Claim Your Heritage!

Are you a believer?
     We are children of the King....we aren't orphans, and we're not castoffs.We are God's children! He is living in us! and we are seated with Jesus at God's right hand~ in heaven even now! The enemy does his best to keep us ignorant of who we are. Wake up and claim your heritage!

Colossians 3:1-4
Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. ³ For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

~L K Mercer~

Praise

Lord, I used to try to find You and prayed for a word from You. Now every time I open Your word there You are! Your word opens and expands to me in such an amazing panorama!
     This morning to start my time with You I read in the Come Away My Beloved by Frances J. Roberts devotional. I thank You, Lord for the blessings that those writings are in my life.
     Today I read about praise and how when we praise You that Your power is opened into our life and we will walk in Your power and glory. That we will bring Your love and joy to the people we meet daily! Lord I want to be the blessing that You intend for me to be to a hurting world and an encouragement to those who are bowed under the weights of their lives.
     Even as I was reading in the devotional You stirred my mind to the verses that You inhabit the praise of Your people!
Psalm 22:3 ~  You sit as the Holy One. The praises of Israel are your throne.

With this being stirred in my spirit the next step was that I always want to be praising You!

Psalm 34~
 I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
² My soul will make its boast in the Lord;
The humble will hear it and rejoice.
³ O magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt His name together.

⁴ I sought the Lord, and He answered me,
And delivered me from all my fears.
⁵ They looked to Him and were radiant,
And their faces will never be ashamed.
⁶ This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him
And saved him out of all his troubles.
⁷ The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him,
And rescues them.

⁸ O taste and see that the Lord is good;
How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
⁹ O fear the Lord, you His saints;
For to those who fear Him there is no want.
¹⁰ The young lions do lack and suffer hunger;
But they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.
¹¹ Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
¹² Who is the man who desires life
And loves length of days that he may see good?
¹³ Keep your tongue from evil
And your lips from speaking deceit.
¹⁴ Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵ The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous
And His ears are open to their cry.
¹⁶ The face of the Lord is against evildoers,
To cut off the memory of them from the earth.
¹⁷ The righteous cry, and the Lord hears
And delivers them out of all their troubles.
¹⁸ The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the Lord delivers him out of them all.
²⁰ He keeps all his bones,
Not one of them is broken.
²¹ Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
²² The Lord redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned. 

 

Thank You Lord! I praise You, I love You and I will follow You always!

~L K Mercer~

Memories

     My mother is 85 years young, and she has some health issues but she still sounded peppy when I talked to her this morning on the telephone. While we were talking we touched on the subject of memories and how music can stir them. We touch memories very lightly and briefly so we don't both end up in a puddle of tears.
      I was sharing with my mother that it is surprising how a song out can stir memories that can not be avoided!
     She agreed and shared that just recently she heard another resident in her elderly housing situation singing, it was a man in another room and he started singing "You are my sunshine....my only sunshine..." as she heard the words she said she could see my father standing in front of her singing. They used to sing that song to each other and hearing the song instantly brought those memories back. This is such a sweet memory and I enjoyed hearing about it, so I'm sharing it here with you.

~L K Mercer~

Where We Are~

     We've been really quiet lately, haven't we? To bring us up to date we took a road trip in September to see Luke, in Wisconsin, and celebrate his birthday with him. It is amazing how much good it can do for your heart when you get to visit someone that you love! We had not seen Luke in such a long time and I loved getting to catch up with his life. We were able to see his new home, his work place and his whole world in general!  I did a lot of cooking while we were there too and tried to fix home cooking that I knew he would enjoy! While we were there we went back to some places we had enjoyed when we were there a couple of years ago, and we also explored some new areas. We found a barbecue restaurant, but had to drive what seemed like a long distance for it, all the way to Appleton! Barbecue is not as popular in Wisconsin as it is in Oklahoma or Missouri! We drove to Sheboygan to get a glimpse of the Great Lake Michigan again. To an Oklahoma girl it's amazing to see a lake as large as Lake Michigan and to the beach person in me, it has a feel to it like being at the ocean!
    
Here's some interesting info about the lake from Wikiepedia~
     Lake Michigan is the only one of the Great Lakes wholly within the borders of the United States; the others are shared with Canada. It has a surface area of 22,400 square miles, making it the largest lake entirely within one country by surface area and the fifth largest lake in the world. It is 307 miles long by 118 miles wide with a shoreline 1,640 miles long. Its it is connected to Lake Huron, through the Straits of Mackinac.

     Driving to Wisconsin from our area of Missouri takes us through a community of Amish, I always love getting a glimpse of their lives. We saw a young Amish couple in a wagon/buggy when we pulled off of the highway for a gasoline stop. The young man looked so serious and his wife also. I imagine it would be difficult to go to town and be stared at everywhere you go, but I think in their area the natives must get used to the different clothing and transportation ways. The young woman had a baby wrapped up and was holding it close, how much more wonderful it looked than the way a baby looks when it's strapped into a car seat and put behind the parents where they can't even touch it or see it! I would enjoy living a short time as the Amish do, the simplicity and naturalness calls to me.

