Today's Devotional Scripture

Today's Verse

We love Him because He first loved us.
~1 John 4:19

Thoughts on today's verse...

Back in "the day", alright, I'll admit, it was in the 70's - there was a poem... I can't remember the title or author, but it went like this:

He drew a circle that shut me out,
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout!
But love and I had the wit to win,
We drew a circle that took him in!

Isn't that just like God? We try to shut Him out, but He will keep persisting, keep knocking at the door of our hearts until we just open it up a teensy little bit. Then He comes in and starts to radically transform our lives. Oh yes, there are times we try to keep Him at bay or even to walk away from Him, but He is faithful in His relationship with us - even when we are not. Philippians 1:6 states it very well, "For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus."

My prayer...

Thank you Dear Father, Abba, for loving me - even when I was unlovable. Please, keep working on me and conforming me into Your image. ~Amen!

Yours, because we're His,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

Today's Verse

Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don't quit in hard times; pray all the harder.

~Romans 12:11-12 MSG

Thoughts on today's verse...

Have you ever experienced burn out? I have and it isn't pretty. It's like a wonderfully, designed, expensive, fancy sports car that suddenly doesn't work any more. It's run out of gas. So it just sits there in the garage, gathering dust and your admiring thoughts about "what could have been." It isn't doing what it was designed for - cruising along with the top down, the wind in your hair, the stereo blasting your favorite tunes. Oh, it's still a sports car, it just isn't currently living up to its full potential. It's running on empty.

I've experienced times like that in my own life. Whether it's burn out from work, or pressing family situations I've experienced times when I just felt like I had nothing left to give, so I withdrew. I've had times when I couldn't pick up the Bible to read, I couldn't pray, I couldn't fellowship at church... I remember one such time and all I could do was to surround myself with spiritually uplifting music. That is how the Lord finally reached me and pulled me out of the depression I was in.

It was through a Don Moen song entitled, "I Will Sing". It was as if the lyrics were describing my very life and that was when I realized that God had orchestrated that very song to reach me in my depression and to lift me from it.

My prayer...

Lord, what ever it takes, reach out to us when we withdraw from You and your family. Provide us with a small, simple sign that only we will recognize as having come from Your hand that will prove to us that we are Yours. ~Amen

...because we're His,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

Today's Verse

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.
~Hebrews 11:1 NLT

Thoughts on today's verse...

I think faith and love are entertwined. It's a lot like a good marriage. You don't have to wonder about what's happening when you're not together. I love my husband, I trust my husband. I especially know that "my name is safe in his mouth."

My prayer...

Heavenly Father, give me faith for today - the assurance of those things I cannot see. Amen!

Yours, because we're His,

Today's Devotional Scripture

Today's Verse

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.

~Isaiah 40:28-29 NIV

Thoughts on today's verse...

Have you ever come to a place in your life where you feel or have even said to yourself, "I just can't go on. This is too hard, it is too difficult." It is usually at that time the Lord gets into my pilot's seat and takes over - simply because I've relinquished it! I've seen two different bumper stickers - one says, "God is my co-pilot" and the other, "If God is your co-pilot, change places!" All too often I assign God the position of co-pilot when I should trust Him to be the pilot.

I am more of the "private pilot" personality. I have to have visual contact with the things around me. God, however, is instrument rated and can travel through all difficulties not relying on sight. When I lose my sense of direction in a thick fog, He is on task and I am safe in His arms.

My husband was a private pilot and I recall him talking about the altitude and the attitude of the aircraft being two very important things for a pilot to be constantly aware of. They just had to call the wing level "attitude", didn't they? Speaking of such, how's yours?

My prayer...

Lord God, help me to trust You in all things and in all areas of my life. And God... I think my attitude is showing - may it reflect You!

...because we're His,

Today's Devotional Scripture

Today's Verse

Love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. ~Romans 12:10 NRSV

Thoughts on today's verse...

Have you ever received an R.S.V.P.? It is a French term, "respondez s'il vous plait" meaning please respond, please acknowledge one way or the other if you intend to attend or will be declining the invitation. The person who sends the invitation is awaiting your response. They have honored you with a formal, written invitation. The proverbial ball is now in your court... will you attend or will you decline? Still, you must let the person know one way or the other. It is merely a simple courtesy.

