The Hands

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.  you can also find it on her website devotedtothelamb.com  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you.

 The Hands

 

Lamentations 3:41 - Let us lift our hearts and hands to God in heaven. (NKJV)

I joined my husband on a run to the dump to dispose of some spring cleaning from the yard. As we were driving into the dump, I said to him, "Remember that day you saw the doctor at the dump?" He laughed and said. "Yes, I do."

Twenty-one years ago, our second son was born on a clear but cool Wednesday morning. The next day, my husband did a run to the dump to get rid of fall leaves. Much to his surprise, as he looked to his right, there was our doctor -- the doctor whose hands, just over twenty-four hours previously, had delivered our son. Now those same hands were throwing garbage into the dump.

As I thought about this, thoughts began to stir in my soul about another pair of hands: the hands of a carpenter whose hands worked with wood and nails. His hands also blessed the little children, healed the people, calmed the raging seas, fed multitudes, and provided comfort to so many. The hands of Jesus were pierced on the cross as He gave His life for our sins, and His hands were spread in blessing as He ascended into heaven, risen and victorious.

Mark 10:45 - For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. (NKJV)

John 14:12 - Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. (NKJV)

We are called to be His hands and feet to the people we meet each day.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You that You still continue to calm the raging seas in our lives. Thank You that through Your Spirit, we can be Your hands and feet. In Your name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles

 

The Gift

 

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.  you can also find it on her website devotedtothelamb.com  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you.

 

The Gift

2 Corinthians 9:15 - Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! (NIV)

Not only do we all love to get gifts, but we also want to be givers of gifts. Gifts come in many forms: cards, flowers, and packages wrapped and unwrapped. Random acts of kindness are also forms of gifts. When a gift is given, the giver is blessed, as is the receiver of the gift. Sometimes, it takes time for the giver of the gift to see the blessing.

Such is the case in the event of my fiftieth birthday in January, 2011. My husband asked my aunt from California to come for this event, which she did, and she spent a week with me. Coming from California to Canada in the winter is a challenge for someone not used to our cold and snow. My aunt shared with me that she had to think about this decision, and she looked upon this as an adventure which she embraced. Neither of us knew at the time what impact that this visit would have.

In the weeks following her visit, the real gift was revealed and continues to be a blessing to this day. After she had gone back to California that January, I could not wrap my head around the fact that she had come to spend time with me and to do it in the winter. For many weeks, I pondered this and was drawn to the Scriptures numerous times.

The result of this visit is that I have been forever changed. If she could come and spend a week here for me, then I owed it to myself and my family to get healthy. The direct result of her coming and giving is that I have embraced a healthy lifestyle and have lost ninety pounds. She visited me again recently, and I told her this during one of our walks. She had no idea about the gift that she had given me in that week, until we talked. Yes, she knew that I had lost weight, but she had no idea how it had started.

God took a situation in my life that I thought was beyond help and used my aunt to speak life into me. This event has truly shown me to continue to trust in Him.

Though we may never know the direct results of our acts of kindness and compassion to others, let us never fall into thinking that we aren't sowing seeds of making a difference in others' lives.

James 1:3 - For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. (NLT)

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You for the people that You put into our lives who speak life into us. Help us to do the same to others. Words cannot express our gratitude for the gift of Your Son, Jesus. Amen.

Julie Bowles

Biking from Toronto to Niagara Falls, June 8th and 9th 2013, with the Enbridge Ride To Conquer Cancer. Did I say 200+k. Please pray about sponsering me as I raise 2500.00 for the Princess Margaret Hospital.

