Steps To Joy Music - Daily Devotional

"Simply" Wonderful!

"For our rejoicing is this:
the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God we had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to you-ward." II COR.1:12
I can not tell you how this touched me this morning.  It is not by man's wisdom, but in the power of the living God.   I am trying to memorize it, and say it over and over until I fully understand it and it becomes a part of my life.

Thank You dear heavenly Father for the simple things in our lives.   May simplicity and Godly sincerity be increased in our lives because of Your matchless grace.   Teach us Your way , O Lord, led us in a plain path.
We are so very grateful to You for everything You continually do.   In the mighty name of Jesus. A-men!
Have a great day in the Lord, special ones. You are truly loved.

This is REALLY Powerful!!

Hello special ones.
Have you ever tried to read the bible and pray and have your mind so busy that you could barely concentrate?  I have.   Sometimes I have tried to read and  and read the same sentence over and over or begun thinking  about something else and then  become aware of what was happening.

Last week I flew to New York for a business trip, and a visit with my older  sister.  I would be up early to read my bible before she was up.
We did a lot of visiting and sharing.   I had a particular subject that I talked about and all at once she said "that is an oppression. You do not have any peace".
I stopped, startled, and thought and responded, "you are right!"   I prayed  internally and asked the Lord to forgive me and correct the situation,     Instantly it was quiet and peaceful in my heart and mind.  A scripture came into my mind, and I began to pray it.   "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.   For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God. To the pulling down of strongholds, ______(_place your name or city), casting down imaginations, and every high thing which exalteth itself against the knowledge of God; and bringing into captivity, every thought to the obedience of Christ"  I Chor. 10:3-6.   
Then I prayed that my flesh would come under my soul, my soul under my spirit, and my spirit under the Spirit  of God.
Each time my mind would take off in that oppressing or rabbit trail direction , I would immediately pray "and bringing into captivity, every thought to the obedience of Christ," and once again my mind and heart were quiet.  WOW!!! There is power in the word of God.

Dear Heavenly Father, how grateful we are for Your provision to us in Your word.   You are awesome and amazing. Your word, the Bible say that we shall know the truth, and the truth shall set us free!! Thank You Lord!!!
Help us to walk in a way that will bring much pleasure to You.  Teach us Your ways,O Lord, lead us in a plain path, because of our enemies, guide each step we take. Ps 27,

You are the Greatest in the Heavens!!

He gives power to the faint, because He is great. To them who have no might, He increases strength.
For our God is greatest in the Heavens,
Our God is greatest in the Heavens, our God is greatest in the Heavens.
He's the greatest, (echo0 in the heavens (echo) He's the greatest, (echo0 in the heavens.
He's the G_R_E_A_T_E_S_T  !!!!!!!!!!!
Adp. Is. 40 C Nancy Lamka 1992

Have a great  day in the Lord special ones. You are truly loved.

P.S. I have to tell you something really cool.   The first time I typed this , I went to email it to myself instead of typing it in the daily devotional.   I messed up somehow, and lost most of it.   Since I was typing it from out of my head, there was one scripture that I could not remember. I tried and tried, and prayed, but it did not come. So-o--o, I dept typing.  At the end, I prayed again, and the scripture came....
"You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free" John 8:32  Isn't the Lord wonderful?  I love Him so much!

Forever!

Hello special ones,
"The Lord is near unto all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of them that fear him: He will also hear their cry and will save them.
The Lord preserves all them of that love Him: but the wicked will He destroy.
My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord: and let all flesh bless His holy name forever and ever". Psalm 145: 17-21
Tuesday was the end of a very difficult season of time. I am saying that by faith in that He is changing me in the middle of the trouble and tests.

  I felt so sad, so I went into the studio and played to worship the Lord.   I felt as though I should sing to Him, a song he gave me years ago. As I did, His presence became so strong, and still is.   I am resting in the fact I am not alone, it is not me, there is an us here.
His comfort is so readily available,  His  loving kindness  and mercy endures forever.   We are never alone.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the struggle of the last few years, only to show Your grace and love in the joy of the present and future.   Help us remember we are never alone,  there is an us in the equation.
Thank You for the joy of singing to You .   You are  so awesome Lord.   Help us to praise You forever and ever.   In Jesus precious name, a-men!
Have a great day in the Lord special ones, for you are truly loved.

