Faith and Blessings.

I was challenged by the reading in my devotional this morning. It was about what it takes to be a pillar of the faith.
Faith and blessings are usually what we want.

We pray for them.
We hope for them.
We seek them.

But much of the time we shun their forever companions of 'trials and testing, sorrow and suffering'. No one likes those companions, but they are necessary to grow the type of pillars of the faith that we long to be. The question is are we really willing to walk the path necessary to be a giant of the faith. What if we stopped looking at the companions as something to be feared, and instead looked at them as helpers along the way, perhaps we would yield to their training and be changed by them. What if we looked at them like we would look at a doctor or a surgeon. Who is willing to hurt us in the short term, to cause us to be healed in the long term?

Have you ever read Hinds feet on high places? It is a wonderful allegorical story of that walk up the steep mountain and that path we must take to be pillars of the faith.


"Faith grows amid storms" Here is an excerpt from today's reading in my favorite devotional... the one I read everyday, "Streams in the Desert" ( you can find a copy of it to the right of this post)

..."When you see a giant (of the faith), remember the road you must take to come up to his side is not along the sunny lane where wild flowers ever bloom; but a steep, rocky,narrow pathway where the blasts of hell will almost low you off your feet; where the sharp rocks cut the flesh, where the projecting thorns scratch the brow,a nd the venomous beasts hiss on every side."


I have a new favorite song, Blessings by Laura Story. The one line that catches my attention is  "What IF your blessings come through raindrops and your healing comes through tears??" Gives me something to think about today for sure.


Be blessed today!

Bounty and Blessings

Good Morning Friends! I love this time of year don't you? The weather warms and the flowers bloom and, my favorite part...the STRAWBERRIES ripen!

I love eating them plain right out of my garden, slicing them on strawberry shortcake, and dipping them in sour cream and brown sugar... I know that last one sounds a bit strange, but trust me it is amazingly delish!

Last night I picked the days harvest. Look at the bounty that came out of my garden just yesterday!

Strawberries from my Garden! Yum!

 What a blessing! Having this blessing gives me such joy. There is nothing like reaping what you've sown! In years past I haven't planted anything, and didn't get that joy of having a good harvest. 

That got me thinking about my relationship with the Lord. What am I sowing now? Right now? What harvest will I see in heaven? What will last and be enjoyed? What (or who) will I bring to the banquet table? That is what is ultimately important. My life, my work, needs to be rooted in that goal.

Today as I go through my day, I want to think about those strawberries, how much I enjoy them, and how much the Lord enjoys the sowing I do for him. I so want to please him. He is the core of my purpose, and I want to live my life with a Harvest mindset. There is much work to be done, and the time is short. Who are you (and who am I) sowing our love for the Lord in today?

Girl Lost

Girl Lost

Girl Broken

Stories Told

Words Spoken

Spirit Crushed

Dreams Shattered

Life Abandoned

Nothing Mattered

Self Abused

Conscience Slept

Girl Lost

Jesus Wept

Spirit Called

Breath Breathed

Girl Found

Sigh Heaved

Light Flooded

Heart Cleaned

Life Again

Girl Redeemed

~ Kari Day

YOU Are My Strength Alone

"I lift up my eyes to the hills--where does my help come from?" Psalm 121:1

Recently Ive been faced with a situation that I have no strength for. I am powerless to overcome it, break free of it, or solve it on my own. 

Believe me I've tried. 

I've gone to the Lord and asked him to fix it, change it, remove it, heal it. But he sees fit to keep it. It kind of reminds me of Paul's thorn. (2 Corinthians 12)

Looking back through my life I see that Ive lived with this thorn in various forms from the beginning. So why won't God take it away? It has nothing to do with me being in sin, but it has everything to do with keeping me FROM one very big sin. 

God uses this thorn to keep me from ever elevating another person to Gods rightful place in my heart. He uses it to protect me. It is a loving thorn. If left to my own I would begin to put others, or even myself, in Gods' place. He loves me too much to let me do that.

You see, he wants me (and you) for himself, and he won't let me harm that relationship for something that is fleeting and dieing. He wants to give me the eternal thing. And he won't let me mess it up. He is faithful and good to complete the work he began in me.

This way he still gets all the glory for keeping me in his hand. God is on my side, what can man do to me?

So I will learn to be trained by my thorn. To think less on the thorn and more on the one who is all knowing and deems it necessary for me to live with it. 

"Thank you Lord for keeping me in your hand and for being completely trustworthy to the ultimate goal of making me beautiful for the day I see you face to face. Come soon Lord, come soon. I need you. and I long for what is wrong in this world to be made right."

Can you see how God is using a thorn in your life?

Treasures From the Beach

Something happens in me when I hit the Beach. Have you ever seen the Pacific Ocean on a cloudy/sunny day? When the water is that stormy green color so unique and so powerful? When you can look to the horizon and see the sky meet the ocean for as far as you can see? Where the wind is blowing immense waves that crash against the rocks and spray high in the air? Where the sandy beach is littered with huge water worn driftwood and sand-smoothed stones? The awesomeness of it all makes me feel so small, and problems become irrelevant.

I am a beach comber. I love to see what treasures have been washed ashore by the sea. I adore the rocks that have been smoothed. I fill my pockets with the most special . Hours can be spent doing nothing but searching the rocks for just the right ones, creating sculptures and giving thanks for the beauty of such small common things. However common they may be, I consider them treasures.

As I was standing on the beach taking in this scene yesterday something relaxed in my soul.  Something I didn't even know was tensed. With all this splendor, with all this awesome raw power, I felt so small, so insignificant, so utterly powerless. Yet God says he treasures me (and you) above all things. We are his treasured possession. We are the rare beauty he loves.

"The king is enthralled by your beauty; honor him, for he is your lord." Psalm 45:11

The awesome power and wonder of the immense ocean is something to behold and I see my LORD in it. How powerful the crashing waves are, yet how beautiful and somehow gentle, soothing, and calming. Glorious.

I feel so small and so frail compared to these surroundings. Yet infinately more powerful because of  who remains in me. Because we were chosen, and empowered by the ONE who created the sea and gave it it's power. We know that when we remain in HIS power we will not be subdued by the things of this world, but we will subdue it by the power of the ONE who wills it to be so. The One who is our first love, Jesus. Thank you Lord for these Treasures from the Beach.