Being Prepared

I was reading in Timothy today and stumbled across an interesting statement, that so much shadows today's attitudes towards the Word that I had to share it with you.

In 2Timothy 4:2-4 Paul is telling Timothy the following, "Preach the Word, be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage - with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths."

As I read this I couldn't help but think of all the news media, politicians, educators, pastors, students, writers, actors, musicians, well you get my drift, people in all walks of life who can't tolerate the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ.

"They" have surrounded themselves with "intellects" who have twisted and desecrated the Word till it appears to them to be nothing but another fictional book to be laughed at and ridiculed. Making those whose life is directed by God's Words look like illiterate simpletons that can barely read or comprehend a more tolerant and sophisticated line of thought.

One would think Paul somehow transported himself to the 21st century and observed the world as we see it today. I'm amazed at the accuracy of his description of people surrounding themselves with "yes men", and listening only to those who's words spew out like the serpent in the Garden of Eden, enabling a twisted thought process to justify a more "tolerant" life style.

As Believers, we are charged to be prepared in season and out of season. To me that means when being a "Christian" is socially acceptable, or when the world seem to do a 180 and everything we as Believers stand on is offensive and repulsive to the socially and intellectual elite.

Can we stand committed to the Gospel of Jesus Christ when our freedoms and rights are striped away because someone is offended by the Blood of Jesus?

Is the Word in us to the overflow point that if something should happen to our Bible we can draw from the meals we've ingested and still speak God's Word allowing the infilling of the Holy Spirit to speak through us?

Are we, as Believers, really ready to face a Godless society and not compromise His Word, but exemplify it in our daily walk?

I know I personally need a lot more time on my knees seeking His face, gleaning from the insight of others and learning to hear His voice for myself so I will be prepared in season and out of season to share the Gospel.

It seems like I'm being a real doomsayer today, however I find it encouraging and exciting to know that as long as I seek Him I will find Him. To know He has a plan for me, that He has anointed me and called me and that He will finish the work He started in me. Relying on that, I know when the time comes, His Words will flow out of me like honey or fire which ever is needed at the moment and His Holy Spirit will fill me with power.

Knowing God is no respecter of persons, what He does for me He does for you. As long as we seek His face diligently He will give us everything we need to be prepared for what ever comes our way!

That to me calls for a "happy dance"!

Blessings,

Princess, Daughter of the King of Kings

Mother of Princesses and Princes

Grandmother of Royalty

Do you FROG?

Friday and Saturday I spent time with some mighty Women of God, immersed in His presence. Filled with His Holy Spirit receiving His Love, Mercy, Grace and a healthy dose of "Come to Jesus."

Each of us running in wild abandon to His feet.

So what does that have to do with the froggies pictured here?

Plenty, I'll explain.

Freely

Relying

On

God

I have occasion to become amused with myself and my life when I realize the whole thing is nothing more than a "set up" to get me to the place where I completely rely on HIM for everything.

It's amazing at how dependent we are on people, ministries, jobs, unemployment checks, alimony, internet, TV, Books, Sunshine, Cars, Routine, well, you get my drift.

We can effortlessly put our hope and trust in everyone and everything but the One that has been the provider of our life from the beginning.

Every time something else is stripped away I have to make a conscious decision about my level of trust in my Father.

I don't know about you, but I feel at my "age" I should be one of those pillars of Spirituality, a rock, steadfast, unwavering. Sadly, I'm not.

Daily I find my self running to get close enough to fall at His feet. Completely unable to make it through a day on my own.

We each have an Alabaster Box that holds the precious things in our lives. My relationship with my children is in mine. Knowing had I not been what I was, those precious relationships would be what He wanted them to be.

Pouring the contents of my Alabaster Box out on His feet is all I can do right now. But in doing that I know He will, in His own way and time bring healing and restoration.

What ever is in your Alabaster Box run to Jesus.

When I say run I want you to picture a major sale, the last sweater in your size and color and the only thing between you and victory is a few hundred other women trying to get that same sweater. Nothing will keep you from getting to that sweater. You don't care what you have to do to get to that sweater, it's yours and it's going home with no one but you.

That's the determination we have to have when running to Jesus

When you reach Him fall at His feet, pour out the contents of your Alabaster Box. Let your tears flow down to wash His feet and with your hair dry His nail scared feet. Don't try to hold onto it thinking you can make anything happen.

Open it up and pour it out, it might be messy, you may need to forget about your eye make up streaking down your face, but healing will come.

You have to release the precious contents of that priceless box. Holding it in secret will only put off the day when Jesus can touch your situation and say "Daughter Get Up, your tears have moved me and now go and tell others what I have done for you."

Blessings,

Princess, Daughter of the King of Kings

Mother of Princesses and Princes

Grandmother of Royalty

Tea Time

It's cold. All right maybe 67 isn't cold to you, but to me it's cold and I don't like it....I live in Florida and I want it hot all day everyday, hot and sunny.

Because it's so cold I felt the only thing I could do to make myself feel better about the dropping temperature is make a pot of tea.

Making tea is a very involved process.

Choose your tea, black, green, herbal, organic herbal, flavored, caf/decaf and on it goes.

Once you've chosen your tea then you can determine the water temperature. Black tea takes boiling water, any thing else the water needs to be just below boiling.

The pot has to be prepared by putting heated water in it to warm up so it doesn't break when you pour in the water from the tea kettle.

Pouring the hot water over the tea bags starts the process of steeping the tea. For black tea 5 minutes, green or lighter tea 3 minutes.

It's the steeping I want to address here.

The unsuspecting bag full of wonderful dried leaves is placed in a tea pot. The pot is warm and very cozy, nice place to be for a tea bag. Very comfortable...warm, dark nice place for a nap.

Then out of no where comes this boiling hot water being poured over the innocent tea bag till it is completely covered.

Totally immersed in hot water, something wonderful happens, the boiling water rehydrates the leaves and as they steep in this bath they begin to do the very thing they were created to do.

They release their flavor into the water, the aroma sneaks out of the tea pot filling the air around it with an inviting fragrance.

Soaking in the hot water doesn't take forever, even though it may seem like it. A short amount of time to make an entire pot of something soothing, healing, refreshing and tasty.

Once the steeping process is complete, the tea bags are removed. They are done, they have given everything and the plain water is infused with the sacrifice of the tea bag.

At this point the flavorful aromatic liquid is poured out of the tea pot into a heated cup to benefit anyone willing to drink.

No one has to worry if the tea bags will make tea when the hot water is poured on them. They will do what they do...when the appointed time for the steeping has come the water is tea.

It's a process that has guaranteed results.

When we are steeped in the Holy Spirit we have nothing to worry about.

All we have to do is allow the Holy Spirit to wash over us and steep in it's warm liquid. Allowing God to make provision for us.

When we immerse ourselves in Him and soak up His Spirit we will come to the place where we don't worry, we Know, He will provide for us.

The Message Bible translates Matthew 6:33,34 this way: Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

He will meet our needs, all of them, when we allow Him to completely immerse us in His Spirit.

Now, lets talk about the cookies we eat with the tea......

Blessings,

Princess, Daughter of the King of Kings

Mother of Princesses and Princes

Grandmother of Royalty