Sisters In Christ

Have you ever had a day when nothing is going right? What makes that day bearable? Have you ever had a day when everything is perfect? What makes that day fantastic? Your friends, your sisters in Christ, fit perfectly in each scenario.

Your sister in Christ is a friend you can call and cry on the phone to and she'll just sit and listen for what seems to be hours. She is a friend you call when you get good news that you both have prayed about "forever".

God has blessed me with me Christian friends. It seems like I connect with each one of them in a special way. Each one is my best friend.

When we accept Christ as our Savior, the Holy Spirit dwells inside of us. We are never alone. The Holy Spirit is there to help us make decisions, to steer us in the right direction, to comfort us when all is failing.

When both you and your friend have the Holy Spirit dwelling inside, there is nothing the two of you can't overcome. We're never alone spiritually and we aren't alone in this world either.

I have had close friends in the past that didn't share my faith. They were "lost" and I was "saved". It was difficult to be the person God expects me to be. I found myself turning back to my old ways. It wasn't their fault. It's a natural occurrence. God separated us in His own time but not until I learned the true value of Christian friendship. For example....The lost friend will participate in gossip. The Christian friend will participate in gossip but the Holy Spirit will knock at their door until they turn away from it. The two of you will be convicted by the Holy Spirit and then encourage each other to stop gossiping because it's wrong and it hurts our testimony.

I appreciate my Sisters so much. We pray for each other, encourage each other, don't judge each other, we forgive each other, we love each other the way Christ loves us. We're only human and we fall on our faces more times than we can count. We help each other stand up and move forward. It's the ideal friendship.

My Sisters are a gift from God. Thank you God! You are truly amazing.

God Bless

Monica

Love one another...John 15:12

I have struggled with what to write about this week. There is so much going on as usual so I could write about a lot of different things. Today is Valentine's Day and I was thinking about how much I love my family and my friends. "Love one another as I have loved you" John 15:12.

While thinking about loving one another, a group of verses came to mind....

Matthew 5:43- 48. "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect."

Jesus tells us to love the people we don't like, the people that hurt us, the people that are basically unloveable. He said if you love someone you like what have you really done? This verse is so convicting to me everytime I come across it in reading or in thought.

When I think of loving the person that has hurt me, I think of forgiveness. When Jesus gave himself and died on the cross, He did this out of love for me (us). I don't deserve to be loved the way God loves me. He loved me before I was born and He loved me when I was unloveable and He loves me now. When I realized I was a sinner and I needed a savior, I accepted Christ as my savior in February 1997. At that very second, I was forgiven for all of my sins. Sins I wouldn't want my kids to know about were forgiven without a question, inquisition or trial. No questions asked, God forgave me. Why? Love!

So...is it too much for Him to ask me to love my enemies and even forgive them? Love them and forgive them even if they don't derserve it? Even if they don't apologize? Even if they don't ask to be loved or forgiven?

There is a person in my life that I love but they have hurt me a lot. I think most of the hurt they caused was unintentional but nonetheless the hurt was still there. The past is the past but I still needed to forgive them so we could have a future. I began to pray that God would heal my hurt and bring us closer together. I prayed that God would take away my unforgiveness so I could feel true love for them. It didn't happen overnight and it's still a work in progress but our relationship is growing stronger with each prayer.

The power of prayer is a true gift from God.

God Bless

Monica

Answer To Prayer

I have great news! My husband received a paycheck for February. Thank you so much for your prayers and support.

God answers prayers. Through prayer and bible reading I was able to keep my focus on God most of last month. I knew in my heart that God was going to take care of us. He always has. It may not be what I would have chosen, but then again, I don't know the future. When my husband needed me to be strong, I was able to ask God for strength and He gave it instantly. When I needed to cry, God made one of my friends available. When I was worried, God gave me comfort. Don't get me wrong. There were several times when I found myself in the middle of a meltdown. I feel sorry for my friends. :)

The lady my husband works with has been really great too. When she found out that accounting hadn't mailed his check, she picked it up and brought it to him. My husband has known her for a long time. She is such a wonderful person and I really appreciate her friendship and kindness.

We're not out of the woods yet but we are good for another month. Through the last few weeks I have come to realize how important it is that we manage our finances. We have put ourselves on a budget. This was our first week. We have two more days and we have stuck to the budget so far. My husband is being really supportive. I put some money in savings and it was really fun!

Luke 8:22-25 is the story of Jesus quieting the storm. Jesus and the disciples get on a ship to go across to the other side of the lake. Jesus is really tired and chooses to rest. During his rest, a storms develops over the lake. The waves are crashing against the ship filling it with water. The disciples were afraid and feared for their lives. They woke Jesus telling him they were going to perish. He spoke and the wind and waves ceased and the water was calm. His reponse to the disciples was in verse 25. "And he said unto them, Where is your faith?" The disciples were in the same boat with Jesus and still feared for their lives. They witnessed his miracles in person and still doubted him. But who are we to judge them? Don't we do the same thing? Aren't we in the same boat with Jesus? Do we doubt him and question him over and over again?

My goal for February is to learn from my walk through January. God will provide for my family and allow what is best for us. I must be in constant fellowship with God.

God Bless.
Monica