Just Hold On

/ The WheatandTares / 6 Comments

 

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Sometimes, the world feels like it comes crashing in like a tidal wave. You feel as if you’re drowning under the weight of all that is around you. You feel like you must move, but it seems as if your feet are stuck in the muck and mire of circumstances. 

You cry out to those around you, because after all, you’ve learned not to swim this channel alone; yet, even through the conversations, the prayers and the support, you feel as if you’re barely treading water. It’s as if one false move will cause your foot to slip, and you will begin gasping for breath again, bobbing up and down in the water, struggling to make any headway.

In that moment, He is still there. He has always been there, and He always will be. He made a promise, and He cannot break His promises, because He is beholden to every single one. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Even when you can’t feel Him. Even when you feel as if He is no where to be found and your prayers are hitting the brass ceiling above. He is there. He was always there, and He forever will be.

Hold on, child. Do not waver. Do not turn away. Hold on with all your might. Hold on with every. single. breath. For you will breathe again. You will come through this season. You will see the beautiful rays of light again. It may feel like an eternity, but you will not be shaken when you hold onto His eternal hand.

… Honestly, I don’t know how He does it, and when you’re in the middle of the storm, it can really feel like a cheap cliché that Christians throw out to sound spiritual. However, I can speak from strong conviction and from personal experience. He IS a God who NEVER fails. He is faithful and true. I don’t know how people live without His strength in their lives. I have found peace and hope in Him that I could never find on my own. I have found a love that sustains through it all.

He will not fail you. He will not turn away. He loves you. He promises to deliver, and He promises to return again to take you home. Just hold on.

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” Psalm 30:5b

“You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its farthest regions, And said to you, ‘You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away: Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isaiah 41:9-10

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Unfinished NOT

/ The WheatandTares

Sometimes, I feel like a hamster on a wheel, spinning and spinning, ever gaining speed but never seeming to get to where I long to be.

Other times, I can complete a project “lickedy-split” and search for something else to fill my time before boredom overwhelms.

Then there are days when I start so many things on my agenda, yet, at the day’s end, every single one is left undone like a ball of yarn unwound and left as a messy wad of string.

If we are to finish the race well, we must finish what we started. Don’t leave your legacy unfinished, unkempt and untold to those coming behind. Tidy up your thoughts. Clean up your heart and emotions. Share with those who will listen.

Allow joy and promise to rule the day, and you will find it’s much easier to finish what you’ve begun. You will find a new sense of strength and satisfaction as you begin taking pen marks to the checklist of life and fulfilling dreams all around you.

Finish it…even if it’s tiresome. Complete the work…even if it’s hard. Once done, you will step back and be amazed at what you’ve achieved, and those coming behind will thank you.

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“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,
let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.
And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us…” Hebrews 12:1

Daily Prompt: Unfinished

Tuesday’s Treats #35

/ The WheatandTares / 3 Comments

The Last Catch Seafood

Location: Jasper, Ga

This place has really gotten the atmosphere right. If you’re looking for a seafood joint in the middle of North Georgia, then, you need to drop by. You feel like you’re walking right into a dockside seafood restaurant.

They have a pretty good selection from which to choose for both lunch and dinner…

Honestly, I’d have to give the food a solid “B.” The fried pickles were yummy, and the grilled veggies were incredible! The fried shrimp and blackened tuna was pretty good but, maybe, not the best I’ve had. The blackened mahi mahi had a great flavor, but the texture was dry, because it had been overcooked. I’ll say it one more time, the veggies were phenomenal! I don’t eat cole slaw much, and the fries were good.

  
   The key lime pie was ok, but it was a little too sweet and not tart enough; however, the chocolate cake from a local restaurant was incredible!

If you’re in the North Georgia mountains, and you’re looking for a restaurant with a great dockside feeling, and you don’t necessarily require A+ rated food, give this place a try. It might just be that we landed on a not so good day. The wait staff was very kind, and we did love a few things along with the atmosphere.

Here is their website to find out more.

What Are We To Do?

/ The WheatandTares / 2 Comments

So, we find ourselves in this dilemma.

The dilemma of moving forward to the unknown, the uncomfortable, the unfamiliar or remaining here in the regretful, comfortable, familiar present. Neither place is easy. For, the beyond makes us confront, stretch and change, yet, the present seems like an old jacket which we used to love but has shrunk so much over the years that it doesn’t “fit like a glove” anymore…really, it doesn’t fit at all. So, what are we to do?

If we remain, we will conform. We will grow complacent. We will become okay with mediocre, and we will say goodbye to the hopes and dreams we’ve held so dear.

If we step forward, we will be challenged. We will doubt. We will question our talents and our skills. We might even find that our abilities weren’t what we thought they were.

So, what are we to do?

If we are to grow, if we to succeed, we move toward the mark. If we are to fulfill the dreams that burn so deep within our hearts that it takes our breath, we step up and take the chance. It may not come again. This door to the great beyond may slam shut, never to open like this again.

As we look forward, holding dear to heart all that was past, we begin a new tomorrow. We will find hardships. We will find challenges. We might even find an alternate path, but we will not go back. We will not quit.

For tomorrow is gone, and if the dream is to be grasped, we must proceed to what’s ahead. We must shift from what was and change our perspective. You never know, instead of falling, we might just FLY!

 

DAILY PROMPT:Dilemma

Learning To Pretend

/ The WheatandTares / 3 Comments

When we’re little girls, we pretend to live in fairylands and have our prince charming ride in to rescue us from the wicked queen. We pretend we have a little family of four and live happily ever after.

