HELLO? Can you hear me now? By Michelle Rocker

We have all seen the Verizon commercial with the guy going all over the USA asking the question, “Can you hear me now?”  It’s become part of pop culture.  Everyone knows this phrase.  I’ve used it when I have told my kids five hundred times to pick up their shoes out of the middle of the floor.  Okay, well maybe it was more like five times, but it is frustrating when you feel like no one is listening to what you are saying.  You aren’t just talking to hear yourself.  You have a point.  I’m tired of repeating myself.

Have you ever thought that God feels this way?  We have His Word.  He speaks to our spirit and lets us know that He is here for us.  I feel like Isaiah 40:28-31 is like the commercial we know so well.  Isaiah is yelling, “Can you hear me now?”

“Do you not know?  Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.  Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (NIV)

So, the next time you are tired and worn out, ask yourself how much time you have been spending with the One who gives you your strength.

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone By Michelle Rocker

Why? Why is it when I am comfortable does God feel the need to push me out of my comfort zone?

I hate being in front of people. I get such major anxiety, it is ridiculous. Most people have no idea I feel this way, but I do. I’ve learned to push through and ignore it and shove the nausea back down my throat. I’m a piano player. I’m a singer. I’ve been on stages and platforms and worship teams since I was thirteen. However, something always comes over me when I truly worship. I have peace and I forget about all the people. I feel God’s presence and I’m okay.

Last year, I was enjoying all my kids being in school and getting some time back to myself. But nope...that was comfortable. Without going into great detail, it became obvious that God was asking me to home school two of my children. I panicked. I didn’t want to. But I knew if it was God’s idea and not mine. He would get me through it, and He has. It has been the biggest blessing.

So, why does God put me in uncomfortable situations? Here are some verses that may answer that question.

Psalm 23:4: Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Psalm 119:76: May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant.

Isaiah 51:12: “I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mere mortals, human beings who are but grass,

2 Corinthians 1:3-7: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

Revelation 3:16: So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

God’s Motivation By Michelle Rocker

Did you know that God is not motivated by fear? What motivates God? What moves the heart of God?

I was sitting in a service listening to a preacher and when he stated, “God is not motivated by fear.” I got distracted after that thinking about what motivates God. Verses from the Bible began to come to me.

1 John 4:18: There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Romans 8:38-39: For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1 John 3:1a: See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

Ephesians 2:4-5: But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

John 3:16: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

My conclusion? God is motivated by LOVE. John 3:16, is the ultimate proof of my conclusion. God was moved/motivated by love that he GAVE us his Son to die for our sins. The idea that my Creator, the God of the entire universe, loves me to this extent....wow! I am humbled, grateful, and overwhelmed.

Another Shiny New Day By Liz Huggins-Thompson

We are greeted each morning with a shiny new day.

We proceed to tarnish it with our acts of sin.

The Lord polishes it up while we sleep

And presents us with a bright new hope.

Thank you, Lord, for your faith in me.

I pray that I am worthy of it.

Take a Moment By Liz Huggins-Thompson

It's the significant moments in life that we recognize and celebrate. What about all of the other moments? The smell of clean laundry, the feeling of your feet digging into the sand, the sound of cicadas in summer, the sight of a bubble floating gently and quickly away on the air, the taste of a tear as it runs down your cheek and slips into the corner of your mouth.

Take a moment to celebrate God's gifts of the familiar and forgotten.

The Faith Of A Child By Michelle Rocker

When my son, Nolan was nine years, we were working on him understand that
money does not grow on tree.  He was always the one who wants something
at the store even if it is ten cents.  

I started by explaining how hard Daddy works for the money, and that he should
say, “Thank you.”

Next, I explained the bills.  Understanding more, he would ask me WHEN we
would have money so that he could buy such and such.  His demanding money
was no longer an issue.

Several months later, I ended up in the hospital with pneumonia. With no insurance,
we were faced with close to thirty thousand dollars.  Nolan knew it had been awhile
since he could choose one of the legos he wanted.

He came downstairs completely dejected that we didn’t have any money.

He said, “Well, mom, I guess I’m just going to have to pray for a miracle, ‘cause that
is all that can happen.”

I told him that was a good idea, but was nervous that his faith would be affected when
it didn’t happen.  How was a nine year old little boy going to earn and receive money.
His birthday was seven months away.  Christmas was still four months away. I just
didn’t see how.

One hour later, my neighbor stopped by and asked if Nolan could baby sit their bird
and dog.  She also stated she would pay him.  I started bawling, and my neighbor
asked what was wrong.

“He was praying for a miracle, and you are his miracle.”

As I explained, my neighbor’s heart was touched as well. 

In Mark 10:15-16 we are told:  I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the
kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." And he took the children in
his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

Jesus understood how children think.  They have absolute faith.  Their faith is not
yet tarnished by people, circumstances, and things.  In order for us to have the
same faith of a child, we have to put aside our disappointment and our unbelief.

Hebrews 11:1 says:  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence
of things not seen.

Somehow between childhood and adulthood, we have to see in order to believe
that it is going to happen.

Think about Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, and the Easter Rabbit.  Kids believe
even though they’ve never seen them.  After they believe, they see the results.
I’m always sad when my kids find out Santa isn’t real.  It is the beginning of them
losing their child-like faith.

My kids believe that God is a god of miracles, and I pray that they never lose that.

When I called Nolan downstairs and told him that his miracle had just been
answered. He wasn’t in awe like I was. 

He was just matter of fact as if to say, “Yep!  That is the God I serve.”

Oh, to have the faith of a child.  It’s no wonder God answers the little one’s prayers.