You must do your part

CYHCYL
p 38

Too often Christians have the misconception that once Christ is their Savior, he will do all the hard work of 'putting off your old self.' In reality, he gives us the means and the power to do so...and expects us to do it. One of my favorite saying on this subject is by Oswald Chambers from his popular devotional. My Utmost for His Highest" "We are in danger of forgetting that we cannot do what God does, and that God will not do what we can do."

In other wods this journey WILL take some work...we didn't get here overnight and won't be walking free and easy overnight either. Yes...God is capable...but usually that's not how He works. We seem to learn our lessons better the hard way for some reason. However He will be walking with us every step of the day.

Delight yourself in the Lord

CYHCYL
P.33

"When the core principles that guide our lives come from the Word of God and our goals flow out of a desire to glorify God, we will realize great victory and joy. It is with that perspective that we come to understand what the psalmist means when he wrote:

Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)

Do you see in this Scripture that our delight comes before we receive the desires of our heart? When our heart is connected to the heart of God, so are our desires."

How do we 'delight' ourselves in the Lord? We focus on His love for us...it shouldn't be very hard to find proof after proof of this. So...let's start counting our blessings!

The Bible tells us that we love Him because He first loved us! That's powerful stuff. Let's start accepting that love now and our hearts will be filled to the brim with love for Him.

Change your Habits Change you Life (continued)

p. 32

"Many things seem good at first glance, but if they do not draw us nearer to God and help us seek him first, they actually will lead to the death of our soul. We need to be very careful about what we let enter our mind every day. Everything matters, including books, music, television, friends, and even persistent thoughts."

Our spiritual journey is in in constant motion...when we are not moving up, we are sliding down. We need to be aware of those things that help us to 'move up' and those that don't.

Change your Habits Change you Life (continued)

p 25

"In the times that I've been the most broken, I have also been the humblest and most deperate for God. It is in this state that we are willing to surrender our will to God's and receive His instructions. In this lovely place, we cry out to our Abba Father and seek truth from His Word, and He shows us the way."


"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, o God, you will not despise." Psalm 51:17

We often try so hard to conceal our "imperfections" but yet it is exactly these 'flaws' that the Lord wants us to bring forward to Him so that He may heal them Himself. First it requires acknowledgment of our imperfection and then humility enough to know that we cannot resolve it in our own power.

We know that 'original' sin was our first parents disobedience of the Lord...but what if they had come forth at that point instead of 'hiding' from Him...would things have turned out differently? Well...we may not be able to turn back time, but the option to choose differently is available to us today. Sin is part of human nature, the legacy inherited from these same first parents...Confession and reconciliation however is part of God's plan to combat it...He died on the Cross in order to give us this priviledge.

Change Your Habits, Change Your Life: A Proven Plan for Healthy Living (9780800733315): Danna Demetre: Books

Amazon.com: Change Your Habits, Change Your Life: A Proven Plan for Healthy Living (9780800733315): Danna Demetre: Books

I have this book and will be posting on it for the next few weeks as I work my way through it. I've found in the past that this is what works best for me. I also LOVE company on the journey, so please feel free to tag along whether you have read the book or not and post your own thoughts.


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P21

"Yet, those of us who have struggled with a bad habit know it's not that easy. It often feels like we are literally programmed to carry out the same unhealthy behaviors over and over like robots. And that's because...we are programmed. After months, years, sometimes decades of practicing unhealthy habits, we have developed an autopilot response that is buried deep in the neuron pathways of our brain. So, it's time to learn (or relearn) how to biblically and healthfully reprogram yourself toward healthy thinking and living."

It was actually quite a relief to read this. After so much struggle with my weight issues, I KNEW that my eating was done on 'auto pilot'...and it just didn't fit the over eaters model in so many other books. I don't lust after food and think about it my whole waking day, it's not my number one priority and so forth...it just isn't in my conscious mind much at all...and here lays the problem for me.

My friend Heidi posted today about her experience of sliding in a snow covered street and how that compares to that out of control feeling with over eating. Maybe that's it...maybe the 'struggle' takes place uphill and that's where choices need to be made...before the sliding begins...because it's autopilot from there on

No turning back

USCCB - (NAB) - June 30, 2009:
"As soon as they had been brought outside, he was told:
'Flee for your life!
Don't look back or stop anywhere on the Plain.
Get off to the hills at once, or you will be swept away.'"

Once we get our marching orders we are to proceed full force ahead...not stalling or dwelling on what once was.

Concupiscence gives us a propensity for sin...it is only by God's grace that we can move beyond into the abundant life that God has planned for us.

YouTube - Standing on the Promises

Touching Jesus' Cloak

Loved Beyond Measure: Jun 28, 2009:

"She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd
and touched his cloak."

I was so down and out yesterday that I couldn't even make it to Church. My husband and daughter went without me. My faith is intact and I know that the Lord can still heal...but I'm beginning to understand that sometimes the healing can happen indirectly (for whatever reason He destines)...either through the prayers of others, or the healing hands of doctors...none of it is beyond God.

