Word-Filled Wednesday ~#83~ Lamb of God, No Embellishment Required

"Abraham answered, 'God Himself will provide the lamb . . .'" ~Gen. 22:8

"The next day John [the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, 'Look, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world.'" ~John 1:29

"Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne . . . Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and then thousand times ten thousand . . . In a loud voice they sang: 

'Worthy is the Lamb, Who was slain,

to receive power and wealth and

wisdom and strength

and honor and glory and praise!'"

~Rev. 5:6,11-12

I became a Christian at age 23 and attended a church led by a very gifted young preacher. I remember soaking up all the great Bible teaching in every sermon and I eagerly anticipated my first Easter as a Christian. A couple of weeks before Easter Sunday, I was talking to our pastor and he asked me to pray for him, "I'm having a hard time putting together my Easter sermon. I'm trying to tell it in a new way so that people don't get tired of the same ol' thing every Easter." 

I replied to him, "Well, there are other new believers like me in the congregation and we've never really heard some of the details, and besides, isn't there really only one story?" He looked at me and grinned, "You're absolutely right." If ever God used me, I think He used me then.

Some stories require no embellishment; they are simple, true and all you need to know in themselves. Jesus' triumph over death, hell and the grave is just that ~ the simple truth of God's one and only Son, Jesus Christ, leaving the glories and adoration heaven to come to earth, put up with all our ignorance and shenanigans and still CHOOSE to be our once-for-all sacrificial Lamb of God so that we can be with Him forever. 

The best part of the story is what happened on Easter morning!  He ROSE from the dead! Jesus proved He is God's Son by rising from the dead and taking His rightful seat at the right-hand of God (Luke 22:69). And there He will stay until God tells Him to come back for His own . . . for His followers, His bride.

It would be great to see you there. If you haven't yet, won't you please ask Jesus to forgive your sins? Turn away from those sins (repent) and live in the assurance that, one day, YOU will be joining angels without number around the Throne of God singing praises to the One Who arose from the grave that first Easter morning ~ "the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world!" 

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<>< 

 

 

The Simple Woman's Daybook ~#184~ 3/25/13

For today . . . 

Outside my window . . . Snow, snow & MORE snow. At least 4" & still drifting down.

I am thinking . . . I love God's wonderful sense of humor & how all things work together ~ He has definitely made up for the lack of snow we got last year.

I am thankful . . . That THE Man & our car are both OK ~ especially THE Man. <3 b=""> He had to be at church earlier than I did, so we drove separately. By the time church was over, the snow was REALLY coming down ~ the ground was completely covered, the snow was fluffy & heavy & visibility was LOW. Within 15 miles, we passed 5 cars & 2 semi-trucks off the road. We had to stop for one of the semis in distress, & even though he was quite a way behind me, THE Man hit a slick spot & slid into the back of my truck ~ the truck won. But we are praising God that 1) THE Man is OK & 2) the part of the car that hit the truck was the front license plate, which wrapped around the truck's trailer hitch ~ the license plate was easily hammered out once we got home. The Lord is SO good to us.

From the kitchen . . . baking my flaxseed bread.

I am wearing . . .long, brown thermal dress, brown heathered tights, brown scarf.

I am creating . . . a peaceful, Christ-centered home.

I am going . . . to go to work the late shift ~ making people healthy & beautiful.

I am wondering . . . about timing.

I am hoping . . . I can get it all done.

I am reading . . . Just finished "Heaven is for Real" & will begin "Gifted Hands ~ The Ben Carson Story" that was so graciously sent to me by my sweet friend Dianna for my birthday. You should visit her blog, Joyful in His Presence. You'll love it.

I am looking forward to . . . a long-awaited dream coming true.

I am learning . . . that "a gentle answer turns away wrath" ~Prov. 15:1

Around the house . . . general pick-up; a little time w/DD#2 b/c she didn't have to go into work b/c of the snow. Yippee skippee!!!
 

One of my favorite things . . . a great sermon. Yesterday's was really good.

A few plans for the rest of the week . . . family time, work, worship practice, practice for the special music THE Man, our dear friend Pam & I are singing for Easter . . .

A favorite quote for the day . . . Palm Sunday is about Jesus Christ making a public presentation that "NOW is the time of MY choosing for you to crucify Me." Knowing that He would be killed in Jerusalem, He came into the city very publicly, riding on a donkey (fulfilling Scripture ~Zech. 9:9), He DID NOT come secretly. (Kings who entered a city in peace came on a donkey ~ kings who entered to control came on a horse.) ~from Sunday's sermon notes.

Scripture thought . . . "I tell you," He [Jesus] replied, "if they keep quiet, the stone will cry out." ~Luke 19:40. ALL creation praises Jesus Christ!!!! EVERYTHING in the natural ~ naturally created/nature ~ SHOUTS praises to, and affirms the existence of, THE Creator God!!!!

