I realized this week that the Yahweh Sisters shouldn't all go on vacation at the same time because we never know who is posting & on what days. Sorry if we have slacked a bit in the postings.
It has taken me a while to get back into the swing of our culture here after being gone for my week to Guatemala. When God takes you on a journey that He has set for you, then it is quite a ride. I have felt like I have been in a different world altogether. You get on a spiritual high & it is hard to operate in "this" world...just ask my friends & family...I've been a little weird lately. But when you begin to do what you know God has called you to do then you have such a peace...with everything. The house can be falling down, tornadoes all around you, bills piling up, & you remain at peace with everything. I had to snap myself out of it so that I could get back to "operating".
I sat at the beach this week & looked out at all that God has given us & thought about how ungrateful we can be at times. We forget to say thank you for even the small things. We go all year & then on Easter Sunday we remember to say thank you God for your Son & for dying for our filth & sins & then raising from the dead so that we may live. Let's remember to thank Him every morning & every night for all that He has done. Even if you have had the "worst" day of your life, still thank Him. You don't know how much worse it could have been. He has done so much that we don't even see. He has us wrapped in His arms at all times & let's us move & go about as He wills & as we allow Him to will.
I think God is taking the Sisters on a journey that none of us knew was coming...some things as a group & some things individually. I am so thankful today for what He is doing in us & as much as we resist some things sometimes...if He has a plan & we are open to it then it will come to pass. Be open. Be thankful. Be in His will. God has so much for you, for me, for us....
continuing to grow...
Jennifer

Prayer & Faith......

It is real simple, either God is a God who answers prayers, or he doesn't. If He doesn't answer prayer it is foolish to pray, and if He does answer prayer then it is foolish not to pray. I believe He answers prayers!
Do you ever feel like you see God only as the giver and you as the receiver? I know I do. This is why we miss the true meaning of prayer and faith! Did you know that prayer and faith are how we become givers to God? Prayer is a way for us to become instruments for God to do what he wants. We have to become aligned with God's purpose, then our prayers will be able to move mountains. They shouldn't be used just to get things from God. Prayer and faith should be used as a way to give to God and please him.
We spend so much time asking for things in prayer that will change our circumstances instead of allowing prayer to change us. But if you are like me you might not know how to pray! To be effective in our prayers we have to meet certain condition's for approaching God in prayer in a way that will bring answers:
First you start out by praising him. Thank him about everything in your life. Praise him for the sunshine, anything that comes into your mind praise him. If it is a serious prayer always pray with your bibles open. Read scripture to him. There are lots of scripture that describe His attributes, look for them and read them aloud to Him. Remember that the Spirit of God and the Word of God ALWAYS work together! The power of the Holy Spirit works through our prayers ONLY if they are in line with the Word of God. This means that to pray effectively we must know what the Bible says. We must bring the Word and the Spirit together in our prayers because then the whole creative power and ability of Almighty God is available to us.
Then you want to make sure that you ask for forgiveness for all your sins. Spend some time doing this. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you any unconfessed sin. Unconfessed sin creates a barrier between you and God. It even short-circuits faith and assurance. Failure to repent will cause estrangement from God. For example when Jesus was about to take his last breath and he cried out "Father why have you forsaken me?" At that moment Jesus had taken all the sins of the whole world upon himself. And at that moment Jesus could sense God had turned his back on him. God cannot get near sin! The minute we confess our wrongdoings, God is right back flooding our hearts with peace, joy and assurance. I have always laughed with Beth Moore whenever she says she stays "prayed up for forgiveness". Don't let to many hours pass without asking the Holy Spirit's help with revealing to you any unconfessed sin. Pray without ceasing.

After repentance, then align yourself with God's will. I want you to think about this prayer that we are all familiar with:
"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your Kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." This is the Key to unlocking God's Will in your prayer life. This is how you align yourself up with God's will and not your own. We address God as our Father and that is who we are praying too. Hallowed be Your name, is a sign of worship. It is an attitude of reverence. Notice the next lines "Your kingdom come" and then "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Notice you aren't praying for what you need! Then the prayer continues with "Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses." Always start with God's purposes, what is important to God. We have to get out of our prayer pits where we sit and wonder why I can't get what I want? Who is going to help me? What do I get out of this prayer? By aligning ourselves with God's will instead of what our inner man (aka the flesh) wants, we will start to see the powerful impact of our prayers. A powerful prayer life that can changes lives! Don't you want that? There is so much that God has for us and we are cutting ourselves short of the many blessings God has for us because we are so wrapped up in our lives and it is all about me, me, and more me.
God is not some magic Genie in a bottle who is here to grant us three wishes. It is so easy for me to be happy with my prayers and think they are just fine when things are going my way. But let me hit a bump in the road and all of a sudden, what I wanted isn't coming to me. I start praying God you are bound by your word. You are supposed to do this ....... is your word really true?
These are only some of the reasons we miss how Prayer and Faith can affect our lives. The most beautiful thing I can share with you today is: We cannot sin our way out of God's Grace! Nothing can pry us from our Fathers hand!
Father thank you for loving me even when I have accused you of not living up to my expectations. Help show us how to have a powerful Prayer life. Align us Father with your will for our lives. Renew our minds Father, teach us to be humble and not proud. Father I pray that we, your children, will release the aroma of Christ in our lives. We pray for your will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Trying to align myself with His will,
Robbie

