Turtledoves

      My beloved spoke, and said to me:

      “ Rise up, my love, my fair one,
      And come away.
      For lo, the winter is past,
      The rain is over  and gone.
      The flowers appear on the earth;
      The time of singing has come,
      And the voice of the turtledove
      Is heard in our land.
   

Song of Solomon 2:10-12

Did you hear Him? Did you feel Him? 

He has visited and left us a love note:

Spring is coming early this year.

No longer will you remain in winter. 

No longer will you remain bound in the cold of the ground.

The Word has gone out and returned with it's hope.

Promise has arrived.

Heavenly Father,

You break us through from the winter of our purification into the spring of Your anointing and purpose.

You surround us with heavenly encouragement that tells us it is safe to emerge and go forth.

With our own tears, outward signs of growth through pain, You tenderly soften the ground so the bud can push through.

Once the light has touched our face and warmed us, we are strengthened and yearn for more...so we sink our roots deep down into the soil of Your righteous planting and we push and stretch... and all the things we've held close to our breast begin to unfurl, unfold, open up and "become."

Thank you for your Word that goes forth in power, never to return void. Thank for it's light that melts the snow and allows the rivers of Living Water to flow...reaching it's destiny...prospering all in it's path.

May we abide in the Vine of Your love forever...our voices of praise and songs of deliverance, a sweet melody to Your ears.

In Your Son's beauty and rebirth, we find hope for today...and love for all eternity.

In His Precious Name We Pray,

Amen

     “ For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
      And do not return there,
      But water the earth,
      And make it bring forth and bud,
      That it may give seed to the sower
      And bread to the eater,
      So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
      It shall not return to Me void,
      But it shall accomplish what I please,
      And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.
       “ For you shall go out with joy,
      And be led out with peace;
      The mountains and the hills
      Shall break forth into singing before you,
      And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
       Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree,
      And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree;
      And it shall be to the LORD for a name,
      For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

Isaiah 55:10-13

Dedicated to Pastor Linda Marceau.

 A vessel of gold, filled with His words of life.

Gina Higgins

Love Rushes In...

 God's love is meteoric, 

      his loyalty astronomic, 

   His purpose titanic, 

      his verdicts oceanic. 

   Yet in his largeness 

      nothing gets lost; 

   Not a man, not a mouse, 

      slips through the cracks. 

 How exquisite your love, O God! 

      How eager we are to run under your wings, 

   To eat our fill at the banquet you spread 

      as you fill our tankards with Eden spring water. 

   You're a fountain of cascading light, 

      and you open our eyes to light. 

Psalm 36:5-9

During Monday's community prayer time, LOVE was a big theme. One woman shared the word, "a flood" of love and another shared, "a tidal wave" of love.

Heavenly Father,

We delight that Your love is immense; that it knocks us off our feet and satiates our souls with the Living Water of "plenty."

We invite this love "beyond measure."  

We are undone and overwhelmed in the most awesome of ways as it crashes over us in power and strength -- invigorating us with renewed vitality.

And yet we also find ourselves cradled by the gentle lull of it's swells as it rocks us into a place of Your peace.

And so we drink deeply. 

We stand under Your waterfalls and immerse ourselves fully. 

We soak in Your love as it floods our hearts. 

And LORD, we thank You for a continued outpouring of Your love that is so great, we cannot help but be changed.

Fill us with Your kind of love...the overflowing, never-ending kind. 

May we both "carry it with us" and "leave it behind."

Changing the surface of the world, one heart at a time.

In Jesus' Holy and Precious Name,

Amen

Gina Higgins

GRAHAM COOKE CHURCH BUILDING DEDICATION – A CORPORATE PROPHETIC WORD

http://www.impactkerr.com/Impact%20Combined%20Prophetic%20Word.pdf

Advent and Christmas Reflections

Joy is the True Gift of Christmas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pope Benedict XVI(12/18/05)

Pope Benedict XVI (12/18/05) commenting on the scene of the Annunciation as recounted in today’s Gospel (4th Sunday of Advent). "With the angel’s greeting to Mary —‘kaire’ in the Greek, which means ‘be joyful’—the New Testament begins," he said. "We could say that the first word of the New Testament is ‘be joyful,’ ‘be happy,’ in other words, ‘joy.’ This is the true meaning of Christmas: God is near us, so near that He became a child."

The Holy Father then highlighted how "we realize that today’s world, where God is absent, is dominated by fear, by uncertainty." Nonetheless, "the words ‘be joyful because God is with you and with us,’ truly open a new time."

"Joy is the true gift of Christmas, not the expensive gifts that call for time and money. We can communicate this joy simply: with a smile, a kind gesture, a little help, forgiveness. And the joy we give will certainly come back to us.…Let us pray that this presence of the liberating joy of God shines forth in our lives."Let Me Not


Keep Christmas . . . . . . . . Linda Felver
A Book of Christmas, Nashville: Upper Rooms, 1988, p. 48

"Let me not wrap, stack, box, bag, tie, tag, bundle, seal, keep Christmas.