Lord may You increase as I decrease

Biking to towards a goal of 1500k, read about my journey on my blog, click on Biking Journey

http://www.devotedtothelamb.com/

 

We Are Adrift

We Are Adrift

Psalm 119:10 - I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. (NIV)

You would think, after owning a boat for the past five years, that some things would become automatic, such as checking that the rope is secured to the anchor. Well, apparently not, as anchor number two departed from us today. It was a rather breezy day, and after finding a secluded bay in which to anchor for the day, we went about swimming from the boat and chatting to one another. A few times, I mentioned that we seemed to be drifting, only to be told that we weren't. After an hour, though, it became apparent that the wind was actually taking us out of our secluded bay, or was it the wind? Deciding to move the boat to another area, I began to pull the rope that had once had the anchor at the other end. I made only two pulls on the rope before I announced that I thought that the anchor was not at the other end. Unfortunately, I was correct.

In our enjoyment of the water and our conversation, we had been quietly drifting from our anchored location. Even though I had warned earlier that we were drifting, we dismissed it.

This got me thinking about how easy it is in our spiritual life just to drift along, and when people point it out to us, how easy it is for us at times to dismiss it. Yes, we were safe, but we should have been staying in our location.

We can drift in our walk with Jesus and still remain safe, but it's not what He wants for us.

Hebrews 2:1 - We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. (NIV)

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to hold Your truths and Your ways close to our hearts. Lord, in the times that we drift away, bring people to speak life and truth into our lives. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles

Master Gardener

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.  you can also find it on her website devotedtothelamb.com  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you.

Master Gardener

 

John 15:1-2 - I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. (NIV)

Philippians 1:6 - Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (NIV)

Our backyard has been going through a major transformation. Early this spring, we tilled the lawn in preparation for new sod. Gardens were made smaller, and we had a large hole dug to hold a new pond. Each week saw a new work happening in the yard. Plants were moved and added. As the new plants were being bought, I consulted magazines and books. One particular day, though, I could not find an answer to a planting question. I took out the treasured gardening books that my dad gave me the night before he passed away. My dad was a master gardener and landscaper. I carefully looked in the glossary for the answer to my gardening question.

As I went back to the garden, I reflected on another Master Gardener in my life, the One in whose presence my dad is now. This Gardener has done so much in my own life, and I am grateful for it. I have also been able to witness to others about my dad's salvation. This Gardener has begun a good work in my life, and He will continue it to the day it is complete.

He also wants to do a work in the lives of those who still don't know Him. He wants us to live the abundant life and to model it for others, in order to share Him so that none may perish.

Let's ask ourselves how we can be a witness to the goodness and the evidence of Him in our lives to others.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You that You continue to work in our lives and that You are constantly pruning us and nurturing us for a better place. Help us to bring others into a relationship with You. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

The Genes

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.  you can also find it on her website devotedtothelamb.com  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you.

 

The Genes

John 15:5 - I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (NKJV)

Growing up, I always wanted to have a pair of blue jeans with the little tag that said "Levi's" on them. All my friends had them, and I wanted a pair also, but due to the cost of them and the fact that I was growing, my parents felt that money could be spent more wisely than on a pair of blue jeans with a tag on them. When I was twenty, I bought a pair of them -- only I bought a size 30 waist. At the time and until recently, having a size 30 waist was only a dream, something to work towards. So for the past thirty years, those jeans have moved each time we have, and they have been re-hung on a hanger in the closet, mostly forgotten about until recently. As I was driving home after a Weight Watchers meeting, feeling a little discouraged at having stayed the same weight for a few weeks, the Lord brought to mind the jeans, and I became anxious to get home and pull them from the closet. When I took them off the hanger and put them on, I was more than pleasantly surprised that they fit. I was so excited to share this with my husband and son who were home at the time, but their comments were not about the weight loss. "You kept them for thirty years? You mean, each time we moved, they have moved with us?" To which I replied, "Yes, and now the jeans fit!"

As I reflected on this, I remembered that it was the Lord's prompting to go to the closet that day and take the jeans out. His timing in our lives is always perfect. How easy it is for us to forget to share how He impacts our days and to give Him the credit for His presence in our lives.

I also began to realize that my jeans are a treasure that I invested in here on earth, but my genes incorporate a much greater treasure here on earth that the Lord has invested in me.

