Posts in Life Changes
Keep Asking - Faith Thurmond

You see, I remember the times I prayed. When I was a teenager, I prayed for a husband. I asked God over and over to give me a husband. You see my dad pastored in a pretty bad part of Memphis, Tn and let’s just say there was no one around to marry. I even told my mom God won’t send anyone here for me to marry. You see, I did doubt that God could do it…maybe I didn’t doubt God could as much as I doubted that God would do it for me. I was discouraged, would God ever send me my future husband?

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Come Apart and Rest a Little While - Jean Sheaffer

In the hustle and bustle of life today, it's easy to get caught up in whirlwinds of tasks and responsibilities that constantly demand attention. We find ourselves running from one thing to another, sometimes barely taking a moment to transition properly. However, amidst the chaos and busyness that can easily overtake our lives, there is a timeless truth that our Lord Jesus shared with us, speaking directly from His loving heart: "Come apart and rest a little while."

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Placing "All of my Begs in One Ask It".... - Melody Decker

There was an old saying about trusting all one’s goods to one ship.  It was replaced with the phrase “Don't put all your eggs in one basket,” which is a proverb or idiom first recorded in 1710, that means you should not risk everything or depend entirely on a single thing or course of action. It advises against investing all your resources, time, or efforts in a single venture, as it leaves you vulnerable to failure or loss. If you gather all your eggs in a single basket, there is a potential danger of dropping the basket and losing everything you have worked diligently to obtain. In contrast, the proverb advises considering different options and distributing your eggs across multiple baskets, so you don’t find yourself in a desperate situation if one of your endeavors fails.

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In Him - Rebekah Smith

As we go through our lives and about our daily business doing all the right things, all the good things, are we living “in him”. It can be so easy to go into auto pilot. If we are not careful we can almost become robotic. Not intentionally, not even with a bad spirit, but we are doing all the things and checking off all the boxes of things to be done without giving our full attention or full spiritual awareness to them. Stop and think about it for a minute.

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Marvelous Mercy - Jennifer Smith

I don’t have to wallow in my imperfections. I trust in His mercy, because He has promised it to those to seek it, with a broken heart. My hero. The valiant defender of my heart. The Rock of my strength. How does He strengthen me spiritually? By being who He is. Lift your voice in praise, thank Him for who He is. Take His Word before Him! He loves and delights when we dare to take Him at His word. Mercy, marvelous mercy. He delights in me. Why? I can never answer that question because I know who I am. I challenge every lady reading this to read 3-5 Psalms a day. Repeat these verses out loud in your prayer time, He will take you to High places. Then, you too will sing and shout and in tearful words in prayer say, Marvelous Mercy! What a God I have! We don’t have to be perfect, just faithful. 

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Have a friend; Be a friend! - Marcella Smith

I desperately needed a flesh and blood friend; a person with skin on. I knew I had my wonderful Heavenly father, and I decided to never leave Him nor forsake Him nor blame Him no matter how bad my life seemed to me. But God also gives us a need for humans. During the whole ugly, crushing, debilitating process; I needed a friend. I was so very confused, devastated, and broken: I needed a friend!

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Jesus Paid It All - Alice Smith

I was an eighteen-year-old girl with no knowledge of the Bible, but that truth was clear to me that night as a soulwinner took me off into a room at the First Baptist Church of St. Clair, Missouri and explained to me that all the good things I was trying to do would never be enough for me to get to Heaven.

