Don’t Worry! this Butterfly Bible Studies site will still be hanging around ~ for a little while longer…

This is in answer to a question asked, pertaining to BE~Attitudes vs Emotions (Day 1).  My reader asked, you said that the conditions of the heart were mentioned 765 times in the Bible.  How did you find those.  Were they all found as “conditions of the heart” from a concordance or did you use several words to find the reference?

My Answer:  I actually got this number from a Tim LaHaye book several years ago.  If you will go to universitybible.org, you will find that the number they use for how many times the condition of the heart is mentioned is 726.  As you read through God’s Word, write down every instance that the Heart is mentioned.  You will find that “Our Hearts Condition” is key to following Christ. God Bless!  Pam

Day 2 ~ The Best Makeover Gift I Can Give Myself and My Relationships,

Are Shades Of Pink And Purple

Attitude Determines The Colors Of My Life

I’ll bet you thought I chose a pink and purple makeover because these are my favorite colors.  I really do like these colors, but that’s not why I chose them.  Pink is a very positive color.  It can be calming and warm.  Shades of purple are often associated with spirituality, truth and vision.  An added bonus is that God creates some gorgeous flowers with these colors.  I’m sure there are color experts who could give me the negative aspects of pink and purple, but my attitude is this~about that.  I am choosing to grasp a calming, warm, spiritually fit, full of truth and vision, kind of attitude.

Attitude Checkup

Attitude: a term used to describe our inward disposition, feeling, perspective or outlook; it is also a term used in aviation to describe an aircraft’s horizontal relationship with the earth or landing runway.  If the aircraft is not aligned properly with the ground it is about to land on, there could be a crash.

We could look at our attitudes as our feeling, our inner disposition or perspective, towards people or circumstances.  If we are not aligned properly with the person or circumstance we are about to come into contact with, there could be a crash.  Have you ever had a crash because of your attitude?

What is it that affects our attitudes?  A few of the most obvious reasons are stress, lack of restful sleep, our mood or emotions, dealing with difficult people, trying to function in difficult situations, lack of confidence, sadness or grief.  A couple of huge ”attitude affectors”  for women are comparing ourselves to other women and the lives or ministries (and on and on) of other women, and  a term I refuse to use~self esteem.  I prefer (instead of self-esteem) to use the term(s), my attitude toward myself, in light of finding my worth in Christ and how much Christ is worth to me.  I’m sure you can add to this list.  My point is that there are many things that affect our attitudes.

The great news is that our attitudes can be managed.  It is a choice we make, and we are not in this alone.  We have a heavenly Father who has given us His Holy Spirit to help us in our choice to manage our attitudes.  As Paul reminded Timothy, “God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).  When I exhibit a poor attitude it is my lack of self discipline because I have momentarily taken my focus off of the spirit of power, of love and of self discipline.  I say momentarily because I know I serve a God that is constantly there to remind me.  The longer I serve Him, the quicker I hear Him speak.

Makeover Tip #2 ~I will ask The Lord each night before I fall asleep to remind me that His Holy Spirit, living within me, is powerful enough to color my attitude in shades of  pink and purple~calm and warm, spiritually fit, full of His truth and vision~so that I might wake in the morning ready for life and whatever it holds for me.

Day 1 ~ Fragments of Life

Only one life, ’twill soon be past ~ Only what’s done for Christ will last

And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be ~ If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee ~ Author Unknown

For the next few days, or weeks I will be writing my devotional.  It’s not a do over of my life, because that would imply wiping out a great part of all that I am.  It’s not a matter of re-prioritizing my life, because I know where my priorities lie.  My priorities lie in my relationships ~ with my Creator, with my husband, with my children, with my grand-babes, with my family, my friends and with those I come into contact with from day to day.  My devotional will be a makeover, an overall treatment intended to change something if necessary, and improve what has already been created within me.  My devotional will become an expression of Love and Commitment to my relationships.

