by Dona Hake

My granddaughter loves to play hide and seek with me in our backyard.  There are so many places for her to hide in what she once referred to as “the forest.”  There are lots of big trees for a little one to hide in.   There were a few times that she found some pretty clever spots and I was unable to find her.    I will say loudly enough so Rissa can hear me, “Oh my Aasha, I cannot find Rissa, can you help me find her? Since my German Shepherd is always by my side . she too enjoys being a part of our fun together.    So  she will look, sniff and take off and find her in no time at all.    

Sometimes in life we need answers and we need help finding them.   We know the answer is right there under our fingertips yet we just need some direction to it.  Sometimes it seems that some answers take a little more digging and seeking for but the Lord our Shepherd will lead us and guide us into all truth.   

The Lord has hidden wonderful things in His Word for us, and He desires that we diligently seek out that which we need.

Proverbs 8:17-18  ERV)

I love those who love me,
and those who look for me will find me.
With me there are riches and honor.
I have lasting wealth to give to you.”

Today I encourage you to look for His wisdom in the small things as well as the big.   He loves when you seek out what He has for you.

Proverbs 8:11
“Wisdom is better than pearls, and nothing you desire compares with her.”

Proverbs 3:18
“Wisdom is like a life-giving tree to those who hold on to her; she is a blessing to those who keep her close.”

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by Dona Hake

Oh the beauty of our Lord’s wisdom that He has for us!  It causes us to use knowledge rightly and direct every path that we walk on or pursue.  It keeps us from moving forward when it is time to stand still yet it prompts us to step out when the time is right.  God’s wisdom is amazing.

Proverbs 3:19 (TLB) 
“The Lord’s wisdom founded the earth;

his understanding established all the universe and space.”

Isn’t it awesome to ponder that the God in heaven desires to give you wisdom when you need it?  If He was able to establish all that we see on this beautiful earth, surely He can make our feet firm and our direction sure!  Why would we go anywhere but God for the wisdom we must have in our time of need?   Surely the wisdom you need is there for you as you ask Him for it.

Jeremiah 32:17 NIV
“Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens

and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm.