I just returned home from a medical missions trip to Guatemala. It was my first missions trip and I was not sure what to expect. Now I know why. You can't go expecting anything because what you bring back from a trip like that is far more than any expectations that you could have had.

We started out a little slow. The government confiscated our medications and would not release them from customs, and we had to end up paying a large tax and bribe to get the medicines released to us. Once we prayed through that and got our medicines released, we went to work. We saw over 1000 people in 3.5 days. We went to an orphanage and saw the children and helpers there. Then we went to a church, an island, and up 9500 feet on a mountain to see patients. The people there have very little healthcare, and what they do have they cannot afford to pay for, so they are unable to be treated or seen by any type of healthcare provider.

We took a team of 6 doctors, 5 nurses, and 3 helpers and were able to see everyone that came out. We treated a lot of arthritis, skin conditions, infections, respiratory problems, and pain, and we gave everyone a pack of vitamins. We gave out deworming medication and gave eyeglasses to those that needed them. The medicines that we brought and distributed were only temporary fixes though. The one thing that we could bring these people that would last forever is the love of God. We were able to pray for them and hold their hand, hug them, tell them we loved them, tell them God loved them, and let them feel His love flow through us to them.

It was amazing in every aspect of the word. I cried as I left the airport to go there, thinking "what have I gotten myself into?". Then, I cried as I left to come back home, thinking "my heart belongs here". There is such a feeling of emptiness when you leave those places and the people there. Although I missed my family back home something terribly and longed to see them, I felt like Guatemala was where I was needed. It was where I felt "full" at and leaving it was pulling a part of my heart away with it.
The last morning before we left, I went to the rooftop and was spending some time praying. I kept hearing a bird on a bush beside me, so I looked over. It was a black crow and was perched so perfectly on the bush singing as loud as it could. I sat and watched it for about 2 minutes and then as quick as it came, it flew away, singing the whole way. I asked God what He was trying to tell me. I felt like He was saying, "You are like that bird. You are here only temporary to come and plant your feet firmly where I have you to work. You sing a beautiful song with the gifts that I have given you to use, but when I am finished with you here, you have to spread your wings and fly away to the next place.". That is not an easy thing to do. You start to bond with the people of Guatemala, you feel their pain, you see their hurt, you take on their burdens and spiritual struggles, you try to bring hope into their life, and then you have to leave. It pulled very hard at my heart strings as we left those places each day, but I found life in knowing that God put me here for only this short time. He knew that I would come and go, that I would land, sing, and then fly away again. He purposed me for this time and only for this time.
I cannot tell you how blessed I am by what I have been able to experience in those days. The opportunity that I had was such a life changing event for me and I praise God for the chance to serve.
God knows where I shall go to next. I have ideas, but He knows. In His timing will it be revealed. I know that this is part of my life now and I will go and do as He says go.
Until then, I will continue to spread my wings and fly...my feet will land when God is ready for them to.

Jennifer

God's Promise

My cousin sent this birthday card to me. She is dying from a rare disease. Her father died from this same disease a few years ago. She is 36 years old.

Always remember when God made you He did so with a purpose and a plan. He saw all your days before you lived one of them and placed over you the covering of his protective love. He has allowed nothing to come into your life that has not first been screened through that love. His hand has remained upon you to this very day. He calls you by name. You are his beloved child... the apple of his eye... the delight of his heart. Today you are in the exact place he wants you to be, and tomorrow he will be with you as he has always been- in goodness,in kindness,in faithfulness. ( Roy Lessin)
Genesis 15:1 I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

I am speechless. My cousin loves Jesus. She knows that her illness is a part of God's plan.
He has never promised that this life would be easy. In fact it is pretty hard at times. But one thing He did promise is that he would never leave us nor forsake us.
Our family prays for Misty to be healed, and we believe that with God all things are possible.

