Holy Week - I

I love Holy Week. Holy Week provides us another opportunity to do what Jesus asked us to at the last supper, "remember me"! That the Son of God, Creator of the Universe, should need to ask us to "remember Him" is astounding! Yet sadly, our lives often are so cluttered with "life" that we really do need to be reminded to "REMEMBER HIM" The sacrifice of Calvary: an extravagant outpouring of God's love for mankind!


Remember:
God is not willing that any perish, but that ALL come to repentance.
God has literally moved heaven and earth to demonstrate His love towards us through the sacrifice on Calvary of His only beloved Son.
The cross of Calvary is an available (24/7) open resource to all who BELIEVE.

Theses words from an old chorus are a good reminder too:
Kneel at the cross, leave every care,
Kneel at the cross, Jesus will meet you there.


When is the last time you humlby knelt at the cross?
Let's take some time this week to do just that - JESUS will meet you there!
Bring EVERY care/weight/sin - JESUS will meet you there!
Joyfully,
Ruth Joy
http://www.joy-bringer-ministries.org/

Holy Week - I

I love Holy Week. Holy Week provides us another opportunity to do what Jesus asked us to at the last supper, "remember me"! That the Son of God, Creator of the Universe, should need to ask us to "remember Him" is astounding! Yet sadly, our lives often are so cluttered with "life" that we really do need to be reminded to "REMEMBER HIM" The sacrifice of Calvary: an extravagant outpouring of God's love for mankind!


Remember:
God is not willing that any perish, but that ALL come to repentance.
God has literally moved heaven and earth to demonstrate His love towards us through the sacrifice on Calvary of His only beloved Son.
The cross of Calvary is an available (24/7) open resource to all who BELIEVE.

Theses words from an old chorus are a good reminder too:
Kneel at the cross, leave every care,
Kneel at the cross, Jesus will meet you there.


When is the last time you humlby knelt at the cross?
Let's take some time this week to do just that - JESUS will meet you there!
Bring EVERY care/weight/sin - JESUS will meet you there!
Joyfully,
Ruth Joy
http://www.joy-bringer-ministries.org/

Thanksgiving

Yes that is actually my Thanksgiving "Tom" Turkey from 2008! :-) I do love to celebrate and this is a little tradition passed down to me by my Dad's Mom, Anna Kalis. We never sat down to Thanksgiving dinner without the bird being "dressed" with buttons down his chest (cranberries on toothpicks) and wax paper booties on his feet. I have no idea where she got the idea from but as you can see it has stuck with ME! While most people laugh pretty hard at this tradition, it does make a rather pretty picture, don't ya think? :-)

Any one who knows me a bit knows how much I love to celebrate anything and everything, but especially the holidays! On Thanksgiving, my hubby and I usually don some type of "pilgrim" attire to remember our founding fathers the pilgrims who thanked the Lord with a feast after losing many loved ones on the voyage here aboard the Mayflower and then throughout the hard cold winter. In spite of their grief and hardships they celebrated.

Are you going to celebrate this year or are you going to mourn? Holidays are joyful and fun for some but for many holidays are dreaded and painful and emphatically punctuate their sorrows. How can we celebrate when our heart is broken and we've experienced brokenness in a precious relationship - or when our hearts are grief stricken over loss of a loved one - or a tragic diagnosis has just been handed out. How do we celebrate when "happy family time" just points out to our own hearts that we are alone and broken and struggling? How do we celebrate when family is fractured and relationships are strained maybe even abusive? The joy on the one hand augments and emphasizes the pain on the other?

Always we have a choice of how to deal with the holidays. We can choose to run away and avoid all the pain. We can choose to drown ourselves in some diversion. We can put on a "mask" and pretend away that we are not hurting. We can make everyone else uncomfortable with our sullenness and silence. I would like to suggest to you, there may be a better way.

First we must acknowledge and own our own pain. Why do family times make me so unhappy, uncomfortable? It is ok and even healthy to identify the wound. It is ok to say this hurts. Talk to someone you can trust about your pain. If you've lost a loved one in the last year, each one is grieving in their own way. There is comfort in shared grief. Most importantly take your wounds to Jesus. Jesus is trustworthy with any ugly wound you are trying to cover up. He is the GREAT PHYSICIAN. He is actually the only one who can heal your heart. Jesus wants to heal your heart more than you want it healed yourself. Wounds do not heal under wraps they need to be cleaned and exposed to the air. Invite Jesus into your pain, He will dress the wound, ask Him to heal the wound. It will take time - while wounds heal, pain is ongoing, but the pain from a wound that is in the process of healing is bearable.

