"A Nourishing Word"

Proverbs 10:21 "The lips of the righteous nourish many..."

This portion of verse 21 caught my heart....and the word nourish jumped off the page. One of the Greek meanings for "nourish" is: to be a friend, to be a special friend.

Last night I ran into a friend while shopping....what a pleasant surprise to turn and see her there. She is one of those friends that nourishes me....feeds my soul with God's Word, every time we talk.

Lord, I want to be like that too....that the words of my mouth would be used to nourish everyone I meet....

Blessings on your day,

Sharon

"Best Christmas Ever"

"For unto us a Child was born, unto us a Son is given.." Isaiah 9:6

After all these years of celebrating Christmas...there is one particular Christmas that stands out..above the rest. It was during the recession of 1991. My husband was in construction and times were very tough, a lot like today.

With our two youngest still at home...we had to let them know that this Christmas was going to be different than what they were use to. We sat them down and told them we didn't have any money to buy gifts. And we couldn't afford to buy a Christmas tree either. We had to use what little money we had to buy food....we were eating oatmeal for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Rick and I weren't too worried about how our Joshua would handle it, he was barely four years old. But how would our twelve-year old Adam take it....since had has seen so many Christmas' with plenty of gifts.

This time of financial struggle provided an opportunity for us to talk to our kids about God's faithfulness and what really matters in life. Instead of focusing on buying and receiving gifts...our eyes were on being thankful for what God had already given us...Jesus being the greatest gift of all.

It still brings me to tears to think of Adam's reaction. he said, "It doesn't matter, I don't need any toys, I already have lots. Then he stood and ran up the stairs. A few minutes later he came down with his piggy bank and handed it to Rick and I and said, "Mom, I want you to use my money to help buy food."

It was't one of those glass piggy banks, so we didn't have to hit it with a hammer or drop it on the floor to "break the bank"....nothing that dramatic. But the impression that his generosity made on our family...that was dramatic.

This is a Christmas we will never forget...Jesus and thankfulness was our focus. You would think this would have been our worst Christmas...but it turned out to be the "Best Christmas Ever!"

Rich in Him,

Sharon Schutte

"What a View"

Proverbs 8:27 "I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep."

When Rick and I were in Australia for a Harvest Crusade, we had an opportunity to go on the space needle. We were up so high that we could actually see the curvature of the earth. What a view!

Talk about changing your perspective...as I stood there in awe...I realized that my view of God is much too small. Isaiah 40:22a "It is God who sits above the circle of the earth...." Jeremiah 10:12a He hath made the earth by his power, he has established the world by His wisdom..."

How Incomparably Great our God is.....

and

I don't want that "View" of Him to end .

Psalm 119:161b "...

my heart standeth in awe of thy word."

Standing in Him,

Sharon

"Pass it On"

2 Timothy 2:2b "Teach these great truths to trustworthy people who are able to pass them on to others."

In the previous chapter Paul described his teaching as a treasure that’s been entrusted to Timothy to guard. Now Timothy needs to find reliable people to entrust this message to. A reliable person is someone who will keep the message intact, someone who won’t add to it or take anything away from it....preserving its integrity. And ultimately they too will need to pass

the message on to another generation.

I don't know if you've seen the movie Mr. Holland Opus. It's a movie about an aspiring composer named Glen Holland who takes a job as a high school band teacher so he can support his family. His real passion isn't teaching, it's to compose a symphony. But life has a way of not going exactly as we dreamed it would, and Mr. Opus spends the next 35 years teaching high school band, never finishing his symphony.

When he retires, all of his former students gather together to honor their high school music teacher. One of his former students is now a governor, and as she takes the podium she says, "We are your symphony, Mr. Holland. We are the melodies and notes of your opus. We are the music of your life." Glen Holland learned to multiply his influence through the people that were brought into his life.

All this makes me consider the opportunities I've been given to influence those around me for Christ. My children, my granddaughter, women in the church, women I work with, freinds and neighbors children. And how far reaching our influence can be.

Even though Paul is chained behind prison walls, the Word of God cannot be chained because

Paul has taught it to trustworthy people. And even after Paul dies....his death will not stop God's Word from spreading...because he has given it to trustworthy people. Who would have thought that Paul could reach so many from a prison cell!

LORD, my prayer is that first and foremost that each of my children and grandchildren would be found to be trustworthy people who are able to pass on these great truths that you have given. And next, show me, point out to me the women who You have in my life who are trustworthy so I can pour Your Word into their lives, teaching, influencing, mentoring, sharing what has been intrusted to me. Thank you for given me such a great treasure...help me to always guard this knowledge with which I've been entrusted. In Jesus name, amen.

Living for the Glorious,

Sharon

What's the Name of that Perfume Your Wearing?

Mark 14:3b "During supper, a woman came in with a beautiful jar of expensive perfume. She broke the seal and poured the perfume over Jesus' head."

While Jesus was having dinner at the home of Simon, a woman named Mary came in and broke the seal of her perfume bottle and poured it over his head. This wasn't some cheap bottle of perfume, it would be about a years worth of wages.

