Handwriting

May 10th, 2016 dsisler

 

Last November, I began a journey of writing Scripture each day. I used an online plan each month to write sections of Scripture for the day. Some took longer than others, but they averaged 10 minutes of writing per day.

 

handwritingThe problem was cohesiveness. One day I might be in Peter and the next in Joshua. Each day was in a different location in Scripture and so I decided in May that I would start my own plan. Now I stick to one book and write until it is complete.

 

I must admit, prior to November 2015, my handwriting was rough. Not only was my handwriting illegible at times, but the muscles in my hand would not allow me to write for longer than 10 minutes. At that point, my hand would cramp and was pretty sore.

 

But now, I must say, my handwriting is much nicer and I find I can write for nearly an hour without any difficulty (yes, I sometimes write that long in one sitting). I actually like my handwriting!

 

Here’s the thing. While I enjoy writing God’s Word and allowing His thoughts to penetrate my mind and heart, I have fallen in love with handwriting. It has become my new favorite past time. And my goal is to have the entire Bible written in my own handwriting before I leave this world.

 

But I do have one problem. Consistency. Consistency with my actual handwriting. For instance, I’m in the process of getting out baby shower invitations. I have had to split up addressing the envelopes over several days. The first batch are pretty awesome…today’s were so-so. I’m using the same pen. I’m in the same location. Everything is exactly the same as the last time I sat to do this task, but the handwriting isn’t. You can insert a big sigh right here.

 

Guess what? I find this same inconsistency in my spiritual life. One day I’m doing well, the next, I blow it. God loves me. I am covered by His grace. Nothing has changed, except me.

 

I’m reminded of Paul’s (confusing) words in Romans 7:15-20 (NIV) and I understand exactly where Paul is coming from. See if you don’t agree. “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”

 

Phew! Clear as a bell, right? Here’s the thing. I want to do what is right all the time, but my sinful nature gets in the way. The things I want to do are sideswiped by the things I definitely don’t want to do, but do.

 

It’s no wonder Paul, and I find ourselves saying, “What a wretched (wo)man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24 – NIV) If left to live in this sinful world on our own, this is the state in which we remain. Wretched people who don’t do what we should.

 

But “Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25 – NIV) that He has made a way for us to get out of this rut and live more closely aligned with God’s Word. “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1-2 – NIV)

 

Each moment I have a choice. Will I allow my sinful nature to overtake my desire to live more like Christ? Each moment I pray that I will not allow it to be so. But when I’m a little off, I am able to return to my heavenly Father and thank Him for the grace He has poured over me.

 

Today, my handwriting may be off a bit, but tomorrow is another day and I will get right back to writing Scripture and addressing envelopes. How much more thankful I am that I’m able to do the same thing with my spiritual life.

 

I’ll close with another passage from our biblical friend, Paul. This was part of my writing today and what a beautiful reminder for each of us. “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13b-14 – NIV)

 

Keep pressing on. Don’t look back. Strain toward what is ahead. The prize is waiting. Don’t give up!

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

 

Donna

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“Greater” – Monday Musical Musings

May 9th, 2016 dsisler

 

As you know, I was away at a conference last week. I missed some of the usual things I do throughout the week and one of them was Praise in Motion. I missed the ladies, I missed the movement, I missed being in God’s presence.

 

IMAG1492So just to remind me of His great love and devotion toward me, during all of our breaks at the conference, music was played. Many of the melodies were familiar and each time I wanted to break out in dance. But I didn’t.

 

And then, the very last song I heard was “Greater.” It is one of my favorites at Praise in Motion, partly because of the moves. We “lasso” during the chorus and I love it! So it took everything within me to not get up and “get my groove on” (ha, ha).

 

Compiled with my thoughts and the way my mind works, this song came at a perfect time. Not too early in the conference and not at all. But just when I was thinking, “Shan needs another assistant…I can never do as good a job as these ladies do!”, God reminded me that I am not able to do this job (or any job) without Him.

 

So “thank you” to the one who chose the music at the Senior Administrative Assistants Conference last week. You spoke to my heart!

 

So today I will share this beautiful reminder that we can lay it all at the feet of Jesus and stand firm in the truth that He has overcome this world and that through Him, we can stand before Him without condemnation, or fear, or inadequate, or                             (you can fill in the blank). Because greater is the One living inside of you and me than he who is living in the world (1 John 4:4).

