Already Paid, Already Qualified

The job search was on. I was told that I was going to have to sell myself to the places I was turning my application in to. Newly cured of my epilepsy that had me disabled for 12 years I was a bit out of touch when it came to job searching. Unsure of what I needed to write in my resume’ I sat down at my computer and I came up with what I hoped was something that would sell myself well enough to get the job I needed or wanted.

As I sat there strained from the activity of finding the right words, mixed with words of prayer, I began to think about the Lord. I thought about how thankful I was that I didn't have to make out a resume' to sell myself to Him. He bought me just as I was. In spite of the thankfulness of not having to write one I decided to take on the challenge. I wanted to see what it would have looked like if it was required prior to baptism. Giving it my best shot here is what I came up with as my resume' to God.

Karen
Address: Powell Butte, OR
Date: June 1, 1971

CAREER OBJECTIVES: My aim or goal in my career as a Christian is to give my best to my work and employer in the field of Christian Stewardship.

SCHOOLING: Sunday school, Powell Butte Christian Church, July 1958 to June 1971
Degrees: None
Daily Vacation Bible School, Powell Butte Christian Church, June 1963-1971
Degrees: VBS graduate, helper, and teacher of 2-3 yr olds
School of Hard Knocks “Life”---Still attending
Degrees: Nothing yet.

EXPERIENCE: Very little at the age of twelve.

STRENGTHS AND ATTRIBUTES: I'm not to sure if I have any strengths in me Lord but I'm sure I can contribute some way to your family Father God if you would let me in.

REFERENCES: Mom and dad, Powell Butte
The preacher, Penny Penhollow, Redmond
My Sunday School Teachers

Cover Letter

Let me introduce myself, my name is Karen. I am a 12-year-old girl raised on a ranch here in the Central Oregon area. I have some experience in the church; my parents have been taking me to Sunday School and church for 12 years now. I only have one scripture memorized it’s John 3:16 but I am working on learning the Lord’s Prayer, and the 23rd Psalm.

I know I fight a lot with my one brother and three sisters but I don't mean to. I try to read my Bible whenever I get a chance. I may not be as good of a Christian as the preachers kids and grandkids are but I am doing my best. I’m not one who talks a great deal so I don’t know if my prayers are worded like they should be but I promise I will work on that too. I’m sorry for the things that I may do wrong in my life, like that beer my cousins and I took out of my Uncle’s refrigerator to drink, and the naughty trick my brother and I played on our neighbor Joy.

I would like to be baptized on July 4, 1971 if you would have me Lord. I’m a hard worker. I don’t have any experience at all yet in being a Christian. I do love my neighbor though as the Bible tells me to, her name is Joy; she's the one I played the trick on. I don't know how to type yet but my handwriting is improving according to my teacher Mrs. Stafford. Maybe if there is something you need I can write it up for you! I don't think I’m smart enough, or old enough yet to teach but I’m sure there is something I could do to help out if you would let me into your family. Maybe I could sweep the church floors, I know how to wash clothes, and milk cows. I'm really not that much trouble ask my mom and dad but don’t ask my brother or sisters.

Please Lord will you think about letting me in, I promise I will try my best. I don't mean to sound pushy but could you let me know maybe in a few days before the 4th of July so I could be baptized on that day!

Thank you so much. I hope I didn't bug you,

Karen

It didn't take me long to visualized the response I would get. I could hear the Lord speak up to me almost instantly. Here were His words to me:

“Karen, my little one, you said in your resume' that you know one scripture, John 3:16. Repeat it to yourself right now and listen to the words you are saying. Right in that verse alone tells you, my child that I loved the world so much that I gave my one and only begotten Son to “whosoever believeth.” You believe don’t you? You don’t have to answer that Karen; I already know your heart.

Truly Karen, if you have been going to church as long as you said you should know by now that you don't have to sell yourself to me I already paid the price for you. Thousands of years before your little blonde 12-year-old soul came into being I already was purchasing it with the blood of my son, Jesus Christ.

I want you to read a scripture from Romans; it's a book in the New Testament about half way through or so. Paul wrote it for me. It is Romans 5:8 that tells you that while you were still sinners I demonstrated my love for you by the death of Jesus Christ. It was so great to hear that you have been waiting eagerly to be adopted as one of my sons or daughters that’s what I like to hear! You can read about that in Romans while you are there in 8:23 and 9:4. In Ephesians, which is, the 4th book to the right of Romans read chapter 1 verse 5.

The best I can say Karen is that you are eligible to be called one of my children. You qualified not because you meet all the qualifications, or did everything you were suppose to do or had the right kind of experience. It’s because you believe in me that's all I ask my dear child. I know you really don't mean to do a lot of things you do, I had an apostle that was that way. He was the one that wrote several books for me in the Bible. You can read about him in Romans 7: 18-20 and how he struggled himself with sin. Peter was another one who had his struggles with believing and faith. Did you read about him in Matthew 14:22-33 trying to walk on water without staying focused on me? He fell in! Yes a true ambidextrous kind of a man with the ability to stick both feet in his mouth yet he turned out rather well himself.

It's important to remember Karen that I came to save the sinners as I Timothy 1:15 and many more say. It's what you do after you have accepted me into your life that really matters to me. Once you’ve come in to the family, my child, I will give you the Holy Spirit to help you with that part. Again my little one, you don't have to sell yourself to me, I already paid! I'm so glad I did too as I look upon what I have purchased. Go ahead and join the family July 4, 1971, the sooner the better.

I love you, Karen.”

Forever yours,

Your Heavenly Father

CLOSING THOUGHT: Praise the Lord that we don’t have to sell ourselves to God He already paid. We already are qualified if only we would believe and accept Him into our lives and live accordingly thereafter. Unlike searching for a job where it turns out to be a task of telling the people what they want to hear, the only thing God wants to hear is “I believe and I choose to live my life in Christ instead of being on the outside always looking in.” Don’t delay, there’s never a better time than today to join God’s family since yesterday is gone, and tomorrow may never show up.


Copyright 1997/updated 2007 by Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

The Perfect Trap

What a delight it can be to sit back and listen to little kids plan their future as their hopes and dreams soar. Without a problem they see themselves as a super hero, or someone who grows up to be like mom or dad, while others go off on wild dreams that could never be accomplished. Mulling over in my mind the many things I had heard over the years I found my own plans stuffed in the middle of the list. I was one of those kids that was dreaming the impossible dream. Yep, as far as I was concerned I had the best plan of all and I remember sharing that vision with my mother.

I had asked mom one day if I could be anything I wanted to be when I grew up. Wanting to encourage me in my future plans of perhaps wanting to be a teacher or something she innocently replied, “Yes, Karen you can be whatever you want to be.” “Well then,” I quickly replied to her encouragement, “I want to be a monkey!” The part I couldn’t remember was the startled look that had to be upon her face as she tried to think of a comeback that wouldn’t discourage me from making plans for my future.

