Love Letter

When was the last time you received a love letter? You know the kind, intimate and beautiful. It was so special that you tucked it away as a keepsake. It is a letter that defines “the perfect love”. We all hunger in our hearts for a love that will last, unconditional, never wavering. A love that will never leave you wanting for more or leave you feeling insecure. 

God has written in His Great Love Letter a message to you that is worthy of tucking away to read again and again. Through the prophet Isaiah, God tells you that you are precious, honored, and loved. That you were chosen by our Creator, He has called you by name and you are His. You are chosen to know Him and believe in Him. He promises when you go through rivers of difficulty you will not drown and He will never leave you. 

“You are precious to me”. When was the last time you called someone precious? The word itself evokes thoughts of tenderness and affection. 

“You are honored”. He honors you despite your imperfections. He places you in authority over His creation and when you get to Glory, He will place you in authority over His heavenly kingdom.

“I love you”. Most of all, you are loved so much that He sacrificed His only son for you. This is a love that can fill any gap or hunger you may have.

Chosen, honored, precious, and loved. These words are an intimate message, a love letter to you from your God. Tuck it away.

Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. Isaiah 43:1

The Little Messes

Have you ever had one of those mornings? It’s 4 am, I’m sound asleep when suddenly I’m awaken by the sound of my golden retriever heaving. I jump out of bed because I know what’s coming! I’m screaming “Hurry Tobe, hurry, hurry!” By the time I fumble with the lock of the back door, it’s too late, he hurls it all over the floor, then  feeling better, goes back to bed. I turn the light on to clean the mess up only to find my  husband, completely oblivious to the drama, sleeping with a smile on his face. For a nano second I think evil thoughts about the barf in my hand. (But only for a moment ya’ll .... I would never, really).

That started my day. When aggravation finds me, it tends to stay awhile, then I find myself noticing all those irritating things going wrong. It’s the little stuff in life that usually gets under your skin and causes a very unchristian-like attitude to erupt from within. I  believe it’s because we think we can handle the little stuff ourselves. But when I’ve had enough I am inclined to want to complain to God. Then I stop, take a moment to regroup, or maybe God speaks to my heart right about this time. If I’ve never questioned God about my blessings, then I shouldn’t question Him about my troubles. My blessings far outweigh any troubles I will ever have on this earth. Oh how quickly we forget that. There is a great line in a song by Francesca Battistelli which says “in the middle of my little mess, I forget how big I’m blessed”. Isn’t that true?

It doesn’t matter today if you are facing little messes or huge crises, God is with you! He loves you and blesses you every day. Look for it! In the middle of your mess, realize how you are blessed!


Surely you have granted him unending blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence. Psalm 21:6

Caution: Under Reconstruction!

On most days I drive on a highway near my house that is under construction. I face constant road blocks, detours and rough spots, causing frustration and impatience rising up inside of me. I must endure this for a while knowing that when it is completed it will be worth it. The highway will be smoother and faster to my destination.

When I became a believer, God made a highway through this heart of mine that is an ongoing reconstruction job. To build a highway requires raising up the lows places and leveling out the high ones. Likewise, he raises the valley of my low spots of despair and discouragement and levels the mountain of pride and ego. All the crooked places of deception and dishonesty he reveals to me, making it smooth. He is not through with me yet, but on that day of completion, it will be worth it.

And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness;
   it will be for those who walk on that Way. Isaiah 35:8

  Father God, thank you for loving me enough to not leave me as you found me, but are molding me more like you.  

Changing Life Plans Part Two Emotions

God is taking you on a unplanned (by you) or unwanted journey. You have had your wrestling match and thankfully, He won. Trusting in God is allowing you to move forward. But this doesn’t negate how you feel during the process. Yes you are moving forward but it may be kicking and screaming on the inside.

This was a personal discovery for me. We are selling our house to downsize. This was not the long range plan however we both agreed it was the right thing to do. I keep my chin up, wear my big girl panties, and act reasonable about it. I didn’t realize how it was eating me up until I shared a disturbing dream I had with my kids. In this dream, I was part of a Jewish family living in Germany during WWII. The Nazis forced us from our home and sent us to a concentration camp. My kids both looked at me and realized why I dreamed this before I could utter another word! I was internalizing my grief over selling my home!