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My Jesus - Nancy Shurilla

And there’s the gem.  Those two little words Trina would use so often in her conversation.  MY Jesus. The most important lesson I ever learned from Trina, though I wouldn’t even realize it until YEARS later, was that He needs to be ‘MY’ Jesus.  When you speak of your Saviour, it should be personal.  The same way you say, ‘My kids’ or ‘My husband’.  Possessive.  Loving.  Is that how you think of Jesus, or do you not really think about that relationship much at all?  We all hear quite regularly in preaching that we need to have a relationship with God(Jesus), but do we really think and ponder and try to figure out what that entails?  Oh sure, there’s the ‘read your Bible more!  Here’s a 1 year plan!’  and don’t you dare misunderstand me, reading your Bible is paramount in a Christians life, but are you just going through the motions of Bible reading so that you can check off a little chart?  You’ll be closer to Jesus than if you weren’t reading at all, sure, but would you feel that possessive love?  Trina challenged me without even saying it to get that possessive love.  To thirst for it.  And it’s so funny because, the closer you get the more you want. 

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To Pause 2023 - Stephanie Shipman

This year my plan and I feel the Lord has led me to this… the Pause. To focus on the pause  or pauses of life. I want to listen to when the Lord says, “ Pause.”  I believe the Lord wants us all to “stop for a minute,” or to “linger” here for a time. He always has a reason. He may have something better for us or He may simply be protecting us from what we can’t see. 

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Engulfed - Jodi Sherlin

July 3rd of this last year, 7 months ago, our family was enjoying some small fireworks outside. Nothing extravagant. Just a few that were sold around town that made some nice colors in the air. The men folk made sure that they did them in what we thought were a safe distance from our home and garage, and all was good. We were having a good time. When it was all done, my husband and sons in law were very diligent about checking to make sure everything was secure and there were no sparks or flames. We all took our time getting in the house and our extended family took their time leaving, nobody was in a hurry, it was a very relaxed evening. After everyone was gone, we were settling in for the night, my husband and I in the living room just about to get our pugs on our laps. Our married kids were all settled in their room. My son, who was at the farthest end of our home, came out into the living room, white as a ghost and said with a look on his face, that I will NEVER forget.. “THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE!”

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The Classroom of Life - Pam Seulean

One day, I overheard a third grader disdain a kindergartener’s work. “Oh, that’s SO EASY! I wish my work was that easy.” Of course, the sixth grader immediately scoffed, “You think YOUR work is hard?? Wait until you get to sixth grade!” Whereupon the 11th grader in the room piped up with scorn, “Dude. You have no idea. Take a look at this chemistry equation I had today!” (And I wanted to tell HIM that, chemistry and all, his life is so simple compared to an adult’s life!)

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Look Up - Jean Santos

I heard a sermon illustration about a bee. It was said that if you put a bee in the bottom of a glass jar, the bee will never fly out. Why? Because the bee never looks up to realize that the way out is right above him. I think that all too often, I am the same way. When I face problems, I tend to look around for answers, but forget to look up for His answer. I am so thankful that my Father is a “very present” help. (Psalm 46:1) He’s right there---every step of the way---even when I don’t realize it. He promises me in His Word that He will never leave me or forsake me (Hebrews 13:5-6). The key is that I lift up my eyes. I need to turn my eyes upon Jesus and look full in His wonderful face! When I do, the things of this earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace. When days are dreary…look up! When the long nights are weary….look up! Jesus cares! When the sun is shining….

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I Thought We Were Friends - Amy Sapp

“I thought we were friends.” / “I thought you loved me.”

The hurt behind those words can overshadow years of life, love, and memories. All the good times fade away when a friendship is betrayed.

Investment, down the drain. Trust destroyed. Love questioned.

Have you been there? / Are you currently there?

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What Day is it Today? - Jeanne Nichols

These years have not been easy, but I’m so grateful I have had the Lord to guide me as a mom, a wife, a caregiver, and now as a grandma. I have not faced these trials perfectly, and many times God has had to chastise me because of my attitude. However, I am thankful for a patient God who has molded my family and I along the way.

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Bottle Necked - Teresa Ross

When you serve the Lord together, your hearts knit in a special way. A church God allowed us to help restart in 2004 held special memories for us. God allowed us to purchase a building for it! Memories with the ladies, decorating for different events. You grow to have a special place in your heart for each person. God was faithful!

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