"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God". 2Corinthians 1:3-4

Right now I can look around my house and it is a wreck. Between my sewing projects and my grandkids, and a weekend of chaos, it is a mess! Things have happened that have upset my whole life. Things more upsetting than the outcome of the Super Bowl even!!! I can put the house in order in no time. Emotionally though? Not that easy!

Isn't it amazing though, that considering the mess my house is in, and the drama of the last couple of days for a couple of members in my family, MY LIFE IS UNDER CONTROL!!! Not because of the chaos of the physical side, but because "GOD" is in control! God is still on the throne, and as bad as things may seem to us, to God, it is one more stepping stone in the walk of life! He knows exactly what is happening! He knows "WHY" it is happening! And, He knows that in the end, it's gonna be good!

So, while I get upset, and run around and stress about everything, I am basically just wearing myself out for no reason. Because, things are gonna come out in the wash anyway! Worry never changes the next ten minutes! It's gonna happen anyway!

In the beginning God had a plan, and it was good! God still has a plan, and it is still good! And, worry is wasted energy!

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2002

"It's the real thing", it is a popular slogan today
The search for reality, it happens every day
Yet the real thing is not a soda or some little rock
The real thing comes from Jesus, and that is not just talk!

"He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the LORD offerings in righteousness. Malachi 3:3

Now that I have finished my wedding dress and it is now hanging in the closet (pictures forthcoming), I got to thinking about the ring that I set out to buy that day back in July. Yes, it was a very pretty ring, but the stones were synthetic and and the gold was just a wash! God asked me to give Him the cheap fake, and He will give me the "Real Thing"!

So what are the cheap fakes in your life that you are hanging onto? What cheap fakes have you given up, and now have "The REAL Thing"? A cheap fake can be a relationship or friendship with another person, or a job, a calling or things? So many things you and I see as really a good thing, but in reality they are a cheap imitation of what God REALLY wants to give us!

Why do we not let loose of that cheap fake and hand it to God? In my case it was out of fear. In a recent relationship I was afraid I would never find anything better, so the cheap fake was better than nothing. In reality, it is not better, it is just a cheap fake!

Mind you, I am not married yet, and do not have any "prospects" on the horizon. But, I can tell you this! I am happier today than I have ever been in my entire life. God's will is an awesome place to be! A friend asked me the other day "If God asked you to be single the rest of your life would you do it willingly?" Well, yes, of course I would! Hey, I've been single almost seven years now, so what's a few more. Yes, I would love to be in a relationship again, but I think I've come to the point in my life that either way is acceptible, because I know that I dont' want anymore "cheap fakes" in my life!

So what are your cheap fakes? What is on your "I want" list, and what is the real thing and on God's "I want FOR YOU" list! Letting go is one of the hardest things in the world to do, BUT, if you learn to trust Him, you will not be sorry!

Cheap fakes tarnish and fade, and they will not stand up to the refining fire, they fall apart into piles of dust! I want the REAL THING!!!

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2003

So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church. Ephesians 5:28-29

Everywhere I look there are boxes of candy, roses, flowers and television and radio ads! Telling YOU to buy your love a diamond and she will always remember you with a warm heart! Roses die, and candy makes you fat. Buy a diamond, she will love you forever! Nope that is now how it works!

Well let me tell you something ladies and gentlemen, if you are not "there" the other 364 days out of the year, that diamond isn't gonna last long either. So, how do you keep the love alive? How do you make sure that when she does look at that diamond, there ARE warm feelings in her heart. The diamond is not going to make her remember you with warm fuzzies! It's the little things! Take the trash out without being asked, take the kids out on saturday so she can have lunch with her girlfriends, how about a note left where you know she'll find it that says "I love you"! Remembering that she loves snickers bars and getting her one on the way home from work. Oh yes, and I love you's and hugs and kisses go a long way as well.

Ladies, it is not just the guys. It's the little things that count here as well. If you pack him a lunch take extra care to send him something that he really likes. A surprise or a treat tells him you are thinking of him. A note with a kiss with your favorite lipstick just for him! A back rub after a long day, or a foot rub helps too.

It's the little things that keep love alive, not candy or diamonds. God created love and marriage, he created men and women. He created you and I to love and be loved. Diamonds are not a girls best friend! I think she would prefer YOU were her best friend! Or, him as well.

Love can be improved most by giving of YOURSELF!!! And, that is a gift that will never end up on your hips! God created love and marriage, don't you think that HE would know how it is best handled? I do!

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2003

FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES." Hebrew 12:6

My friend has two dogs, they are beautiful labrador dogs. I was over at his house tonight and my friend lay a dog treat on the floor in front of each of the dogs. He told the dogs to "wait"! For two minutes the dogs sat and looked at those dog treats. They did not touch them! Finally at the end of two minutes my friend gave the dogs permission to eat their treats. They wolfed them down as though they had not eaten in days. Even though it had been more like minutes since their dinner.