It doesn’t matter what kind of change you experience, it is important to grieve the loss. It could be a home, a job, a loved one, or an old way of life that was very comfortable. It is healthy to let those tears flow, God gave you this. Go ahead and grieve, it won’t last forever. For He is waiting at the end of this change with great plans for you!

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 1 Peter 5:10

Changing Life Plans Part One Desires of My Heart

I want to emphasize that the reason I call this blog site Real Faith in Real Life is because we can “know” all the truths in God’s Word, recite scripture from heart, and sing praises to Him with our voices. But until we experience Him through life and it’s complexities, our “knowing” is strictly superficial.

The greatest way to experience Christ is when your life plans and His life plans for you aren’t the same. Sadly it’s not the way we want to grow in our faith-walk but this is when the rubber meets the road.

Scripture tells us to share with our Heavenly Father the desires of our heart. Pour your desires for you, your family, your life plans out to God, but remember, to end that prayer with the prayer that never fails “Not mine but your will be done”. I have found that the desires of my heart will eventually change to meet His desires for me when I trust that which I cannot see. That’s faith.

Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a Light unto my path. Psalms 119:105

When I was a little girl, I remember our Preacher saying God’s light for us is sometimes like the headlights on our car. On a dark night, it may show you just enough view to drive a few yards. You keep going the direction the light tells you to. On our faith journey, we may not have all the answers to what is going to happen down the road, but I believe He gives us just enough Light to take the next step, faith for the next step, trust for the next.

Will you start this year off by taking a step of faith? Trust when you are too scared to move, and have faith when you just can’t see.

My daddy. He doesn't recognize me anymore.  I looked into his eyes and knew he was confused about who was looking back at him.  He heard my voice and called out my name, "Deb!" I went to him and touched his delicate, bruised hand that was covered with a band aid from his fall. He recognized my voice but when he looked at me all he saw was a grown woman staring at him, not his little girl. Confusion gave way to sadness.
Growing older is an oddity. My eyes (and my mind) are not as sharp as they used to be and gravity is causing everything to slide south! But instead of a mid-life crises, I am experiencing a mid-life awakening. The beauty of watching my children turn into young adults I am proud of. The resposibility of taking care of my parents as much as I can from a distance, and celebrating twenty-five years of marriage to a boy I had a crush on from church back in high school. I can face all these changes in my life when I trust every step of this journey to be taken with my Lord and Savior. For trusting is not a destination but a life long pursuit that will bring great joy along the way. Trusting that no matter how difficult this journey may be, God has purpose in the pain, the laughter, and yes, in growing old.
No matter how old I get, I will always be Daddy's little girl. There are a few things in life that don't change!


Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, acknowledge Him in everything you do and He will direct your path. Proverbs 3:5-6

The Precious Present

  The stockings were hung by the chimney with care.....

Decorating the tree is  equivalent to opening a treasure chest of yesterdays.

As I placed each ornament on the tree, my hand touched a memory that took me back to an earlier time; our first Christmas together, the baby’s first Christmas, ornaments from places we visited. 

At Christmas we tend to look back, become nostalgic, sometimes sad. Our thoughts can also jump to the future with worry and uncertainty. In all this we can miss today, the gift God gives us this present day. Yesterday is behind us, tomorrow will take care of itself. Today is a gift. When I was a teenager, I was given the gift of a book The Precious Present. I pull this book off my shelf this time of year to remind myself where I need to be. There is a beautiful line in it that reads:

 “The present is who you are

 just the way you are....

right now.

And it is precious. 

You are precious.” 

Christ is also our Precious Present for He is our gift today and for all our days through eternity.  This Christmas I hope you will unwrap God’s gifts to you through your faith in Jesus Christ. And may the Peace of Christ reign in your heart today. In the true sense of the Hebrew word for peace, shalom, may you have completeness and a quietness of the soul.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—Ephesians 2:7-9
 

Grace and Peace this present day,