Update on Phil Collingsworth
Thank you to all who are praying for Mr. Collingsworth. The Collingsworth Family reported on their Facebook page that Phil is in ICU due to being very nauseated. Please continue to pray for him and his family who have got to be exhausted.
I say it a lot but I believe the greatest privilege we have as believers is to be able to approach the Throne of God on behalf of our Brothers and Sisters. I’ve been the recipient of those prayers and I’m so grateful when I in turn can be the one to wrap my arms around others through prayer. God is so faithful!
Prayer Requested for Phil Collingsworth
Southern Gospel Blog reported that Phil Collingsworth, Sr. is scheduled to have brain surgery tomorrow (December 14). Therefore, I’d like to ask you to join me in praying for Phil and the Collingsworth Family and please continue to pray throughout the day as God brings them to mind.
Father, thank You for the Collingsworth Family and the blessing they are to so many. Thank You for giving them a window where they can be off the road so that Phil can have this surgery. Keep Your hand on the surgeons. Guide them so that the surgery will be successful and the recovery quick. Give the whole Collingsworth family peace and help them to feel Your presence continually during this time. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Reflecting on God’s Blessings
I’m thinking again this morning how good God has been to me. I don’t deserve His favor, yet He gives it just the same. This doesn’t mean that things always go my way or that my life is one of ease but, as I look back over the years, I think of all the people God’s brought into my life who have been a true blessing to me or of the things God has given me “to brighten my life” (as Dottie Rambo said). Even the addition of this blog this year has been a wonderful blessing and I’m still amazed God allows me to write in this way, encouraging people and introducing people to the music I love and, ultimately, (I hope) to the God I love more than anything in the world.
As Ronny Hinson said, “I’m so glad He found me!” “I wouldn’t take nothing for my journey now” for “I don’t regret a mile I’ve traveled for the Lord.” He has been so good to me and I know He will continue to be just that. When life is hard, I rest in His arms knowing that He has a plan. When I forget to do that, I can quickly fall into despair but I know that He has never failed me yet … and He never will!
God Does Everything Perfect
Winter has arrived and, in so much of the country, the snow is flying. Where I live, the ground is covered making it a beautiful sight (from indoors). I’m not a fan of cold weather but I must admit that God truly does everything beautiful in His time.
I used to complain about snow but I’ve heard that the ground needs the moisture to produce crops in the spring. And, when I think about it, if there weren’t snow, everything would be brown making it dismal looking outside. Yes, God does everything perfect.
It seems like, so often in life, we complain. It’s either too hot or too cold; too dreary or too bright. It’s easy to find things to complain about but there is also so much to rejoice about. God’s ways are perfect.
CD Review: Whiter Than Snow (Sweetwater Revival)
This recording from Sweetwater Revival is the first Christmas CD I’ve ever heard which contains primarily original songs. Cathie Paxson wrote ten of the 14 songs. Katharine Paull of the group wrote 2. Traditional carols included were “O Holy Night” and “Hark the Herald Angels Sing.”
Original song titles are: “Let’s Have a Christ-Filled Christmas,” “I Know the Maker of the Snow,” “The Merry in Christmas is Jesus,” “A Minnesota Christmas,” “Not Just for Auld Lang Syne,” “His Name Shall Be Called,” “Victory in a Baby,” “More Than Just a Man,” “The Treasure of Heaven,” and “Whiter Than Snow.” There are also 2 tracks where Katie Paull reads Scripture: Luke 2:7-11 and Isaiah 1:18.
Musically, some of the songs have that “Christmasy” feel and some sound like any song you’d hear on a Sweetwater Revival project. I love it that the focus is on the Christ of CHRISTmas. He’s the Reason we celebrate anyway.
Encouragement for the Discouraged
It seems like discouragement is not hard to find these days. As soon as life begins to turn out differently than we planned, we find ourselves becoming downcast and our thoughts become self-focused.
