June 11, 12 - For the Love of Friends

Proverbs 17:17 (The Message) Friends love through all kinds of weather, 
   and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.

My better half and I had the pleasure This past weekend to spend time with a dear friend and her husband. It had been over a year since I had seen them...at their wedding, which I photographed. Mary and I have been friends since 1994, where we met at a church function for which my husband at the time played with a band. We began to visit her and her husband and 4 children and fell in love with the family. She is a beautiful and artistically multi-talented with more talent in one eyelash than ten other people put together. We have been through some very trying times over the course of our friendship. We both went through divorce, lost loved ones through distance and/or death, got involved with the wrong kind of people and moved away from God.



Fortunately for us both, God never let go. He drew us back to Himself. We had to suffer the consequences of our sin, but He remained a merciful Heavenly Father. When I look back at what foolish choices I made, I am so very thankful that God does not exact vengeance on His children. He loves us so much. 

Psalm 68:6

New International Version (NIV)

God sets the lonely in families, He leads out the prisoners with singing;but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.


I am thankful for all of the friends He has placed on my path. I am an only child of an only child. I have a step-sister, who although our parents divorced years ago, we chose to remain sisters. I have a group of about 8 close girlfriends that the Lord has given me as sisters. This was not easy for me. I had so many walls up as self-protection, that I would not allow anyone to get close to me,

Proverbs 18:24

New International Version (NIV)

One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Lord, thank You for blessing me with such a wonderful family of sisters! Thank you for delivering me from a spirit of judgement and solitary living. Thank You for answers to prayers for my friends. You see, Mary used to wear her pain on her face. Yes, she was beautiful, but when I look at photos of her from three years ago, I see the pain and anguish of her life's choices in her eyes. Now, I see peace and joy! Hallelujah! God is GOOD!


I love You, Lord!
Pamela

Day 40 - I Doubt It

Mark 11:23
Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him.


How often have you allowed doubt to creep into your life? I know God's Word is true, but I doubt my ability to trust Him enough to be able to tell a mountain to go jump in the sea and the mountain obey me. Heck, I can barely get my little Maltipoo, Alfie to  obey me and she only weights 10 pounds!!! I really want that kind of faith, whether it pertains to my life, my full-time job, or my part-time photography business. 


I was once in a relationship where I was told time and time again that we would go to church together, that he was coming to visit me, and that I was special to him. Time after time, plans were changed at the last minute...I was dressed and on my way out the door when I would receive a text, instead of a phone call, (I usually wear a bluetooth headset or ear buds, so may not see a message right away) saying "Sorry, I can't meet you/not coming/family issues", take your pick. For me, a person's word is their bond. When I finally addressed the issue by saying "I don't believe you!", I was met with "Oh, please don't say that." This person proved over and over again that their word was not trustworthy. I began to doubt everything they said. 


I had reason to doubt in this case, but I have no reason at all to doubt God. Titus 1:2 tells us, "God CANNOT lie." Not He won't or he chooses not to...He CANNOT! In Revelation 3:14, Jesus is called the Faithful and True Witness. Yet the Bible is full of people who doubted God, yet achieved great things in Him. Moses doubted that he would be able to speak to Pharaoh and lead God's chosen people out of Egypt. Saul doubted God's timing and offered a sacrifice that caused him to lose his kingship. 

John 6:35-37

³⁵ Jesus said to them, “ I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. ³⁶ But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. ³⁷  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.

Thomas, a chosen disciple walked with Jesus, yet had to see the nail-scarred hands, feet and side of Jesus to believe that He had risen from the dead. He received the moniker "Doubting Thomas". Jesus often chastised the disciples for their lack of faith. If the disciples who saw Jesus everyday dealt with unbelief, what chance do I have? How often and I a 'doubting Pamela'?  

John 20:26-30

²⁶ After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “ Peace be with you.” ²⁷ Then He said to Thomas, “ Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.” ²⁸ Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” ²⁹ Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”


My desire is to be faith-filled. I want to trust God totally with my finances, my job, my business, my mate, my family, my friends, my pets, my time...all aspects of my life. I feel foolish knowing I have doubted God, who CANNOT lie.


Lord, help me to truly grasp the fact that You are unable to lie. Other humans fail us all the time...just as we fail them and ourselves. I do not put my trust in man, but in the Son of Man, who lowered Himself to come to earth as a human being, live a sinless life, be crucified for MY sin, and raised from the dead. I know that I am going to live forever. Yes, I will shed this earthly tent we call a body someday, but my spirit is eternal. I want to spend that eternity in the presence of the ALL MIGHTY God and Creator of all.


As I come to the end of this 40-day challenge, I pray that it has made a significant difference in my life and in the lives of those who have taken time to read it. May I continue to encourage others and share the gifts with which you have blessed me. I pray that I have reached someone for the Kingdom. May they make the choice to ask Jesus into their hearts, surrender and live life for Him.