Family is so important in our lives. We need our families. Our families need us. The greatest gift we bring each is other is ourselves. Yes we are all imperfect and struggling with life - but we are still here and still able to provide comfort and laughter and "home" for one another. So often we are tempted to look at others in our families and think if I were only like them - they have it all together - most of the time that is not even true - they have their own heartaches and struggles just like we do. Home and family is where we need to share our hearts. Now I know you cannot trust everyone with your heart - but I want to suggest to you to find at least one safe family member and take a little time to address your concerns and issues with the holiday stuff! Put a plan in place. If Uncle Joe bugs the life out of you when he starts his rants, create an out for yourself. Take a walk, help in the kitchen, play with the kids - they grow so quickly, sit and listen to grandma or grandpa, they may not be there next year. Actually, we never know when it might be the last opportunity to all be together as family. Life has no guarantees.

There's a little saying, "If you'll think, you'll thank." Stop and think of happy memories you share with your siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, grand parents, etc. No one else loves us, knows us, gets us, and yes maybe annoys us, like our own family! Joy is a choice and its up to us to choose it. We can choose to go on as "poor me victims", "blame mongers", "woe is me", absent ourselves, or we can choose to focus on the blessings. I'm not suggesting we deny our pain but rather that we face it. Face it, embrace it, release it. You will enjoy your family and they will enjoy you. If you knew it was the last time you'd ever be able to celebrate together, your words would be tender and gentle, you'd listen carefully and intently to one another, you'd laugh heartily at family humor and you'd come away comforted rather than depressed and oppressed.

I pray that no matter what is going on in your heart and life, you will celebrate a Joy filled Thanksgiving. I know the pain of celebrating after brokenness and loss of loved ones. I've allowed Jesus to heal my wounds and I've chosen JOY. You can too. If you are hurting and would like to talk with me further, or have questions, please email me at joy@joy-bringer-ministries.org .

When I was a girl Thanksgiving looked like this:
Mom got up early put the turkey in the oven
We all got up and dressed for church
Thanksgiving Service was a big deal - well attended - anyone who came was permitted to share whatever they were thankful for (we had to participate too) - no preaching - special music.
Then home for a feast with relatives and friends and oh joy it was not a Sunday so we could play and when we were older even watch some TV!
Grand mom Kalis dressed the turkey before we sat down to eat it. :-)
At the table we had place cards with our names on them and Bible verses my Mom had written out by hand that had the word Thanksgiving or thanks in it, which we all had to read aloud and then say what we were most thankful for. Someone prayed a long prayer before we ate.
Unfortunately it was all ruined by the heaps of dishes to wash up and put away!

Today Thanksgiving looks like this:
I get up and put the turkey in the oven
We watch the Macy's Day Parade, of course!
Then I cook a lot more food than we can eat
There are a lot less relatives to cook for - many are already in heaven.
We still take a turn and thank the Lord for our many blessings.
We sit and talk a lot longer than when we were kids.
We all help clean up.
Hubby watches football.
I like to end the day by watching "Miracle on 34th Street"
Mom and Gerda go off to Chinese retreat.
Alfred and I go down to Lancaster to meet up with more family on Friday.

Psalms 89:15: "Blessed are the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance." Whatever or however you do it, CHOOSE JOY and have a truly Happy Thanksgiving!

Joyfully yours,
Ruth Joy
joy@joy-bringer-ministries.org

Thanksgiving

Yes that is actually my Thanksgiving "Tom" Turkey from 2008! :-) I do love to celebrate and this is a little tradition passed down to me by my Dad's Mom, Anna Kalis. We never sat down to Thanksgiving dinner without the bird being "dressed" with buttons down his chest (cranberries on toothpicks) and wax paper booties on his feet. I have no idea where she got the idea from but as you can see it has stuck with ME! While most people laugh pretty hard at this tradition, it does make a rather pretty picture, don't ya think? :-)

Any one who knows me a bit knows how much I love to celebrate anything and everything, but especially the holidays! On Thanksgiving, my hubby and I usually don some type of "pilgrim" attire to remember our founding fathers the pilgrims who thanked the Lord with a feast after losing many loved ones on the voyage here aboard the Mayflower and then throughout the hard cold winter. In spite of their grief and hardships they celebrated.

