Enjoy your family, your friends, and your loved ones with cheer.
And even if you might find yourself today overflowing with tears,
Look back to see all the blessings, joy and some very good things
And look ahead to what our blessed hope now still brings
For the One who created you sent His very own Son
To show you His love and opened His arms into which you can run
He is here for you, and He will never leave
He is patiently awaiting you, To Him you can now cleave
So, in this day that is meant to be merry
Rejoice we have a Savior, and all our burdens He promises to carry.
And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
War and betrayal can change a soul in ways that can’t be undone.
Yet, I am thankful to have seen a glimpse of what once was and one day, what will be forever more.
I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the richesof his glorious inheritance in his holy people
I haven’t posted yet about all of the events this week because it’s hard to find words. When evil is blatantly obvious, and so many can’t see it, it causes my heart to shift in an unusual way. A life is a life, and when this fact is nonchalantly cast aside, it not only leaves shock, confusion, and anger, but it also leaves a deep seated disgust that takes an extra minute to process through the pain and indignation.
So, I leave my thoughts here tonight not for debate but for reflection. If you disagree, you have the freedom to do so, and so do I with you. That is the beauty of living in the land of the free and the brave, and too many forget that this freedom is as much theirs as it is their neighbor’s…
24 years ago on this day, September 12, I clearly remember a nation that was broken but united. A nation that was grieving but resilient. A nation that did not agree on politics but agreed on the right to freedom for our country. We agreed that liberty was valued and tyranny was condemned.
What has happened to us over the past 24 years?
Today, our nation is deeply divided, but not in ways it should be. Yes, we have disagreements, but disagreements can cause your beliefs to be proven stronger. Disagreements can challenge your standards to deepend or to be reevaluated for change. Disagreements, when discussed, debated, and deliberated upon, can define right from wrong and clearly refine convictions and values for life.
Yet, when we get to the place that disagreements must be silenced, there is a problem at the core of who we are. When debate is no longer simply words on a platform between two opposing teams, but rather it is replaced with bullets and blood, something is broken at the base of who we are. When a murder is justified or even given moral equivalency to another, our perspectives are somehow skewed. When a death is celebrated because the disagreement felt uncomfortable, convicting, or even appalling, the foundation upon which you stand is fatally flawed.
This is when evil begins to be called good and good called evil. And this is when a nation will be most vulnerable. Not because of her enemy abroad but rather because of her enemy within. This is when a nation is threatening to implode. We are at a dangerous place, on the edge of a knife. And we can do better. We must.
As Christians, which is what I am, we must awaken from our slumber and realize we can remain silent no longer. The days are long but the years are too short. The end draws near, and we will be held accountable. What we do in this hour must not be wasted or neglected. We must stand for what is right. We must speak out for what is Truth. And we must fight for what is good. It is time for us to be the Church He called us to be, to love God, to love our neighbor, and to reach the lost at any cost. And we cannot do that in silence, in fear, or even in intimidation. We must rise up and be the Body of Christ He has called us to be.
Love them enough to disagree with sin. Love them enough to fight against evil. Love them enough to speak out and take action against the rising tide of hatred and lawlessness. If it takes it, love them enough to die with Christ on the cross of His Truth.
Let’s pick up the baton that has been passed to us and finish this race. And let’s not finish alone. May we bring an entourage of new teammates with us! ❤️
If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
Oh, if we could grasp this reality, what strength we could gather.
When someone wounds you, it’s not because you have done something wrong. It is because they have something wrong inside.
This is not to say that you could have possibly prevented it. Maybe. sometimes, we don’t notice warning signs until it is too late. Sometimes, we turn a blind eye because of our own hangups and intimidations.
But when someone wrongs you, particularly when it is repetitive, we have to accept it for what it is: their fatal flaw.
We don’t always need to defend ourselves.
And we don’t really need to retaliate.
But we do always need to walk away.
Step back from their negative blows.
Move out of the course of their mayhem.
Set boundaries and close the doors to their reckless endangerment.
Realize it is not your responsibility nor your burden to bear.
Sometimes, broken people try to break others.
Sometimes, wounded people live to wound others.
Sometimes, twisted people endeavor to twist the lives of others.
But this never means you have to surrender to it.
Remove your heart from their hammer and reclaim your peace.
It’s worth the effort.
You are worth the time.
Do not enter the path of the wicked, And do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on. For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; and their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
But the path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.
This statement rings true in so many relationships.