Years later after hearing a man speak on a Christian TV program describing an illustration about monkeys I was glad I had decided long ago to change my profession! He talked about how in Africa in order to catch and kill monkeys they had what they figured was the “perfect trap.” They took a coconut and drilled a hole in it and filled it with things they knew the monkeys would really like. After setting it out in a tree or somewhere they would sit and watch for the monkey to come along. Subsequent to spotting the coconut the monkey would stick his hand in the hole and grab the stuff inside it really loved. Unfortunately, with his hand clinched full it was impossible to pull his hand back out, thus he was trapped and the Africans would kill the monkey and eat it.

Definitely not a good choice on behalf of the monkey but sadly enough it is something that we are often guilty of doing ourselves in our spiritual lives. Satan in all his cleverness knows the ideal bait to put in what he would see as the perfect trap knowing we would reach for it and not let go. By gripping tightly those things we love that are not within God’s will, we find ourselves following the same pattern as the monkey that ultimately will lead to our destruction if we are not willing to give it up in order to escape.

Easier said than done is the task of “letting go and letting God.” At first we struggle in our walk, we stumble and fall and get back up but if we stick with the Lord we find the strength and guidance in His word to help us through such times of weakness. The tasks we thought would be impossible soon are accomplished as we find that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. We are the ones given the choice to hang on or let go; die or live; lose or win the battle we find ourselves in with an enemy called Satan who so badly wants to bring us down and devour us.

Proverbs 3:26 says, “For the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared.” The problem with this statement is that we have to be willing to let the Lord help us from getting caught. II Timothy 2:26 talks about a workman approved by God so that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, which has taken them captive to do his will; a statement that is good and sound advice for all of us to follow.

If only the African monkey could have come to his senses and let go of the thing he wanted so badly that led to his death. If only the average person would do the same coming to their senses what a victory in Jesus it would be. Once we open our hand and see just what had us trapped and evaluate its worth we soon find out that nothing is worth being trapped over.

Dear Heavenly Father, forgive us Lord for those things in life that we think we need to hold on to that causes more harm than good eternally. It’s a hard thing to do Father God as we find ourselves shouting out in desperation “Take it Father take it!” Help us Lord to learn how to loosen the grip we have on things that we may give them over to You to become obedient to Your will.

May we always remember that there is no “perfect trap” that can’t be overcome in You. No ideal situation or temptation that leads us away from You that can’t be conquered. Thanks for caring enough that none should perish as You provide a way out if only we would take it. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Copyright 2007 Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Rainbow Remnants in the Sky

The office was quiet; my co-worker had gone home 5 hours earlier than planned to rescue her husband who was having car trouble. All morning long I had been thinking about how I would rather be reading my Bible instead of doing what I was doing. The afternoon looked as if it was going slow enough on it’s own when suddenly it seemed to stop at 1:56pm as the sight of a rainbow outside my office window caught my eye. There before me on the third floor of the building where I worked was the most breathtaking rainbow I had ever seen appearing just for me.

Carrying a fascination and love for rainbows ever since I was a young girl I have always found it difficult to pass an opportunity to gaze upon one when they materialize in the sky. The rainbow today that I was observing showed a uniqueness all it’s own like I have never seen before. What a dazzling gorgeous sight to see. As I looked upon it, it appeared as if God was using it to catch my attention and it worked, as the bright colors seemed to say, “Christ is here and He’s on His way.”

Surrounding the rainbow was a sky loaded with semi-dark rain clouds ready to burst at the seams with the water they were carrying. In the far north was an opening in the clouds and the rays of light that were coming down showed up in the colors of the rainbow beneath the opening. It wasn’t a typical arched rainbow that can be seen after a rain. The clouds themselves took on the shades of purple, blue and green as they were stacked one on top of each other in a horizontal manner. From where I sat the array of colors looked about 3 inches wide when in all reality up close, it had to have been thousands of feet or perhaps miles in width.

Slowly as I typed on my computer recording this awesome wonder, the colors began to fade into the clouds and the rays that were coming down disappeared. Oh what a strikingly beautiful sight it was, it was like Christ had come to tell me, "I'm here Kari Jo. I'm here.” Soon other bits and pieces of rainbows appeared in various areas only to quickly vanish into the clouds. The more I dwelled on this dazzling show of colorful chunks of rainbows appearing and disappearing in the sky I began to think of Christ’s return. Boy, what a stunning entrance scene it would make if God surrounded Him with the bright colors of the rainbow instead of rolling out the red carpet for Him. Not that He plans to roll out any “red carpet” but the picture of this vision just wouldn’t stop forming in my mind and in my heart.

Next thing I knew the radio on my desk began to play one of my favorite songs by Norman Greenbaum called “Spirit in the Sky.” Resisting the desire to turn the music up and rattle the windows I quietly listened to the words he was singing as it added to the Outdoor Show I was enjoying from my office windowpane. Between listening to the lyrics of the song talking about “when I die and they lay me to rest I’m going to go to the place that’s the best” and seeing the rainbow art show outside by 2:05pm I would have given anything to give my Father God a great big hug.

Loud or soft the words of the song and the rainbow display were causing my heart to race faster than I’ve ever noticed before. The tears drenching my cheeks just wouldn't stop flowing as they came from the inside of my heart. Speaking out to the Lord I said, “Lord Jesus I love you so much! After that experience I don't know if I can concentrate on my work. That was too great. I love you too! Being in heaven with you definitely is going to be the place that's the best! I can't think of any place I'd rather be.”

Fourteen minutes later at 2:19pm the show continued as rays of light were beginning to come back through the clouds in two different spots in the color of a rainbow. They were there for 5 minutes or so before they slowly began to fade away. Getting up from my desk I decided to walk into the next room to see if I was the only one able to view these, as I heard no comments from my fellow co-workers about the colorful rainbows appearing outside. Sure enough they could be seen from their side of the office. Keeping my experience to myself I returned to my chair to watch further the show God was putting on for me.

Next thing I knew flying directly over my office for its third trip on this cloudy autumn day was one of the Air-life helicopters from the hospital across the street. With my heart and eyes still looking to Christ and the moment He was sharing with me I said a quick prayer for the person that was being transferred to or from the hospital, throwing in an additional prayer for their spiritual needs.

After that my thoughts led me to thinking about how Christ is the true "Air life" person, the one who saves lives forever, for all eternity. Crowding in on my blessed moment with the Lord were the memories of what happened at work just a few days prior to this day. A co-worker was sharing her opinion of a fellow colleague, using frequent cuss words to describe her feelings about this person. Pretty soon she turned to me and laughingly said, “Cover your ears church lady, cover your ears." At the moment I thought, how sad, truly it was her eyes and ears that were covered and blocked off from what she needed to hear. Meditating on that and looking at what I was seeing today with the rainbow show out my window I thought to myself, “I don't want to cover my ears nor my eyes, I want to see and hear the Lord when He arrives. I want to be the spotter, the greeter, the town crier, the neighborhood watch.”

