What is on your mind?

Philippians 4: 8 “Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.”

Good question, “what is on your mind?” Each morning I wake up and the first thing that comes to mind is “Thank You LORD, for today.” I moan and groan when I turn and jump out of my bed, turn on the hot water in the shower and jump back into bed.  Of course I lay there waiting for the water to warm up a bit and then you can see the seam on the bathroom mirror from my bed.  I don’t have much on my mind that time of day and once I get into the shower I still say “Thank You, Lord.” 

I have heard it said that we can change our lives through our thinking.  I have been listening to Caroline Leaf, I love her way of explaining how one’s brain works.  The magic behind the renewing of the mind is a constant meditating on God’s Word.  It brings light into our dull lives.  I am constantly reminded of Proverbs 23 verse 7 “as a man thinks within himself, so he is.” To see how this really works I decided to say to myself each and every morning “you, Yvette are gorgeous.” Not only do I feel gorgeous but I see people look at me and I believe they think I am gorgeous.  You know how low my self-esteem really is and this is one step into the right direction.

Stop feeding bad thoughts that spring up in your mind. Start thinking about good things, beautiful things and focus your energy on these thoughts. 

Prayer

Heavenly Father, Lord You know my thoughts and understand my way of thinking. Lord You know that I have been struggling my whole life with negative thoughts and actions. As I start today I want to pray asking You to help me with the renewing process. Help me to think positive thoughts and to focus my time and energy on staying focused. In Jesus Christs Name Amen

I am Learning to Conquer my fears every day.

1 Samuel 17: 34 but David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock,”

I was so fearful and worried yesterday and I needed God’s word to strengthen and help me. As I opened my devotional that I read every day the messages were clearly written for me. “I will strengthen you and help you!” Isaiah 41: 10 

Look I am not someone who fears people but there are somethings I feel I don’t have the strength to fight against and yesterday was one of those days.

I felt intimidated and unworthy and I felt that I would not be able to rise above the circumstances. The lion was looking me in the eye and I could feel his breath in my neck. I realized by focusing on God’s Word I became stronger and I felt that God was helping me.

I don’t want to blame my hormones and say it’s because I am struggling with all kinds of emotions no, I believe at that very moment my courage was gone. I cannot say the same as King David who conquered a lion and a bear and then finally Goliath.

My adversaries aren’t in a physical form and I really do not fear people, I fear God. I learned yesterday my fear is the unknown and what the outcome of a certain problem would bring. As I meditated on God’s Word I felt comfort and was able to face the challenge. I also am reminding myself of God’s Word “God did not give us a spirit of timidity.” 2 Timothy 1: 7 I am learning to conquer my fear, I cannot control what happens around me but I can cry out to God in my hour of uncertainty and fear. God strengthened me and I believe God helped me.

Prayer

Lord God today I pray help me face the lion and bear and Goliath in my own life.  Please strengthen me and show me the way forward. I bring my challenges to You in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and I pray for a discerning spirit and ask that You will help me in recognizing my fear.  Lord helps me rise up in faith and conquer the problems that come my way.  In Jesus Christs Name I pray Amen.

https://kellan-publishing.selz.com/item/daily-devotional-ebenezer

#Patience #Psalm_40:_1

Psalm 40: 1 KJV “I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.”

I know with experience that God works at His own time table and nothing I do can change it. Although there were times that I actually tried to make things happen. Of all the people I know, I am one of the most impatient people on this earth.

I have realized being impatient doesn’t make God work faster or do things to please me. No, God works at His own pace and I must wait.

In the scheme of things I have come to realize that I need to learn how to deal with people. I am learning how to schedule my time and not waste it by sitting around worrying about “what if.”  Then there is the thing about money, I need to keep to my budget because money doesn’t grow on trees and if I spend it wisely at least I will have money for the necessary things.

God has a set plan for each of our lives and in Isaiah 46 verse 10 He reminds me that “I made known the end from the beginning.” 

So here I am learning to be patient and my faith is being strengthen by trusting in God and I believe that His time will be right for my life.  Yes, I want things to happen a little faster but there is no way I can make it happen. God will open the doors at His own time.  My life is like a puzzle and each peace needs to fit in the right space.  My perspective is that I cannot see the entire picture and I don’t know all the peaces of my life.

God is looking down on my life and knows which peace fits in where and when the time is right He place the peaces together to form the picture.

Prayer

Lord God please help me to trust in You and not stand on my own understanding. Help me to stay focused and stay patient as You work the good in my life. My life is in Your hands and I know that I can trust in YOU.  Amen

https://kellan-publishing.selz.com/item/daily-devotional-ebenezer

God celebrates you!

Psalm 139: 13-16 MSG “Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God – you’re breathtaking! Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration – what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.”

I wasn’t sure about myself and I couldn’t imagine that anybody let alone God would celebrate me as a person. I got involved with someone that I thought would be the right person for me and made the mistake of dropping my own value system. In doing this I felt devalued and feelings of guilt and emptiness plagued me constantly. Because of my actions I felt used and betrayed at the same time. Within a year we broke up because the strain on our relationship was too much. I just felt empty and to top it off alone.  

