exchange 3 gifts. Create your own Christmas tradition to celebrate the birth
of our Savior!
 The other movie is not as well known. It is a movie called Alabaster's
Song. It is written by a Christian writer, Max Lucado. A wonderful Christmas gift for any child. It is a
story about a little boy excited about what gifts he will receive on Christmas. Alabaster is the angel on top of his
Christmas tree and he comes to life one night and takes the boy on a journey through Bethlehem and he is there for the birth of Christ. Of course this is just a dream, but it is a beautiful
reminder again of why we celebrate Christmas. Oh my goodness when the angels are singing to the Lord, 'Gloria ...
Hallelujah, Glory to God - you can just picture that that is what it will be like in Heaven - it lifts your spirit!
I pray that as the days approach to
Christmas, that we discover ways to speed the Love of Jesus and that we can share with others the Good News of Jesus Christ.
That He was born one morning for you and for me that we may live eternally with God our Father! I hope you have a great
Monday. Remember those less fortunate than you today. No matter how hard it is for us today, there is someone
out there that is alone struggling without Jesus. Pray that God will direct their path today. Please remember
those that have lost a great deal this year and are in a valley this Christmas, pray that they feel the Love of Jesus surrounding
them.
Please pray for the Hunsucker family, they had a house fire last Wednesday and lost everything (including
their cat). They have 2 children (7 and 18 months). If you would like to and can give a donation please e-mail
me directly. They have mainly requested Wal-Mart gift cards since that is one stop shopping. Thank you and God
Bless you all. Love, Tracy
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