When was the last time you sent someone a handwritten note or invitation to join you for a morning cup of coffee and maybe a muffin? Although it may not be as formal as an R.S.V.P., it shows them you are thinking of them and wish to spend time with them. In today's society our time is a valuable commodity and by sharing it with another we are "showing them honor."

My prayer...

Lord, teach me humility and how to show others honor. Fill me with Your Spirit so that I may discern those who need to be shown affection and honor. May I strive to not set up an exclusive "club" of those I am comfortable with, but seek those who truly need to feel included in Your family. Even so, Amen!

...because we're His,

Today's Devotional Scripture

Get down on your knees before the Master; it's the only way you'll get on your feet. ~James 4:10 MSG

I love the language of the Message Bible! Casual, yes, but absolutely in words that I can appreciate and understand. The truth be told, I don't pray in King James. It's not my everyday language with all the "Thee's and Thou's". My prayers are in everyday language and sometimes I sing, cry, scream, laugh, dance, but rejoice always.

I remember when we first began attending church and Wednesday Night Prayer Meetings. I couldn't pray. Oh, not because I couldn't talk to God, but I didn't want to vocalize my prayers in front of the stalwart Christians who prayed King James and sounded so "holy". My prayers were simple petitions in which I merely talked to God and told Him what was on my mind and heart. Silly me. I didn't know all He wanted was to hear me giving Him praise and honor!

I still keep a prayer journal in which I write out my prayers. It's a wonderful source of encouragement when I can go back, look at a specific date and then now note what God's response to that prayer was/is.

Sometimes with my journal, when no prayers are forthcoming, I like to choose a Psalm and write it out in my own words as a prayer to God. I find this is a good way to "imprint" the words of the Psalmist on my heart and mind.

There have been times when my prayers have been those of anguish and tears and I've screamed at God, "How can You allow this? How can you say that I am Yours and then allow this pain into my life?" Often when I pray like this, the silence is deafening... and God is teaching me that I am being "conformed into the image of Christ." Through the pain (emotional or physical) that I am allowed to endure I am being prepared for ministry potential IF I allow myself to be used of Him.

So how about you? Are you feeling the pressure of preparation for ministry potential? Pray about it. Then pray some more!

because we're His,

~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

Who endowed the heart with wisdom or gave understanding to the mind? ~Job 38:36

One of the spots our tour bus driver stopped at on the South Rim was a "natural" display on the side of the canyon. It was the formation in black of the number 7. The tour bus driver said all the drivers had a theory and it being that the 7 was placed by UFO's before they traveled on, crash landed at Roswell and were then taken to the infamous Area 51, hanger 18 at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton Ohio. Great conspiracy theory...

As noted in the above scripture verse, who indeed has endowed us with wisdom or understanding? Geologists, archaeologists, and even tour bus drivers all have their own theories on the origins of the Grand Canyon. But biblically speaking, in the Bible the number 7 represents perfection. I think it is merely God's signature on a job well done!

I hope you are all having a wonderful Memorial Day and remembering the extreme sacrifices some have made for their country. May you all be safe and enjoying family outings.

...because we're His,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

[God] gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. ~Isaiah 40:29

The dictionary defines energy as the vigorous exertion of power. It has to do with effort, strength, potency, and might. Who has all these attributes? Certainly not me! But the Lord does and He willing shares with those who ask.

In Psalm 31:4 David says, "You are my strength." Again, in Psalm 27:1, "The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" What great verses! What comforting verses! God can and does give us all the energy we need to get through the day.

I find this comforting as I'm seeking to "catch up" on rest from our recent vacation. Amusing, isn't it? We take a vacation to get away from it all, then spend several days trying to recoup - what a hoot!

I find much comfort in Philippians 4:13: "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." -NIV

So, how's your energy level? Not where you'd like it to be? I encourage you to drink deeply from the fountain of living water - He will quench your thirst and give you the energy you need for today. Him, who is the sustainer and true provider of the ultimate "energy drink."

Yours, because we're His,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

I am the Lord your God...and I have put my words in your mouth and hidden you safely in my hand. ~Isaiah 51:15-16 NLT

Recently we celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary by taking the Grand Canyon Railroad trip out of Williams, Arizona. It was a wonderful experience.