I have read that Zig Zaglar said: “What you picture in your mind, your mind will go to work to accomplish.  When you change your pictures, you automatically change your performance.”

This is what I picture in my mind right now, “I am marvelously made! God called me by my name, I belong to Him. I am the apple of His eyes, and I am His beloved daughter in whom He is well pleased!”  These are reminders my daughter sent me to encourage me today and today I also want to encourage you with the same words.

What an awesome God we serve. He loves us unconditionally and He is celebrating both you and me.  Do you think you are able to celebrate your own life? Of course you can and must especially today!

You are a blessing in my life!  God bless you!

Prayer

Baruch haba B’shem Yeshua hamashia. Abba Father thank You for celebrating me as a person someone You created and formed in the womb of my mom. I feel so blessed in knowing that You have called me by name and that I belong to You. I am the apple of Your eye and You wrote my name in the palm of Your hands. I want to celebrate today with happiness and know that You love and care for me each and every day. Bless each person who is reading my blog today.  In the Holy name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.  Amen

https://kellan-publishing.selz.com/item/daily-devotional-ebenezer 

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Daily book and author spotlight Last Stand at Lighthouse Point by George L. Duncan

Name your price for this book - today only! Drake Sanders has a great life. He enjoys his job, is planning to marry the woman he loves and has a low golf handicap. An editor of a small daily on the North Carolina coast, he is investigating a bizarre murder, with possible supernatural overtones. He is also akin to Job, for the powers of darkness have been ordered to kill or destroy him. In a short time, he will be dealing with murderous locals, professional hit men, corrupt businessmen and demonic entities. Like Job, he has three friends. Harry Denton is a reporter and an intercessor who has insight into spiritual matters. Tiffany Sanderson is a broadcaster who lost a local beauty pageant because it was rigged. Tracy Sundelin is an intelligent 13-year-old girl with incredible faith. They will be drawn into the battle and their lives too will be on the line. As the vultures of evil circle, a cosmic conflict of good vs. evil will ensue. As the battle wages, there is no mercy asked and no quarter given. Even for 13-year-old Tracy, it is kill or be killed. The four desperately hope, and believe, that God will not stand silent in a time of crisis. The novel is not only a suspenseful thriller, it also re-examines beliefs about the Book of Job in light of modern revelation and provides the reader with scriptural insight. Go to cart - name my price Click to watch the book trailer Author George L. Duncan George L. Duncan is an avid golfer but his game was nowhere near good enough for the PGA tour, so he turned to writing. He has been a reporter, editor and editorial writer for a variety of newspapers including the Savannah Morning News and the Harrisonburg (VA) Daily News. Currently, he is a novelist with five books on the market. His latest is “At Play in the Seas of the Lord,” a modern-day treasure hunting tale. A native of Florida, he now lives in Colorado with his wife Denise, two cats, two dogs and a horse.

Book Review A Match of Wits by Jen Turano

Book Review:       A Match of Wits Author:       Jen Turano Personal Quality Rating:       4 Pages: 348 Publishing house: Bethany House ISBN 978-0-7642-1127-0 Reviewer:       Yvette van Niekerk Summary: A Match of Wits is such a beautifully written Romance set in the 1880’s. The main characters in this novella are Miss Agatha Watson, Zane Beckett, Drusilla, and Mr. Blackheart. The story takes you to Colorado Springs which is an up and coming Mining Community.  Zane Beckett left New York to peruse the love of his life Helena but we find him drunk and hanging out with a couple of unsavory ladies.  He is so drunk that he needed to be carried up to his quarters.  Agatha didn’t expect to find Zane in Colorado Springs and especially in such a state.  Zane has no idea that Agatha is hiding out in Colorado Springs because someone is trying to assassinate her.  Mr. Blackheart is her bodyguard and Drusilla is a paid companion. The characters in the story are all known to us as they are seen in the previous books such as “A Talent for Trouble” and “A Most Peculiar Circumstance.” There is a lot of bantering, the story and the plays of words are absolutely great. The suspense in unraveling the mysterious killer takes you to the end of the story and it was a most unlikely suspect from my point of view. The ending very good and you will feel absolutely happy with the results. Social / Historical Context: This book was written both evocations as well as commonplace. The narrative is based on four main characters and a cute little pig. From the outset, Agatha and Zane are constantly misunderstanding each other. Mr. Blackheart and Drusilla are the people who come to the aid of both Agatha and Zane. I believe the social setting and historical context is well thought out. This story is a continuance of the previous stories and the characters all come into play near the end. Writing Style: I believe the author enjoyed writing this story; she was drawing her inspiration from her previous books and bringing all the characters to life. In doing this the story flows and we already know the previous characters and know the background. It’s almost like a true life story based on a certain family and the adventures the children enjoy. The author narrates her special kind of humor which is fresh and catching. I found that Agatha was steadfast concerning her faith and belief in God where Zane was a little upset and angry with God. If you have read the previous books I am sure you will enjoy this page turner. My Thoughts: I enjoyed the read and would recommend it for light reading. I love the characters and Agatha and her little pig Matilda had me in stitches. Charlotte's invention was something to experience, I felt sorry for Zane but he actually got the hold of the contraction. Yes, I enjoyed this story and would recommend it to you!  Loved the story.