Proverbs 3:3-6
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
I think this passage is so important to us today. There are so many mysteries of life we don't understand. God wants us to acknowledge him and trust him with every fiber of our being. When we give him the honor and glory he so richly deserves, our lives will be richer and fuller than we can even imagine. If you think your life is full to the brim right now, just wait, it gets better! When you think life can't get better than this, it will.
On the flip side, if you are somewhere on the bottom, between a rock and a hard place, keep that flicker of hope burning inside your heart. Help is on the way! When we are on the bottom, there's only one way to go and that way is up! Believe me, I know what I am talking about. I've been on the bottom! Look where God has brought me! I'm just an ordinary person God is using to help others. With God, nothing is impossible! Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. He will bring you up out of the pit of despair! Take care and know you are loved by a God who loves you beyond anything you can imagine! Love, Nan
Monday, January 24, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
Heavenly Escort
This poem is dedicated to those who grieve
your escort's arm now take hold
yes, this story must be told
he is ever by your side
trusted friend and worthy guide
in the good times and bad
times when you're happy and sad
through victory or sorrow
he's with you today and tomorrow
when your heart's heavy and burdened with grief
only he and no other can give you relief
Jesus Christ is your heavenly escort
your source of comfort and support
always there to hold your hand
when you stumble, he'll help you to stand
through your long night of tears and pain
remember the victory is yours to gain
he's beside you through rain and shine
even if your faith would be supine
he'll take your weakness and give you strength
Jesus goes the extra distance, whatever the length
you're in my thoughts, you're in my prayers
trust your escort to relieve you of your cares
In Jesus' name I pray
today and alway
written by Nan Forehand
Friday, January 21, 2011
your escort's arm now take hold
yes, this story must be told
he is ever by your side
trusted friend and worthy guide
in the good times and bad
times when you're happy and sad
through victory or sorrow
he's with you today and tomorrow
when your heart's heavy and burdened with grief
only he and no other can give you relief
Jesus Christ is your heavenly escort
your source of comfort and support
always there to hold your hand
when you stumble, he'll help you to stand
through your long night of tears and pain
remember the victory is yours to gain
he's beside you through rain and shine
even if your faith would be supine
he'll take your weakness and give you strength
Jesus goes the extra distance, whatever the length
you're in my thoughts, you're in my prayers
trust your escort to relieve you of your cares
In Jesus' name I pray
today and alway
written by Nan Forehand
Friday, January 21, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Feed Your Faith
Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.
author unknown
So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith and if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him." But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed; but of those who believe and are saved.
Hebrews 10:35-39
The author of Hebrews is not known, but there are those who think Paul, while some think it may have been Luke, Apollos or Barnabas who wrote the book of Hebrews. In the time of the writings in Hebrews, between A.D. 60 and 70, early Jewish believers were being strongly pulled toward ideas of going back to the Old Testament way of life because of hard times and persecutions. The writer of the book of Hebrews determined to sound a warning to them.
God still sounds warnings to us today. We will do well to listen and heed accordingly.
Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.
Have a good day and keep smiling :)
Love, Nan
author unknown
So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith and if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him." But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed; but of those who believe and are saved.
Hebrews 10:35-39
The author of Hebrews is not known, but there are those who think Paul, while some think it may have been Luke, Apollos or Barnabas who wrote the book of Hebrews. In the time of the writings in Hebrews, between A.D. 60 and 70, early Jewish believers were being strongly pulled toward ideas of going back to the Old Testament way of life because of hard times and persecutions. The writer of the book of Hebrews determined to sound a warning to them.
God still sounds warnings to us today. We will do well to listen and heed accordingly.
Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.
Have a good day and keep smiling :)
Love, Nan
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
A clarification and an apology
Greetings,
A comment was made yesterday regarding two particular quotes from the message of the 17th to which I spent a good deal of time and energy last night through email, addressing the concerns, if you will, of the reader, for whom I have a great deal of respect. At this time, I will focus on the quotes, rather than the specifics of the comment.
The first quote in question refered to the inner spirit being always beautiful and lovable. I searched the entire chapter for more information so as to shed light on the subject in greater detail. To my surprise I found no direct material to support the quote.
I can tell you what I believe and why I believe it....my own thoughts.... I believe God created our inner spirit (as well as everything else) and that he saw beauty in the spirit at the time of creation. I believe he continues to see that same beauty in his creation. At times, we may not see the true beauty of our inner spirit because of particular human thoughts obscuring the true beauty. God sees all clearly all the time. At times, we may not feel lovable. Again, I believe this has to do with human thoughts. Parents may not love something a child has done, but know the child is still lovable. Just because the child acted in an unlovable way doesn't mean his or her inner spirit is not lovable.
