No More Running

I Surrender-2

This theme of running has been going on for quite a while in my life. I have been running from past mistakes, hurts, fears, disappointments, and the unknown.
Recently, everything I have been reading and experiencing shouts to me the same thing, "Surrender, stop running, give in and let go"!
As a strong-willed woman this is no easy task! For years I would pride myself with the, " I can do it by myself, I got it" attitude. Just the typical outwardly self-assured and confident superwoman complex. But inside when the façade is down there's insecurity and doubt.

The truth is God did not make us so that we could be self-sufficient. He created us to be in relationship with Him.
He is the creator, we are the created.
He is the vine, we are the branches.
He is the potter, we are the clay.
He alone gives life eternal!

Are you ready to stop running? 
I have been bombarded with this theme of surrender and what I've been reading has shook me up! I love how God connects the dots for us.

All In by Mark Batterson. One of his phrases that stuck with me is " Are you following Jesus or are you asking Jesus to follow you? "

Undaunted by Christine Cane  She's challenging me to trust God, to let go and let him lead.

Several months ago we hosted the IF Gathering at our church. You can read more about IF here.   The premise behind IF is simple. "If God is real, then we want to live like it

Notice a theme?

God wants us to live a surrendered life, to stop running from ...............and let Him lead, guide, redefine us redirect us, restore us and reinvigorate us!
I am so glad that God has given us scripture that tells us how we can surrender daily to Him.

I Surrender


Surrender your Emotions

Luke 10:38-42  Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” 
Martha wanted Jesus to be just as upset as she was!

Question: How can I surrender my emotions to Jesus?


Surrender your Plans

Luke 22:41-42  He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed,  “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.
Jesus could have run from this call, instead He prayed and gave His life for us.

Question: How can you daily surrender your plans to the Lord?


Surrender your Pride

John 13:12-17 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.  “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.  Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Jesus gave us an example that he wants us to follow.

Question: What area of pride needs to be surrendered to Him today?


Surrender your Selfishness

Phil. 2:3-4 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,  not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Question: How can you show the love of Jesus by putting someone else before yourself?


Surrender your Anger

1 Peter 3:8-9 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.  Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

Question: Who can you bless instead of harboring anger towards?


Honestly I could go on and on! Please don't be overwhelmed. If you will just pick one of these areas to surrender and offer it before the Lord I believe you will see change. Let's stop running together and live our lives surrendered to Him.


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Running from Discipline

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This is certainly not a popular word -Discipline

It brings with it all kinds of images some healthy and others not healthy. Before we talk about what discipline is I want to be clear, I am Not talking about Punishment. Discipline is not punishment. Discipline is training, correcting, recreating, smoothing out the rough spots. Disciplining is an act of love.

Let's chat today about the discipline that is required to become stronger in your faith. The Bible talks about an athlete training their body, getting it into shape.  As we  do a word study today on  discipline maybe it will help us figure out why we run from discipline.

I suppose some of this comes from what I watched last night America Ninja Warrior. I can just hear the announcers as they say it in that very dramatic voice.
I love the show. I love it because I know these people have worked hard and they're doing things that there's no way my body could ever do!

Athlete after athlete competed in events that they have trained for. Some of the events have been common in the past and there are brand-new ones that they just have to adapt to in the midst of the competition. I was glued to the television watching these athletes who are strong agile fail one after another. Only a handful of the over 40 competitors made it to the ending of this initial competition.

We can Discipline our body to be stronger.
I love biking and as I have begun this season I realized quickly that I am so out of shape.  Hills are so much taller, longer and it takes me a long time to get up them! It is frustrating to admit that I was undisciplined over the winter months to exercise. Now is the season of discipline! If I want to bike longer,and faster I must train!  It means my body is going to be sore, I'm going to be slower and it's going to take a while to get back into shape. Discipline is key if I want to become stronger!

Ever wonder why we run from discipline?

Scripture tells us that God disciplines those He loves but we still run. Do any of these ring true for you?
We run because we think it might be painful
We run because we just don't want to do it
We run because we want control
We run because we are comfortable and don't want to change
We run because we've always run from discipline

 God uses discipline in our lives for many reasons.

