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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Journey Notes


photo property of Donna Oswalt

You'll never understand the mystery at work in all that God does. Ecclesiastes 11:5b The Message

For the last seven years, I have consistently kept a devotional-prayer journal. It is small enough to easily take with me and fits inside a Bible. I do not necessarily write in it every day, but there are times I do. Scripture, random ideas, new words, and meanings of words often find their way to the pages. Excerpts from articles, books or commentaries that effect me are also written or attached within the pages. One thing I always put in my journal is my Scripture for the year ~ the one I believe the Holy Spirit has given me. There are pages flagged as prayer requests come to me; this reminds me and gives me a place to make notes of specific needs and outcomes. 


There is one unique entry I always include: on the first page of each notebook ~ I make note of a Scripture that defines where I am spiritually when I start the book ~ my journey note. I often discover this to be way the Spirit leads me during this phase of my journey with Him. Occasionally, I also write a quote or commentary that speaks to His Word. When the book is complete, when no more empty pages remain, I mark the front with the beginning and ending dates and begin another. Looking back I can always find a richness of God's teaching, wisdom and leading and a deeper understanding of my struggles, successes, and relationship with God. Sometimes, the very circumstances that brought me the most discomfort reveal my most intimate times of spiritual growth with God. 


My current journal note is this Scripture from Ecclesiastes and reflects a truth that our American, can-do attitude frequently challenges. We desire to be in control, even if only to know what comes nextMy nature is to explore and examine and reach conclusions. I like to understand how all the pieces fit together. The MacArthur Study Bible commentary on this verse gives great insight: 
"The world is full of things over which one has no control                              - including the purposes of God." 

So in the daily journey with the Father, we should be seeking His will and purpose in life, listening for His voice to lead, and knowing His compassion as peace. We must trust God with thankful hearts ~ thankful God loves unconditionally, and trusting Him to work all things into His perfect plan. Because try as I might, I will never understand the mystery at work in all that God does. ~ dho

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Anchor of Hope


This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast... 
Hebrews 6:19 NASB
Christ is the HOPE we have as Christians. He is Grace that is Greater and Blessed Assurance. With Christ and in Christ and through Christ, we can know a HOPE that is both sure and steadfast. In times when the ocean roars, when storms threaten, when darkness covers our celestial navigation, with this HOPE we will endure until calm waters return.
Whatever circumstances come, let us go forward with HOPE, find our rest in HOPE and our strength through HOPE, sure and steadfast. When someone asks you what HOPE is, tell them, "It's an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God." Hebrews 6:19 The Message)  Tell them, "HOPE is Christ!" ~dho
Thy mercies how tender, how firm to the end,
Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend.*
* from O Worship the King
** to read more about Thomas' journey with brain cancer~
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/thomasmcgirr/journal/1


Thursday, June 14, 2012

Grace in the Wilderness

GOD put it this way:
"They found grace out in the desert, these people who survived the killing. Israel, out looking for a place to rest, met God out looking for them!" GOD told them, "I've never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love and more love!" Jeremiah 31:2-3 MSG


Israel learned what it meant to live in the wilderness. When God used Moses to rescue them from the bonds of slavery in Egypt, they eventually spent forty years in the wilderness. At all times God's presence was with them. When they were taken into captivity in the foreign land of Babylon, full of idol worship, their exile held them hostage in a spiritual wilderness. Again in Jeremiah, God reminded them that He was their God, that they were His people. God's promises rescued them. In the wilderness, while Israel was out looking for a place to rest, [they] met God out looking for them!"  


What about you and me? What does it take to survive in the wilderness without comfort, in a desert dry with disappointment, in a foreign land surrounded by uncertainty? Our life experiences often mirror the journey of the Old Testament Israel. Our chains of bondage may look different, and our captives may be known by other titles; the unfamiliar may exceed geography and customs. While confusion shouts in the wilderness, our continued thirst begs for more. What is your desert? Where will your wilderness lead? What is your Babylon? 