Praise God that fifteen minutes later at 2:34pm there were still remnants of rainbows becoming visible only to fade away minutes later in the northern sky. The joy I was experiencing inside of me was beginning to be too much and I just had to dig out the Bible I had stashed away in the locked file cabinet drawer near my desk. I just had to read about the first rainbow as it materialized in Genesis 9:12-17. What a captivating thing to read how God said, “Whenever the rainbow is in the clouds and I look upon it, I will remember the everlasting covenant or pledge.” Perhaps deep down inside that is why I have always been attracted to rainbows. The knowing in my heart that at the same time I’m looking at them He is looking at them too using it as a reminder of the covenant and pledge that He made so long ago. The new covenant made at the time of Noah, as well as the even better one yet to come through our savior Jesus Christ.

Looking again to the clock at 2:45pm at last a full size rainbow arch came into view just Northeast of where I had been seeing the remnants. The clouds in the sky over the last few moments were growing much darker than when the show first began. The chest pains I began to notice deep inside my chest wall definitely had to have been from the spiritual heart attack I had experienced that was brought on by God himself. Within three minutes at 2:48pm the full rainbow arch that had temporarily appeared was now totally gone as it came and went as quickly as the previous bits and pieces of rainbows had been doing.

By 2:54pm six minutes later the dark rain clouds were rapidly moving to the Northeast still holding on to the water within them as they left a large circle of blue sky directly over my office building where I had the privilege of watching this act of God before me. Only four minutes had lapsed when at 2:58pm another remnant of a rainbow appeared in the North. This one was slanted with a white light that shined brightly as it stretched far below the bottom color of the rainbow. Within two minutes at 3:00pm it faded as quickly as it had come into sight.

Pausing for a moment I began to chuckle thinking about what God was up to that afternoon. Was God so bored in heaven after He completed His daily tasks that He decided to drop in to say “Hello” to those He loved? Maybe the computer system in the rainbow machine malfunctioned and He decided to go out with the fix-it crew to get it going again? “Or maybe, Kari Jo?” I had to think to myself, “He had something more important on His mind and that which was shown today was only the beginning.”

Whatever the reason, once again it started up as the arched rainbow returned at 3:26pm but this time it was accompanied by a faded mirror image of itself off to the left several miles away. Turning my head to my work for only three minutes at 3:29pm I looked once again toward the two rainbows sitting side-by-side. “Wow!” I shouted silently to myself, the rainbow on the right was becoming brighter and brighter as the base of it grew in width. It was almost as if the mirror image of it that I had seen on the left had now moved over to join it reinforcing it's color as it doubled in size.

One more time over the building where I sat the Air-life helicopter interrupted my show as it set out on another trip as God also continued His journey through my heart. Trying to bring myself back to the work in front of me, I thought about the papers that I needed to deliver to someone but I didn't want to leave my front row seat in this outdoor theater of God's. As with all the other remnants the bright showy rainbow began to fade at 3:36pm but my attention had not as I found it extremely difficult to walk away in hopes of more.

Finally pulling myself away from work I went to my car and headed North towards home. No more rainbows to be seen, no more remnants in the sky as the reminders of God’s love were now on the ground level where I was. Passing a United Parcel Service truck heading into the town I was leaving I spoke up and said, “I love you too Jesus.” A remnant in itself of something that God and I have shared for several years. Whenever I see a car with one headlight burnt out I take it as an opportunity to say, “I love Jesus.” For every UPS truck that travels by that is God’s opportunity to say I love you to me. So whenever I see one of these trucks I reply back to the Lord with a, “I love you too Jesus. I love you too.”

For to me when I see that word UPS I think of looking up to my Lord and Savior. The slogan on the side of this oddly shaped van is a slogan shared by Christ as well as it says, “Worldwide Delivery Service. Dial 1-800-Pick-Ups.” Imagine that, worldwide delivery service at the doorstep of anyone who is willing to call Him up and invite Him into his or her hearts as well as their lives. Today it may have only been one woman attending His art show but you can bet He has others going globally as He drops in to say, “I love you “ to His children who are listening and paying attention. Before I had reached my home that day I had seen three UPS trucks and was able to say three times, “I love you too Jesus, I love you too.” Praise God!

The next day at work I found out from my co-worker that the problem her husband was having with his pickup was water in his oil. In the physical world that can be fatal but in the spiritual world it’s a blessing indeed. After reviewing the events of my afternoon I would have to say that was exactly what happened to me too. I had gotten Living Water in my oil, the anointing oil of Jesus that was applied to my life years and years ago. “I love you too Jesus, I love you too!”

Closing Thought: God is out there with reminders or remnants of His love that we need to be looking for as well as opportunities ourselves to tell Him that we love Him too. Forever willing to keep our eyes and ears open to what He has to say. As we allow the Living Water to flow through our lives not around it, intermixing with the anointing oil of Christ to a beauty all its own. Chances are if we are not seeing this its because we are not paying attention. God is out there, its up to us to look.


Copyright 2007 by Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipe Publishing

The Perfect Trap

What a delight it can be to sit back and listen to little kids plan their future as their hopes and dreams soar. Without a problem they see themselves as a super hero, or someone who grows up to be like mom or dad, while others go off on wild dreams that could never be accomplished. Mulling over in my mind the many things I had heard over the years I found my own plans stuffed in the middle of the list. I was one of those kids that were dreaming the impossible dream. Yep, as far as I was concerned I had the best plan of all and I remember sharing that vision with my mother.

I had asked mom one day if I could be anything I wanted to be when I grew up. Wanting to encourage me in my future plans of perhaps wanting to be a teacher or something she innocently replied, “Yes, Karen you can be whatever you want to be.” “Well then,” I quickly replied to her encouragement, “I want to be a monkey!” The part I couldn’t remember was the startled look that had to be upon her face as she tried to think of a comeback that wouldn’t discourage me from making plans for my future.

Years later after hearing a man speak on a Christian TV program describing an illustration about monkeys I was glad I had decided long ago to change my profession! He talked about how in Africa in order to catch and kill monkeys they had what they figured was the "perfect trap." They took a coconut and drilled a hole in it and filled it with things they knew the monkeys would really like. After setting it out in a tree or somewhere they would sit and watch for the monkey to come along. Subsequent to spotting the coconut the monkey would stick his hand in the hole and grab the stuff inside it really loved. Unfortunately, with his hand clinched full it was impossible to pull his hand back out, thus he was trapped and the Africans would kill the monkey and eat it.