Yesterday, here in Missouri, we experienced the most devastating tornado in our history.  Many lives have been diminished to piles of rubble.  Many have lost loved ones.  Many are in need of a place to sleep, clothing to wear, food to eat and medical help.  One of the buildings torn apart, by the tornado, was a hospital.  Many of us, within a 60 mile radius of the devastated area, have found debris from the homes, schools, hospital and other structures that were demolished by the tornado, in our yards.  That debris includes xrays and medical records, photos, and other personal items.  One friend found pages from a Bible in her yard.

One of the pieces of debris I found in our yard was a piece of foam board insulation.  When I picked it up I immediately thought, “this is a fragment of someones life ~ it is a  piece of a person’s, a families life“.   That life was intact yesterday morning, and was reduced to a fragment last night.  Perhaps the fragment I found is the only thing left of this family.  Our lives are a series of fragments, many pieces, acquired and put together throughout the time we are to live here on this earth.  That which we put together, assemble, can be gone in a matter of minutes.  Our earthly lives can be over in a matter of seconds.  As I looked closer at the fragment of foam board insulation I noticed the markings on it.   Notice, in the picture below, what looks like crosses.  I know that the markings were probably not meant to be crosses.  Still, they are a powerful word picture for me.  This fragment and those markings bring to my mind these truths.

• The fragment reminds me that I am a spiritual being, and my earthly life is but a mist~a wisp of fog.

James asks this question, in James 4:14, “What is your life?  You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” NIV Translation.  The Message Bible Translation says, “You don’t know the first thing about tomorrow.  You’re nothing but a wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before disappearing“.

• The markings (crosses) on the fragment remind me that being immersed in this life and its pleasures, is not what my life is all about.

I believe that Jesus gives me very clear direction as to what should be of importance in my life.  He said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37

And,

Jesus said, “Love Your Neighbor as Yourself”  and  “Love One Another As I Have Loved You.” Matthew 22:39 & John 13:34

Loving God with all my heart, soul and mind, loving my neighbor as myself and loving another as Jesus loves me “Requires Relationship”.  Jesus said, “These are the Greatest Things”!

Makeover Tip #1 ~ Re-Affirming That My Priorities, truly, Lie In My Relationships

…Inspired by this season of my life!

…Because I don’t want to miss a sweet thing about this season of my life!  A Devotional and Guide For Our Seasons of Life!  ~I love it when the Lord places my focus~

No matter what  season of life you are in ~ You won’t want to miss a sweet thing about it either!

Through My Lord’s Eyes

Lord, Is That Light In Your Eyes Really Me?

…of the Lord’s forgiveness, the value of His Worth to me, re-shaped into something of value for Him, learning to evaluate my every move for His Purpose and Plan by using a great tool ~ Our “How To Evaluate Your Relationships” handout (My Hubby, Ed, and I use this when we are teaching and talking with singles.  And, it’s a great tool to use in our decision making process.)

Annual Mother’s Day ~ Round Grove Women’s ~ Compassion Breakfast

Where and When: Round Grove Church on Mother’s Day

In response to the Great Commission, Compassion International exists as an advocate for children, to release them from their spiritual, economic, social, and physical poverty and enable them to become responsible and fulfilled Christian adults.

Compassion began in 1952 when evangelist Rev. Everett Swanson felt compelled to help 35 children orphaned by the Korean conflict.  Their programs include the Child Sponsorship Program, where a sponsor is linked to a child living in poverty, the Child Survival Program which mentors new mothers and provides for babies and toddlers, the Leadership Development Program for college students and a Malaria Initiative, which provides treated mosquito nets to fit over a child’s bed in order to prevent Malaria, as well as other programs.

Through Round Grove Church we have 30 children being released from poverty.  Our sponsors include the Round Grove Women, The Pastor’s Sunday School class, M. Duncan’s Round Grove Christian Academy class, and several family sponsors.  A breakfast is held each Mother’s Day to raise support for the 2 children from Mexico sponsored by the Round Grove Women.  The Wednesday night women’s group has also supported a Child Survival Program.  Compassion serves in 26 countries around the world and the program is administered through local churches in each country. 

