Tag: struggle

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I may not be strong enough, But You Are!

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In many ways, this is a direct follow up to last week’s post of, Is All, as it Appears?

In last week’s post, I touched on the subject of, there can be a weakness on the inside, that can just go unseen.

This week, I believe that I was given the thought of, “I may not be strong enough, But You Are!” (The one who I’m referring to, in the “You”, is, My Lord God Almighty.)

My weaknesses maybe very real. (At times, more real to me, than they should be.) But, if My Lord God Almighty is with me, then what can prevail against me?

If after going out and blessing people who I met in the park with my wife with a simple message of, “we would like to give you a gift of “a sum of money”, just to say that God loves you.” To then go back to our car, and then find an unfair parking notice attached to the window screen…

(Details of the unfair parking notice, will be appearing in a future post.)

Then the need to forgive, comes running right up to the forefront, yet again. (I can’t be sure at what point I came to realise this need, but I did get there in the end.)

There I was, blessing people, and my reward appears to be… An opportunity to practice, yet more Forgiving! … ??? … 🙂

I may not be strong enough, But You Are!

My Lord God, Is Able to lead me to a better path to take. (Such as possibly writing it out, and finding a fun angle to things, instead???)

I may feel as if I’m about to fall apart from any external pressure that might be applied. But, My Lord God is with me! (That statement is all the more true, as I’m following the promptings of My Lord God.)

I may feel that I’ve got nothing left on the inside, and that the outside may just come apart at the slightest touch, But, My Lord God, Is Able to inject a strength, that is stronger than the original internals, that I think has rotted away, so that what is left, has a strength that isn’t reliant on me, but on What My Lord God Has Done!!!

I may not be strong enough, But You Are!

Thank You My Lord God, That You Are Enough, for what I’m facing. Thank you that You Are With me. Please help others, who also need You. Please, be the help to them, that You Are for me. Amen.

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Is All, as it Appears?

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As I was going for a walk through a country park, a lesson from a film I’ve seen came back to me. It was, “You don’t step onto a fallen log, in order to go past it.”

When I first heard this, I just thought, “Really? Why is that then?”

The answer is simple, it’s dangerous to do so. If a tree has fallen down, it can rot from the inside, whilst the outside can remain intact. So, if someone steps onto such a log, it can suddenly give way, causing the foot to get trapped in the rotten log, and the unfortunate person can then fall over, from their footing suddenly disappearing. Which could lead to a serious injury, as they fall over, with their foot trapped.

In the film that I was watching, this scenario happened, leaving the unfortunate one to be airlifted out to a hospital.

No, I didn’t step onto any logs as I was walking, and come to such a sticky end.

But as I was walking, I did step onto a few small branches, that looked as if they should have had some strength to them, to hear them just snap, under my foot. It surprised me to find that, something that looked as if it had a strength to it, was actually, so close to breaking, so that a little bit of load applied to it, caused it to, just break.

As a mere human, the only way that I can tell the difference between what has a strength to it, and what doesn’t, is to test it and see if it can take the strain, to see if it can be relied upon.

Our Lord God see’s so much more than we do though.

If Our Lord God, speaks to us, “You could do with a bit of help here, seek some help!” Then it would be best for us to seek His help. We can always ask, “Where should I go, or who should I go to with this?” Then try to hear His words to us, and follow His thoughts to us. It will always be better for us, if can hear and follow what Our Lord God is speaking to us.

If Our Lord God, prompts us in some way, and we are just left thinking, “Really, what’s that all about then?” Could it possibly be that things are not quite as well together, as we think they are? Could it be that there is a weakness beneath the surface level, that is going unseen, and that we could be part of the solution, that could stop something from falling apart, if we will just follow what it is, that our Lord God is asking for us to do?

Ultimately, when Our Lord God speaks to us,will we follow His prompting of what He is asking for us to do?

We can only see on the surface level, Our Lord God, see’s so much more. If we do follow Our Lord God’s promptings, then could we be saving ourselves, or another, from a time of grief and troubles?

John 10:27-28

27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Isaiah 42:3

3 A bruised reed he will not break,
    and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;

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Do I Have the Strength for This?

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There’s a few things that I’m facing at the present moment, that has me thinking, “Do I have the strength for this?”

Then I read Psalm 107. Verses 1 to 9 are below.

Psalm 107:1-9

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.

2 Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—
    those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
3 those he gathered from the lands,
    from east and west, from north and south.