I remember growing up next to the Erie-Lackawana railroad as a child. In the evenings I would see the passenger trains passing by and could see the people inside the cars. Some were reading newspapers, some it appeared were sipping tea...all of them going about their own business oblivious to the fact that someone was observing them from a distance.

I wondered about their lives, where they were heading, where they were from. I envied them and the brief glimpse I had of their lives. I wanted so to be like them and climb aboard the train and travel to who knew where. To travel far away from the mundane life I was living as a child - and to be anywhere but "here". And so it goes, the proverbial grass being greener on the other side.

When we arrived at the Grand Canyon and headed to our first observation area, I was overwhelmed by the beauty and intensity of the site. I cried - I had no other manifold expression of such awe and wonder that expanded and extended beyond my sight.

We spent parts of three days in the Grand Canyon area, then heading back home on some of the most frightening roads in Arizona! Sheer drop-offs, no railings and beauty beyond belief. So like the scripture reference from Isaiah, He did keep us safe in His hand.

My prayer for you today is that He will also keep you "safe in His hand."

Blessings to you,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional

Today's verse

As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. ~1 Peter 4:10

Thoughts on today's verse...

What gifts has God given you? Oh, not just the "things" He has blessed you with, but the actual gifts that He has endowed you with that bless the church?

I've often wondered about this in my own life. What gifts, what attributes do I have that are gifts from God? What things do I do or gifts that I possess do I use to bless the church and further the cause of Jesus Christ? These questions cause me to pause and reflect. I sorely want to see the ministry of the church proceed forward. Am I assisting or do I hinder its furtherance?

My prayer...

Lord, you bless each and everyone of us with gifts.  Please make it abundantly clear what my gifts are so I may minister to others. Allow me to not merely go to church, but to be the church. In Jesus' name I pray ~Amen!

So? How about you?

Yours, because we're His,

Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever. ~Psalm 107:1 NRSV

Today's devotional was written by Luci Swindoll and extols the virtue of living alone. Luci is single, always has been, is in her 70's and is very independent! She quotes Thomas Wolfe who wrote, we "exist within our own unique epidermal envelope as a separate thing."

I like being with others and will soon be celebrating our 30th Wedding Anniversary. But be it known, I am actually very shy. Some days when I have numbered and various contacts I find I need to spend some "alone" time just to recharge and regenerate my spirit. Liken it to a rechargeable battery, if you will.

Luci also said in her devotional that German psychologist Erich Fromm believes our ability to love others is predicated upon whether or not we can enjoy time alone. He says if we're not comfortable with our own company, we'll never be able to love anybody else out of desire rather than need. Isn't that an enormous thought?

The post was rather late today... we're on vacation but I finally found some "alone time" to jot down the highlight's of today's devotional.

~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

One who trusts in the Lord is secure. ~Proverbs 29:25 NRSV

Today's devotional gave an almost mathematical equation.

Prayer + Trust = Love

I don't know about you, but trust is difficult for me. Especially with the human element. I suppose this is borne from a lifetime of dissappointment and let down. Often I have the very human notion that "if it's gonna be, it's up to me."

I have this attitude (and it is an attitude) at home, at work and even at church! God, forgive me, I'm not trusting You with all the areas of my life.

We are on vacation, visiting family in Ohio. Leaving home and the grandchildren was difficult as I kept wondering "what if, what if, what if..." My wonderful husband said, "So? What if? Even if we were at home, something could happen and our being there wouldn't change a thing." He's right.

What I'm learning is that we are invited to bring our lives, our families, our hopes, and our dreams and lay them as a gift before our Father, believing He can be trusted with everything we treasure most. Prayer is the place where we take our hands off our lives - it is trust in action.

Help me Father as I learn to trust You with all the areas of my life.

~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

I've decided that there's nothing better to do than go ahead and have a good time and get the most we can out of life. ~Ecclesiastes 3:12 MSG

Whether it's the King James version or the Message bible, Solomon sure had a way with words. Eat, drink and be merry...

Today's Women of Faith devotional was entitled Make Sure You Dance and basically it was referring to our dancing as the acceptance of what comes into our lives and the celebration of it. If we choose not to participate in the dance of life, then we are in denial.

So... is it a slow dance? The boogie woogie, Macarena, electric slide, line dance, tango, salsa, dirge, or swing? They all seem to represent different seasons of our lives. What is the dance of motherhood? Whatever it maybe called, I envision it as that wonderful sway all of us take on when we have a child (or grandchild) in our arms. That wonderful, rhythmic, hold the child close to your heart and sway from side to side dance.

