Tag Archives: Inspirational

God, calm my storm

20 May

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

(May 19, 2017)

The experience was unique on my last trip home. The plane ride was bouncy and rough. I stretched out on the seat beside me in that 10-passenger small plane.

I must have dosed off because all of a sudden, I notice the engine slowing down, the plane seem to lose power. The engine turned way too quiet– a frightening kind of quiet. There was no one beside me to ask. A bit of worry knocked at the door. So I thought, “Lord, here I come, open those heaven gates.”

Suddenly, the plane stopped. Unable to see the surroundings, I had no idea we had landed. The change of the engine sound was because we were on the ground already.

Please make me feel good and tell me you did something silly like that, too. You assumed the worst when it was the best instead.

I don’t feel too bad, though. The disciples did something similarly as related in Matthew 8:23-26.

Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, and “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.

Father, forgive me when I lose my faith and doubt that you’re in my boat, present during my storms. Grant me wisdom and conviction to know I’m never alone, to be calm when the winds of disappointment, of heartache and fear blow fiercely around me. I will count on the safety of your presence in the storms of all sizes. In Jesus’ name, amen.

What storms are you facing today? Who’s in your boat.

Janet

 

Source: God, calm my storm. ~ Janet Perez Eckles

Tags: , , , ,

31 Days of God’s Comfort~Day 26

15 May

Painting and Paraphrase by DiVoran Lites

 

Day 26

Galatians 2:20

I Forgive You.

 

Beloved,

If you make too much of the concept of sin

Guilt, worry, and sadness plague your days.

My Spirit blows away the tyranny of sin and death.

I am not here to punish you or force you into following rules.

I love your praise far more than any sacrifice or self-hatred.

I have covered you with a suit of mirrors, so that when I look at you I see only the glory of your redemption.

Our life together is full of goodness.

 

Tags: , , ,

31 Days of God’s Comfort~Day 25

8 May

Painting and Paraphrase by DiVoran Lites

 

Day 25,

Life

Ecclesiastes

 

Beloved,

Life is short-

No one gets out of it alive.

Consider yourself blessed and privileged to live at all.

Enjoy your days the best you can. I will help.

Do the work I give you to do.

Take the comfort I give and be grateful.

You will have enough of whatever you need.

Don’t put your desire into earthly riches or pleasures.

Instead, know that I am your resource for everything.

Spread the blessings around

When you feel lonely, remember the people I have placed in your days.

They are there to treasure and care for you.

You also may treasure and care for them.

Above all, put us: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit first.

That is the only way to live the good life you seek.

Tags: , ,

Four ways to turn your life around.

6 May

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

    

I turned toward a new friend seated beside me during a writer’s conference. He’s got to be kidding! Did I hear him right? Did he say what I thought he said?

Those questions ricocheted in this crazy chica’s head when I heard him describe what he did on the side. I let out a quick gasp as he related, with a matter-of-fact tone, that he made jewelry out of, are you ready? …moose droppings!

I pinched my nose. “Tell me this is a joke,” I said.

“Nope.” (Friends, check the pictures above to prove it.)

Being from Alaska, he explained the process. And I tried really tried to understand this craft. My imagination went wild with not-so-pleasant images.

But, amigos got to spill it all. This brought to mind the yucky droppings of trials that had paraded through my days—blindness, my son’s death, the struggles of sorrow—all gave my life a bad smell of heartache.

But viola! God turned the trials to triumph as He saw beyond the pain, the sin, the ugly scenes and transformed it all to a shining jewel for His glory.

No, amigos, don’t you think for a minute I’m saying this chica is a jewel. But the triumph God ushered certainly is.

Your triumph is waiting for you too. In the horrible, ever-present battle you’re facing, He’s got his tools and is at work too. He is at work to clean, shine and make it glow.

And during the process, all you have to do is:

  1. Receive the joy for the moment. The joy that comes because you know He’s in control. The joy that resonates even when we don’t see the end result.
  2. Choose gratitude in expectation of what He will do.
  3. Look back at ways He transformed other smelly circumstances in the droppings of life.
  4. Spray the perfume of repentance on that smelly sin. When He’s done He will showcase His victory in you.

