Welcome Karen and This Week's Winner!

Hi Friends~  (For some reason, the blog is not allowing proper spacing between paragraphs.  I apologize.  I have tried to fix it for over an hour.)

Today we will announce the Winner of the He IS Able blog's Card Set Give-Away.  And, I would like to introduce our newest member to the He IS Able Prayer Team.

Welcome to the team Karen Conner!  Karen loves to spend time with our Lord, loves to pray, and is a naturally encouraging person. She has been praying for the guests of this blog, for people around the world who have not known Christ Jesus as their Lord to come to the blog and learn about Him, and become to love Him, until they ask Him to be their Savior and Lord, and for any particular needs someone has mentioned.  Karen is someone who you just know will be a loyal friend when you meet her. 

(Even on-line!)

Karen is a Southern girl who was born and raised in South Carolina and Virginia. She has allowed God to be the major influence in her life, and her overall goal is to use the talents He has blessed her with, to be a blessing to others. Karen is a cancer survivor who strives to make the most of every day to bring glory to God.

 She would love to someday teach her craft to others, and she hopes that faithfully maintaining her blog will enable her to share her love for God & art. Karen enjoys using ink and paint to design her cards and layouts. She also loves embellishments of all kinds: ribbon, buttons, charms, lace, etc. She enjoys making cards, as well as mini albums and layouts to house the many memories of her family and friends. She considers her style "shabby chic", and loves giving her art a vintage and distressed look. She also uses acrylic paints occasionally when the urge hits. She is adventurous in her art, and hopes her creations are a blessing to others. She would love to have you visit her blog KRC Masterpiece and introduce yourself so that she can stop by and get inspiration from all of you.  Personally, I just love her unique art, and her blog is always a pleasure to visit.  There is a link to her blog on the right side of this blog.  Just click on it...and you will be there!

Karen is on two Design Teams right now-- The Perfect Sentiment & Word Art Wednesday. WAW is Christian based. We share God's Word each week. The Word Art is FREE. Karen Letchworth is head of that blog & goes from blog to blog encouraging people to add their art. That seems to get our blog to grow.

 Karen, we are so glad that you will be joining us.  We look forward to praying with and for you!  Welcome!

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Our Winner of This Week's He IS Able Blog's Card Set Give-Away!*

To be eligible to win you need to leave some sort of comment before Wednesday evening at Midnight. (East Coast)  It starts when the prior Tuesday blog is posted.  The recipient will be randomly chosen from the comments left during that time.  Then a number will be randomly chosen between 1 and 5. The Recipient will receive that number of cards and envelopes mailed to them. 

Sadly, I can only mail items within the United States.  It is just too expensive for me to mail overseas. I am trying to find someone who can make a digital card that I can share with guests who are chosen that live over seas. After all, we have more people from outside the US visiting that in the US.

This Week's Recipient will Receive 3 Beautiful Cards Made and Donated by Fellow He IS Able Blog Guests...That Person Is...

Becky          July 18, 2012 10:10 AM                       Here is her comment:

Blessings. That is why I had to get a new computer, my old one just could not take on another thing.

This is one of my most favorite verses. Mercy..and if we are truly born again we can not help but to show mercy to all. For my sins are great and if a heavenly Father is willing to forgive and cleanse me, the lest I can do is to forgive others. Have a blessed day hugs :)

Congratulations, Becky!  Please email me with your snail mail address, and I will get your cards out to you!  My email is tracistarkweather@gmail.com

I need to hear from you by next Wednesday at Midnight.  Please do not send your address in the comment section....Leave us any other comment, though!  :)

_______________________________

I hope that you will all join us on Tuesday when we complete our sharing on the second half of the Beatitude, "Blessed are the PURE in HEART, for They will SEE GOD."  (Matthew 5:8)  Please take the time to leave a welcoming comment for Karen...and please remember from now until Tuesday we are having PRAISE DAYS!  Let us know what you are grateful for...what you praise Him for.  God Bless!