My prayer today is that I will be thankful for my health and that others would see Jesus in me.

Pray for my cousin Misty. Pray that God would heal her, and if for some reason that healing is not manifested here on this earth, that she will never take her eyes off of Him.
God is our hope,
Amy

God's Image.........

Amy shared this quote with me a couple of years ago. I was looking through some old files today and found it. I wanted to share it because it is so powerful:

At times when your children or even your spouse isn't quite measuring up to your expectations, remember that he or she was created in God's image not your image.

"the beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them."

Blessings,
Robbie

Desperate for Jesus.............

The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than two-edged sword.... Hebrews 4:12

Last night was the first night of Pursuing More of Jesus bible study by Anne Graham Lotz. It is a study that I would have never chosen, but I feel so strongly the Holy Spirit led me to this study. After months and months of prayer, I knew when I picked it up that I had felt the Holy Spirit. But every time I would look at the pages in the study guide, my flesh would tell me "no, this can't be the study, your girls won't like this study, the pages are completely blank except for one or two scriptures". It is totally Holy Spirit led. After the study had been purchased and the class was beginning to fill up, my flesh rose up inside of me and gave me so much doubt. We truly have a merciful God! Let me share what he did to give me peace. My twelve year old daughter came running into my room one day and said to me "Mom, I think God woke me up last night and told me which study you are supposed to do!" Now she knew how much we had been praying for the answer but she had no idea that we had already purchased the study Pursuing More of Jesus. I looked at her puzzled and she said "Mom, you are supposed to do a bible study on the Gospel of John!" I have to tell you I couldn't believe what she had just said. I looked at her like I had seen a ghost. I said "Gracie, that is the study we are doing! The Pursuing More of Jesus study is only on the Gospel of John!!!" Can you believe that? Confirmation. God can use anyone and anything to speak to his children. But the primary way is through his word. Even for our prayers to be effective we have to know his word!!!

I feel that God is showing me so much lately. I walk around all the time talking about how much closer I want to get to God but never doing anything about it. It's like I want all the benefits that God can bring to my life but I don't want to put in the effort it takes to know him better. I like the easy. Remember Amy and I like to stay in the pit. It is comfortable, familiar. We like it there because it is easy. Satan doesn't mess with us as bad if we stay in our pit. But when we get the courage to climb out and try pursuing Jesus again, Satan is there like a roaring lion waiting to devour us at any moment.

If we REALLY want to know God, if we REALLY want to understand who we are and whose we are, then the Bible has to have the highest priority in our lives. That is basically what the Pursuing More of Jesus study is all about. I understand why God wanted me to do this study now. It is time we stop reading other people's thoughts and what they say they heard from God. It is time for us to sit down with our bibles open , start out with prayer and get to know God. If it is our purpose to glorify God in all our ways then we have to know him first. Did you know that the Holy Spirit our comforter plays such a big role in our lives. I don't know about you but I feel so comfortable talking with Jesus. When it comes to God, I feel like I have a huge respect for him and I really don't want to get on his bad side. LOL.. But seriously the Holy Spirit, I don't feel like I know him and what his role is supposed to be in our lives. Let me share some of the wisdom that Anne Graham Lotz has shared in her DVDs in our class.

She showed us her bible and through her bible she had pictures of her Dad "Billy Graham"; and then there were lots of pictures of her grandchildren. She said every time she opened her bible and saw those pictures it reminded her to pray for them. Then she explained that when you or I open our bible there are pictures of Jesus all the way through scripture. It is the Holy Spirit's job as we read God's word to show us the pictures. That we might see Him, know Him, love Him. That we might even lay our lives down before him and live our lives in obedience to him not because we have to but because we love Him... Isn't that beautiful? So read your bible and look at the pictures of Jesus fall out before your very eyes!

So I invite you to join me in a pursuit of Jesus! You can start right now today. You do not have to be in this study, I will outline everything that Anne has taught us in her study. You can pick any scripture you want and apply these five steps and I promise you God will speak through his word to you.

Please just try this and comment back and let me know how it is going and if you have any questions or if you don't understand one of the steps.

First before you start anything spend some time in prayer with the Lord, ASK for the Holy Spirit's help with getting to know Jesus better through his word.

(You will need a notebook, bible, pen, highlighter)

Step 1:

Begin by picking a scripture any scripture that you love etc. Today I worked on John 10:1 because that was the scripture for us in our study guide. Take only one or two scriptures to begin with. Your goal is not to get through as much scripture as you can but to pick a scripture and spend time with it and to listen to hear Jesus speak. Let the Holy spirit do His work!