Life sometimes does stink. But no matter how unbearable the stench of sin or sorrow is, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

Father, from a discarded soul, tainted with sin, smelling of pride, you polished life, beauty and sparkle through your son Jesus. Thank you that our life now has a glow of salvation, of freedom, of joy and hope. In His name we thank you. Amen

  • What painful situation stinks in your life now?
  • What will it take for you to allow Him to turn your trials to triumph?
  • What keeps you in the same rut?

Janet

Source: Four ways to turn your life around. ~ Janet Perez Eckles

Tags: , ,

31 Days of God’s Comfort~Day 23

24 Apr

Painting and Paraphrase by DiVoran Lites

 

Day 23,

Home

Jeremiah 29-4

 

Beloved,

Naturally the world is a foreign place to you.

You become homesick now and then, feeling as though you have been exiled to a place of confusion.

That is because you were created to live with Me.

All humans experience aloneness from time to time.

It can come from bitterness, a twinge of fear, or a long miserable stretch in a foxhole of anxiety (often of your own making).

Dear one do not despair I have a special place for you.

You may come into it whenever you please by communing with me, helping others, and exercising your spiritual gifts.

What you do now is make a home wherever you are.

Do not pine for your real home which is in Heaven with me.

Thrive where you are while I bring Heaven to you.

Use My discernment to know the truth about who to trust.

Your times are in my hands.

In my own time I’ll bring you home.

I take care of you now and forever.

When you pray I listen.

When you look for me I’m right here.

I constantly improve your life.

I make it what I plan for it to be.

Tags: , ,

31 Days of God’s Comfort~Day 22

17 Apr

Painting and Paraphrase by DiVoran Lites

 

Day 22,

Teacher

Isaiah 54:13

John 8:32

 

Beloved,

I am the teacher for all your children.

I bring them back to you.

I give you, and them, truth, grace, and wisdom.

I set all of you free.

Listen to Me and follow my ways.

Truth, like a laser beam, will zap the locks on your minds and open the doors.

The truth will create rooms for healing, peace, and joy.

It will bring progress and growth into your life.

Tags: , , , ,

12 ways to overcome sorrow.

15 Apr

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

 

Everyone celebrates Easter Sunday, but for so long, I was stuck on the Friday, the day of sorrow, the day of pain and the day of darkness. It was because the death of our son, Joe, had covered us with the veil of grief.

But one spring, right before Easter, healing came. It arrived with Christ’s example as He also dragged the cross of His own sorrow. He bled his pain.

Without complaint, sorrow scraped his heart too. And then nailed on the wood, he tasted the bitterness of betrayal mixed with the hardship of injustice.

Why did He not fight? Beg for freedom from the cross? Or curse His fate?

The answer nearly exploded in my heart. Because He knew glory awaited Him. He was certain eternity was his. And He counted on heaven.

“I want the same,” my soul cried out. And God heard my plea.

So with the celebration of the resurrection of hope, and the rebirth of my joy, came a new beginning – my own Easter Sunday. And while wearing the new outfit of healing, of joy and renewed gusto, I got busy creating a new joy-filled life.

When the day comes and my chair is empty at the dinner table, celebrating Easter, what will my family say about my life? While they scoop up a second helping of mashed potatoes or more slices of honey-baked ham, will they remember the way I dreaded my Calvary or will they recall how I lived my Easters?

How about you? Have you reached your own Easter of triumph for others to see? Whether sorrow or serenity, we’re subtly creating a legacy, weaving memories and painting strokes on our own portrait. The one our family will hold in their hearts.

And for the Easters to come, the portrait will display the life we lived, the values we held and the conviction that danced in our heart when we answered:

  1. Did we sink under the weight of our cross?
  2. Did we keep moving with the strength of hope?
  3. Did we relish on our own Easter of joy?
  4. Did we choose to see life beyond circumstances, or did circumstances see us to despair?
  5. Did we face challenges with determination, or did we allow them to determine our destiny?
  6. Did we look for tomorrow with passion, or did momentary trials rob the passion for today?
  7. Did we reach out to others to encourage them, or did our own discouragement reached out to hold us back?
  8. Did we live life rich with God’s reassurance, or did we live empty of His grace?
  9. Did fear steal our joy, or did God’s joy erase all fear?
  10. Did we do things for our own interest, or did we first take interest in God’s ways?
  11. Did we follow our plans, or did we first plan to follow God’s path?
  12. Did we fret over petty things, or find the power of God’s precepts?

