Category: Hebrews

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No Middle Man Necessary

Yesterday I was reminded again of the importance of proper communication. I do work for a man who lives in California. I get up early and go to bed somewhat early. He gets us late and stays up until past midnight. The difference in our schedules have caused us to come up with an alternative method of communicating – we found that the best means was by use of fax.

Several months ago I noticed that I wasn’t getting his fax replies to my inquiries as quickly as I normally had. I called, we talked and I found that he had been faxing but for whatever reason I wasn’t getting his communication. After testing my fax line, I changed the number hoping that would correct the problem but it didn’t. We needed to find an alternate means.

We began using a third person to transmit his messages to me. I would fax him, he would respond, give his replies to his secretary and she would then forward them to me…I know. Far from a prudent means of communication but it was the best we could do.

Last night I talked with him and I asked him to try my fax number again. He said he would and then he would call me right back to see if I had received the transmission. I waited, anxiously, no fax and then his call came in. We talked a bit and then – there is was. I was thrilled!

Direct communication.

The problem? A wrong number. Months of going through a middle man as it were. Now we, once again, had an open line of communication. We could “talk” one on one.

Hallelujah!

Do you realize that’s how it is with the Lord? We can talk to Him one on one without a middle man. I love it when folks ask me to pray about something, I believe in the power of prayer. And I believe the Scripture that tells us we should ask for others to pray for us and with us. However, having someone pray for you is not the same as one on one communication with the Father. He wants us to come direct.

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. 20 By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. 21 And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, 22 let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.” Hebrews 10:19-23 NLV

Because of the sacrifice that Jesus made to pay for our sins we are able to come boldly to God with a clear conscience filled with hope. No middle man. In the Old Testament people had to go through the priest or the prophet to speak with God but Jesus changed all of that!

I spend a lot of time in the book of Hebrews. It is a comparison/contrast to the way things were in the Old Testament before Jesus and how they are now, after Jesus paid the price for sin. A new way – a living way – a personal relationship with God the Father.

“So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. 15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Hebrews 4:14-16 NLT

No wrong fax numbers, no third party transmission! Come boldly, we are invited to open communication in the throne room!

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Coming Home

It’s hard to think of a day in my life without the Lord. Almost impossible! Even during the days when I wasn’t serving Him, when I was being the prodigal – I knew He was there!

Doing things my way, trying to find the “best” way without Him only brought frustration and disappointment.

“Lord, teach me your ways, and I will live and obey your truths. Help me make worshiping your name the most important thing in my life. 12 My Lord God, I praise you with all my heart. I will honor your name forever! 13 You have such great love for me. You save me from the place of death.” Psalm 86:11-13 ERV

By now you know that the story of prodigal son is one of my favorites. I use it often; I am still, after all these years exploring the depth of that Father’s love for his son; for both of his sons. One was wayward in his life style, the other was wayward in his understanding.

The son who left was decadent, rebellious and immoral. The son who stayed appeared to be hard working and loyal but his heart was filled with resentment and bitterness. The one son saw his need for repentance and his broken spirit brought him home. The other, although home, felt like a distant outsider because he had never really developed a relationship with his loving father.

I have been like both of these sons.

I’ve been rebellious and walked far from my Father’s home and I have been close in appearance but distanced because of a hard heart and religious mind set. Is it any wonder that I love this story?

Is it any wonder that I love God’s word?

It is His word that has revealed to me the depth of my Father’s love and the expanse of His forgiveness.

“This is the agreement I will make  with my people in the future, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts. I will write my laws in their minds.”

17 Then he says, “I will forget their sins and never again remember the evil they have done.” 18 And after everything is forgiven, there is no more need for a sacrifice to pay for sins.

19 And so, brothers and sisters, we are completely free to enter the Most Holy Place. We can do this without fear because of the blood sacrifice of Jesus. 20 We enter through a new way that Jesus opened for us. It is a living way that leads through the curtain—Christ’s body. 21 And we have a great priest who rules the house of God. 22 Sprinkled with the blood of Christ, our hearts have been made free from a guilty conscience, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. So come near to God with a sincere heart, full of confidence because of our faith in Christ.” Hebrews 10:16-22 ERV

Because of what Jesus has done for us, we can experience forgiveness and a depth of love we have never known before. Our sins are completely forgiven, He paid the penalty of sin with His life. No further sacrifice is necessary.

We are free to come to the Father; freed from a guilty conscience, free to live confidently in His presence, free to find help in our time of need. Free from the penalty of sin!

Coming home! What a joy to know the Father is always waiting with arms open wide!

