It is with great pleasure I bring you another guest post! Please welcome my friend, Barbara M Britton to our blog with some beautiful sentiments on God's Word.

​Take it away Barb...
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Thanks Pam!
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God’s Word never ceases to amaze me. Even though I know a Bible story well, there are always details that deepen my faith. 
My latest release covers six stories in the Gospel of Mark that show the power and compassion of Jesus. In Jesus, we have the Son of the Most-High God, and someone who was fully human. Jesus never sinned, but He needed to take care of His physical self. 

This week I studied two other Bible heroes, who like Jesus, prayed to God in good times and challenging times.
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Let us start with Jesus. While Jesus is listening to His disciples debrief on their exploits of evangelism, so many people are disturbing them that Jesus says, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” (Mark 6:31 NIV)

If you know what comes next, Jesus doesn’t find rest right away. He and the disciples feed five thousand men, and the women and children with them. Preparing a banquet for thousands is not restful. Afterward, we are told that Jesus made His disciples get in a boat and go on ahead of Him. What did Jesus do? He went up on a mountainside to pray. (Mark 6:46).

Jesus knew prayer with the Father was critical to staying focused on His mission. He may have had to multiply loaves and fishes first, but He didn’t forget to talk to His Father.

Likewise, when Nehemiah received word that his home city of Jerusalem was in ruins, he “mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heavens.” (Nehemiah 1:4 NIV). Nehemiah also prayed while in the presence of King Artaxerxes. Long prayers or short prayers, Nehemiah stayed connected to God. He would need that connection to complete the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s wall while facing enemies from outside the city and from within.

And then there is Daniel. I taught this story to a group of elementary girls this week. I thought I knew this story by heart. Daniel is thrown into a lion’s den because he doesn’t stop praying to God. An edict had been given that everyone had to worship King Darius alone.

Daniel continued to pray at least three times a day to God. (Daniel 6:10).

The word that caught my eye regarding Daniel’s prayer life was uttered by King Darius. Before throwing Daniel into the lion’s den, something he didn’t want to do, the king states, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!” (Daniel 6:16 NIV).

When the king goes back to the lion’s den in the morning, he asks something similar, “has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?” (Daniel 6:20). Did you catch the word that stood out to me? Daniel prayed to God and worshiped God continually. People noticed, even the king.

Daniel’s prayer life affected the king and his new decree declared that everyone in Darius’s kingdom must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. Amen!

These accounts in the Bible encouraged me to pray to God more often.

I don’t know what you are facing in your life. Your days may be smooth sailing in a boat, or you may be facing your own den of lions. Pray continually and consistently to God. We need to stay connected to God and focused on His sovereignty and compassion.
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As you read Scripture this week, notice other prayer warriors in God’s Word. If you have a favorite, share it with us.

Discover the life changing power of Jesus in six short stories from the Gospel of Mark. The miracles of Jesus will leap from the page in a Biblical Fiction story, author reflection, and relatable study.

Travel with Jesus as he calms a storm, heals a desperate woman, raises a dead daughter to life, sends His disciples on a minimalist mission, feeds thousands on a hillside, and shows compassion to a persistent mother.

A perfect study for your small group, personal or family devotions, or even a book club.
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Barbara M. Britton is an author of Christian Fiction who loves to bring little-known Bible stories to light. She has taught the Bible in church and schools for thirty years. Barbara has a nutrition degree from Baylor University but loves to dip healthy strawberries in chocolate. You can find out more about Barbara and her books on her website barbarambritton.com.

As I step (sometimes quite awkwardly) into my “sunset years,” I notice that my values have changed—dramatically, in some areas. Priorities have executed a distinct about-face. Wants, needs, desires…all shifted, or shifting. Things matter less. Family is all-important. God is everything—first and last, beginning and end, over and above anyone, anything and everything else.

I kind of like the new outlook. It makes for an easier, more relaxed and satisfied, far less stressful existence. Why is it that most of us don’t reach this level in our mental, emotional, and spiritual outlook until we get…well, let me just say “rich in age.” How much sweeter life would be if we could arrive at this quieter, more peaceful mindset when we’re young! I can think of a lot of mistakes I made that might have been avoided.

Then again, without all those “mistakes”—you know them, the off-the-beaten track, lost and confused days that seemed unending and incredibly lonely. The heartbreaks and bumps in the road that looked like mountains at the time. Bad decisions and wrong moves. Lacking those experiences, would we ever gain the wisdom to enter our sunset years with any degree of grace? I’m inclined to believe every little and large experience we encounter is part of God’s plan. We need the tears that follow heartbreak to help wash away the pain—or, at the very least, to clear our vision so we can see how desperately we need God. We learn from the fallout after bad decisions. We gain directional aptitude after taking enough wrong turns along the way. Our faults and failures all serve as steppingstones. Learning experiences. Hard-earned moves forward on the path to becoming who we are in our latter years.

