Gone Fishing!

By Donna McCrary –

“It is time to go.” My Dad would whisper. I rubbed my eyes under the dim light of the stars still shining through the window. A surge of excitement catapulted me out of bed. I knew time was ticking, and if I waited too long, he would leave without me. I would quietly race down the hill to catch up with him as he completed his final trip to the dock, loaded down with the necessary tackle for a great day of fishing. I proudly claimed my seat in the back of the boat as we set out on our adventure.

I loved fishing! But I never caught a fish that opened its mouth and spit out a coin. No, never did.

But Simon Peter did.

Jesus told Peter, “Go to the sea, cast in a fishhook, and catch the first fish that comes up. When you open its mouth you’ll find a coin” (Matthew 17:27).

As I read this story in Matthew, I just laughed. Can you imagine Jesus telling Peter, a skilled fisherman, to go fishing for money? Crazy! Even silly! Why would Jesus, the man who healed the sick, cast out demons, turned water to wine, made the blind see, tell Peter to go fishing for money

I would have laughed at my dad like he was crazy if he told me to drop my hook in the water because I was going to catch a fish with a coin in its mouth.

Any little girl can tell you money does not grow on trees. And fish don’t burp coins!

Peter was obedient and went faith fishing. He trusted Jesus would provide even in the craziest way. He also did his part to receive the coin.

Having faith and taking action are two simple steps for a great blessing.

If I was Peter, would I have gone fishing? Would I have trusted Jesus to provide through a fish, or would I ask for a simpler way? Would I be obedient and dig out my fishing tackle, go to the ocean, and cast my line? Or would I just go home? Would I be willing to stand on the shore and wait on the fish to bite or would I give up on God’s timing?

Sometimes God tells us to go fishing. It is up to us to take it from there.

PRAYER: “Lord, help me to know Your voice and grow my faith so I will take action, even when it sounds like the craziest thing to do!”

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 HCSB).

When Life Gives You Lemons make Limoncello

By Elaine James –

When my family and I arrived in Naples, Italy we found out our luggage was lost. We had to leave to get to Sorrento. After 24 hours, we got back from a tour and were ready to change clothes, but to our dismay our luggage was not there.

Immediately, I was freaking out inside. Trying not to yell at the front desk girl, as she was our interpreter, but it was becoming increasingly harder. She presented the only solution, which was for my husband to travel an hour to the Naples Airport. But, not only would they not bring the luggage, they refused to pay for the driver.

Still, I could not calm down. I wanted to be a good sport in front of the front desk girl and my children, but was failing. I hid in the bathroom, praying that God would help me to let this go and accept the situation.

My husband left with the driver. My kids said “Mom, stop. What is the big deal?” I yelped back “The big deal is we only have so much time and we can’t miss being together. Time is wasting.”
I was so disappointed in myself that I just couldn’t get it together, but we decided to go to dinner while my husband was gone, leaving a note for him to explain where we were.

My mood lightened as we ate delicious food. We actually started to laugh. As we finished, my husband appeared in the doorway with a huge grin and spring in his step. “What is going on?” I asked.

He told us about his adventure with an Italian driver. There were no glitches to get the luggage, they were just in and out. The driver, with his broken English, reported on the history of the town and their great produce: lemons.

What seemed like a “sour” part of our trip suddenly turned around and become quite “sweet.” The driver offered his family’s secret recipe of Limoncello. My husband was so excited, and I was filled with peace when I saw how God took care of everything.

I apologized to my family. I learned that when life gives you lemons, you can either get emotionally worked up or wait it out and accept the things you cannot change. And my husband learned when life gives you lemons, make Limoncello!

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55: 9 NIV)

Get a Grip

By Elaine James –

I like this! “Send me some more like this and we can probably do an e-book,” the editor stated.

I was so excited, so I took the next months to edit and rewrite all 31 devotions. That moment of truth had come for the manuscript was just an “enter” away on my computer. I said a prayer “Lord may these writings bless others and may You get all the glory.”

On January 2nd of this past year, I received in my inbox an e-mail from my Editor. I breathed deeply and opened it. It stated “Elaine, our board passed on your Devotions proposal.” They went on to give a statement of what they were looking for and some suggestions to my future writings.