So Girls - have a wonderful Mother's Day! May we remember with fondness those who have gone before us and nutured us. Perhaps they were our mothers, perhaps not.

Have a great day,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

The Lord will fulfill His purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever. ~Psalm 138:8 NIV

Most days are merely ordinary, ho-hum days. Getting up in the morning, going to work, coming home, doing the chores, eating, sleeping, watching television, and then starting all over again the next day. Do you, like me, ever wonder what your purpose in life is? If, when it is all said and done, will your life or my life have made a difference?

Fortunately, God is the author and artist of the "big picture" that is our life. Today, we only see the little piece of the puzzle but someday my Friend, we will see the entire picture as God reveals to us the mystery of our lives and the impact we may have had upon others, good or bad.

The key is being available and open to God. My husband has a saying he's adopted: "God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called." For so very many years of my Christian walk I didn't "get involved" in ministry opportunities. Frankly, my self-talk was "I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy..." I felt that so many things in my life were out of control, how could I be involved in ministering to others?

The Lord showed me that it wasn't about me - but only about me being available to do what He has asked. To be transparent enough to show how Christ can transform a life. Oh... not all the ugly, sordid details perhaps, but that I once was lost and now I'm found.

So that is my prayer this morning: "Abba, Father - open my heart and my mind that I might fulfill your purpose this day. Pour your Spirit into this clay vessel and allow me to be used of You this day. ~Amen"

I hope your weekend is blessed!
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

I will be your God through all your lifetime, yes, even when your hair is white with age. ~Isaiah 46:4 TLB

Isn't it funny how our perspective about aging has changed? Even the media now touts:

40 is the new 30
50 is the new 40

There are some days I awake and I cannot begin to fathom where all the time has gone. Wasn't I just 20 the other day? Then I'll attempt to do some gardening and while I'm kneeling to pull weeds, I struggle when trying to get back up. (Hmmm, as long as I'm down here, isn't there something else I could find to do?)

And yes, my hair has taken on the highlights of aging. One of my "Church Ladies", well, her kids call me the "Silver Fox". I wonder if that's a good thing? I'm going to say it is.

I suppose the difference is, I didn't have the Lord in my life during my 20's. I was in my early 30's before I came face-to-face with Him. And what a ride it's been! I often liken it to a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

Yes, I've grown and growth can be painful at times. Still I pray that He molds me and makes this piece of clay into a vessel worthy of His use.

That's my prayer for you today - Lord, cause growth! Prune us, shape us, mold us. May we become the body of believers You desire us to be. ~Amen

May your day be blessed,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

A good life gets passed on to the grandchildren. ~Proverbs 13:22 MSG


Now I don't know about you, but I took the term "Study Bible" very literal. I have notes, underlines, other verse notations marked all over my study bible. I even wrote a note on the pages between the old and new testaments for whomever will have my bible when I experience the "Passover." I hope it will be passed on to one of my grandchildren. I hope they will open the bible and read it and the notations I've made. I hope they realize that I had more than religion, but a relationship with the living Christ that sustained me through the good and bad times.

It reminds me of a former neighbor of ours in Ohio. Her husband of many years had developed Alzheimer's and would sometimes wander off and get lost. The police would find him and bring him home. When this wonderful Christian woman came to the conclusion that she could no longer manage his care alone, they had an auction and sold their home.

She shared with me the decision to move out and sell their home was to allow them to enter a skilled nursing facility where her husband would have proper care, but also that they could live together in an apartment at the facility. What a loving example she was to me.

When the auction started, I registered and purchased some of her boxes that were filled with old bible studies. I read her notes, her insights on the scripture and was actually "discipled" by what she had written down. I learned a message of what sacrificial love inside the marriage union was all about.

Today, I'm thanking God for the legacy of those Christian women who have gone before me and left a loving example worthy of imitating.

Have a wonderful day,
~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

A friend loves you all the time. ~Proverbs 17:17 NCV


Isn't that the truth? Well, at least we hope it's the truth! But in all honesty, there are just some friends who are "more loving" than others. They seem to love us inspite and dispite all of our warts and flaws. When we say something ugly, instead of repeating it, they take a breath of kindness and blow it away. Far, far away.