A Painful Lesson

Good Morning special ones!
Thursday  after I taught a piano lesson, I had lunch with a friend who is now counseling  at a large church.   We used to pray every Friday morning and I have missed her. What a fun time it was. We talked and caught up a little longer than I thought, and  I  it was 3:15 when we parted.  I usually run early now, but at this time, I was running late as I was scheduled to be  at another friend's home at 3:00.  I called and  we decided I would not return home to get my walking shoes, but just go to the next appointment.  I wanted to walk, to I made two unwise decisions.  I chose to walk two miles in my good leather boots, and made a
choice to pay the price .  We had a wonderful walk, and about half way my friend suggested we head back. 
I wanted to walk the full two miles.   even though my feet were hurting , I went ahead and   walked.

On the return trip I felt like my feet were bleeding, but I just kept walking.  Later when returning home, I looked at my feet and seven blisters appeared and a very large one on the left toe

I began soaking my feet in hot water and Epsom Salts.  I felt pretty badly for being so unwise.

Yesterday, went getting into the car to go to another lesson,   I noticed a blue gym bad.  I poened it and guess what?  My gymn clothes and extra pair of jogging  shoes.  How do you suppose I felt then?

The lesson was very clear.   The Lord had made the provision, I just got in a hurry and was so tired I did not even look.   Now I am paying the price.   I volunteered to usher at a conventiion at the end of the month.  Plus, I do not have any shoes I can wear, so I am wearing thongs and I play for the church service tomorrow.   Young people are not the only ones who do not think about the end result.  I did, but did not think it would be as back.  That is another thing we are misled by.

Dear Heavenly Father, I humbly come to You in the precious name of Jesus, and ask you to forgive me for going my own way.   You had made the provision, I was careless and too tired.  It is a good lesson I will not forget.   I will listen better, and take better care of my health.  Set me free and forgive me from enabling anyone.  That is not healthy.  This is not being a servant.   You are so awesome.  Thank you for Your love and patience,  and for showing me when pride and not speaking up can be painful.   I repent, dear Lord.   You give such joy even in difficult times.     My heart if to serve You, and to put You first.

When I was having  my devotions, actually, I was reading my Bible while I was soaking my feet,

I opened to this scripture:

"In freedom Christ has made us free { and completely liberated us}to stand fast then, and do not be hampered and held ensnared and submit  again to a yoke of slavery [which you  have once put off]."

Galatians  5: 1 Amplified Bible

Thank You that I am in process, and it is a small thing with a greater lesson. Help me to obey You and Your word.

  In the mighty name of Jesus, a-men!   Have a great day in the Lord, special ones, for you are truly loved

Jewels Rock!

Hello  special ones!
I was looking up something online about gneiss and I found this test.   It was fun to take and review.

http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3F_adv_prop%3Dimage%26fr%3Dyfp-t-368%26va%3Dmetamorphic%2Brock%26sz%3D&w=210&h=183&imgurl=wps.prenhall.com%2Fwps%2Fmedia%2Fobjects%2F1411%2F1445573%2Fgneiss1.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwps.prenhall.com%2Fesm_mcknight_physgeo_8%2F0%2C9340%2C1445610-content%2C00.utf8.html&size=12.2kB&name=gneiss1.jpg&p=&type=JPG&oid=490711e935699ee4&no=4&tt=5364

I have so much going on in my life right now and so many changes that I placed my hands on my head and whispered " Lord, i am under so much pressure right now. Help!"  Instantly I felt in my heart  a gentle reply"You prayed to be changed, didn't you?" Suddenly I saw a metamorphic rock being formed.  Going from one state to  another requires heat and pressure.   ICor. 3:18 tells us we are being changed from glory to glory into His image and likeness.   Wow!  Count it all joy....James I
Through the strata of my life, the Lord is applying heat and pressure, tests and trials, refining and cleansing, weaving  His character and likeness in to the very fiber of the being....answering prayer of changing us into His image and likeness.
GOD> YOU ARE AWESOME!!!
Dear Heavenly Father, thank You so much for the object lesson this morning. I am so humbled by Your love and mercy,  You are so great.   I give my life to You.  Change me, change us into the jewels You speak of in Malachi 3.  We choose to   fear and adore You.  How can we thank  You enough?
In the mighty name of Jesus, A-men!
Have a great day in the Lord special ones.  You are truly loved.

