Gardeners here in north central Iowa have had quite a battle on our hands the last few days, maybe weeks! At times, it has been too hot or too dry. Wind? We have several days in a row with massive winds. I have starter plants which are almost parallel to the ground! Dry too. Seeds lay in dry dirt waiting for a drink. I take water to them, but it doesn't work the best.

Then comes yesterday! Lots of rain to soak up the dry, thirsty ground. God can do in minutes or hours which we can't do in days! What a miracle worker He is!

God,
thank You that You take care of stuff!
Not just sort of...
abundantly!
You take care of not only rain
and drinks of water for our fields,
gardens, and seeds,
but for every part of our lives.
Sometimes we forget,
so thank You!
Amen.

As a follow to Saturday's Karen's Korner and a quick reminder to the familiar John 3:16, I wanted to include something from yesterday's sermon - 1 John 3:16! Not nearly as familiar........

"We know what real love is
from Christ's example in dying for us.
And so we also
ought to lay down our lives
for our Christian brothers."

*

Bible Commentary (in part):  "Real love is an action, not a feeling. It produces selfless, sacrificial giving. The greatst act of love anyone can do is to give himself or herself for others. How can we lay down our lives? Sometimes it is easier to say we'll die for others than to truly live for them, which involves putting others' desires first. Some ways of sacrificial love for others:  listening, helping, encouraging, giving. Think of someone in particular who neeeds this kind of love today."

***
 

(A Karen's Korner on Saturday to make up for the one I didn't send on Thursday!)

Today is a day that I need to be reminded that I am loved by God. Sometimes I/we run pretty far and fast ahead, just in time to look back and re-listen to His care for us.

"For God loved the world (Karen and her friends)
so much that He
GAVE
His only Son
so that anyone (each one of us)
who believes In Him
shall not perish 
but have eternal life.
God did not 
send His Son
into the world (Karen and everyone else!)
to condemn it, 
but to save it!

~ John 3:16 & 17 LAB

*

Bible Commentary:  "Many people are repulsed by thinking about living forever because their lives are miserable. But eternal life is not the extension of  man's miserable, mortal life; eternal life is God's life embodied in Christ given to all believers now as a guarantee that they will live forever. In this life there is no death, sickness, enemies, evil, and sin. When we don't know Christ, we make choices as though this life were all we have. in reality, this life is just the introduction to eternity. Begin, therefore, to evaluate all that happens from an eternal perspective."

***

For fun, I looked back at a Karen's Korner from today's date in 2016:

Today is Monday, May 16th, 2016; Karen's Korner #3311

"A true friend is always loyal,

and a brother is born to help in time of need."

~ Proverbs 17:17 LAB

*

Bible Commentary: "What kind of friend are we? There is a vast difference between knowing someone well and being a true friend. The greatest evidence of genuine friendship is loyalty---being available to help in times of distress or personal struggles. Too many people are fair-weather friends. They stick around when the friendship helps them, and leave when they're not getting anything out of the relationship. Think of our friends and assess our loyalty to them. We need to be the kind of true friend the Bible encourages."

****

(Sorry for no Karen's Korner yesterday!)

A couple of entries from "Everyday Blessings" by Max Lucado. They are short, so you get two!!

"The Lord our God is right in everything He does."
~ Daniel 9:14

"God is never wrong.
He has never rendered a wrong decision. 
experienced the wrong attitude,
taken the wrong path,
said the wrong thing,
or acted the wrong way.
He is never too late or too early,
too loud or too soft,
too fast or too slow.
He has always been and always will be right.
He is righteous."

**

"Serve only the LORD your God.
Respect Him, keep His commands, and obey Him."
~ Deuteronomy 13:4

"Christ's kingdom is ....a kingdom where membership is granted, not purchased.

"You are placed into God's kingdom. You are 'adopted'. And this occurs not when you do enough, but when you admit you can't do enough. You don't earn it; you simply accept it. As a result, you serve, not out of arrogance or fear, but out of gratitude."