2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (NIV)

When we receive Christ, we get His spiritual genetic structure, so to speak. We need to be careful that our behaviour reflects that new life, so that our witness to the Lord's power is not hindered.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You for Your new genes, the only spiritual genes that we will ever need and that will never go out of style. Lord, help us to show others how they can also have Your genes in them, and to encourage others to pursue a life in You. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles

Blessings

Julie

Dark Night To Dock

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.  you can also find it on her website devotedtothelamb.com  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you.

Dark Night To Dock

Psalm 18:30 - As for God, his way is perfect. All the Lord's promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection. (NIV)

When fireworks are displayed in our town on the Canada Day long weekend, they are set off from a barge across our lake, and we view them from our boat.

On one recent occasion, my husband and the boys decided to put the boat in a quieter location, thinking that it would be easier to get the boat out of the water after viewing fireworks. At the end of the evening, they made their way back to the boat launch location. With all the required lights on the boat and the GPS they navigated quite easily. What they hadn't bargained for was the lack of lighting in the area in which they would be taking the boat out and also the lack of lighting on the dock. The GPS and boat lights got them to the general area but they could not see the dock. When they brought out their iPhones and turned on their flashlight applications, there was the dock! The once dark area now had enough light for them to see the dock and to tie up the boat for removal from the lake.

As they shared this story with me the next day, I began to think how often it is that I go out into the world thinking that I have all the preparations in place for my day. Then something unexpected comes my way, and how do I react? Do I panic, or can I come up with another way to get myself going again? More importantly, is this new decision made with help from Jesus, or do I go about blindly, making my own decisions? Everything was in place for them to bring the boat out; they just needed a light to make things clearer. Jesus came as a light to the world to make things clearer for us.

John 8:12 - Jesus said to the people, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life. (NLT)

In this verse of Scripture, Jesus says we are to follow Him, to live in increasing obedience to Him. How do we do this? The good old concept of "the means of grace" describes the ways in which God works invisibly in Christian disciples, helping them to grow in their spirits, strengthening and confirming their faith. Jesus can speak to us and guide us through daily Bible reading, prayer time with Him, and fasting. Worshipping at church, participating in the sacraments, studying the Bible with a group, and fellowshipping with one another are also ways. A strong relationship with the One who came and lived and died for us needs to be the base for us to work from.

Prayer: Dear Jesus, we want to go out into the world each and every day protected by Your covering. Thank You that You never leave us, no matter in what the situation we find ourselves. We praise You that You are only a prayer away from us in any situations. In Your name, we pray. Amen.

Blessings

Julie

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.  you can also find it on her website devotedtothelamb.com  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you.

Unlikely Places

Deuteronomy 31:8 - The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. (NIV)

There can be times in our walk as Christians when we feel like we are so very far from God, whether it is from our actions or lack of action, or just something that we are wading through in our lives. At such times of discouragement, it seems even harder for me to reach out to the One who has promised never to leave us nor forsake us, as today's Scripture says.

Thankfully, through the grace of God, when these hits on my life occur, He reaches into my life and finds ways to use me and encourage me. Recently, after a very difficult week, I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things. There in the grocery store, a total stranger started up a conversation with me, and began to share with me a very upsetting event in her life. Right there in the grocery aisle as she shared, the Lord worked through me, and I was able to speak into this woman's life. I felt so much better afterwards!

A pattern is emerging. It is during these tough times for me that the Lord works, not only on the people He brings into my life, but also on me. The encouragement He gives through this gives me the courage to move ahead in my walk with Him, trusting Him to be my provider and comfort.

What can we draw from this? We have a loving Father who not only wants to bless others but also wants to bless us and shower His love on us. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, He can accomplish His work here on earth through us.

Psalm 119:76 - May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant. (NIV)

Prayer: Dear Jesus, help us to remember that nothing will come our way that we cannot handle together. Jesus, help us every day to renew our strength in You and to go forth boldly proclaiming Your truth to the world. Thank You, Jesus, that in our obedience, You can work through us. In Your name, we pray. Amen.