Christmas kept is liable to mold.

Let me give Christmas away, unwrapped, by exuberant armfuls. Let me share, dance, live Christmas unpretentiously, merrily, responsibly with overflowing hands, tireless steps and sparkling eyes.

Christmas given away will stay fresh—even until it comes again."


Christmas Eve Prayer . . . . . . . . . . . . Frank Borman, Apollo 8 space mission, 1968

"Give us, O God, the vision which can see Your love in the world in spite of human failure.
Give us the faith to trust Your goodness in spite of our ignorance and weakness.
Give us the knowledge that we may continue to pray with understanding hearts.
And show us what each one of us can do to set forward the coming of the day of universal peace."


Some Special Gifts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Source Unknown

Here are a few suggestions for special gifts:


a firm handshake to a shaky soul,


a kind word to a lonely person,


a warm smile to the disheartened,


a sincere concern for someone troubled,


a feeling of compassion for the neglected,


a comforting thought for the bereaved,


a respect for the dignity of others,


a defense of the rights of individuals,


a word of witness to help a seeking soul,


a Merry Christmas to all.


Keeping Christmas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Henry Van Dyke

There is a better thing than the observance of Christmas day,
and that is, keeping Christmas.

Are you willing…
to forget what you have done for other people,
and to remember what other people have done for you;

to ignore what the world owes you,
and to think what you owe the world;

to put your rights in the background,
and your duties in the middle distance,
and your chances to do a little more than your duty in the foreground;

to see that men and women are just as real as you are,
and try to look behind their faces to their hearts, hungry for joy;

to own up to the fact that probably the only good reason
for your existence is not what you are going to get out of life,
but what you are going to give to life;

to close your book of complaints against the management of the universe,
and look around you for a place where you can sow a few seeds
of happiness—

Are you willing to do these things even for a day?
Then you can keep Christmas.

Are you willing to stoop down and consider
the needs and desires of little children;

to remember the weakness and loneliness of people growing old;

to stop asking how much your friends love you,
and ask yourself whether you love them enough;

to bear in mind the things that other people have to bear in their hearts;

to try to understand what those who live in the same home with you
really want, without waiting for them to tell you;

to trim your lamp so that it will give more light and less smoke,
and to carry it in front so that your shadow will fall behind you;

to make a grave for your ugly thoughts, and a garden for your kindly feelings
with the gate open—

Are you willing to do these things, even for a day?
Then you can keep Christmas.

Are you willing to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world—
stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death—
and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem nineteen hundred years ago
is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love?

Then you can keep Christmas.

And if you can keep it for a day, why not always? But you can never keep it alone.

Six Days of the Week,
NY: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1924 and 1952.

*All above material borrowed for your reading (and "not for profit") pleasure, from the link: http://www.appleseeds.org/christmas-quotes.htm 

Apple Seeds ® provides inspirational and motivational quotes and short stories from eclectic sources that promote positive attitudes, and development of holistic human dignity–from tiny seeds to ripened fruit. This quoteletter is published nine times during the school year–September to May–by Fr. Brian Cavanaugh, TOR (Third Order Franciscan) as one of the outreach programs of Franciscan University. For more information click on Admissions Office. These pages are updated the beginning of each month.

Purposefully Unique

We are not powerless specks of dust drifting around in the wind, blown by random destiny.  We are, each of us, like beautiful snowflakes--unique, and born for a specific reason and purpose. 

Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

An Unusual Football Game

You may remember hearing about this story a while back...it's a story worth re-telling and it's just as good reading it the second time around.

Some stories are "timeless" -- especially testimonies to the goodness of God played out through the hearts of His people. 

Enjoy this story of courage, radical love and blessing all for the sake of "kindness."

Hoping it's more Jesus than our heart can take and that the realization of what a glimpse of His love looks like, leaves us changed. 


In the fall of 2008, there was an unusual high school football game played in Grapevine, Texas. The game was between GrapevineFaith Academy and the Gainesville State School. Faith is a Christian school and Gainesville State School is located within a maximum security correction facility.

Gainesville State School has 14 players. They play every game on the road. Their record was 0-8. They've only scored twice. Their 14 players are
teenagers who have been convicted of crimes ranging from drugs to assault to robbery. Most had families who had disowned them. They wore outdated, used shoulder pads and helmets. Faith Academy was 7-2. They had 70 players, 11 coaches, and the latest equipment.

Chris Hogan, the head coach at Faith Academy, knew the Gainesville team would have no fans and it would be no contest, so he thought, “What if half of our fans and half of our cheerleaders, for one night only, cheered for the other team?” He sent out an email to the faithful asking them to do just
that. “Here’s the message I want you to send,” Hogan wrote. “You’re just as valuable as any other person on the planet.”

Some folks were confused and thought he was nuts. One player said, “Coach, why are we doing this?” Hogan said, “Imagine you don’t have a home life, no one to love you, no one pulling for you. Imagine that everyone pretty much had given up on you. Now, imagine what it would feel like and mean to you for hundreds of people to suddenly believe in you.”

