God's Garden

I'm sitting at my desk, after my morning devotionals, and when I looked out my window I was blessed to see two beautiful yellow finches flitting in the butterfly bush. They are so petite and graceful. How can I not smile?

My home office is on the lower level of our bi-level home and right outside my window is a beautiful flower garden filled with roses, coneflowers, a yellow and orange flower (I'll have to ask my hubby what the name is), hostas, and the lovely butterfly bush. God has blessed me with a lovely view. When my office was upstairs, I didn't get to enjoy the garden. Now it's at eye level. Occasionally, one of the outdoor cats walks by and peers in at me.

Sometimes we look for God's blessings in the wrong places. We look for spectacular miracles, when He gives us glimpses of His love every day. My garden is a blessng from God. His hand created the beauty in my garden. Each morning, I look out and see God's face smiling back at me.

It reminds me of the hymn, "I Come to the Garden Alone," one of my favorites. I remember signing this in church as a child, but now the words come to life when I gaze out my window each morning.

I hope you see God's smile today.

Gloom, Despair, and Agony on Me...

Deep dark depression, excessive misery...

I remember those words from a skit on the Hee Haw television show. A rather funny segment where they sat on a porch and sang funny lines about the tragedies in their lives. There are a lot of people who live their lives this way. They talk about all the bad things that happen to them, worry excessively about the bad things that will happen tomorrow and the next day. And no matter what suggestions you give, they are shot down with reasons that won't work. How easy to get caught up in that negativity and become depressed yourself!

Last night I picked up a booklet I received from Guideposts. The title is "Expect a Miracle--Make a Miracle Happen". I realized how true this is. Miracles occur every day. They may not be as spectacular as the Red Sea parting, but they exist! We just have to open our eyes to see them.

God promises to provide all that we need if we have faith in Him. Having faith is the first step in aligning our lives for God's purpose. And having faith and believing in miracles will get us through those times when trouble visits our doorstep. God doesn't promise only good things will happen to us, but He does promise to be with us through it all. Having that promise is so uplifting and so healing.

When trouble visits your doorstep, what do you do? Moan and weep in despair? Or do you expect a miracle?

Expect a miracle--make a miracle happen. What a wonderful motto to live by.

Healing Hands of Jesus

I suffer from foot cramps. They usually occur at night, waking me so that I walk the floor trying to relieve them. But, occasionally they occur during the day. Once I was shopping when a cramp seized my foot and calf. I tried to walk but the pain continued. Suddenly the other leg cramped as well. I left everything in the cart and slowly, painfully made my way to the car. Ten minutes of pain and tears and then the pain blessedly left.

That was several year ago, when I believed in God, but I hadn't truly put him first in my life.

Two weeks ago, as I drove to work, my right foot began to cramp. The pain intensified, but I couldn't stop the car. The road I travel has no place for a vehicle to pull off the road. I began to pray and asked Jesus to let me please get to work without harming anyone. I prayed that He would help to ease the pain. Nearly blinded with the pain, I continued to pray, over and over. As I approached a dangerous blind curve in the road, I knew Jesus was with me. I saw the road. I knew I was driving, but I also saw a beautiful outline of his white robe and felt his hands surround my foot. The cramps eased and quit.

Even today, miracles occur. He is with us. Please don't forget to say thank you when He blesses you. I did.