Sharon's Sharings

 Prayer:  We are instructed to go to our room in private to pray.  Matthew 6: 6 NLT  “ But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private.  Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.”                                                                                      Prayer is an intimate conversation with a personal God.  It is not random words to “the man upstairs”.  God is bigger than all our problems so we can believe He hears our prayers and will answer.  John 15:7 “NLT “ But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!” How we each pray is different.  Our friend, Rev. Linda Paz, spoke at church recently and said she prays two hours a day. Honestly, I do not do that.  I have my prayer time and it can be different every day.  I tend to pray shorter prayers throughout the day. I also use my prayer language to pray in the Spirit.  Ephesians 6:18 NLT  “Pray in

  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on our own understanding.  (6) Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT Today was a first for me in regards to my messages. I had a different message written, but I woke up this morning hearing “trust”.  I asked the Lord if I am to write about trust and He said “yes”.   I know this message is for me.  Maybe it is for you as well.                                                 We are preparing our house to sell.  God has provided a rental house for us, which is amazing how He did it.  It was not what we thought we would do, but in this housing market it makes the most sense.  We have no idea where we will buy a house.  For me, ‘the planner', this is hard.  I trust the Lord, but…..I really want to know His plan.  I absolutely hate being in limbo. Philippians 4:6 NLT “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank Him for

 As I write this, the sun is shining.  I have windows and doors open.  It is a beautiful day.  Spring gives us new growth of plants and flowers and trees.  Baby animals tend to be born in the spring also.  Warmer weather and longer days give them a better chance to survive.  To me, spring is a time of hope.  The shorter, darker days of winter are gone and we can look forward to more sunny days.   This year, especially, we are looking forward to Covid cases declining and being able to participate in more normal activities.   Hope is a marvelous thing.  Hebrews 11:1 NLT “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.” I hope for so many things.  Covid to be gone and life returning to normal is the immediate.  I also hope for family and friends to be saved.  For broken relationships to be restored.  For hurting people to be healed.  The list goes on and on.  Does hoping do me any good? Yes, I believe it does because God, in His word, says that hop

 Today I am in one of my happy places. We are visiting our second daughter and her family in Utah.  Our granddaughters are 18, 14, and we will be celebrating the youngest 3rd birthday.  We feel blessed to be able to finally visit again. Genesis 1:27,28 NLT  “So God created human beings in His own image.  In the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.  (28) Then God blessed them and said “Be fruitful and multiply.  Fill the earth and govern over it……” Genesis 4:1,2,8 NKJV “Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said, 'I have acquired a man from the Lord,’ (2) Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel….  v8  Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against his brother and killed him.” When I read this account of family in the Bible, I am aware that issues in families began long ago, and are not uncommon still today.  We all want our family relationships to be harm

Today is Good Friday - the darkest, saddest day in our Christian history.  Or is it?  It seems a misnomer to call it “Good” Friday.  It is impossible to imagine the agony of Jesus crucifixion.  It is also impossible for me to imagine what His family and friends were going through as they watched Him being nailed to a cross and dying.  John 10:18 NLT  “No one can take my life from me.  I sacrifice it voluntarily.  For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again.  For this is what my Father has commanded.” As Christian Believers we do not have to mourn and be sad on Good Friday.  We know the truth.  Jesus died, so we don’t have to.  Our sin that led to His death, has been atoned for once and for all!   John 15:13 “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” For this reason Good Friday or the day Jesus died, is a great day in history. We know that only by His death can we be saved and live forever!  Sin separated us from God.