Good morning, Dear Friends and Prayer Partners! This is the day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it!
When I stepped outside this morning, the air was chilly, but the stars were lighting up the sky. However, I didn't linger long, because I didn't have a jacket on! Brrr! I turned on the heat to warm the house a bit, but I went out to give the staghorn fern a banana peel and the air had warmed up some, so the bright sun will soon warm everything up.
Yesterday was such a beautiful day, I decided to go for a walk, and so did a hundred others! Every picnic table was full, and lots of cars in the parking lot. I walked on to the entrance bridge at the park, and a big family was blocking the way, taking photos of a gator just under the bridge. Then I walked on dodging strollers and people, to the first shelter and more families were gazing at Mama gator and her babies. Mama was totally out of the water and right beside the shelter in full view. I noticed that the water lilies had been sprayed, including the mudbank where the babies liked to hang out, so I don't think she was too happy with that situation..I walked on to the tower, and the wind was blowing and cool, so I went on back the different way, and saw a gator on the bank across from the entrance bridge, also attracting a lot of attention. God is good!
From Quiet Moments with God:
1 Peter 1:15,16 ASV
As he who called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy in all manner of living because it is written, ye shall be holy, for I am holy.
A father tells a story of an afternoon once spent with his three-year-old daughter. An avid golfer, he was practicing with his clubs in the yard while she played nearby. As he prepared for each swing, he would look to his left to aim the shot, then back to his right to make sure the child was out of harm's way-only then would he take his shot.
Soon, he noticed that his daughter was also "playing golf," She had taken a stick to use as a club, and he watched as she set her "club," carefully looked left, then right, then took her shot. In her perception, proper golfing form required that you look both ways before you swing.
Whether we realize it or not, our example leaves an impression on others. In the 1800s, English minister Charles Spurgeion put it this way:
A man's life is always more forcible than his speech. When men take stock of him they reckon his deeds as dollars and his words as pennies. If his life and doctrine disagree the mass of onlookers accept his practice and reject his preaching.
When Jesus said, "You are the light of the world," He wasn't speaking only of our verbal witness. The most profound message we will ever send is the one we live on a day-to-day basis. And it's never more important than when we don't know anyone is paying attention.
Because Someone is always paying attention.
In darkness there is no choice.
It is light that enables us
to see the difference between
things, and it is Christ who gives us light.
Augustus W. Hare
I always give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers with thanksgiving, joy and love!
Love and hugs,
Amaryllis