4 Some wandered in desert wastelands,
    finding no way to a city where they could settle.
5 They were hungry and thirsty,
    and their lives ebbed away.
6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
    and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way
    to a city where they could settle.
8 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
    and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
9 for he satisfies the thirsty
    and fills the hungry with good things.

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I used to read this, and only notice the, “Give thanks to the Lord” bit. As such, I used to think it was a Psalm about praising God, which it is, but, it’s also a Psalm about suffering. That’s the bit that I just kind of missed, but it’s in there.

This time as I read it, I noticed that, when that The Lord delivered the people, He did so, through a process. It’s in verse 7.

7 He led them by a straight way
    to a city where they could settle.

It’s been there all the time, but for some reason, I just focused on the, “Giving thanks to God” bit, because of what He has done. In the past,as I read the scripture, the troubles appeared to be dealt with instantly, but the verse tells us a different truth, if we can see it.

Verse 7 tells us that they went on a journey, before they came to a better place.

Journey’s don’t normally happen instantly, but are a process, that can take some time.

So we can see an end destination, where there will be a time of much more thankfulness. But we can also see that a journey needed to be taken, where the people were led. The “led” bit, speaks to me of help and guidance, whilst they are on the journey to the end destination.

So we can see two distinct times where praise and thanks can be given to God. When we have reached the destination, and things are better, and also when we are on the journey, as we receive His leading, guiding and help, for the journey that we are on.

So, in every situation we can…

Psalm 107:1

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.

_________________

Thank you Lord God, that You are there to help us through the tough times. That you do lead and guide us. Help us to see Your help and guidance to us, that much more. Help us to remain thankful towards You, for all that you do, do for us. Amen.

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Do we need to Get Past Anger, to Find Understanding?

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Have you ever been angry about something, that has then left you thinking, “What’s going on? Just how can this be?”

I’m facing a bit of this at the moment. (I’m not going to go into the details here, but a previous post called, Extreme Forgiving, may give a small glimpse into my situation.)

If we are in a position of frustration and not understanding, then what can we do? … Take it to The Lord Our God!!! (That’s always going to be a very good first step.)

Then be willing to listen to His words to you, and then follow them.

For me, I know the importance of forgiving those who are causing me pain, in some way. So I do try to do that. When I do, it helps.

I’d love to be able to say that it’s a fully proven way to feel that much better, that much more quickly. Which it is, in many ways, but the process, isn’t quite so easy. It can be tough to forgive, when you are, hurt, upset, frustrated, angry, or whatever negative emotions you are dealing with. But I do know that it works out for the better, for us, if we can follow the process of, forgiving.

A couple of previous posts may help you to understand why I think this way. (If one stands out to you, then please consider reading it???)

When’s the Right Time to Forgive?

Accept Repent and Forgive, There is Power Here!

Try to not pick up the wrong end of the Stick

If I’m not careful, I could loose track of where I’m going with this.

The original thought was about trying to understand what’s happening when anger is taking too much of the stage.

To me, it seems like I’m just stating the obvious, now at this point, but when we are in the middle of something, if the obvious isn’t pointed out to us, then we can so easily miss it.

So, if we do want to try and gain some level of understanding, then do we have a need to get past anger and frustration?

As I’ve reached this point, there is another thought that keeps running round my head… “Are there times when we just won’t ever find understanding, and we need to seek Peace in the Storm, instead?”

Some times we may reach a place of understanding, in some measure, but in other times, we may not. But in order to find that peace, do we still have a need to deal with our anger, in a more productive way, other than just let it burn itself out, or try to bury it? Will we try to hear what Our Lord God’s path is?

When all is said and done, can we, and will we, seek Our Lord God, in all circumstances?

John 10:27-28

27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.

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Why Don’t You Just Get It!!??

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The original title was going to be, “I want to be Instructional, Not Judgemental”, but I do think that the above title, gets more to the point.

This post is probably going to cover how we have all felt, at some time or another. My hope is that this will end up being more Instructional, rather than Judgemental…???

I think that a picture would be a good place to start with.

There were two parties, who when they came together, they just got on each others nerves. When they left each other, both would have a need to let go of certain things, that just annoyed them.

Both parties thought that they were being the bigger party, by not letting the other one know, just what was really on their mind.

When both parties met, they would both bring what they thought was water, to their meetings. Unbeknown to both parties, they were actually bringing fuel for the fire, that was always present, whenever they met.

Both parties would try to quench the fire, with their “Water”, to always find that things would always just flare up, right in front of their faces. The more they would try to quench the fire, the worst it would get.

