The Holding Pattern Many times God will allow a painful situation or a painful circumstance in our life to "swallow us up." This season in our spiritual growth is a holding pattern. We can't move to the left or the right. All we can do is sit, like Jonah sat in the belly of that great fish, so God can have our undivided attention and speak to us. God put Jonah in a holding pattern because He needed to speak to his heart. Jonah was all alone. There were no friends to call, no colleagues to drop by, no books to read, no food to eat, no interferences, and no interruptions. He had plenty of time to sit, think, meditate, and pray. When we're deep down in the midst of a difficult situation, God can talk to us. When He has our undivided attention, He can show us things about ourselves that we might not otherwise have seen. A Few Of God's Holding Patterns 1. When you are sick in your physical body and you have prayed, but
God has not healed you yet, you are in a holding pattern.
When we are deep in the belly of a difficult situation, there are no interruptions. God has our undivided attention. All we can do is sit, think, meditate, and pray. We cannot run from God because there are no mountains that are high enough, valleys that are low enough, rivers that are wide enough, rooms that are dark enough, or places that are hidden enough from Him. We must remember to praise Him while we're waiting and remember three things: 1. The pattern has a purpose.
So stop struggling and start listening, praying and trusting. He'll keep you right where you are until you can clearly hear Him say, "I love you." Forwarded by Nell |
When I pray
I cannot say...
OUR, if I am selfish and do
not think of others
AMEN unless I can say "WHATEVER HAPPENS
IN MY LIFE, THIS IS MY PRAYER
Forwarded by Edmon
The shortest distance between a problem and a solution is the distance between your knees and the floor. The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything. Be Blessed. |
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Wise Words ______________________________ On Worry
Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows; it empties today of its strength. There is a great difference between worry and concern. A worried person sees a problem, and a concerned person solves a problem. ______________________________
Forwarded by Beng |
by Audrey Hepburn For attractive lips, speak words of kindness
People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived,
Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of yourarm. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one forhelping yourself, the other for helping others. The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure she
The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole, but true beauty in a
woman
Forwarded by Dana
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"The real way to happiness is by giving happiness
to others. Try to leave this world a little better than when you
found it. So that when your turn comes to death, you will die happy in
feeling and at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done you're
best....."
One of the things that I have learned from scouting and it sure is helping me in my life. If you have some words of wisdom that you want to share, we'll gladly welcome it. Creativity does not end in the school and we like to encourage everyone to exercise their creative mind to contribute something that will be useful to everyone. It does not have to be a forward or a page from a magazine. We can also create something based on our experiences. It can be a tip on how to keep the candle burning in your marriage. Or little tips on how to raise your kids effectively. Or how to live worry-free and carefree, yet facing your responsibilities. Glowball will be your chance to be helped and be helpful. It will be the trading post of good ideas, principles and practical solutions.
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True Story of Faith - My Friends the Burtons This is a true story that was written by my friend Maria Burton and
sent to me on April 21, 2000. Many of you will remember her beautiful
Kentucky accent reading at our wedding. Some of you will remember her from
Landmark
Last night, as severe weather developed in Lexington, I was given yet
another gift of 'being' aware and choosing. As, Sarah and I shook,
quit literally , in a bedroom closet, Bill was outside 'observing' the
weather. The weather service had issued a Tornado Warning. To make
it yet worse, there was a funnel cloud in downtown Lexington (about
As Bill observed the wind sock spin in all directions and hail fall in the front yard, he came to the bedroom window and said "OK, its time, get under the house" (We have a crawlspace access right out our window) When Sarah and I entered the crawl space and sat down, I noticed something. In my small childs hand , she clinched my sacrifice beads. Now, for some reason, I saw them on my dresser when we first entered the closet and am consistantly 'aware' of my childs undying spirituality and so, I handed them to her. In the panic of 'being in survival', I had forgotten about handing them to her. My mother had given us each one of them. We had NEVER heard of them - they >are something I have it have been lost in history. Sacrifice beads consist of ten beads with a cross that hangs on the end and on the other end is a medal - which can vary. My beads have a medal of the holy spirit - which I chose. To me, the holy spirit is a symbol of the 'human' trinity. By
that, I mean the trinity that we are as human - the mind, body, and spirit.
The spirit NEVER forgets who you really are, yet will not force itself
on the mind and body - that I have it, the spirit leaves US to choose to
BE who we really
Well, suddenly, I 'became' peacefull. In that, I came to ' BE'
peace. I observed Sarah. She was shaking uncontrollable
- as if in convulsion. I observed tthat I had no urgency or need to
'change' her way of 'being'- there
Yet, what happened next altered us. I looked at her and said, "You know, when your grandmother gave us those she said we could DO anything we wanted with them. We could pray any prayer we wanted on those beads. But, the true essence of their creation was for sacrifice." "And, we could play with that right now." "For every minute
that we dont shake, that we are peaceful and trust God, we can move a bead
- and offer our fear to God as a sacrificce." She suddenly altered.
And, I said to her,
Sarah quit shaking. She moved a bead. Bill at that moment was COMPLETELY AMAZED AT WHAT HE WAS WITNESSING OUTSIDE THE CRAWL SPACE. When I told him about what happened under the house, he was excited. He said "I could WRITE something about what I saw happen outside. It was as if suddenly the sky over our house cleared and the storm split right down the middle of our house." He said he watched as the path of the storm passed over both the front of the house and the back of the house with a clearing path right over top of us. Sarah and I got out of the crawlspace, the storm had passed. We were safe, and peaceful. She looked up at me and acknowledged me. She said, "Mom there is nothing wrong with being afraid, but I am so thankful that you were peaceful because it gave me peaceful and I was shaking like a cold wet dog." Bill, acknowledged Sarah and I. He acknowleded us both for being calm and he acknowledged Sarah for her spirituality. He told her he was thankful for who she was. We truely can choose, in the face of anything who we are 'being' in any moment. There are ALL WAYS of BEING.....always. Love, Maria
Forwarded by Tet |