No matter what the answer, there is no cross of pain that can hold us down; no suffering that can hold us back because Jesus is alive. And with passionate Love He declares, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Father, I thank you for the triumph. And I pray your everlasting love nourishes my desires, goals and dreams. I ask for wisdom to leave a legacy that honors you, resonates with my children’s children, and reflects my obedience to your precepts. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Janet

 

Source: 12 ways to overcome sorrow. ~ Janet Perez Eckles

Tags: , , ,

31 Days of God’s Comfort~Day 20

3 Apr

Painting and Paraphrase by DiVoran Lites

 

Day 20

Giving In

Psalm 46:10

 

Beloved,

Here’s what I want you to do.

I will help you.

Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and now:

Envision your bed, your table, your office,

See in your mind’s eye everything that makes you comfortable and happy.

Look at every family member and friend.

Remember the fine conversations you’ve had.

In your mind’s eye pack all these things into a large container.

Send the container to me on wings.

You are now living in My grace.

You will have the joy of it more and more.

Don’t look at what you are doing for Me.

Look at what I am doing for, in, and through you.

You are what I am creating you to be.

 

 

Tags: , , ,

Three reasons why you can’t let go.

1 Apr

Walking by Faith, Not by Sight

Janet Perez Eckles

 

Hubby and I agreed to get a brief video done. So I reached for my purse. “Wait a minute,” I said, “let me put on some lipstick before you begin.

Why can’t I toss vanity out the window? But dare I say that we all have a trace of that from time to time.

Some of us are way too appearance-conscious. We dress well to look sharp, wear black to look thin, fix the hair so we look young, and dress down to look cool.

And beyond how we look, we strive to do what might be impressive. We try hard to reach the top, we get busy to do good stuff or even go places to rave about what we did.

Those efforts aren’t bad, unless they rule our lives. Or unless they stir electric signals to the brain, keeping it awake when it should be resting.

At an Access Life event for folks and their families living with disabilities, a sort of strange animal taught me a big lesson about total trust and rest.

A friend put a “turin” in my hands. No misspelling there. This sort of weird little creature is half turkey and half chicken. The body of a chicken, the neck of a turkey and the head of a chicken. Since I’m not able to “see” it, I imagine it to be a sort of ugly creature.

But does it even show concern about its looks? You tell me. As I held it, it fell asleep. It had no clue a blind woman was holding it. It didn’t care how it looked, what appearance it displayed or even care about who took its picture. It showed no worry about others staring at her.

Why can’t we be like that? Why can’t we rest in peace just the way we are—with failures that might be known. With flaws that stand out. With weaknesses that are evident, or things left undone? And in face of it all, we, dare to live in complete trust. In total peace. And undisturbed confidence, the kind of confidence that we too fall asleep in God’s arms.

But we can. And here are three steps to enjoy sweet sleep in those long nights:

  1. Smile at the image in the mirror. Admire God’s creation and repeat: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (Psalm 139:13-14) If He made us wonderfully, why fret about our body?
  2. No matter what happens, what doesn’t happen, we rest, fully and completely because of where we are: “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’” (Psalm 91:1-2) With Him as our fortress and refuge, worry and tension can’t exist.
  3. Let go what is yet undone. The work God is doing in us is not completed. The plans He has for us are still in action because God’s Word says, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10) If God prepared the work, He’s mighty enough to show us the way to accomplish it.

Father, when restlessness robs our sleep, may we recognize that your kindness, your nurturing and protection is enough to grant the calmness of our thoughts, the peace in our heart and the serenity for our days. We will claim full rest each night, in Jesus name, we declare. Amen.

  • What keeps you awake at night?
  • Do your thoughts align with God’s Word?
  • How do you find restful sleep?

Janet

 

 

Source: Three reasons why you can’t let go. ~ Janet Perez Eckles

Tags: , , ,

Are You a Pillar or a Caterpillar?

31 Mar

From the Heart 

Louise Gibson

 

The pillars are a strong foundation
in any relationship.
On their strength we do depend.
The caterpillars crawl in and out,
failing to connect.
They dream to be a butterfly in the end.

 

God created all of us,
and He did it all with vision.
I don’t have your attributes-
That was God’s decision.

 

I will strive to be the best I can
with what God has allotted me.
To be more like our Maker,
That is our destiny.

 

Tags: , , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →