Mary Cantell

Jul

07

Keep the faith and the focus

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Where is your mind focused these days? Are you suffering under the trials and tribulations in your life, or do you cast your cares on Him? Do you search for solace in food, drink, or some kind of distraction to assuage the unrest, or do you feast on His word?

Panaceas offering relief from cares and burdens are the first place the world turn from the pain of living. For the children of God, the ones Christ calls his brethren, our solace is met at the cross.

“…bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ…” ~ 2 Cor. 10:5.

The world is a battlefield for control of our mind. The combat skirmishes will always be there until we’re promoted to heaven, but there is assurance that in Him, our battles are already won. Our deliverance is met in Jesus.

When struggles and trials seem bound to grab your soul and squeeze out your joy, rejoice in the Lord and count it all joy as the book of James states. Why? You have the Lord! Your trials and temptations are nothing for Him and are the chisel which conforms you to be more like Jesus. Let Him do a good work in you by faithfully keeping your mind on Him.

Jul

01

God’s greatest nation

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“If my people which are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land…” 2 Chronicles 7:14

We know God has always had a special relationship with the nation of Israel. When King Solomon dedicated the temple and prayed to the Lord, in turn, the Lord responded to say that if the people kept his commandments, they would receive prosperity; if not, they would not be blessed but would receive the punishment of hardship and banishment from the land.

The New Covenant we have through Jesus is not about a nation but more a promise to God’s faithful children—the church. Our promise is not necessarily the prosperity of wealth, although it could be, but more so the fulfillment of being prospered spiritually through the Holy Spirit. The temple now resides in us, the believers.

Being humble and hungry for the Lord’s will to be done doesn’t start through our strength; it starts with seeking the Lord’s face, so that we can become instruments to further his plans and purposes here on earth.

As America celebrates Independence Day this week, we are reminded of the blessings we’ve been given and give thanks to the many who fought to allow this nation to stand. Though we are a great nation of freedom and liberty, remember, we are only truly free in Jesus!

Jun

24

A Quilting of Love

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The heavens declare the glory of God
and the sky above proclaims His handiwork ~ Psalm 19:1

He weaves a new dawn in the stillness of morning,
and taps the sun to melt the night’s shadows.
He uncovers the buds sewn finer than silver,
sprouting new life in splashes of dew.
His presence shines in a sparrow’s song,
a trickling riverbed,
the hush of a mountain top,
while the rocks and hills proclaim His name.
Each moment, His glory enrobes the landscape,
a tapestry bountiful as grains of sand.

Jun

17

A Father’s Love

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June is the month we celebrate our dear fathers. At least, that’s what Hallmark tells us.

It’s not easy to be a father. It’s an awesome task. Being a father is more than just being a daddy or having children. A father’s job is so much more.

It’s a tremendous undertaking to rear a child in the way to go. The task can be daunting, especially when a man does it in his own strength, or the way his own dad did it. Taking cues from your father may not be the best route. Many times, a father will fail.

There is no official instruction guide for fatherhood, no protocol to follow for each child has different needs to be met. Though the instruction book for life—the Bible—has everything one needs to accomplish any job. And what better example to follow than that of our heavenly Father who, by his grace, has given us more than we deserve. That is, not to spoil us, but to show us the riches of His glory.

If your own father was absent or less than fatherly, remember that you have another father, one whom you may not see–absent, again? No, no! He is very present, even more than if he were standing beside you. For he made you. Your hairs are numbered, and he sent his son to die for you. The love of this father–our Lord–is incomparable to any other.

That is why we should celebrate Father’s day every day. For our heavenly father deserves our continual worship. And for our earthly fathers, we are grateful for all you’ve done for us and hope that all fathers will seek their Father in heaven for the strength, wisdom, and courage to fulfill their earthly role.

Jun

09

Living water…

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Ninety-nine degrees in the scorching summer heat and you’re desperately craving relief for your parched throat. Unlike hunger, which can be tamed for a while, dehydration is a different matter…in another league. It can be deadly.

King David longed for the Lord in this way, as though his very soul would die without the quenching of his thirst for the fellowship of the Lord—the living water. He sought for it both night and day, at times, and he was rewarded, for his parched soul was always refreshed through the Lord.

It would seem the whole world is searching to quench their souls. They seek to fill themselves with the water of the world—idols, pleasures, and other worldliness—yet they remain thirsty. The Lord says to drink from His fountain as His blessings are everlasting and sustaining.

“But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a fount of water springing up to eternal life” ~ John 4:14.

He who knows Jesus in the most intimate of ways now holds the living water of the Holy Spirit. May it spill up, out, and overflow as a gushing spring. May it be a blessing to all in witness of the greatness of the Lord in you!