Nancy Young ~ Round Grove Church Compassion Coordinator

If you would like more information about any Compassion program, there is a Compassion button link on my blog.  Thank you Nancy, for your Passion for Compassion!

At Round Grove Church, we are Passionate for Children who need us.  If you were to look inside the hearts of our Body of Christ you would see many families who…

Accept ~ Sponsor ~ Foster ~ And Adopt

…children who need us.  Today, consider reaching out to a child in need.  There are many different ways in which you can be a part of God’s Plan.  All you have to do is open your heart and ask The Lord to show you the need…in your Family, your Church, your Community, your Country and in Countries around the world. 

Matthew 25:34-35, 40

One day, Jesus was speaking to a group of people and he said to them, Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me. 

The people asked Jesus, when did we do this?

 Jesus answered them, if you did it for one of the least of these,  you did it for me. 

It’s All For The Sake Of Christ

Pam Mosher ~ Round Grove Church Mission’s Director

Well, I went back to my office and skipped a lunch break because I had been out for my friendly coffee break. After my workday, I was off to be with my Grand-babes.  Before I picked up my first Grand-babe, I had to make a stop to pick up my Husband’s sick computer at the repair shop.  I was told the computer would not be computing anymore, as it got fried with a bolt of lightning.  Not the best news, but I couldn’t do anything about that.  After I picked up the worthless computer I headed out to pick Avery up, and we headed to McDonald’s to have fun with my second Grand-babe Jenna, and her Mommy.  Of course, the children were more interested in giving the McD’s playland a good workout with all the other children there.  Daughter Kim and I had fun talking and watching while the playland got it’s workout.  Kids can really get rowdy in that place. 

 
Towards the end of our time there, a woman came in with a small two year old girl.  We could tell the woman was very apprehensive about her small child playing with the rowdy older children.  The small girl was apprehensive too. We were talking to the woman about her apprehension.  The next thing we knew, the older children began to comfort the little girl.  I could tell you that my Grand-babes were the ones who tried to help the little girl, but that would be incorrect.  All of the children, including my Grand-babes began to comfort the little girl and help her through the playland maize.  The woman, who was the little girls aunt, was so taken by the helpfulness of the older children.

My mind took me back to a couple of weeks ago.  My Husband and I were speaking to our Church family about our current Mission’s project.  Our two Grand-babes, Avery and Jenna were with us that day sitting quietly on the front row as we spoke. We were talking about what it means to follow Christ and His direction, for Missions in our body of Christ.  I made the statement, “three out of five of our Grandchildren have already accepted Christ in their hearts, but I want them to know what it means to follow Christ.  I want them to know the joy of serving Him by meeting the needs of those He places in their paths.  This service often comes in small packages and in our daily lives.”

As I watched all of these older children conform to the situation around them and focus on the needs of this little girl and her aunt, I thought how sweet to see their hearts choose to serve another.  Especially, since they were having so much fun being rowdy.  I don’t know about the other older children, and where their hearts are spiritually.  They obviously were touched by the little girl’s need to feel secure.  I do know my own Grand-babes hearts.  I do know their hearts were touched by the situation and the need.  I see this quite often out of Avery and Jenna, for others and for each other.  They are GG’s ~ God’s Grand-babes!  What a wonderful end to my day!

Avery and Jenna

My GG’s 

People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them.  When Jesus saw this, he was indignant.  He said to them, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.  I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. 

And He (Jesus) took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

I couldn’t help but think about the importance of loving  physical touches as we read the scripture passage this morning.  When my Hubby and I teach “The Five Love Languages” by Gary Chapman, we always spend some extra time talking about physical touch (this is one of the five love languages in which we give and receive love).  Mark 10:16 is always the scripture we use to talk about the importance of gentle, loving physical touch.  Physical touch can communicate love or hate.  I’m sure you understand what I mean.  Physical touch can be kind and gentle or it can be forceful and painful. For the person whose primary love language is physical touch, this is extremely important. 