Blessings

Julie

Oatmeal

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   It was originally posted on the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. www.daily.presbycan.ca/devotions  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

Oatmeal

Psalm 51:10 - Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (NKJV)

I am sure that by today's title, readers are thinking to themselves either "ughh" or "great". I am in the "ughh" camp when it comes to oatmeal. As we were growing up, mom tried all kinds of ways to get us to eat oatmeal. She made every kind that was available. No matter what she did, I always rejected it. I grew up with it in my mind that I did not like oatmeal, and there was no way that I was going to try it again. Rejection of oatmeal was firmly engrained in my mind. When it came time to give our sons breakfast, oatmeal was not on the menu. They were, however, given it by their grandparents, and they liked it. In my place of employment, we use oatmeal, and I have made it many times. With the lifestyle changes that I have made in regards to eating and living more healthily, I am finding that my mindset is also changing, even to the extent that, to my surprise, as I was preparing oatmeal at work, I remarked on how good it smelled. The staff person with whom I was working said that she loved oatmeal. I told her that I didn't. I had no sooner said this than I began to think, Maybe I should try it now. Well, I did, and much to my surprise, I like it, and now, I am having it regularly for breakfast. What I once rejected, I have now accepted into my life.

I also once rejected Jesus from my life, but then an event happened that changed this to acceptance. All of us know someone who is currently rejecting Him, and we wonder how we can bring such people into a relationship with Him. Just as with the oatmeal that I rejected, Jesus is still there, and our friends have exposure to Him in many different ways that can lead to a change in attitude towards Him. We need to share our faith with people, pray for them, and be open about who He is in our lives and what He has done for us. Even though we may not see a change, we need to rest assured that Jesus is working in their lives through us.

So, as with me and my oatmeal, let us all look for ways to share Jesus more in our daily walk.

Romans 12:8 - If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. (NLT)

Prayer: Dear Lord, we are so grateful that You work in and through us. Help us to renew daily our walk in You, through our prayer time. Show us opportunities to share Your love in our words and deeds each day. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles <julieanni@rogers.com>
Barrie, Ontario, Canada

Words

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   It was originally posted on the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. www.daily.presbycan.ca/devotions  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

Words

Proverbs 12:18 - Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. (NIV)

The words we speak to one another are very powerful, and at times, we toss them about carelessly. I was recently on the receiving end of careless words tossed my way. The words that were spoken to me attacked my character and made me question if they were in fact a true representation of who I am. You see, those words had been true of me before coming to accept Jesus, but the person who spoke them did not know me back then. So when those words came my way, I began to question whether they were still an accurate representation of me now, in my walk with Jesus. I had prayed and sought the Word for an answer to this, but when no answer came immediately, I began to retreat and withdraw from people. Why did I do this? To protect myself from further hurt and also to protect others from the possibility that I was still of that character.

So how does God reach us and heal us during these times? He can speak to us through many means: the Bible, a Sunday sermon, a phone call, a note from someone, or something a friend says. At times, it happens that we just know that we know that God has spoken to us. For me it came through a simple three-word change that the Daily editor made to one of the sentences that I had written in another devotional, so that it read, "Am I like the cereal box, all flashy and showy, but giving friends a hard time seeing who I really am inside?" The Lord used this change as an opportunity to speak volumes into this situation.

Yes, I have been holding people back and not letting them into my life. I have been guarded with the people who have tried to come alongside me and help me through this time.

Psalm 12:6 - And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times. (NIV)

Thank God that He is not limited in His ability to speak to us!

Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank You that You work through others to bring healing into our lives. Help us, Lord, to come quickly to You and leave it at Your feet. We thank You that Your timing is always perfect in our lives. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles <julieanni@rogers.com>
Barrie, Ontario, Canada

Calmness

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   It was originally posted on the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. www.daily.presbycan.ca/devotions  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

Calmness

Devotional for Saturday, January 14, 2012 by Julie Bowles

Proverbs 3:5 - Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. (NKJV)

It was the call that we all fear to hear, the one that wakes us from our slumber: "Your mom has been taken to the hospital, and you need to come as soon as possible."