Discipline is a blessing, God uses it to correct and teach us.
“Blessed is the one whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. Job 5:17
Blessed is the one you discipline, LORD, the one you teach from your law; Psalm 94:12

Discipline Points others to God. When we listen to Him.
Whoever heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others astray. Pro. 10:17

Discipline helps us understand God.
Those who disregard discipline despise themselves, but the one who heeds correction gains understanding. Proverbs 15:32

Discipline requires a response from us
Yet they did not listen or pay attention; they were stiff-necked and would not listen or respond to discipline. Jeremiah 17:23

Discipline is a sign that you are God's child.
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? Hebrews 12:7

Discipline produces righteousness and peace.
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:11
I love how the Message puts this!
 In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed! So don’t feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children? 
My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline,
but don’t be crushed by it either.
It’s the child he loves that he disciplines;
the child he embraces, he also corrects.

God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God. Hebrews 12:4-11
If you have been running from discipline, remember that today can be the day that you stop. Ask God where He wants you to grow and ask Him to show you how to submit that area to Him.

The next blog post will discuss living a life that is surrendered to Jesus.  No more running.

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Running from the Pain



After several lessons about a wonderful book, Pancakes for Supper, the first grade teachers and I decided to have a culminating event by making pancakes with the first grade classes. This required strategic planning of materials, staff and more importantly the group of children that each of us would be supervising. Let's just say that some of our first grade students do not have much impulse control!  After setting up the tables with pancake mix, water, measuring cups, wooden spoons, spatulas and electric griddles we were ready to discuss the activity with the students.
With as stern of a voice that I could muster I repeated this phrase several times. "Do not touch the griddle, it is hot and you will get burned." Convinced that we were ready to begin the pancakes making began.
We stirred the batter and talked about the hot griddle several more times. Before I could even pour the batter on to the griddle one of my most impulsive students reached out and touched the griddle with his finger. When I asked him why he would do that he said that he just wanted to see if it really was hot!  For the remainder of the class he had his one blistered finger in a glass of cold water. When he had to take his finger out of the water, because it was time to go home he began to cry, "It hurts, I don't want to take it out!"

This little boy reminded me of how we run from pain. After we have done what we know is not good for us or what God has told us not to do we experience pain. We will try anything to avoid the pain of our consequences. The problem with running is that we can never out run God!
My good friend Wayne Anderson used to say, "The hound of heaven will catch up to you!"
Today I went for a bike ride. Usually this time of year I begin my exercise routine of longer and longer rides. The first ones are excruciating because my body is not in shape. It's not too difficult to talk me out of riding at first because I know that it can be painful. Sometimes I run from the pain of training.

The disciples knee-deep in the midst of spiritual training with Jesus had many times when they probably wanted to run from the pain of learning the same lessons over and over again. They were with Jesus in the town of Bethsaida along with the crowd of people on the mountainside. Imagine the pain that they felt when Jesus turned to them and said, "You give them something to eat!" (Luke 9:13) or when they had to collect all of the leftover baskets of food!

Some people are like the Samaritan woman who ran from the pain of being alone. As Jesus unfolds her story in John 4 we learn that she has been running from one relationship to another.

Perhaps it's just human nature to run from consequences! I think that this may have been the reason behind this verse.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. I John 1:9


Jesus knows how and why we run from the consequences and calls us to just fess up so He can clean us up!

Just like the father who ran to meet His prodigal son, God runs to embrace you as you come close to Him. He will stand with you in the midst of whatever consequences that you have to endure whispering, " I am with you always".

Isn't it time to stop running?



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Running from Forgiveness Part 2

 Grace

Sometimes the hardest person to forgive is yourself.

Do any of these resonate with you?
If only I hadn't done....
Why do I keep on sinning?
I am not good enough to be in the presence of God.
How could He ever choose me after what I've done?
There's no going back now.
I am so stupid!
I have caused so much pain, how can I ever face them?
What have I done?
Extending God's grace to myself can be difficult because I know the depth of my sin.  Oh how I've let him down, let others down and gone back on my word.
Gratefully we don't have to look very far in Scripture to find others who feel the same way

David cries out to God, "You, God, know my folly; my guilt is not hidden from you. Psalm 69:5

We all struggle with God's forgiveness

Here's where the good news comes in. There is a path to forgiveness that begins with Jesus himself.

