I’m Alright

March 12th, 2012 dsisler

I used to be clumsy. Not as clumsy as some, but still clumsy. I remember vividly walking into walls on more than one occasion and falling down a flight of stairs in high school. After the flight of stairs incident, I began to walk a bit slower. Take my time and know exactly where my feet were going. That in itself didn’t help with the walking into walls thing. I continued to do that all through high school.
I remember a specific day as I was walking in downtown Akron, Ohio I slipped a bit. I caught myself before falling completely, but when I turned to see what had caused my misstep, I saw a banana peel. I didn’t see it before, but there it was. I actually slipped on a banana peel.
I’m not sure if clumsiness is hereditary, but if it is, my children were certain to get the gene. Especially my daughter Candace. She has struggled with this throughout her life. She’d fall, and before she could even assess the situation, would quickly say, “I’m alright.”Falling down stairs, running into walls (or falling through walls), or tripping over something are everyday occurrences for her.
In my recent Bible searches, I came across the small book of Jude. Have you ever read it? Recently? I hadn’t. It’s only one chapter. 25 verses. It is a short letter written to a group of believers. We don’t know who, but it was a disturbing situation for certain.
This group of believers had been infiltrated by some who felt that they could continue in sin. They believed that they had already been saved and didn’t need to live a Godly life. Jude clearly states that this is an untruth. The real problem was that they were leading others into this belief as well. This is just a portion of the encouragement Jude gives.
“Build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others who mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.” Jude 20-22
I love the phrase, “snatch others from the fire to save them.” It is such a vivid reminder for us to keep watch for brothers and sisters who are being led astray. We must not allow false teachers or even other believers to change the Gospel. For any reason.
But the reason I bring up the book of Jude is the last section of the book. Remember, I was talking about clumsiness and falling. Well Jude encourages once again against falling. Not physical, but spiritual falling. He closes his letter with this Doxology.
“To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forever more! Amen.” Jude 23-25
Jude gives us another wonderful reminder that we can be kept from falling. Through our faith and trust, God is able lend us a helping hand. His gracious helping hand. All you have to do is reach for it.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
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Joy’s Mural

March 11th, 2012 dsisler

I’ve stated in past blogs that my granddaughter Joy loves to take a bath at my house. I’m sure part of it is because I let her do things in the bath tub that her mother would not. She can turn her bath water different colors or she can use water crayons to name just a few.
The water crayons are pretty cool and our bathtub wall has a large white canvas for all of her creations. On one particular day, Joy decided to draw a village. Each member of her family was given a house of their favorite color. A number was also attached to each house…the age of the person who theoretically lived in the house.
The village was attached by sidewalks and roads. Some had trees or bushes. Some had elaborate windows and others were plain. This project took Joy several bath times to create and complete. After each bath, I would close the shower curtain as if pulling a drape over a masterpiece, waiting for the artist to return.
Finally it was finished. There was nothing more to add. Nothing to remove. It was finished. It was her best work and the art she was most proud of.
We are viewed by God in this same way. We are His best work and what He is most proud of. Do you wonder why? There are times when I am not my best, some might even say at my worst. When I cannot seem to live up to His standards, but He loves me all the same.
Of course we can turn straight to Psalm 139 to learn just how God created and designed us. “You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well…your eyes saw my unformed body.” (Psalm 139:13-16) Yes, we are God’s most wonderful masterpiece, fearfully and wonderfully made.
After each day of creation, God ended the day with the phrase, “And God saw that it was good.” But after creating man, God ended the day with the phrase, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” Man was not just good, he was very good. God’s “very good” creation.
Ephesians 2:10 from The New Living Translation says it this way. “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” We are His masterpiece, but created for a purpose. One purpose stated here is to do good.
If we look at ourselves from this perspective, I can begin to understand why God looks at me as His most precious creation. Even when I am not at my best, God working through me makes me His best.
Joy’s mural remained on the wall of the bath tub for several weeks, but then, it eventually had to be removed. I washed down the walls and watched as the colors were diluted with water and swirl down the drain. But not before getting several pictures of this masterpiece.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
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Cast Iron Skillet

March 10th, 2012 dsisler

I bought a magazine to read on my flight home from Florida. The entire magazine is about cast iron skillets. There were articles about the different size and shapes available and the uses for each. There is plenty of advice on how to care for cast iron cookware. It even contained testimony after testimony from famous chefs regarding the impact cast iron had on their chosen career path.
Of course there are loads of recipes to create in these case iron skillets and Dutch ovens. Some I cannot wait to prepare…in a cast iron skillet or not! They sounded delicious and full of flavor. The first one I might have to try is Skillet Steak with compound butter.
The advice was interesting. One would say to never place iron skillets in soapy water, and then another would say it was okay to do so. One said to never air dry, another thought it wouldn’t hurt it. I suspect if the results are the same, how you achieve the finished product isn’t relevant, at least when it comes to cast iron. Or maybe it does matter. They’ve just managed to confuse me on these issues.
I did enjoy the stories from the chefs regarding the cast iron that had been passed down from generation to generation. Some even felt the cookware was as valuable as jewels or family heirlooms.
Is there something that you have received from a grandparent or ancestor that is of value to you? What makes it so? Is it the memory that is attached to the item? Is it valuable because of your relationship with the person who gave it to you? Or perhaps it is the combination of many things. Regardless, when we receive something from a loved one, it is precious indeed.
While inheriting items from loved ones can be wonderful, we have received far greater gifts from God our Father. Here are a few.
Love: God loves us. He wants to lavish that love upon us. 1 John 3:1 states, “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” As His children we receive the inheritance. The true treasure, eternal life.
Glorious Riches: Grace. (Ephesians 1:7-8; 3:8).  Again God lavished it upon us. “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:6-7) Without this glorious gift, we would be lost. Forever.
Jesus: God gave us His Son so that we might have eternal life (John 3:16). We are “…adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ…” (Ephesians 1:5).
“Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!”(2 Corinthians 9:15)
If you love cast iron cookware, one from a great-grandmother would be a treasure! I have a couple that have been handed down and one that I have seasoned myself. Any of them will do. They simply are the best for making fried chicken or cornbread.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
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So Long