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Learning From Others

Yesterday morning after I had shared with you, I read one of the blogs I read each morning. I am always encouraged by the simplistic outlook that comes from Max Lucado’s writings.

His blog yesterday was entitled, “Grace is God’s Best Idea”. Imagine that. God giving His best. There’s just no way around it; that is what God has always done, given His best.

He gave us Jesus – His best. He gave us forgiveness – His best. He gave us relationship with Him – there is no better. Everything that we receive the Father is the best; love, joy, peace, kindness, mercy and grace.

Grace – receiving from God what we don’t deserve. Definitely the best.

So this morning I want to share with you what Max shared with the world. I know you won’t be disappointed.

“Your dad makes you come to church, but he can’t make you listen.  At least that’s what you’ve always muttered to yourself.  But this morning you listen because the preacher speaks of a God who loves prodigals, and you feel like the worst sort of one.  You can’t keep the pregnancy a secret much longer.  Soon your parents will know.  The preacher will know.  And the preacher says God already knows.  You wonder what God thinks.

Could you use some grace?  You know, grace is God’s best idea.  Rather than tell us to change, he creates the change.  Do we clean up so he can accept us?  No, he accepts us and begins cleaning us up.  What a difference this makes!  Can’t forgive your past?  Christ can, and he is on the move…aggressively budging you from grace-less to grace-shaped living.  A forgiven person who forgives others.  This is grace.  Grace is everything Jesus!“

We all need to allow ourselves to receive God’s grace. It’s our help in time of need.

“So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Hebrews 4:16 NLT

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Planning for a Trip

If you remember, back in April I showed you a picture of our new tent. We had been talking about camping for a long time and we wanted to be able to take the little grandkids with us, helping them learn about the great outdoors.

Our budget didn’t have the funds for a 5th Wheel Trailer or RV so we decided to go with a tent. It’s no ordinary tent; its big with 2 removable walls, LED lighting, oversized cots with memory foam mattresses, two RTIC ice chests, pop-up canopy for over the picnic table and a couple of anti-gravity chairs. Yep, we are “geared up”!

If you know me very well at all, you know I make lists for everything. Camping is no different. The picture on today’s blog is my actual list of things I need to know I have when we go camping next week. I’ve been over that list several times now and the things circled are the items that still need to be added before we leave on Tuesday.

There is another list besides this one. It has things that still need to be done around the house before we leave; spraying weeds, watering plants, laundry and then those “day of” items – packing the ice chest, turning off the a/c, lowering the hot water heater, taking out the trash…

To have a successful trip, there needs to be thorough planning!

What do you plan for? A big project at work, a wedding, kids college fund, exercise regime, retirement, dinner next week with friends…

I asked myself this question, what did God plan for? He planned for a life with us!

“The plans of the Lord stand forever. The plans of His heart stand through the future of all people. 12 Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord. Happy are the people He has chosen for His own.” Psalm 33:11-12 NLV

From the beginning He desired to have a relationship with us and when Adam chose his own way and rebelled, God immediately began planning to restore us.

“We were weak and could not help ourselves. Then Christ came at the right time and gave His life for all sinners. 7 No one is willing to die for another person, but for a good man someone might be willing to die. 8 But God showed His love to us. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Now that we have been saved from the punishment of sin by the blood of Christ, He will save us from God’s anger also. 10 We hated God. But we were saved from the punishment of sin by the death of Christ. He has brought us back to God and we will be saved by His life.” Romans 5:6-10 NLV

Unlike our camping trip, Jesus didn’t bring anything with Him. He came as a baby; he laid aside all that He had in heaven and limited himself to the confines of a human life.

“It is true that we share the same Father with Jesus. And it is true that we share the same kind of flesh and blood because Jesus became a man like us. He died as we must die. Through His death He destroyed the power of the devil who has the power of death. 15 Jesus did this to make us free from the fear of death. We no longer need to be chained to this fear. ” Hebrews 2:14-15 NLV

He planned to be like us and provide the way for our relationship with the Father.

“We have a great high priest who has gone to live with God in heaven. He is Jesus the Son of God. So let us continue to express our faith in him. 15 Jesus, our high priest, is able to understand our weaknesses. When Jesus lived on earth, he was tempted in every way. He was tempted in the same ways we are tempted, but he never sinned. 16 With Jesus as our high priest, we can feel free to come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we receive mercy and kindness to help us when we need it.” Hebrews 4:14-16 ERV

I am so thankful that the Father made a plan for me and I’m so very glad that Jesus was willing to make the trip!

