WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

 

MIGHT

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--MIGHT

Five minutes to free-write about it

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Sometimes I think back over my life and wonder how it might have turned out if I had made different choices along the way. 

I wonder if I would still make the same choices if the clock were turned back to give me a second chance.

I think of how some day I will be accountable to God for what I have done with the time and talents He gave me, and feel remorseful that I do not have more to show for what started out with so much promise--a strong body, a good education, and many gifts and opportunities which I wound up unintentionally squandering. 

I will never know if I truly missed out on God's best for me, and what that best might have been. I do know, however, that He is in control, and the fact that I am still here means that He is not done with me yet. 

Life may not have turned out the way I wish it had, but truth be told, much of my current circumstance is due to poor choices I made that I am now reaping the consequences of. At least, that's my perspective. 

God sees the end from the beginning, which I do not, and I'm sure that His view of the tapestry He is weaving does not look anything like the tangle of knots visible on my side. In which case, am I really where I am today because of the poor choices I made, or might I be here by God's design?

Psalm 139:16 says, You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed (NLT). Perhaps then, is this what and where I need to be for this particular moment in His plan?

Had I pursued my talents and education to their fullest, gone on to have a stellar career, and been the best mother/wife/daughter/friend/ employee possible, might I ever have felt a need for the Lord or for His saving grace? Might I perhaps have spent my life chasing after the things this world has to offer instead of the things that have eternal value? Would I have missed God's gift of salvation, a greater loss by far?

DEAR ANONYMOUS...

Dear Anonymous,

Thank you for being such a faithful visitor to my blog.. I really appreciate it, and wish I knew who you are so I could visit your blog as well.

What puzzles me though is why you always have something negative to say..

Maybe there is a deep hurt within you that colors your view--not just of my posts, but of the world in general?

I pray for you. I pray that if you have been hurt by life, the Lord would touch you where you most need His touch and heal the bitterness and pain in your heart. I pray that He would hold you close and enable you to feel His presence and the great love He has for you. 

You are special in His sight. A one of a kind Divine original created for a special purpose and plan that no one else can fulfill.

You are His beloved child.

I peay that He would fill your heart with His peace that surpasses understanding, and with joy, and that He would open your eyes to be able to see the roses among the thorns.

❤️

Sandy/aka great-granny grandma

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

WITHOUT

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--WITHOUT

Five minutes to free-write about it

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While I sat in my little prayer corner this Good Friday morning, reflecting on what my life might have been without Jesus, the accuser was busy working overtime, bringing everything up I've ever regretted or been ashamed of. Any other time he would have gotten to me, but he chose the wrong day.

His accusations were all true, and each one pierced my heart, but Jesus...

I was listening to a Good Friday devo our church had posted on FB as part of a days of Holy Week series, and feeling especially overwhelmed by the enormity of what Jesus did for us on the cross. 

The thought that God Himself would take on human flesh in the form of Jesus so He could personally feel and experience everything we do--every fear, trial, sorrow, temptation, hurt and pain--and love us so much that He was willing to die such a humiliating and excruciatingly painful death to redeem us from our sins and extend to us the gift of eternal life, was a little more than I could fathom. 

Without Jesus, there is no forgiveness.

Without Jesus, the slate could never be wiped clean.

Without Jesus, there would be no hope when there seems to be no way. 

Without Jesus, rejection would have a double sting.

How grateful beyond words I am that because of Jesus, I no longer need to be tormented by anything from my past. 

Those are just a few of my reflections on this Good Friday day.

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For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. -- John 3:16, NIV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Jesus Christ. -- Romanse 3:23-24, NIV

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast. -- Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. -- Romans 5:8, NIV

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. -- Romans 6:23, NIV

If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. -- Romans 10:9-10, NIV 

SCARED

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--SCARED

Five minutes to free-write about it

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This week I cheated--sort of. I started reading other people's posts before writing my own. As I did so, I pondered the things that make me scared. I pondered so long, I was on my way to missing the deadline.

One of the things I am most scared of is physical pain.

I don't know why I am such a wimp, and why I have a needle phobia (not so bad now since the experiences documented in my little book, Oil of Myrrh). Back in the day, however, I was so scared of needles that I almost didn't get married because there was a premarital blood test requirement, and when I had my babies, I opted for natural childbirth because the thought of being given a needle was more daunting than the thought of what any labor pain might possibly feel like.

About eight years ago I made a choice based on fear that  almost cost me my life. By God's grace and the many prayers lifted up on my behalf, I not only survived, but learned some important lessons in the process which I later went on to share on HeartValveSurgery.com in response to some people asking for feedback as to whether or not they really needed to proceed with a recommended surgery even if they were asymptomatic. The post was entitled, DO NOT BE AFRAID.

When I am afraid, I need to remind myself that God is in control of all things, and can be trusted with every detail of my life and circumstances. How much better to rely on Him and His faithfulness when I am scared than to rely on my very fallible intellect.   

PERSUADE

This post was written for Five Minute Friday

Word prompt--PERSUADE

Five minutes to free-write about it

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My daughter has been trying to persuade me to get hearing aids for a while. 

One of the reasons I've resisted is that my issue is not volume so much as being able to distinguish certain words that contain letters that sound alike. I can hear a person speaking loud enough, but struggle to understand similar sounding words such as "bread" and "thread," or "15" and "50," which can result in my hearing something different than what was actually said.  

Hearing aids that could be customized to meet my specific auditory frequency needs are very pricey and not what I would consider a justifiable expense at this stage.

Well, my daughter bought me a pair of AirPod Pro 2 buds that can double as hearing aids and persuaded me to just give them a try. She pointed out that even if I didn't like the hearing aid feature, I could still use them to listen to music or podcasts, so I agreed to do it.

This latest series of AirPods Apple has come out with has software that enables you to take a hearing test, which is then used to customize your hearing experience.  The results were truly amazing. Not only was the sound quality excellent, but the difference it made in my hearing was quite remarkable. She was happy, and so was I.

Do I have a good daughter,or what? I am so grateful I let her persuade me to try them out.    

A WISE SAYING

We can never see the sunrise by looking toward the west. (Japanese proverb)

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY