GO LIGHT YOUR WORLD... SUNDAY IN THE SON

Go Light Your World

There is a candle in every soul
Some brightly burning, some dark and cold
There is a Spirit who brings fire
Ignites a candle and makes His home

Carry your candle, run to the darkness
Seek out the hopeless, confused and torn
Hold out your candle for all to see it
Take your candle, and go light your world
Take your candle, and go light your world

Frustrated brother, see how he's tried to
Light his own candle some other way
See now your sister, she's been robbed and lied to
Still holds a candle without a flame

Carry your candle, run to the darkness
Seek out the lonely, the tired and worn
Hold out your candle for all to see it
Take your candle, and go light your world
Take your candle, and go light your world

We are a family whose hearts are blazing
So let's raise our candles and light up the sky
Praying to our Father, in the name of Jesus
Make us a beacon in darkest times

Carry your candle, run to the darkness
Seek out the helpless, deceived and poor
Hold out your candle for all to see it
Take your candle, and go light your world

Carry your candle, run to the darkness
Seek out the hopeless, confused and torn
Hold out your candle for all to see it
Take your candle, and go light your world
Take your candle, and go light your world

~Oh, the JOY~

HOW BEAUTIFUL... WOMEN IN THE WORD WEDNESDAY....

2 John 1:4-6


 ⁴ "It has given me great JOY to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. ⁵ And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. ⁶ And this is love: that we walk in obedience to His commands. As you have heard from the beginning, His command is that you walk in love."

LOVE J esus

LOVE O thers

LOVE Y ourself

~Oh, the JOY~

HOW BEAUTIFUL... GRATITUESDAY...

I am so

thankful

for the beautiful BODY OF CHRIST! 

God's design is for the church to be a group of faithful, loving believers led by their HEAD, JESUS CHRIST,

with THE MIND OF CHRIST! 

Jesus' church is to have elders appointed in each local congregation.  These elders are to be shepherds, overseers of "the flock", and pastors.  We have had 6 elders in our local church family and this Sunday we added 2 more.

To be an elder, you must have a spiritual and supportive wife.  This is so evident with all 8 couples.  Above are 2 transformed moms and their husbands (the new elders) receiving THE BLESSING from the initial 6 elders.

Afterwards, Steve gave Dave and Mike THE CHARGE of their new responsibilities:

Then, they turned to face their church family,

as we read words together of our committment to them. They were AFFIRMED.   

Elders and elders wives? 

Dedicated to loving the LORD by loving His children.

HOW BEAUTIFUL!!!

Love J esus

Love Others

..Love Yourself

~Oh, the JOY~

HOW BEAUTIFUL... MEDITATION MONDAY...

2 Corinthians 4:6-8

^"For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair..."

.
Yesterday, I saw men stand before our congregation being appointed as elders.  Their wives stood with them.

Yesterday, I heard these men say that they were flawed individuals who stood before us by the grace of God.

Yesterday, I was once again reminded that God shines through jars of clay ("cracked pots") to illuminate the darkness for His glory.

Yesterday, I heard story after story of God's love in the lives of these two men and their wives.

HOW BEAUTIFUL IS THE BODY OF CHRIST!

Love J esus

Love O thers

Love Y ourself

~Oh, the JOY~

HOW BEAUTIFUL... SUNDAY IN THE SON...

HOW BEAUTIFUL

as sung by Twila Paris

How Beautiful the hands that served
The Wine and the Bread and the sons of the earth
How beautiful the feet that walked
The long dusty roads and the hill to the cross
How Beautiful, how beautiful,

how beautiful is the body of Christ

How Beautiful the heart that bled
That took all my sin and bore it instead
How beautiful the tender eyes
That choose to forgive and never despise
How beautiful, how beautiful,

how beautiful is the body of Christ

And as He lay down His life
We offer this sacrifice
That we will live just as He died
Willing to pay the price
Willing to pay the price

How Beautiful the radiant bride
Who waits for her Groom with His light in her eyes
How Beautiful when humble hearts give
The fruit of pure lives so that others may live
How beautiful, how beautiful,

how beautiful is the body of Christ.

How beautiful the feet that bring
The sound of good news and the love of the King
How Beautiful the hands that serve
The wine and the bread and the sons of the Earth
How Beautiful, how beautiful,

how beautiful is the body of Christ.

~Oh, the JOY~

THE BLESSING... FAMILY FELLOWSHIP FRIDAY...

There are books that focus on giving BLESSING to God, yourself, to your family, and to others.  THE BLESSING, by Gary Smalley and John Trent is a very popular book that I read years ago.  It will quite probably open your eyes to many new things that you have not contemplated before.

Another one that has become a huge blessing to so many may not have been specifically written for the purpose of teaching blessing.  It is titled WHO I AM IN CHRIST by Neil Anderson.  When the reader works through the process of this book, she is more ready to bless God, herself, and others.  Some fellow mothers and I have committed to read this book this month.   It has 38 chapters broken into 3 parts:

PART ONE:  OUR ACCEPTANCE IN CHRIST
PART TWO:  OUR SECURITY IN CHRIST
PART THREE:  OUR SIGNIFICANCE IN CHRIST

What a blessing it is to your family when you, as wife and mother, understand deeply who you are in Christ.

Just this week, after learning about how GOD BLESSES, in our Sunday morning Bible class, a couple from church went to a Michael W. Smith concert.  They were very encouraged that he ended His concert by giving his audience THE BLESSING.  They brought us Michael W. Smith's book entitled, THE SIMPLE BLESSING. 

Here is a YouTube video of Michael "giving a blessing" to a christian school at the end of his chapel talk.
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LOVE J esus!            BLESS J esus!

LOVE O thers!        BLESS O thers!

LOVE Y ourself!      BLESS Y ourself!

~Oh, the JOY!~

THE BLESSING... TRANSFORMING THURSDAY...

It takes great COURAGE to walk the walk of Jesus Christ. 
Steve and I are teaching a parenting class entitled, HOW GOD DOES FAMILY.  Each week we take a principle from scripture and expound on it. This week the principle is:

GOD BLESSES!

We discussed that we have a choice each day to be: A BLESSING OR A CURSE. Yes, the choice is ours. 
There are many ways to BLESS our families. One of those ways we've been talking about on this blog. Love your family enough to be patient and...

• kind... What a BLESSING kind words can be!
• keep no record of wrongs... Instead, spend your time keeping of record of what's right about your child/spouse.

Yet, what do words of BLESSING look like? We want to point out not just what a person does, but enCOURAGE "who he/she is". I modeled how I have done that with Steve and our children:

• Steve, Jesus is THE COUNSELOR and WISDOM... I see Jesus in you, in those ways!
• J, Jesus is THE LION / LAMB and HEALER... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.
• J, Jesus is THE ROCK and IMMANUEL... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.
• C, Jesus is THE CREATOR and WORD... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.
• C, Jesus is THE FOUNTAIN and GOOD SHEPHERD... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.

You can do the same for your family via pointing out names or characteristics of Jesus that they remind you of.  In addition, how about giving a BLESSING to each one as you see in them parts of the fruit of the HOLY SPIRIT?  Say things like:

• The JOY of the Holy Spirit flows out of you to BLESS others.
• The Holy Spirit LOVES through you in a great way.
• Your life exudes the Holy Spirit's PEACE that passes understanding.
• Your FAITH is so enCOURAGING to me, as I watch you being led by the Holy Spirit.

Let God mold you today into a woman of COURAGE who BLESSES others with her tongue.

~Oh, the JOY~

THE BLESSING... WOMEN IN THE WORD WEDNESDAY...

John 13:34-35

"A new command I give you:
Love one another.
As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

******************

Romans 13:8

"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law."

*****************

1 Peter 1:22

"Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart."

***********

1 Peter 3:8
"Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble."

***************

1 John 3:11

^"For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. "


***************

1 John 3:23

"And this is His command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us."

***************

1 John 4:7

 "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God."

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1 John 4:11-12

 ^"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us."


****************

2 John 1:5

"And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. "

**********

Love  Jesus!

Love Others! 

Love Yourself!

~Oh, the JOY~

THE BLESSING... GRATITUESDAY...

At the top of this blog, it says, GOD BLESSES AND TRANSFORMS.  It is so true.  God isn't Santa Claus or the Good Fairy.  His ways are not "magical", they are transformational.  His WAY is a journey and a process. God is God!

My relationship with God, begins and continues with me BEing / living His BE-attitudes.  This is how He wants me to think/live/be:

