And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. – (1 John 2:17)

One of my favorite Christian songs is the song “Thank You” by Ray Boltz. The reason why it is my favorite song is because it pretty much covers how thankful I am for the people who have and are a part of my life. (Click Here to Listen to the song “Thank You” )

I am a firm believer that everyone has pivotal times in their lives that has made them the way they are. Dixie and Harry Myers has got to be one of my top 5 pivotal moments.  The song that perfectly describes how much the Myers impacted my life. I have done a couple of blogs over the years that I have used this song as an example and I believe each time it was when I have discussed Pastor Harry and Dixie Myers.

Dixie Myers went home to be with the Lord on January 24, 2018. I can only imagine what the reunion was life for Dixie and Harry.  Click here for her obituary…

My Memories of Dixie Myers

Our family moved to Willcox, AZ around 1978 and it was during that time that I happened upon the Willcox Church of the Nazarene. Pastor Harry Myers and Dixie were there. I don’t think i happened upon the church accidentally. I feel that God directed me to the church.

I was only 13 yrs old when I first met the Myers family. Dixie is the lovely wife of Pastor Harry Myers, who went home to be with the Lord on January 28th, 2018.  She is more than just the pastor’s wife to me and probably to many more. She was the role model that I desperately needed at that point in my life. I wasn’t raised in a Christian home and she helped me to become the best mom and Christian woman I could be. I can’t imagine what my life would have been like had it not been for the Myers Family.

From the moment I walked into the church, I felt like I was home. I actually chose the church I go to now because of the Willcox Church of the Nazarene.

Dixie made me feel welcome and loved. I don’t know if she really knew what was going on in my home life at the time,  but Harry and Dixie and their family impacted my life forever and still does. This is why when I think about the song, “Thank You”, I can’t help but think about how that song was written about them. Their entire family served the Lord happily.

Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am a life that was changed
Thank you for giving to the Lord
I am so glad you gave

Their daughter Diana was a good friend of mine, so I would hang out at their house a lot. In my other blog I go into more details.  Diana and I hung out a lot and most of the time it was at their house. My parents didn’t allow friends to come over. Diana played the piano and sung at church. Dixie was the choir leader, pianist, teacher and whatever else she had to do.

While I was over at the house, Dixie was doing what many mothers would be doing. She would be cooking all kinds of yumminess in their kitchen. Anytime I was there, they made sure to include me in whatever they were doing.  I don’t think I would ever go home hungry if I was over there. I didn’t really eat much at my home, so it was nice to be able to experience what real families do.

Dixie was a good listener as well and would take the time to really pay attention to what I was saying. I think that is a lost art. Most of the world has the “me” syndrome. If I was being a brat and doing something wrong, she had no problem telling me that.  I think all of the Myers were that way. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t thank the Lord for putting them in my lives.

One of the times that Dixie gave me a what for was right before church started. She was the choir leader among other things. I come walking into the church with a dress that was much shorter than what I should have been wearing at church. I was also barefooted with shoes in hand. She took me aside and asked me if I thought the dress I was wearing was appropriate for being in the choir lol. I sat where at the front of the choir since I was shorter. At least I think it was for that reason lol. But, either way, my dress was way too short. If you have seen pictures of dresses from the 70’s, that’s what I had on. Needless to say I didn’t wear that dress again 🙂

As I look back on my memories of Dixie, I guess the most profound thing about her was her love for God and for people. She demonstrated compassion for others. The compassion she had for me is something I will never forget. She showed me that we should be there for others even if we don’t feel like it. Dixie taught me that I should be giving to others even if I didn’t want to. It was a hard lesson, but a very important one.  She taught me that while I didn’t have an ideal family life, that I can still be the person that God intended me to be.