Are you going to celebrate this year or are you going to mourn? Holidays are joyful and fun for some but for many holidays are dreaded and painful and emphatically punctuate their sorrows. How can we celebrate when our heart is broken and we've experienced brokenness in a precious relationship - or when our hearts are grief stricken over loss of a loved one - or a tragic diagnosis has just been handed out. How do we celebrate when "happy family time" just points out to our own hearts that we are alone and broken and struggling? How do we celebrate when family is fractured and relationships are strained maybe even abusive? The joy on the one hand augments and emphasizes the pain on the other?

Always we have a choice of how to deal with the holidays. We can choose to run away and avoid all the pain. We can choose to drown ourselves in some diversion. We can put on a "mask" and pretend away that we are not hurting. We can make everyone else uncomfortable with our sullenness and silence. I would like to suggest to you, there may be a better way.

First we must acknowledge and own our own pain. Why do family times make me so unhappy, uncomfortable? It is ok and even healthy to identify the wound. It is ok to say this hurts. Talk to someone you can trust about your pain. If you've lost a loved one in the last year, each one is grieving in their own way. There is comfort in shared grief. Most importantly take your wounds to Jesus. Jesus is trustworthy with any ugly wound you are trying to cover up. He is the GREAT PHYSICIAN. He is actually the only one who can heal your heart. Jesus wants to heal your heart more than you want it healed yourself. Wounds do not heal under wraps they need to be cleaned and exposed to the air. Invite Jesus into your pain, He will dress the wound, ask Him to heal the wound. It will take time - while wounds heal, pain is ongoing, but the pain from a wound that is in the process of healing is bearable.

Family is so important in our lives. We need our families. Our families need us. The greatest gift we bring each is other is ourselves. Yes we are all imperfect and struggling with life - but we are still here and still able to provide comfort and laughter and "home" for one another. So often we are tempted to look at others in our families and think if I were only like them - they have it all together - most of the time that is not even true - they have their own heartaches and struggles just like we do. Home and family is where we need to share our hearts. Now I know you cannot trust everyone with your heart - but I want to suggest to you to find at least one safe family member and take a little time to address your concerns and issues with the holiday stuff! Put a plan in place. If Uncle Joe bugs the life out of you when he starts his rants, create an out for yourself. Take a walk, help in the kitchen, play with the kids - they grow so quickly, sit and listen to grandma or grandpa, they may not be there next year. Actually, we never know when it might be the last opportunity to all be together as family. Life has no guarantees.

There's a little saying, "If you'll think, you'll thank." Stop and think of happy memories you share with your siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, grand parents, etc. No one else loves us, knows us, gets us, and yes maybe annoys us, like our own family! Joy is a choice and its up to us to choose it. We can choose to go on as "poor me victims", "blame mongers", "woe is me", absent ourselves, or we can choose to focus on the blessings. I'm not suggesting we deny our pain but rather that we face it. Face it, embrace it, release it. You will enjoy your family and they will enjoy you. If you knew it was the last time you'd ever be able to celebrate together, your words would be tender and gentle, you'd listen carefully and intently to one another, you'd laugh heartily at family humor and you'd come away comforted rather than depressed and oppressed.

I pray that no matter what is going on in your heart and life, you will celebrate a Joy filled Thanksgiving. I know the pain of celebrating after brokenness and loss of loved ones. I've allowed Jesus to heal my wounds and I've chosen JOY. You can too. If you are hurting and would like to talk with me further, or have questions, please email me at joy@joy-bringer-ministries.org .

When I was a girl Thanksgiving looked like this:
Mom got up early put the turkey in the oven
We all got up and dressed for church
Thanksgiving Service was a big deal - well attended - anyone who came was permitted to share whatever they were thankful for (we had to participate too) - no preaching - special music.
Then home for a feast with relatives and friends and oh joy it was not a Sunday so we could play and when we were older even watch some TV!
Grand mom Kalis dressed the turkey before we sat down to eat it. :-)
At the table we had place cards with our names on them and Bible verses my Mom had written out by hand that had the word Thanksgiving or thanks in it, which we all had to read aloud and then say what we were most thankful for. Someone prayed a long prayer before we ate.
Unfortunately it was all ruined by the heaps of dishes to wash up and put away!

Today Thanksgiving looks like this:
I get up and put the turkey in the oven
We watch the Macy's Day Parade, of course!
Then I cook a lot more food than we can eat
There are a lot less relatives to cook for - many are already in heaven.
We still take a turn and thank the Lord for our many blessings.
We sit and talk a lot longer than when we were kids.
We all help clean up.
Hubby watches football.
I like to end the day by watching "Miracle on 34th Street"
Mom and Gerda go off to Chinese retreat.
Alfred and I go down to Lancaster to meet up with more family on Friday.