It often seems that these very same friends are the ones who champion the "under dogs". If someone is bad mouthing someone else, they gently remind us that we haven't walked in that person's shoes, so how could we know or understand where they are coming from or their perspective on the current subject of conversation.

I love friends like that. They pull me back into reality with their gentleness and kindness. When I grow up, I want to be just like them. There's also something else about them... I know my name is "safe in their mouths."

Today's Devotional Scripture

There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. ~Revelation 22:5

The following excerpt by Louise Haskins, taken from Traveling Toward Sunrise, captures how we press on into unknown territory by simply trusting God:

"What an inspiring, challenging thought as we... begin our journey, traveling toward sunrise. Let us begin by filling the air with songs of rejoicing, with songs not sighs, for we are wayfarers of the infinite, traveling to the land where dawns are begotten and glory has its dwelling place, where life begins, not ends, and where there is eternal springtime."

Isn't that what our Christian life is like? Pressing on into an unknown territory, yet confident that we are heading in the right direction. After all these years, I've decided that "even if" all that I believe is not true, I will still have been a better person for having believed as I do.

No God

No Peace

Know God

Know Peace

Sorry the post was "late" hope you had a blessed day,

~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

These commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life. ~Proverbs 6:23 NIV

What is your waking routine? Coffee? Shower? Going for a walk? Daily Devotions? Making a "To Do" list? Perhaps it's all or part of the above. Some mornings getting out of bed and just putting one foot in front of the other seems to be a major accomplishment.

It used to be that I liked to stay in bed until the last minute. However, when we relocated across country I suddenly found myself to be a morning person. It seemed as if I'd gained some extra hours to my day with the added bonus of getting to watch the Arizona Sunrise!

Mostly, I think it's just knowing ourselves, our limitations and our personal expectations. We should study our habits and patterns and see what it is that gets us off the starting line and heading into the new day.

Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift and that is perhaps why we call it the present!

Have a great day,

~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

The Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don't even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. ~Romans 8:26 NLT

Have you ever had the experience of being so hurt, so angry, so disappointed, so ill, so (you fill in the blank) that you just didn't know how to pray? Recently I had such an experience.

A very dear sister in the Lord was called up for "active duty" in the military. She's a young wife and mother of two very beautiful little girls. She and her husband had relocated to our area and started attending our church. We latched on to them like bees drawn to flowers! She gave our Sunday School class a fresh perspective and we welcomed her into our Women's Bible Study.

Then she received the "notice". We were all devastated and couldn't understand how this had happened after so long a period of time. On her last Sunday in church, we were asked to come forward to pray for her. It was then I didn't know how to pray - so I asked the Holy Spirit to intercede on my behalf and for our friend.

Now I'm asking you to pray for our friend Becky, a young wife, mother of two daughters, school teacher who has answered the call of her nation and will be stationed in Iraq.

Pray that her marriage thrives and survives
Pray for her husband Martin
Pray for their two daughters - Elizabeth and Adrianna
Pray for her safety and well being
Pray she finds a group to worship with in Iraq
Pray that we continue to minister to her and her family

~Tamara

Today's Devotional Scripture

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! ~Philippians 4:4

It is said, "Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry, and you cry alone." Sometimes laughter is even contagious, especially when it spontaneously occurs in a place where we are to be solemn or reverent. How many times I recall sitting in church trying to stifle the giggles.

Laughter, humor, happiness - well, they're all temporary, aren't they? They depend upon the "moment" and the "happening". The above scripture says "rejoice" which comes from the word "joy" and that's a whole different subject.

So? What about you? What causes you to explode into laughter? What do you find humorous? And what gives you happiness?

Now compare it to joy. What is the difference? The Apostle Paul said, "Count it all JOY when you face various trials." I think the difference very well may be not so much the event or happening, but the relationship we have with our Savior, knowing that He is causing all things to work together to give us growth and depth.

But laughter - it does have the effect of cleansing the soul, doesn't it? So why not read something humorous this weekend, or watch a movie that will cause you (and your family) fits of laughter. And above all - learn to laugh at yourself! Sometimes we can and will do some very funny things. They may appear "serious" for the moment, but looking back on it perhaps we can see the humor. Oh yeah, and being able to laugh at ourselves allows others to share in our humaness. That is a desirable trait.

Have a great weekend!

Tamara