 

He IS Able!

Traci Starkweather

p.s. We are accepting hand-made and donated cards and envelopes to give away on this blog.  Please email me for details if you are interested in serving in this way...or leave a comment for me.

Blessed are the PURE in HEART, For THEY will SEE GOD

Hi Friends~


Today's post is from Paul Thigpen.  It appeared in the Nov./Dec. 2003, Discipleship Journal.  It is such a wonderful piece of writing.  I will be sharing parts and pieces of this article with you today...and part next Tuesday.  (You may want to sign up to receive an email notice when there is a blog post.  It is on the top of the right hand side of the blog. No one can see your address...not even me.)


Please remember that we will be choosing the winner of the He IS Able blog's Card Set Give Away on Thursday...and you have until Midnight on Wednesday to leave a comment.  We will also be introducing our newest member to our Prayer Team!

____________________________

 

"My 5 year-old, Lydia, had been in bed an hour when I passed by the half-open door of her darkened room.  She was weeping uncontrollably.  Honey, what's wrong?"  I asked, sitting on the edge of her bed and gently taking her hand.  "Did you have a bad dream?"  Lydia tried to respond, but tears choked her words. I stroked her hair to soothe her.

 

After a moment, she cried in little-girl anguish, "Oh, Daddy!  I--I just want to see God!"

 

Her words startled me.  Now it was my turn to weep.  I drew her close and said, "Darling, do you know why you want to see God so much?  Because that's the reason He made you.  You were created to see God.  And if you love Him with all your heart, one day you will see God face to face.  That's His promise."

 

Theologians over the centuries have carefully reasoned out that in our heart of hearts, we long above all things to see God face to face.

 

"Beloved, we are God's children now;
it does not yet appear what we shall be,
 but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him,
for we shall see Him as He is." 
(1 Jn. 3:2)

 

God longs for our view of him to grow wider and clearer and brighter, so that the "glass" through which we see "darkly" at last gives way to our encounter with Him "face to face" (1 Corinthians 13:12)  To see Him is to know Him, and to know Him is to love Him."

_______________________

 

 I am going to stop sharing the article now.  There is a huge storm moving in and I don't want my computer to get zapped.  There is a lot to think about here, and the rest will be shared on Tuesday...so please join us then.

How do you spend time with Him to get to know Him better?  How about telling us in the comment section?  It could be one word, a Scripture, or a whole paragraph or more.  It is a great way to share with fellow Believers and explain things to those who do not know the Lord as of now.  And, your comment, if left before Midnight on Wednesday, will put you in the running to win the He IS Able Card Sets.  All good reasons to leave a comment...besides we love to read your thoughts.  

 

Praise Days...for a Week!

 

I am learning so much from the Beatitudes and hope you are also.  I hope that it is making your heart swell with love for the Lord.  I have such gratitude to Him for providing us with His Word, and His teachings.  Let's make this next week full of...Praise Days! If you have something to thank Him for...share it in the comment section...offer your Praise to Him...through the blog.  Make sense?  Email me if you have any questions or if you have anything you would like to share about this blog.

He IS Able!

Traci Starkweather

Blessed are the MERCIFUL, for THEY will be SHOWN MERCY

Good Morning!  I hope that everyone is doing exceptionally well today, that God is pouring His blessings out upon you!  That you realize it...and take the time to thank Him.

Would you believe that I ran out of room on my computer?  It's true. No gb or mb or any of that mumbo-jumbo!   I had to delete a few thousand folders that I had, and my husband worked some magic that I don't understand!  And, found some room!  And, the next 2 days...we had no Internet!  I was truly frustrated...but, am much better and so glad to be here with you now.  Thank you so much for being here.  It is a blessing to us to know you are here.

"Blessed are the MERCIFUL, for THEY will be SHOWN MERCY."  (Matthew 5:7)

 

Today, I will be sharing some of the writings of Gary Thomas.  He wrote for the Discipleship Journal in this copy dated Nov/Dec 2003.  I wish I could share all that he wrote, but it would take you at least three cups of tea to get through it.  Worth it...every word.

 

And, I did not forget about the He IS Able Blog's Card Set Give Away from Thursday.  Sadly, no one had left a comment during that time.  But, please leave a comment...even if it is just to tell us what country/state you live in.  We already have two comments for this week. I have left replies to both of you in that column's comment section. You have until Midnight, Wednesday of NEXT week to be entered into the random drawing where you may win beautiful cards.  This will allow you to have more than a week each time, to leave a comment, rather than a day...you are all busy, I understand.  So, poof!  You have more time to share your thoughts and prayer desires.

 

"Blessed are the MERCIFUL, for THEY will be SHOWN MERCY."   (Matthew 5:7)

 

"Mercy!"  It's the cry that gives birth to every child of God.  Whatever words are used.  Whatever tract we followed. Whoever led us in prayer.  The foundational request we made when we became Christians was that God would show us--sinners all--His amazing mercy.

 

Without mercy, we'd be damned--not only in the next life, but in this one.  Without mercy, we could never experience release from the guilt that accompanies our sin.  Nor could we release those who sin against us.

 

In Micah 6:8 we witness the centrality of mercy:

"He has shown you, O man, what is good.  And, what does the Lord require of you?  To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God."  (Micah 6:8)

 

He wants us to fall in love with it, to lose ourselves in the beauty of mercy.  When you love someone, you naturally talk about that person.  Likewise, the person who loves mercy is so thankful that he tells others about what God has done.  He cherishes mercy;  the mere thought of it warms his heart and brings a smile to his face: "God has shown me mercy!"

 

Without acknowledging my own guilt, I would never sense my need for mercy, and I wouldn't fully apprehend this glorious gift of God.  If you, like me, have suffered from your share of guilt, I invite you to see it as a call to worship.  Acknowledge your guilt, and thank God that He has made provision for it in His Son, Jesus the Christ.  Confess that you have fallen short, then worship the God who shows mercy to you in your failings.

 

It means we're eager to show mercy to others, too.  Like the Father who's forgiven us, we choose to let go of our grievances and demonstrate grace to those who don't deserve it--just as we don't deserve it.  Our thoughts turn from revenge to reconciliation as mercy permeates our souls and becomes our way of life.

 

In contrast, mercy invites us to admit our guilt, receive God's forgiveness, and then stop judging others.

 

James wrote, "Mercy triumphs over judgement!"  (Jas. 2:13)

 

As we fall more deeply in love with mercy, we'll want to spend the rest of our days pointing others toward this glorious gift of our Father.  As Jesus said, "Freely you have received, freely give."  (Mt. 10:8)  We are blessed to be the recipients of such mercy--and blessed to be the givers of it as well.

______________________

 

WOW!  I was speechless when I first read this article. I felt stunned. When I read this paragraph below, I read each sentence, each word--slowly. Taking in the meaning of each word. Of course, I know that God shows me mercy...amazing mercy that I don't deserve. I am SO grateful for that.  But, when I read this, I saw the AWE-someness in it...again!   Please, read the paragraph again...I am adding space where you can pause, and think about what a huge part this plays or has played in each of our lives.

 

"Without mercy, we'd be damned--

not only in the next life,

 but in this one.

 Without mercy,

we could never experience release from the guilt

 that accompanies our sin.

 Nor could we release those who sin against us."

 

Now, are you feeling, thinking about that "WOW"  I felt, and hopefully you felt?  It may be many years since you thought about His gift of Mercy like this...look at it through the eyes of a person just coming to Jesus for the first time.  I hope that you will read this again.  It is right at the base when each of us became a Believer.  It is so important to know.  So important to realize the chain effect it has. THAT is what really struck me.  We are so blessed for His mercy.  It is so freeing.  Please, if you were moved by this article, share your feelings, too, in the comment section...or send me an email.

He IS Able!

Traci Starkweather

"Blessed are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS, for THEY will be FILLED.

