Scripture to Ponder

This is the day the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Psalms 118:24


Saturday, January 25, 2014

I Am a Christian

When I say that "I am a Christian," I am not shouting that "I am clean living." I'm whispering "I was lost, but now I'm found and forgiven."

When I say "I am a Christian," I don't speak of this with pride. I'm confessing that I stumbled and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say "I am a Christian," I'm not trying to be strong. I'm professing that I'm weak and need His strength to carry on.

When I say "I am a Christian," I'm not bragging of success. I'm admitting I have failed and need God to clean my mess.

When I say "I am a Christian," I'm not claiming to be perfect. My flaws are far too visible, but God believes I am worth it.

When I say "I am a Christian," I still feel the sting of pain. I have my share of heartaches, so I call upon His name.

When I say "I am a Christian," I'm not holier than thou. I'm just a simple sinner who received God's good grace, somehow!
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I took a snapshot of this poem in a nurse's office while waiting to see a doctor in Beaumont. I can't remember the name of the nurse, but appreciate that she allowed me to take the picture. She did not know the author, but hope you like it as much as I did.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

10 Things God Won't Ask You

When you die, 10 things GOD won't ask you: 

1..... God won't ask what kind of car you drove. He'll ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation..
2..... God won't ask the square footage of your house, He'll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.
3..... God won't ask about the clothes you had in your closet, He'll ask how many you helped clothe. 4..... God won't ask what your highest salary was. He'll ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.
5..... God won't ask what your job title was. He'll ask if you performed your job to the best of your ability.
6..... God won't ask how many friends you had. He'll ask how many people to whom you were a friend.
7..... God won't ask in what neighborhood you lived, He'll ask how you treated your neighbors.
8..... God won't ask about the color of your skin, He'll ask about the content of your character.
9..... God won't ask why it took you so long to find Him and ask Him into your house, He'll lovingly take you to heaven and not to the gates of Hell.
10..... God won't have to ask how many people you forwarded this to, He already knows your decision.

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Hobby Lobby Closing Stores on Principles

Hobby Lobby Founder-May Close ALL Stores The wisdom that comes from above is first, pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruit, without uncertainty or insincerity. James 3:17 By David Green, the founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. When my family and I started our company 40 years ago, we were working out of a garage on a $600 bank loan, assembling miniature picture frames. Our first retail store wasn't much bigger than most people's living rooms, but we had faith that we would succeed if we lived and worked according to God's word. From there, Hobby Lobby has become one of the nation's largest arts and crafts retailers, with more than 500 locations in 41 states. Our children grew up into fine business leaders, and today we run Hobby Lobby together, as a family. We're Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles. I've always said that the first two goals of our business are (1) to run our business in harmony with God's laws, and (2) to focus on people more than money. And that's what we've tried to do. We close early so our employees can see their families at night. We keep our stores closed on Sundays, one of the week's biggest shopping days, so that our workers and their families can enjoy a day of rest. We believe that it is by God's grace that Hobby Lobby has endured, and he has blessed us and our employees. We've not only added jobs in a weak economy, we've raised wages for the past four years in a row. Our full-time employees start at 80% above minimum wage. But now, our government threatens to change all of that. A new government healthcare mandate says that our family business MUST provide what I believe are abortion-causing drugs as part of our health insurance. Being Christians, we don't pay for drugs that might cause abortions, which means that we don't cover emergency contraception, the morning-after pill or the week-after pill. We believe doing so might end a life after the moment of conception, something that is contrary to our most important beliefs. It goes against the Biblical principles on which we have run this company since day one. If we refuse to comply, we could face $1.3 million PER DAY in government fines. Our government threatens to fine job creators in a bad economy. Our government threatens to fine a company that's raised wages four years running. Our government threatens to fine a family for running its business according to its beliefs. It's not right. I know people will say we ought to follow the rules; that it's the same for everybody. But that's not true. The government has exempted thousands of companies from this mandate, for reasons of convenience or cost. But it won't exempt them for reasons of religious belief. So, Hobby Lobby and my family are forced to make a choice. With great reluctance, we filed a lawsuit today, represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, asking a federal court to stop this mandate before it hurts our business. We don't like to go running into court, but we no longer have a choice. We believe people are more important than the bottom line and that honoring God is more important than turning a profit. My family has lived the American dream. We want to continue growing our company and providing great jobs for thousands of employees, but the government is going to make that much more difficult. The government is forcing us to choose between following our faith and following the law. I say that's a choice no American and no American business should have to make. The government cannot force you to follow laws that go against your fundamental religious belief. They have exempted thousands of companies but will not except Christian organizations including the Catholic church. Since you will not see this in the liberal media, please pass this on to all your contacts. Sincerely, David Green CEO and Founder of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. Did you ever think we would be discussing something like this in the land of free and home of the brave? "Freedom is not free . . . but the U.S. Militar

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Four Valuable Things My Daughter Learned From Playing With American Girl Dolls

Four Valuable Things My Daughter Learned From Playing With American Girl Dolls Wow, great article on the positive things about your little ones playing with the American Dolls!

Love That Laminin

It's been a while since I first saw this video. It was shared in a combined devotional with our Maintenance Department and several of us from Technology. I really miss those lunches when we came together and shared God's word. Those were some great times. Here is a GodTube video that came to mind as I was thinking about how GOD looks down on us and considers everything we do. He reads from Psalms 33 and Colossians 1. Great clip that is worth the 8 minutes of listening. The BEST part of course is at the end.

Louie Giglio - Laminin from thefacelesswarrior on GodTube.

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Inspiration for 2014

It was hard to get back to the 'working' world! I enjoyed my time off so much and the best part about it, I unplugged myself from too much technology and tried to enjoy family, friends, and the simple things. I was reading God's word and other material online and in books. So much emphasis lately is getting back to the basics or the SIMPLE things in life. I like simple. I am a simple, country girl and love being outdoors, enjoying God's creations. I ran across this poster of brainstorming for INSPIRATION in 2014. I think most of these things can be applied to your Christian life, don't you think? I love the tips and will review them to make sure I am applying them in 2014. They fit right in with the 'simple' life.