So we spend time feeding experiential knowledge into our psyches. Growing in wisdom. Becoming. Becoming the person God is shaping us into—someone in His perfect image. His precious child, whom He has taught—through example, discipline, and gentle persuasion—that being like dear ol’ (heavenly) Daddy isn’t a bad thing at all. It’s a beautiful goal, attained by difficult, hands-on experience, sometimes undertaken in the dark. A goal worthy of reward—and let me take a quick second to affirm what I’m sure you already know—our Father knows how to bestow the most amazing rewards on His beloved children!

As I worked my way through the years that led to this milestone, I took note of a few experiences that brought sunshine into my life. I jotted down a few of the lessons learned along the way and combined them into a little book called Morning Rendezvous. It’s a collection of Devotions and Musings from My Heart to Yours. I think you’ll enjoy the read. You may laugh a time or two. It’s possible you’ll shed a few tears. You may find that you learn some of the same lessons I learned, because I share them with you as clearly and concisely as I am capable of writing.

I hope you’ll pick up a copy. And then I’ll look eagerly forward to hearing from you. I love it when readers share the blessings they find within the pages of my books—all of them, but most of all Morning Rendezvous because…well, that’s the whole purpose of the book. To teach others easily a few things that I learned the hard way. And, quite simply, to bless you.

So…be blessed.

Thank you, Pamela, for the opportunity to spend a little time with you and your readers. It’s always a pleasure, and you’re a blessing.

Morning Rendezvous blurb:
A short collection of devotions and random musings by Inspirational Romance Author Delia Latham. Within its pages is a heaping heartful of love, hope, faith, encouragement...even a bit of humor. Grab your Bible and a cup of something warm and soothing. Make yourself comfortable, and come on in. Prepare to be blessed...

A world of sweet romance with a whisper of angels’ wings. Readers can count on a touch of the divine in DELIA LATHAM’S sweet, inspirational novels and novellas. An award-winning, best-selling author, Delia is both traditionally and self-published, with over thirty novels, novellas, and short stories to her credit. When this author isn’t spinning words into fictional worlds, she offers editing and proofreading services, as well as book cover and marketing material design. After calling California home for half a century, she moved to East Texas with her husband a full decade ago. And there the old CaliTexan couple will live happily ever after…

Follow Delia on Facebook.
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Visit her website.

Sign up to receive her monthly newsletter, Brushing Wings, and receive a FREE copy of Love Comes Lately, a short story from the Love at Heart’s Haven series, co-written with Tanya Stowe.

THANK YOU So Much, Delia for sharing your lovely thoughts and beautiful devotional book with us!

I'm sure my readers and friends enjoyed your post as much as I did.

If so, Friends, get your copy of Delia's devotional book, Morning Rendezvous at AMAZON.

Until next time, take care, God Bless and remember serenity comes with grace and grace builds upon grace given and grace received.

Something to think about!
PamT
"Inspirational with an Edge! ™
"Coaching in Pjs" ™

As Christians we are encouraged to become more like Jesus, but how is that possible in a world where hearts have grown cold and mutual honesty, integrity and respect is almost nonexistent?

In his book, Just Like Jesus, Max Lucado offers us numerous examples. I own this treasure trove of encouragement and have read it numerous times, but I must say, loving as Jesus loved/loves and living as He lived, is not easy!

Sometimes it seems as though Life sets out to prove just how difficult a task this is. Not wanting to get into particular situations here, let’s suffice by saying I have never considered myself capable of emotions strong enough to actually hurt—I mean physically—hurt someone. But I have. I’ve experienced anger, so deep, so raw it nearly rendered me incapable of feeling basic kindness much less compassion.

I’m not proud of it and am certainly not advocating acting on those feelings! But there have been a few times in my life I can honestly say I’ve experienced something so fierce, so strong… so dangerous that it actually scared me.

I’ve seen social media posts that say when asked WWJD remember that turning over tables and taking a whip to someone is not out of the realm of possibilities.

Yeah, there are times when I’d like to do that.

Or worse.

Without a qualm.

Hard to believe, right? Especially for those who know me personally.

Hard for me to believe too.

Thankfully, I haven’t felt such intense rage like this often or in a long time.

So how can we be more like Jesus when we have such undesirable emotions?

Scripture gives us the answer… “But I tell you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…” Matthew 5:44 and Romans 12:14: “Bless those who persecute you [who are cruel in their attitude toward you]; bless and do not curse them.”