Nothing is too hard for you.”

~~~~~♥~~~~~

There will be those times in which we feel like we do not know the next step to take. Things may seem dark or cloudy but the Lord promises that He will grant us the wisdom that we need for anything and all we have to do is ask. Let us never deceive ourselves to think that we know it all and we do not need His help.

One could also be deceived to think that as long as they have money that they do not need His help. Money is not wrong to have for we need it to exist, it is when one looks to it as a source rather than God. Money will never purchase God’s wisdom for it’s value is higher than any fine stone on this earth. There are some things that money simply cannot buy. It is as we couple His wisdom with the knowledge we have that our lives will be guarded and directed by Him.

Ecclesiastes 7:12 (NIRV)

“Wisdom provides safety,
just as money provides safety.
But here’s the advantage of wisdom.
It guards the lives of those who have it.”

God’s wisdom surpasses the safety that money can provide. It will guard and keep your life that you may serve Him because this wisdom from above will cause you to see clearly every step you are to take. Today I encourage you to be thankful for all things He has blessed you with to exist, but always look to Him as your source for the life giving wisdom you need.

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by Dona Hake

Have you ever felt to be in a hopeless situation and there seemed to be no turn around for the problem you were walking through?  Have you ever had someone speak a word of comfort to you in the midst of a hopeless situation, and all of the sudden a spark of hope ignited in your heart.  It is the most wonderful thing ever!  There is great power in words of comfort and we should never underestimate the power of a few words spoken that could potentially give someone fresh hope and strength.

I cannot tell you how many people have shared with me how they struggle with inadequacy with words especially when someone has lost a loved one.  I have always shared to just be there for the person and the Lord will put the words on your heart to speak.  Let us desire to be used as vessels of comfort in times of such need.

2 Corinthians 1:3-5   (TLB)
“What a wonderful God we have—he is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the source of every mercy, and the one who so wonderfully comforts and strengthens us in our hardships and trials. And why does he do this? So that when others are troubled, needing our sympathy and encouragement, we can pass on to them this same help and comfort God has given us.  You can be sure that the more we undergo sufferings for Christ, the more he will shower us with his comfort and encouragement.

I encourage you today to think upon the times in which the Lord so graciously permeated your heart with comfort.   Let us be ever so thankful that we can draw upon Him for comfort and strength, and when opportunity arises in which you see someone hurting and your heart is touched…allow Him to touch that person through you.

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by Dona Hake

I love being with little children.  I love their energy and imagination as well as appreciating their personalities in development.  Today I had an experience that caused me to walk away thinking about why Jesus said we need to be like little kids.

I was shopping and I noticed this little girl that was about four years old trying to push her mommy’s cart through the store.  As I was standing in line to check out, this little girl and her mommy were in front of me.  I said to the little girl, “Wow, you have really been such a great helper to your mommy today!”  The precious little thing looked into my eyes but did not respond one word to me.  I totally understood what was happening but the poor mother was so embarrassed.  This little one was purposely letting me know that she was not going to acknowledge me.  Her mother began to apologize and she said, “Oh my, I am realizing why she is doing this.  She is not talking to you because I have told her she is never to talk to strangers.”  I immediately began to affirm the mother and let her know that this is a good and  important thing to teach our children. Sadly in this day and age we need to be ever so careful.

I learned from this little incident and walked away once again reminded that Jesus desires we be as children.  I thought about how this little girl immediately recalled the teaching of her mother and she obeyed what she had been taught.    She knew in her little heart that what her mother taught her was to keep her safe.

God has set up his commandments and things for us to live by in His Word.   They are there for our protection and to live a life of full of blessing and abundant peace.  In our times in which we think we know better than God, we can stray from His commands because we think we are “too grown up” for such rules.  Let us look at a scripture that will reinforce what I am sharing.

Proverbs 4:3-6

(ERV)

by Dona Hake

There is much torment in feeling guilty.  It kind of feels like a prison because you are no longer free from the inside out.  Memories and thoughts of the wrong you may have done seem to have voices, and they continue to haunt and remind you of what you think is irreparable.  If you have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus, you can partake of His wonderful forgiveness.  Let us treasure within us how wonderful it is that the Lord will forgive us when we mess up and He will always cleanse our hearts.  As we humble ourselves to Him admitting our wrongs and shortcomings, He is desiring so much to bring you back to that place of feeling clean again.

Let us look at David in the Psalms.   His plea to God was for restoration of his heart in a time in which he majorly messed up and  his heart was heavy with guilt and anguish.

Psalm 51:7, 8, 10

“Remove my sin and make me pure.” 
    Wash me until I am whiter than snow!
Let me hear sounds of joy and happiness again.
    
God, create a pure heart in me,
    and make my spirit strong again.”

Today let us treasure the power of forgiveness from the One who is able to cleanse.  I love how verse eight says “Let me hear sounds of joy and happiness again.”   This is what restoration  is about.  When we experience freedom from guilt we are able to experience the joy that was robbed by our sin and guilt.  Only God is able to create within us a pure heart, pick us back up, and cause us to continue on in His will.  Thank God for the power of forgivenesss!

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by Dona Hake

I have thoroughly enjoyed sharing with my granddaughters about how the four seasons affect the things around us. For the past year every time I pick them up we pretty much travel the same route, and we began to take notice to a maple tree that stands all alone in the middle of a corn field. At the end of last fall when the corn was harvested and the tree had lost all of it’s leaves, I mentioned how the tree looked kind of lonely. Out in the middle of this corn field is standing a tree that once had tons of leaves that turned glorious colors and now it stood naked and all alone.