Let's take the Scripture, this Living Word of God spoken to Jeremiah centuries ago and put ourselves into the verse. "I found grace out in the desert, after I survived my times of trouble. I was looking for a place to rest and met God out looking for me! God tells me, I've never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love and more love! The Promise of God's everlasting Love exceeds all things, even the hardest and most difficult seasons. God is always with us; in fact, He is out looking for us!  Jesus is our comfort and joy, our strength and certainty in the desert. He can break the chains of bondage, release us from our captivity by false gods. He is the Living Water! Jesus is our Grace in the wilderness. ~dho

Tuesday, June 05, 2012

Until the Throne of God!

But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned to me by the Lord Jesus - the work of telling others the Good News about God's wonderful kindness and love. Acts 20:24 NLT



"God is so GOOD!" That's a frequent phrase I heard Evelyn Gardner repeat. Her faithful teaching and witness was salted and peppered with her dear southern-isms made more delightful by her Georgia drawl. Each one followed by a smile then a quiet but genuine laugh. After moving from NC in 2003, I have missed Evelyn, although our paths crossed several times over the years. Today her memorial service was held at Snyder Memorial Baptist Church in Fayetteville, NC. I am in Augusta,Georgia, only a few hours from where she was raised in Toccoa. Evelyn is most certainly with the LORD! 


I don't remember exactly when I met Evelyn, but it is likely by being in one of her Bible Studies. For the 20 years I knew Evelyn, she was always teaching Sunday School and leading some Bible study, sharing the Good News about God's wonderful kindness and love. I have fond memories of both Evelyn and her sister, Martha, as I listened to stories of growing up in their beloved Toccoa, Tift College days, career decisions, and military adventures in Hawaii. I once had the opportunity to drive them to Chapel Hill for a doctor's appointment for Martha. It was a good day! On Cool Spring Street, lunches at Heritage Place and afterwards the casual conversation in Martha's apartment provided all three of us with soul food. Even after I moved, and Martha's cancer worsened, our visits, while fewer, continued to delight my soul! Evelyn was a faith-full prayer warrior and regularly prayed for me. Often her cards would arrive to remind me of her prayers at a divinely ordained moment. Yes, God is so Good!


Paul wrote "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. [2Timothy 4:7]. Evelyn can stand before her Creator, Redeemer and Friend and humbly repeat Paul's words. She has written a living letter for Christ on the hearts of those she touched, including mine. My life has been blessed by Evelyn and her living testimony. Matthew Henry's Commentary reflects on Acts 20 and shouts to my soul: It is good for friends, when they part, to part with prayer. Those who exhort and pray for one another, may have many weeping seasons and painful separations, but they will meet before the throne of God, to part no more. Despite moving, in spite of death, there will be reunion in Christ! Now that's the GOOD NEWS!


Evelyn shared the Good News with great joy, carried her life sorrows with dignity, enriched the lives of countless women directly and indirectly, and always remained faithful to the Lord. This is the example I hope to follow. So, until we meet again before the throne of God, dear friend, I will strive to use [my life] for doing the work assigned to me by the Lord Jesus - the work of telling others the Good News about God's wonderful kindness and love. I'll be seeing you! ~ dho

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Meaning in Life

"Here is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey His commands, for this is the duty of every person." Ecclesiastes 12:13 NLT 


The writer of Ecclesiastes is searching for the answer that most all of us desire ~ the meaning of life. For each person, there are particular paths or callings that influence his or her choices of career, family, and community, but I believe this question reaches deeper and, if honesty prevails, becomes a common desire for all people ~ what gives my life meaning? After an exhaustive survey, the researcher in Ecclesiastes reaches a final conclusion, a universal answer to finding meaning in life: Fear God and obey His commands.


