20/20

Happy Sunday!

I hope this week was positive, powerful and productive for you!

I really enjoyed the Olympic Opening Ceremonies. I'm a natural cry baby. I was welling up with tears as the children's choirs from all over Great Britain sang the hymn, "Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah". It was so fitting that Christ Jesus would receive Glory because he gives us the strength and ability to everything we do. (Philippians 4:13)

The Olympics are so inspiring! Everything I've watched has encouraged me. There are so many personal stories about how the athletes have had to struggle and push forward even through adversity. There is an athlete in the Archery competition who is legally blind. He's doing things that individuals with 20/20 vision can't do. In Mark 8:22-25, Jesus healed a blind man. He asked the man what he saw. The man said he saw men as trees walking. Jesus touched him again and he saw clearly. Seeing is one thing, seeing clearly is everything. Things like this challenge me. I ask myself, "What's your excuse?"

There are runners with no legs! "What's your excuse?" There are athletes from war torn countries. They are able to put their problems aside and focus on the games. Athletes whose families may not even have electricity or a television to watch the games. It reminds me of all that I have to be thankful and grateful for.

I'm grateful for you! I appreciate you and thank you for communicating with me every week. You are always in my prayers.

Love and prayers, Cynthia

What a Friend

Happy Sunday!

In Praise and Worship today we sang, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus". It's an oldy but goody! It says what many are feeling right now after yet another senseless shooting. We ask ourselves why?

We may never know why bad things happen, but God knows! He created us and declared that, "The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful, a puzzle that no one can figure out. But I, God, search the heart and examine the mind. I get to the heart of the human. I get to the root of things. I treat them as they really are, not as they pretend to be." - Jeremiah 17:9 (Message Translation)

That may be why God designed a plan to give us new hearts! No, not like the Tin Man in the Wizard of OZ. He said in Ezekiel 36:26, "And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart". - (New Living Translation) Even David knew something was missing and he begged God to, "Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew a faithful spirit within me". - Psalm 51:10 (God's Word Translation)

The word, "Lament" means a cry of grief or sorrow or a dirge: a song or hymn of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person. There's a whole book in the bible called, Lamentations. Lamentations 3:21-23 says, “The reason I can still find hope is that I keep this one thing in mind: the Lord’s mercy. We were not completely wiped out. His compassion is never limited. It is new every morning. His faithfulness is great".

Even during this horrible tragedy, the Love of God is being shown! Several individuals sacrificed their lives for others. That's what Jesus did for us! There are testimonies of strangers of different races laying aside selfishness and acting heroically for the community. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God's work of making things right between them. We're speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he's already a friend with you.


Love and prayers, Cynthia

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (Message Translation)

Happy Sunday!
So we're not giving up. How could we!

Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace.

These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us.

There's far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can't see now will last forever. - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (Message Translation)

Love and prayers, Cynthia

You Are the Person

Happy Sunday!

I hope you had a wonderful week! I'm praying that you enjoy the upcoming holiday!

You are the person who has to decide. Whether you'll do it or toss it aside; You are the person who makes up your mind. Whether you'll lead or will linger behind. Whether you'll try for the goal that's afar. Or just be contented to stay where you are.” - Edgar A. Guest Have a positive, powerful, and prosperous week! Love and prayers, Cynthia

Start

Happy Sunday!

"Start where you are, work with what you have, watch God multiply!" - Bishop Alexis A. Thomas

Have a wonderful week! I'm praying that God blesses you Spiritually, Emotionally, Physically, and Financially. Praying that he provides all your needs according to his riches in Glory. Praying that all grace abounds towards you and that you have all you need and enough left over to help others.

Love and prayers, Cynthia

Are You Balanced?

Happy Sunday!

Happy Father's Day to all the awesome fathers! Shout out to my Daddy, Perrry A Woods, Sr.! Bishop Alexis A. Thomas reminded us today that we should be grateful for the people in our lives that taught us about God and made sure we attended church services whether we liked it or not! When I think of my Daddy, I think of First Baptist Church of Chesterfield in Chesterfield, Missouri. As Martha Stewart says, "That's a Good thing!"

