Joy in His Presence: Presence Filled Fridays

Today seemed like a great day to link with Five Minute Fridays:


At Five Minute Fridays, you take a topic and just write for five minutes with no critical editing and no need to perfect it. They should call it Freedom in Five!  Anyway, the topic today is JOY. And since we always talk about His Presence here on Fridays, I thought it was a perfect match.

Joy in His Presence


Bekah and I had fervently prayed for her for several months. Keisha, my sister-in-love's sister, had been diagnosed with Wegener's disease, an auto immune disease that attacks your entire body. She was barely 30 years old with a husband and three children at home. She had her ups and downs in the hospital. Some days looked hopeful. Other days seemed desperate.


Bekah was on her way to her first grade classroom the day we received the dreaded phone call. I decided to wait until she got home from school to tell her about Miss Keisha's death. 


"Bekah, I have some bad news."


"Yes, Mommy?"


"Bekah, Miss Keisha died last night."


"So...what's the bad news?"


"Bekah, sweetie, that is the bad news."


"But, Mommy, Miss Keisha went to be with Jesus. How can that be bad?"


Words spoken confidently and beautifully by my six year old daughter challenged my heart and my thinking. To Bekah, joy was and is and will always be found in the the presence of Jesus. You see, Bekah had just accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior and Joy just a few weeks before Miss Keisha's death. Seemed like she totally understood Paul's words, "To live is Christ, and to die is gain." (Phil. 1:21) Oh, to have the childlike faith that says...


"My heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay. You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." Psalm 16: 9 - 11


So tell me, friend, have you found the joy that only the presence of God brings? Please share! And if you are struggling right now with finding joy in the midst of your circumstances, I would love to pray for you. 


Unwrapping the gift of JOY in His presence,


Kelli

A Reason to Love Getting Older

Today I am linking up with Five Minute Friday again.  (I have had a rough week, so I needed a little break.) The rules are as follows:

Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.

Here goes.  The topic is older.

Ryan is older today. Hard to believe that it has been eight years since he entered this crazy world. Crazy as I see it. He sees it as wonderful. Ryan often says, "This is the best day of my life!" Yes, he has taught us to enjoy our moments and live them outrageously. One thing you can say about Ryan is he always goes all out.

So, if Ryan is older today, I guess that makes me older, too. I am one day closer to the 40 mark.  It will happen in less than two months.  I was looking forward to a big bash to celebrate...but now the closer it gets, the more I want to party quietly.  That is so unlike me. Sounds old. 

Whatever the case, I am reminded a verse in my favorite book of the bible, 2 Corinthians.  "Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day." Now, that's a reason to love getting...older.   

(2 Cor. 4:16)

That's it. 

How do you feel about getting older?

Happy Friday love to all of you!

Unwrap the gift of life today!

Kelli

Five Minute Friday

Be Still or Be Stilled

I know, I know.  I was supposed to post more about my She Speaks weekend next.  And I will.  But today, I am taking a small detour...a little challenge.  I am joining a bunch of writers and giving myself five minutes to write about a topic.  No worries.  No editing. Just words.  God's Word never returns void, whether it is taught in five minutes or five hours.  Here we go...

Be still and know that I am God.  It is a command that has sweet reward.  To say "Enough!" to the busyness of this life and settle in with Him is always a good thing. Knowing that He is God.  He is faithful.  And He is Enough to cover our "Enough!"  Praise You, Jesus!


So, maybe you are familiar with that verse.  Maybe you surrender to that command often.  Maybe not so much.  Regardless, you hear the command and the call.  


What about being "stilled?"  See, if you know me, being still is quite difficult for me.  And so even though I hear the command and the calling to be still and know that He is God, I wrestle.  I am restless.  


Zephaniah 3: 17 has a part that says,  "He will quiet you with His love."  That means He will STILL you.  He will "leave off speaking"  with his love (unspeakable love, tender mercies.)  Have you ever had someone's silence minister great love to you?  No words are necessary.  I picture my child that is crying uncontrollably and when I hug him closely, he begins to breathe and settle. That, my friend, is being STILLED.

So, Be still or be stilled.  

Unwrap that gift of His enoughness today!

Kelli

http://www.incourage.me/2011/07/five-minute-friday-still.html