Hi Friends~


I am confident that you had a lovely weekend, since we did not receive any prayer requests of urgency. Remember, we are here to pray for anything.  God wants to know the desires or your heart.  I hope you are enjoying our look at the Beatitudes in some depth.  If you have missed part of our Series...just look under LABELS on the right side bar of the blog, until you find the word BEATITUDES...then double click.  All of the Beatitudes we have covered so far will be posted there.  I know that I have, and am learning more and more.  Next Tuesday we will be reading about this Scripture/Beatitude:

 "Blessed are the MERCIFUL, for THEY will be SHOWN MERCY."  (Matthew 5:7)

Today I am going to share from two different Pastor's.  One is from Pastor Ruth Haley Barton who wrote for the Discipleship Journal, Nov./Dec., 2003 and the other is a thought and prayer from Pastor Joel Osteen's daily message, which you can receive via email.  I like to receive email sermon's from many Pastors, so that I can pick and choose excerpts to share with you, along with my own thoughts.


First Pastor Barton's thoughts.  I couldn't share all of her writing, so I am sharing some sections of her writing, and some of Pastor Osteen.

"Blessed are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS, for THEY will be FILLED."  (Matthew 5:6)

What does it mean to hunger and thirst for righteousness?  With this Beatitude, Jesus invited us to cultivate an appetite for rightness within ourselves, in our relationships, in the body of Christ and in the world.  When we hunger for things to be deeply right and explore what that means in our lives, we are right in the middle of this Beatitude.

So how do we begin to experience our hunger and thirst for righteousness as a blessing?  How do these appetites result in our being filled--as Jesus promised?  The first step is to trust that our spiritual hunger (our desires and needs) is a good thing.  Jesus uses two essentials of life-- food and water as metaphors for our longings in a world where every emptiness is not yet filled.  He knows that our deepest unmet desires--the aches of our heart for what is right and good- and play an important role in our spiritual growth.

The word "blessed" means "happy."  Paradoxically, the blessing Jesus promises stems from our willingness to admit our hunger and need.  When we do so, it eventually leads us to the God who alone can satisfy our hearts.  When was the last time you let your longing lead you to Him?

Pastor Joel Osteen offered this about this Scripture:  When you hunger and thirst for righteousness, which is God's way of doing things, you will be spiritually satisfied.  But just like you have to take time to eat in the natural, you have to take time to "eat" or partake of God's righteousness.  Every day.   He has a table of blessing set for you.  When you spend time in prayer, worship and reading His Word, you are partaking of His righteousness.  You are filling your soul.  The more time you spend with Him, the more He will fill you and satisfy your hunger all the days of your life.

Here is a prayer that Pastor Osteen offered...please join us:

"Heavenly Father, thank You for the promise to fill my hunger.  I open my heart to You and ask that You draw me by Your Spirit.  Teach me to walk in Your ways of righteousness that I may honor and serve You all the days of my life.  In Jesus' name.  Amen."

____________________________

So, what are the desires of your heart?  How about sharing one in the comment section?  It will give us a chance to pray for you.  You don't have to leave a name if you don't want.  It will allow us to serve by helping to carry your burden, it is something that the Prayer Team's hearts long to do...pray for each of you. If you don't want to publicly share your request, please email me...my email is on the side of the post...and I will only share it with the Prayer Team.  They are so dependable and trustworthy and true Prayer Warriors.

I know the most important desire of my heart is for my husband, Dave, and son, Josh... and the rest of my entire family (on both sides) to know and love and serve the Lord.  I also pray that Joshua be safe as he prepares to finish school in the Air Force and be stationed in the UK for 2 years.  It is so far away.  I pray for his health, happiness, safety and that he remembers to call and write his Mom who will miss him so much!