This was how my Saturday morning began. Quickly gone were the plans for the day, replaced by locating my cell phone, a quick kiss to my husband, and a promise to keep him posted. As I drove the 12-15 minutes on this dark Saturday morning, I tried the radio but it did not stop the panic. I even tried the CD player that contains my favourite drive-home-from-work music that calms my travel, but it wasn't working. So off went the radio and CD player, and I drove in silence -- not the normal silence, but the silence that contained prayers, prayers to the One, the only One, who could give me the calmness and peace that I so desperately sought. You see, I had made this drive before for a husband and sons whom I almost lost in an accident before I accepted the Lord. That drive was a drive of panic and desperation. This day though, it was different, I had the Lord, and the Lord had me. I arrived to a busy scene of medical people doing their jobs, and I was able to do my job: to pray and trust in the Lord with such a calmness that I cannot put into words.

Philippians 4:6-7 - Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (NKJV)

I know that I am not the first to experience what I have shared, and I know that I won't be the last, either. But maybe, though, as the Lord spoke to me that day, He will also speak to others about His gift of peace in the desperate events in our lives.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You that You never leave us, and that You are always there to supply our every need. Help us to have eyes, ears, and hearts open to see You in all situations. Lord, may we become Your hands and feet reaching into the situations and the lives of people who don't know You. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.


Julie Bowles <julieanni@rogers.com>
Barrie, Ontario, Canada

Simple Christmas

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   It was originally posted on the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. www.daily.presbycan.ca/devotions  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

 

 

Simple Christmas

 

James 1:17 - Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. (NKJV)

Since my dad passed away three years ago, Christmas at our house has been very different. We do the family get-together about two or three weeks before Christmas, and the family comes for dinner. As Christmas approaches, though, our house becomes a beehive of five people packing to go camping in Florida for about three weeks. We have stayed in three different places over the past three years, and we are planning our trip again this December. The gifts are minimal, as the trip is our gift to each other.

Christmas Eve finds us in a local church. In line with tradition, the boys open one gift on Christmas Eve, which somehow manages to be pyjamas. Christmas dinner is done the same as at home with turkey and all the trimmings. The camping aspect does have its challenges, so we do it in a simpler way. We have swum on Christmas day, and we have opened our gifts in the rain.

The one thing, though, that has never changed is the reason that we celebrate Christmas: the birth of our Saviour Jesus. So it doesn't matter where we are, how we celebrate, whether we have all the gifts and traditions of the past, or even whether every member of our extended family is present. What matters is the real reason for the season, and that is Jesus Christ. We will have many an opportunity to be a witness to the other campers as to who Jesus is in our lives.

Luke 2:7 - And she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (NIV)

Prayer: Dear God, thank You for the gift of Your Son, Jesus. Thank You for the simple way that He came into the world for us. Help us, God, to show this to others this Christmas: that the simple Christmas is all about You. Help us to share with our actions and our words a testimony of who You are in our lives. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. 

Julie Bowles <julieanni@rogers.com>
Barrie, Ontario, Canada 

Cereal Aisle

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   It was origonaly posted on the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. www.daily.presbycan.ca/devotions  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

The Cereal Aisle

Devotional for Friday, November 18, 2011 by Julie Bowles

John 15:16 - You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. (NKJV)

A recent trip to the grocery store found me in the cereal aisle. There was cereal from one end of the aisle to the other. There was cereal that could be made hot, cereal to be eaten cold, cereal shaped like animals, and cereal in every colour imaginable. There was even nutritious cereal, but in order for me to determine this, I had to carefully read the "Nutrition Facts" labels on the boxes. So much effort had gone into making the cereal visually attractive that finding out what was really or not really in the box was a challenge.
This got me thinking of how things have changed since I was a child. Then, boxes were printed in black and white, and nobody worried about nutrition. Now, products are presented in fancy and flashy packaging, and time is needed to read the side of the box and find out what is truly inside.
Am I like the cereal box, all flashy and showy, but giving friends a hard time seeing who I really am inside? Or does the love of Christ show in my actions and in how I am living my life? People need to know the One who came and lived among the people and died for us. It shouldn't take a lot of effort for people to see the light of Jesus inside of me, and know that Jesus is the chief ingredient in my life.

