Travel Journal: May 26-30, 2011

The last few days I had the blessing of being with my family. We love to go to Virginia. The town we stay in is very laid back. There is no phone and we don't look at the clock very often. It is nice to have the chance to get up and study your Bible without any distractions.
Some of our favorite things to do together are : fishing, crabbing, playing games, going to the local flea markets, and beach combing.

The sunset the other night was so beautiful as we were coming in from crabbing. It is nice to sit back and enjoy the beauty of the creation He has given us (except for the mosquitos).
On Saturday, we went out to the flea markets to find "treasures". While there I was able to share the true "Treasure" with two people. It is amazing who the Lord leads you to witness to. The one man just lost his brother and had been thinking about his life and eternity. He was very eager to talk about God. Hopefully, he went home and read the Scripture in the literature I gave him. I pray that what I said to him would be used of the Lord to challenge his decision to trust in the Lord as his own personal Savior.
Yesterday, I had the blessing of attending Central Baptist Church in Onley, VA. The pastor, his wife and thier boys were such a blessing to fellowship with. It was great to find a local, like-minded church within an hour of where my family stays. Hopefully, I will get to visit again. The preaching, singing, and fellowship were used by the Lord in my life.
Today, as we honor the men who have gone before us to make our country free, let us not forget our Lord who gave His life for our sins!

Lessons on GIVING from the heart of a child~

Recently I have learned a few lessons from children about giving. Children are so innocent. Without a second thought they give you love and kindness. There is alot of things that we can learn from children. Here are just three things that I have learned recently from children about giving.
1)God deserves more from us than others do.
As I was speaking to a young mother at a recent church I visited, she told me about a conversation that she had with her daughter over the dinner table. The daughter asked, "Mommy, how come we give the waitress more than we give God". This is something for each of us to think about every time we go out to eat. We tip the waitress 15-25% of our bill without flinching, but when it comes time to give to the Lord in the offering plate at church, most people just put in thier 10% (and sometimes even less). God deserves our very best! He has done more for us than that waitress at the restaraunt, yet we are not willing to give to the One who has given His Best for us. Lets think about that!

2)Be willing to give the little bit you have for the Lord!
Recently, I received a letter in the mail. It was from a deacon at a church that I spoke at for Missions Conference. The note read, "Gina, the enclosed envelope is for you from a little girl at our church. She wanted you to have all of the money in her piggy bank". The little envelope had my name on it written in her handwritting. I opened the envelope to see $11. That was quite alot for a little girl! What a blessing that gesture of love and kindness was to me. I remember back to the short time that I was at her church. She sat with me in service, watched me as I gave testimony, played the flute, sang, and helped with Sunday School. In her eyes I was her hero. She has taught me alot about giving. Would I be willing to give up my entire bank account (the big girl's piggy bank) to help a missionary get to the field?
{As a side note, I recently read a story of a house wife who wanted a new oven because the one she had was old. Her and her husband saved and saved so that she could have it for her birthday. The day of her birthday came and her husband presented her with the envelope of money so that they could go out and pick her new oven. The woman broke down in tears. At first her husband thought it was from happiness, but then he realized it was something else. "What is it, honey", he asked. "I can't buy the oven", she said. "If it is okay with you I would like to keep my old oven and send the money to the missionary." That is what they did. As a couple they had been praying for a missionary. Little did they know that the missionary hardly had food for thier table. The money sent was greatly needed.}
Oh how important it is to be led of the Lord to use every little bit we have for His glory.

3)Be willing to give even without having anything.
I will never forget the time between Christmas and New Years a few years ago. I went out shopping in Amish Country in Lancaster, PA with my family. My little brother was about ten or eleven. For Christmas, we got some money from my grandmother. As we were shopping I found something I really liked. My brother picked up on that. He said to me, "When I get enough money I'll buy that for you." Well, that just tickled my heart. What I wanted was so expensive that I would never think of buying it for myself, even if I had the money. Here was this little boy who was willing to give all that he got for Christmas, plus save even more to get his sister this one thing because it was something she liked.
Oh to have the heart of a child in my giving for the Lord. I am asking Him to allow me to be that sensitive to His leading and as free in giving as a little child is.
2Corinthians 9:7 "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."

Let your light shine!

The other week I was blessed to visit a church in Maine and pick up my cousin from college way up in Machias (if you don't know where Machias is that is because it is one of the north-eastern-most towns in the USA, just a short drive from Canada). On the way, I had a chance to see some beautiful lighthouses.
Each of these lighthouses reminded me of how God uses us as Christians. God wants us to let our lights shine so that others may see the "True Light" through us.

Mt 5:14 "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid."
Joh 9:5 "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

Each lighthouse is shaped differantly.

Each lighthouse has an important job.