My son writes music for songs. He has experienced rejection too. It is not easy.

What do you do when you experience rejection? After you’ve put everything you have into a project, but still feel as if you are not moving forward.

Stop. Step back. Take a deep breath. And pray!

Sometimes, I beg God to show me what is going on. Am I off track? Am I doing the wrong thing?

But I know God has brought me to this point.

Have you been praying for your own journey? Then why would God steer you the wrong way?

There are the right people out there who will appreciate you and your work. Just wait! Wait until God shows you. Don’t believe any other words. Trust God, who placed you on this path.

Maybe it is time to just praise and worship God and stop making requests as to how He should respond. Just spend time with Him. Relax, God is not done yet!

Be wise. Continue, and praise the Lord in all circumstances.

“Praise the LORD, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, my soul” (Psalm 103:1-2b).

Resisting Stillness

By Rosemary Flaaten –

I felt the blood draining out of my legs as they dangled over the hard wooden pew. Confined to my limited square footage, I simply wanted to wiggle and squirm in an attempt to find a spot where my bottom could feel some reprieve, but instead my mother’s strong hand rested on my knee as a means of quieting my movement. Sitting still in church was a requirement, but seemingly next to impossible for me as five year old.

Roll forward forty years—I still find it hard to sit quietly. All my kids had flown the coup leaving an empty nest. There were no mounds of dirty laundry to wash and sort. There were no groceries to replenish. There were no slamming doors or buzzing cell phones. The house was quiet. Life was still.

But my soul was not.

The passage “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10 NIV) always makes me squirm. I am a doer. I like to accomplish things and prefer the verse “Faith without works is dead.” (James 2:26 NKV). But how can I reconcile my physical need for action with my spiritual need for stillness? They seem to be at odds with each other.

I am learning that when I discipline myself to sit quietly in the presence of God, He quiets my spirit, allowing my mind, heart and soul to breathe deeply, slowing the frenetic pace of my mental acrobats. I experience the truth of Psalm 131:2 “But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me.” (NIV). The gentle hand of my Father rests on my knee, not to chastise me, but to say “Be still. I want to fill you with my love, peace and direction, but its next to impossible to fill a moving vessel. Be still and know Me.”

I am still not good at sitting and doing nothing, but I now relish the quiet moments of each day, when I can soak up the presence of my Heavenly Father. It is from that place of quietness and stillness that I am rejuvenated in spirit and become ready to take on the world.

PRAYER: Father, calm my thoughts and banish my worries. Help me to experience the reality of Your love and approval as I sit and soak up Your presence.

“He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters” (Psalm 23:2 NIV).

Chosen

By Cheri Cowell –

I often heard my mother-in-law recall the tragic day they lost all they owned in a house fire. It happened right after Christmas and the children had just received new bikes. Of all the things in the house, they chose to try to save the bikes but were unable to do so. Over the years, however, it was not the bikes she missed, it was the little things. Photos were at the top of the list of things she wished they had saved. Though these things were forever lost, it was her family she cherished the most.

Recently, after watching news coverage of people returning to find what nature left behind after fires, floods, and tornados, I was reminded how blessed I am. Yes, I am blessed to be in a home surrounded by the things I cherish, but more importantly, I am blessed because of my relationships. I am blessed by my family and many wonderful friends. And even more than all of that, I am blessed because regardless what disaster may strike, I have been chosen, and so have you.

What are our spiritual blessings?

Eternal life, freedom in Christ, forgiveness, unconditional love, and the right to be called sons and daughters of God and a brother or sister of Christ, are a few. We didn’t receive these blessings because we live in the right neighborhood, were born into the right family, or follow the rules of faith. We received them because in God’s grace, He chose us. He chose us to walk blameless regardless of how much we deserve to be blamed; and to be holy, even as He is holy–not because we are, but because He is.

How blessed we are no matter what disaster we may encounter.

PRAYER: Thank You, God for Your richest of blessings, including my life in Christ. Thank You for choosing me and help me remember my spiritual blessings when at times it seems all earthly blessings are burning, washing, or blowing away.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight” (Ephesians 1:3-4 NIV).

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