I Can Only Imagine!

I can only imagine and what an awesome glimpse of His Power, His Presence, His Knowledge!

This past Wednesday, as I took my walk along the river walk in Portland I walked and prayed for the people of Portland and its surrounding villages and communities.

When I awakened and once again saw the heavy mist and fog hanging low over the winding river, the leaves of gold, red, yellows, browns, and scarlet, russets, and all sorts of breathtaking colors, I looked at the Colorado Blue Spruce, Scotch Pines, Holly, Juniper, and many other evergreens, and the still remaining greens of the Maples, Oaks, Walnuts, Elms, and Sycamore trees along the path, I felt an overwhelming awe at the landscape that our Father designed for us to enjoy!

I took a deep breath and just felt so joyful at the fragrances of fall mingled with the lingering fragrances of summer. God knew exactly what He was doing when He created this beauty for His children!

That thought gave rise to another regarding the spoken WORD of God. What power! To speak and a thing comes into existence! To breathe and a life comes into being! What power has our God! What power IS our God!

Of course, I then thought about the way only HE can design such intricasies as to be able to co-ordinate every detail of the life of every person that He ever created. What power He has, what intelligence! What love! What presence!

How can I even put these thoughts into words! To have a personal relationship with the God of creation. The One who can just speak things into being. The One who knows all...who is omniscient. The One who even created knowledge! The One who is all wisdom! The One who designed the living cells of all creation!

To know the One who hung the stars, the moon, the sun, the planets, the One who holds the ocean in its place, the One who gave the law and fulfilled the law. The One who gave us grace through His love for us, His special creation...mankind! The One we can call Father, through faith in Jesus Christ. What an awesome wonder, to be His children and to be able to say, "Abba, Father!"

I truly stand in awe of Him! I was reading today in my "Every day with Jesus" newsletter, about knowing Him, not just His word, but knowing His attributes, about what would someone feel who sent a love letter to us and cared so deeply for us, but all we cared about was the words of the letter, but not the PERSON behind the letter...the One who actually wrote the letter. I started to think about that, and it made such perfect sense! I want to know my Father and my Lord Jesus, I want to know Him better! I want to really know the Person of Christ! I want to see Him as He is. I want to experience the kind of love He gave to us. I want to experience the kind of forgiveness that He has for us! The forgiveness that would forgive a thief on the cross beside me, that had just mocked me, and then asked me to forgive him, and I would do that!

I really want to be the kind of person that can look at the beggar on the street and love him or her for the fact that they are God's creation...and not pass them by, but reach out to offer a helping hand! I want to be a doer and not just a hearer! I want to give, not just pray for them, but to offer them a hand of love and hope.

I don't want to just pray that God will bring people to Himself, I want to speak the words of hope to them, and to show them the way to salvation through Christ.

I suppose these walks are really being used by my Father to open my eyes to things that I need to see in myself. Please pray for me that I will be and do what God wants me to do, that I will walk "worthy" of the calling. Pray for me that my prayers will be for fruit for my Father's Kingdom!

I have been working in the outpatient surgery department, and I am really enjoying it. I think that, maybe this is where God wants me right now. I have been working in Med-Surg until a couple weeks ago, and once I started doing orientation in outpatient, I found I really like it, and I don't have to do any lifting and that is a big relief! God always comes through, and he knows my needs!

Allan is working on getting ready for the second story of the split-entry house. He just got the backfill in yesterday, even during the wet, muddy day (it had rained for two days!).

We awakned to the first snowfall this morning! This is the 12th of October and we had about three or four inches...it was so beautiful! The snow didn't stick, though...what a pity!

Lora said she felt really guilty because she wanted it to stay, yet she knows that for Grandpa's sake and building the house we don't need snow or rain! We are praying that the weather doesn't get too cold, windy, wet, etc. If it does, we may need to hold off on building till the spring thaw!

I just ordered tickets for the musical called the "Magic of Christmas", which will be performing in Grand Rapids in November. I am so looking forward to it! It will be mine and Lora's birthday gift to each other. We have birthdays together (mine Nov. 18th and Lora's the 19th), The musical is Christian and Christmas music with several musical talents and the Ohio/Michigan Orchestra.

We had the most wonderful blessing yesterday! We had a visit from Karlene and John Johnson and the family! What a great visit. We all talked non-stop, but our visit was all too short. We made plans to get together again soon,though, and we are looking forward to it! Ryan was here,too,so he got to see them and he was very happy about that! Katie is such a beautiful little baby and this is our first time meeting her (except by photographs, of course).

Karlene looked just beautiful. God has so wonderfully blessed that family. John looked great, too, and all the boys had grown since we last saw them in Florida before we went to China.

Karlene pointed out a very interesting thought. She mentioned that just five years ago she sat in our living room in Melbourne Beach, and now she sat in our living room in Michigan! God is truly awesome! That's just what I meant about He plans all the tiny little details of our lives and works His marvelous blessings into our days!!! He designs our life just as He designed us in the womb, if we only allow Him to work His wondrous works in us, He plans so much better that we can even think to ask!

As I look out the window, the snow is still gently falling. The flakes are smaller now, and still not sticking to the ground. It's about 45 dergees out there, but I'm all snuggly inside with a cup of spice tea. Allan just got home a few minutes ago, and is reading a magazine...waiting patiently for me to stop writing and give him attention. I think I will make tea for him and we'll do our devotional time together.

May the God of peace be with you and may Kingdom work be done!

In His Love for His Glory!

Is. 30:21
Eph. 4:30

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not. (I John 3:1)

Sue and Allan
The Fishermen