     Before we went to Wisconsin to see my baby (=D), one of them anyways, I have two babies, and no matter how old they grow, they're still my babies! I made a quick dash to Oklahoma to see my mother, she was having a terrible weak spell and was in the hospital, I couldn't go anywhere until I had a chance to see her with my own eyes and make sure she was doing okay.
     Between the trip to Oklahoma and then to Wisconsin it took all of the "talk" out of me I suppose? Anyways, it was good to see, touch and hold! I came home and have been trying to settle back into my routine and getting back to writing. I never knew I would have any part of writing, but now I have so many things that I "need" to write about that I have to try to write notes to help me remember to get back to them!
     And now~ to the future, we're planning on a trip to hear Lane's Uncle Mark, officially John Mark Pool, speak at a church, River of Life Ministries, in Louisiana, MO. When he ministers at a location close enough to us we always try to catch it. John Mark and his wife Sandy are the ones that actually were God's instruments of pulling us out of the ditch and putting us back on the path that God has ordained us for!
     Then we'll return to Olathe, KS for the Forum on Monday and Tuesday and hopefully to have an early dinner with Kris, Laura and family for pizza!
     So......that's where we are!

Are You Drowning?

     I imagine most people have heard the story of the man in the flood. First the man, who lived in a low lying  area, was warned by radio and television  broadcasts that his area was going to be involved in a flood situation and that all residents needed to evacuate. The man prayed and asked God to protect Him.
     Then as the water started rising a four wheel drive truck went through the neighborhood with a loud speaker warning all residents that the water would soon be in their area and they needed to evacuate. The man confidently prayed and asked God to take care of him, he prayed and went about his business. As the water increased it started surrounding his house and all automobile evacuation was out of the question. Then luckily a boat rescue team went by his house to make sure everyone was evacuated and he told them that he was fine, that his God was going to rescue him, once more he prayed, "Lord, please save me". The team argued, pleaded and tried to convince him to leave with them, but he refused, waiting for God to rescue him.
     As the water continued to rise and creep up over his porch and into his house, the man climbed onto the top of his house and was even then faced with one more attempt by a rescue team in a helicopter. But the man in his stubbornness claimed again that he was waiting for God to save him.
     As the darkness of night fell on the man and he found himself stranded on top of his house with nothing but water circling around it, in desperation he cried out to God, "Why haven't You saved me?!". God spoke to the man and said "Each time you prayed I sent someone to help you".
     How often are we like that man? People in the world want to see God's hand moving, and they have but they don't recognize it. God's hand has moved ever since the beginning of the world.

•   He created the world! Yes, it wasn't by hand, but by word, but still, it was His accomplishment! We see the glory of Him in His creation, Each day we are able to see His glory in the heavens as the sun rises and sets, or even as the stars twinkle out at night. In His creation, if we have eyes that see, His glory shines forth.
•   He has been with His people ever since and even created a written document of His ongoing presence and relationship with people(in the Bible), He discloses His characteristics, man's characteristics and how we should relate to Him.
•   He put an emptiness in our hearts to seek Him, kind of like "ET phone home". Man from the beginning of time has sought a higher power beyond himself. Throughout the world man has tried to find meaning and purpose to their lives, understanding that there is more to this life than just living and dying.
•   Other people witness of His miracles and deeds in their lives. Great healings, provisions, dreams, visions, words. Many people share of the things God does in their lives, and yes, He chooses to respond differently in different lives. We can't expect to have exact duplications of other peoples experiences, we should just look to how God wants to respond to us.

     My main point here is that we are not in a position to tell God how to respond to our prayers. He is the creator, we are the creation! Should we pridefully require that our prayers be answered in the way we specify? If He responds by sending someone to help us, shouldn't we happily accept that answer to prayer? Or if He has reached out to us through His word, shouldn't we be studying it to hear His voice in our lives? Shouldn't we find a leader that can teach and speak God's word into our lives? We don't want to be like the man sitting on top of his house, with danger swirling around and refusing the help that our heavenly Father has sent to us throughout our days. Beloved, let's open our spiritual hearts, look around, recognize and take hold of the answers to our prayers that He has already loving sent into our lives. Read your bible, study it.....find a good Pastor and Teacher and support them with your respect and attendance.....don't wait for a great, heavenly hand to reach down and scoop you off of your roof.......He has already provided so much for you, grab hold, recognize and appreciate it!

~L. K. Mercer

The Future~

     This morning Lord I awoke and considered that my life used to be one that was routine. I even felt trapped in the repetitiousness of it. Now I see that some of it was quite comforting. The joy of watching season move to season, the comfort of family close by, the assurance of what to expect month by month and week by week. I am just as predictable as other people in wanting what I don't have! Then I wanted change, now I want routine.... I miss fitting in with my farm, I miss family, I miss the joy of the seasons...  Yet!!
     Yet all of this is worth giving up to pursue You. I would not go back to all of that and lose the relationship I have found with You.
     I don't know why I had to let it all go to find You, except that I had it wrapped so closely around me that there was no space left for You? Now I have simply the bare essentials of what I need, and You comfort me. When I cry out in loneliness You draw near, When I have questioned the next season, You have promised Your protection and provision. My home has become that place under Your wing. Thank You Lord!
     There is nothing that I have "needed" that I have had to do without- when I fretted about finances You asked "what have you done without?" and I saw that You had always provided! When I needed a doctor and hospital care, You provided - When we needed a tow truck, You brought "angels" - When we needed somewhere to live in a new town, You provided an expense free place -  When Lane needed a new job, You provided - When we needed an apartment, You even provided an apartment with a lake right outside of our deck - When I needed a car, You provided - When we needed direction, You brought leaders - 
     For all the things I used to have and remember fondly, or even not so fondly I freely turn them loose with love, memory and no regret, for the future You have given me is lovelier than can be imagined in our worldly minds.
     A future in Your very presence! How sweet, how lovely, how amazing! ~

~Lorna Mercer