 

“Greater”[i]

 

Bring your tired
Bring your shame
Bring your guilt
Bring your pain
Don’t you know that’s not you’re name
You will always be much more to me

Every day I wrestle with the voices
That keep telling me I’m not right
But that’s alright

‘Cause I hear a voice and He calls me redeemed
When others say I’ll never be enough
And greater is the One living inside of me
Than he who is living in the world
In the world
In the world
And greater is the One living inside of me
Than he who is living in the world

Bring your doubts
Bring your fears
Bring your hurt
Bring your tears
There’ll be no condemnation here
You are holy, righteous and redeemed

Every time I fall
There’ll be those who will call me
A mistake
Well that’s ok

There’ll be days I lose the battle
Grace says that it doesn’t matter
‘Cause the cross already won the war
He’s Greater
He’s Greater

I am learning to run freely
Understanding just how He sees me
And it makes me love Him more and more
He’s Greater
He’s Greater

 

Click here to listen to this inspirational song! And don’t be surprised if you want to start dancing!

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

 

Donna

[i] “Greater,” words and music by Bart Millard, Mike Scheuchzer, Nathan Cochran, Rob Shaffer, Barry Graul, David Garcia and Ben Glover, Mercy Me Music, Wei Asia Music, Universal Music, Brentwood Benson, 2014.

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It’s All About Mom

May 8th, 2016 dsisler

 

Today is Mother’s Day. To all the mom’s out there, I want to say thank you for being such a strong support to your children. It is a blessing to see mom’s everywhere love on the children in their lives.

 

555540_3503136384467_1904624890_nIn particular, I want to praise my own Mom and call her blessed. She is such an inspiration to me and the many lessons I’ve learned from her single-handedly have been pretty spectacular.

 

So today, the blog re-post is about my Mom. Have a blessed day and a happy mother’s day.

 

Mom’s Day

 

Several years ago, Mom published a cook book of her many delicious recipes with some wonderful stories. She asked each of her children to write a little bit for the forward. My first draft was rejected by Mom (and I’ve come to learn that it was the easiest rejection of my writing to date)…the second draft was accepted.

 

10365974_10152420302985502_5296141812870947286_nI’d like to share my first draft with you today. I pray that you will be able to see the wonderful woman she is through my words.

 

My Mom is a balcony person in my life. What is balcony person? They are the people in your life who are always on your side. They will cheer you on when no one else seems to. They believe in you and they see the vision of what God made you to be.

 

Mom sacrificed so that I could take voice lessons in high school because she thought I had a good voice and that voice lessons would make my voice great. Mom sold a set of silver salt and pepper shakers when I became engaged so that I could buy the wedding dress she knew I’d look stunning in.

 

My children know that Grandma is on their side as well. She’s the one who spent hours with Philip helping him to find a job and encouraged him to keep looking.

 

She was at as many of Candace’s high school dramas that she could attend and really enjoyed each one!

 

Mom was thrilled about her grandchild’s (Bethany) elopement and the birth of her first great-grandchild, Joy. Even more by the birth of her second great-grandchild, Percy. (UPDATE: She has a third great-grandchild, Leslieanna and a fourth on the way!)

 

Mom has always said that her grandchildren have a safe haven at her home.

 

When we are with Mom, we may not always hear what we want to hear, but that’s another characteristic of a balcony person. They believe and expect you can change. They don’t believe that what you were yesterday will hinder you from being what you are today or what you can become tomorrow.

 

Mom has held the standard high for me and that’s okay. She’s also taught me how to be a balcony person for my own children and grandchildren. I know first-hand how much it means to be an encourager to my children.

 

We see a glimpse of the ultimate encourager in the Bible, Barnabas. Barnabas had God’s heart for people. He sold property to help those in need, he accepted Paul for who he was, and encouraged the church leaders to accept Paul as well.

 

Barnabas embraced Gentile believers and encouraged them to continue to seek God’s grace. Barnabas was willing go to bat for a young man that Paul didn’t believe was suitable to be a traveling companion.

 

Barnabas had a gift. The gift to encourage anyone who crossed his path, regardless of who they were.

 

The lesson we can learn from Barnabas and Mom is that everyone needs encouragement. Everyone needs a balcony person. Don’t pass up an opportunity to let someone know how much they mean to you and to God.

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

 

Donna

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A Funny Dream

May 7th, 2016 dsisler

 

I have to tell you about a dream I had last night. It was a Sunday morning, and not just any Sunday morning, it was tomorrow morning. Plans had been made for our guest speaker, Elisa Morgan to arrive. But before her arrival, there were some final things to be done.

 

flowers-1325012_1280I arrived at the church and the entire building was covered in paper flowers of all colors. And they were EVERYWHERE. On posts. Hanging from the ceiling. On the stage. Anywhere and everywhere a flower could be placed, it was there.