If you can get yourself to face him, to come into His presence, to look into His loving eyes, you would know

The depth of His love for you
His arms are open wide
His tear filled eyes understand your pain
Come child, come and rest. Give me your burdens, He whispers
You can stop running.

I love you, I forgive you, now let's Move On!

I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you." Isaiah 44:22

It's time to stop and hating on yourself and let God's grace fill you, restore you and lead you.


Running from Forgiveness


Forgive-2
I can never forgive this person for what they have done! I remember vividly saying that about the man who had abused me when I was a child. For years I pushed people away because I was afraid of getting too close, too vulnerable, open to being hurt again. I held on to the forgiveness because then I had control! I wish that I had learned the truth about forgiveness earlier. Even after I had become a Christian this hidden area in my heart was difficult to let go of. I had been running for so long with the pain of what happened to me that I could not see, comprehend or experience the forgiveness that was offered to me.  If I couldn’t take it in than I could never extend it to someone else.
I was running because I knew what God’s word said. I was to forgive others in the same way that I had been forgiven. It’s straightforward, plain and simple, no doubt about it, we are called to forgive .
For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. Matthew 6:14 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 
Forgetting was difficult! He didn’t deserve forgiveness! Surely God was not asking me to forgive this man. But the closer I got to Jesus, the more I studied his word, it was clear that God was calling me to extend grace and forgiveness to someone else. That was not my plan and it made absolutely no sense to me. But isn’t that the way things are with the kingdom of God? It may seem like foolishness to others but God always has a plan and a purpose behind what He calls us to do. Often we run from forgiving others because it’s incomprehensible to us.
I’m not running from forgiving anymore. God has melted away that area and instead has replaced it with a new hope, purpose and joy. He has removed the barriers that had so long caged me in given me instead the ability to get close to others. If I would’ve kept on running,  I would have missed out on what God wanted to fill me with.
  • Grace
  • Hope
  • Joy
  • Peace
  • and the ability to draw close to others.
It’s interesting that when we forgive others how much easier it is to except the forgiveness that Jesus offers to us.
Is there someone you need to forgive today? If you don’t have the strength to do it that’s okay because Jesus wants to come alongside of you and help you with that.
And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.  2 Corinthians 12:9-10
I’d love to hear your story about forgiving someone and what happened because of it.


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Running from His Call


I became a Christian at the age of 14. I'll never forget the night Dan Webster our Youth Pastor spoke about God's love for us and that he wanted to be our ultimate Daddy. This spoke directly to my heart and pulled me into the arms of Jesus. As a young Christian I thought that my life would be filled with hugs and kisses, sitting on my father's lap. God would be a daddy that would protect and care for me. Giving me lots of love.  While He is all of that, there is so much more to following Him.

Through the years I have learned much about and struggled with obedience, following His call, going to make disciples and dealing with unrelenting sin in my life. At times following Jesus is simply a response to my deep love for Him and at other times, it's difficult to follow the call that He has set before us.

Once again I am grateful that he has revealed to us people in His word who have struggled with following his call. On the last blog I shared about Jonah who ran from God. He ran because he didn't like the call that was extended to him. Today I'd like to look at a couple of others who are mentioned in the Bible who had difficulty following His call and instead ran in one way or another. 1Moses had excuses of why he wasn't strong enough. (Exodus 3:11) Jeremiah when told by God that he was to be a prophet to the nations declared that  “I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.”  Jeremiah 1:6  I love God's response when Jeremiah tries to run from His call But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you.  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord. Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth.  See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” Jeremiah 1:7-10
God is intimately aware at how He has gifted us and knows that He will be with us. He is the one who has appointed us! We will not fail if we will just listen and follow His lead.