So many are only surface deep.
Never enduring the hard days to witness the true character.
Never persevering the rain to find the rainbow.
How you approach a friendship tells a lot about your character.
How you delicately cherish or nonchalantly cast aside the relationship says more about you than about them.
Some people are only meant to be with you for a moment.
But those who stick around for the duration, they are worthy of the depths of your soul.
Where will your depth take you?
Your affliction is incurable, Your wound is severe. There is no one to plead your cause, That you may be bound up; You have no healing medicines. All your lovers have forgotten you; They do not seek you; For I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of your iniquities, Because your sins have increased. Why do you cry about your affliction? Your sorrow is incurable. Because of the multitude of your iniquities, Because your sins have increased, I have done these things to you. ‘Therefore all those who devour you shall be devoured; And all your adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; Those who plunder you shall become plunder, and all who prey upon you I will make a prey. For I will restore health to you And heal you of your wounds,’ says the Lord, ‘Because they called you an outcast saying: “This is Zion; No one seeks her.” ’
“Thus says the Lord:
‘Behold, I will bring back the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and have mercy on his dwelling places; the city shall be built upon its own mound, and the palace shall remain according to its own plan. Then out of them shall proceed thanksgiving and the voice of those who make merry; I will multiply them, and they shall not diminish; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small.
Men may cry, “Peace, Peace!” But the war is already on the battlefield.
What you choose to do in times of war will often expose the depth of your character.
Some claim they are strong and powerful me; yet, they turn a blind eye and lower their hands to defeat the enemy.
Some declare peace and love can never be shown through force, and the innocent are left to die in the streets at the hands of wicked men.
But the meek, the humble, and the mighty all join as one to rescue the child, to defend the broken, to defeat the evil when it is in their power to do so.
The strongest and most fierce shelter the fragile and shield the blameless and call out the immoral.
It is never the muscles and brawn that make someone you stalwart and indomitable.
Rather, it is the passionate heart who stands for Truth at all cost.
It is the relentless pursuit for justice the raises up an army for victory.
It is the raging embrace of liberty that fortifies the battlefront.
These are the standards by which the war is won.
If you faint in the day of adversity, Your strength is small. Deliver those who are drawn toward death, and hold back those stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, “Surely we did not know this,” Does not He who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does He notknow it? And will He not render to each man according to his deeds?
Proverbs 24:10-12
Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked.
This statement is so simply yet so profoundly true.
Those who are deceived never believe they’re deceived, and they’ll argue with you till there are no more words.
All of us have seen this to be true.
Look at an abuser turned rescuer. Look at the atheist turned believer. Even the faithless turned faithful.
All of them while being deceived would vehemently believe they’re not deceived; yet, the moment their eyes are opened, and truth is finally revealed, they see the error of their ways.
We all must be careful to not fall into the trap of lies set before us. It can happen to anyone, at any time, and at any place. No one is immune to it.
So, how do we safeguard ourselves from such stealthful occurrences?
How to we avoid such aversions to truth?
The easiest way is to always embrace truth, even when it hurts. But this truth cannot be a self proclaimed truth. It cannot be a feeling, an emotion, a sense of rightness founded in a notion or a trend.
Truth must be found in truth itself. And that is only found in the One who created Truth. All other “personal truths” will wash away in time. But His Truth is precise and accurate, regardless of feelings or circumstances. His Truth stands the test of time. His Truth was in the beginning, is here in the present, and forevermore will be.
So, how do we find this Truth? You will find Him when you seek Him with all your heart. Because that’s what He does best. Revealing Himself to those who seek Him is His specialty and sheer delight.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, andthe life. No one comes to the Father except through Me….”
John 14:6
However, when He,the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.
My journey didn’t stop with mere time travel or writing; it led me to become one of the most sought-after empaths, a soulful psychic who reads the hidden depths of the human spirit. I’ve been blessed—or perhaps burdened—with an ability that allows me to feel the emotions of people from every corner of time.
I am a licensed psychologist based in Greece. My love for housekeeping has inspired me to create this blog about home management and family relationships. I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing!
Dedicated to movie nerdom, nostalgia, and escape. In the late 90s, I worked at Blockbuster Video where they let me take home two free movies a day. I caught up on the classics and reviewed theatrical releases for Denver 'burbs newspapers and magazines. Today, while raising two young, beautiful daughters with my amazing wife, I look forward to anything rated R and not Bluey. Comments and dialogue encouraged!