In his book, Living the Resurrection, Eugene Peterson gives insight into what demonstrates our truest Christian identity. How does one live the resurrection? He writes, "We embrace and cherish a firsthand, personal life with God and one another." Peterson explains, "we engage in a life that is permeated by the presence and companionship of the resurrected Jesus in the company of friends." The meaning of true life always comes from the Giver of Life. At the core of our being, this personal relationship refines the soul.


What gives my life meaning? It is having a personal, intimate relationship with God and growing that relationship through obedience to His Way. Living the Resurrection gives God glory and allows God's faithful to fully embrace His promise of Everlasting Life. While life will always be full of mystery and unanswered questions, God remains full of majesty and blessings. Remember, worship God, and let your obedience to Him define how living the resurrection is the greatest secret to the meaning of life! ~ dho

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Dwell in His Presence

One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD and to meditate in His temple. Psalm 27:4 ESV


The world rumbles with distractions and disappointments and gives voice to self-focused agendas. Desire for approval and applause comes from every direction. More replaces need. In the chaos of so many possibilities, our ability to discern God's voice diminishes. Our minds become numb, and our deeds become rote. How do Christians live in the world and in God's presence?


The presence of God must become my dwelling place, the one thing, my heart's greatest desire. To dwell in God's presence brings peace even in troubled times, gives assurance in uncertain times, offers hope in all times. To "meditate" is to be in "constant communion". Without listening in prayer for His voice or being in study and contemplation of His word, we do not see God's beauty and overlook God's faithfulness.


I first claimed this verse in January as God's verse for me this year (2012). There are copies in my Bible, near my computer, and beside my bed to remind me of where I need to stay ~ in constant communion, to dwell in God's presencePaul tells us in Philippians 3:13 that while he has not achieved complete success, "one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead." Reaching forward toward God's call through Christ is the goal. Paul's words give voice to my efforts, my striving toward the goal, even when I fall short.


LORD, my soul needs constant communion with You. Help me nurture our relationship that I may dwell in Your Presence all the days of my life, to behold Your beauty and to meditate in Your Dwelling Place. ~dho

Sunday, April 08, 2012

Preparing for Easter ~ Grace

EASTER Sunday ~


Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, "Peace to you." But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit.


And He said to them, "Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."

When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, "Have you any food here?" So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. And He took it and ate in their presence.

Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me." And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.

Then He said to them, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

And you are witnesses of these things. Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you . . ."

And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven.

And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God. Amen. Luke 24:44-53 NKJV

As believers, we are transformed, made new in Christ. We are to be witnesses for Jesus. Just as He commissioned His followers Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you, we must go. And we must go in worship and in joy and in praise for the Promise of God is everlasting. GRACE ~ the incalculable, immutable, incomprehensible Promise of God ~ is ours! 

Our sacrifice of praise ~
Take the Promise of God into the world ~ in worship and in joy and in praise! ~dho

All rights reserved ~ used with permission of the author
Copyright 2010 by Donna Oswalt

For more information about this ministry visit ~
"May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Saturday, April 07, 2012

Preparing for Easter ~ Silence








Later, Joseph from Arimathea asked Pilate if he could take the body of Jesus. (Joseph was a secret follower of Jesus, because he was afraid of some of the leaders.) Pilate gave his permission, so Joseph came and took Jesus' body away. Nicodemus, who earlier had come to Jesus at night, went with Joseph. He brought about seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes. These two men took Jesus' body and wrapped it with the spices in pieces of linen cloth, which is how they bury the dead. In the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden. In the garden was a new tomb that had never been used before. The men laid Jesus in that tomb because it was nearby, and they were preparing to start their Sabbath day.
John 19:38-42 NCV

Buried in an empty, borrowed tomb, Jesus' body lay surrounded by darkness in the silence of earth. Separated from the Father by death, Jesus' body lay in the stillness. The Sabbath begins at sundown on Friday and nothing more can be done but honor the Sabbath.

Scripture does not say anything about this Sabbath Day. We learn nothing more about Jesus on the day after His crucifixion. As His followers go about their worship this particular Sabbath, one can only imagine the many recollections and questions that filled the minds of the disciples. There is silence in the Word of God on this day!

Our sacrifice of praise ~
In the silences of life, meditate on the assurance and the glory of God ~ because you know what tomorrow brings! ~dho

Friday, April 06, 2012

Preparing for Easter ~ Confession

Good Friday
Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, "Truly the Man was the Son of God!"

Mark 15:38 NKJV

Today we must look to the cross of suffering that Jesus endured as a ransom for our sin. Until that day, the Jewish people, the Chosen of God, worshiped Jehovah with blood sacrifices and burnt offerings. At the time Jesus breathed His last breath and died, the High Priest sacrificed the unblemished lamb, preparing the sin offering of Passover. Only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies to place the blood offering on the Mercy seat for forgiveness of sins.

On this day, when Jesus died, the curtain of the Holy of Holies was torn from top to bottom. The Scriptures do not say what happened to the High Priest or the blood of the slain Passover lamb. We are not told the thoughts of the High Priest who witnessed the torn curtain that represented a veil between sinful man and the Holy God. Until this moment in history, the High Priest would have taken the blood sacrifice into the Holy of Holies as an offering for the forgiveness of sins for God's people every year at Passover, but now, the altar of the Lord was exposed.

These historic religious customs tell the God-story of Jesus, a Perfect Lamb slain for the forgiveness of sin. The once veiled Holy of Holies, the Presence of God, is now revealed. To all who seek a relationship with God, Grace is given through Jesus, the True High Priest. What remains? Our confession, "Truly the Man [is] the Son of God!"

Our sacrifice of praise ~
Who will you share the God-story of Jesus with today? ~dho

All rights reserved ~ used with permission of the author
Copyright 2010 by Donna Oswalt

For more information about this ministry visit ~
"May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Thursday, April 05, 2012

Preparing for Easter ~ Betrayal

Maundy Thursday
Maundy Thursday services celebrate the giving of the Lord's Supper to the Disciples of Jesus, but the evening of fellowship and teaching and prayer ends in betrayal. As Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas, one of the twelve disciples, leads the arresting soldiers to Him. He identifies Jesus with a kiss ~ a kiss of betrayal. Perhaps the ultimate betrayal always comes from someone close to our inner circle.


And immediately, while He was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I will kiss is the man. Seize Him and lead Him away under guard."

And when he came, he went up to Him at once and said, "Rabbi!" And he kissed Him. And they laid hands on him and seized Him.
Mark 14:43-46 ESV

Our sacrifice of praise ~
Let your tears of betrayal celebrate the Bread and the Wine ~ like Oswald Chambers wrote many, many times, "Be the broken bread and poured out wine." ~dho




All rights reserved ~ used with permission of the author
Copyright 2010 by Donna Oswalt

For more information about this ministry visit ~
"May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”

Wednesday, April 04, 2012

Preparing for Easter ~ Plot



Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put [Jesus] to death, for they feared the people.
Luke 22:1-2 ESV


These religious leaders plotted to kill Jesus, the Son of God, yet they feared the people. How like them we are ~ plotting to have our own way, to do our own thing and do it the way we want. How like them we are ~ choosing a path that does not give God glory and worrying about what "people" will think.

As Passover drew near, a very special time for remembrance, they were not preparing for their own feast, rather they were scheming to take Jesus out of the picture. How like them we are ~ instead of preparing our hearts to celebrate the Risen Savior, we busy ourselves with Spring's garden needs, a new wardrobe, trips to the beach, gifts for Easter baskets, and Summer's plans. Today, the world still schemes and plots to take Jesus out of Easter, and we are its accomplices.

Our sacrifice of praise ~
In the busy schedules, remember Who this celebration praises! Put "Good Friday" and "Easter Sunday" back into your Spring Break. ~dho

All rights reserved ~ used with permission of the author
Copyright 2010 by Donna Oswalt

For more information about this ministry visit ~
"May you be blessed by the Lord Who loves you best!”