Psalms 23

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
    He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

***my interpretation***
The Lord is my king and guide. I will enjoy goodness all of my life. 
He makes me rest and be secured in a flourishing life.

He leads me to a resting place. 
He revives me and restores my soul; He guides me to his will to bring       honor to his name.

Even when I walk through difficult times that seems too hard to bear, I   will not fear evil for you are always with me; your guidance, correction, protection, and support, reassures me.

You provide for me even in the presence of my enemies;  you anoint my head with oil as an honored guest; my blessings overflow.

Blessings of goodness and love will pursue me all of my life,
And I will live in God presence forever. (Hallelujah!!!)

Affliction, AND Patience?

" LOVE must be sincere. HATE what is evil; CLING to what is good. BE DEVOTED to one another in love. HONOR one another above yourselves.  NEVER BE LACKING IN ZEAL but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. BE JOYFUL in hope, PATIENT in affliction, FAITHFUL in prayer.  SHARE with the Lord’s people who are in need. PRACTICE hospitality."

Romans 12:9-13

As I was reading this passage during my devotions for my church, I noticed that it says to be PATIENT IN AFFLICTION. Wow, that just sounds difficult. Not only do we deal with the affliction but we have to be patient in it too. Maybe we should be asking God for even more strength because patience can be hard work. I know I have to continually work at patience;  it doesn't come naturally for me.

Affliction alone can be time consuming, painful, exhausting....now add patience to it. It will either break us or make us into a better person. I think taking time to relax, breathe deeper, think of the other person first, prioritize what's important in life, and not be so rushed, may help us be more patient in our days. (I am speaking to myself as well).
May we strive to be patient in painful circumstances and/or when dealing with pain in our own body.

In the scripture above, it says:  "...but keep your spiritual  favor..."

Keep your spiritual intense, passionate feeling. Keep yourself in tune with God and don't be afraid to have a deep intimate connection with him where he knows all of your deep desires and where He can show you what He desires for you.

Living for God is a life long journey, thankfully it gets easier when we reach heaven.

There are Good Doctors

Kudos to my eye Dr today. As I signed in for my eye exam, the receptionist said that my benefits for my eye glasses won't be available until September (and today is only February).

Instead of wasting my money on my eye appointment, I canceled it and decided to come back in September. Well my ophthalmologist, who I have had for years, called my name. When I told him what happened, he knelt down beside me and asked if my eyes were ok.

He acknowledged that I have major eye problems and wanted to make sure that there weren't any new eye problems. (He knows of the floaters, the shadows, the optic atropy, and all the other eye problems I have, including that when I see things that it's like looking through a sheer curtain.  The doctors are baffled in this area and don't know how to fix it.  We discussed about how I had been tested by one of the best Kaiser eye specialists in southern California and they can't find anything wrong).

After we discussed that there's no cure for my eyes, he gave me a big smile and said that I was a special person. As I laughed, I told him that I know because that is what all my doctors say to me with all the great health issues I have.

This ophthalmologist made my day and I told him how grateful I was for taking the time to talk to me.  He could have just walked away when I canceled my appt, but he didn't. He truly showed me that he cared.

Thank you, God, for people who go out of their way, especially for people like me, who are "special." 

Pets are Great Companions

There is just something about hearing a purring cat or watching a dog's  tail wag that can put a smile on a person's face. Some even like to be licked in the face; but not I.
Petting our furry friends can lift our spirits. They tend to do funny things that makes us crack a smile.  I am a lover of those funny cat videos. I tend to watch them if I'm down or sad, at times. They will lift me up and make me want to laugh or smile.
There are even organizations who take therapy dogs into nursing homes to help cheer up the residents.

When a person doesn't have children, like myself, an animal can be more than just a pet. It becomes a baby, a fur baby. My cat, Buttons, who I had to put down a few months ago due to his failing health, was my baby. Then after he died, my place seemed so empty. I have stuff in my home like electronics,  books, art supplies to do my hobbies, etc...but it wasn't the same without Buttons.

It's been three months without him and I miss the little things he used to do like laying on the remote controls when I wanted to change the channel. Also he would lay on my cell phone when it were ringing. Sometimes I would miss a call from a friend because I couldn't get him off of the cell phone. I miss him on my Bible as I tried to turn the page and couldn't because he was laying on it. I also miss his different ways of saying meow.  He would say "magow" instead,  when he wanted something.  I miss that friend and companion, even though he was an animal.

I think pet companions are important especially for people who have physical pain. Soon, I will be adopting another furry friend who will become my fur baby. I can not wait for that day when I  will have another pet companion to fill my home.