It had been an unusually busy Sunday afternoon and my time got away from me. I had a meeting at church at 5:45 for a project some of us were working on. I had updated my notes for this meeting but had not printed them. It was time to leave but I had to print my notes. I turned to my computer and clicked print. I heard the printer start up so I ran (walked quickly) for my shoes. The printer was still printing. Ok, purse, folder, phone, keys. What was that? Beep! Beep! Beep! Printer problems. No paper. Ok. I can handle that. I looked at the time. I was really trying to be on time today.

Finally, the pages were printed. I opened the basement door to call to my husband to tell him I was leaving. He called back that he had turned my car around and it was ready to go. How nice. It had been parked in an unusual place that day because of what was going on in the basement. As I pulled out of the driveway, I checked the time. I really don’t like being late.

I hurriedly zipped around the curves on the main road and was making up for lost time when I realized I had not prayed for this meeting before I left home. As I said, “Dear Heavenly Father” I noticed the speed limit sign. Then I glanced at my speed. I can not pray and speed at the same time. God convicted me of that a long time ago. Why did God give me such a lead foot? I began to slow my pace. It took a while but I got my speed back to the speed limit and pressed cruise control. Ah! Now I can pray. “Please forgive me once again for speeding. Thank you for your loving, merciful forgiveness.”

Oooops, There was another speed limit sign. 35 miles per hour. I have trouble driving 35 miles per hour on this road. I know all of the curves and could drive it with my eyes closed. Then the speed dropped to 30 miles per hour. Where did that sign come from? 30 miles per hour? You have got to be kidding me! There was no way I could do that. The cars were already backing up behind me. Nobody drives 30 miles per hour on this road. But I need to pray.

I was almost to the church by now. As I stepped out of my car and grabbed my notes, I thanked God for a safe drive to the church. I have frequently been told that the angels jump off when you go over the speed limit. I cannot find a biblical reference for that but a pastor told me that so it has to be true. As I hurried into the church, I asked God to remind me to pray before I left home the next time.

James 4:17 If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” [1 John 1:9]

Romans 3:23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

My car was packed and I was ready to go. As I pressed the Start button, all I heard was Click, Click, Click. My  first thought was that maybe my foot was not securely on the brake so I tried again.

Click, Click, Click, was the only sound I heard. Questions started running through my mind like Do I have the remote, Are the indicator lights on, Is there a message on the dashboard? I thought Ok now, let me try this again. Just because it didn’t start the first two times doesn’t mean it won’t start the third time. The car went Click and then everything was silent.

As I got out of my car, I reached for my phone and then reached back in the car for the remote. As I closed the door, my car locked and refused any more instructions. The remote was charged but the car was not.

As I went back in the house and figured how my fingers were going to get my remote off the keyring, I was thankful for that tiny key that I knew was inside of the remote that would ultimately unlock my car. That tiny key would be the only way that I could open the car and pull the hood release. Without that key, nothing could be done for my car. That one, tiny key that I had always known was in there but I had never even seen would provide a way for getting the necessary help I needed. That key was part of the car maker’s plan to get the driver out of trouble if the battery went dead.

God has provided us with a key to help us get out of trouble. His Word has all of the answers.

“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Psalm 119:105 NIV

God’s Word is the lamp that provides the energy to make the light to guide us on our way. With God’s Word, we have the power to move forward. God’s Word provides the charge we need for our daily life.

Sometimes God works to get through to us in the silence, that moment when everything seems dim. God is always with us. He will never leave us or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5)

God has little nuggets throughout his Word to make it possible for us to move forward with our day. Do you need a Word from God today? It is right there for you in His Word. Even if you do not have a physical copy of God’s Word, you have your phone. Go to the search and type in what you are feeling and then the word, scripture. Let God speak to you. Let him give you that charge you need to send you on your way.

What does it take to be a blessing?

How beautiful it is to be blessed. We can receive a blessing from the most unexpected places.

