Inspirations and encouragements

Posts

Showing posts from 2014

the Treasure of Human Life, Part 2

I am just the pencil in the hand of God. It is He who writes. Mother Teresa. So now I call on Him to write down exactly the thoughts and feelings--and the lesson that He has written on my heart today. I am an avid sports fan, as Ray can tell you. It has been a beautiful, sunny, not-too-humid Saturday in the middle of June in Middle Tennessee, which is a rarity. Ray and I went to our friends' shop, as we do most weekends, and I found me an exercise bike that they had just acquired, and they gave me a steal on it. Just by virtue of the weather and the finding of something I had been looking for since I moved here, the day was shaping up to be awesome. But nothing could prepare me for the thought-provoking article I would read in ESPN the Magazine when I got home. It was about a guy who is now a coach with the Kansas City Royals who, in his playing days, was in the Texas Rangers' organization. He was just about to catch his big break in the big leagues when he collided wi...

The treasure of human life

This morning I got out of bed and grabbed the clothes I was going to wear for the day. As I left my bedroom, I couldn't help hearing Ray sleeping in the other bedroom across the hall. How peacefully he was sleeping, drawing in long, deep breaths. _He seemed to be holding them in for a couple of seconds before releasing them, as if subconsciously just wanting to hold onto and appreciate every one of them as they came. He seemed to be drinking in the breath of the life that was coursing through his veins, the very breath of the God who made him. With every breath he took in and held, his spirit seemed to be satisfied that this life, and this sleep he was enjoying was created by God to rejuvenate him so that he could go out into the world and be Jesus to the least of these. God had created him, created life, and it was, it is, good. I went into the kitchen and turned on the coffee pot. Then, on the way to my bathroom, I stopped once more to listen to this beautiful, peaceful b...

The rhythm and harmony of God's will, Part 2

So I want to continue, now, the story of my very musical spiritual journey. So Ray and I walked out of the church that fateful day, we went to my bank so I could deposit a check. As we walked out of the bank, a man stopped us. I didn't know him from Adam, so I was startled when he said: "you have a very beautiful voice." Amazed, I asked how he knew me, and that I could sing. He said he wasn't the most regular churchgoer in the world, but he sometimes went, and when he went, it was to Holy Disciples, the same church we went to at the time. I couldn't believe it. I was stunned. Two weeks later, Ray was diagnosed with MS. Six months later he was moving to Tennessee, and soon thereafter I found myself engaged. The next few months were a mixture of so many different emotions and thoughts that it was getting really hard to sleep at night. My fiance, along with his family and friends, started trying to get things donated to me for the wedding, up to and includ...

The rhythm and harmony of God's will

This is a phrase I have only heard a time or two, when Ray was reading to me out of a book he owns. It is very powerful. In fact, when I heard it, I had just moved down to Tennessee to pursue a music degree. I have always loved music, loved singing, but had not done much with it until I got back into church life and got started in the choir. This was back in 2005, and now it seemed that God was speaking to me here, in 2011, in musical terminology. Ray had always believed that I was called to uplift people with my singing, but I knew my musical skills and knowlege were definitely not where they needed to be. So now, here I am in Tennessee, listening to him reading these words, after having auditioned for the music department at Cumberland University. I was waiting impatiently for their verdict, and as he read those words, another memory hit me. It was 2009, and a lot of things had happened. My mom was two years removed from her diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, a family...

Yesterday I gave a friend of mine a gift certificate to a Thai restaurant, because she loves Asian food. She almost didn't take it, but I told her it was in appreciation for all she'd done for me over the years. However, that wasn't the only reason I wanted to get her something, although I didn't know it till this morning, when God suddenly put this on my heart: If He had made a carbon copy of me--same body, mind and soul--would I have shown her the same Christian love and appreciation I showed my friend. I realized that yes, I would have. This prompted me to ask myself: If I would show love and appreciation for another physical and spiritual manifestation of me, why would I not show the me who truly exists the same treatment? This is another thing I want to strive to do in this ministry: Empower and encourage _survivors of low self-esteem--e.g. those whose affliction merely allows them to _survive, not truly live. Again may God bless you, all my readers, and may you be empowered and encouraged the way God empowered and encouraged me today. I pray for all of you, and ask you kindly to pray for me. I ask also that you would share this with your friends and relatives, that they may be empowered and encouraged also, and most importantly that you and those with whom you share this blog may be infused with the strength that comes from knowing, giving, and, in turn receiving, the gift of God's love. Seeing yourself the way God sees you

Sometimes I have dreams I think might be from God, but I wonder: Am I just imagining that a particular dream came from God? The other night I had a dream that me and a couple of associates from school were hiking, and we had to climb what seemed to me to be a mountain. I say this because it was outdoors, and there seemed to be an innumerable number of steps going up. It was treacherous, and your footing could easily be lost. So one of the girls I was hiking with kept urging me on, because it was a mission from our teacher, Dr. Paise. I don't really know what the payoff was for getting to the top, except that she would be waiting for us there. That wasn't the whole dream, but I believe that it was the most important part. I believe that Dr. Paise resembled God, and the mountain resembles life, which is all about our climb toward Heaven, and our uphill struggle toward that glorious end. I hope that you, my readers, can appreciate the sufferings and trials of your lives as steps toward Heaven, and that you will listen to the Holy Spirit urging you on, as my friend did in the dream. She never let me give up. There are two people whom I especially hope will read this post and be encouraged. You know who you are, and please know that I am praying for the two of you, in your respective situations, and urging you on. I hope everyone else who reads this will know that I am praying for them as well. That is what this ministry is all about--urging you, my readers, to climb to the top of the mountain, which is Heaven, where Jesus waits to speak to you, saying: "Well done, good and faithful servant.

music therapy in the ministry that is Frees

Many people who know me know that I have wanted to be a music therapist for a while, and that I'm in school to ultimately accomplish this goal. The road hasn't been easy, but I have been blessed by God because He has put many wonderful people in my life, and with their help, love and support it will all work out according to His divine will. Many also know that eventually I hope to expand what is currently only a blog into a support group which will meet not only on the Internet, but also meet in person. It will be a support group for sufferers of all diseases, and their family members and friends. Unfortunately, the logistics of this process haven't even come close to being figured out yet, but a thought struck me a few minutes ago. I think music therapy would be something awesome to incorporate into the ministry once the kinks have been worked out. I think it will not only bring the gift of healing to the people in the support group, but also to tho...