A Rock is an Important Thing

And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out. Luke 19:40

Rocks, stones, pebbles, are you forever finding them in your children's pockets, in the bottom of book bags, or in the corner of their sock drawers? Maybe there's even one in your pocket once in awhile. The Bible has a lot to say about rocks. Though the word rock or stone isn't used, one of the first places in the Bible to allude to rocks is Genesis 8:20 when Noah came off the ark and built an altar to offer sacrifices. Abraham built altars everywhere he traveled. 

Rocks weren't just used for altars. Jacob used a stone for a pillow while camping out. The next day he stood it up as a pillar to help him remember God's promises. Joshua was commanded to place 12 stones in the Jordan River where the priest bore the ark of the covenant. He was to take 12 stones out and place them for stones of remembrance of what God did for them. 

David said God was the Rock of his salvation (Psalms 89:26). 

Paul in I Corinthians 10:4 says "that Rock was Christ". Rocks are common everyday things, but if we put on our spiritual eyes the stones will cry out to us of Jesus every day. 

Hey Kids:

What can you do with a rock?

Skip it across the water or plunge it in the deep part and see how many circles it will make. If we take the message of Jesus with us we can reach an ever widening circle of people. 

Paint it and leave it for someone to find. Maybe paint a pretty picture and add a Bible verse as a witness.

Make a stack of stones, a stone sculpture for a reminder of something God has done. 

Keep a special rock in your pocket to remind you of something important, to remind you of God's goodness, to remind you to pray.

Remember the song: Jesus is the Rock of my salvation, His banner over me is love? 

May the rocks in your life be reminders of God's love.

Blessings, 

Gail

In His Hand

In His hand are the deep places of the earth;

The heights of the hills are His also. Psalms 95:4

This week we traveled to visit our daughter over 800 miles north and west. By the time we did sight seeing and drove back, we had covered over 2300 miles of America. We were awed by the wind turbines of the plains. We walked down into the earth at the Cave of the Mounds in Wisconsin. We drove through fields of corn and wheat and crossed some of the highest mountains in eastern America. And God was there every mile and step of the way.

When the expanse of miles almost brought me to panic, I remember the depths of the earth and the mountain peaks belong to Him, to God the Creator. Rather than panic, I tried to listen to His voice as He called from His word, 

"Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

7 

For He is our God,

And we are the people of His pasture,

And the sheep of His hand." Psalms 95:6,7

We laid our head in a motel whose walls were covered in pictures of river rocks. For me, they were stones of remembrance. A remembrance of all the good things God has done for me and my family, all the things He has brought us through. Exhausted and filled, we returned home to find everything in order and a happy hound dog to greet us.

How about you? What has God shown you about Himself this week? What memories has He brought to mind? 

Hey Kids:

Have you ever traveled down in a cave or cavern? 

This week we walked down into the Cave of the Mounds in Wisconsin. The guide showed us domes in the ceiling where acid that formed in the waters below had risen to eat out the domes. The guide attempted to explain this happened millions of years ago.

I wondered had she never heard of Noah? Never read Genesis 7:11?

In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.

A few years ago I visited the Creation Museum in Kentucky. Now there is a replica of the ark. I haven't yet visited except by technology. You may enjoy an internet visit too. Visit ark .

I've seen fish fossils in caves and coal mines. I've seen upright fossilized tree trunks in a coal mine in Virginia. The more I see of God's creation, the more I know He still confirms His word.

What has God shown you that confirms He is Lord and Creator? 

How did it make you feel? 

Can you draw a picture or write a story to share with a friend or family? Don't forget about us. We'd like to hear from you too!

Blessings,

Gail

Hide Away

And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses’ hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him.

 Exodus 34:29

It's blackberry picking time here in the mountains and my 18 month old granddaughter LOVES blackberries. Her dad calls her his little Brer Rabbit. While picking berries, Fern found a tunnel underneath the arches of blackberry canes. She quietly crawled under to sit and eat her fill of the purple delicacies. When her dad found her, her face was a purple smile. She hadn't even noticed the long scratch the briers had made on her arm. 

Do you have a favorite place to hide away from the world and be alone with God? Are you able to forget the wounds the world has scratched on your soul? Can others see the joy on your face from spending time with God? 

Hey Kids:

Moses spent time with God. 

God used him to not only lead the children of Israel out of Egypt but give them the Ten Commandments. He went up on Mt. Sinai for 40 days to listen to God's instructions. When he came down his face shown. The people knew he had been with God. His face shown so much, they wanted him to veil his face to protect them from the brightness. 

Do you have a special place where you can get alone with God? 

How has time alone with God changed you?

Can others tell by the smile on your face?

If you haven't found that special place yet, might I suggest a special tree limb or under an arbor? Some folks use a boulder out along a path as their place to sit and pray. What about a sand dune or just tucked away in a cozy corner of your room. 

Wherever you hide away, make a habit of visiting often with God.

Blessings,

Gail

In a Garden

And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Genesis 1:29 (NKJV)

What's your favorite fruit or veggie? What herbs do you enjoy?
Have you ever wondered what it was like for Adam and Eve to walk through the Garden of Eden picking anything they wanted to eat and eat to the full?

I love everything there is about a garden; the beauty of the blossoms, the sweetness of the fruits, the difference in the taste of homegrown tomatoes or anything homegrown for that matter. The quiet stillness, the smell of damp soil, the buzz of bees, the light touch of butterflies, it all speaks peace and joy and contentment.

Can you imagine God planting a garden, heaping the soil with His own hands, planting every herb and seed bearing plant all for Adam and Eve and us to enjoy? It's amazing how He sequenced the ripening of each plant. Just as I begin to tire of eating one food, another ripens and the excitement begins again.

Here in SC spring awakens peach and apple blossoms first. The smell is pure heaven! Then come the wild greens, poke salad and ramps.  As the strawberries turn red, the morels push their way up through moist forest earth. Then wild blackberries and wineberries ripen, followed by the blueberries. Tired of berries? The green beans begin to come in with a few figs. Onions are rounding up along with the cabbages followed by tomatoes, corn and okra, peaches and new potatoes. The fall will bring watermelons, pumpkins and apples. Just as the leaves begin to turn, there's the rain of hickory nuts, walnuts and pecans. After the feast of Thanksgiving, God quietly blankets our gardens with snow, giving rest to the soil and to me.

That quiet stroll through my garden at any season opens my heart to thankfulness and the voice of God reminding me of His goodness, His sovereignty, His provision. Just as He did with Adam and Eve, He reminds me to evaluate where I am and of my relationship with Him. Sometimes I find myself close and sometimes I find myself trying to hide among the leaves, but He continually stands ready to forgive and renew that relationship, just as He continually renews the garden with a new sweetness and joy.

Hey Kids:

What's happening in your garden?
Where is your quiet place to hear God's voice?
If you don't have a garden, a few recycled containers or a kiddie pool will work.
No seeds? It's not too late to plant a fall garden.
Leave a comment and I'll let you know how to contact me for a few free bean and watermelon seeds.

I hear a summer storm rumbling in the distance. Thank you Lord for every provision; the sun, the seeds, and the rain. Most of all thank you for providing Your Son for the forgiveness of my sin. In Jesus name. Amen.

Blessings,

Gail

Campfires and Stargazing

“Can you bind the cluster of the Pleiades,

Or loose the belt of Orion?

 

Can you bring out Mazzaroth (constellations) in its season?

Or can you guide the Great Bear with its cubs?

Job 38:31,32

Did you know there is an app for that? I love sitting around a campfire and stargazing. My favorite sight is looking from Cades Cove, TN back toward NC. On a clear night the Milky Way is visible.