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It’s Important to Cuddle

We knew our kids would be heading home right after lunch yesterday. We visited and played for most of the morning and then it was time to gather things up and start moving them out to the car.

I was putting out lunch in the kitchen, the little ones were playing, Kaci was packing and Stephen was loading out. Kristine was doing fine until her Daddy carried out her shoes. She followed him to the door but she had to stay inside. Her Daddy was gone and so were her shoes.

Kaci picked her up and put her in the high chair so she could eat before they left. Brother Sam was already eating. She wanted nothing to do with that, she just kept looking at the door and then the tears started to fall. It’s hard to imagine what might have been going through her little mind – I’m tired and I just want a nap; are they going to leave me; why can’t I go outside too.

I lifted her out of her high chair and began to rub her back. She started to calm down and cuddle in. I held her as her Momma and Daddy sat down to eat their lunch with brother. She snuggled in more as I sat down and then she fell fast asleep.

This scene replayed in my head this morning. And then I read this verse as part of my morning reading.

“You know that we treated each one of you the way a father treats his own children. 12 We encouraged you, we comforted you, and we told you to live good lives for God. He calls you to be part of his glorious kingdom.” I Thessalonians 2:11-12 ERV

We could almost replace that word “comforted” with the word cuddled. Paul had learned from the Lord the importance of comforting and encouraging. That’s what the Father does for us – He doesn’t abandon or desert us. When we feel vulnerable He is there to lift us up and give us peace.

“So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help.” Hebrews 4:16 CEV

Maybe you need a good cuddle today, come boldly to God’s throne. He’ll pick you up and provide peace. Or maybe there is someone you’ll encounter today who is having a rough go of it; God might use you to act in a “fatherly” way to bring them comfort and encouragement.

Just remember, sometimes we could all use a good cuddle!

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It’s a Great Day to Be Alive!

Last week we spent some time talking with friends about when and why we started a ministry to farmers and ranchers, folks who worked round the clock. That was over 35 years ago. At that time there really weren’t too many occupations where you had to work on Sundays – yes, emergency personnel, first responders, food service industry and some grocery stores but not many others.

We took “church” to those on ranches and involved in youth rodeos. These were the folks that worked 24/7 during the planting and harvest of their crops. We knew, we had been one of them. Even if you had a few hours of rest from work on a Sunday morning there still wasn’t enough time to shower, change clothes and get to town in time for church. So we took church to them.

And then there were the kids – the rodeo kids, most of them ages 5 to 19. They loved rodeo and they loved the Lord but some of them had been told that if they loved the Lord they had to give up rodeo and be in church on Sunday. So we took church to them.

We had a wonderful time during those years. We love people and we love the Lord and it was so great to be able to tell them that He loved them no matter where they were; they could be horseback or covered in field dust, it didn’t matter to God. He saw their heart.

“But the Lord said to Samuel, “…People judge by what is on the outside, but the Lord looks at the heart…” I Samuel 16:7 ERV

Now, don’t get me wrong I’m not putting down church attendance. I believe it is important that we receive good teaching; it’s vital for our spiritual growth. And the importance of good Christian friends is incalculable. They are the ones who pray with us, encourage us and support us. It means so much to get an email or a card that says “I was just thinking about you and I prayed the Lord would bless you.” Some of my oldest and dearest friends are those I have from church.

“We should keep on encouraging each other to be thoughtful and to do helpful things. 25 Some people have gotten out of the habit of meeting for worship, but we must not do that. We should keep on encouraging each other, especially since you know that the day of the Lord’s coming is getting closer.” Hebrews 10:24-25 CEV

It makes no difference if it’s a Sunday or a Thursday, if we dress in a three-piece suit or dusty jeans, if our church is a brick building with stained glass windows or an outdoor arena; the important thing is that we set time aside to worship the Lord and have association with other Christians. That is what helps keep us strong.

There’s an old country song that I love. These are the lyrics:

“Oh, the place where I worship is the wide open spaces
Filled by the hand of the Lord
Where the trees of the forest are like pipes of an organ
And the breeze plays an amen choir.

All the stars are the candles and they light up the mountains
Mountains are altars of God
Oh, the place where I worship is the wide open spaces
Where the sun warms the peaceful sod.” by Red Foley

Wherever you are today, whatever you are doing, today is great day to be alive, thank the Lord for it!

“This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us be full of joy and be glad in it. ” Psalm 118:24 NLV

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Recipes for Worms

Ever have one of those pity parties where it’s just you and your emotions? I have to admit that occasionally I still find myself setting the table for that kind of gathering and I have to call myself on it and cancel the party because I know it doesn’t please the Father.