The idea took root. On the night of the game, imagine the surprise of those 14 players when they took the field and there was a banner the cheerleaders had made for them to crash through. The visitors’ stands were full. The cheerleaders were leading cheers for them. The fans were calling them by their names. Isaiah, the quarterback-middle linebacker said, “I never in my life thought I would hear parents cheering to tackle and hit their kid. Most of the time, when we come out, people are afraid of us. You can see it in their eyes, but these people are yelling for us. They knew our names.”

Faith won the game, and after the game the teams gathered at the 50-yard line to pray. That’s when Isaiah, the teenage convict-quarterback surprised
everybody and asked if he could pray and he prayed, “Lord, I don’t know what just happened so I don’t know how or who to say thank you to, but I never knew there were so many people in the world who cared about us.” On the way back to the bus, under guard, each one of the players was handed a burger, fries, a coke, candy, a Bible, and an encouraging letter from the players fromFaith Academy.

What an incredible act of Christian witness and kindness and goodness that was. Proverbs 11:17 says, “Your own soul is nourished when you are kind.” Proverbs 3:27 says, “Do not withhold good when it is in your power to act.”


Be kind to someone this week. Be kind to every person you meet. You might be amazed at what God will do with a simple act of kindness.

Dr. Tim Thompson

http://www.frazerumc.org/email/enews/thisweekatfrazer_100310

For more information on this story visit the following links:

Wixon: Grapevine Faith's good will vs. Gainesville State School almost too good to be true | High School Sports: Top Stories | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas

http://www.sportsfeelgoodstories.com/2010/01/07/a-football-game-about-hope-2008/

Questions

How can we understand grace in an apathetic world?

Or mercy, when it's not our only chance?

Do we truly get the forgiveness thing...
If we never ache to be forgiven?

How much faith is required for healing?
If we've never felt powerless to get well.

What does it mean to trust without sacrifice or risk?
Is it still trust -- if we fail to believe or hope "beyond" ourselves?

Will wholeness ever come if we remain content in our brokenness?

What good is salvation if we don't really need God?


In an apathetic world, our only chance is to ache to be forgiven; knowing we are powerless to get well unless we believe or hope beyond ourselves...discontent in our brokenness, admitting we need God.

Thank you Father that Your answers are often part of the question. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear the Truth contained in Your life-giving Word. Bless us with more of You in every way and thank you that Your love is not contingent or conditional. Forgive us, for all of You we take for granted... and consume us with the power of Your love. May we care to be "holy" and accept and receive Your free gifts. Only You will ever satisfy our restless hearts and heal our wounded souls. We love You, LORD. We love You. Amen

Faith Moves

What love is this...

That you would die for me?

(Let's start this over)

What love is this?

This is redemption, that you would die for me. And this is salvation, 

that you would live in me...That you would live in me. 

This is rejection, that they would all hate me. 

And this is submission, that I would live holy...

That I would live holy. 

(Lyrics "Redemption, Passion, Glory, " The Dizmas) 

Maybe I'm amazed at the way You love me all the time...maybe I'm amazed at the way I love You. (Lyrics, "Maybe I'm Amazed," Jem) 

So, what's with the lyrics?
Music moves us.
So does faith.
Faith moves us into greater belief.

In Mark 11:24, it says to believe we will receive and we will have.

The first set of song lyrics is considered Contemporary Christian Rock and the second is set is what many think of as Secular Pop. Just as what matters are the things "we cannot see" with our natural eyes, what also matters is "what we are able to hear," with our spiritual ears.

And what we hear is based on what our heart and mind are focused on.

Someone in a state of holy adoration will hear the secular verse with capitalized Y's for the "You's" because their thoughts are on Him; their hearts meditating upon Him so much that, all things are Him...and He is all things.

Faith moves us to receive the day as:

"A little grey here and there with a small chance of showers and a 100% chance of full Son shining through at any given moment."

Faith moves us to receive our health as:

"A little discomfort and frustration, here and there.... but a whole lot of love and forgiveness flowing absolutely everywhere."

Faith moves us to receive our circumstances as:

"I affect the world but the world doesn't have to affect me. I will respond as "who I am called to be," whether acknowledged or whether anyone affirms that in me."

"I choose love, life, goodness and blessing because it first chose me...I choose to believe and walk in the power of knowing Jesus has secured this victory!"

By this we shall come to know (perceive, recognize, and understand) that we are of the Truth, and can reassure (quiet, conciliate, and pacify) our hearts in His presence, Whenever our hearts in [tormenting] self-accusation make us feel guilty and condemn us. [For we are in God's hands.] For He is above and greater than our consciences (our hearts), and He knows (perceives and understands) everything [nothing is hidden from Him]. And, beloved, if our consciences (our hearts) do not accuse us [if they do not make us feel guilty and condemn us], we have confidence (complete assurance and boldness) before God,

(1 John 3:19-21 AMP)

Gina Higgins