Fresh Oil

My four-year-old grandson often spends the night with me.  Each morning when he wakes before me, He gently shakes me and says in a very familiar voice, "grandma the SUN is here." One morning after overcoming the frustration of being awaken before I intended to, I thought about what he was saying in the natural and applied it to a spiritual lesson. Out of the mouths of babes, God has ordained praise. Hear what the Spirit was and is saying to us; For His anger endureth but a moment; in His favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning (Psalm 30:5) My grandson, in his sweet and innocent way, was telling me that the night had passed and now it was time to get up? What God was telling me is, that situation that I was facing had passed, it didn't come to stay. Just as night holds only a certain time limit, so does our problems. Once we realize and accept the fact that God never leaves nor forsake us, we can obtain that joy and peace and m...

I am an avid political follower;  whether we want to admit it or not politics play a major role in what shapes the economic and social realms of our society.  Recently I decided that I would take a break from the political chaos this country is currently in by consciously avoiding local and national news for a while.  I’ve decided that my time would be better spent on much more positive things like praying for our country than screaming at the television set and raising my blood pressure. I have to honestly admit that I would have never imagined American society being ran by a political system as corrupt, unapologetically boastful, mean spirited, self-righteous and self-serving as the one we are currently witnessing.   I never understood other countries that fell under authoritarian rule until the threat of such rule from our current administration arose. I intermittently watched one political rally of our current president a few years ago, I was so flabb...

Have you ever thought about a decision that you had made or a failed relationship and wondered, what if?    A few years ago, on my oldest daughter’s birthday, I was looking at some of her pictures and recalled a conversation that I had with her after having her heart broken for the first time.   She told me with great certainty, that it would be the VERY last time.   I smiled and tried my best to explain to her that some things are beyond our control.   She looked at me, totally confused, as I explained the difference between our plans for our lives versus God’s plans for our lives.   That if God could show her His plan for her life, I would guarantee that it was better than hers! The Bible tells us in Jeremiah 29:11; “For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the Lord,” plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”   This is a message directly from God to us.   We just have to trust in Him and His ...

My grand children bring me so much joy, I simply love being in their presence. The four-year-old is a little stocky fellow with an infectious hearty laugh; he is rambunctious and fearless, with a beautifully kind spirit.  The five-year-old is about an inch taller than his brother but smaller in statue; he is more reserved and constantly looking out for his little brother.  He's calm, thoughtful and has what I would call an ole soul.  One day after picking them up from daycare, I decided to stop at a local Wal-Mart to pick up a few items for home.  Before we went into the store, I decided to give them each a certain amount of money to buy something for themselves.  I wanted to use this opportunity to teach them a little something about the value of money.  I explained to them that this was all the money they had and that they couldn't spend any more then I had given them.  They both listened intently from the back seat, echoing, "yes ma'am" in uni...

While sitting in the waiting room of my doctor’s office for my scheduled appointment; knowing from past experience that I would be waiting for at least an hour, I decided to pull out my Iphone and play two of my favorite games, Word Trip and Toon Blast.   My attention was diverted from the games by the voice of an elderly gentlemen who had just walked in with, who I can safely assume to be his wife.  As he and his wife approached the receptionist desk, in a deep baritone voice he said, "my wife has an appointment ma'am where do I sign her in.”  They were an African American couple, perhaps in their mid to late seventies.  The lady was wearing a mask covering her nose and mouth, and was supporting herself by  a very distinct cane with symbols carved in it, perhaps hieroglyphs of some sort.  The gentleman wore a basic khaki bomber jacket that reminded me of one my grandfather used to wear, and a pair of faded jeans that were slightly worn from age....