Back to Bethel with all my heart......

       (This is a photo I took of a Magnolia Tree recently at Kemah)

As I reflect on a discussion I had with a dear student this week.....a song is on my heart.....

Draw me nearer,
Nearer blessed Lord
To the Cross
Where Thou hast died
Draw me nearer,
Nearer blessed Lord.....
To Thy Precious Bleeding side

My student and I were talking about  the story of Jacob's ladder, found in Genesis chapter 28.  And how that Jacob came to a special place as he was fleeing from the wrath of his brother Esau, after he had taken the blessing from Esau that was meant for the older son..... The Bible tells us in verse 11 of chapter 28,  that Jacob: "lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep."

 Then Jacob has a dream of a ladder reaching up to heaven, with God's angel's ascending and descending upon it...... and then, the Lord God speaks to Jacob and gives some very important and precious promises to him.......and Jacob wakes from his slumber and says in verse 16: "Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not." Verse 17 goes on: "And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." And then Jacob set up the stone he had used for his pillow as a pillar and poured oil upon it.... consecrating it as an altar.... and he named it "Beth'-el",  which means "the house of God".....

Jacob was dedicating and consecrating himself to God, there is no doubt about that...... but he wasn't truly and completely changed until  he came to another special place of consecration as he was returning to his homeland, many years later..... and  wrestled with the angel until the breaking of the day, desiring a blessing from God...... the angel touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh..... and it caused him to limp for the rest of his life...... and he recieved a new name..... he was called "Israel" , for the angel in verse 28 of Genesis chapter 32 says: "Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel:  for as a prince hast thou power with with God and with men, and hast prevailed." And Jacob named this place "Peniel" which means "the face of God"..... Verse 30 tells us: "And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel : for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."

I have been reflecting, dear friends, on times of consecration in my life.... times when I was completely and passionately dedicated to seeking God... doing my best to draw near to him.... what precious times of prayer and fasting they were! Oh how rich was the Glory of His dear presence.... how I would linger in prayer for hours......... and how He blessed me........what glorious memories I have of these times.... but I realize I cannot stop and rest on the experiences of the past....... I've got to return to those Beth-el and Peniel places in my life..... Oh I must consecrate again!  I must get beneath a surface relationship!  I must rediscover the passion! The Dedication! The seeking of God's face!  I cannot allow the things of life to side track me...... that is the enemy's dirty business, you know....  To let the cares of life overtake and choke the consecration, the prayer life, the fasting, the reading of God's Word, and the dedication out of the lives of God's children......

James 4:8 says: "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you....."  I've got to go back to Beth'el and to Peniel with all my heart..... and I know without doubt Jesus is waiting for me there.... how about you, precious friend.  Will you go too? 

A sweet gift for a sweet Mom

Here are some pics of the gift bag and card I crafted for my Mother for Mother's Day......

Goodness!  Things have been so busy here in my part of the world..... The good news is that I am definitely on the mend from pnuemonia, and, though my grandmother had to go into skilled nursing for a while, she is doing better and getting stronger.  She was having such terrible pain in her lower back that the doctor decided to have an MRI and some X - rays done.  We haven't heard the results yet, but hope he will tell us something on Monday.....
Friday evening was a bit of fun in the midst of all the hectic pace.... my sister and brother - in - law, and I were able to go eat with a precious friend and her husband and two darling children..... they go to our church, and it was her birthday..... she wanted to eat at a Mexican resteraunt that we all enjoy....Her baby girl is a hoot - and a - half!  She is so entertaining,  I jokingly told our friends they should charge people for the entertainment Haven provides when they go out to eat....
Well, it is Mother's Day again, and, yet again, I am so very thankful to God for my dear Mother..... She is so precious to me....... He blessed me beyond measure by making her my own wonderful Mom.....
I wish all of you, my sweet blogging friends, a "Happy Mother's Day!"  I hope this day gives you a glimpse of how much you are loved.........
And a Big "Thank you" to all of you who left encouraging comments and prayed for me......
Hugs,
Jenni