Some lighthouses light the way for ships to follow.

Others warn of rocks ahead.

All stand firm with the same message - "light".

The message that every lighthouse sends out is the "Light". Each stands magestic in its own way and boldly shares the "Light"/

God wants each of us to share that same message with everyone around us. Some people we need to lead. Others we need to warn. Yet, others need to see the "Light" for the first time.

Joh 8:12 ¶ "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

Mt 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men , that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

What a lesson we learn from these lighthouses!
Which one are you?

Stir Up The Gift

The weekend of Mother's Day I was privileged to be the speaker for a Ladies' Banquet. It was a blessing to see so many mothers, daughters, and grandaughters.
We enjoyed lots of food and fellowship.

We also enjoyed a fun game!

The Lord impressed upon my hear to speak to the ladies about the great example of Lois and Eunice as godly woman from the Bible.

II Timothy 1:5-10 5 "When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
6 ¶ Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.
7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;
9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
10 But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:"


Paul was encouraging Timothy to "stir up the gift". This gift was the faith and love that his mother and grandmother taught him. They focused thier lives on God and pleasing Him. Lois and Eunice did not keep those "gifts" to themselves, but chose to pass them on.
Each of us, as woman, has a sphere of influence. May we be challenged by these two godly ladies to "stir up the gift that is in us"!

Right Place, Right Time or God's Will, God's Timing

There are some weeks that I do not have meetings scheduled. During those times I rely on the Lord to lead me to visit a church that I have not yet had a meeting at. On May 1st, I had the chance to visit one of those churches. Have you ever had the experience where you felt like you were at the right place, at the right time? I know I have. This time was differant though. I had thoroughly prayed and asked the Lord to direct me where I should be that Sunday and He certainly directed me.
I attended a wonderful church in Maryland. The people were so nice and friendly. In the middle of Sunday School a young woman came in and sat next to me. After Sunday School, I introduced myself to her. As we were talking I could tell that she was either unsaved or newly saved. She said she was attending church because her little girl wanted to come.
I love to talk, but the service was starting in the sanctuary. What a great challenge the message was that day on the things we say and having a godly "conversation". After service, the people were a joy to fellowship with. As we moved toward the door, I found the young woman to talk to again. She was sharing with me how she loved to come to church because she had messed up her life and did not want her daughter to do the same. I started to tell her about the woman at the well and how wonderful it is that God wants us to come to Him as we are, because He alone can make all things new. She said that she never heard of that Bible story.

Right then the Holy Spirit prompted me that she did not need to hear about the woman at the well, but about God's simple plan of salvation.
I asked the young lady if she had time for me to show her from the Bible how to be saved. She said, "Yes,we have plenty of time". We walked back into church and sat down. I was able to show her from the Bible thoroughly how to be saved. She said that in her 23 years, she had never had anyone show her from the Bible how to be saved. She had many questions and I could tell that she did not fully understand her need of salvation. She said she wished that someone would come and help her understand God's Word as she read it.
After talking to her, the pastor set up a time for someone from the church to go to her home and talk with her. Please pray that this young woman accepts Christ as her Savior. I have not shared her name for a reason, but please pray that she would understand and be saved.
You see, this was not the right place at the right time, but God's perfect will and timing!

I killed a snake today!

This week I had the blessing of helping a friend prepare for her annual plant sale. We have alot in common and so we had a delightful time talking, laughing, and working. While we were talking on Thursday afternoon, her daughter came up to us and said, "Mommy, there is a big snake in our yard. Come and see". Well, we had heard this before many times as she got us to come and see her big blue stuffed snake that she plays with. After two or three times, she realized that we would not leave our work. Finally, out of curiosity, my mom went over to see what she was talking about. There it was - a big brown snake in the middle of the yard. My mom said, "Girls, she is telling the truth." We went over and to our amazement there was a real snake in the yard.

At first, we stood and stared in amazement. Then we decided that we needed to do something since it was not moving. We all looked at eachother and decided that it needed to be killed (especially since it was found just a few feet from the baby's playpen). Bravely, I volunteered. Now, you have to know me. I will do almost anything, but I always need to react in some way. So, my friend got me a shovel to kill the snake. As I prepared myself to make a killing blow on the snake, I gave out a squeal and then killed the snake. Wow, what excitement!
As we went back to work I thought about the spiritual value that the day's adventure had taught us. Sometimes in our spiritual lives we go about our day ignoring the fact that there is a dangerous snake in our front yard. It is ready to strike us, our families, our kids, our friends, or anyone around. We can either act like the snake of sin is not there or we can kill it before it becomes harmful to anyone.
Am I looking for danger around me, or am I just going about each day as if nothing can harm me. Praise the Lord for my sensitive mom. May I be sensitive to the Lord's warnings in my life.