I ask this in Your Precious and Holy Name.


I love You, Lord.
Pamela

Day 39 - Did You Have Fun at Work Today?

Colossians 3:23-24

²³ Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, ²⁴  knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.


This Scripture verse is the verse I use for my photography business...as well as for the job I have working for someone else. You see, wherever I go and whatever I do, I "work for Jesus." I represent Him to the world. I do all that I have to do with excellence, whether it is how I treat a client or a co-worker, how I complete a task, I do as if I am doing it for Jesus.


Let me ask you a question. What is your passion in life? What cause is close to your heart? Are you working your passion or do you simply have a job that pays the bills? Why do you go to a job you hate day after day? God has placed in each of us a desire for something. My passion is my photography. I also love computers and databases...my full-time job satisfies those passions. I have been fortunate enough to have never worked in a job I hated. I like having fun and laughing and I do a lot of that at work. 


I don't understand people who work at jobs they absolutely despise for year upon year. Are you gifted in the area of fashion? Become a personal shopper and/or image consultant. Crazy about computers? Become a consultant or help senior citizens learn computer skills. Do you love to cook? Then cooking is what will bring fulfillment...do it! Do you like to drive? Become a chauffeur or bus driver. Do you love animals? Go to school to become a veterinarian or vet tech. While you are in the process of finding your passion and working it, you can volunteer to sharpen your skills. 


I shared my quote a few weeks ago, and it bears repeating..."Creation is most majestic when it simply is what God created it to be...that includes us!" A tree is never a failure at being a tree....look at it with it's branches raised in praise to THE God who created it!!! Birds don't try to be dogs. Flowers don't try to be rivers. Why do we, God's greatest creation (because we are created in HIS image) have difficulty being who He created us to be? My simple answer is sin. We make poor choices then suffer the consequences of said choices. We get ourselves into a jam and must take any job we can get in order to get by.


You can bring joy to whatever job you currently have, whether it is your dream job or not. I choose joy every day. It was not easy when I was going through a difficult divorce 23 years ago, but with the help of some great (and a little crazy) friends, I began to laugh more than I was crying. I learned to let go of the past and not worry about things over which I have no control. I used to fume for hours if someone cut me off in traffic, but I realized that I have done it to others accidentally. So I began to say, "Hey they probably did not see me! No one go hurt. I can let this go." The more I began to let that stuff go, the more pleasant my commute to work became. If I see someone driving dangerously, I will slow down and stay away from them or get past them when it is safe to do so. I don't stress over their issues.


My prayer for you is that you seek God's Face about what He desires for your fulfillment. I am NOT saying quit your job, but change your job if you are miserable. I have fun everywhere I go...even in church! Choose joy today. You can have the joy of the Lord no matter what circumstances you are facing.

Day 38 - What Are You Afraid Of?

When my youngest son, Trent was the ripe old age of four, he said to me, "When you spank me, it doesn't do any good, and when you yell at me, you only hurt my feelings." As a parent, I knew he was telling me the truth. You could threaten Trent to take away his favorite toy, television privileges, or send him to his room and his response was always "I don't care." Trent showed no fear or care when he received his punishment. There are times when I would like to exercise that type of fearlessness...not defiance to God, but in defiance to fear. I had seen this acronym before, but Scarlett brought it back to mind in her posting today....FEAR is False Evidence Appearing Real.


What fear(s) is/are holding you back? Are you afraid of failure? Look at the likes of Thomas Edison who said, "I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward." or "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't' work." He suffered many failures before he achieved success. Albert Einstein, who also suffered many failures said, "Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm."


What does God's Word have to say about fear?

2 Timothy 1:7

⁷ For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Joshua 1:6-8

⁶  Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. ⁷ Only be strong and very courageous (DON'T FEAR); be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. ⁸  This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

Isaiah 41:10

‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

Joel 2:21

Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad,

For the Lord has done great things.

John 14:27

²⁷  Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.


There are hundreds of examples in the Bible where God tells us FEAR NOT. I can hear some of you thinking, "It is easy for God to say....HE has no fears!" Yet, for those of us who believe in Jesus and trust Him as our Savior, He has equipped us with HIS PEACE! 


Lord, forgive me for continuing to fret, worry, fear, complain, and miss the mark again and again when Your Word clearly tells me not to do these things. Help me to walk in holy boldness!!!

God Give Me Guts Box Sign

Primitives By Kathy / Gift

I love You, Lord!

Pamela

Day 37 - God, Use Me

I am amazed at how quickly these past 37 days have gone by. In the beginning, forty days seemed like a long time, but it is just a vapor. My prayer is that what I am sharing will touch someone's life for the better. There are those of you reading this blog who will never meet me face-to-face, yet we are communicating over the internet. The internet is not bound by space and time as we are. Anywhere in this world that can access the internet, we can communicate with others half-way around the world at any time of day or night.