Dixie also taught me how to forgive and how to treat my kids and others with love and kindness. I was able to tell her how grateful I was for her life lessons. She made sure that those around her knew they were loved. Even when she was upset or mad, she still expressed her love by giving genuine hugs and telling them that she loved them. They weren’t just words, her actions demonstrated how much she honestly loved people and her kids.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection. I am life. The person that believes in me will have life {again} after he dies. And the person that lives and believes in me will never really die. Martha, do you believe this?” John 11:25-26 NLT

 

I have been working on an article about the dangers of pornography and how porn destroys marriages. While I was working on this article, my thoughts began to wonder. My thoughts were on how people like my friend whose marriage was destroyed because of porn and her ex’s decisions make it though these life changing events.

I’m not sure about you, but I use the phrase, ” I hope things work out” or that “we always have hope”. As I thought about these statements as I was working on the dangers of pornography article, I realized that for many people hope isn’t real.

My sister Joyce and my friend who ended up divorced because her spouse made the decision to turn her life and her children’s life upside down over porn and cheating on her. When you have someone who is feeling hopeless and alone, they have a difficult time helping themselves out of their situations. They have a great sense of loss and helplessness. That’s when it is important to bring them the good news of Jesus Christ and all that Jesus Christ has to offer them.

John 10:10 NIV- The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

I don’t know about you, but I know I have felt hopeless and alone.One of the biggest problems we have in the world is that there are millions of people who are dealing with sickness, financial problems, political concerns, family problems ect. It doesn’t matter where you live in the world, there is going to be woes. It’s as if there is no hope in the world.

For myself, without God, this world is a place that is filled with hopelessness. But, with God, we can make it. No matter what is going on in your life or whatever situation you are dealing with, there is hope. You may not be able to see it while you are going through your situation, but there is hope.

I was rereading some of my blog posts from a number of years ago. I was just done with it. I felt there was no hope and if God took me home to be with Him, I would be OK with that. Also during that time, I wasn’t putting all of my hope and trust in the Lord. A friend of mine who I haven’t talked to in a number of years pointed out to me that I wasn’t trusting in the Lord. I wanted to control my situation. She was right. I wasn’t trusting in Him.

I was wallowing in self-pity and it was only because of God that I was able to find my way out and to find hope. He also put the right people in my life to help me. I couldn’t do it alone. You may not be able to see or feel the hope, but it is there for you. How do we find the hope? There is only one place where hope can be found, and that is in Jesus Christ.

As I was working on the pornography article and I started thinking about the word “hope”, I found some pretty awesome Bible verses.  David found himself dealing with some pretty difficult situations and was loosing hope. He needed to be reminded that hope is very real and it comes from God.  Psalms are packed with awesome Bible verses about hope. Here are a few Bible verses about hope:

Psalms 39:7 NIV “But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you.”

Psalms 42:11 NIV “Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”

Psalms 33:18 NIV “But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,”

Psalms 119:49 NIV– Remember your word to your servant,  for you have given me hope.

Trusting in God has been a hard thing for me. I always thought I fully trusted Him, that was until my friend told me that I was still trying to control my life and that I wasn’t fully trusting God. At first I wanted to throw her out of my house. How dare she tell me that I wasn’t trusting in the Lord. I thought she had some nerve. But, she was telling me the hard truth. A friend doesn’t just tell you what you want you want them to hear, a real friend tells you the truth. God wants us to fully and 100 percent to trust Him.

I  was trusting in myself and my own choices that I was derailing my life. It wasn’t a good thing. As I consider my relationship with my sister and my friend, I have felt that even if they got upset with what I had to say, it is better to be truthful.

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV– For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Because of the choices that my friends ex husband made, she is now a single mom. She has had more than her share of disappointments and feels alone. But, she can still have hope. My sister has also had more than her share of loss and disappointments.

God will send the right person into her life. When I’m needing to find encouragement and I grab my Bible. I will ask God to direct me to the Words that I need the most. So, I close my eyes and open my Bible up.

When I have opened up the Bible in need of hope, it never fails to amaze me that He directs me to the right Bible verse and the words encourage me and ignites the flames of hope that have been hidden deep inside my heart.