As we teach about the five love languages, we always practice each love language.  For the love language of physical touch our practice symbol is called “Bear Hug ~ Have You Hugged Your Honey Today”.  Each person gets a piece of paper with instructions on it.  The instructions are an explanation of the importance of gentle loving physical touch, then we ask participants to “Hug” their Honey when we say “Go”.  When we pass out the practice symbol instructions we ask everyone to read their instructions personally and not to share while  they are reading.  It’s so cute to watch each couple give “Bear Hugs” when we say go.

Today, if you know someone who has or is experiencing the opposite of loving physical touch please pray for them.  If you haven’t hugged your Honey or your kids today, GIVE THEM A BIG LOVING BEAR HUG!   Put your hands on them and bless them.

Enjoy the remainder of your Silent Sunday.  Shhhh…..take the time to be quiet with The Lord!

The most straight to the point answer for why am I, is because God created me for His pleasure.   Revelation 4:11 says this:  Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

So what does that mean? 

First of all, in whom and why do I exist?  I saw a post on face book last week that said, why are we here?  I think it was a heartfelt question, because I know the person who asked it and know that this person has had a difficult time with life in general recently.  Haven’t we all had these times in life? 

I exist because many, many years ago God created mankind in His own image.  All you have to do is go to the book of Genesis in The Bible, The Holy Scriptures, and read with your own eyes what it says.  I can tell you, with all certainty, that my great- great- great (and more greats than I care to write) grandparent was not some sort of little crawler, or swimmer, or tree climber.  I am a product of God’s creation. 

Second, Do I believe this with all my heart?  Absolutely!  Last year at this time I studied and wrote my Bible Study titled The Teacher.  My heart felt conclusion~No, it was by revelation from God through His Word, was (and is) this: 

The Purpose of The Book of John, And Life

“…that  I may BELIEVE that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by BELIEVING I may have life in His name.” 

Third, What does it all mean for my life?  In a world, a time such as this, when I can look around me and see craziness and I can see a world that says it is okay to destroy a baby, but it’s not okay to mistreat an animal.  I can see a world in which there are homeless children in my own community and children without warm clothing for winter.  I could go on, but I’m not going to.  My point is, that now is the time to remember and believe in my source.  My favorite Psalm is Psalm 103, and has been for many years. 

Bless the Lord Oh my soul.  I forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all my iniquities, who heals all my diseases, who has redeemed my life from destruction, who  has crowned me with loving kindness, and tender mercies, who  has satisfied my mouth with good things, so that my youth is renewed like the eagle’s.  He executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.  He made known His ways to Moses, His  acts to the children of Israel.  My Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.  He will not always strive with me, nor will He keep his anger forever.  He has not dealt with me according to my sins, nor punished me according to my iniquities….as far as the east is from the west He has removed my transgressions…He knows my frame, He remembers that I am dust….

I remember that I am dust, and this world is a part of my journey toward heaven~eternity.  So, the bottom line(s) is…

I Am  Here because God created me for His pleasure.  He created me in love and it is my pleasure to shower my love upon Him by loving Him with all my heart, by loving others~following Christ’s example…simply because He first loved me.

Although I see around me a world gone sort of crazy, I know that my joy is not found in the craziness.  My joy is found in all that God is and all that God has granted me in my life.  The fact that now I am a daughter of God (1 John 3:2) gives me great comfort and hope for my future and that of my families future.  The fact that it is very plain to me that God reconciled Himself to me through Jesus Christ and  has given me (as He has you) the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-20) gives me structure and purpose in this life.  All in The Name of Jesus~My Worth.

And, what a wonderful  time of year To Remember all of this.  It’s springtime!  It’s almost Easter!  Everything is new and fresh!  Things are changing!  Even I am changing ~ becoming more aware of this life’s purpose ~ structuring life around this life’s purpose! 

It Is A Love Change!

2 Corinthians 5:17

If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things pass away and ALL Things Become New!

Thought to Ponder:  I changed my mind.  It’s good I asked this  question last!