Both parties, sadly came to the point of, “Perhaps I shouldn’t engage in this anymore, as when I do, it just keeps on going wrong!”

End of picture setting.

We may be able to laugh at the above picture, but, it isn’t a laughing matter, if you are ever caught up in such situation. It’s quite the opposite, it can be very frustrating and painful. 😦

If we do find ourselves in such a situation, then how can we do any better?

In the above picture, there was no ill intent, but both parties were bringing fuel to the meeting instead of water.

Can we have a better understanding of what we are bringing with us, if things just always end up going wrong? Instead of just focusing on what the other party is doing wrong, could we ask, is there something that I could do better? (Better might be doing something in a correct way, or it could just be doing something in a different way?)

Could we gain an insight into the situation, that might help us to understand what is happening, which could possibly help us to go to the meeting with something else, other than the “Water” (fuel) that we may have been bringing?

Is there a something that we are doing, or even not doing, that is adding fuel to the situation, that we are just missing?

Trying to spot the something that is missing, or that which we are just missing can be a very difficult thing to do, but if we could see it, could it then be the difference that we are looking for?

Would help from someone outside of the situation, be useful? If that help could come from an unbiased experienced source, then how much better, could that be?

I’m always going to point to Our Lord God Almighty as being the best source to go to, when we are struggling with anything.

As much as we would like to change the thoughts or actions of the other party, can we remember that the person that we have the greatest influence over is, ourselves?

If do have to bring fuel to a meeting, then could we do so knowingly, and then try to measure out as little as possible, at any given moment? Instead of just throwing it all onto the fire at once, could we try to feed it in, one drop at a time?

Even if we are going to be perceived as “Judgemental”, could we still try to be “Instructional” in our thoughts and actions, and hope that we can do this with Grace and Love, taking the lead, instead of letting pain and frustration, take a hold of the reins?

For a better path to take, it’s always going to be that much better for us, if we can take our difficulties to Our Lord God, and seek out His path, for how we should go forward with what we are facing.

Our Lord God, Please help all who are facing difficult situations. Please lead and guide us in the best actions that we can take, so that we can follow Your promptings, for where we should go, and for how we should act. Amen.

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Some Things are Good, to Not Consume!

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I was cycling home, when I suddenly saw a black dot, just in front of me, that then hit my mouth, and fortunately, then bounced away.

I immediately thought, “I’m so glad, that my mouth was closed, as that fly hit my mouth!” (Phew)

There are some things, that I’d really rather not consume, fly’s, being one of them. 🙂

I did give a “Thank You” to God, that my mouth was closed, at the critical point in question.

My thoughts, then went to, “Are there some things, that we take on, or consume, that aren’t, the best things, for us?
Are there some things, that we would be better off, if we would just close our mouths to them?”

I’m not going to give you a list of such things, as Our Lord God, is able to bring such things to our minds better than me. But then the real question becomes, …

When Our Lord God, brings the things that we should close our mouths to, to our minds, will we then follow His prompting, and close our mouths to the things, that just aren’t quite so good for us?

________________________________

I’d finished the above a few days ago, then, this morning on my cycle ride in to work, I had three instances, where I had to choose to not consume, that, which I had to go through.

The first instance.
Just as I was about to go through a park entrance, a person, who was walking past the entrance, was smoking in front of me, which I only realised as I started to take in the left over smoke. I have a complete dislike to smoking, and I react badly to it. So, rather than take the smoke in, I exhaled as deeply as I could, and held the exhale, to only breath in again, once I was in the park and the smoker was at of the way.
I had to go through the smoke, but I chose it not take it in.

The second instance, I had a bit more warning.
A person had just exhaled from a vape, and a big vape cloud was directly in front of me. As I saw it, I took a big intake of breath, in the fresh air, that I could then hold, as I went through the vape cloud.
Again, I had to go through it, but this time I was more prepared, and I just went through it, but not taking anything of it, in.

The third instance was very similar to the first.
I don’t recall the exact details of the third instance, and it was less of an thing, than the first, but I do remember thinking something along the lines of, …
“Really, three times now, I’ve had to go through something, whilst not taking it on board, three times!”

I’m hoping that this is just to confirm that it’s right to post this blog post here today, as haven’t me and my wife gone through enough already?

My ride to work, doesn’t normally have any instances, as the above, but this morning, Three!!! ???