Paul writes in Romans these words of encouragement:

Romans 5:5 NIV “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

Romans 15:4 NIV “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

Hope is real. God offers Words of Hope for our lives and your situations. Words of hope that He has given us and are found in the Bible.  I have these verses on my prayer wall. When I wake up, I see the verses and I see the printout of “Trust God”. I have had these on my wall ever since my friend told me that I need to be trusting God more than relying on myself. Hope Is Real. It comes from God!

Psalms 31:24 NIV- Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.

Isaiah 40:31 NIV-  but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Romans 12:12 NIV – “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Romans 8:24 NIV – ” But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.”

Psalms 119:74 NIV May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my hope in your word.

In closing I just want to say that whatever it is that you are going through to take it to Jesus. If there is someone in your life that is in need of hope, share Words of encouragement that can only be found in the Bible.

Romans 15:13 NIV- May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

 

1 Samuel 30:6 (NIV)  David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.    

We are told throughout the Bible that God wants us to choose him as our Him as our source of hope and strength when things in our life get hard to handle. What I have found is that when I fully relied on God when I face is that He will carry me through the most difficult situation.

Trusting in God during your trials and difficulties;

5. “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

I was having a conversation with a friend of mine who felt like she should give up because she was going through a difficult period in her life. Her marriage isn’t in a good place.  She was beyond frustrated and she was tired and worn out. I didn’t and still don’t have the right words to help her understand that everything will be fine and that God is always there for her.

As I searched for the right words for her, I got to thinking about David. David felt like giving up.  He was frustrated throughout his life because of the decisions he made. David made horrible mistakes that affected those around him. He was able to strengthen himself in the Lord.

I don’t know about you, but there have been many times that I have made bad choices. My bad choices not only hurt myself, but they hurt others as well. Not all of the problems we face in our life because of our own bad choices and decisions, but some are. David found out that when he faced problems in his life that God is the only one he could turn to. He also realized how awesome God’s loving grace is.

Davids life was for sure not going as he planned. In the Bible it talks about how Davids army was captured. His wife was were captured taken and pretty much everyone around him was upset with David. Those in his army had no strength and wept.

David was distressed and found strength in the Lord.  We can all learn from David.  He didn’t know what to do, so he prayed to God and asked for his help and  for direction, and God answered his prayers.  David did as God instructed him to do and his men was rescued and so was their families and belongings. David made it a point to acknowledge that it was God who protected them.

As I was talking to my friend and David came to mind, God spoke to my heart as well. I have made many poor choices. I am a stubborn woman who wants to do things my way. Let me tell you right now, doing things my way is not the way to go. My bad choices not only made things harder for me, but it has been harder for those around me. But, the most awesome thing is that God wants us to trust in Him.

“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?”(Jeremiah 32:27)

If you have never made the decision to turn to Jesus Christ, now is a good time to do that. If you feel like your life is spinning out of control and you want to give up, now is a good time to trust in Jesus Christ. If you feel like you have no strength and you just can’t do it anymore, now is a good time to trust in Jesus Christ.  If you are trying to manage everything on your own or trying to cope with bad behavior, now is a good time to Trust in Jesus Christ.  Jesus wants us to find the truth. He will carry us through our battles and situations like He did with David, all you have to do is ask and trust in Him.

“Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.”(Deuteronomy 31:6)

We are told in the Bible that God wants us to put our trust in Him when we are in need of strength. My own personal experience has shown me that even during difficult times and situations that He has carried me through. If you have relied on God in the past, remember those times and put your trust in Him again.