Pnuemonia is back, but God is STILL Good All The Time

Today is my birthday. I am 39!!!!!  Oh my goodness!  I Never imagined myself being this age!  But I can say with all my heart that God has been faithful, every day of every year.......
This past week, as I sat up at the hospital with my Grandmother, I got that "funky" feeling in my chest that I always DREAD.......and, sure enough, by the next morning, I had the "Yuck" gurgling away in there....... went to the Dr. yesterday and the chest X-ray confirmed pnuemonia in the left lung...... ****Sigh**** so, had to get the steroid shot and the antibiotic shot again....... I was sitting in the pharmacy next door, a bit later, wating to get my prescriptions..... and thought "Why this, NOW, Lord?"  A lady was sitting right next to me.... and we got to talking....... and, Long story short....... I was able to really witness to her, and got to give her a church card, and invited her to our revival services....... and, I found out that she had been going to Church in Mississippi when she was a teen.  So, was it coincidental that I sat next to her in my time of sickness????  NO!  I think I got an answer to the questions I was asking Jesus; He showed me that good can come out of difficult situations.........

I wish all of y'all could visit the Revival at our Church..... I am not exaggerating when I say that it feels like Heaven on Earth around there!  We have had a lady healed completely from diabetes; the doctor told her she DID NOT NEED her insulin anymore....... Praise the Lord!  And so many have been filled with God's Spirit........ my own family recieved a MUCH NEEDED Financial blessing...... no human knew how badly we needed it, but God did!  And He provided as He ALWAYS does......He takes such wonderful care of His Children.........

Thank you all for letting me share my heart with you on this gorgeous Saturday morning......... Y'all are never far from my thoughts, and in my prayers........ I hope this is a wonderful weekend for you and your families!

Hugs,
Jenni

All I can Say is "Wow"!

Hello, precious friends!  So much has been happening, I am wondering where to begin?  First of all, my Grandmother passed out while eating breakfast on Sunday morning, and the paramedics were called, and she has been in the hospital ever since..... they have run all kinds of tests on her and found she was anemic and losing blood...... finally tracked down some ulcers caused by her arthritis medicine..... so the doctor has discontinued the arthritis med, and she has been getting some much needed blood transfusions......
She is doing much better now, thank the good Lord.......

On last Friday, my Mom had the contrast CT scan and some gall stones were found in her gall bladder....and today she underwent a colonoscopy....... some polyps were found among other things, but no cancer, Thank the Lord!

Now, for the "God" thing....... Oh my!  I just LOVE sharing with y'all how awesome He is and how good and kind and loving He is!   So, last night I was worn out and a bit worried and fretting and afraid..... just for my Mom and grandmother, etc...... so I talked to the Lord..... and went and looked outside of our sliding glass window in the dining room...... I gazed up at Heaven and said "Lord, I am worried and afraid about all of this........"  and then a scripture came to me and I began to quote:  "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee."  I said it over and over....... and then I prayed some more and went back to bed......

I awoke this morning (the day of Mom's proceedure) and was feeling that old worried and fearful feeling....... so I began praying, and went and sat on my bed,  and said:  "Lord, I am worried...... would You let me open the Bible up to a scripture that will help my not be afraid?"  So, I picked up my Bible, and opened it, and, guess what?? I was looking straight at Psalms 56:3:  "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee".... my Loving Father was reminding me that I had said I would trust Him, during those dark night hours, and that I needed to keep doing so...... and He was letting me know He had heard my prayers and the scripture I had quoted to Him repeatedly......isn't that awesome? 

Oh I felt sooo much better!  It's no wonder that in the book of Isaiah, chapter 9, Jesus is described as:  the Wonderful, the Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace........... for He spoke sweet peace to my Soul through His Word........and I give Him Praise from a thankful heart for doing so............

I hope all is going well for you all.....
Hugs,
Jenni