Psalms 89:15: "Blessed are the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance." Whatever or however you do it, CHOOSE JOY and have a truly Happy Thanksgiving!

Joyfully yours,
Ruth Joy
joy@joy-bringer-ministries.org

Prayer - Thy Kingdom Come

Prayer - just the word itself has a negative effect on many of us. Why? I think because humans have complicated it!

God intended prayer to be simple.


Ask - it will be given
Seek - you will find
Knock - the door will be opened to you


Direct asking, direct receiving
Earnest seeking, abundant finding
Persistent knocking - Doors open



God hears our prayers.
This fact alone is something we all struggle with - we believe we have to be some kind of special perfect in order for God to even hear our prayers. Why do we think that? I want to suggest that we can only think that when do not KNOW our God well enough.


A parent hears their children requests - all of them - yet it is not always good or right or timely to grant the request. We do not give a 6 year old keys to our car. That does not mean we do not love the 6 year old!


God wants to communicate with us - which you can see in my earlier posts. He wants us to hear Him and He wants to hear us.


Notice again in the sample prayer Jesus gave His disciples:

"Our Father, in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

Up to this point notice not one word about ME or MY or GIVE ME!

This is where our prayers need to start also. My Father, You are holy and to be reverenced. I come before you humbly seeking YOUR answers in my life/world. Your kingdom come! This is key! God has answers! Answers that we have not yet even thought of. If we just make up our mind what God needs to / ought to/ should have alredy done and stamp our feet and holler at Him that we are surprised He has not already granted our request we are missing the mark. We need to bring ourselves, our lives, our concerns humbly before Him and invite HIM to answer the needs according to HIS riches in glory through Christ Jesus our Savior and Lord.

God answers prayer!

Another fact that is hard for us to believe! Why? As children coming to parents we understand the answer process. Sometimes immediate, sometimes delayed, but always answered somehow!
Jesus told us that God the Father is anxious to give the answer. We must remember God sees the BIG picture the long haul - He is working - we are believing - the answer is on the way - we keep trusting - sometimes God's answers are different that what we envisioned. Sometimes the answer is exactly the opposite of what we thought the answer should be. That is where again we need to remind ourselves who is God. We are not God! We do not always understand why He answers as He does and so we need to choose to trust His Love. Granted this is not easy.


Jesus said to his disciples: John 16:23-24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full."


Our prayers ascend as sweet incense before God's throne - don't be afraid to pray - PRAY MORE! Submit your life and family and problems and all that concerns you to OUR FATHER and invite HIS Kingdom to come and HIS will to be done and see the answers HE sends.


Prayer is our secret weapon against Satan and his kingdom, there's on old rhyme, that says:

Satan trembles when he sees, the weakest saint upon their knees. Let's pray more!

Joyfully yours,
Ruth Joy
http://www.joy-bringer-ministries.org/

Prayer - Thy Kingdom Come

Prayer - just the word itself has a negative effect on many of us. Why? I think because humans have complicated it!

God intended prayer to be simple.


Ask - it will be given
Seek - you will find
Knock - the door will be opened to you


Direct asking, direct receiving
Earnest seeking, abundant finding
Persistent knocking - Doors open



God hears our prayers.
This fact alone is something we all struggle with - we believe we have to be some kind of special perfect in order for God to even hear our prayers. Why do we think that? I want to suggest that we can only think that when do not KNOW our God well enough.


A parent hears their children requests - all of them - yet it is not always good or right or timely to grant the request. We do not give a 6 year old keys to our car. That does not mean we do not love the 6 year old!


God wants to communicate with us - which you can see in my earlier posts. He wants us to hear Him and He wants to hear us.


Notice again in the sample prayer Jesus gave His disciples:

"Our Father, in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

Up to this point notice not one word about ME or MY or GIVE ME!

This is where our prayers need to start also. My Father, You are holy and to be reverenced. I come before you humbly seeking YOUR answers in my life/world. Your kingdom come! This is key! God has answers! Answers that we have not yet even thought of. If we just make up our mind what God needs to / ought to/ should have alredy done and stamp our feet and holler at Him that we are surprised He has not already granted our request we are missing the mark. We need to bring ourselves, our lives, our concerns humbly before Him and invite HIM to answer the needs according to HIS riches in glory through Christ Jesus our Savior and Lord.

God answers prayer!

