What a very nice day! I just returned home from a 2 hour drive to the west side of Portland, to meet with a few other writers from the NW division of the American Christian Fiction Writer’s group. It’s the first time we’ve gotten together since forming the group & while several were unable to attend, it was still a very enjoyable afternoon.
And oh joy!!! I stopped at Costco & found the double sink vanity I need for our guest bathroom, on sale!! Our home has pushed the envelope on cost more than once now, but at other times the Lord blesses us with great deals like this and I’m so grateful. As soon as the siding goes on, I’ll get another picture posted & show you the progress. Most of the work is being done on the inside with the electrical & rough in plumbing at this point, so nothing noteworthy for photography.
I don’t think I’ve mentioned too much about my husband’s ‘baby’ yet…our sailboat. When we sold our home of 18 years, 3 yrs ago, we decided to buy a boat (instead of moving back to Alaska, where we lived a number of years ago). I didn’t want to return & we’d always dreamed of having a live aboard sailboat, but never had the money to pursue it. With the profit from our home we were able to put a down payment on the home we live in now, and do a sizeable down on the boat of Allen’s dreams, our 51′ Ketch, the Sea Star. The first picture was taken 3 yrs ago, during it’s first winter in the Gorge, when we got hit with a long spate of cold weather & freezing rain. The entire marina was frozen over & yes, that’s water surrounding the boat, not ground! The second pic is of the boat at the same marina in the summer time, nice difference, huh! We’re planning on taking her up into the Inland Passage of Alaska next summer for a couple of months, so both of Allen’s dreams will be realized….time spent in Alaska, on his boat.
Time for the third and final post on prayer article. In the next couple of days I’d love to hear from you….anything you’d like to know about, articles or posts you’d enjoy reading about, or comments you’d like to make. I’ll be putting together (hopefully, as time allows) some more links or posts that concern marriage & family, to be posted over the next week. Until then, I’ll drop in to chat every day or two. Hope you’ll come back & join me and thanks for reading!
The Lord also speaks to by the operation of the gifts of the Spirit, as listed in I Corinthians 12:8-11. The gifts of wisdom and knowledge are used to help a person apply the revelation of God’s Word to a specific situation. In Acts 5, when Ananias & his wife Sapphira lied to Paul and withheld some of the money they received from the sale of their property, God revealed it to Paul through the operation of a word of knowledge.
The operation of the revelation gifts can help us make Godly decisions in our daily walk. If we are being used in counseling others, a word of wisdom or knowledge can shorten what might otherwise be hours of ministry. 1 Corinthians 14:1, it says that we should “‘Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.”
We need to follow hard after God and desire to be used, keeping our hearts open to whatever gift He might want to bestow on us. Whether it be the prophetic gifts or any other, we must operate in an attitude of love. God seeks people who are anxious to hear His voice and use His gifts in ministry to others, while continually bringing glory to Him.
Waiting on God’s peace and assurance before making decisions and confirming that what you are hearing corresponds with His written word is critical. Take time to hear from God in the still, small voice of your spirit, through direct inspiration from the Word, or asking Him to speak to you through one of the Gifts of the Spirit. Avail yourself of the wisdom of the pastor, elders, or other people in your church who have proven themselves to be Godly men and women. Seek their counsel as you wait on the Lord, combining their wisdom with God’s word, and making sure it also corresponds with God’s Word.
Are you content to hear God’s voice only through the voice of others, or do you want to hear His voice for yourself? If so, will you pay the price He requires to make hearing His voice a way of life? Romans 8:6 says, “The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.” It takes time and commitment to learn to listen; time quietly waiting on the Lord, as well as dwelling in His Word.
God is more willing to speak to us than we are to hear, and He will be faithful to answer as we tune our hearts in to His.
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