We named the tree “Mr. Lonely Tree.” This tree has turned into a fun and interactive time of teaching the girls about  what happens to a tree during the different seasons.  One day I said, “Poor Mr. Lonely Tree can hardly wait for spring so he can have his leaves back!” As we would drive by each week I kept telling them that it would not be long that the tree would have so many leaves growing all over it.   With the winter that we had it seemed like forever that the tree was going to bear leaves.  I can still remember their little faces lighting up when they saw all the beautiful leaves FINALLY adorning the limbs of Mr. Lonely Tree.

Even though I have been sharing these facts with the girls, my heart has also been ministered to as I see this tree standing. It seems that no matter what season it is, Mr. Lonely Tree  remains strong. Even though things are constantly changing all around it, the tree just continues to flourish inside and out. Even in the barrenness of the winter, I knew that there were deep things going on in the root system of this tree.

As we continue to abide, thrive and grow in the Lord, we also will go from one season to the next in our lives. Some seasons seem like they are never going to end. Other seasons seems like sand slipping through our fingers. We just wish we could hold on to those moments just a little bit longer.  There may be seasons in which you feel you are standing alone yet you have blossomed in great strength as a result of  that season which appeared to be a time of barrenness.  Let us be reminded that God is the God of perfect timing and we must continue to trust His judgments.

The Lord is calling us to walk through each season of our life and embrace it’s purpose.  When He chooses to end that chapter, we need to be willing to go forward into the next. With each season He is seasoning us and working deep within us to continue on, His hand is at work even when we feel like nothing is happening around us or inside of us. I encourage you to love and enjoy each God given season of your life,be blessed and know that He who has begun a good work in you is completing it!

Ecclesiastes 3:1 (DARBY) 
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heavens.”

by Dona Hake

Psalm 119:165 (HCSB)
“Abundant peace belongs to those
who love Your instruction;
nothing makes them stumble.”

When we love the instruction of God’s Word , we WILL have great peace.  As my husband preached  yesterday he admonished us…”The spirit of this world is trying to drain us.”  This is so true, and this truth needs to be heeded to.   No matter how much we love and live for the Lord, we must continue to keep ourselves strengthened by the truths of God’s Word so that our souls are not drained and pulled down.  Many times when we are lacking peace, it is then that we are most vulnerable to offences.

The second part of Psalm 119:165 says that “nothing makes them stumble.”   When we are so full of God’s peace, we will be able to rise above things that would be trying to pull our hearts into being offended and stumbling.    Offense can have power over our souls as it can cause us to be unforgiving and we could end up a bitter person.

This great peace that the psalmist is speaking  of is not the peace that the world gives.  This peace comes from the God of still waters that lives within you, and He promises to flood your soul with it.    This peace is the peace that passes all human comprehension. It is  above and beyond all we dare imagine.  Today I encourage you to think about the God in Heaven that desires for His abundant peace to permeate your soul!   As you love His instruction you will have abundant peace.

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by Dona Hake

Psalm 139:1-6

“Lord, you have examined me.
You know me.
You know when I sit down and when I stand up.
Even from far away, you comprehend my plans.
 You study my traveling and resting.
You are thoroughly familiar with all my ways.
There isn’t a word on my tongue, Lord,
that you don’t already know completely.
 You surround me—front and back.
You put your hand on me.
 That kind of knowledge is too much for me;
it’s so high above me that I can’t fathom it.”

Let us ponder how awesome it is that the Lord knows each of us inside and out.  He knows exactly what makes us tick.  He understands our emotions and our fears.  He knows every thought that runs through our minds and before we speak a word, He already knows what it is going to be.

This strikes me as so amazing and it makes me even more aware of how much I need to reverence Him in every aspect of my life.  You see, He not only looks at our heart, but He sees what is there that is good and those things that should not be occupying our hearts.  He sees things no one else sees.  Let us also embrace this thought when we are being tempted to be critical of others.  Many times people may be walking through something that you do not know of.    It is a good rule to be praying for people rather than trying to figure them out.   God knows and sees their hearts as well, and He is well able to deal with them.  Let us keep our eyes on Him and our own hearts.

“God does not see as humans see.

Humans look at outward appearances,

but the Lord looks into the heart.”

2 Samuel 16:7

As we walk closely beside Him and stay in close fellowship we can be sure that He will speak to us about things that we did not even know are going on inside of us.  Awesome thought isn’t it?  The God that so lovingly created you understands it all.  In those times that you feel you are not being understood, know this…the God of Heaven and Earth understands you.

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by Dona Hake

Sometimes our eyes can deceive us.  We can think we are perceiving things properly but truth is we are seeing things from the wrong perspective or improper thinking.  There are many things that can cloud our eyes from seeing things how God sees them.

Here is an example of seeing things incorrectly.  We have heard it said that worry casts a big shadow on small things.  Really when you think about it worry causes us to perceive “His  light”  and the truth of the matter incorrectly.    Worry has the ability to magnify things and distort the truth.  When there is a problem and we allow the light of His Word to shine on it, we will always be able to embrace an attitude of victory and not worry.

God desires that we see everything in proper perspective and the only way that will happen is if we see things through His eyes.    I guarantee you that as we ask Him to help us see, our perspective on everything will be correct.  Today I encourage you to ask Him to fill your eyes with light…His light.

Psalm 119:18 (VOICE) 
“Let me see clearly so that I may take in
the amazing things coming from Your law.”

There are so many wonderful things in His Word for us to learn.  We can never think we know it all for all that we do know He can continue to increase by taking us to greater depths.  Let us pray that we see more clearly that we can take in all of God’s awesomeness that He is and Has provided!  He desires that every part of our being to  be full of light.

Matthew 6:22-23
(TLB)
 “If your eye is pure, there will be sunshine in your soul.”

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