A very dear friend of mine has recently gone to be with the Lord. His wife, Sandra, is one of my dearest friends. Vernon had a stroke several years ago and his speech was affected. Sometimes he could be understood and sometimes I could not understand anything he said. Vernon loved to tell stories. He was a big talker and always had a story to tell. I loved to just listen to him talk so when the stroke took away most of his speech, it was difficult. Many times he would talk and no words could be understood.

One of the last times I saw him before he died will always be a special memory for me. I took his favorite soup, Panera’s broccoli and cheddar soup, for Vernon and Sandra to have for lunch. Sandra put the meal out on the table and helped Vernon get to his chair. As she sat down, he looked at her and said, “Blessing.” That word was so clear. Sandra began to pray and ask God to bless their food. Then Vernon prayed. The prayer went straight from his heart to the ears of the Lord. He prayed passionately and joyfully. Even though I did not understand any of the words he prayed, I know that God did. The God who created Vernon heard and understood each and every syllable. The God who loved Vernon before he was even born, understood the prayer of his heart and his thankfulness for the food.

The God who knew the number of Vernon’s days accepted Vernon into heaven a few short weeks later. How beautiful that greeting must have been. Vernon was completely healed. He was able to worship his Lord and Savior not only with his heart but with his words. He heard Matthew 25:23, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” 

I will never forget hearing this blessing. I will always be blessed by a blessing heard only by God. Thank you Lord for Vernon. 

Making cookies has always been fun for me. My Mother and I baked many different kinds of cookies. She never needed a reason to bake cookies. I now enjoy making cookies with my granddaughters. They do not want the kind of cookies that have premade dough. They want to actually “make” the cookies. It is amazing how big of a mess two little girls can make while making cookies but that is part of the fun.

Recently, we were making cookies, and I was trying to read the recipe off of the chocolate chip bag. The print has been getting smaller and smaller on those bags. I was trying to read how much sugar was supposed to go in the recipe. The fraction was printed so small that I couldn’t read it. I knew my choices would be ¼, ½, or ¾ but I just could not see enough of a number to figure out what it was. I took my glasses off and still couldn’t read it. Then, I put my glasses back on and tried to adjust my glasses through all the progressions that my glasses have. I finally found a tiny area of my lens that could read the fraction. The recipe called for ¾ of a cup of sugar. Note to self: buy a magnifying glass for the kitchen. I was reminded of the first time my mother had to ask me to read a recipe for her. I thought it was funny and started laughing. She told me to stop laughing and tell her what the recipe was. I know my Mother would have gotten a big laugh from me struggling to figure out how much of the sugar I needed.

What is an area of your life that you cannot see clearly? Do you need spiritual glasses to help you to see?

John 14:6 (ESV) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

If you need clarity in your life, look to Jesus. He is the way. Even if you cannot see clearly, look to Jesus and your vision will clear for him to help you to see the way he has prepared for you. 

Have you ever looked in the sky to see a search light? When my brothers and I were young, businesses would set up huge search lights to send out strong lights into the night sky. You could see them for miles around. Sometimes there would be just one light but others times there would be many lights all starting from the same place circling through the sky. We would climb into our car and go out in search of these lights. The light was on a rotating base and would move in a circle around the sky. We would watch for it as we moved in the direction of the beginning point of the light. My Daddy would zigzag through the roads to look for where the light was shining. There was so much excitement when we would finally find the business that was using the search lights. We would get out of the car and be so overjoyed because we had found the reason for the light. There would usually be refreshments or something fun going on. It was a celebration! We had Found the Light!!

As I think about lights in the sky, I cannot not help but think of the Star that the Wise Men saw. They knew the stars in the sky. They knew that there were stars that stayed in position and other stars that were moving stars that we understand to be planets. The Wise Men were probably mathematicians that had mapped out the heavens. They would have known the stars and would have identified them, so they would have been excited and filled with wonderment about a new star that appeared. The Wise Men were diligently looking to the heavens so they recognized the new star.

If the star was so visible in the sky, why did King Herod’s advisors not see the star?

They were not looking for it. They were not diligently studying the heavens.

Jeremiah 29:13 says, “Your will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

In John 8:12 (ESV), Jesus tells us “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” 

Are you looking for the Light? 

Are you seeking Jesus?