I wonder if they had names for their perfume then, like we do today? l think I would name this perfume "Destination Heaven". As I was thinking about this I had to laugh because I remembered the name of the perfume I wore before I got saved........it was called "Tabu"...and it was cheap. No...the name of the perfume we wear doesn't matter...I just thought...how apropos! I can laugh now because my life is no longer "Tabu" or "cheap"...because of what Jesus has done for me.

Mark 14:4,5 "Some of those at the table were indignant, displeased...saying it was a waste of money....She could have sold it and given the money to the poor."

With all the complaining around the table...you might miss the beauty of what just happened here. The others didn't understand and neither did I at one time...but it's really a simple story about a woman who, in the presence of Jesus Christ, was so overwhelmed by the wonder of who He was and by the thought of all He had done in her life, that she wanted to serve Him in an extravagant way.

"....the house was filled with fragrance and Jesus said what Mary did
was in preparation of His burial." John 12:3b,7

So she took her alabaster jar of expensive perfume and broke it open. She poured it out until every drop was exhausted and the flask empty. John adds that she poured it not only on his head but on his feet as well. Though the others thought it was a foolish thing to do, Mary came to adore and worship her Savior for all He had done for her. Jesus had given her brother back to her from the dead. He had restored her Simon back to health. He had treated her with dignity and respect. And He had shared with her the secrets of the kingdom of God. And now, He was was about to give His life for her...So, she wanted to give Jesus something to let Him know how much she loved Him.

For this perfume to cost so much....it must have had a "beautiful scent." But what really pleased the LORD was Mary's extravagant, loving heart....and that must have smelled "Heavenly."

2 Corinthians 2:14-16a "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing....."

Blessings on your day,
Sharon

"Crumb Snatchers"

Mark 7:27 "Jesus told her, "First I should help my own family...It isn't right
to take food from the chldren and throw it to the dogs."

After telling the religious leaders the meaning of clean and unclean....Jesus now heads for "unclean" Gentile country - Tyre. Interesting that Jesus would go there.... when you remember what Jesus said about Tyre in Matthew 11:21. "There Jesus began to denounce the cities where He had done most of his miracles....."For if the miracles I did in you had been done in wicked Tyre...their people would have sat in deep repentance long ago, clothed in sackcloth and throwing ashes on their heads to show their remorse."

I can imagine the religious leaders saying, “Why is he going there? What is he doing in Gentile country? Doesn’t he know that these people are unclean?” Even his disciples had to be wondering, “Jesus, why are we here? What are you doing going here? Shouldn’t we be preaching to our own people? Why are we here far away from home?”

What I glean from this---first we are to share with our family, neighbors, co-workers---with those all around us. And then,
to those who are DIFFERENT than us. Even to a wicked city like Tyre....The wickedness and idolatry of this city are frequently denounced by the prophets and it's final destruction predicted (Isa 23:1; Jer 25:22; Eze 26;28:1-19; Amo 1:9,10; Zec 9:2-4). But, here a church was founded soon after the death of Stephen, and Paul, on his return from his third missionary journey spent time there teaching the disciples (Act 21:4).

Why do we look and long for a place to go that is NOT like Tyre---.is it because I/we have forgotten that our purpose here on earth isn't to find our comfortable, safe, peaceful place===and wait for the LORD's return. We are to go to those around us to those who desire a deep repentance.

So who are these "Crumb Snatchers" and where do we find them? Probably, in places like Tyre...where wickedness and idolatry are out of control. Those who deserve forgiveness the least...need forgiveness the most. That's when I got saved...living like those in Tyre...but, that's also the time when my heart was longing and crying out.....I didn't know what it was I was crying for----until I saw some "crumbs on the floor".

Blessings on your day,
Sharon

"The Seed is Planted"

Mark 4:3 "....A Farmer went out to plant some seed."

Before we can begin to reap, or even expect a harvest...first a seed must be planted.

Planting a seed can be used to describe many things....conception of a child, birth of a nation, a seed of faith. Without the seed, nothing grows. But, if that seed is to grow..it first must be planted and for it to continue to grow...there must be some response to it.

If the "seed" of faith that each of us has is not cared for and nurtured, it will die just a surely as a new new-born baby will die if it is not fed, changed and cared for constantly. We must feed our faith through the study of God's Word, prayer and keeping a close watch for anything that will come into our life...sin...and injure our faith.

Isaiah 28:9-10 "Whom will the LORD teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just drawn from the breasts? For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little."

Our growth and maturity in the LORD will not happen overnight. It takes time, maturing, growing, learning, studying and submitting to the Holy Spirit. But as we understand and apply God's Word to our life....we will grow...here a little, there a little. Becoming strong in faith and our life will become more victorious in Christ.

It's in this fertile soil that the seed will take root and a crop...fruit will be produced.

John 15:8 "This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples."

Father, help me to continue focus my heart and mind on your Word so that Jesus' words will continue to take root in me...bearing more and more fruit. In Jesus name, amen.

Blessings on your week,
Sharon