Author: margiwintermute

The Real Sacrifice

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Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you. Genesis 22:2

This command God gives Abraham must have been the hardest thing Abraham could have ever heard! How could this man of God offer his only son up this way? As a man of God, this could only mean one thing – faith – it took faith far bigger than any of us could ever know to obey God in this way.

Faith as a believer will always go hand in hand with sacrifice. To be a believer, faith has to be real and to have real faith, one will always be familiar with sacrifice.

We have been called to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice. This isn’t just about tithes, and doing away with all the comforts of life. It’s about the real sacrifice given for us by Jesus Christ.

Our journey with God became real when we first accepted Jesus. But if it wasn’t for the sacrifice of Jesus, we would never have been able to share such a life with the heavenly Father!

Make no mistake, as a believer in Christ, we will always be called to live a sacrificial life. And so I pray for the unwavering belief of Abraham’s faith in the love and promises of the Almighty God.

Aaron and Hurs, Rise up!

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<strong>But Moses’ hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.

The fighting was fierce and Moses prayed but the battle in prayer was hard – for the enemy knew how strong and successful prayer would be and so his hands became heavy.

The fight against the enemy can become overwhelming. Our greatest weapon is prayer and even in prayer we find our struggle can be hard! But God has given us others to support and hold us up just as Aaron and Hur held up the hands of Moses.

Our prayer is powerful and we can continue to do battle for our churches, our families and our nation. But the battle can become weary and we need each other to hold up our hands. Can you join? Can you come along side?

We can all be Aaron and Hurs for each other. We can be those who hold up the hands of Moses. The battle is fierce against the enemy today. The drug war, sex trade, and poverty are just a few of his weapons. But the power of prayer will always prevail!

So Aaron and Hurs rise up! Take your place next to Moses and see God move those mountains for His people! Let us see our family members, our neighbors and many more souls won for Christ! Together let’s do it!

A Father’s Day Thought

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A father shall make known Your truth to his children. Isaiah 38:19

In life, we all need good role models to follow. I have learned much from those who have gone before me. There are not many though quite as important as a father.

Ask any Christian father and they will tell you their model is God their Father. God loves His children, all His children, and a father who follows Him will find His parenting to be one of love and trust.

My husband and so many I know have followed God’s model of fathering. Loving their children and respecting their individuality has always come first. Yes, discipline is so important but there were so many times when I saw tears intermingled with that correction.

A father who follows after God prays for his children – he intercedes day and night for each one of them. The father who listens to God will give encouragement and praise before they command and will always be their children’s number one fan!

And a Godly Father will always lead his children to know his heavenly Father. He will teach them about Jesus – His love, forgiveness, mercy and grace. And, he will instruct them to follow God’s book of life, the Bible.

Today, look at your father and thank him – and know – as he has loved you – so your heavenly Father loves you and gives to you so much of Himself!

Knowledge yes but is it wisdom?

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The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding. Proverbs 1:1,2

Going to school as a child we were told that knowledge and instruction were so important. Knowledge would help us to grow in life in so many areas and instruction would help to explain the “how to’s” of life.

These two verses in Proverbs 1 actually tell us the purpose of the whole book. It shares with us that having knowledge and instruction are important in life. We are told the more knowledge we have, the more our life’s goals will advance.

But wisdom is what we’re after – for wisdom is the ability to make right choices based on the knowledge and instruction we receive. Wisdom however, is more than that. It is a key God gives us to unlock the doors for a God given life. Wisdom helps us to discern where to go and how to follow. And then this wisdom leads us to understanding. When we have been given understanding, we begin to see His plans for a life filled with purpose and fullness.

But this process all begins with the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and the leading of the Holy Spirit. If Jesus is not the cornerstone, the beginning of our learning, then our vision is blurred and the plan God has for our lives will never be understood.

So today, I ask you, is the Lord Jesus Christ the cornerstone of your life? Let the Holy Spirit guide you with His wisdom that leads to great understanding. And begin to enjoy life as it was intended by God for you to live!