No Fear!!

Hello special ones,
I have had a lot of fear about my circumstances this year.  Perhaps that has not been your problem, but in each situation the Lord gave me a scripture I could trust Him for.   He proved trustworthy.  I proved a little fainthearted.   But in His mercy and unfailing love, He is strengthening me again.
Monday morning He gave me this as I awoke.

"God has not given you the spirit of fear,  but of power and of love and  a sound mind."

2Timothy 1:7.

The Lord has not given us a spirit of fear, and the Greek is timidity, lack of confidence in Him, but His power, (stand firm in the Lord and the power of His might) and His love that passes all understanding, and a sound mind.

Aren't we always looking for wisdom?   Proverbs tells us it  is the principle thing.  Make God's love your aim in  the Lord, and thank  Him for His wisdom.

The concordance  states it this way:

sound mind  so-fron-is-moss  a combination of so+safe and phren t"he mind".   The word denotes and indicated good judgment, disciplined thought, patterns and the ability  to understand and make right decisions. It also includes self-discipline and self control.
\\WOW!!!!!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Here I am again to humble my heart and ask Your forgiveness for my lack of faith and tust in YOU!

You have been so-o-o-o-o faithful to me, I have been so weary in the situations the past couple of years.

I choose to trust You more and more, and when I am weak, Your power is made perfect.

So often i just want You to be a fast food vendor, and have a resolve RIGHT NOW!

You are always behind the scene, before it and right in the middle.  Forgive me for after all these years of not learning to trust You more. I will seek You daily, I so want to trust You.

You are always there working things out better than we could dream possible, and we are afraid and complaining.  Change us Lord!   Make us strong in You and in Your word.

You are awesome and we adore You.   Help us to do it more and more.

In the loving and powerful name of Jesus, a-men.

Have a great day in the Lord, special ones.   You are truly loved.

So Grateful for a Faithful Lord!

Hello special ones!
I awoke quite early this morning and prayed and rambled my thoughts for several hours.
Finally, I got my bible and read:"Therefore, I will look unto the Lord.  I will wait for the God of my salvation,
my God will hear me..
Rejoice not against me O my  enemy when I fall i shall rise, when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me."  Micah 7 7-8
Those are such beautiful words to me.  Those words FILLED ME with energy and hope. Praise for the Lord bubbled up in my heart even more.   

I know that the Lord has heard my cry to Him.
Currently I am  dealing  with four generations of things, many of them good.  I can not get rid of them because they represent the people to me.  Finally ,this  morning I released my home and property to the Lord, asked His forgiveness for letting things become such a stronghold, and felt a release from the problem.   It is not that I liked the things so much, it is just that they remind me of such happy memories and of the people to whom they belong.  It also represent financial income and I kept freezing because I wanted to be a good steward.  I have been in a muddle for three years trying to decide what to do.

Now I can take action and see the Lord move.

Dear Heavenly Father, You so touched me this morning.   Thank You for making me so miserable that I would let go.    I do trust You Lord.   I want Your will in all that I do and  to be obedient to You.
Thank You for being so patient with me.  It all should be simple, but fear of being wrong, or whatever kind of bondage keeps us from moving ahead.
They Lord my God shall be the only one who rules over me.    Now I shall be free to go on to the next page of my life.

Have a great day in the Lord, special ones. You are truly loved.

