Introducing Hannah DeWitt Picard, my Praise Coach

Hosanna! 

Hosanna to God in the Highest!!! 

Don't you wish every day was Palm Sunday where we spend our days in awe of God praising Him for every breath we breathe? As we all know, it may be Palm Sunday, but Friday's coming. Shouts of praise became shouts of condemnation.

 Crucify Him! 

Crucify Him!

How thankful I am for my Jesus' death on the cross taking the punishment for the sins of the world and for the power of God displayed on Easter Sunday when Jesus rose from the grave.

 Alive!!! 

Alive!!! 

Alive forevermore!!! 

What a great God, worthy of our praise.

Can we ever praise God enough? I don't think so. Which is why when my friend Hannah Picard became a Praise Coach and  developed a Power of Praise on-line course, I took an interest. Hannah grew up in the church where my husband Dan pastored. As a teen and a twenty, her passion for God was evident. Now grown with much life experience, including tragedies, she lives a life of praise and desires Christians to realize the full joy of the Lord when we live every day (even the difficult days) seeing God's Hand in every moment and praising Him. 

We are made to praise and I can testify my heart was opened to areas in my life where I can praise God more. 

A sneak peak to the Made to Praise course: My chores turned to cheers when I turned my "to do" list into a "get to do" list. I began praising God for all I "get to do." Wow. I get to fold that basket of laundry and I get to wash those dirty dishes and I get to forgive someone who hurt me. Life is filled with joy when we thank God for all the things we "get to do!" when we live a life of praise to Him.

Listen and learn from Hannah on her website at www.madetopraiseusa.com. I recommend  her as a speaker at your event, as well! What joy she brings to our lives as we see Jesus living in her through her praises to Him. Hannah, when I look at what God is doing in your life, I just want to Praise the Lord!

Blessings to all on this Holy Week,

My 2017 Christmas Wish List

"'Don't be Afraid!' he said. 'I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!'" Luke 2:10

What a shock when I opened our Christmas decorations. Instead of thrown willy nilly into a glad-Christmas-is-over box, each ornament was wrapped with care and love. I realized that because of my cancer diagnosis, I had cherished and packed each trinket in the realization that last Christmas could be my last Christmas.

But God, who ordained the day of my birth and the day of my death, allowed me another year. I'm doing great, my blood counts are normal, I'm still writing and speaking and marveling at the ministry and marriage Dan and I continue to enjoy together. 

". . . Every day of my life was recorded in your book.

 Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed."

 Psalm 139:16 

Cancer has opened doors I would not have opened on my own. For this, I thank God, embrace the gift and the lessons I wish I had learned sooner.  

Now I realize each day is an ornament not to be thrown into the trash or the I-can't-wait-until-this-day-is-done box. Every moment is treasured as a gently wrapped memory in the ornament box of my mind, for every single breath is a gift placed on my tree of life.

What have I learned on this journey? 

Here's my 2017 Christmas wish list:

I wish I had loved more and judged less. 

Judging people robs me of time and joy. 

None of us know the whole story in anyone's life, even our own.

 I wish I had smiled more because 

smiles make me and the people around me happy.

 I wish I never had a grumpy day. 

Grumpy is a waste of time.

 I wish my eyes and mind had never let in negative, immoral, violent, 

God-dishonoring media that destroys mind and spirit. 

Life is too short to dwell in the garbage. 

I wish I spent every day in the eternal instead of the worry. 

God's got this. 

He's not worried and 

He doesn't need me to worry for Him.

This Christmas I choose to make my wishes reality as I thank God for His abundant and eternal joy gifts to me:

I thank God for a blessed life spent

 cherishing Dan, our children and 12 grandchildren, 

extended family and friends which includes YOU.

I thank God for placing a hunger within me for Himself and His Word. 

Reading the whole Bible multiple times and

 looking to Jesus and His teachings as my moral compass protected me.

I'm thankful our travels gave me a world view of, and love for, all people.

I'm thankful I believe Jesus is my Lord and my Savior, and that 

I surrendered my life to Him for He is true to 

His promise of eternal life in Heaven and abundant life on earth. 

A win/win!!!

I'm thankful I know 

The Baby of Christmas, 

The Teacher in the Temple, 

The Savior on the cross, and 

The Lord Who rose from the dead. 

I'm thankful God tells us to not be afraid because 

He is with us always. 

He holds us in our troubles and 

He never lets go. 

I know because He holds me.

Merry Christmas dear ones. I have every plan to see you next year, but if I don't or you don't, that's good too if we love Jesus.

 Hang your ornaments with care. Each one matters.

Merry Christmas love and lots of Splashes of Serenity in 2018!