My husband came home from church with the following passage for me.

"She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.'"...Mark 5:29

I'm claiming it!

USCCB - NAB - Psalm 34

USCCB - NAB - Psalm 34

I will bless the LORD at all times; praise shall be always in my mouth.
3
My soul will glory in the LORD that the poor may hear and be glad.
4
Magnify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.
5
I sought the LORD, who answered me, delivered me from all my fears.
6
Look to God that you may be radiant with joy and your faces may not blush for shame.
7
In my misfortune I called, the LORD heard and saved me from all distress.
8
The angel of the LORD, who encamps with them, delivers all who fear God.
9
Learn to savor how good the LORD is; happy are those who take refuge in him.
10
Fear the LORD, you holy ones; nothing is lacking to those who fear him.
11
3 The powerful grow poor and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Praising God today for how wonderful He is...He gives hope to the hopeless and strength to the weak.

USCCB - (NAB) - June 28, 2009

USCCB - (NAB) - June 28, 2009:
"There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.
She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors
and had spent all that she had.
Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.
She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd
and touched his cloak.
She said, 'If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.'
Immediately her flow of blood dried up.
She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction."

She 'had spent ALL that she had'...oh boy...can I identify with that! I feel totally spent...all my energy and strength of body, mind and spirit seem to be completly gone. The hope that I hold on to though, is that from past experience I know that this is not a bad place to be because it is when God can do His mightiest work.

Dear Lord, let me just touch Your cloak!

USCCB - (NAB) - June 27, 2009

USCCB - (NAB) - June 27, 2009:
"Jesus entered the house of Peter,
and saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever.
He touched her hand, the fever left her,
and she rose and waited on him."

As we are healed by Him we too are to rise up and be of service to others. The blessings that the Lord bestows on us are to be passed on as we in turn become the blessing.

USCCB - (NAB) - June 26, 2009

USCCB - (NAB) - June 26, 2009:
"Reading 1
Gn 17:1, 9-10, 15-22

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him
and said: 'I am God the Almighty.
Walk in my presence and be blameless.'"

One thought pops out when reading this. Abram was 99! Wow...it is NEVER too late, and you are never too old to start walking with the Lord. To walk in His presence...means to focus on (and desire for) His will for us at each moment...it is the path to holiness.

Your Body is God's House part 2

Joyce Meyer Ministries — Broadcast

"Nothing is beyond the reach of His restoration project. Even ancient and devestated ruins can be rebuilt. As you surrender to the Master Builder you will be His apprentice repairer and restorer."

TW p66

Praise God!

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you wiht my righteous hand. (Isaiah 41:10)"

USCCB - (NAB) - June 25, 2009

USCCB - (NAB) - June 25, 2009:
"Gospel
Mt 7:21-29

Jesus said to his disciples:
'Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,'
will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day,
'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name?
Did we not drive out demons in your name?
Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?'
Then I will declare to them solemnly,
'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.'"

Today's Gospel seems kind of harsh...I mean these people were obviously doing some 'good' things. So, why do you suppose the Lord said 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers?'

I think this goes back to yesterday's message. Just because something is 'good' doesn't mean that it is good for us. We need to be in relationship with Our Lord and listen to His voice and will for our own lives. You have to know Him, before you can know what He wants from you.

Sitting Tight : A Catholic Reflection: "'Go back...and submit.' –Genesis 16:9
God told Abram: 'Don't just do something, sit there.' God did not need Abram to have a son by Sarai's maid to help God fulfill His promises (see Gn 15:4). Then Sarai's maid, Hagar, tried to help God protect her by fleeing into the wilderness. God told her to go back and stay put (Gn 16:9). Sometimes the best thing we can do is nothing. For example, the Lord told Moses that He would fight for the Israelites against the Egyptians. Moses had 'only to keep still' (Ex 14:14). Isaiah prophesied: 'By waiting and by calm you shall be saved, in quiet and in trust your strength lies' (Is 30:15)."

Here is an excerpt from Uniformity with God's Will by St. Alphonsus Liguori: Please go read the entire thing...it is awesome.

"Perfection is founded entirely on the love of God: “Charity is the bond of perfection22 Col. 3:14.;” and perfect love of God means the complete union of our will with God’s: “The principal effect of love is so to unite the wills of those who love each other as to make them will the same things33 St. Denis Areop. De Div. Nom. c. 4..” It follows then, that the more one unites his will with the divine will, the greater will be his love of God. Mortification, meditation, receiving Holy Communion, acts of fraternal charity are all certainly pleasing to God—but only when they are in accordance with his will. When they do not accord with God’s will, he not only finds no pleasure in them, but he even rejects them utterly and punishes them.

