Me and My Big Mouth

There is a scripture in the Bible that talks about using our mouths to praise the Lord and speak bad of Him at the same time. The two just don’t mix, they don’t go together, and they don’t belong together.



This is true also of how we talk to or about others as well. It’s not good that we use our mouth to ask our parents for all the things we want and then yell at them the next time for not getting it our way.


We need to use our mouths to praise the Lord and our parents as well. To honor them as God tells us to. We may not agree with what God or our parents are doing but we can always find things to be thankful for and praise them.


Things to be thankful for:
The home they furnish us to live in
The electricity that they pay for
The phone they have that you can use
Transportation to and from school and everywhere else
Tiredlessness nights of working extra hours to pay bills and feed their families
The shampoo in the bathroom, the food in the kitchen
The free smile they have for
The comfort they supply when needed
A needed hug to tell you you’re still love when you make mistakes
The advice they handout that often came to them thru hard lessons they are trying to keep you from going through
The treat they bless you with once in awhile no matter how big or small

Showing respect to others is an important characteristic we need to develop. We are without excuse. We can’t blame the kid down the street or the adult at the store for not having it so we don’t need it either. We need to be responsible for our own actions because when we stand before Jesus some day we are the only ones that will be required to answer for the idle, bad, hateful, rude, thoughtless words we once said or for even those we should have said.


We need to turn our big mouths into one that is full of encouraging words of admiration, esteem, admiration for our parents and God instead of the “give me, give me world” we try to live in.


God knows it’s not easy to control the tongue but He knows it is possible. Our tongue is connected to the things we store in our hearts. If we store selfishness, hatred, anger, resentment, and bitterness that is what is going to come out on our tongue.


Take control of your tongue now before it takes control over you. Life isn’t as bad as we make it out to be so stop dwelling on the negative and look for the good. Where would I be today if I continued to dwell on the hatred I had for the girl who caused my epilepsy. I’ll tell you where, I would still be having stress seizures and never would have been declared “not disabled” anymore. My cancer and the pain I feel every hour of the day gives me a target to dwell on the negative of “Why me?” but where does that get me? Only further in pain in my spirit as well as my body.

Stop! Think first. Speak second. Think about what you say before you say it and you’ll be amazed at the stuff you can cut out of your life giving you peace within and a happiness that can’t be bought with money or material things.


Make a list of the good things you have going for you in your life. Yes there are some if you would truly look. Read it frequently when Satan starts to lead you down the path of ungratefulness. Use your tongue to encourage others not as a weapon to hurt.






Good things in my life:
My cancer is in remission
I have a job
I have a family that cares, a husband that supports me thru all my life’s challenges
I love the color of the blue sky with the blanket of green grass underneath it
I can walk and talk on my own
I have free smiles to give away
I am rich not because of money but because of Jesus being in my life
My house isn’t a mansion or a million dollar estate but it keeps me warm and safe and it’s full of love
I have parents who have worked very hard to achieve what they have for me and the family
My daughter is a hardworking woman passing on to her children the blessings a mom has to offer
My grandkids are tucked away in my heart in a warm and caring spot that longs to see them know Jesus as I know Jesus


The list goes on because I keep adding to it, looking for things to put on it. That is what you need to be doing with your big mouth, listing the good and waiting patiently for the bad in your life to get better. Bad times are used to make us grow, to teach us what we need to learn, to get our attention so we will pay attention to our teacher, Jesus Christ. Instead of asking “why me?” use your mouth to ask “What can learn from this?”

Hard times are the classrooms where we learn the most. They are not a weapon to be used to beat someone over the head with wondering why they put us through what they did, or why didn’t they do this or that for us….why….why….why?


Nope, we need to change our why to what. Our out of control mouth to a controlled tongue. An ungrateful heart to a thankful heart. Do this and you’ll be way ahead of a lot of adults and you will find a peace in your spirit that is awesome and long-lasting.






They Call Me, Grandma

Life is Short

“Our time on earth is just a scratch compared to what God has for us to enjoy in eternity”


When I was first diagnosed with breast and bone cancer the first lesson my husband and I had to learn was the fact that life is short. We are given only so much time on earth and since we don’t know when our time is up then we better make use of it. Not knowing if my cancer was going to take my life instantly or if I was going to be allowed a few more years I figured I better not waste time.

Too often we think that because life is short we need to hurry up and party, live it up, experience all the joys we can before it ends. Our theory is, “we only live once.” The problem with this thinking is leaving out the part that after our journey here on earth comes eternity. The God of the Bible, the God of creation, who is the God of our Savior Jesus Christ tells us we have two places we get to choose from, heaven or hell. How we live our life on earth determines which place we get to go to live forever and ever.

Its something that needs to be taken seriously, don’t waste your life trying to experiment with life. You need to live it properly to the point it takes you into the eternity of your choice. The joys the world has to offer are only a scratch compared to what God has for us to enjoy for all eternity in Heaven. They can’t compare, one is temporary the other is permanent. One is short lived, the other we live forever.

I would love my family to enjoy the fun of Disneyland. I’ve been there once but they never have. It would be great to see my grandkids experience what I got to experience. I know they would love it. However, if it happens it will only be one weekend of joy and laughter. A bigger goal and wish for me is for them to enjoy the pleasure of following God into eternity. When they do that I know it will be more than a weekend splurge, it will be something that will last forever. The laughter and joy, excitement and thrill will be there forever and ever, indeed more than a scratch, more than a glimpse of our short life here.

Amen! Amen! Amen! Praise the Lord



They Call Me, Grandma

What we can learn from each other

  Looking at these two young characters I can see why God tells us we need to become like little children to be saved. These two in their young years haven't learned how to mistrust yet, they play as if they enjoy life, they don't know the meaning of drama yet. They are innocent in their political views, and they easily believe what they are told. They haven't yet decided they can do what they want with their bodies in spite of the consequences of it.