1. POOR IN SPIRIT... I'm transparent. No masks!  This is me, God, with all my warts, inconsistencies, and woundedness.  Thank You for introducing me to Your HOLY SPIRIT and allowing me entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven. You are MY KING!
2. MOURN... I'm human.  I mess up again and again. I sin!  I am a sinner! Your forgiveness is amazing. Thank You for being MY COMFORTER.
3. MEEK...  No more kicking and screaming!  No more saying, "That's impossible!" I am learning little by little to allow You to shape me and mold me for Your glory.  I give you the "reins" of my life.  After all, You are the Creator of all the earth.  If a wild stallion can be made gentle, so can I.   Thank You for being MY CREATOR Who is willing to "reign and rule" in me. 
4. HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS... Fill me, God.  I realize that I cannot make it without spiritual nutrition / sustenance.  You, Jesus, are MY RIGHTEOUSNESS and I hunger and thirst to BE like You.  Thank You for BEing willing to fill me up!  
5. MERCIFUL... I understand, Jesus, that all these BE-attitudes, including compassion are a choice. I can't even comprehend all the ways You chose to show mercy when You were on the earth.  In the same way that You, MY WONDERFUL MERCIFUL SAVIOR, extend new mercies to me every morning, may I offer mercy to everyone, including my enemies. 
6. PURE IN HEART... I must be transparent.  No imitation!  No false pretenses!  No cover-up!  Impurities are out!  You are my filter!  Everything has to go through You!  Cleaning up my act, Jesus, means seeing You as You are...  You are MY HOLINESS. Thank You! 
7. PEACEMAKERS... How can I be a peacemaker, when peace is part of the Holy Spirit's fruit?  Aha!  Thank You, Jesus, for allowing me to be a partner in the Gospel.  By bringing others to You, I am connecting them with THE PEACE THAT PASSES UNDERSTANDING.  More importantly, by bringing others to You, I am called a "child of God.  What a privilege to be related to THE SON OF THE MOST HIGH. 
8. PERSECUTED FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS... Thank You for the privilege of being made fun of, slapped around, and wounded for doing the right thing.  You are RIGHTEOUSNESS.  Thank You that it is Your RIGHTEOUSNESS that allows me to be part of the Kingdom of Heaven.
9. INSULTED, PERSECUTED, and LIED ABOUT:  Thank You, Jesus, for reminding me to REJOICE ANYWAY!  You spoke it!  You taught it!  You modeled it!  You lived it!  You are my VICTORIOUS WARRIOR:  Grace under fire... Joy in the midst suffering... Love in the midst of hate... Light in darkness... 

Thank You, Jesus, for showing us how to be THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD and THE SALT OF THE EARTH.

~Oh, the JOY~

THE BLESSING... MEDITATION MONDAY...

Last Friday, our church family showed the movie COURAGEOUS at our building.  Many there were convicted of our great need to lead lives of COURAGE.  Yesterday morning, Dan's sermon challenged the men of our congregation to help "stop the pandemic" in our nation - 24 million children in our nation are fatherless.  Of course, in many homes, the children are still "fatherless" even though the father is still physically present.

The book of Joshua and it's words enCOURAGE all of us to:  BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS!  If you have not seen this movie, I would enCOURAGE you to do so:

It takes great COURAGE to walk the walk of Jesus Christ.  Steve and I are teaching a parenting class entitled, HOW GOD DOES FAMILY!  Each week we take a principle from scripture and expound on it.  This week the principle is:  GOD BLESSES!

We discussed that we have a choice each day to be:  A BLESSING OR A CURSE.  Yes, the choice is ours. 

There are many ways to BLESS our family.  One of those ways we've been talking about on this blog.  Love your family enough to be patient and...

• kind... What a BLESSING kind words can be!
• keep no record of wrongs... Instead, spend your time keeping of record of what's right about your child/spouse.

Yet, what do words of BLESSING look like?  We want to point out not just what a person does, but encourage "who he/she is".  I modeled how I have done that with Steve and our children:

• Steve, Jesus is THE COUNSELOR and WISDOM... I see Jesus in you, in those ways!
• J, Jesus is THE LION / LAMB and HEALER... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.
• J, Jesus is THE ROCK and IMMANUEL... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.
• C, Jesus is THE CREATOR and WORD... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.
• C, Jesus is THE FOUNTAIN and GOOD SHEPHERD... I see Jesus in you, in those ways.

How about giving a BLESSING to each other as we see in each other parts of the fruit of the HOLY SPIRIT?

• The JOY of the Holy Spirit flows out of you to BLESS others.
• The Holy Spirit loves through you in a great way.
• Your life exudes the Holy Spirit's PEACE that passes understanding.
• Your FAITH is so enCOURAGING to me, as I watch you being led by the Holy Spirit.

Let God mold you today into a woman of COURAGE who BLESSES others with her tongue.

Yesterday, our congregation prayed for Japan.  Here are our brothers and sisters gathering after the tsunami, last year, in Mito, Japan.  What A BLESSING they have been to so many this past year.

 COURAGE!  BLESSING!

~OH, THE JOY~

THE BLESSING

as sung by

John Waller

Let it be said of us,
while we walked among the living...
Let it be said of us,
by the ones we leave behind...
Let it be said of us,
that we lived to be A BLESSING FOR LIFE!!!!
Let it be said of us,
that we gave to reach the dying...
Let it be said of us,
by the fruit we leave behind...
Let it be said of us,

 that our legacy is A BLESSING FOR LIFE!!!!

This day
You set life...

You set death...

 right before us.

This day
every blessing and curse is a choice.

 ...And we will choose

to be a BLESSING FOR LIFE!!!!

Let it be said of us,
that our hearts belonged to Jesus!

Let it be said of us,

that we spoke the words of LIFE!

Let it be said of us
that our heritage is A BLESSING FOR LIFE!!!!