Acts 13:47 - For so the Lord has commanded us: "I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth." (NKJV)

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to live our lives in Your image. Help us to show Your light in this complex and busy world in which we live. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles <julieanni@rogers.com>
Barrie, Ontario, Canada

The Hill

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   It was origonaly posted on the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. www.daily.presbycan.ca/devotions  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

The Hill


Philippians 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (NKJV)


Just over seven months ago, I embarked on living a healthier lifestyle. With this has come a loss of seventy pounds and a much healthier me. Though the journey has been at hard at times, it has also been very rewarding. I have become very active, first with walking and aqua-fitness, and then biking. It is through the biking that I have noticed some very significant changes in my fitness level. I recently biked from our town to another town and back, a ride of forty kilometers. It was during this ride that the Lord spoke to me about a few things. He reminded me of one of my first bike rides about three months before, on which I was just riding in our general area and avoiding anything that resembled a hill. He reminded me of how I got off my bike and walked one particular hill. Since this time, I have progressed, and almost no hill is beyond my trying. Since that day, I have not walked my bike again.

As I reflected on this, I saw some very close parallels to our walk in the Lord. How many times we look at something in our life and think, This hill is too much for me to manage, and we turn around and go the other way or find another route. I am sure that if we could see into the situation a little more clearly, we would see the Father with outstretched arms encouraging us to move up the hill towards Him.

Hebrews 12:2 - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (NIV)

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to move forward always in a path towards You. Help us to focus our eyes on You in all situations of life. Help us to navigate the hills of life with You as our focus. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.


Julie Bowles <julieanni@rogers.com>
Barrie, Ontario, Canada

Prepared

The following is a blog written by a CH staff member from Barrie.   I took it from the Presbyterian Church of Canada's devotional website. http://daily.presbycan.ca/devotions/2011/11-09-14.html .  I spoke with Julie about putting a link to that site.  We love to hear from staff serving all over the place so if you have written something please send it a long.  I am sure others would be encouraged by what God is teaching you. 

Mark Wallace

Philemon 1:6 - I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. (NIV)

As I walked along the lakefront very early on one particular morning, I noticed that a crew was very busy. People were watering the large gardens of flowers. Another person had a tractor, and he was raking the beach sand. Others were cutting and trimming grass, and another was washing the pathway with water. It was very early, and the sun had just risen, yet it was evident that a lot of preparation was in progress.

As I walked along, I thought of all the people who, in a few short hours, would flock to the beach to enjoy the flowers and the cut and trimmed grass and the freshly raked sand. Would those people even know about all the preparation that had gone into this day in the hours prior to their visit?

As I reflected on this, I thought of all the preparation that went into the marvellous event of God sending His Son to earth for us. Yet there still are people who are unaware of this preparation and the fact that Jesus came and made a way to heaven for us. This way will outlast all the trimmed grass and raked sand of this earth.

Revelation 4:11 - You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being. (NIV)

What about us? Are we busy making preparations that are of this world, or are we placing our focus on helping those who have not heard the gospel to prepare for the next one? It is easy to get caught up in this world, but we are called to a greater mission, and that is the sharing of the gospel.

Prayer: Dear Lord, we ask that You would help us daily (and in some cases, moment by moment) to align ourselves to be Your hands and feet to a lost and perishing world. Instil in us a new passion for who You are in our lives. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

Julie Bowles Barrie, Ontario, Canada