Those dogs are very well trained and disciplined, and they love their master. The know the meaning of wait! They know their Masters voice! When their Master says "GO", they go!

Am I that well disciplined? Do I "wait" for my Master? Or do I jump ahead, grab that treat or make that decision before it's time? Do I run off and do my own little thing before it's time? I know that I have done that! I have jumped ahead of things, done my own thing before God tells me to.

Have you done that? Or, are you like my friends dogs who sit there and wait for their Masters command? Yes, those dogs like to run and play, they can be loud and rambunctious. But, they know their Masters voice, and they listen to it. You can tell they are just itching to reach out and grab that treat. They look at it, they drool on it, but they wait. They wait for their Masters voice!

Do you know what your Masters voice sounds like? Do you wait for His command before you jump into action? Lord, I pray for the discipline of the dogs!

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2003

Jeremiah 29:11 'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.

Lately I think I've had a "Faith Fallout"! You know where your faith falls out through the imaginary holes in the floor! Yesterday I was feeling particularly grumpy. I was working on my dress "imagine that"! And, I was doing some of that 'disbelievin', and a friend of mine called me. He said to me, "God's right in the middle of what your doing"! He said, "there was no big cloud that told me to say that, no loud word from God, but I just wanted to tell you that God is right in the middle of it, and He hasn't forgotten you"!

I kind of looked at the telephone and grinned. Imagine how God works. My friend had no idea how much I was struggling, because I had not told him! Yet, he picked up the phone and told me something that had to be from God, that was not a coincidence.

God has a plan, we say that so many times that I think we forget what that really means. YUP, God really does have a plan! He is the first and the foremost when it comes to awesome life plans! YOURS and MINE!

So, when you get to the point that you are really doubting that this plan is really for you, and yes, that God really did speak to you! Remember, avoid another "Faith Fallout"! Because, He really is right in the middle of what your doing!

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2002

"For whosoever shall call upon the Lord shall be saved" Ephesians 4:30

My daughter just called me and asked me if I could take her to Sam's Club, it seems that her mother-in-law had bought her some diapers there and they turned out to be the wrong size. My daughter does not have a Sam's Club card so I must go with her. Kind of like she can't get in without me!

This reminds me of the days of Moses when God's people had to go to the temple, and see the High Priest. The High Priest would then go into the temple for them, Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. Hebrews 2:17 Jesus is our high priest. When Jesus died on the cross, He became our advocate and He has stood before God on your behalf, and on my behalf!

Before Jesus died on the cross, we as humans, could not approach God, that was the High Priests job. But, now, Jesus opened the door and we do not need a High Priest to speak for us, we speak to God freely, on our own! We have the scriptures where we can study God's word, we don't have to have someone read them for us. We pray to God as well.

In God's kingdom, my daughter does not need me or my Sam's Club card to talk to God. She can get through the door all by herself, she only needs me to show her the way!

God is calling to you. God wants fellowship with you. He is waiting for you to make that decision to spend time with Him. Do you need a nudge? Do you need someone to show you the way? Is God asking you to show others the way? Have you given your heart to God?

Come before God today, you don't need someone to do it for you. And, you don't need a special membership card to get in! All you need to do is ask! If you have questions, God's got answers! There are also many of God's children out there who would love to sit down with God's word and help you find the answers if you need a bit of help. That is God's plan! All you need to do is ask!

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2003

and behold a voice out of the heavens saying "This is My beloved son in whom I am well pleased." Matthew 3:17

This morning I was having a particularly hard time coming up with a topic for a devotional. My eight year old son came in and asked me what I was doing, so I told him. He said "write about what its like to have me for a kid"! I started to smile, because that kid is one of my favorite people on this planet, and he knows it!

My son is cute as a bug in a rug, he is smart, he is always entertaining and gives the best hugs on the planet. Yes, you can say that I am proud of my son. Don't get me wrong, I'm proud of my other kids, but this is the one we are talking about. Danny will call me "Mom, come here"! And, when I go looking for him, he is standing under the mistle toe in the hallway! And, I get hugs and kisses! :)

Knowing my son, and how much I love him, and how very much I am proud of him, gives me a small hint of how proud God is of "His" son. God's son is not just a good kid, He died on the cross and saved the world. He is calling to us, trying to get our attention. But, He is not standing under the mistle toe, He is offering us the kingdom of God, eternal life!

If we give good things to our own children, what kind of gifts does God give "US" His own children. I am a Mother and I love my earthly children. They are very much a blessing to me! We are God's children!

I ask my son to do a few chores around the house, but not allot. What has God asked you to do? Our children are our first ministry. There is nothing out there that is more important than the mission field that is in your own home. No matter what, the kids have to come first. Do they?

Where do your kids and family land on YOUR priority list? Do they need an adjustment?

Danni

danniscully(C)copyright 2002

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