I desire to be obedient when I hear the voice of God asking me to do something or directing me in a path. I want to say, "Yes Lord,", but I struggle sometimes to do it immediately, and at other times it may take me a month or two or even a year or two. Today I went to have my hair done.  Honestly it is one of my favorite things to do! I was too late to see my regular stylist so I had to wait for whoever was available.  When the woman came over to me I was nervous because I had never been under her care before. Quickly into our session I realized that God had brought me into the salon for her. Here lies the problem, I didn't want to be "on" today. I was tired and wanted to have a restful, relaxing time.  Instead, I was smack in the middle of a woman who was shattered inside and crying out for someone to listen. I heard the call to love her, to share God's love with her and I battled for a few moments if I should.  I had just met her and she was holding my hair in her hands! You know God won! He reminded me as she was sharing her heartache with me that He would fight for her. I was able to bless her with His love and His promise. Thank you God for always reminding me to follow your lead!

Let's dive into this together. How willing are you to follow His call in these areas?

  • Forgiving others 
  • Serving when you're tired 
  • Stepping out of your comfort zone 
  • Moving to a new city, state or country 
  • Sharing your testimony with others 
  • Talking about Jesus 
  • Praying with others 
  • Loving the unlovely 
  • Giving up your rights 
If you had difficulty answering Yes Lord to any of these, why not ask the Lord to soften your heart today? 

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Running From Him

Still Running
This is not a popular topic, running from God. However, if we are honest we are guilty of it from time to time. Interestingly the thing is that we don’t have to run an all out sprint, it may be that we run away in little ways. We turn from Him and turn towards other things.
I can pour myself into things. When I am all in, then I see nothing else. Projects are my favorite way to run from God. When my body and mind are fully occupied with a project then there is little time to reflect on what God has asked me to do.
Picture me in my cooking apron, in a mess of a kitchen because when I cook there is food everywhere! I have a plan of attack and we are going to get it done! Spaghetti sauce is simmering and bubbling on the stove, muffins are baking in the oven, and I am cutting up chicken for my next cooking masterpiece, I begin to hear God whisper, “I miss you, Come and rest”. I brush that thought aside and continue in the direction of my cooking plan. After all, I have wonderful food to prepare! On the radio a song that reminds me of how good it is to be in God’s presence comes on and I enjoy it for the moment then rush to take out the muffins. Two hours later I am exhausted from the cooking and cleaning, but feel proud of what I have accomplished. Deep inside I am a little sad, He was here and I ran to my need to be busy. I chose to not acknowledge Him.

Jonah ran

Jonah was scared to do what God had asked him to do so he simply ran away!
But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD. Jonah 1:3

He ended up in a very fishy situation!

I couldn’t resist!  Imagine finding yourself in the wet, stinky, dark belly of a whale! Scripture says that he was there for 3 days and nights! I would imagine that he had time to ponder his reasons for running from God.

Then He called out to God

He said: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry. Jonah 2:2
I love this.  It doesn’t matter why we run, what we are running from or running to. Our God listens when we cry out to Him.  He is gracious and abounding in love.

The truth is none can run from God. 

Can anyone hide himself in secret places, So I shall not see him?” says the Lord; “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord. Jeremiah 23:24
It’s time we just admit that we are like 2 year olds who think that if we put our heads under the blanket that God will not see us. Why not just come out of hiding, stop our running and just spill whatever we have on our hearts before the Lord. We would save ourselves a lot of heartache if we will just stop and acknowledge Him.
You have searched me, Lord,
and you know me.
You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
 Before a word is on my tongue
you, Lord, know it completely.
 You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
Psalm 139:1-8

Questions to Reflect on

  • Are you Running from God today?
  • Where have you fled to?
  • What would it look like if you stopped and called out to Him?
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The Hiding


I can think of no greater place to acquire a clear picture of distancing oneself from God than in Genesis.
Adam and Eve had everything we crave closeness, intimacy, communion and perfect communication with the God of the universe, then In what must have seemed like an instant everything changed.

We know the story: the tree, the apple the sin and inevitably the separation.