As a kid, I’m sure you all said this little chant once or twice. “Nobody likes me, everybody hates me, guess I’ll go eat worms. Big fat juicy ones, little tiny scrawny ones, oh, how they do .” Ya, I know kids stuff right? Not so much – that feeling is all to prevalent in adults as well but we just don’t sing the chant. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has a good recipe for worm cake so let’s just not go there.

The feeling that I’m all alone and that nobody really understands me, appreciates me or cares about me can be overwhelming. We’ve all had people let us down, turn against us or just ignore us as if we don’t exist. But! There is One who promises to never leave us or forsake us.

“God has said, “I will never leave you; I will never run away from you.” Now that’s good news but let me give it to you from the Amplified version.

“for He [God] [b]Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor [c]give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [d][I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor [e]let [you] down ([f]relax My hold on you)! [[g]Assuredly not!]
6 So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5b-6

Now read that again. The Amplified version gives you the depth of the meaning of the words the way they were written in the original language. This is how God feels about you – He’s there for you. He will not leave you!!!! His love never fails.

Jesus has never once accepted my invitation to a pity party. He doesn’t like worm cake. (I know that made you smile.) He does show up and ask me to leave my party and my self-pity and to join Him in a celebration of the Father’s love. He also reminds me not to get side-tracked by the rejection, insults or condemning words that others may speak. He wants me to stay focused on the Father’s word the way he did.

“God wants you to silence stupid and ignorant people by doing right. 16 You are free, but still you are God’s servants, and you must not use your freedom as an excuse for doing wrong. 17 Respect everyone and show special love for God’s people. Honor God and respect the Emperor.” I Peter 2:15-17 CEV

Our real enemy isn’t “stupid or ignorant people”, it is Satan and he would love to destroy our stand for the Lord by getting us to gripe, complain and become angry. He used the same tactics with Jesus. If he can’t do that then he would like us to become so wrapped in self-pity that we are ineffective.

It’s up to us to control our emotions and stay settled on God’s word.

“Great blessings belong to those who suffer persecution for doing what is right.
God’s kingdom belongs to them. 11 “People will insult you and hurt you. They will lie and say all kinds of evil things about you because you follow me. But when they do that, know that great blessings belong to you. 12 Be happy about it. Be very glad because you have a great reward waiting for you in heaven. People did these same bad things to the prophets who lived before you.” Matthew 5:10-12 CEV

Leave the worm muffins and pie for the birds and the fish. Look up! We are blessed today because God loves us. What can man do to you that could possibly compare to that!!

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No More Tears

I’m sure most of you have heard the stories of someone being on the brink of death and they have their whole life flash before their eyes. I’m not sure if that’s true or not, I can’t find anything in Scripture that tells us that’s what happens. However, we do have some Scriptures that tell us what heaven will be like and I’d like to share with you some of my thoughts this morning.

I guess this comes in part from spending the last ten days with my Mother. She has lived a full and wonderful life. She talks of the good things she has experienced and of her greatest joys here on earth; family, friends, and serving the Lord. And then she talks of heaven; seeing Jesus, being reunited with my father and other loved ones, meeting those people from the Bible whose stories she has read dozens of times.

She is so looking forward to heaven!

She really doesn’t want to wait any longer. She would like to go now but is content to wait on the Lord’s timing. We have talked about the joy of that moment; she wants us to have a party when she goes home.

“So my heart and soul will be very happy. Even my body will live in safety, 10 because you will not leave me in the place of death. You will not let your faithful one rot in the grave. 11 You will teach me the right way to live. Just being with you will bring complete happiness. Being at your right side will make me happy forever. ” Psalm 16:9-11 ERV

The Lord has promised, that when we receive the new life that Jesus died to give us, He will forgive all our sins and He remembers them no more.

“Never again will anyone have to teach their neighbors or their family to know the Lord.  All people—the greatest and the least important—will know me. 12 And I will forgive the wrongs they have done, and I will not remember their sins.” Hebrews 8:11-13 ERV

That is so amazing to me – God chooses to forget our sins! He doesn’t remind us of our failings; He isn’t keeping score to see if we’ve been good enough. He’s made us good enough because of our relationship with Jesus. When we accept His sacrifice, we receive His forgiveness.

So what will heaven be like? Constant joy! We will be in the Father’s presence and that is a place of constant joy.

“I heard a loud voice from the throne. It said, “Now God’s home is with people. He will live with them. They will be his people. God himself will be with them and will be their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, sadness, crying, or pain. All the old ways are gone.”