Definitely not a good choice on behalf of the monkey but sadly enough it is something that we are often guilty of doing ourselves in our spiritual lives. Satan in all his cleverness knows the ideal bait to put in what he would see as the perfect trap knowing we would reach for it and not let go. By gripping tightly those things we love that are not within God’s will, we find ourselves following the same pattern as the monkey that ultimately will lead to our destruction if we are not willing to give it up in order to escape.

Easier said than done is the task of “letting go and letting God.” At first we struggle in our walk, we stumble and fall and get back up but if we stick with the Lord we find the strength and guidance in His word to help us through such times of weakness. The tasks we thought would be impossible soon are accomplished as we find that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. We are the ones given the choice to hang on or let go; die or live; lose or win the battle we find ourselves in with an enemy called Satan who so badly wants to bring us down and devour us.

In Proverbs 3:26 is says, “for the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared.” The problem with this statement is that we have to be willing to let the Lord help us from getting caught. In II Timothy 2:26it talks about a workman approved by God that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, which has taken them captive to do his will a statement that is good and sound advice for all of us to follow.

If only the African monkey could have come to his senses and let go of the thing he wanted so badly that lead to his death. If only the average person would do the same coming to their senses what a victory in Jesus it would be. Once we open our hand and see just what had us trapped and evaluate its worth we soon find out that nothing is worth being tapped over, no not nothing.

Dear Heavenly Father, forgive us Lord for those things in life that we think we need to hold on to that causes more harm than good eternally. It’s a hard thing to do Father God as we find ourselves shouting out in desperation “take it Father take it!” Help us Lord to learn how to loosen the grip we have on things that we may give them over to You to become obedient to Your will. May we always remember that there is no “perfect trap” that can’t be overcome in You. No ideal situation or temptation that leads us away from You that can’t be conquered. Thanks for caring enough that none should perish as You provide a way out if only we would take it. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Copyright 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

Yea Or Nay, It's Our Choice

People seem to think that saying yes to life is an invitation to live it up and party. “Eat, drink and be merry,” they say, “for tomorrow we may die.” On the other extreme are those who don’t feel they have any kind of life at all. Daily, they make the mistake of measuring their quality of life against a much higher standard than they should. Their house isn’t as big as others, they don’t make as much money, their social life isn’t as dynamic… The list of downgrades continues to the point they actually believe the lies Satan has filtered into their lives, regarding whether life is truly worth living.

While we don’t often like to admit it, our quality of life here on earth depends a lot on our attitude towards it. We can allow Satan to overwhelm us to the point we don’t feel like living; or we can take what we have and make the most of it, keeping our eyes on the Lord, using His standards and not the world’s measurement of what living is.

Years ago when I had epilepsy, people would ask me if I thought God did this to me, giving me the disease that left me disabled at the age of 20, told never to have children, even had my driver’s license taken away. From the very beginning, I knew in my heart God wasn’t out there picking on me, randomly choosing someone to strike down. No, to me life had dealt me the disease; it was caused by kids goofing around on a school bus in junior high, resulting in the injury that led to brain surgery, that six years later brought on the epilepsy, one month after I was married. I knew in my heart God was looking to see what I would do with this disease. Would I allow it to take over me or would I turn to God to conqueror it, resulting in a closer walk with Him?

I have to admit that for the first seven years, I didn’t do well. I was making the decision in my heart that life wasn’t worth living; in fact, I had no life. No matter what I did, I had seizures. I lost everything and had nothing, as far as my attitude was concerned. I refused to look past the wall of bitterness I had erected in my heart and mind. Finally, after years of my engaging in a long pity party, doctors discovered the cause and the possible cure of my epilepsy. The scar tissue from my brain surgery was the cause; the cure was getting rid of the 90% of what they called “stress caused seizures” in order to have the brain surgery to cure the remaining epileptic ones.

The doctors’ solution for me was to see a licensed psychiatrist. My solution was to take it to the Lord. I knew in my heart that if I was allowing stress to have that big of a control over me, then I wasn’t relying on the Lord as I should. God was giving me a choice to say “Yes” to a better life or stay where I was and go nowhere. The quality of my life was now in my hands and I needed to do something with it. Giving in to life wasn’t going to defeat Satan; giving up on myself would get me nowhere, either. I had to stand my ground, knowing I wasn’t alone. Soon, I would learn what it meant to pray without ceasing, as I constantly talked to the Lord, trying to figure out what was bothering me or what I was permitting in my life that was causing these seizures.
The biggest obstacle to overcome was the anger I felt toward the girl who contributed to my initial head injury. Being angry with her and blaming her for my disease was only postponing a possible cure for what ailed me. After all, she was only responsible for the 10% of true epileptic seizures; the other 90% I was bringing upon myself.

Five years later, the victory came when my stress seizures were gone and I was able to have the surgery that completed my healing process. Physical healing was mine at last; more important was the spiritual healing I received. God taught me a lot in the five-year, one-on-one course I found myself taking with a Teacher Who had more faith in me than I had in myself; Who patiently stood by waiting for me to make my choice on whether I was going to say “Yea” or “Nay” to life itself. I voted, “Yea.” Today, my vote is still to say “Yes” to life, no matter how rough the road, for Christ is my standard, the ingredient that makes my life worth living.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You, Lord, that we can have a life through You, one here on earth but more importantly the one we can have for all eternity: an excellent life in heaven with You, one full of quality. Forgive us, Lord, for the days we forget what life is really all about and live it as the world would. Amen.


Copyright 2007 by Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Welcome Home

The funeral for my dear friend was over, on the journey home I was left to myself to think about where she was right now, up in heaven with Jesus. The vision of her meeting with Jesus for the first time made me think of my own reunion that will some day take place. What was it going to be like I wondered? Was it all that I could imagine it to be and even more? What if my imagination failed me for the first time in my life and I had the picture all wrong?

Once I got home I pulled out my Bible and turned to the book of Revelation 4:1-10 to see a fraction of what John’s vision looked like to get me started on my own image of my initial meeting with Jesus. In spite of my over-active imagination I was finding it hard to picture what it would be like to meet Christ for the first time, I have to admit that picturing Jesus in the manger was much easier for me, maybe because I was born on a ranch I don’t know. I could only imagine and therefore I did.

There before me was a door standing open in heaven and the first voice I heard speaking to me sounding like a trumpet said, "Come up here, Karen. I want to show you Heaven." At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it who had the appearance of jasper and a reddish brown gem, I knew it had to be God who always dwelled in “unapproachable light” as seen in the reflected brilliance of precious stones, emerald, and a rainbow that had itself wrapped around the throne like a halo, how totally awesome. The beautiful rainbow I fell in love with on earth was seen here in heaven as well, it was breathtaking to see such beauty.

Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones with elders sitting upon them dressed in white with crowns of gold on their heads. From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. I remembered once hearing that these were symbols of the awesome majesty and power of God as they always marked important events connected with the heavenly temple and this was definitely a very significant occasion. It was nothing like the lightning I had seen on earth, and what people jokingly thought would strike them if they ever showed up in church.