This day
You set life...

You set death...

right before us.

This day
every blessing and curse is a choice.
 

...for your Kingdom...
...for our Children...
...for the sake of every nation...

...And we will choose

to be a BLESSING FOR LIFE!!!!

~Oh, the JOY~

LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER... FAMILY FELLOWSHIP FRIDAY...

I witness deep and abiding LOVE for others on a daily basis.  I am part of a local church family who is known for it's LOVE.  I am a part of a worldwide group of believers, the body of Christ, who are known for our LOVE of our LORD.  Just this week, I've observed close up and long distance christians who know how to love one another.  Are you passing this choice to love on to your children? 

Are you loving others:

• During the "daily mundane" of home life?
• While shopping at the grocery store?
• While stuck in traffic?
• When speaking to or of your children's teachers/friends?
• When talking on the phone?
• When with your husband?
• With the body of believers who you call "church family"?

IS IT TIME FOR YOU TO CHOOSE LOVE?

Put the person's name in the blank and begin to LOVE:

My love for _________is patient,
My love for _________is kind and is not jealous;
My love for _________does not brag and is not arrogant,
My love for _________does not act unbecomingly;
My love for _________does not seek its own,
My love for _________is not provoked,
My love for _________does not take into account a wrong suffered, My love for _________does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
My love for _________bears all things,
My love for _________believes all things,
My love for _________hopes all things,
My love for _________endures all things.

LOVE never fails;
¹³ But now faith, hope, LOVE, abide these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE."

                                    ~Oh, the JOY~

LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER... TRANSFORMING THURSDAY...

Loving others, God's way, is a choice!  How can it be possible to love not only family, friends, and co-workers, but also strangers and enemies.  In part, it has to do with one's perspective, but bottom line:  IT IS A CHOICE!

Let's return again to the "love chapter" in the Bible - 1 Corinthians 13.  "My love"  must become the "agape love" that Jesus lived out while on the earth.  Make the choice to love like Jesus loves!

Put the person's name in the blank and begin to LOVE:

My love for _________is patient,
My love for _________is kind and is not jealous;
My love for _________does not brag and is not arrogant,
My love for _________does not act unbecomingly;
My love for _________does not seek its own,
My love for _________is not provoked,
My love for _________does not take into account a wrong suffered, My love for _________does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
My love for _________bears all things,
My love for _________believes all things,
My love for _________hopes all things,
My love for _________endures all things.

LOVE never fails; 
¹³ But now faith, hope, LOVE, abide these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE."

~OH, THE JOY~

LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER... WOMEN IN THE WORD WEDNESDAY...

MATTHEW 22:34-40:

The Greatest Commandment = J.O.Y.
34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

37 Jesus replied:

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul
and with all your mind.’
38 This is the first and greatest commandment.  (In other words, love Jesus!)

39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  (In other words, love Others as much as you love Yourself).

40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

~Oh, the JOY~

LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER... GRATITUESDAY...

So thankful for:

The love of Jesus

The love of Others

The love of Yourself (myself)

~Oh, the JOY~

LOVING GOD... LOVING EACH OTHER... MEDITATION MONDAY...

It's Friday morning and I'm just writing the Monday blog post? 

Well, yes and no!

You, see, we've spent the first two months of the year talking about "loving Jesus" and "loving Yourself".  I posted our theme song, for the week, on Sunday.  That song alone makes for some great meditation.  Then again, there is one more word that we heard in Steve's Sunday sermon:  SURRENDER.  He took us to Matthew 5 and reminded us again that "THE BLESSED LIFE" begins with SURRENDER. 

MEDITATION:  What does SURRENDER have to do with loving Jesus? Others? Yourself?

~Oh, the JOY~

LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER... SUNDAY IN THE SON...

LOVING GOD, LOVING EACH OTHER

as sung by Gaither Vocal Band

Loving God, loving each other,
Making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other,
And the music never ends.

They pushed back from the table
To listen to His words,
His secret plan before He had to go.
It's not complicated;
Don't need a lot of rules,
This is all you'll need to know.

Loving God, loving each other,
Making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other,
And the music never ends.

We tend to make it harder,
Build steeples out of stone,
Fill with explanations of The Way,
But if we'd stop and listen
And break a little bread,
We would hear the Master say,

Loving God, loving each other,
Making music with my friends;
Loving God, loving each other,
And the music never ends.

~OH, THE JOY~

HERE WITH ME... TRANSFORMING THURSDAY...

A dear friend posted this on FB yesterday.  I knew immediately that this picture needed a home on this blog. 

As we begin March, let's remember what we've talked about throughout the months of January and February.  Love Jesus!  Love Yourself!  In order to love others, we must truly love ourselves the way Jesus loves us.  It's TRANSFORMING!

~Oh, the JOY~