God wants us to come to Him as little kids such as these. People who haven’t learned how to mistrust yet, who live as if they enjoy the life God has given them, who are free from the influences and need for drama in their lives. People who are innocent in their views of life, who easily believe and accept what God tells us in His Bible. People who are willing to use their body as God’s holy temple instead of something they can destroy at their own will.

Indeed people who know how to follow and are willing to hold on to the hand that will lead them through life, the hand of Jesus Christ. All it takes is a little faith and the willingness to think of someone other than yourself. The Bible is our map, Jesus is our guide, the road to heaven is narrow but we can make the journey thanks to the Light of Jesus.

Come. Come today as a little child ready to accept Christ, willing to travel on a journey that beats all journeys.



They Call Me, Grandma

King

In Sunday school today we made crowns. It was to go along with our story of Solomon. He was one of many kings in the Bible. The true lesson to be learnt regarding the crown is to learn who is king of your life. It should be Jesus. Too often we try to wear His crown ourselves and it just doesn't work.

Kneeling Side-By-Side Together Forever in Prayer

This weekend together my granddaughter Brooke and I made a prayer pillow to kneel on. What a wonderful thing it is to kneel side-by-side in prayer to our Lord God. What a blessing it is in our own humbleness to kneel before God together, forever and ever.

Prayer is our avenue to Heaven to keep in close contact and develop our most intimate relationship with the Lord. It was through the shed blood of Jesus that swung open the door to the throne giving us access to our God via prayer and the Holy Spirit.

Prayer is not the road taken to get what we want whenever we want it. It is the path developed to link us to God. It’s not a wish list conveyer belt with a return shoot quicker than quick. It is our communication with God, our path to peace, strength, guidance, wisdom, and so much more.

God tells us in the Bible that some day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. We can do it now or wait till judgment day when sentences are handed out according to our choices on earth.

Waiting is good for the enemy and bad for us. Now is the time to humble ourselves before the Lord in surrender. The short time on earth that we have has no comparison to the moments of eternity in Heaven we can have with the Lord if we so choose.



Side-by-side, together, forever. Join us!



They Call me, Grandma

What's the Point

As I went to pick up my grandkids for church one Sunday morning running out of the house was only one kid. “Where is everyone else?” I asked. “They didn’t see the point in coming,” was the reply I got.

“The point?” The fact is a life without Jesus is like an unsharpened pencil…..there is no point. It’s hard to get people to understand especially 7, 10, 11, 14 years olds the fact that the greatest effects of reading the Bible and attending church are often silent, quiet and hard to detect at the time they are being produced.

The point of going to church and reading our Bible is to worship God, to learn about Him, to get spiritually fed so we grow up to be the children we are meant to be in Christ. The point isn’t to be entertained, catered to, and served.

The Bible is our love letter from God preparing us for the time in which we will see Him face-to-face. It guides us where we need guidance, it strengthens us when we are feeling weak. Going to church reinforces that in our lives as we surround ourselves with fellow Christians trying to reach the same goals.

The church isn’t by far the “perfect” place because it’s filled with people, people like you and me that are far from perfect. You go there to try and become perfect not because you already are. Believe it or not we are all born sinners; we all fall short of God’s glory. Reading our Bible and going to church helps take care of those shortcomings or at least it should with the right attitude and discipline.

They both work together to keep us on the right road to Heaven. A road we are told in the Bible is narrow. As much as we would like to make it wider and wider thinking God accepts anything and anyone as long as they’re “good people” doesn’t work.

God has His path, He has pointed to Christ as the door we need to enter thru via our faith and obedience in Him. The point is getting to know Him so that some day when we stand before Him He can’t say, “I never knew you! Get out of here!”

No, the words we should strive to hear from Him are, “I know you. You were a steadfast, well disciplined, determined servant; a true friend on earth. Someone I noticed was always seeking even when the road grew dark and rough. Come in, good and faithful servant.”

That’s the point! Getting to know God and being obedient to His word.


They call me grandma



© 2012 Karen J Gillett @ Pencil Marks and Recipes Publishing

Jesus Loves You

For today I want to go back to the basics. The basic of the news that Jesus loves us.

I can add all the photos I want but we just need to know that Jesus loves us.

The next part is up to us. We have to believe. We have to accept the fact that He is the one who is the King of our lives.

Instead of photos I need to put up a mirror for all to look into and see themselves. This picture I took has me in the mirror. It's sideways because no matter how hard I tried to stand it up it just wouldn't happen. It's saved upright on my computer but comes out sideways here.

Any way the point is who is in the mirror. We need to be looking in to find ourselves and know that we are loved by God, it doesn't matter who is in the image of the mirror we all have a chance at His inheritance and love. We will find in our lives that no matter how hard we try there will be some things about us that we just can't straighten out. "We" ourselves can't but with the help of God it is possible.

It doesn't matter if our image is upside down or sideways. God has ways to "straighten" us out and get us where we need to be. We don't get the option of staying where we are without spiritual growth. A newborn baby doesn't get that option to stay little forever although many parents wish they would, they weren't designed to stay the same.

Spiritually we are not either. Praise the Lord we don't have to straighten up before we accept Him into our lives but afterwards we have our part to play. The part of believing, trusting, following, and being obedient to our Lord and Savior. Reading His word daily, getting it embedded into our lives and praying frequently to keep in touch with our Creator, God.

If we stick with God no matter what the journey the perfection in Him will come.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world He gave His one and only Son that whosoever beleives in Him shall have everlasting life." Don't stop at this verse there are many more that goes with it that show us what part we play in the process. John 3:16 is the key that starts the machine rolling, there are other parts that help us to go forward in the right direction.