Before the throne I saw seven blazing lamps which were the seven spirits of God. True status symbols of completeness, fullness, and perfection that they represented. Also there was what looked like a sea of glass that was clear as crystal. Other features of the temple I saw were the lamps, the Ark of the Covenant, and angelic beings whose task was to guard the heavenly throne and lead in worship and adoration of God. Everywhere I turned people were giving glory, honor and thanks to Him who sat on the throne as they did this the twenty-four elders fell down before Him and worshipped the One who lives for ever and ever as they laid their crowns before the throne while continually saying “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”

I couldn’t help but join in this worship time of my Lord and Savior. Finally it was my chance and opportunity to meet with Jesus. Quietly standing in awe before Him I dropped to my knees to worship Him right as I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: "To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!"

Turning His head towards me Jesus smiled that gentle loving smile I had pictured correctly in my heart as He reached out to touch my face, mopping up every tear I had drenching my cheeks with His nail scarred hand like He had done all my life, as He said to me, “Remember Karen, no more tears, you’re in heaven now. No more tears. Welcome home.”

Dear Heavenly Father praise you that it doesn’t matter what our picture looks like right now, what counts is the faith and trust it’s painted with using the canvas of our hearts. That’s what believing is all about, knowing that some day we will get to see. May we all be ready in our hearts for the trip home. We love you Lord and thanks! Amen.

© 2006 by Karen J. Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Signed and Sealed

Years ago when I took an oil painting class the teacher told me that I was not suppose to sign my paintings in the bottom left hand corner because that was reserved for professional artist only. After that whenever I looked at God’s beautiful artwork I started to see His mark of professionalism signed and sealed in the bottom left corner of all His creations.

Resourcefulness so amazing all the way from the roaring ocean with the background sound of seagulls flying high above to the rolling mountain terrains laid out in blankets of green quietly interrupted by an occasional sound of a bird, elk, cricket, or deer calling in the wilderness.

Who but God could do such things? All it takes to answer this is simply tear apart a rose, peel a banana, crack open a walnut, observe the cycle of the seasons, look into the function of the human body and the authenticity of His artwork comes out in the signature He leaves behind.

Reading through the Bible we see where the number 7 comes up frequently enough that people have attributed it to being “God’s number,” the number of completeness. It not only shows up in the Bible it shows up in His creations as well, facts and figures divisible by 7 made by Him, signed and sealed.

For example, the rainbow has 7 colors, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet and a dog’s age is 7 times that of a human. The rotation of our galaxy whirls the sun through space at a speed of 7,000,000 miles per hour. The force of solar gravity at the surface of the sun is 28 times as strong as the pull of gravity on earth. The incubation period of a chicken egg is 21 days. In the earth’s core we find a layer of silicon magnesium that is 700 miles deep. Plus a layer of ultrabasic rocks on top of that 14 miles in thickness. The human body is about 70 per cent water by weight. A kilogram of seawater averages 35 grams of salt.

The Sun, at present, is about 70% hydrogen and 28% helium by mass. The earth’s atmosphere consists of 21% oxygen; its crust is 7% liquid. The ozone layer is 70 kilometers in height above the earth. Pressure at the earth’s surface is approximately 14.7 pounds per minute. Transparent diamond crystals heated in oxygen burn at about 1470 degrees F forming carbon dioxide. It is known that Nitric acid melts at 42 degrees C and zinc melts at about 1400 degrees F.

The Big Dipper is made up of seven stars, a giraffe’s neck has 7 vertebras, and a crab sheds its shell at least 7 times in its lifetime. In the killer whale species they have tail fins which are 7’ wide. Is it any wonder that the eagle, the most named bird in the Bible has a wing span of up to 7’ wide! Who but God!

Praise the Lord that we too in our spiritual lives can be signed and sealed by God, by-products of Him divisible by seven in our daily Christian walk carrying around the evidence of His initiative in all we say and do. The choice is ours. The ability to be divisible by seven lies deep within all of us thanks to the Holy Spirit. The same resourcefulness He used on creation He will use in our lives in amazing ways to accomplish His will and guide His children. Praise the Lord!

Dear Heavenly Father thank you so much for allowing us to be an offshoot of you, having enough faith in us to add the qualities needed to accomplish this goal in our lives. Adding to us and rounding us off where we fall short, taking away what needs to go making us in your love and grace not only signed and sealed but delivered too! Amen.


© 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

Reserved Seating

Recently our Women’s group in an attempt to refresh the title of “Women’s Council” that was established in the 1920’s decided we liked the name M&M’s. Not because we were a bunch of sweet, chocolate loving women. No, it stood for “the Mary and Martha’s” as a reflection of a group of women working together serving in their own way with different approaches the Lord and His family.

When you turn to this all familiar story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42 immediately as you read it the spotlight seems to be on Martha as we hear her words that are still repeated today, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” In other words, “What I’m doing is right and what she is doing is wrong, get after her, she’s the bad one?”

Do you suppose the tone of Jesus’ voice is any different today than it was then as He said, “Martha, Martha, Martha.” Between battles with my stress seizures, low self-esteem, and family matters Christ has said to me many times, “Karen, Karen, Karen” as I got off on a focal point other than that of sitting and listening to the Lord.

Speaking just as peacefully to me as He did to Martha that day as He sat her down and showed her what was truly important. He pointed out to her as He had pointed out to me that she was being worried and upset about many things, but only one thing was needed. To Christ Mary had chosen that “one thing” as she sat at His feet listening to what He had to say.

So easily in our lives we have the tendency to get our priorities mixed up. We get caught up in what the world would view as important and neglect what is imperative in the eyes of God. What Martha was doing was not unimportant but she allowed it to distract her to the point where she was stressed over it and frustrated with Mary for not helping her. Her attitude took over and she became wrapped up in the worldly things and overlooked the importance of spending quality time with the Lord.

Like Martha in the kitchen it doesn’t take much as we allow our attention span to become shortened and easily wander. Soon we find ourselves sounding like Martha as we complain to the preacher, the elders, or other people “why is it always me in the kitchen, doing all the work mopping the floors, why isn’t someone helping me!”

Instantly we are distracted from what is important, doing kitchen duty needs to get done but it can’t take precedence over spending valuable time with our Lord and Savior in Bible study, meditation, prayer, praise and worship. We start out on the right foot but we allow the world to get us off track on what the “one thing” is that should be our focus.

Indeed, things that wind up working against our accomplishment of spending quality time with Jesus listening to what He has to say as we lack the self-discipline to keep our attention on His spoken words. Jesus didn’t tell Mary that day to sit down, she chose that for herself. Just like no one forced Martha to rush into the kitchen to make preparations for a meal that was her choice. The choice today is still ours to make on whether we want to be a Mary or a Martha in our lives.