March 9th, 2012 dsisler

It’s over. It went too quickly. My vacation has come to an end. I think the hardest part of this particular trip is saying goodbye to loved ones. I’ve said goodbye all week long. It began with the Bride and Groom as they left to go on their honeymoon. Then to extended family and newest members of the family. Around mid-week I said goodbye to nieces and a future niece. And finally to every other family member that has been with me this week.

Today will be difficult. I know I will see them in five months, if not before, but it has been a special week. A week of reconnecting. A week of coming together. Living together. Together.
But the saying goes, “all good things must come to an end.” Yes, the time we’ve had here in Florida must come to an end, but what made it special does not. We are family and that will never change. It still doesn’t make it any easier to say goodbye.
I am reminded of Paul’s farewell to the Ephesian elders In Acts 20. He was headed to Jerusalem. He knew this would be the last time he spent with this group of beloved believers. And he made the most of his time with them. He spoke to them. He encouraged them. He didn’t candy coat their situation or his own.
The Ephesian church would be attacked by the outside world and from within. It was going to happen. But the elders had been taught well and were prepared for such battle. The Holy Spirit and God’s Word would give assistance during these future battles. Paul also encouraged them to keep watch over the church and be shepherds of that flock. He was leaving this church in good hands.
At the end of this encounter, Paul and the elders knelt in the sand on the beach. They prayed and wept. Embraced and kissed. All too soon it was over. Each would go their separate way to face what lay ahead. Yes, they would miss Paul. Paul would miss them. But their spiritual bond was far greater than the physical separation.
Goodbyes have never been easy for me, but this one will be the most difficult yet. I just need to keep reminding myself that it is only for a short while. So instead of goodbye, I think I’ll say “so long.” So long Florida. So long beautiful ocean. So long family. I love you all!
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
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Geocaching

March 8th, 2012 dsisler

My husband and I used to enjoy geocaching. We would seek out the perfect locations to search for the cache and we’d head off to find the treasure that another geocacher had strategically placed.
We found, too, that typically there would be a great photo op nearby as well. So for each of us, we found satisfaction in this hobby. It was something we could do together and see some beautiful scenery in Colorado.
My brother, Billy, came for his annual visit during this time period and we thought he might enjoy the hunt as well. We planned a couple of trips out to look for these items.  
We even put together a cache to hide. We found the container, chose the items to place inside, and documented the hiding place of our cache. We found it to once again be a successful activity for each of us to enjoy.
On our final day out, we ventured into the mountains a bit more and ended up on a one lane road with the steep mountain above and below us. The problem? Another vehicle joined us on the road from the opposite direction. We were face to face with a larger SUV with very little options.
I pulled as far to the right as possible and the other SUV drove around us. I was thankful to hug the mountain. I surely didn’t want to drive out over the edge. Just a few hundred feet away, we stopped, found our cache and returned to our vehicle to head home.
It was then we knew there was a problem. An odd sound drew us from the vehicle. We changed the flat tire and began moving. Unfortunately, a second tire was flat. We had no option but to continue driving with the flat tire. There was no cell phone coverage. No one was passing our way (except a young man on a dirt bike who stopped and said, “Bummer!” Yeah, we got that).
We slowly made our way off the mountain. It was a long day. It took hours. Frustrating hours. Disappointing hours. But my brother coined a phrase that day that I have used a few times. “A good story is better than a good time.”
What does that phrase mean to you? Hopefully it isn’t your life story. Hopefully, like me, there have been a few times in your life when things didn’t go as planned and in the long run found some interesting bits of wisdom gleaned from the situation.
Proverbs 19:21 tells us, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”I have made plans. Sometimes my plans don’t turn out the way I wanted or wished, but I know I’ve learned something each time my plans have failed.
My Dad has been asking me this question for as long as I can remember. “What did you learn?” If we cannot find some wisdom or lessons from our failures, we are doomed to continue to fail and make the same mistakes over and over.
But I think more importantly, we can ask ourselves, “How can God use this?” If our story cannot be used by God, it will not be of value. His purpose must prevail in these situations in our lives.
We don’t geo cache any more. It was a fad for us. But I know there will be another adventure lurking around the corner and we just might say, “A good story is better than a good time.”
Grace and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
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    "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe." Ephesians 1:18-19


    I am a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. I lived in the beautiful state of Colorado for 20 years where I found great inspiration for my novels and devotional writings. Currently living in southwest Ohio.

    I am passionate about helping women find their way to Jesus through Bible study, teaching, speaking, inspirational writing and creative Bible journaling.

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    In September 2012 I went to SE Asia on a service trip. For more information, check out preachitclearly.blogspot.com.

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