So that’s what I did and continue to do: Pray and trust that God has the entire situation under control and will show Himself strong on my behalf, help me see the people/circumstances in a different light, or change my heart completely. I’ve prayed, “Lord, I’m willing to forgive and I surrender this situation and these emotions to you, but only YOU can make the forgiveness true in my heart.”

Three other prayers have proven beneficial when faced with something like this…

• Ho'oponopono, the ancient Hawaiian practice of reconciliation and forgiveness, meaning "to make things right." I’ve studied and practiced this prayer and am a Certified Ho'oponopono Practitioner. With this prayer you take full responsibility for your emotions by apologizing to and asking forgiveness from the perpetrator(s), saying “thank you,” and ending with, “I love you.”

 
Which isn’t easy when our ego mind screams, “yeah, but…!!!” One thing that helped me was to add, “I forgive you and I release you to God,” at the end of my prayer. Another was to write the prayer in full using the person/people’s names. In her book, The Four Spiritual Laws of Prosperity, Edwene Gaines suggests writing your forgiveness statement 35 x twice a day for 7 days (70 x 7). I have this book and will discuss it at a later time. I want to re-read it first. 😊

Surrogate Tapping for those involved helped too.

• The prayer of St. Francis of Assisi and the Amni Christi are wonderful too because both help you focus on emulating Christ.

 
Have these things made me more like Jesus?

Maybe, a little, but I know there’s always room for me to learn, to heal, and to grow.

Something to think about...
PamT
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“Inspirational with an Edge!” ™
"Coaching in Pj's" ™

​I'd LOVE to hear your thoughts so leave a comment!

I am shocked it's been two months since I posted to this blog! So much has happened beginning with the launch of a new collection of short stories along with the promotion and all that entails. A Hint of Holiday Romance hit the shelves March 15th and is available at Amazon for Kindle and in Paperback as well as other online retailers.

Add to that, I've been working with a coach to launch A Novel Lunch™ writing course God put on my heart years ago. Alas, like many, I had numerous "reasons" why I couldn't do this. But no more! A Novel Lunch™ Beginning Writer course will commence on May 27th. So, if you or someone you know has been talking about writing a book but are clueless as to how/when/where to start. Check out the course HERE.

Amidst all of this, I started offering paid ad space on my book blog which has kept me busy and started doing bookkeeping for Edgemont Healing Center in Lake Charles where I host life coaching classes.

Oh, and don't forget tax season... I prepare tax returns for family members and friends. 

Anyhow, my goal is to get back to regular, or at least semi-regular, posting to Rainbows, Potholes and Nuggets of Gold. Prayers Appreciated!

​So, until next time, please ponder this article I wrote back in 2016 and I feel is still relevant today. In fact, it just might be one of the most timeless articles I've ever written.

​Enjoy!
PamT

Easter is behind us, Lent a quickly fading memory. After six weeks of sacrifice and penance, most of us are glad it’s over. We’re happy to be Lent free.

For many, Lent is a time of reflection and grace. We fast, spend extra time with God in prayer, and do more for our fellow man and/or the causes and charities we believe in and trust. For others, Lent is an obligatory penance we’ve been taught from childhood. A time during which we give up something (sweets, sodas, etc.) and attend church services more, but we’ve forgotten the real reason behind the six week period, and we’re just glad when it’s over!

But should we be?

Experts say an old habit can be broken and a new one cemented in thirty days. We’ve spent more than that during this time of year replacing our old routines with something new and meaningful. We’ve traded our poor eating practices with regular fasting and abstinence.

We look and feel better. We’re calmer, more centered and focused.

Why then are we anxious to throw away the benefits of Lent and go back to our previous ways of thinking, eating and doing/being?

Wouldn’t it be better to use Lent as a time of renewal and then continue to reap the rewards all year?

Think about this for a second!

Let’s say your Lenten observation consisted of spending an extra 15 minutes in prayer and meditation each morning and you’ve noticed a difference in your day. If recognized, you’ll connect the two and understand exactly why your entire life seems to go smoother. Wouldn’t it be wise to continue those moments of pure devotion throughout the year?

Or, you’ve given up sodas or sweets and/or fasted 1 day each week and notice you feel better… Less bloated, more energy, etc. Why then go back to those unhealthy pursuits?

Alas, we’re so conditioned to the observance of Lent without truly considering the full beauty and opportunity afforded us to start anew and pursue the kind of life we dream of.

So, if you’re one of those who is glad this particular season is over, if you’re happy to be Lent free, I urge you to examine that mindset and reconsider what Lent means (or can mean) for you in terms of living the life you desire and deserve.
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Something to think about!
“Inspirational with an Edge!” ™