 Or perhaps you know of an idea of something you can do to spend more quality time with Him?  We can all learn from each other and would love to hear your thoughts on this, or anything else about our Lord God.  And, any comment left before midnight on Wednesday night, will be entered into our drawing for the He IS Able blog's Card Set Give-Away.  We randomly choose a comment that was shared, and then we choose a number between

1 and 5.  That is the number of cards and envelopes that you will receive.  We will announce the winner on Thursday we hope to see you there.

He IS Able!

Traci Starkweather

Winner of the Weekly He IS Able Blog Candy!

Hi Friends~


Happy Thursday!  It's almost the weekend, I hope you have something special planned.  Today we will announce the winner of the He IS Able blog's Card Set Give-Away for the week!  All you need to do to be a recipient of a card set is leave a comment and have it be randomly chosen.  And, how many cards will you receive? Somewhere between 1 and 5!  That number is randomly chosen, also!  It's that simple.  Leave your comment before Tuesday at midnight to be included in the drawing.

Today's winner is Caterina!  You will receive 2 wonderfully made cards, made by some of our fabulous He IS Able guests!  Please email me your snail mail address to show that you would like to receive these cards!  Please let me receive it by Tuesday, Midnight or...they will go back into the He IS Able blog card stash.

Here is her heartfelt comment: 

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!! Thanking and praising the Lord for our Founding Fathers who truly followed God's principles to give us a free country. May each person today take take to read the Declaration of Independence and be blessed with each word. Love, Caterina on Blessed are the Meek, for They will Inherit the Earth _________________________ I am still having a problem getting photos from my camera to the blog.  That is why the same photo of the card on the side bar is the same.  I am working on it...and hope it will be fixed soon.  Thanks for your patience! __________________________ On Tuesday, we will be reading about another Beatitude: "Blessed are those who HUNGER and THIRST for RIGHTEOUSNESS, for THEY will be FILLED."  (Matthew 5:6)     If you haven't been with us the past few weeks, you can catch up on the posts about the Beatitudes if you look under LABELS on the right side of the blog.  Just click on the word "Beatitudes" and the posts will be listed for you to read.  On Tuesdays, I will continue to post about the Beatitudes until we have covered all of them.  On Thursdays, please stop in to see if you may have won the Card Set of the week!  And, any other news we may have to share!     On a personal note, I want to thank everyone who has been leaving comments.  You really teach me a lot, show me things I have not even thought of yet, and encourage me.  I am sure your comments do the same for our other guests who read your comment. Please keep it up!  And, please consider what I wrote a couple of posts ago, I mentioned several ways that you may Serve the Lord, and your Brothers and Sisters-in-Christ, by contributing one post to this blog.  We would love to hear your thoughts and sharing.  Just email me if you are interested or have questions.  Thank you and thank you so much for being here today! He IS Able! Traci Starkweather

Blessed are the Meek, for They will Inherit the Earth

Hi Friends~

Yes!  I have actually posted two days in a row!  That's a first for me, I believe.  I hope you all read the Big Announcement in the last post!  If you have signed up to receive an email telling you when there is a new post here on the He IS Able blog (on the top right corner), you would have known there was a post on Monday.  (We usually post on Tuesdays and Thursdays.)  Please enter your email in the section...it is confidential...even from me, this way you won't miss out on anything!

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth."  (Matthew 5:5)

I hope you know that we are currently in part of a series about The Beatitudes.  I am taking excerpts from the writings of Jonathan and Thelma Nambu from the 2003, Nov./Dec. issue of Discipleship Journal and sharing them with you. We are still announcing winners of the He IS Able Blog's Card Set Give-Away on Thursdays.  (By the way, my thoughts appear in purple italics through-out the posts.)

"We may be faithful in prayer, Bible study, and doing kind deeds for our neighbors, yet still miss out on the peace, joy, love, and contentment God promised His children.  Perhaps the answer lies in Jesus' words:

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth."  (Matthew 5:5)

The inheritance God promised is a blessing only the meek experience deeply.  It is not a by-product of their doing, but rather flows from their being. Meekness is a posture of the heart toward God--a posture of humility. Without meekness, we will not receive what we already have in Christ.