It’s awesome and comforting to know that we don’t have to “impress Jesus.” Our physical home doesn’t have to be the best, scrubbed clean from top to bottom, decorated beautifully for all to see. What Jesus is after is our spiritual home and the condition in which it is in, as Mary that day was attending as she listened intently to the words of Jesus, not once distracted by what Martha was doing in the kitchen, banging the pots and pans around murmuring to herself that she was doing all the work and Mary was just sitting around visiting.

What Christ was talking to Mary about that day that kept her at His feet is anyone’s guess. What He was to tell us in written in His word for us to read and pay attention to if only we would take the time to stop and do it. Once again the choice is ours, halt at the feet of Jesus or go on to the things of the world that distracts us from that “one thing.”

Dear Heavenly Father help us Lord to find that balance we need in our lives between sitting at Your feet and attending to the cares of the world. It’s important that we get our spiritual feeding from You long before we think about the physical meal we need to prepare for ourselves or our families.

Forgive us for the times that we do get distracted and our priorities shift to the things in life that is not a part of that “one thing” that is more vital and that is spending time listening to what You have to say to us on a day-to-day basis. We love You Lord and thank you for the reserved seating You have for us at Your feet, a place for us to come to, to be listened to and to listen to You. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

© 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

Just As He Said

In the 24th chapter of Luke we read where Mary Magdalene and the other women had gone to the tomb that day to anoint the body of Jesus. When they got there the stone was rolled away and Jesus’ body was gone. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed stood beside them.

In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground but the men said to them, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said.” In the book of John, while still at the tomb wondering what was going on Mary turned around and saw Jesus standing there but she did not realize who it was.

Thinking He was possibly one of the gardeners Mary asked Him if He knew where they had taken the body. “If you let me know I’ll go and get it and take care of it,” she said. All He had to say to her was “Mary,” and she instantly recognized Him. Her immediate reaction was to shout out “Rabboni!” which means Teacher.

Here she was worrying about what possibly could have happened to His body and low-and-behold there He was speaking her name. Boy her heart had to be racing to the point of tachycardia as Christ’s words to her were, “Don’t be afraid, go and tell my brothers.”

It doesn’t take much to picture her rushing efforts to get to the disciples to tell them the news. Her breathless words to them as she panted to catch her breath and get her heart to calm down were, “I’ve seen the Lord.” In spite of all the excitement bubbling up in her words the disciples didn’t believe her or the other women that were with her because to them their words were like nonsense. Peter was the only one that got up and ran to the tomb to see what was happening.

Praise God for the truth of the statement from the angel at the tomb that day when he said, “He has risen, just as He said.” A message that should be told today with the same enthusiasm heard in Mary’s voice when she ran to tell the good news about seeing the Lord. We may get the same response Mary did but the message still needs to be heard, “I’ve seen the Lord! He has risen!”

My oldest granddaughter figuring she had missed something at the church one day asked me, “Grandma, when is the church going to put Jesus back on the cross in the sanctuary instead of the robe and thorn crown that are draped there?” I told her that none of us have seen Him there, He has risen and the only way back on the cross was if we do it ourselves.

Hebrews 6:6 tells us how impossible it is for those who have once been enlightened and have tasted the heavenly gift who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to public disgrace.

Recently in the news a claim was made regarding some bones found in a casket that they were the actual bones of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and their baby. To them this discovery nullified the authenticity of the resurrection. Digging further into the story, the finding of the bones was made in the early 1980’s and after DNA testing the conclusion was made that the two sets of bones in the casket were not related---end of story. Not quite, over 20 years later the subject is brought up again using it as an attempt to publicly disgrace the message of the cross.

Try as people might to prove the message of the cross wrong, the truth remains Christ has risen just as He said He would, and He is returning for us as well just as He said He would. We ourselves need to be ready for that return, getting as many people dressed for the occasion as they are clothed in Christ.

Dear Heavenly Father how awesome it is that you have always done just as you said and returning to bring us home is a part of that. We pray dear Lord for those not ready who still need to get dressed giving up the thought of this being nonsense and join Your family in a reunion that will beat all gatherings, the jamboree with You Lord God for all eternity. Amen!


© 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

Iron in Our Soul

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18 (NKJ)

Imagine someone thumbing through a magazine at a doctor’s office, someone coming across an online theme project titled “Suffering is Good!” might hesitate to look. Then quickly drawing the conclusion that the writers for the magazine must be a bunch uninformed people who had never experienced true suffering. Totally oblivious to the real world for thinking or saying that suffering comes close to being good--- what a bunch of quacks! Sorry, wrong conclusion.

Like it or not we all belong to the same club that no one wants to join in which we all have membership; fellowshipping in suffering. Unfortunately no one seems to be excluded from this club as we face problems, struggles, or sufferings in one way or another whether it is health issues, family problems, financial struggles, abuse, neglect, emotional setbacks or whatever.

At the time we are going through our moments of suffering or hard times the last thing on our mind is the good that can come from our experience. We shut off anyone trying to encourage us to see the light at the end of the tunnel we find ourselves walking through.

Several times when my struggles with my epilepsy, finances, and marital problems were at their worse I couldn’t be convinced that good was going to come from this. I was planning and throwing my own pity party but very few people were attending. Satan had me blinded and I was going along with it.

Without a doubt we lose sight of the truth Paul talked about in Romans 8:18 that tell us our suffering can’t compare to the glory that is to come. We find ourselves caught in Satan’s trap of comparing not to the glory to come but to other people’s experiences in a “feel sorry for me” attempt to collect sympathy or vent our troubles.

To some when they think of suffering they think of the martyrs and other people who have suffered a great deal due to their belief in Jesus Christ. That is what Peter and others in the Bible would term as, suffering for all the right reasons “for the sake of the gospel.” That was what Paul was talking about in Romans 8. Others look at the word suffering and immediately think of all the pain, anguish, distress and misery they’ve experienced in the struggles they had been through in life whether it was something they brought upon themselves or those uninvited incidents dealt to us by life itself.

How we handle these stressful times of suffering is what makes all the difference in the world on whether the outcome is one that is good or bad. We may not be able to change the circumstances surrounding our moments of suffering but we have control over how we are going to allow ourselves to go through and come out of them. We can fight the inevitable or learn how to deal with it when it does come along.

Like it or not; accept it or not; choose it or not we are going to suffer in some way or another, in different degrees or levels and it’s important that we prepare ourselves and others such as our children to be readily equipped with what it takes to see it through.

By equipping ourselves with the armor of God’s Word we can fight against Satan. Standing up to the lies he likes to feed us when we are at our weakest moments such as the lie that nothing good could come from our pain and misery. Doing all he can to try and get us to turn away from God and blame Him for everything instead of turning to Him for the strength and comfort needed to endure.