I thank You Lord God, that You Are With us, as we go through life’s trials and troubles.
Please help us to look to You in All things.
Help us to Not consume or take on board, anything that is not from You.
Help us to pass through them, and to not be affected by them.
Help us to look to You, our True source of Help.
Our Lord God Almighty.
The One who is Able to lead and guide us through all of that, which we must go through.
Amen.

________________________________

James 4:7
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

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Can You Be Thankful, when Someone Receives, What you are Waiting For?

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If you are waiting for an answer to prayer, and you then see someone else receive the answer that you are waiting for yourself, then how do you react to that?

Are you pleased for them?
Or, is there any resentment in seeing, what you are seeking, asking for, longing for, go to someone else?

Can you be left with the feeling of, “When will it be my turn?”
It can be a normal natural response, when there is pain in the pot, and the relief appears to go to another. But, just because it is a normal natural response, is it a response that we should give any time or energy to?
If a response causes us pain and upset, would we be better off, if we could instead try to… “Take captive, every thought” ?

2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

If the above has struck a chord with you, and you are still reading this, then thank you for staying with this.

If I’m going to be honest with you, I’m struggling to write the next bit.

I’ve heard, and do try to counsel myself, and my wife to follow a better line of thinking. For me, one of the obvious, go to scripture’s, is…

2 Corinthians 12:8-9
8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

The part that I focus on, more than anything, is, “My grace is sufficient for you”.

There can be times when it is a real choice to think this way, instead of going down the, “When will it be our time?” or the, “It’s just not Fair!” route.
There can be times, when I need to ask, “Lord, can we Please have Your Peace and Joy, while we wait.”
Then, so many times, the words, “My grace is sufficient for you” comes back to me.

Our God is With us, in the trials. He is not distant, and leaving us to get on with it. No, He is with us, helping and supporting us, in ways seen, and unseen by us.

It can sometimes be a tough choice to say “Thank you” to Our Lord God, in the trials, and to remember and know that, His Grace, is sufficient for us. But it is still a true and valid thing to do, even if, sometimes, it hurts.

It maybe a choice, to rejoice, if we see someone else recieving a blessing, that we’d like to be recieving, but it’s still a good choice to make.

When it comes down to it, do we want to be filled with thoughts of, “It’s not fair”, or “When will it be my turn”, and the like. Or would we rather be filled with thoughts of Thankfulness and rejoicing?
What we fill up with, tends to be what flows out of us.

Ephesians 3:16-21
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

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Clearing Out The Fog

Trees in the mist, Dalton Crags by Alison Rawson is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0

I was at work, doing nothing that was particularly difficult, but my mind, was just going on a bit of a go slow. My thinking was a bit distracted and muddled, and there was a bit of tension in my stomach. ???

I knew that I was not doing as well as I should have been, and that was also adding to my irritation.

I maybe describing what anxiety can feel like, for some???

All that I knew, more than anything, was that I wasn’t where I’d like to be, and it was irritating me, which was probably adding an extra layer of difficulty/annoyance to the situation.

I tried to tell myself that it was silly, and to just get past it, or over it. (Probably, more on a subconscious level, than anything else.) But it wasn’t making any real headway.

Then I thought that I can command it to go, in the power of my Lord God! (After all, I am a child of The Most High God.)

So I gave that a go. I said, to myself, “Whatever this is, be gone in the Name of Jesus Christ!”

Then nothing happened. My thinking was still muddled and distracted, and the tension remained in my stomach.

There was a thought of, “How much good was that then?” (Or something like it.)
Fortunately I didn’t dwell or follow that line of thinking for too long, but it was there. If I had, would I have missed out on the next thought???

The next thought I had, was along the lines of, “If I can’t tell it to go, can I at least tell it to be quiet?”

So I tried that.
“In Jesus name, be still and quiet.”

“Perhaps, I can do a bit better than that?” Was the next bit that then came to me. So…
“In Jesus name, be still and quiet, and in Jesus’s timing, be gone.”

I can’t remember if the tension in my stomach went on the first or second version, but go, it did. My mind was still distracted, and a bit muddled, but the tension in my stomach had gone.

Looking back, I believe that I then went into a conversation, of sorts, with my Lord God. I’d like to be able to write down all that was said, but it’s all a bit fuzzy to me now. Perhaps, I’ll be able to give you some of the highlights???