What does it mean to be meek before God?  Meekness begins with a heart that recognizes how needy, helpless, and impoverished it really is.  Until our hearts are emptied of self, we cannot be meek before God.  A destitute heart recognizes that apart from God, we can do nothing.  (John 15:5) We are utterly impoverished and dependent upon Him.  Our works will not fill our cravings for love and meaning in life.  Only God will!

 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."  (John 15:5NIV)

(Here is some great news!) Surrender involves the twin actions of letting go and relaxing. Letting go requires continually releasing control over our lives and relinquishing our plan in favor of God's will.  The call to surrender is also a call to relax in the Father's unconditional love, into which we are forever invited.  Our striving, grasping, positioning, manipulating, performing, and mask-wearing can all slip away as we yield to the goodness of our Father.  He loves and accepts us as we are.  In relaxing, our souls find true rest. 

Our Heavenly Father wants to give Himself to us; He longs to be admitted into our hearts.  But He does not force His way. Rather, He waits for us to open the doors and receive Him.  (Revelation 3:20)  Our Father's love doesn't come naturally to many, perhaps because it requires the humble acknowledgment that we are limited, dependent, weak, needy, and sinful.

^"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me."

(Revelation 3:20NIV)

Yet, unless our hearts are destitute, unless our knees are bent before God in surrender and submission, it will be hard to stretch out our hands, to wait for and receive the gift of love and mercy God is always ready to give.  As we welcome our neediness and surrender our control to God, we are released to receive all that He waits to bestow upon us. Through the hidden blessing of meekness, we inherit the earth--and all the joy our Father wants to share with us, His beloved children."

_________________________________

Wow!  I don't think I realized that surrendering also meant relaxing once you let go. I guess I didn't think of it. I felt it once, when I prayed for Josh's safety in Basic Military Training when he first joined the Air Force.  I wasn't consciously aware that I should feel that way whenever I give something to the Lord, until now. When I pray for something like someones healing...I consider it done...because God is God...I guess that is relaxing, even though I continue to pray for that over and over. The Bible says to pray without ceasing.  Is that how you feel when you pray? 

 I feel that if I do hand a situation to Him, I should feel at peace with that decision--but sometimes I think I am too controlling, and hold on to it anyway...rather than letting go.   But I have faith that there is no problem to big for God... and there is no problem too small for God. He loves us more than anyone is able... just as we are! He is on our side. I just never put the word "relax" with "turning something over" to anyone...or to God...it's an effort for me to loosen my grasp.  I find great peace in this idea, and I feel closer to Him than ever with this thought...I hope you are also.  How do you feel about this?  Did you have any thoughts while reading this that you think would be interesting for our other readers to know?  I'm sure you do. Please share your thoughts with us in the comment section!

Please join us as we pray for all of the people suffering from the heat,the floods, the storms and with the power outages.  Please also pray for our country to be more Christ-like and to take care of the hungry, the poor, the needy, the widows and the ill...and everyone else in this country.  And, may every person who lives in a country without the Freedoms we have--have them soon. 

Thank you for being here!  Happy Independence Day to our American readers. God bless! 

He IS Able!
Traci Starkweather

A Very Special Announcement

Hi Friends~

I have a special announcement to share, Monday morning at Three O'Clock!  LOL! 

First of all, I realize I have been late in getting cards out on time, and have tried to make it up to the winners by adding an extra card/envelope in their mail.  I don't know why it is such an effort for me to get them out, but I sincerely apologize.

Secondly...It has been 2 weeks since we have given away the He IS Able Blog's Card Set of the Week!  I will get back to this in a moment! 