When we are facing trials, we forget or at-least I forget that God knows everything.  I am a control freak and I want to be the one in charge. But, the reality is that God is the One in charge of my present and He is in charge if my future. It just makes sense that we would let Him guide us since He knows infinitely more about our lives than we do. We don’t have to ponder the thought of if we will have trials; we are told to expect them. Thankfully we won’t be facing them alone. God is always there for us and making sure things are OK.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

I don’t know about you, but I spend a lot of time trying to figure out what it is that I need to do next. We humans have a way of leaning on everything and everyone else but God. In Proverbs 3:5-6 we are assured that if we lean on God, He will direct us. He will make our path straight. There isn’t a path that God cannot make straight.  

Since I am getting close to writing a book on this subject, I just want to end this by saying that trials have a way of wearing us down. There may be times when you feel like you can’t take another step and that you can’t make it. Satan whispers in our ears that we won’t make it and that we are alone. He has a way of bringing up our past mistakes like he did with David. The truth is that God will give us all the strength we need. He will help us and hold us up when we need Him the most. Everything will be OK if we put our trust in the Lord.

“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

Many of us have done what David did. And some of us are still doing it.  For myself, I have made more than my share of mistakes. The good news is that when we are ready to turn things around, God is there and He loves you and all you have to do is ask. He doesn’t just sit there and watch us making stupid choice, He protects us and delivers us out of it.

“Cast your burden upon the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” (Psalm 55:22)

God is there for us and He is our rescuer.  When we call out to Him, He will respond. He won’t just let us sit there and drown. When we acknowledge that we need Him, He is there to protect us and deliver us out of the troubles we have gotten ourselves out of. In my life I have had many struggles and most of the time it is my own doing. But, the awesome thing is that He still blesses me and He will bless you, all you have to do is ask. We just need to call on Him.

A Prayer for Hard Times 

Lord, help us when we face the many trials we face each day and in our lives. Would you give us the strength to get through whatever difficulties we are going through together as only you can make the impossible possible. Lord Jesus, help us call on You, knowing that You are always there for us and that You always hear us. Help us lean on You instead of leaning on our own understanding. You are aware of all things. Thank You Lord Jesus for not leaving us along. Thank You for your Love, Mercy and Grace.  We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

 

 

I had a company contact me last week and wanted me to build a website for them. I actually think they wanted me to work for them and they have been looking for webmasters/developers.

They seen the website that I did for my church. I explained to them that I don’t build website for other people. I did my churches St.George Community Church,  New Covenants, and a few for friends. He asked me how much I charged for my churches website and I told him I don’t charge my church for anything I do and I refuse to make money on the site since I would feel like I was charging God. It is my way to give back to God.

He let me know that with the quality of the website and the graphics I create, I could have easily charged my church a minimum $15,000. Just for a simple update and that could be 1 word or a paragraph, I could make a minimum of $50.00. Which is true. I use to build other websites and I would charge $45.00 for a simple update. Sometimes that was just a telephone number or an address.

He continued on and on about how much I’m losing money wise since I do everything and anything that has to do with our website. He was actually ticking me off a bit by now. He was asking me about if I use templates for websites, which is basically a layout or do I do my own HTML. I told him I use a little of both. But, I always do my own coding when it comes to applications and such. I was wondering if I should just hang up on him or should I serve him some humble pie. So, humble pie it was.

I went on to explain to him that even if the website and the hundreds or thousands of hours I spend on creating a website for my church helps one person, than it is all worth it. There is no amount of money that is worth losing a soul for. I then let him know that by putting contact forms on our churches website, it allows people to contact us in case they need prayers. The person who is visiting our site might need a word or two of encouragement. You never know what someone is going through, but God does and there is no amount of money that could take the place of a person in need.

I told him that I know I could make a lot of money, but to me it isn’t worth it. He then asked me if I charge the church for the hosting and the domain and I told him no. He was shocked that anyone would do that. I got the idea that this man didn’t really do anything to help someone out and I don’t think he goes to church lol. I could be wrong, but I’m guessing I’m not wrong.