To illustrate:—A man has two servants. One works unremittingly all day long— but according to his own devices; the other, conceivably, works less, but he does do what he is told. This latter of course is going to find favor in the eyes of his master; the other will not. Now, in applying this example, we may ask: Why should we perform actions for God’s glory if they are not going to be acceptable to him? God does not want sacrifices, the prophet Samuel told King Saul, but he does want obedience to his will: “Doth the Lord desire holocausts and victims, and not rather that the voice of the Lord should be obeyed? For obedience is better than sacrifices; and to hearken, rather than to offer the fat of rams. Because it is like the sin of witchcraft to rebel; and like the crime of idolatry to refuse to obey44 1 Kings, 15:22, 23..” Theman who follows his own will independently of God’s, is guilty of a kind of idolatry. Instead of adoring God’s will, he, in a certain sense, adores his own."

This next excerpt really spoke to me. I like what he has to say about making use of 'ordinary remedies'.

4. It is especially necessary that we be resigned in corporal infirmities. We should willingly embrace them in the manner and for the length of time that God wills. We ought to make use of the ordinary remedies in time of sickness— such is God’s will; but if they are not effective, let us unite ourselves to God’s will and this will be better for us than would be our restoration to health. Let us say: “Lord, I wish neither to be well nor to remain sick; I want only what thou wilt.” Certainly, it is more virtuous not to repine in times of painful illness; still and all, when our sufferings are excessive, it is not wrong to let our friends know what we are enduring, and also to ask God to free us from our sufferings. Let it be understood, however, that the sufferings here referred to are actually excessive. It often happens that some, on the occasion of a slight illness, or even a slight indisposition, want the whole world to stand still and sympathize with them in their illnesses.

USCCB - NAB - Psalm 139

USCCB - NAB - Psalm 139:

"You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother's womb.
14
I praise you, so wonderfully you made me; wonderful are your works!"

It is often much easier to appreciate God's handiwork 'out there'...in nature, in art and music...in babies...but in us? Our own bodies are also part of God's creation. Today I'm going to praise Him and give Him thanks for mine...instead of whining and complaining.

Watch Joyce Meyer Ministries — Broadcast. Today's message is 'Your Body is God's House'.

A Different Road

"He wants so much for you to experience the fullness of His plan by aligning your goals and vision with His plans for you."
--TW p66

I got this incredible 'light bulb moment' earlier where I got a clear sense of what 'the narrow path' is. Maybe this is common sense to everyone else, but I'm a bit slow with these things. The 'narrow path' is whatever God's will for me is. The wider path is anything outside that will...doesn't mean it is necessarily bad, just not what I'm being called at the moment. It is the path of God's provision. It is about walking in relationship with Him.

A Different Road

I’ve traveled long
I’ve traveled hard
And stumbled many times along the way
I’ve bruised my knees a lot
And turned my back on God
And seen His mercy
I’ve been quick to judge
And slow to learn
So many times I’ve gotten in the way
I think I know so much
I’ve questioned God enough
But still He loves me

So now I’ll walk a different road
I want to see Him there before I even go
I’ve run ahead and gone too slow
I’ve got to be still now
Wait upon His will now
This time,
It’s gonna be His time

Don’t want to live without
The peace that comes to me
When I am by His side
I’ve known the freedom there
Can’t find it anywhere
But in Christ Jesus
I believe He’s got a plan
Everything in His time
I may not always understand
Everything in His time
Everything in His time

by K. Troccoli, B. Sudano, N. DiGesare

The Narrow Gate

USCCB - (NAB) - June 23, 2009:

"'Enter through the narrow gate;
for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction,
and those who enter through it are many.
How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life.
And those who find it are few.'"

Often being a disciple of Jesus means walking a path that is not popular.

TW Day 7 (moving forward)

"The person on the path of God's provision, as we have seen, may experience a 'two steps foward and one back' movement, but the direction is set. This person moves forward confident of God's love and acceptance through the cross of Christ. His or her life doesn't reflect an 'on again-off again' experience, as the cross of Christ is a stabilizing force. His confidence is not in his own flesh, but in God's blessed provision. This person learns from her steps backward through observation and correction. No 'failure' is beyond God's ability to redeem or His desire to make good. This person isn't perfect by any means, but he or she moves forward trusting in God even after experiencing a setback."

Sometimes we find ourselves smack in the middle of the desert, where we don't seem to be making much progress forward at all. But the thing to remember is to get our eyes off of our own 'flesh' and how much WE are accomplishing...and set our eyes 'in God's blessed provision' and the work that He is doing within us.

YouTube - "The Blessing" by John Waller

Go forth

USCCB - (NAB) - June 22, 2009:
"Reading 1
Gn 12:1-9

The LORD said to Abram:
'Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk
and from your father's house to a land that I will show you.

'I will make of you a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you
and curse those who curse you.
All the communities of the earth
shall find blessing in you.'"

The Lord is not saying...I'm going to bless you greatly and THEN you can GO FORTH and do as I say. That's not how it works. If we wait for that, we may be sitting on our laurels for quite a while. The strength and the grace come as we activate our faith in obedience. We need to step out of 'the land of our kinsfolk' which is whatever our 'comfort zone' is and march directly to 'the land' that He will show us.