 

There were also about 50 little girls in pretty lacey dresses. They were multi-colored and quite large. I am not quite sure how the little girls were going to be used in this worship service, but they were there…it was a bit crazy.

 

Now this just wasn’t over the top enough apparently. I had brought dozens of dolls to be displayed. I don’t know where they came from (I have 2 special dolls in my possession…not dozens), but they were displayed dominantly in the foyer.

 

As the morning progressed and even before our worship service began, the dolls disappeared. All those little girls had taken all of the dolls. Not one remained. The morning was a complete train wreck because the dolls were missing. And this was all BEFORE the worship service began.

 

I tell you this dream because I believe there are some good lessons to be learned.

 

First, when worship and a church service becomes more about the “stuff” and the “makings” than about Who we are to worship, we have missed the true meaning of worship.

 

Second, sometimes we can get caught up in the planning and preparation that we miss being present for worship (I will admit this happens to me all the time…I’m working on it!).

 

And third, we (meaning I) need to be flexible when it comes to worship.

 

I’m reminded of the Mary and Martha incident in Luke 10:38-42. Martha showed all the signs of being concerned about the “makings” of a great meal for Jesus. Martha was caught up in the planning and preparation that she missed being present with Jesus. And Martha was definitely not flexible.

 

Mary on the other hand didn’t care about creating an environment that was perfect to sit at Jesus’ feet. She just sat down. Mary didn’t get caught up in the plans or preparation for this time with Jesus. She was present with Him. And Mary was flexible. She sat where Jesus sat. She would have gone wherever Jesus was.

 

How valuable this lesson is for me! As I approach tomorrow and this big day, I have a choice. I can either learn to be more like Mary or I can fall into my old habit of identifying with Martha. Oh how I want to be more like Mary in these situations!

 

My prayer today is that I will step out of that comfort zone of “doing” and rest in the “being.” Maybe that should be your prayer today as well.

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

 

Donna

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Just One More Day

May 6th, 2016 dsisler

 

Folks, I’m feeling a little weary this morning. Yes, I’m tired from travel, but things happening in the world and close to me have me feeling drained. So I beg you to forgive me for posting just one more repeated blog post today. I would ask that you join me today in prayer for the things heaviest on my heart. God knows who and what needs…that’s the beauty of our precious Heavenly Father.

 

I’ll be praying for you today too! You are always on my mind.

 

Quick Fix

 

DSCN0582If you’re like me, you’re always looking for a quick fix for getting things done. A little shortcut here, a little time saved there. Sometimes it works and sometimes, well, let’s just say, it would have taken less time to fix it the correct way.

 

My husband thought he’d go the quick fix route with one of my tires a couple of years ago. It had been slowly losing air and Mason would fill it as needed. He even bought some tire sealant to stop the leaking. It didn’t work as planned and he ended up taking the tire to be repaired by professionals.

 

Isn’t this the way we are with our spiritual lives at times. We know there is an issue. We look for a quick fix. But in the long run, the only thing that will make it right is doing the right thing. Mending our soul, the right way.

 

That pesky devil is out to get us. He is firing some flaming arrows directly at us. Paul mentions such actions in Ephesians 6:16 (NIV) and how we are to protect ourselves. “In addition to all this (using the armor of God for our spiritual journey), take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.”

 

The flaming arrows the evil one points directly at us can be lethal. If we are not prepared, we will be in trouble. And if we have been hit by a flaming arrow, we must allow full healing of the wound. A quick fix will not work. A job done half way will not work. We must take it to the One who is the greatest Repairman of all time. God.

 

When we bring our brokenness to God, He is able to make the repair. Completely. Satisfactorily.

 

King David knew of this brokenness and what God’s role was to be in the healing process. In Psalm 51:17 (NIV), David said, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” When we give our brokenness to God, our wounded spirits, He will accept that sacrifice and repair the damage.

 

David also knew restoration. Psalm 23:3 (NIV) tells us, “He (God) restores my soul.” Complete restoration. Complete healing. Complete mending.

 

You see, when we give our wounds, large or small, to God, He promises to do the fixing. There is no reason for us to believe we can do it on our own or that we can fix it ourselves. We can’t. It’s not possible.

 

So I ask you today, what wounds do you need to give to God for repair? What brokenness have you held on for far too long? Why not let the great Repairman fix your heart the right way? He’s the expert at it. And with the mending of our souls comes a lifetime guarantee…no, an eternal guarantee.

 

Please don’t go another day with the wounds you carry. God’s arms are out stretched and waiting to take care of it for you. You just need to give it to Him.

 

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 Jacksonville, Florida.

  • 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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