When we’re young ladies, we pretend the popular girls don’t hate us, or at least their unkind words don’t bring pain. We pretend the boys all secretly adore us and can’t wait to ask for our hand.

When we arrive in womanhood, we pretend we will succeed at all we attempt to try, and we will one day achieve more than all the others. We pretend we have all we need and all we could ever wish for.

When we enter motherhood, we pretend we have succumbed to perfection with precious darlings and an adoring man. We post our endearing love and moments of glorious joy, believing if we pin it enough, it surely will come true.

When we finally stop the game of pretend, we will see truth for what it is. We will see we can succeed at “being ME,” and we can find true love with those who matter most.

When we leave behind the land of make-believe, we will see there is good in some and not so good in others, but if we dream what can be and if we believe and hold onto HOPE, there will be a day when we no longer want to pretend but long for Truth and honesty, always trusting with HIM, there is a way.

 

Penned – MG – 9/26/16

Daily Prompt: Pretend

What Is Your Tone?

/ The WheatandTares / 1 Comment

Speaking truth bathed in love and grace is so important. Sometimes, “it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.” If we speak truth, but it’s covered with bitter tones, hateful actions, and looks of disgust; then, our love is so covered up with mud that it’s surely hard to see.

speak-life2Some today would say, if I disagree with you then I am sending a message of hatred and disgust; however, I have to adamantly disagree with this premise. If my child is playing in the street and a car is barreling down his path, I disagree with him being in that street and will speak out against it to save his life. Even though, I disagree with the position in which he is standing, it is not because I hate him. Even so, in that moment, if I simply look at him with eyes of disgust and scream hateful things at him about being in the road, he might become very confused as to why I desire him to move. This is to what I am referring.

Sometimes, we can be screaming to this world the truth about Jesus and His love for every person, but we fail to give them His love and grace as well. We tell them all about hell and the torture and destruction they will find there, but we forget to share the promise of heaven and the glorious eternity we will encounter. We speak of all the sin and degradation in which they live, but we neglect to give away the hope we have found and how there is a better way survive these days on earth.

Let us shout TRUTH from the rooftops, but let us do it with arms of love spread wide. Let us speak words of life into the hears of those desperately needing a change, and let us snatch lost souls from hell while we embrace them and wipe their tears.

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“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” 1 John 4:7-8

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. ” Prov. 18:21

Answer to Friday’s Angle #84

/ The WheatandTares

How did it go yesterday?

If you guessed popcorn kernels, you got it!! 😊

Thanks for playing, and please join me again on Monday for a new post and next Friday for another new angle! 

Friday’s New Angle #84

/ The WheatandTares / 2 Comments

Friday’s mean it’s time for a New Angle! Here ya go! 😊

Remember to check back here tomorrow! 

Shovel or Spoon?

/ The WheatandTares

Do you have a shovel or spoon today?

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We hold love, grace, mercy, kindness, forgiveness, patience, joy, and so many more virtues within our hands each and every day. How do we measure these out to those around us? Do we give these away like candy? Do we use a shovel to measure how much we give to others?

Or do we use a teaspoon, carefully divulging our treasures to those we encounter? Do they have to work hard to earn our love? Do they have to shed blood, sweat and tears to receive our forgiveness and kindness when there’s been a transgression?

The Word says, “It is of the Lord‘s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” His mercies are new for us each and every day. He has a great big “shovel” to measure our mercies when the day is new.

Are we following His example today?

Please understand, this is not to bring condemnation, nor is it to approve of violence, abuse or sin. I am simply referring to how we treat one another in common arenas. It seems so many Christians are fighting with each other over petty opinions and haughty points of view. Too many have become so offended by the differences of, what I will call, “first degree” judgments that we ruin our witness with the very ones who so desperately need Him.

I read recently about the largest “bucket” machine every built. It was called the “Big Muskie.” It had a bucket capacity of 220 cubic yards and could hold two Greyhound buses side by side. God’s measuring devices are even bigger than that!

What if we tried using His measuring portions today?

“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” Luke 6:38

Where Are You Leading Them?

/ The WheatandTares

millstoneLet us never lead a little one to stumble. I have found that this Scripture can be interpreted in so many different scenarios. Literally, it can mean leading small children away in their faith (or in other things, for that matter). It can, also, mean distracting new converts from their new commitment to God’s calling, and it can even be mature Christians being directed down the wrong path by prideful, egotistical or ambitious fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

As Christians, we must be so careful not to lead “little ones” astray from the Word of God and from what He has in store for their lives. The Bible says it is better for a millstone to be wrapped around your neck and you thrown into the depths of the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble! In case, you don’t know what a millstone is, it was one of the large circular stones used to grind grain in grist mills years ago.

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When we are called into leadership, when we are called into teaching capacities, and even when we are placed in situations by God to help someone learn more about Him, our number one goal should be to lead them closer to Him not away from Him! We can only do this as we seek His face and listen for His answers to their questions and wonderings.

Whether we are a parent, a mentor, a teacher, or simply a friend, we should never take lightly a position of influence in someone else’s life. We should boldly walk in the authority He gives us but never because of our own wisdom, strength or abilities. We should approach it with buckets full of humility and grace, lest we get filled with pride and lead one of His precious ones away from what He has in store for them.

Let us be ever prayerful and ever mindful when it concerns someone who is impacted by our words and deeds. Let us always be humble and full of grace, and never let us take lightly the positions of leadership and influence He gives us in someone else’s life.

“But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.” Mark 9:42