The Hiding occurs when we see our sin

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Genesis 3:7
For Adam and Eve it began with covering their nakedness. Before this they were naked and not afraid. Sin changed everything about their relationship to each other and with God himself. It brought a desire to hide and it brought shame. When they began to see the consequences of their actions and realized that they had to own up to them, they started to hide.
We aren't any different! I try to cover up my sins by being too busy to stop and reflect on them or by simply avoiding things that are too deep. Spending time with God is difficult when I am in this hiding stage, I push everyone, including God away from me.

I have a dear friend who lives in California, 2000 miles away for me. We have known each other for over 20 years and has stood by me when I have been in hiding. She will call me and leave a message, "Just checking in, please call me".  Normally, I will call her back and we will get caught up, but during a period of hiding I won't even listen to the message. There is this little voice inside of me that says, "Don't connect, don't get close, she'll know that you are struggling if you talk with her!" Lovingly, she pursues me until I call her. This good friend reminds me of the deep love that Jesus has for us. He waits, pursues ands welcomes us back.

It is in these times that I cling to the truth of God's word. I am so grateful that He has shown us the frailties of people throughout scripture.  it's so comforting to know that I am not alone in my hiding.

Where are you?

God pursues us

When we read on in Genesis we see God pursuing them.
Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.  But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” Genesis 3:8-10
If I stop long enough, I hear God calling out to me, "Where are you"?  In that moment everything can change. What has seemed like a huge chasm is now remedied. if I will stop, come out of hiding and return to Him, those times of closeness will be felt again and all is well. In that moment I am reminded that I am His beloved and He is near.
I
f you have been farther from God that you want to be, than why not stop and ask Him to be close again?


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Closer to Jesus

There’s been a theme in my life recently. What does it means to get close to Jesus?
pr
All of these things have the common thread of being with Jesus.
The Bible tells us to draw near to God and he will draw near to you, abide in him and he will make His home with you, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths. 
All of these speak about a closeness to Jesus. Jesus himself tells us that when he leaves he will give us another, the Holy Spirit will be a comforter, our helper. He will be with us-whispering “I am close”.
But to be honest I don’t always feel close to Him and I am fully aware that He hasn’t moved. It must be me. I move away with my actions, thoughts and the directions I choose to go in my life.  Inch by inch I withdraw and before I know it our friendship has been strained. It’s not as though I feel like He’s mad at me but we’re not as close as we once were.
Have you been there?
Are you there right now?
We know of God’s love, that Jesus died for us and that he desires a relationship with us  but we are not as close as we once were.  There is this distance that seems to be separating you from Him and you just don’t know what to do.
In this study were going to look at people who have an experienced distance from God and what God’s response was to them.
I am looking forward to growing closer to Jesus.
 Want to join me for the next little while discovering how to grow closer to Jesus?


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Lesson #7

When it gets Hard, Press in

I wish I could have a redo! This afternoon I went to visit with my mom.  She had been looking for something but couldn't find it.  I suggested a few places that we might find it and eventually it was found. Normally she would have been happy about finding something that was lost, but on this day she seemed particularly agitated.
It must be tough to manage the emotions when things have been removed from you; your memories, your control and even decision-making.
What happened next I so wish that I could do over.  In the moment of a conversation my mom lashed out in such anger that I was a little nervous at what would happen next. Instead of pressing in to the Spirit , I responded in my sternest teacher voice for her to sit down and told her that this behavior was unacceptable.

As you can imagine it didn't go over very well. 

I know why things did not go well. I was relying on my ability to handle a tense situation. Mustering up my power, my strength, my words and then watching as everything escalated. 

On my own, I have no grace, no kindness, no patience. I am an empty broken vessel without the love of Jesus.

Fortunately after a calmer conversation my mom apologized and we moved on.

This experience taught me that when life gets hard I need to press in to Jesus.
I had forgotten in that moment that He alone can fill me with grace, peace, joy, wisdom, patience and power.
ephesians 6

If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 1:19

What does it mean to Press in to Jesus?

To physically be close to Him

Who touched me?” Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.” Luke 8:45

To earnestly seek after Him

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Philippians 3:12

I have learned so much from this terrible disease of dementia. Thank you God for using every teachable moment to refine me.
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