Repeatedly in Scripture, God’s people are told to “be of good courage” or “be of good cheer.” “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) That should be enough to keep us encouraged right there.
I know life is hard but the fact remains that God is still good. He is there when no one else is. When your friends stop answering your phone calls, God is just a call away. He desires you to “cast all your care upon Him for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) He doesn’t need you to help carry your load; He’s more than happy to carry the whole thing on your behalf. When you let go, you will feel instant relief. And then you can smile wholeheartedly and begin to encourage others, being that “light of the world” that you were called to be.
Constantly Learning
“It is God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them.” (Proverbs 25:2)
Do you ever experience those times of reading the Bible … maybe even a passage which you’ve read often … and all of a sudden a phrase jumps off the page and develops meaning for the first time? Sometimes the tendency is probably to wonder why you never noticed that before but you’re so thankful God used it to speak to you at this time in your life.
As I read the above verse this morning, it hit me that life would be pretty boring if we knew everything from day one. If the minute we were born, we already knew how to talk, walk, read and had knowledge about all things, it would take some of the joy out of life which comes from learning and discovering new things. Besides the fact that having all knowledge would make us as God, I wonder if God partially withholds things to allow us the privilege of discovering them and, in doing so, developing a closer walk with Him. As He shows us things, we realize He is still with us, speaking to us, and we thank Him for choosing us to be His sons and daughters whom He can delight in.
There are so many things I wish I knew but I’m thankful for a patient God who will continue to teach me how to be more like Him until the day He calls me Home. I can’t wait to see His face and to thank Him for His patience and perseverance in molding me to be a daughter He can be proud of. Father, help me to learn everything You desire to teach me so that I can reflect You more perfectly.
Thankful for You
My dear friends, in the midst of listing the things I’m thankful for, I can’t believe I didn’t once mention how grateful I am for those of you who read my blog but I truly am grateful for you. I love to write and I’ve wondered at times if God gave me the ability to write for my own benefit. However, I feel especially blessed when God uses something I’ve written to encourage or to speak to someone else. It’s interesting how the Spirit works but I love being His instrument as I realize it’s Him, not me who lifts up the downtrodden, gives someone a reason for living, or simply speaks something through some words on a page.
What a great and mighty God we serve. I feel so blessed to have this form of communication and pray that God will continue to give me words to share which will be uplifting and encouraging but also challenging as you strive to grow in your walk with God. After all, that’s what the Body of Christ is to be to each other.
Thank you so much for your prayers, support and encouragement. May God continue to bless you as you keep following Him.
The Day After Thanksgiving
‘Twas the day after Thanksgiving and all through the country
Were people up early for their bargain hunting
The sales were priced so no one could compete
And people didn’t seem to mind missing their sleep
When all of a sudden, store signs turned to open
The shoppers rushed in just a-pushin’ and hopin’
To get that one item they’d stood all night for
The one they could only get right in that store
Were these all items they needed to buy?
Some were; some were not. They just wanted them. Why?
Have we forgotten the day we just had
The one where we said we were thankful and glad?
Or has “thanks” lost its meaning as the day slipped away?
We’re now back to buying whatever we crave
I somehow don’t think this is what God intended
It’s all right to shop but don’t be discontented
A new day has dawned and our God is still good
His mercies are new if we just understood
Now’s not the time to stop giving Him thanks
Let’s thank Him some more for He’s worthy of praise
Why Are You Thankful?
Thanksgiving is the time when people are expected to be thankful. Some can easily come up with a list and others have to think a while before they find the one thing that they suppose they are thankful for. Regardless of which category you fall under, I would like to challenge you not to just mouth some platitude but to really think about the things you are thankful for and why those things are meaningful to you.
If you haven’t done so in a while, this could also be a good day to tell someone you are thankful for them and what it is that you most appreciate about them. I don’t think you can ever tell someone too much that you love them and thank God for them.
We have so much to be thankful for but let’s not just acknowledge it with our words. Let’s pray God will help us to truly see His blessings and have a gratitude which we can’t help but express.
