The Lord Is My Portion

May 3, 2016June 12, 2018 / Gail Johnson / 6 Comments

The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. Lam. 3:24

Raindrop-2 From time to time, it’s easy to imagine we are in control of our lives when in truth, we are not. For no matter how tightly we cling, or how carefully we plan, all can be lost in the breath of a moment. Therefore, the important things in life are not things.

I brought nothing into this world, and I will take nothing when I leave. What I do for Heaven and others will be all that matters. Truth and justice, hope and charity, grace and mercy, will remain long after I’m gone.

And when I look at my life through this lens of reality, I find I have only one hope.

Jesus. My Savior and Friend.

Knowing that He is waiting at the end of this high wire act of faith, gives me the courage to let go and walk the line.

Eyes closed.

Arms opened wide.

Head tilted back.

In Him will I hope!

When the Wind Blows

April 19, 2016 / Gail Johnson / 9 Comments

And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Mark 4:39

I read a story this past week about a young man seeking employment on a farm. When asked by the farmer what he knew about farming he replied, “I know nothing about farm work, but I can sleep when the wind blows.”

Desperate for help, the old farmer hired the boy. One night a storm blew in, and the farmer ran to the young man’s room, and there he lay sleeping like a baby. Rather than waste time trying to wake him, the farmer ran to check the barn, animals, and the straw pile. All were secure. The farmer understood the boy’s statement.*

As I read the story, I thought of Jesus and the disciples on the storm-tossed sea. The Word says “the waves beat into the ship, and it was now full.”

The disciples were afraid.

Jesus was asleep.

On a pillow!

The disciples awakened Him and asked did He care if they drowned.

water-932284_1920 He stood, rebuked the wind and spoke to the waves.

The winds ceased. The storm calmed.

Then He asked, “Why are you afraid? Why don’t you have faith?”

Ouch.

They were afraid and asked, “Who is this that even the wind and sea obey Him?”

Have you ever been there?

Speaking spiritually, I don’t always sleep when the wind is blowing, and the waves are rocking my world. But when I stop watching the horizon bob up and down and get my focus on the Master of the wind, my spirit calms.

Then I, like Jesus, can rest when the winds blow and the waves crash around me!

How about you. Do you ever have trouble resting when the wind is blowing?

*I Can Sleep When the Wind Blows ~ Olden Cook

One Of A Kind

April 5, 2016 / Gail Johnson

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:30

My Yoke Is Easy As I listened to someone speaking this weekend about the scripture above, I knew I had to learn more about yoke and oxen when he said, “A smart farmer would have a yoke fitted to his animals.”

According to tillerinternational.org , you should never use yoke and bows that don’t fit the team. You should always make sure the yoke fits well before teaching the team to pull.

What a beautiful picture of Matthew 11.

One of a Kind Purpose

I believe every individual on this planet has a gift—a purpose that only that person can fulfill. Now that’s not saying if they refuse to do the job that it won’t get done because the Lord will provide. But no two people will ever do a job the same way.

Designed by the Creator, we are one of a kind. No one compares. Paul was not a Peter, nor was Peter a John. But all three were called. Imagine if they constantly compared themselves to each other!

We, too, are called and given an individual purpose. I can’t wear your yoke, and you can’t wear mine. If we try, the ill-fitting yoke will cause an abrasion making it impossible to complete our tasks.

Therefore, it’s important that we are careful not to put our yoke on someone else or try to wear theirs. Beware: when the yoke doesn’t fit the following problems can occur.

Turning the Yoke-The team pivots from the yoke by swinging their rear ends around in opposite directions until the yoke and bow is upside down. The team is facing the load and the nigh steer on the right and the off on the left. Prevent turning the yoke by using a smaller yoke that won’t allow the team to turn the yoke and keeps the steers from turning their rear ends out. Also, their laying down in the yoke is an opportunity to learn to turn the yoke. Drew Conroy, Assistant Professor, University of New Hampshire © 1995 Tillers International

So let’s review. When the yoke is too big, the oxen get turned around in the wrong direction; their focus is on the load, and their rear ends are sticking out.

Quite a picture, aye? 🙂