Right and Wrong

Do you know the difference between right and wrong?

This world is filled with awe and great wonder! Who could have created this world...

The majority of us were raised by loving and caring parents, which is a blessing in and of itself. Otherwise, we may not even make it to this ripe old age to log onto JiLLaTTe to read this blog. It is such a wonder that we do have a certain feeling within our bodies that signal to us when we are doing something we know deep down is wrong. That is a little gift from our Creator, I believe.

God did give us the commandments, the law, through Israel. He did this, not to condemn us, but to protect us. His guidance was given, to protect us. He knew that sin would destroy us. God did not want us to be lead down a path that was not filled with goodness and all the blessings that He longs to give us. When we act out of humanly desire, we will not receive what God had planned on giving to us. Adam and Eve made that more than evident to all mankind that followed them.

If you have read the Bible, you can see that all the lineage back to the beginning, Adam, is recorded. God took the time to make sure that we could all read and trace our existence to the beginning of man and woman. He also revealed that Jesus would come from the line of David. What do you know, Jesus' line is from David, which is recorded in the Bible and true. The truth is all evident, and requires all to break down that worldly and self- sufficient barrier to accept and believe. It requires faith.

Friendship is a gift, a true blessing!

Last week my good friend and I walked around Shelley Lake together. I had not been feeling well, and knew that I need to move my body. She met me again, in a time of need of friendship. We were walking and catching up on life. The discussion had been so real and heavy. She had recently learned that two boys that our boys had gone to elementary school with had a tragic event happen. One of the boys, now 21 years old, was playing with a gun, swinging it around, and it went off accidentally. It fatally killed his friend. The boy holding the gun fled the scene. He turned himself in two days later. The feelings of grief and sadness consumed both of us. We kept walking, but mostly in silence for some time.

Thankfully, we were in the great outdoors. We were walking around a lake surrounded by trees and creatures. All of the sudden, two large Blue Herons took flight along the bank of the lake. Their wingspans were possibly 8 feet across. It was amazing. As I looked more closely, I began to see more Blue Herons scattered along the banks and among the brush and branches. I started counting in amazement, and pointing them out to my friend. She began to see more as well. We were in amazement and awe as we counted.. 3...4...5...6...7...8! All of these magnificent birds were within 200 square feet of one another. You can imagine that both of our moods lifted tremendously as this wonderful revelation caught our attention. God had blessed us with something that neither of us had ever witnessed before. Typically, you see one lone Heron along a water's edge among brush and grasses. We had seen at least 8 Blue Heron along the banks of Shelley Lake.

The sound of these birds taking flight and the sight of their great wingspan spreading across the backdrop of trees and water, stopped us in our tracks, and made us pause. We were given this magnificent gift that captured our attention and lifted our Spirits, and allowed us to reconnect with our present surroundings. We were taken away from that place of gloom and sadness to a secure feeling of awe and wonder just by being present in nature. God's great creation that He made for all of us to enjoy and escape into, so that His presence may be felt and admired.

When life is challenging, and feels unsteady. Make sure you take time to pause, and be present in where you are. If you have access to God's word, in the Bible, open and read. If you are outside, stop and look around. There is so much wonder and amazement in this beautiful world that requires us to stop and pause, so that our Spirits may be lifted. Remember to honor the God of all creation. Choice what is right, so that He may gift you with all the goodness that He has planned for your life, until you are in His presence again.

"For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--

the same Lord is Lord of all

and richly blesses all who call on Him,

for,

'Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord

will be saved.'"

-Romans 10:12-13