Jeremiah 33:2-3

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

² “Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it, the Lord is His name, ³ ‘ Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ 

There is so much garbage out here in cyberspace that is easy to get caught up in the mess. But there are also some wonderful sites on the internet that can help you in your struggles. One of my favorite websites is http://www.biblegateway.com. I can look up passages, do searches on words, and enjoy devotionals and other learning tools. There is http://www.embracehistruth.com, written by my dear friend, Doris as words of encouragement to others. Of course, there are other photographers that I admire, such as Ross Oscar Knight of Atlanta, GA, Zach and Jody Gray of Nashville, TN and of course, Scarlett & Stephen of Jacksonville, Florida who I can follow via their blogs and websites. What I love about these particular photogs is not their skill alone, but their love for the Lord and their willingness to help other photographers!

When you least expect it, or are unaware, someone is watching you...your life is affecting someone for better or for worse. Make a difference for the good. Let your light shine in a dark and miserable world.

Lord, may the words on my blog, my photographs and scriptures I share touch the lives of others. I am a willing vessel, Lord...USE ME!


I love You, Lord!
Pamela

Day 36 - Seek Ye First

Matthew 6:25-34

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

²⁵ “ For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life,as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as towhat you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? ²⁶  Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? ²⁷ And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? ²⁸ And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, ²⁹ yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. ³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! ³¹ Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ ³² For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. ³³ But seek first HIS kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. ³⁴ “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Do you worry about tomorrow? Do you worry about what you want to be when you grow up (even if you are in your forties or older)? Has your career path taken you in so many different directions that you feel schizophrenic? Psalms 46:10, God says, "Be still and know that I am God." We are so inundated with images, technology, computers, smart phones, the internet, animated billboards, flashing lights and over consumption of things we don't need. It is no wonder our heads are spinning at the end of the day! 

Today's reading spoke about The Definition of You. Do you define yourself as a photographer, an architect, a doctor, a secretary, a mom, a dad, a sister, a brother, a husband or a wife? What if you simply defined yourself as a child of God...then sought HIS direction for your life? The first scripture from Matthew that I quoted at the top of the page talks about how precious we are to our Heavenly Father. He cares for your needs. He also gives us the desires of our hearts. 

Psalm 37:4

Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.

Are you delighting in the Lord? Are you seeking first HIS kingdom? As believers, this is the measure of success. When we spend time in HIS Presence and show Him how much we love Him and want to be with Him, He delights in giving us our desires. Sometimes, He will give us desires that we ask for, even when He knows it is not the best thing for us to have. When we fail miserably because of it, He is standing and waiting with open arms to welcome us back into His Presence.

Lord, I pray that I would earnestly desire to seek Your Face. I am asking those who are reading this blog to do the same. I know that we will be sharing awesome stories of how You worked in our lives as we see You.

I love You, Lord

Pamela

Day 35 - Give and It Will Come Back To You...

Luke 6:38

³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”

Has your minister ever said, "You can't beat God in giving"? I used to struggle with the idea of giving God 10% of what I earned, thinking, "Why does God need MY money? He doesn't really need it!" But what my tithe and your tithe does is meet the needs of your local church. It costs money to run a church. There are light bills, gas bills, water bills, building and grounds maintenance...not to mention a salary for the pastor and other church staff. Not only that, but everything you earn and have really belongs to God anyway.

It was God who gave you the ability to work. He supplies air to your lungs. He gives movement to your limbs to allow you to drive to work, or get on a bus and ride to work. In reality, God does not NEED your money...He owns the cattle on 1,000 hills! (Psalm 50:10)

Psalm 50:10-11

¹⁰ “For every beast of the forest is Mine,

The cattle on a thousand hills.

¹¹ “I know every bird of the mountains,

And everything that moves in the field is Mine.

Tithing is an act of obedience....and obedience is better than sacrifice

1 Samuel 15:22

²² Samuel said,

“ Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices

As in obeying the voice of the Lord?

Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,

And to heed than the fat of rams.

When you give your tithes and offerings to God, you are saying to Him, "I am trusting You to meet my needs, Lord."  God does not just want our money, He wants our time and treasure as well. I need to work on the amount of time I spend with the Lord. My tithe and my treasure (all that is important to me, like my business and my family) I can give to Him, but when it comes to my time, I must admit that I waste way too much of it. Sometimes, I just need to sit still! Yesterday, my honey came by. It was early evening and the sun was streaming through my front window. For some reason, the neighborhood was so very quiet (there are usually lots of children out playing). We decided to leave the television off and just enjoy the peace and calm. It was so relaxing!

Lord, help me to spend my time more wisely. I have made an effort to get up 10 minutes early so that I can begin my day with You. I know it will make a difference in my day. 

I love You, Lord

Pamela