The good we fail to see that comes from suffering is it pressures us to draw closer to God if we allow it. A dear friend of mine as he approached the end of his battle with cancer told me how thankful he was for what he had gone through because of the bond it had built up between God and himself.

The way we endure our suffering demonstrates if we truly belong to God by how we handle the situation proving our integrity and character in Christ. Circumstances may change but our character in Christ should never alter as we stand in faith and trust that we have in our Lord and Savior.

Believe it or not our misery or problems are sometimes God’s gift to us to strengthen us as He leads us where we need to be, putting strength and iron in our soul. It produces rewards for us in the future giving us the courage needed to face the challenges before us in future times of suffering. In any case, there is no quota to reach on how many times we have to endure something, what there is, is the choice on how we are going to go through it.

Dear Heavenly Father, forgive us Lord for our inability to suffer well turning it into an excuse for bitterness, anger, and division from You. Help us Lord to see the good that can come from these incidents in life. We’d like our foresight to be clear and perfect but it’s our hindsight that is 20/20. Help us to learn from that perception after the fact using always the iron in our soul that it puts there to help those around us struggling to get across, weakening under the lies of Satan. In Jesus’ name, Amen.


© 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

Dry Erase Prayers Not Allowed

The morning was young but my attitude wasn’t, it was the same one I had the day before and for several days prior to that. I didn’t want to go to work as the thought of battling my infected computer that had a popup problem had taken all the enthusiasm out of me. It seemed like such a waste of time to even try and go as the constant popping up of advertisements interrupted my work causing me to fall behind in my production.

Unable to fix the problem myself I was at the mercy of our computer department, unfortunately other issues around the office building kept taking precedence over my computer ailment. As I prayed that morning I asked the Lord for the patience needed to endure until the problem was solved.

As the day went on and the problem continued I found myself thinking about the annoying pest I had prayed for earlier that morning. Not too much into my thinking I started to wonder why I was even worried about it, I had prayed to the Lord, where was my trust, what happened to my faith in God. Suddenly I got this picture in my mind of putting up my prayer request on a dry erase board leaving it there long enough to present it to the Lord and then wipe it off with the dry rag of my attitude.

That’s not what faith is all about I told myself, I needed to give it to the Lord and keep it written on the dry erase board of my heart until God answered it then He could be the one to erase it off as “task completed.” My prayers needed to be in permanent ink, ones that were going to stay forever or long enough to get answered anyway. Having what it takes in my heart to wait for the Lord, for His will and His answers, going off His time schedule and not my own.

My prayers to the Lord matter to Him and they needed to matter to me. I had prayed to God for patience then it was up to me to honor that prayer and allow God to work within me. Thanks to the Lord I had what it took all along inside of me it was just up to me to release that and use it. Getting my thinking in the right perspective my attitude soon followed and the patience it took to wait for the computer guys to fix my workstation could be felt in my heart.

Instead of a wiped off board I had a prayer up there long enough to cause the dry erase ink to dehydrate to the point where it wasn’t going to come off at the first swipe of a circumstance or issue. I had learned that day that dry erase prayers should not be allowed in our lives, we need to know in our hearts that our prayers lay before the throne of God, they aren’t disregarded. They may take awhile to get answered but they are never forgotten. I had forgotten my prayer that morning in my attitude that showed up during the day due to my PC issue.

Sadly enough we get after God for not paying attention to our prayers when we are the ones who are not showing consideration to them as we should as we expect results within the deadline our heart has set or we ignore them all together as if they were never prayed. For sure we need to make the prayers in our hearts permanently written not so much for a sticky note for God but as a reminder to us that we have put this before the Lord and it needs to stay there.

Dear Heavenly Father thank you Lord that we can come before Your throne any time and leave prayers and petitions for You to answer. Forgive us Lord for the times in our lives that we write it out and erase it in one clean swipe, or knock at Your door long enough to drop them off and run failing to do our part in trusting in You as we faithfully present our request and await Your answers, Your time, Your Love. Thank you Lord for listening may we always do the same. Amen.


© 2006 by Karen J. Gillett

Clothed in Christ

Hidden deep in the book of John Jesus made a statement saying, “Whoever had seen Him had seen the Father.” In other words He was living His life in such a way that He was the perfect picture of the Lord himself. Even Paul in 1 Corinthians 4:16 boldly stated himself that he urged everyone to imitate him. He definitely was living his life in such a way, in Christ, that was setting an example for others to follow and he encouraged them to do so.

Unfortunately today the way some people live their lives it’s more of a statement of “Do what I say not what I do.” That’s not the way our Christian lives should be, as we are to follow the example left behind by Jesus from the life He lived here on earth. The scriptures encourage us to clothe ourselves in Christ to the point that we even share His attitude.

In order to do this we need to know Christ on a much more intimate level. It’s up to us to take it beyond the loving, forgiving person who died for our sins as we go further into a much bigger example set by Him. His illustration of patience, caring, confrontation, someone who knew where to put forth His efforts, observant, and so much more in a list too long to record. Yet it’s one that needs to be documented in our lives and in our hearts as we follow in His steps doing the best we can in order for those around us to see Christ the way He needs to be shown.

My oldest granddaughter asked me once if she could have my wedding dress that was housed in my hopechest in order to remember me by. Thinking about what she said one night I wrote a note to my grandchildren that said, “When I’m gone my dear children look to Jesus and you will see me if I have lived my life as I should have, walking as Jesus walked.”

Is your faith worth imitating or is your faith mocking the Lord and what he stood for? On a daily basis examine your own actions and thoughts and ask yourself, “What Characteristic of Christ is that?” If you can’t name it or find it in Christ you shouldn’t have done it if you are truly following the example of Christ.


Remember Christ so that He becomes your pattern,
so that you are the reproduction of Himself,
and so the best memorial of Him.
May your Spiritual example of being clothed in Christ remind you
daily of the importance of the service to God in which you are a part.



© 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

A Way of Life

The annual local Women’s Retreat had begun, the speaker’s first assignment of the day was to challenge the women to a new approach in their prayer lives praying to the Lord using nothing but praises. The reaction from the women around me, as well as myself, was one of doubt and skepticism as we tried to figure out how this task could be accomplished.

Immediately the floodgate of questions was opened as inquiries were being asked such as “How can I pray for my son’s broken leg or for travel mercies for my husband’s upcoming trip using nothing but praises?”

The speaker told the class the way to do it was to praise the Lord your son is okay, that his leg will heal under God’s care; praising Him that your husband has a job to go to daily that he will have a good trip thanks to the Lord’s watchful eye and loving hand that will travel with him and keep him safe. Encouragingly the speaker informed us that once we did this it would soon become a way of life and sure enough it wasn’t as hard as it seemed as it created a change in all of us.

Later in life I would receive still another lesson regarding praise, it happened when an elder of my church told me what I needed was to praise the Lord. Looking at him in a startled gaze I couldn’t help but wonder if he had heard what I was telling him about what was going on currently around me. How in the world was I going to find something to praise the Lord for when my life seemed to be in such a chaotic state?