Thirdly, June 30th was the He IS Able Blog's 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!  Thank you to everyone who has been a part of the blog. The purpose of this blog is to serve our God!  The blog's mission is too to "Share His love, His Word, and His gift of Salvation by Giving Cards with Scriptures."  I want to thank, with all of my heart these people who have been my partners and encouragers and Sister Prayer Warriors and friends during these two years, and into our third year.  Joan, leads up our Prayer Team, Karen who is a Prayer Warrior, Michele who formerly wrote a monthly post about the women of the Bible and how we are so like them!  (BTW, would you like to see Precious Women of God---This Includes You! come back again?   Please leave a comment today.) And, the wonderful Christian music group Ash2Ash has been a blessing to this blog, donating their music CD's as prizes.  Their mission is to "lift up the name of our Lord Jesus Christ by sharing God’s love through testimony and song." And, thank you to my friends from other blogs who have helped me when I was down, who shared our banner or blog URL with others to find us. And, to my Beloved Husband, Dave.  Who, while still not yet a Believer, believes in me, and promotes this blog almost as much as I do.  I love you, all.

And a very special thank you to each of you...from so many different nations of the world...for showing up and letting us know how we can best pray for you, for encouraging us, for sharing your thoughts and ideas with us and everyone who reads the blog.  You are so precious to us.  And, even if I were to tell you in every post how appreciated you are...I don't think I would be saying it enough.

SO...EVERYONE who has left a comment in the month of June will be receiving 5 cards that people have donated to us to give out! I will include some extra goodies in each package.   My email is: 

tracistarkweather@gmail.com 

 If your name is listed below, please email me your mailing address, here in the States.  (I am not on a Design Team for a company, so I can not afford postage overseas.)  I have been searching for someone to donate a Digital Card that I could share with our Over-Seas friends...there are so many of you, and you are such faithful readers!  We appreciate you, too! If you have this special gift and are willing to create a card cover, please contact me. (I know many of you could be in danger for coming to a Christian blog, however, I can't see who you are...just what country you are from.  And, I would never tell anyway!)

Grace N.

jcb

Michele G.

Karen C.

Please send your mailing address, even if I have it already and before next Tuesday, the 9th at midnight.  This shows me that you wish to receive your package.  (Sometimes, people have so many cards at home, they don't want any more.)

We would love it if you prayerfully considered joining us in sharing on this blog.  We could always use more people on the Prayer Team.  You can pray as much or as little as you like.  It is a great way of serving.

And, as in the past two years, but even more now, I believe it has been laid on my heart to ask you to please think about writing a post for the blog.  Just one.  And, if your English isn't wonderful...neither is mine.  But, I will help you.  I want for this to be a place for people to share their Testimonies, or how God has stood by them in times of trouble, or your favorite Scripture (one of them) and why it is so.  You could write about how Christmas or Easter are celebrated in your country, special recipes passed down.  You could write about a person in your life who you now know has always been on your side Spiritually.  Maybe they prayed for you every day, or with you, maybe they were your go-to person about the Bible and it's Truth.  Maybe they were a teacher. 

There are so many things you could write about.  A person in the Bible you especially admire, and why.  It doesn't have to be long.  Just from your heart...which is full of love, and God is love.  So, how could you go wrong?  Just think of the delight your loved ones will have when they find it written in a page in your Bible, or in a drawer, or here on the blog.  You could write in honor of someone or in memory of someone, or write anonymously.  Please, please consider this...if you look under the labels...you will see a heading for "Rebekka's Testimony."  If you go and read that, you will see how powerful sharing your memories can be.  And, it can be as simple as writing telling that you pray while you wash the dishes each day.  It's all up to you. 

If you would like to donate a card or cards, please email me, and I will send you the information and my mailing address.  This is a great way to have fun and serve at the same time!

Happy 2 Year Blog-o-Versary Friends!

For our American friends, I pray you will have a joyful 4th of July, our Day of Independence.  I pray you are safe whether travelling, or setting off fireworks.  I pray you see God in everything, and see hope for the areas where it looks dim.  I pray that you thank someone who has stood for your Freedom, whether a Military Member, a parent, or a teacher who taught you about it.  I pray that everyone will pray for those of you who do not yet have Freedom.  Let that come to be soon!  God Bless!  In Jesus' Name.  Amen!

He IS Able!

Traci Starkweather