Bishop preached, "Are You Balanced?" He used Ephesians 6:4 as his reference scripture. You know I love the opportunity to read the Word in several translations. It makes it so clear.

• Message Translation - "Fathers, don't exasperate your children by coming down hard on them. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master".

• New Living Translation - "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord".

• GOD'S WORD Translation - "Fathers, don’t make your children bitter about life. Instead, bring them up in Christian discipline and instruction".

Parenting is challenging! Proverbs 22:15 says, "Young people are prone to foolishness and fads; the cure comes through tough-minded discipline". (Message Translation) I don't know about you, but periodically I replay things I've done or said to my children in my mind. I think, "I wish I'd done that or said that differently". Unfortunately, we can't go back for a do-over. But there is hope for those of you with young children. In everything we do, we need balance. The King James version of this scripture says, "Nurture and Admonition". Nurture means chastisement and discipline. Admonition means dialog, instruction, and counsel.

Even those of us without young children or without children at all, we need balance too! Balance between our work and our personal life. Some nights I dream about work, isn't that sad! I need balance! I need to find a happy place where I can leave work at work and enjoy time away from work! It comforts me to know that God "will himself perfect you and give you firmness, strength, and a sure foundation". - 1 Peter 5:10 (Good New's Translation) I need balance in my finances. I need balance in my diet and exercise. I'm doing better and I thank God..."And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns". - Philippians 1:6 (New Living Translation)

Are you balanced?

Moving toward greater balance this week! Love, Cynthia

People to Avoid

Happy Sunday!

It’s been a full week!  We experienced the annual “Fresh Rain” Conference at Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church in Phoenix, Arizona.   Pastor Kerwin Lee from Stone Mountain, Georgia, Bishop Michael Pitts from Toledo, Ohio, and Dr. John Gunns from Jacksonville, Florida were the guest speakers. They were all awesome!  I would like to share the message by Pastor Kerwin Lee preached on Thursday night.  The title of the message was, “The People You Should Avoid!”  He used Matthew 20:1-13.

Before I tell who the people are that you should avoid, let me tell you a little about the story.  The Kingdom has an owner, that’s GOD.  The Kingdom has an origin, that’s Heaven.  The Kingdom has ordinances, that’s laws included in the Word of God.  The Kingdom has offspring, that’s you and I.  And the Kingdom has an opponent, that’s Satan.

The people you should AVOID are;

Avoid people who are full of conclusions- In verse 10, the workers hired at 6am assumed that they would received more than the penny they agreed to in verse 2.  Avoid people who make assumptions.  Research the issue for yourself!  Ask questions, be proactive, Google it if necessary. 

Avoid people who are full of complaints- In verse 11, the workers hired at 6am complained.  Avoid people who always complain!  Complaining is contagious.  Do you remember what happened to the Israelites in the wilderness?  They complained.  Then they wandered in the wilderness until all the complainers died! 

Avoid people who are full of competition- In verse 12(a), the workers hired at 6am complained that they should have been paid more because they endured the “scorching heat”.  Avoid people who thrive on negative competition. 

Avoid people who are full of conceit – In verse 12(b), the workers hired at 6am were conceited.  They felt that they weren’t equal to the other workers.  They were incensed that they would be treated the same as the other workers.  Avoid conceited people.  The Word compares us to dust and tiny bubbles on the water.  We can be here today and gone today.  If we have anything to proud of it all because of the GRACE of God!

Avoid people who are full of comparison – In verse 12(c), the workers hired at 6am compared themselves to the other workers.  Never compare yourself to others!  There will always be someone who is different, smarter, shorter, taller, slimmer, fuller, younger, older, more educated, or less educated.  Don’t compare yourself to others, compare yourself to Jesus.  He was the ultimate example!  If you compare yourself to him you will always have a higher goal to reach.

Now you know what type of people to avoid!  Have a wonderful week!

Love and prayers, Cynthia