I have made it a point to not tell many what I donate to my church or what I do. I personally feel that when a person does that, they are tooting their own horns and it isn’t to glorify God. They are only doing that to get a pat on the back. There are only a handful of people at my church that knows what I do. I have been doing my churches website for many years and I’m fine with that. There have been some companies websites that I have built and I made a whole lot of money on them. Without a doubt I could have by now made over $40,000 when I take everything into consideration. But to me, I would never take a penny for anything I do for my church.

Most don’t know that I have never gone to school for anything that I do. The first time I sat down at the computer, I didn’t even know how to turn it on. I didn’t want a computer in my house. Then one day, my Dr’s told me I could never work again because of me having the CIPD variant of Guillian Barre Syndrome and I had Myasthenia Gravis. I knew I had Guillian Barre Syndrome but nothing else. I thought once I got better from Guillian Barre Syndrome, it would never come back. I was wrong big time. I have the chronic form with is the CIPD. I felt like I was never going to do anything positive in my life.

As I sat at the computer when my daughters were at school, I prayed for God to use me in some small way. I always did something. I felt worthless since I couldn’t work or anything. I was an usher at church which meant I passed the offering plate and I did a bunch of other things. When I asked God for a way to help others even though my body isn’t able to do the things I did before, it was like God was revealing an answer. Sitting in front of me was a computer. I was terrified of it since I had no idea how to turn it on or what a red x on the screen was.

Thankfully my daughter Jessica showed me a little bit. I found my way to a website called Angelhaven. I actually think it was my husband who told me about this website. I didn’t even know what a website was then. But, I found my way there and some of the people who I met in a chat-room taught me some of the things I needed to know about the computer. As I was praying and feeling sorry for myself and all of the things I couldn’t do, God put it on my heart to do something more with the computer. I honestly think that it was God who gave me the ability to build websites. He put the right people in my life at the time I needed them the most.

At that time, they didn’t have templates for websites. So, God basically showed me what I needed to do. I don’t know how many realize that in order for you to see what you see on a website, you have to use HTML. For example. If you want to have your text show up as black, it isn’t as simple as typing and it is there… This is just one way to have it where your text is black, <p style=”color:black;“>These fonts are black!</p>. Or sometimes instead of writing the color as black, you have a code which is #000000. So, instead of writing black, you will substitute the word black for #000000.  The picture above is the code that  I have on the front page of my churches website. Part of this code is also for the font which is “lucida sans“/

I had a local dentist that I bartered his website for dentistry. He thought I went to school to learn computer programming and building websites. When I told him that I’m self-taught he was surprised.

When I sat at the computer and prayed for God to use me in ways that I couldn’t think of, He took me literally. A I was praying and my hands on my keyboard, the answer was literally right there in front of me. I was able to share this with the guy who wanted me to build his website or to work for his company and he was shocked. Because of God’s gift, not only have I been able to help my church and to share with people all over the world, but I was able to witness to this man about why it is that I couldn’t take him up on his offer.

He still wanted me to do his site and told me that with my gift I could easily make thousands and thousands by building other people’s websites. I let him know that I’m doing fine and thanked him for his kind words, but that my gift is reserved for glorifying God, not myself or the world.

There are many things I have learned when it comes to building my churches website. It isn’t the actual time, money or anything else that is important. What’s important is that when I thought I couldn’t do anything that I use to do, God showed me that there are many ways I can give back. It wasn’t and isn’t about money for me. For me, it is about feeling useful and giving back. I love it when someone says that they found our church because of the website or the Facebook page that I did. The most important thing for me is that God found a way for me to do something. If God can teach me HTML codes and how to do websites, then anyone can find a way to reach out to those around us.

This man who contacted me didn’t understand that there are people out there who aren’t all about money. I should have asked him how he found my churches website, but that isn’t important. I’m just really honored and blessed that my church allows me to do what I do. There are many who worry that I do too much, but in my opinion, I don’t do enough. I could always do more. I want to thank everyone at my church for letting me give back. There are some who thinks I should do nothing, but that isn’t what God has in mind and I know I don’t.