Joyfull Living

Today is Good Friday. A day that Christians remember the death of our Lord on the cross. It causes us to pause and remember His great sacrifice, the pain, shame and death of His life - for us, to cover and provide atonement for our sins. He who knew no sin, became sin for us that we might become righteous in the eyes of God. It is so simple, yet such a profound love. Here is an Easter devotion from Billy Graham sharing about Good Friday. Good Friday celebrates the day our Lord died for our sins on the cross. I have often sat by the hour and tried to imagine the agony and suffering He went through because of our sins. At one point He said from the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30). He meant that God had accepted His work on the cross as the penalty for our sins. Christ’s death on our behalf is the reason God can forgive us and still be just. And His death teaches us the depth and breadth that there should be in our forgiveness of one another. While that holy Friday was treme...

Orchids....often I walk by them in the garden center of a store and admire them. They are so elegant, so beautiful and so expensive!  They would be a costly and risky purchase as I was unsure if they would flourish under my gardening care. One day as I browsed my favorite section of the garden center - the clearance cart, they had a very small orchid pot marked down to $1.00. It surely wasn't elegant or beautiful, it didn't even have a bloom on it, but a single green leaf that compelled me to purchase it and give it a chance. After all, the ceramic pot alone was worth the dollar! I took it home and placed it in a sunny window, faithfully watered it and found a fertilizer just for orchids that was diligently used. After a few weeks, it didn't die!  I wasn't expecting much, but under the nurturing it was receiving it began to grow leaves.  One day, I spotted a tiny bud!  More attention was given to the plant as daily I watched this little bud continue t...

"Leadership is the joyful acceptance of responsibility at a given moment."   Leadership is such a big word!  For a passive person, it can also be a bit scary. It takes a special personality to go forward with confidence, clarity, vision and share it with others, involving them and plowing the path ahead of them. That's not me! But, leadership is also about influence. Each of us has someone they influence, but to make an impact, we must love people before we try to lead them. A quiet, passive soul feels more comfortable getting to know others and simply listening to them.  Joyful Acceptance: Although I live and  love the word 'joyful', it certainly doesn’t mean flippant or happily bouncing around aimlessly. Nor does it mean easy. Instead, joy is rooted in God’s providence.  Understanding we have an opportunity to influence others, and advancing on that while we trust God to be a good influence whether they be many or few, for the kingdom of...