BEAUTY IN THE DEAD OF WINTER

Having returned from the Philippines 2 years ago, I detest having to go through cold winters again.  Don't get me wrong, I love it when it snows.  Have you stepped outside when the snow fall and just listen around you?  I love the stillness and the peace it evokes, it's like I am in dreamland.  There's a certain feeling that wells inside me when snow starts falling down.  It has the power to mute the hustle and bustle of life.  It's almost like I can hear God whispering in my ear.

When it snowed last week I was captivated by the beauty it brought to my surroundings.  I loved seeing the trees laden with snow and not only that, the beauty of pure white that covered and outlined every lines and curves around us.   So I decided to take photos of some of the favorite spots in Lake Shawnee.  Here's some of the spots in the dead of winter...still breathtaking as it is during the summer months when they are covered with color.

So there.  I have more pictures but I should stop now.  Don't you agree that there's beauty in the dead of winter even if it's brrrrrrr.

I still miss the beach though, :-)...............love you all.  Thanks for following.

Jehovah Nissi, The Lord is My Banner

If you are a parent you can probably relate to what I am going to blog about.  In our desire to please the Lord we try our best to be good examples to our children.  Not only that, we take them to the Lord in prayer every waking moments.  I remember when the boys were little, I started praying for their lifetime partners already.  They don't know that, though 😊.  And yes, I'm still praying up to now.

And then they become adults and have lives of their own.  Still we take them to the Lord in prayer constantly as always, and stand back and watch how the Lord works in and through their lives.  We watch them stumble, make mistakes, get hurt emotionally, choose to walk the opposite path trying to find  themselves.  As parents we ache every time and our hearts bleed as we stand back and let them figure life out for themselves.  We ask ourselves why they're taking the hard way when there's a better way?

My husband told me he was probably 22 when he hit rock bottom and finally figured out that he was going in the wrong direction and had to change course.   Yes, maybe soon our son will hit rock bottom and change course like his Dad.  My friend and prayer partner, Gloria Torres, shared to me that she learned to submit to God everything regarding her children.  And she's right, that is all a mother can do...to give our children unto the Lord for His guidance and protection.

I believe that God takes the life of a man, in this case my son, and sends him on a detour.  Perhaps all these "re-routings" are intended for him to go through in order that he will be better equipped for the tasks that the Lord has prepared for him in the future.  The Lord has brought to mind one of His names, Jehovah Nissi - meaning "The Lord is My Banner" and with that thought I knelt and prayed that He will become "The Banner" over my son while he is on "detour."  God sees the whole picture, He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End and I know one day soon, He'll bring my son back to where he needs to be in God's perfect timing.

The above was drafted back in June 2019 when my son and I had a heated argument on messenger.  That night I can feel hatred and desperation and anger.  I was praying for the Lord to touch him while we exchanged messages when out of the blue he messaged me telling me to STOP PRAYING for him.  I messaged him back and told him I will never stop praying for him the same way that I will never stop loving him.  Right then and there I felt the Holy Spirit nudging me to fight back.  It wasn't my son who messaged me to stop praying for him (how did he know I was interceding for him the whole time we exchanged messages?  I didn't tell him I was praying).  Bingo!  I knew then who I was up against.  So I knelt with my hand over my cellphone with the messenger screen on and I took authority in the name of Jesus over the spirit of hatred, despair and anger who has gripped my son for so long.   I was wailing before my Lord, petitioning Him in earnest to free my son from these demons.  At that moment I felt release and peace that passes all understanding.  I know in my heart that my petition had been answered.  Then the LORD reminded me of the different names of God and Jehovah Nissi stood out.  At first I was wondering why Jehovah Nissi - here's why:  The LORD wants me to raise a banner over my son because there is victory in the LORD, Hallelujah!!!. 

It is now February 2020 and through all those months, the Lord has slowly revealed to me that YES, He is working in my son's life.  My husband and I have noticed a big difference in his ways and attitudes.  Even his demeanor has changed PTL!!  I still pray that Jehovah Nissi will continue to be a Banner over him daily.  We celebrate small victories - like we don't get messages from him that speaks of hating this and hating that, or of being down and hopeless.   Even his profile on FB has changed, small steps that reflect hope and healing.  Day by day I thank the LORD for these small changes.  And day by day I raise the Banner over my son. One day, like the prodigal son in the Bible, he'll return to the fold and I know JEHOVAH YAHWEH will run to meet him.

And oh I can't wait for that day to come!!!

Thank you all for following.  God Almighty be with you and bless you!