A picture thought for you . . . 

 Freaky clouds before the snow started ~ on our way to church;

Our back yard, this morning.

 

Connect with & read 100's of other Daybooks then register your own at Peggy's Simple Woman's Daybook!

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><    

Palm Sunday ~ The Road of No Return

"As the time approached for Him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem." ~Luke 9:51

" . . . He went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem . . . They [the disciples] brought it [a donkey] to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As He went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.

When He came near the place where the road goes down to Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud boices for all the miracles they had seen:

'Blessed is the King who come in the

name of the Lord!'

~Luke 19:28; 35-38

This was the Road of No Return for Jesus. Did you catch that first verse? Jesus "RESOLUTELY set out for Jerusalem." Some versions say that He turned His face toward Jerusalem, others that He set his face like flint toward Jerusalem. ALL of them telling us that Jesus knew EXACTLY WHERE He was going and He knew EXACTLY WHAT was going to happen to Him.

Jesus even told His disciples EXACTLY what was going to happen to Him ~ that He would be handed over, mocked, spat upon, insulted, flogged . . . killed . . . and would RISE on the 3rd day. 

Let no one try to tell you that our Jesus was surprised by anything that happened to him. He KNEW that all those people who were worshipping Him on Palm Sunday were the very ones who would turn against Him during His mockery of a trial. That they would be the very ones who watched and did nothing as He was humiliated, tortured and killed.

But He did it ALL for them ~ He did it ALL for you & I. And, praise His holy name, 

He would do it all again.

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><        

Castor Oil Packs

"Everything old is new, again."

So many of us are exploring & using those good ol' home remedies ~ many that our grandmothers, & earlier, used. What would they think that with all of our modern medical marvels (& the ever-present threat of ObamaCare) that we are coming back to the simple, effective home remedy wisdom that they used so often?

The looming threat to our medical care may have actually done us a great favor ~ we are being forced to take care of ourselves. Now, I'm not totally an anti-medical care person ~ if I am, or a loved one is, in an accident or terribly ill, then to the Dr. I will go. But I am of the belief that we should do all we can & leave the Dr. & the hospital as a last resort.

Castor oil has been used for generations; I'll bet you've heard your grandparents complain about the terrible taste of the daily teaspoon of castor oil their moms made them take. But . . . it kept the well. In this post, I'm not going to talk about taking it internally, but about using it to relieve pain & inflamation.

Castor oil packs are a very useful home remedy for most back, muscle or abdominal pains, headaches, swollen joints or muscles, even small open wounds. The castor oil works when you saturate layers of flannel with the oil & use soothing, warmth from a heating pad or hot water bottle.

You will need:

~medium-to-large pan or bucket
~castor oil
~flannel ~ enough for 4 layers; you can cut up an old flannel shirt or two OR most health food markets sell packages of flannel (or wool flannel)
~a plastic sheet; plastic wrap (i.e. Seran Wrap) is fine
~electric heating pad OR hot water bottle
~a large towel
~plastic container OR gallon-sized freezer bag

Directions:

1) In a medium-to-large pan or bucket, pour as much castor oil as it will take to soak the flannel you have prepared
2) Soak the cloth in the oil; wring out the cloth so it is not sloppy & drippy
3) Apply the four layers, one at a time, to painful area
4) Cover the oil-soaked flannel with the plastic wrap; the easiest thing to do is to simply wrap it around the part of your body you are working on (waist, hips, arm, leg, knee, etc.)
5) Put the heating pad/hot water bottle of top of the plastic; start with low heat & increase as you need to. **DO NOT use really high heat, you ARE using OIL after all & you don't want to "cook" yourself
6) Wrap the large towel over the heating pad to hold in the soothing warmth
7) Lay a large trash bag or plasic on your bed or couch ~ wherever you are going to lay down to protect it from any oil leakage ~ & lay another large towel or a sheet over it for your comfort. You can keep it on for 45 minutes to 2 hours, as you need it. Relax & enjoy the soothing warmth. You may even drift off to sleep

Google  Photo

8) When you are finished, carefully unwrap yourself & gently clean the oil off of your skin; a little baking soda & water works well, or some health food stores carry a product that cuts & cleans off the oil
9) Each flannel pack can be used up to 30 times; store the used flannel in a plastic container OR a large, gallon-sized freezer bag in the refrigerator. EACH PERSON who uses one should have their own. 
10) Flannel packs should be warmed up before each use.

**NOTE** Some health food markets have kits with everything you need all in one box.

You will be amazed at the effectiveness of this old remedy. Your grandma would be proud. :-)

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><