Regarding the quote about "declaring something as if it were already true makes it so", again, I searched the entire chapter where the quote was written and found nothing to substantiate the quote. Again, surprised at this and disappointed. I had not read the book from cover to cover before sending yesterday's message. To that end, I will not continue with more quotes from the book.
What I can say about the second quote in question comes from my Bible and is found in Matthew 11:22-26 and I'll quote from my NIV version, "Have faith in God," Jesus answered. I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive your sins."
The side notes printed in my Bible regarding this passage are as follows and entitled How much can faith do?and I quote, "Faith in God is all-powerful because God is omnipotent. The one who prays correctly will leave room for God's will to overrule any request (Matt. 6:10). In this case, Jesus may have had the Mount of Olives in mind. Christ's return will upset the mountain, splitting it in two when he descends from heaven. See Will the Mount of Olives be split literally in two? (Zech. 14:4).
For the sake of accuracy, I have printed in italics and bold print exactly how it is printed in my Bible. I hope and pray I haven't taken anything out of context. I underlined the sentence I think is very important to remember which addresses our desire as compared to the will of God.
I take Nan's Calendar messages to heart and I want only to encourage others. If I have offended anyone, please accept my sincere apology. It is my deepest desire to lift others up and to glorify God. If anyone should lose sight of who this is really about, that one being God, not myself, it will be the end of Nan's Calendar for that person, because in their eyes, I will have lost all credibility. I don't hold a degree of any kind so it's easy to tell I'm not a Bible scholar or formally educated writer. I am simply one who loves the Lord with all my heart and feel God called me to write Nan's Calendar three years ago to share his love, his mercy and grace with the world at large in the capacity I am able to do so.
Have a wonderful day.
Your sister in Christ,
Nan
A comment was made yesterday regarding two particular quotes from the message of the 17th to which I spent a good deal of time and energy last night through email, addressing the concerns, if you will, of the reader, for whom I have a great deal of respect. At this time, I will focus on the quotes, rather than the specifics of the comment.
The first quote in question refered to the inner spirit being always beautiful and lovable. I searched the entire chapter for more information so as to shed light on the subject in greater detail. To my surprise I found no direct material to support the quote.
I can tell you what I believe and why I believe it....my own thoughts.... I believe God created our inner spirit (as well as everything else) and that he saw beauty in the spirit at the time of creation. I believe he continues to see that same beauty in his creation. At times, we may not see the true beauty of our inner spirit because of particular human thoughts obscuring the true beauty. God sees all clearly all the time. At times, we may not feel lovable. Again, I believe this has to do with human thoughts. Parents may not love something a child has done, but know the child is still lovable. Just because the child acted in an unlovable way doesn't mean his or her inner spirit is not lovable.
Regarding the quote about "declaring something as if it were already true makes it so", again, I searched the entire chapter where the quote was written and found nothing to substantiate the quote. Again, surprised at this and disappointed. I had not read the book from cover to cover before sending yesterday's message. To that end, I will not continue with more quotes from the book.
What I can say about the second quote in question comes from my Bible and is found in Matthew 11:22-26 and I'll quote from my NIV version, "Have faith in God," Jesus answered. I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive your sins."
The side notes printed in my Bible regarding this passage are as follows and entitled How much can faith do?and I quote, "Faith in God is all-powerful because God is omnipotent. The one who prays correctly will leave room for God's will to overrule any request (Matt. 6:10). In this case, Jesus may have had the Mount of Olives in mind. Christ's return will upset the mountain, splitting it in two when he descends from heaven. See Will the Mount of Olives be split literally in two? (Zech. 14:4).
For the sake of accuracy, I have printed in italics and bold print exactly how it is printed in my Bible. I hope and pray I haven't taken anything out of context. I underlined the sentence I think is very important to remember which addresses our desire as compared to the will of God.
I take Nan's Calendar messages to heart and I want only to encourage others. If I have offended anyone, please accept my sincere apology. It is my deepest desire to lift others up and to glorify God. If anyone should lose sight of who this is really about, that one being God, not myself, it will be the end of Nan's Calendar for that person, because in their eyes, I will have lost all credibility. I don't hold a degree of any kind so it's easy to tell I'm not a Bible scholar or formally educated writer. I am simply one who loves the Lord with all my heart and feel God called me to write Nan's Calendar three years ago to share his love, his mercy and grace with the world at large in the capacity I am able to do so.