Be Still Before the Lord

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Psalm 37:7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Today we are living in a very different world than the one I grew up in. The morally corrupt, ungodly and those who prefer to make their own set of living standards for this world seem to be in charge.
We see the Bible and God have been kicked out of our public school system, and we wonder why kids are killing kids.
A young girl, less than 18 years old can have an abortion without her parents’ permission, but cannot get a shot or any other medical treatment unless parents give their okay.
Children can use off colored language in the classroom, but are never allowed to pray.
Muslim girls can wear their head coverings to school but two students were told not to wear their crosses.

These and many other ways of this world today have made it hard to obey the command found in Psalm 37:7 Be still before the Lord. Our fighting the ungodly has only caused quarreling and more stress, and can even lead us in their direction.

Why wait on God? Because He alone knows – He alone has truth. And He cares about life on earth even more than we do. He alone is able to change things.

Today, let’s give Him thanks and praise. Let us keep our eyes fixed on God, always ready to share His good news!

Angels Unaware!

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Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing do some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. Hebrews 13:2

Years ago, when our daughter Sami was 4 year old, we met an angel. We did not even realize who he was until the incident was all over so let me share this amazing story!

Sami and I were at the local grocery store (Furr’s) at the time. I was buying ingredients for a meal I was going to make for a friend. All of a sudden, this little girl who never left my side, ran off and jumped on the back of one of those high grocery carts. The cart tipped over causing her to hit her head on the cement floor and the cart cutting deep into the upper part of her little nose! She was screaming and there was blood everywhere! I was panicking and crying for help! A checker by the name of Reza came to her rescue. He scooped her up, applied pressure on her nose and told me to remain calm. All this time he kept reassuring me she was fine. He drove my car to the hospital emergency room and stayed with us the whole time.

When they took Sami in for x-rays he continued to assure me there was nothing wrong. When the x-ray tech came out he handed Reza the x-rays. Now Reza had a red Furr’s jacket on – definitely not part of the hospital staff! He put the x-rays on the screen and showed them to me, again reassuring me that everything was okay.

My friend drove him back to work that day. The next morning I went back to Furr’s with a thank you card and a money gift. Kathy, the assistant manager, told me he had quit but she would send him the card along with his check. A month later, she handed me the card and said they had no information or address for him. He did however, call to say he was sorry – that his father had called him home!

Was Reza Sami’s guardian angel? I think so – at any rate, I am sure he was an angel sent from Father God to minister and watch over my daughter. What about you? Share with us your angel stories. I’m sure we all have met them sometime here on earth!

Pride or Humility, Choose wisely!

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I had this great plan for my life when I was just starting my years in college. I wanted to be a writer for a well-known magazine or even a big city newspaper. My plans included living in a penthouse and driving a Porsche of course. I wanted to travel and see the places and meet the people who would read my columns. A major dose of pride filled my life!

AND THEN…..I met the Lord! All I wanted then was to serve and worship Him in every way I could. I became a bible teacher in a small church we started with another couple and later a pastor.

Pride is one of the greatest tools of the enemy. The Bible has much to say about pride and humility. Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before a fall and Isaiah 2:11 human pride will be brought low are just two of over 69 verses dealing with man’s pride.

But in spite of God’s Word, the world today seems to glorify pride when humility is betrayed as weakness. Politicians, celebrities and many rich in this world’s goods celebrate and gloat over the pride of life. We hear of so few people who give all they have for the poor or even let go of all this world’s recognition and give the glory to God.

We cannot even fathom how dangerous pride can be! Pride keeps us from having intimacy with God, and steers us away from the plans He has for us. Pride weakens us and entices and deceives. If we can, for one minute, see this life through the power of the Holy Spirit, humility would then win us over.

I know all of us have struggled with pride in life. And in fact, we are born selfish and often times prideful people. However, God has much that awaits us if we just let go of our pride and move forward with His plans in humility.

Humility, Proverbs 22:4 says is the fear of the Lord and its wages are riches, and honor and life!

A Mother’s Day Thought

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Psalm 127:3 Children are a gift from the Lord!