Jun

03

The Lord is the maker of all

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Every twenty-four hours as the earth rotates around the sun and the axis on which it tilts is held by His power, The Lord gives us another opportunity to arise and praise Him.

We’ve probably asked ourselves at some point in our lives: “What is our purpose here on this planet…why am I here?” The question of why God created us is an enigma—other than He wanted to—but our purpose is clear, and that is we’re not here to serve ourselves; our plans and purposes should reflect what God says to do—to love and serve one another and to glorify Him.

In Acts 20:35, the Word says, It is more blessed to give than to receive. As we’ve been given new lives in Christ, not to mention an eternal one, what little does it cost us today to live our lives as ambassadors for Christ? Doing everything in love so that our witness is kept pure. Are we fools to live sacrificially like this? The world lives for self-serving pleasure, but God’s children have a higher calling.

We’ve been given today to rejoice and be glad in Him. Like the psalmist says, “…and again, I say, Rejoice!”

May

27

Remembering…

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America, the land of the free, is a concept our
founding fathers brought forth on this continent
that all men should be free from tyranny. They
acknowledged our Creator as God—the one who created
us all equally—thus paving the way for America to
become a nation of liberty and freedom.

Today, we honor the thousands of veterans, the
heroes who sacrificed so much for our country.
We thank and salute each one for their valiant
efforts to ensure the safe keeping of our land
and its liberty.

There’s also one other who made the ultimate sacrifice
so we can be free. Our savior, Jesus Christ. The price
he paid was the willing sacrifice of his own life in
the most excruciating manner. Not just the cruelty of
the cross but the beating, scourging, and mocking,
along with the weight of our sins. Because we sinned from
the beginning, Jesus came to take our place in death and
to bear all of our sin, so we can be free from its bondage.
Truly, we are only completely free in Jesus.

Consider the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus and
those of our Vets this Memorial Day and pray that
God will allow our nation to continue in the manner
the founding fathers designed.

Thank you, Lord, that we have liberty to worship
you in this great land because of the sacrificial efforts
of so many, the greatest being your Son.

May

20

Peace like a river…

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Even on your bleakest day, the calming peace of Jesus can satisfy like no other. He leads us beside the still waters and restores our souls. His peace is like a river, and it flows as a fount of blessings to his faithful followers who put their trust fully in Him.

In difficult times of trial and trouble, the everlasting arms of Jesus—and He alone—is the only healing balm we need. He directs the course of great rivers, and by his power, the very atoms in the nails that pierced his flesh on the cross were held together by His mighty strength. If He created the world and all the cattle on a thousand hills belong to Him, what is your life’s situation that He cannot make good?

If God is for us, who can possibly be against us? That is, who can thwart God? Or, why is there a need to even worry about anything but our relationship with the Lord?

May

13

Mother’s Day

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How blessed are we who have been nurtured by Godly women–our mothers. One who takes her responsibilities of raising her children under the guidance of her heavenly Father, who rises up to prepare them for the day with feeding, clothing, teaching, and caretaking…who honors the Lord in all she does and walks in a manner to please Him.

A mother’s love often extends beyond her own needs or concerns. Sacrificially, she’ll hold back from herself the last slice of bread if her child is still hungry, lend her only dollar, drive to the ends of the earth, or stay awake throughout the night, if necessary. She gives and gives until it’s time to give again.

Mothers are God’s special gift to this world. Today, all mothers—grand, foster, and surrogate—are being celebrated. You are a blessing to your children and they are blessed to call you Mother.

Next to Jesus, there is no other love like a mother’s. Whether here on earth or at home with the Lord, we remember you today and every day with our utmost love and appreciation.

                     Lucy and Lena Parisano, mom and grand mom

May

06

A new song

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When Jesus defeated sin on the cross and death, as well, through his resurrection, he put a new song into the hearts of his disciples. As a victor, he became cause for celebration. As Christians celebrate this magnificent feat annually on Easter morning and in our hearts every day, it brings to every believer’s lips a song of rejoicing.

We often sing the well-known lyrics in the hymn by E.M. Bartlett:

“O victory in Jesus, my savior forever, he sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood. He loved me ‘ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him. He brought me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.”

When Jesus came to earth the first time, he came as a peaceful servant of his father. He came not to judge the world but to save it. When he comes again to reign and his brethren with him, he will come to judge like never before.

There’s victory in Jesus! He gave his life and he opened up eternity for all believers in Him to enter. Life is a battlefield, but rest assured, the battle belongs to the Lord—and it’s already been won.