Have a wonderful day.
Your sister in Christ,
Nan
Monday, January 17, 2011
What is going on
We want to know what is going on inside us, so we can know what to let go. Instead of hiding our pain, we can release it totally. Louise L. Hay from her book entitled The Power is Within You
I want to share with you some of the thoughts Louise points out in the book to which I refer today. I think they are all very important and if you haven't read the book, this will give you a taste that may leave you wanting more.
BECOMING CONSCIOUS
When we expand our thinking and beliefs, our love flows freely. When we contract, we shut ourselves off.
THE POWER WITHIN
The more you connect to the Power within you, the more you can be free in all areas of your life.
FOLLOWING MY INNER VOICE
The thoughts we choose to think are the tools we use to paint the canvas of our lives.
THE POWER OF YOUR SPOKEN WORD
Every day declare for yourself what you want in life. Declare it as though you have it!
REPROGRAMMING OLD TAPES
Be willing to take the first step, no matter how small it is. Concentrate on the fact that you are willing to learn. Absolute miracles will happen.
UNDERSTANDING the BLOCKS THAT BIND YOU
Chronic patterns of self-hate, guilt, and self-criticism raise the body's stress levels and weaken the immune system.
LETTING YOUR FEELINGS OUT
A tragedy can turn out to be our greatest good if we approach it in ways from which we can grow.
MOVING BEYOND THE PAIN
We are far more than our bodies and personalities. The inner spirit is always beautiful and lovable, no matter how our outer appearances may change.
I want to give you food for thought. That is why I share these tidbits with you today. Tomorrow I will bring more positive seeds to sow in your mind. It is up to you to have the desire for them to germinate and grow into positive actions. Take care and have a wonderful day and love your neighbor as yourself. To do this, you must love yourself first. Love, Nan
I want to share with you some of the thoughts Louise points out in the book to which I refer today. I think they are all very important and if you haven't read the book, this will give you a taste that may leave you wanting more.
BECOMING CONSCIOUS
When we expand our thinking and beliefs, our love flows freely. When we contract, we shut ourselves off.
THE POWER WITHIN
The more you connect to the Power within you, the more you can be free in all areas of your life.
FOLLOWING MY INNER VOICE
The thoughts we choose to think are the tools we use to paint the canvas of our lives.
THE POWER OF YOUR SPOKEN WORD
Every day declare for yourself what you want in life. Declare it as though you have it!
REPROGRAMMING OLD TAPES
Be willing to take the first step, no matter how small it is. Concentrate on the fact that you are willing to learn. Absolute miracles will happen.
UNDERSTANDING the BLOCKS THAT BIND YOU
Chronic patterns of self-hate, guilt, and self-criticism raise the body's stress levels and weaken the immune system.
LETTING YOUR FEELINGS OUT
A tragedy can turn out to be our greatest good if we approach it in ways from which we can grow.
MOVING BEYOND THE PAIN
We are far more than our bodies and personalities. The inner spirit is always beautiful and lovable, no matter how our outer appearances may change.
I want to give you food for thought. That is why I share these tidbits with you today. Tomorrow I will bring more positive seeds to sow in your mind. It is up to you to have the desire for them to germinate and grow into positive actions. Take care and have a wonderful day and love your neighbor as yourself. To do this, you must love yourself first. Love, Nan
Sunday, January 16, 2011
The order of the day
Lord, grant us wisdom and discernment to keep our lives in order according to your will. Amen
The dominant thought wins. It is best to begin each day with quiet time of praise and worship. How the early hours of our day are spent plays a major part on how the rest of the day unfolds.
We need to keep our thoughts in check and make sure to ask God to renew our hearts daily, to search our hearts and our thoughts to keep us from all impurity. Sometimes, we fall short and when we realize our shortcomings, go before God and repent. Then we are able to accept forgiveness and give thanks to God for not punishing us, for bestowing upon us his mercy and grace.
With each new day, we live more at peace when we recommit our lives to the Lord as we walk in God-confidence rather than self-confidence.
Confident trust in the Lord is vital regardless of the present trials that come our way. Through our patient endurance we will receive all that God has promised us.
Remember, it's not about us. It is about God and not simply about our own good. As we daily lift up others in prayer, lifting them up spiritually, physically and emotionally, we are, in fact, praising God and trusting him with their lives. As much as we love our immediate family members and extended family God loves them more.
Pray coninually and give thanks in all circumstances.