****

Today's entry in Sarah Young's "Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence":

"Thank Me in the midst of the crucible
(severe test or trial).
When things seem all wrong,
look for growth opportunities.
Especially, look for areas where you need to let go,
leaving your cares in My able hands.
Do you trust Me
to orchestrate your life events
as I choose,
or are you still trying to make things go
according to your will?
If you keep trying to carry out your intentions
while I am leading you
in another direction,
you deify your desires.

"Be on the lookout for what 
I am doing in your life.
Worship Me
by living close to Me,
thanking Me in all circumstances."

~Taken from I Peter 5:6 - 7; I Thessalonians 5:18

***

"The Lord's blessing is our greatest wealth.
 All our work adds nothing to it!"

~ Proverbs 10:22

*

Bible Commentary:  "This proverb is in sharp contrast to our society which measures personal worth by how much a person owns. Our relationship to God is our most valuable possession. This blessing is not reserved for the rich. It is for all who call upon the name of the Lord. Neither is it something for which we must work hard; our efforts can add nothing to what God freely offers. Those who spend their lives enjoying only material wealth will never experience the true happiness that comes from enjoying God."

**

It's spring! And fun to begin digging in the dirt!

As I dig, I find all kinds of grass growing; some places I want - other places, I don't!  As I unearth some of the plants, I find roots. But all kinds of 'white root' runners! If I don't get the ones I don't want out, there will be lots of additional grass plants!! The roots tend to double and more!!

As I looked at those white runners, I couldn't help but think:  that is what I would like to be to 'add' to God's Kingdom. To 'grow' more people to my friend base. And learn from others; their life experiences and what Jesus means to them!

Let's be like crab grass and send out 'root runners', to each other and people in our world!

"Jesus told his disciples,
'I have been given all authority
in heaven and earth.
Therefore go and
make disciples in all nations,
baptizing them into the name of 
the Father
and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit,
and then teach these new disciples
to obey all the commands
I have given you; and be sure of this --
that I am with you always,
even to the end of the world."

~ Matthew 28:18 - 20 LAB

***

"The joy of the Lord
is your strength."
~Nehemiah 8:10 LAB

*

For my birthday, I was given a small book, "A Book of Joy" with many Thomas Kinkade's art works. He termed himself 'Painter of Light'.

Plus there were lots of sayings:  

"The sun does not shine
for a few trees and flowers,
but for the wide world's joy."
~ Henry Ward Beecher

*
"Pleasure comes from without,
and joy comes from within,
and it is, therefore,
within reach of everyone in the world."
~ Bishop Fulton J. Sheen

*
"I've learned from experience
that the greater part
of our happiness or misery
depends on our dispositions
and not on our circumstances."
~ Martha Washington

*
"In the same way,
if you keep on making joy choices,
small and large, your heart
will eventually display
a joyful tint that is more durable
than you ever imagined."
~ Thomas Kinkade

*
"Happiness is the realization
of God in the heart.
Happiness is the result
of praise and thanksgiving,
of faith, of acceptance;
a quiet tranquil realization
of the love of God."
~ White Eagle

*
"Once you begin looking
you may be surprised to discover
just how much joy
your world has to offer."
~ Thomas Kinkade

****

God is so good. He answers many of our prayers just as we asked. And we are blessed! But what happens when they aren't answered the way we wanted?

Yesterday's Max Lucado:

THE DEFINITIVE GOODNESS OF GOD

"At some point, we all stand at this intersection: Is God good when the outcome is not? The definitive to the goodness of God comes in the person of Jesus Christ. He’s the only picture of God ever taken. He pressed his fingers into the sore of the leper. He inclined his ear to the cry of the hungry. He didn’t retreat at the sight of pain. Just the opposite. Cruel accusations of jealous men? Jesus knows their sting.

"Is it possible that the wonder of heaven will make the most difficult life a good bargain? This was Paul’s opinion. He said, 'Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all' (2 Corinthians 4:17 NIV). Your pain won’t last forever my friend, but you will. Whatever we go through now is less than nothing compared with the magnificent future God has planned for us. You’ll get through this! God is good, even when the outcome is difficult. Hang on to this promise."

***