Flashing back to the Women’s Retreat assignment years ago I knew God was once again trying to teach me something I needed to learn and incorporate in my life. Wasting no time I began searching for things each day throughout the week to praise the Lord for, whether it was simply for the air I was allowed to breath or the toes on my feet that kept me balanced in my daily walk.

Much to my surprise, but not to the elder’s, the days in my week were going better and my time in church come Sunday was no longer needed for a place for my misfortune festivity but a place to truly dedicate my energy to worshipping and praising the Lord as I should have been doing all along. My focus was refocused on the things that really mattered, as I trusted God to take care of the remaining portions of my life.

Sadly enough frequently we do miss use our time of praise and worship by concentrating on the cares of the world that we bring with us into the sanctuary. Unintentionally we cheat the Lord out of the praise and worship He deserves as our concentration goes on whether the worship team is playing our kind of music, the deacons are serving the communion as we like it served, or if the preacher is getting to personal with his message directing it at us doing everything but actually mentioning our real name.

For years I was guilty of such an act of using my praise and worship time for something other than what it should be, coming to church in tears setting up my own pity party in the third pew from the front on the right hand side of the sanctuary. Praise the Lord God understands that, He knew my need to be there to refuel for the upcoming week out in the world. What He didn’t want was me continuing in that state of mind and keeping the focus on me.

Finally through several life teachings I found that by praising the Lord daily, in my prayers, and in my worship time I was telling Satan to buzz off, that the Lord had my attention, love, focus, and trust. Someone perfectly capable of seeing me through whatever storms Satan tried to stir up to drown me in own emotions of pity and “why me’s.” What a blessing it was to stand up to Satan with this newfound strength I was feeling from within from praising my Lord and Savior.

As I kept my time in praise and worship exactly that, giving glory to the one who is worthy of adoration greater than my dull heart could yield the bond between God and I grew stronger each passing day. Expressing to Him my admiration and high regard for all He does such as being my arm that supports me as well as my feet that enables me to run. Exalting Him for supplying the light in which I see by, the protection that shields me and the strength that allows me to stand. Glorifying in praise and worship the loving caring God who gave His Son’s blood to be used to pay a debt to large for me to handle.

Years of education paying off as I incorporated into my way of life the joy of praising and worshipping a God who was willing to exchange my uncleanness for His purity, my guile for His sincerity, and my emptiness for His fullness. As well as swapping my shame for His glory, my lawlessness for His obedience, my dead work for His righteousness, my life for His death. It didn’t seem fair to God but it was what the Lord wanted and so did I.

The more I did it the more evident it became that Christ couldn’t be the way if “I” was the end, that He couldn’t be redeemer if “I” was acting as my own savior. It was a lesson well learnt that true faith accepts Him as redeemer and Lord or not at all as I allowed Jesus to breathe in my prayers, inhabit my praises, speak in my words, and move in my actions. Leading to a new way of life opened up to me to grow daily in His grace, all beginning with the act of praise, trust, and faith in He who is most worthy, the foundation of my faith, the substance of my joy and honor. Praise the Lord!

Dear Heavenly Father thank you for the lessons You have taught us in order for us to grow in our knowledge toward the life we need to be living in You. Forgive us Father God for the times in our lives that our hearts seem to be hardened and drawn away from the act of praise and worship that should be taking place daily. Help us Lord to actively tell Satan to “buzz off” that our hearts belong to Jesus as our actions reflect that in our praise and behavior. Amen.

© 2007 by Karen J. Gillett

A Life Worth Celebrating

If you look it up in the encyclopedia it talks about how Christmas is an annual festival, held on December 25, to celebrate the Nativity, or birth of Christ, okay so far so good. Immediately it goes into the fact that the origin of the festival is unknown. It is believed that some of it came from rites held by pre-Christian Germanic and Celtic people to celebrate the winter solstice something that started around the 4th century. Piece by piece it was added on to incorporating pagan customs, such as the use of holly, mistletoe, Yule logs, wassail bowls, and then in the 17th century the Christmas tree that started out to symbolize the tree in the Garden of Eden. Later the English name of the legendary jolly, red-garbed man who delivers presents to good children at Christmas, Santa Claus was added to this event.

It seems like over the years as things were added to this celebration other things were being taken away from it. Sadly enough the things that was taken away are the things that pertain to Christ and the celebration of his birth such as the nativity and the term Merry Christmas. Little by little the only part about Christmas that remains and is forever growing is the part that pertains to us and what we get out of the season. It’s become “our holiday” but for all the wrong reasons, for selfish gain instead of spiritual gain.

Christmas like anything else is what we make of it. It seems like over the years that we have had to define things more and more in black and white terms so the definition of it doesn’t get lost in the twisted version of what it truly means. If we were to define in our own hearts the true Christmas and what it should mean to us what would it be, let’s try? Christmas is a time to stop and think about the origin of Christ, the process or circumstance surrounding His birth, with a little more emphasis on the why this was happening than the how.

That little baby that the shepherds and everyone saw that night was here on a mission to save you and me. Not even born yet ourselves and yet the fate that awaited us without the interception of Christ was not going to be a pleasant one. The exact date of His birth may not be correct but it’s a date that has been chosen to celebrate it. Recently my husband and I got a black lab puppy and our granddaughters wanted to know when his birthday was. Trying to pinpoint a good estimated time of arrival into this world we figured January 7th was close enough, whether we hit it right on the head as far as accuracy it didn’t matter, it was our time to celebrate our dog’s beginning that eventually lead him to us.

Christmas is our time to celebrate Christ. It’s not about the lights, the gifts, the meal, the gatherings, the bonus’ we get at work during that time, it’s about the fact that Christ arrived here from heaven to introduce us to the wonderful blessing of His grace, to set an example in His life for us to follow and then took our place on the cross so we wouldn’t have to. There’s nothing wrong with traditions, putting up lights, eating the meal, giving the gifts or even receiving them or spending the Christmas bonus we may get. However, it’s when we replace Christ with those traditions that it becomes an issue in our lives. It’s important that we not only make Jesus the reason or cause for the season but the reason and cause for our life.

We can’t be guilt of getting Christ lost in the manger, lost in our lives because we don’t take the time to come to Him as the shepherds and the wise men did. It only took an angel telling the shepherds to go; it only took a star to get the wise men to follow it to Christ. What is it going to take to get people to come to the scene of the beginning, the start of something that leads us to an eternal life in Heaven that is beyond anything we could ever imagine?

Dear Heavenly Father praise you Lord for your Son that you sent here for us, thank you God for this precious life that is worth celebrating. May we do our part in honoring Him as we ourselves serve as the star and the angel that help guide and direct others to where Christ can be found in their lives. Amen.

© 2006 by Karen J. Gillett