Another fact that is hard for us to believe! Why? As children coming to parents we understand the answer process. Sometimes immediate, sometimes delayed, but always answered somehow!
Jesus told us that God the Father is anxious to give the answer. We must remember God sees the BIG picture the long haul - He is working - we are believing - the answer is on the way - we keep trusting - sometimes God's answers are different that what we envisioned. Sometimes the answer is exactly the opposite of what we thought the answer should be. That is where again we need to remind ourselves who is God. We are not God! We do not always understand why He answers as He does and so we need to choose to trust His Love. Granted this is not easy.


Jesus said to his disciples: John 16:23-24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you. Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full."


Our prayers ascend as sweet incense before God's throne - don't be afraid to pray - PRAY MORE! Submit your life and family and problems and all that concerns you to OUR FATHER and invite HIS Kingdom to come and HIS will to be done and see the answers HE sends.


Prayer is our secret weapon against Satan and his kingdom, there's on old rhyme, that says:

Satan trembles when he sees, the weakest saint upon their knees. Let's pray more!

Joyfully yours,
Ruth Joy
http://www.joy-bringer-ministries.org/

Jesus Calls Us

Myriad voices clamor earnestly and unceasingly for our attention! WHO are we listening to?


"Tweet, tweet, tweet, ringtone, ringtone, ringtone, beep, beep, beep, ding, ding, ding, Mom, Mom, Mom, Hon, Hon, Hon, ......."


From:
TV
Ipod
News Media
Magazines
Newspaper
Blogs
Twitter, FB, MySpace, etc.
Entertainers
Sports
Politicians
Economists
Health Alerts


Has there ever been such a time of CLAMOR for our attention?


How about God's voice? tweet, tweet.....this is God speaking..... "delete" ? ? ? "skip" ? ? ?


How about the voices within:
I'm not important
My life does not matter
I'm basically blowing it
I'm definitely on plan x, y or z certainly not "A" anymore
I'm ugly
I'm too fat
I'm worthless
and on and on those voices drone....


Here's actually a hopeful thought!

"Jesus calls us; over the tumult of our life's wild, restless sea,
Day by day His sweet voice soundeth, Saying "Christian, follow Me."



"As of old the apostles heard it by the Galilean lake,
Turned from home and toil and kindred, leaving all for Jesus' sake. "



"Jesus calls us from the worship of the vain world's golden store,
From each idol that would keep us, Saying, "Christian love Me more."



"In our joys and in our sorrows, Days of toil and hours of ease,
Still He calls in cares and pleasures, "Christian, love Me more than these."



"Jesus calls us; by Thy mercies, Savior, may we hear Thy call,
Give our hearts to Thy obedience, Serve and love Thee best of all."
~~Cecil F. Alexander, 1818-1895



It's an old hymn from the hymnbook but the words are comforting!



Ever notice that when God was preparing to send His Son into the world He sent "A VOICE"... out in the dessert saying "Prepare ye the way of the Lord..." That "voice" was John the Baptist whose message was "Repent, the Kngdom of Heaven is at hand."
Anybody listening?


A VOICE? God who could send lightening bolts, whirlwinds, earthquakes, etc., starts with.... a VOICE?



Clearly all the social networking in our world make it obvious that people love to be heard and have a lot to say!
Anybody listening?



Later, in Jesus' life while He was transfigured on the mountain top with 3 of His disciples, the Father spoke from heaven: "This is my beloved Son, HEAR HIM."!
Anybody listening?



Astounding that the God of Heaven and Earth should need to tell us that we need to listen to HIM! Is it possible that we could go on living our lives without listening to God? While it seems like a "no brainer" to me - I see clearly in the world all around me that listening to God and for His sweet voice has become a lost art. Our lives are so full of so much other noise that who even has time to think about listening for God to speak? Actually, it may be the most important voice of all!
Anybody listening?



So I ask, whose voice ARE you listening to? When is the last time you actually heard the "sweet sound of HIS voice" speaking to YOU personally? Hearing God speak is not just for some strange "mystical" creatures but rather for each and every one of us. Clearly being "heard" is a basic human need. Let's take it a step further and say clearly, it must be a "God need" as well - to be heard! No surprise there either since we were created "in His image." :-)



HOW- that is the question!
Start with reading God's Word -
Pray - ask Him to speak to you as you read
Listen - !
Remember the little song from Kindergarten - "STOP - LOOK - LISTEN, those are the three commands, You must stop and look and listen, ......" ?
Same with God - STOP - LOOK - LISTEN!
When we desire to hear His voice He speaks!
Anybody listening?



I pray we will all grow in our desire to HEAR the voice of the Lord - however He may choose to reveal it to us today!

Joyfully yours,
Ruth Joy
www.joy-bringer-ministries.org