Enjoy this beautiful day God has given you and use it to honor and glorify his holy name.
Love, Nan
The dominant thought wins. It is best to begin each day with quiet time of praise and worship. How the early hours of our day are spent plays a major part on how the rest of the day unfolds.
We need to keep our thoughts in check and make sure to ask God to renew our hearts daily, to search our hearts and our thoughts to keep us from all impurity. Sometimes, we fall short and when we realize our shortcomings, go before God and repent. Then we are able to accept forgiveness and give thanks to God for not punishing us, for bestowing upon us his mercy and grace.
With each new day, we live more at peace when we recommit our lives to the Lord as we walk in God-confidence rather than self-confidence.
Confident trust in the Lord is vital regardless of the present trials that come our way. Through our patient endurance we will receive all that God has promised us.
Remember, it's not about us. It is about God and not simply about our own good. As we daily lift up others in prayer, lifting them up spiritually, physically and emotionally, we are, in fact, praising God and trusting him with their lives. As much as we love our immediate family members and extended family God loves them more.
Pray coninually and give thanks in all circumstances.
Enjoy this beautiful day God has given you and use it to honor and glorify his holy name.
Love, Nan
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Soulful Retreat
A quote from Miriam Rockness (Keep These Things, Ponder Them in Your Heart) as printed in the book by Sheila Walsh entitled (Bring Back the Joy)
I am depleted.....The well has run dry!....
I know what has gone wrong. I have continued to give out without renewing my inner resources. Can one breathe out without breathing in? I need to draw apart from everyone, everything, and nourish my soul. I've told myself solitude is a luxury I can't afford. But my poverty of spirit declares solitude as necessary for my soul as food is for the body. Solitude. A time to remove myself from distraction. To order my day. My week. My life. To get in touch with myself. With my Maker.
When I have been away from my computer of late, it has been for numerous reasons, of which I will spare you the details. Suffice it to say, I live each day doing the best I can to obey God in my prayer I pray...."Lord, lead me, guide me, and direct me in all I say and do so that my words and my actions are pleasing unto you." Sometimes, that means I am to say less when God directs me accordingly in order to hear more clearly. Allen's grandfather used to say "if you keep your mouth shut and your ears open, you just might learn something." I can relate his quote to my Nan's Calendar ministry. Sometimes, I have to be still and quiet and that means being away from the computer, being away from distractions in order to draw closer to God.
God gives me strength, comfort, peace. All of these are intangibles that are priceless. Because I talk much of the day with patients on the phone and in the office, sometimes I am mentally drained by the time I get home in the evening. I'm on the computer much of the day scheduling appointments and I appeciate being away from the computer in the evenings. Sometimes I have to step away from the computer and draw inward to meet God on a deeper level.
Have you had a soulful retreat lately to nourish your spirit? I have. I am refreshed and renewed.
Take care and whatever time of day or evening it is where you are now, have a good day; have a good evening; have strength, comfort and peace.
Love, Nan
I am depleted.....The well has run dry!....
I know what has gone wrong. I have continued to give out without renewing my inner resources. Can one breathe out without breathing in? I need to draw apart from everyone, everything, and nourish my soul. I've told myself solitude is a luxury I can't afford. But my poverty of spirit declares solitude as necessary for my soul as food is for the body. Solitude. A time to remove myself from distraction. To order my day. My week. My life. To get in touch with myself. With my Maker.
When I have been away from my computer of late, it has been for numerous reasons, of which I will spare you the details. Suffice it to say, I live each day doing the best I can to obey God in my prayer I pray...."Lord, lead me, guide me, and direct me in all I say and do so that my words and my actions are pleasing unto you." Sometimes, that means I am to say less when God directs me accordingly in order to hear more clearly. Allen's grandfather used to say "if you keep your mouth shut and your ears open, you just might learn something." I can relate his quote to my Nan's Calendar ministry. Sometimes, I have to be still and quiet and that means being away from the computer, being away from distractions in order to draw closer to God.
God gives me strength, comfort, peace. All of these are intangibles that are priceless. Because I talk much of the day with patients on the phone and in the office, sometimes I am mentally drained by the time I get home in the evening. I'm on the computer much of the day scheduling appointments and I appeciate being away from the computer in the evenings. Sometimes I have to step away from the computer and draw inward to meet God on a deeper level.
Have you had a soulful retreat lately to nourish your spirit? I have. I am refreshed and renewed.
Take care and whatever time of day or evening it is where you are now, have a good day; have a good evening; have strength, comfort and peace.
Love, Nan
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