As a Mother I am excited to celebrate Mother’s Day! You see for the first 7 years of our marriage, I could not conceive and thought our only children would be the four -legged kind. Then in the year 1979 we adopted our first baby, a little girl we called Missy. This little one was the first to call me mommy and the first baby I cuddled. In 1980, we adopted a baby boy, Joshua and I was overwhelmed! Yes overwhelmed with the joy of motherhood! Think of it. Here is a woman who could never have children and we have a girl and a boy!

What we did not realize is another surprise was awaiting us 7 years later. In the year 1986 the Lord gave these words to me: Isaiah 9:6 For unto you a child is born, a son is given. And in September of 1987 we named her Samantha. (By now I realized the word son in this verse translated promise.)

But there was no Mother’s Day for me during those first 7 years of marriage. I now realize this day should be a day to celebrate my children and the gift they are to me! Without them, yes I would not be a mom, but it’s more than that! It’s more than diaper changing and staying up late with a sick baby. It is more than no sleep for midnight feedings and helping with homework. It’s not the waiting up at night for them to come home.

What is Mother’s Day? It’s the giggles and smiles you receive. It’s the hand made cards and notes you get teary over. It’s the mommy, “I love you so much” and the jam on the door handles. And yes, it is even waiting for that special call to just hear their voice.

Mother’s Day is filled with memories I hold dear. It’s their first steps, first words and the little scratched noses! It’s the piano recitals, dance recitals and soccer games. It’s birthday parties, days at Disney and graduations. It’s remembering and wishing they were still little.

So this Mother’s Day, as Mother’s Days past, I will celebrate my children. I celebrate the gift they are and the joys they bring. I celebrate memories that have been given to me by a loving God who knew this woman would never be complete without them!

Happy Mother’s Day my friends! And especially: A Happy Day to ALL of our wonderful children! Your mom’s love you!

I AM!

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Isaiah 42:8 I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols.

I am the Lord; that is my name! This is the name which He chose to distinguish Himself from all idols and which shows His existence and who He is to all of us.

There are so many things in the world that grab our attention. They all get us so busy doing and going and hearing that many times the name of the Lord is pushed way back into just a thought. Our jobs yes, our families and their needs yes, but think of those things we use just to pass the time away – such as our phones, video games and movies never ending!

I can be so in tune with the Lord and all of a sudden I am drawn away – and I find myself getting farther and farther away from my devotion and praise to the One who calls me His. I can see it happening and think to myself – tomorrow – tomorrow I will give my all to Him. But then I hear Him calling my name and my heart is once again drawn back to Yahweh – the Lord – the One who desires all of me.

How about you? Can you relate? Have circumstances or things drawn you away even for just a day or two or three? And do you hear Him calling your name? He wants all of our praise and He will yield His glory to no other or no thing!

Yes, the Lord knows we are an imperfect people. He also knows that we do love Him and want to be close to Him always. So when we hear Him calling our name, it’s time for us to turn our hearts, our lives, our all back to Him and only Him.
I’m with and for you – so let’s pray for one another – that we will not allow any idol or thing or circumstance take the place of our devotion to a Great God!

For God So Loved the World!

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For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Amazing words – and is probably the most memorized and well known verse in God’s Word. And yes it should be, for these words are words of Life for everyone – everyone who embraces Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Many Christians however, though they know these words to be the words of God, have a difficult time embracing the thought of God loving the world. Yes, they believe He loves you if you accept His Son, but what about those who don’t?

The truth is God sent His Son because He does love the world. He loves all men and women regardless of their race or even their spiritual traditions. He loves Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and New Agers. And He loves even those who profess to be Atheists.

We as Christians tend to only understand love in terms of being saved. If you are saved, if you have accepted Christ, and if you are in right standing with the heavenly Father, then you are loved. But God loves the world – He loves all people, even those who refuse to believe.

The book of John is not telling us that God accepts only a few select people. He does not select some to be unloved and sent to eternal damnation. He did and still does love all people. He wants them to embrace a life of freedom, a life full of grace and mercy and above all His forever love.

Yes, amazing Words – but remember, we have an amazing God – a God of love, of compassion and a God who continues to wait patiently for all men. Now I ask you – who in your life needs to hear of His great love?