I was at work, and I did have a task, that I needed to do. It wasn’t anything too difficult, but with a distracted mind, it was taking longer than I thought it should.
The conversation wasn’t an added distraction, but more of an aid. The kind of conversation where the other person just knows when they need to be quiet, and when they can be helpful by just pointing to …. at just the right time, in the right way.
There was a few running themes of, “Don’t try to fight the annoyance, just starve it of any power.”
Another variation of this was, “Don’t try to deny it, that’s just fighting it, on another front. Just starve it.”
These thoughts go in line with the one I spoke out of,
“In Jesus name, be still and quiet, and in Jesus’s timing, be gone.”

I’m now back at home, doing so much better. Actually able to, and wanting to, write this up, mostly all in one go.
My thinking is doing that much better. (Even if my grammar maybe a bit questionable… ??? 🙂 )

All in all, I think that I can put this down as a time when I heard, my Heavenly Father’s small quiet voice, and then followed it’s prompting.

John 10:27-28
27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.

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Can We See what’s Not Broken, in a place that is, Broken?

I saw a room, where many things were broken. Not just little things, that could be overlooked, but also the big things, that couldn’t be overlooked.

To be in such a room, means that the broken things, will be noticed. It’s just unavoidable.

How would you feel in such a room?

Awkward?
Unhappy?
Having a desire to try to fix, the brokenness?
(Even if it appears to be an impossible task?)

Would we be able to have eyes, that could see, what isn’t broken, in such a place?

If we are faced with a situation, that is broken, in some way, then how many of us, will just want to try to fix it, in some way?
As a kids TV program would like to state, “Can we fix it? Yes, we can!

But, what happens, if we can’t?

Would we be able to remain in such a place of such brokeness, and still have a measure of peace and happiness?

Would we be able to have eyes, that could see, What’s not broken, when they have to be searched for, in order to find, and see them?

If we could, could it then give us, Moments of Joy, that could then become a source of strength, to us???

As the level of brokeness goes up, so does the difficulty, to see, what’s not broken.

A very simple song, has come to my mind…

Count your Blessings, count them one by one.

Could counting your Blessings, be part of, seeing, what’s good, that could then lead to a thankful heart, for the good things, that are also present?

If we are ever faced with such brokenness, then, could even reading or remembering a post like this one, be a challenge?

If Our Lord God, brings it to our minds, then will we rise up to the challenge, and see, what He wants us to see?
The bits that are not broken, and then be thankful for them?

Our Lord God Almighty,
Thank You, that You are for us.
Thank You, that You hold us together, even when we feel that we are falling apart.
Please, help us to get through, what we are facing.
Help us to Know, that You, Have Got This, and that we can Trust You, in it.
Our Lord God Almighty!
Our Loving Heavenly Father.
Amen

____________________________

I see a Vessel
When you are at your weakest, God is there to be the Glue, that Will Hold you together.

How Do You Pray when you feel you just can’t do anything?

More posts, for those who maybe struggling.

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It’s a Choice to Rejoice, when it Hurts.

I don’t like writing these posts. I’d much rather write about how good times are, and how the Lord has blessed me abundantly.
But, at the moment, it hurts. So I’m left with needing to make the Choice, to Rejoice.

I’d rather go off down a wrong road, and seek out a temporary relief, a temporary gratification of some kind… 😦
I may have even tried a half hearted attempt to do just that. 😦
But, I know the answer to that route. A temporary distraction, which brings on more pain later.
Perhaps, that’s why I was only half hearted in my attempt, and thankful, that I came back to a better mindset, before I’d gone to far, down the wrong route.

As I’m writing this, I’ve just put some praise music on. Playing now is, “The Joy of the Lord is my strength”.
Now I just need for it to seep into me.
It’s a choice to just have the music playing. Can the words now be a reality to me?

The words of Habakkuk keep coming back to me at times like these.

Habakkuk 3:17-19

17 Though the fig tree does not bud
    and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
    and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
    and no cattle in the stalls,
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
    I will be joyful in God my Savior.

19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
    he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
    he enables me to tread on the heights.

Just need for this to be a reality to me.

My thoughts also keep going to a fellow blogger’s site name, “Rejoicing Bones”, and how his bones Will Rejoice.
I get the feeling, that he already knows about this, “Choice to Rejoice”.
I pray that he will continue to make the choice to rejoice, in good times and not so good times.

Hopefully, playing the praise music, and writing this, will be a turning to the right direction, that leads to a Joy, that will keep me going. I do it, hoping that it will be a working out of last week post of…

“Don’t Miss your Joy!!!“

I’m going to sign off here now, but I need to end this post on a Better note. So I’ll finish with a phrase that me and my wife sometimes say to each other.

God IS Good, all the time!
And.
All the time… God IS Good!