April 3, 2008

Hello special ones,
A couple of days ago this was my devotions.   There seems to be a  strong thread sewing it together.
16 "When even was come, they brought him many who were oppressed with devils, and He cast them out with His word, and healed all that were sick.
17  that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet Esaias saying
Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses"   Matthew 8:16-17

And when He had called unto Him His twelve disciples.He gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness,and all manner of disease.  Matt. 10:1.

"The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.    Heal the sick ,  cleanse the lepers, cast out devils.
Freely you have received, freely give".  Matt. 10:7-8.

How wonderful to know this is not for spectators.   It is as much for us today as it was for the disciples years ago.   if you are a believer in Jesus Christ, then continue in His word, and the truth will set you free as you learn it.  It is not who we are, or how we feel, it is about the power of God , a holy God working through imperfect people.

Dear Heavenly Father,   it seems more difficult to come to You with my mind all cluttered with things that seem so grand, but are so meaningless compared to being in close relationship with You.

Forgive me ,Lord, and help me to get my eyes off the situations that loom so high, and lift my head higher, knowing that You are the one who created the heavens and  the earth.    Help me to trust You
more each step of the way, with a humbleness and thanksgiving in my heart , knowing You care more than I could ever dream possible.

You are so awesome!!!!!    Thank You for being so faithful .... everyday.

I love You Papa.

In Jesus mighty name.

Have a great day in the Lord special ones. You are truly loved!

 

"

From Curiosity To Celebration

Hello special ones. It is November 6th 2007.

There is a  example in the bible of a man who was curious to  see who Jesus was.   Evidently he had heard a lot of commotion about  Jesus   and wanted to find out for himself.  Our "text" takes place in Luke 19.
V.3 And he sought to see Jesus , who he was, and could not  for the press, because he was little of  stature.
V 4.  And he ran before and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see Him;for He was to pass by that way.
V %.  And when Jesus came to the place He looked up and saw him, and said to him "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must abide in your house.
V.  6  And he made haste and came down and received Him  joyfully.

He sought to see Jesus.....he seemed to be curious, but he also had expectations. Yet his circumstances kept him from getting close to Him.
Jesus knew his real desire, and called to him, as He does to us.    Jesus called him by name, (which must have made a stir with all those around) to
1.  make haste- take action quickly
2.  come- more in the direction toward Him,
3.  Jesus desire to abide, have fellowship and intimacy with him,
Zacchaeus heart must have jumped nearly out of his body with excitment  and happiness.He quickly came to Him and RECEIVED Him joyfully.

Dear Heavenly Father,
How we love and adore you.   Your word is so rich, and satisfying.  Only You can see the true longing of our heart, and call our name to be with  You in a relationship like no other in this world.         
  With You we can experience what true love really is. 
Please take away those things in our life that hinder and keep us from really knowing who you are.  Help us to turn our hearts toward You, take action for the attraction to know  You,  and receive You with our hearts open and yielded  to allow the Spirit of God to mold us into Your image and likeness.  We receive you with excitement, with great joy, with expectation to a romance and intimacy with You as never before.  You are so awesome. Thank You for drawing us close to You, to hear what Your heart would say to us.
In the mighty name of Jesus,
A-men!
Have a great day in the Lord special ones.  You are truly loved.
Nancy

Reality Focus

Hello special ones,

Let's take a  look at where our individual focus is:
"Therefore, I will look unto the Lord. I will wait  on the God of my salvation, for my God will hear me.
Rejoice not against me O mine enemy, When I fall, I shall arise, when I sit in darkness, the Lord shall be a light unto me. (Micah 7:7-8.
Interwoven in the text of this scripture is the faithfulness of our God. No matter how difficult the circumstanses, God's love and loyalty to in our best interest.
I was pretty overwhelmed in my own circumstances when I opened my bible and read this.   I began to try to memorize  it and it brought much comfort.
Dear Heavenly Father,
It makes me teary to think of your  faithfulness in my life.  How I love you and your word. Thank you for your patience in dealing with me.Please forgive me when I react from woundedness. You are my love and the light of my life.
Help me through these very deep waters. Use me for your glory. Thank you for healing me and helping me to fulfill the destiny you have for my life
Help me not to fear, but to be courageous and fearless.   Be my all in all.