5 The one who was sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this, because these words are true and can be trusted.” Revelation 21:3-5 ERV

I recently heard a country song entitled “Worthy Watching”. It was sung by Johnny Lee. There is a line in the song that goes like this:

“When my life flashes before my eyes
It’ll be worth watching”

Once we receive Christ our life’s story is revised; our sins and shortcomings are blotted out and what lies ahead with definitely be “worth watching”. Thank you Lord for wiping away the tears!

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Wipe Away The Tears

Not So Happy Day…I woke up this morning and asked the Lord what I should write. I remembered an article I wrote several years back to Mothers’ with broken hearts.

There are woman all around me who aren’t happy about Mother’s Day but instead are dreading it.

This is for those of you who have recently experienced the death of a child either as an unborn, infant or even an adult. You’re not having a good day, you want to stay in bed with your head under the covers and avoid all who are celebrating.

Some of you have been told you will never have children and your heart is screaming “I’m broken…I ache…I may never recover and I can’t go on pretending everything’s ok.”

Ladies some of you may be dealing with abortion or giving a child up for adoption. Others may be facing life as a single parent because you’ve been abandoned. Some have a special needs child that you love dearly but drain your energy and you are exhausted most of the time.

The last group of ladies I want to include here are those of you who are estranged from your children, those whose children have left and you have no idea where they are or they are living a lifestyle that is far from you and even farther from the Lord. They may be in an addictive lifestyle or they may be in prison.

Mother’s Day is not a good day for you to say the least. You hurt and the thought of facing the day, a day filled with cards and flowers, cheery greetings and gifts is just unbearable.

Because I’m writing this too you, you can know that your Heavenly Father knows your heart, He knows your pain. He wants to comfort you. There are two verses that immediately come to mind

“If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. 29 Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest.” Matthew 11:28-29 CEV

“for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] 6 So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5b-6 AMP

Your Father knows your heart and how it’s breaking, He is here to heal it and to give you comfort. You are not alone!

“God blesses those people who grieve. They will find comfort!” Matthew 5:4 CEV

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Labor Pains

With Mother’s Day almost here I know that Mom’s are reliving the day they gave birth to their children. Some had easy deliveries and some can go on and on about the agonies of child birth. However, the one thing we can probably all agree on is that overwhelming flood of love that filled out hearts when our babies were placed in our arms.

The pain associated with the birth experience seemed to fade away as we held that precious one for the very first time!

Kind of reminds me of Jesus…yes, Jesus. The writer of Hebrews tells us in chapter 12 that He endured the cross for the joy that was set before Him.

“We must keep our eyes on Jesus, who leads us and makes our faith complete. He endured the shame of being nailed to a cross, because he knew that later on he would be glad he did. Now he is seated at the right side of God’s throne! 3 So keep your mind on Jesus, who put up with many insults from sinners. Then you won’t get discouraged and give up.” Hebrews 12:2-3 CEV

Let me ask you, are you enduring a cross right now? Is there something in your life that is causing you pain? Maybe you are under attack from the enemy and he is trying to steal, kill and destroy or it could be that you have been disobedient to what you know God wants for you and your own disobedience has created some very unpleasant circumstances.

I can guarantee if you will look to Jesus for your help and your deliverance, you will come through this with joy! You may have tears and labor pains now but joy of new life, a life of depending on Him, will wipe all that away.

“Lord, you lifted me out of my troubles. You did not give my enemies a reason to laugh so I will praise you. 2 Lord my God, I prayed to you, and you healed me. 3 Lord, you lifted me out of the grave. I was falling into the place of death, but you saved my life. 4 Praise the Lord, you who are loyal to him! Praise his holy name! 5 His anger lasts for a little while, but then his kindness brings life. The night may be filled with tears, but in the morning we can sing for joy! 6 When I was safe and secure, I thought nothing could hurt me. 7 Yes, Lord, while you were kind to me, I felt that nothing could defeat me. But when you turned away from me, I was filled with fear. 8 So, Lord, I turned and prayed to you. I asked you, Lord, to show me mercy. 9 I said, “What good is it if I die and go down to the grave? The dead just lie in the dirt. They cannot praise you. They cannot tell anyone how faithful you are. 10 Lord, hear my prayer, and be kind to me. Lord, help me!” 11 You have changed my sorrow into dancing. You have taken away my sackcloth and clothed me with joy. 12 You wanted me to praise you and not be silent. Lord my God, I will praise you forever!” Psalm 30 CEV

Thank you Lord that you give us joy, hope and peace. Thank you for brining us through labor with renewed purpose and new life!

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