Then after you have your scripture read it and reread, take your notebook and open it to your first page and write the time and date in the upper right hand corner. Then write your scripture down in your notebook.

example: John 10:1

I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate; but climbs in by some other way is a thief and a robber.

When you have finished step one, make a verse by verse list of the outstanding facts. Don't get caught up into details; just pinpoint the most obvious facts. Don't PARAPHRASE, but use actual words from the passage itself. We want to be very careful that we don't add anything to the word of God. Look at just the facts; look for nouns, verbs, person, place or thing. Get rid of prepositions etc.

example: Man who does not enter by the gate is a thief and robber.

Step 3:

After reading the lesson and listing the facts, look for a lesson to learn from each fact.

Ask yourself: What are the people doing in the passage that I should be doing?

Is there a command I should obey?

A promise I should claim?

A warning I should heed?

An example I should follow?

Focus on the spiritual lessons (remember there is no right or wrong answer). These examples are what I heard God speaking to me. Yours will be different. His word is ALIVE and it applies to whatever is going on in your life. God will make it relevant!

example: There is only one way to heaven!!! It is through the gate; and that gate is JESUS!! Jesus is the gate!!! Is that not amazing!

This exercise blows me away; it works! God will speak to you if you are seeking him in his word.

Step 4:

This is the most meaningful step, you can't do it effectively until you have completed the first three steps. Rephrase the lesson you found in step 3 and put them in the form of questions you could ask YOURSELF, YOUR SPOUSE, YOUR CHILD, YOUR FRIEND, YOUR NEIGHBOR, OR YOUR COWORKER. As you write these questions, listen for God to communicate to you through his Word.

Don't get caught up on what you don't understand. Just look for the general principle and lessons that can be learned. Don't rush through this. BE STILL AND LISTEN FOR GOD TO SPEAK! This is where you can have prayerful meditation to discover meaningful lessons and hear God speaking to you.

example: Do I believe that the prince of this Earth is waiting like a roaring lion to kill, destroy, and devour me?

If you have time look up John 10:10; I did not read it until after I had wrote this. WOW!!!

The last step is to live it out; how will you respond to God's Word?

example: I am going to stay under God's wing for protection. I will not look to man for protection or the things of this world.

Just record what God is saying to you, and your response to him. Which response stood out to you? Then hold yourself accountable to follow through in obedience.

Sorry this has been such a long post; but I have to end this in prayer.

Father I just praise you for this wonderful way to learn to be still and hear you speak. Thank you so much for choosing this study. I pray that anyone reading this will give it a try and experience the awesome power of the Holy Spirit. We long for more of you. Give us the hunger and the desire to seek more of you. We want more than salvation; we want to be disciples for you. Use us Father. Let it be your will on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus' name. Amen.

pursuing more of Jesus,

Robbie

" Let your words be few"

First of all the devil does not want you to hear this message, because in trying to review and edit. It was erased. So through Christ I will reveal what was laid on my heart.
"Let your words be few" was a statement on my refrigerator for a long time. Until I got tired of my husband holding it up when he had heard enough.
Psalms 141:3 says " Set a guard, Oh Lord, over my mouth: keep watch over the door of my lips."
This should be a prayer we pray every morning before we even get up. I'm as guilty as the next when it comes to rambling on about nothing or saying things that do not please God.
Below are just a few things to consider before speaking:
1. Is it true?
2. Is it kind?
3. Will it build up, will it edify the person of whom I'm talking?
4. Is it necessary?
5. Does the person I'm talking to need to know this?
6. If this were about me, would I want it shared with someone else?

Our job as Christians is to glorify God, to be a witness for him. It is not to condemn others. We are to love, listen, and be understanding. The Holy Spirit will condemn for us.

A very hurtful thing was said to me, but a life learning lesson. Someone a work said to me, " I didn't know that you were a Christian ?" Wow!!! talk about a conviction that stung my heart.

I want to be a light that shines for Jesus.
People are watching us and judging us. Be careful of not only what we say, but also what we allow ourselves to hear. If it is not pleasing to God, walk away. You may be talked about or laughed at, but they will respect you and you will glorify Jesus.

So as the song says, " Oh be careful little ears what we hear, for the father up above is looking down in love, oh be careful little ears what you ear. Oh be careful little tongue what you say..... for the father will cut your tongue off, just kidding. Just wanted to see if you were paying attention. You get the gist of the song. I do pray often for God to put a piece of tape over my mouth to keep it shut.
So lets pray for guidance and strength. Pray for understanding of his word. Spend time with Jesus. And let him speak to you. What he says is powerful. He will give you the answers you are looking for. Let your words be few and his words be many.
Love in Christ,
Amy