It Really Does Show

Ok.
I will confess.
I watched it today.
I even engaged my family in it.
Toddlers and Tiaras.
Generally, I think this show is awful.
Little girls with bad manners and even worse behaviors.
Mothers dressing their precious daughters like they are for sale in the sex trade.
Awful.
There are some that are polite, beautiful, and well behaved.
Those are very few and far between.
Today however there was a little girl in the 5-6 yo age range.
They described her as coming from a traditional, conservative family.
Her mom prayed with this child.
They worshiped God as they went about their preparation for the pageant.
This little girl did not win the big prize, but was crowned as a princess.
It was what the judge said that caught my attention.
"She has the sweetest nature of all the girls in this pageant. That is just never seen in the pageant world. I was drawn to her sweetness immediately, and I loved watching her."
Jesus does make a difference in our children's lives.
A difference that can be seen by those around us.

1 Corinthians 9:25
Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

What crown are you encouraging your daughter to desire?.

Chasing After Their Hearts,
Glenda Johnson

Lifting My Hands

I saw her long before she saw me. 

As she approached, her eighty-something year old eyes locked onto mine.

As she moved quickly toward me, 

moving as quickly as her braced legs would allow,

her smile grew and overtook her face.

She called my name, enveloped me in a hug, 

and my mind tumbled backward to the first day I ever met her.

"My name is Clifford and this is my wife Dot. Our last name is Hawley. 

H-A-W-L-E-Y. We live in Abingdon, if you're ever in the area and need a place to stay, look us us up in the phone book we have plenty of bedrooms and you are always welcome to stay with us."

And I fell in love. 

About a year later this beautiful woman was forever sealed in my heart.

She was in the ladies Bible study that I was teaching.

Sometime during the discussion that day, styles of worship began to be discussed.

I began to share that I was accustomed to raising my hands when I sang during praise and worship, but since coming to this congregation I felt uncomfortable doing so.

I went on to explain that since I was the Preacher's wife,

sitting on the second pew,

being observed by a very traditional congregation,

I did not want to cause anyone to be uncomfortable and distract from their personal worship.

This loving woman, who was then in her seventies, looked at me and quoted this verse,

"Do not quench the Spirit;" 1 Thessalonians 5:19

She then proceeded to say that since the Spirit leads us in our worship to God, and I was working so hard to keep from worshipping openly and honestly,

I really needed to ask myself if I was in danger of quenching the Holy Spirit.

The very next Sunday as I began singing I heard a voice whisper in my ear,

"It's ok to raise your hands."

She had placed herself in a position to encourage me to worship.

As we unfolded out of our embrace tonight, I looked into her eyes and told her how good it was to see her.

My soul was truly refreshed and revived tonight, 

simply by being in the presence of this wonderful woman of God. 

In this wonderful new congregation that my husband and I are serving in,

I am looking for my "Dot."

I am also looking to be "Dot" wherever I can.

Chasing after their hearts,

Glenda Johnson

Do You See What I See?

He approached the front of the auditorium this morning with his guitar.It has been a long time since he has stood in this same place.  As he began to read a scripture and then pray, I was deeply moved. He began to lead the congregation in the first song, then the next, the voices began to rise and this worship leader did what he is so uniquely gifted to do. Using his musical talents, and showing his love for Jesus, the congregation was blessed by an awesome time of worship.

But, do they see what I see?

Can they see beyond the talented man standing before them, to what is really happening right before their eyes. Do they get what happened this morning, or do they just appreciate the wonderful sound?

Not too long ago this very man made some poor choices. Committed a crime, and went through some very tough times. Very public tough times. His story does not stop there. He paid the consequences for his actions. He returned to Jesus. He repented publicly and asked for forgiveness. He changed his ways. His family has been healed.

Do you see what I see?

This morning was not about a man returning as the worship leader.

This morning was about what God is all about. It is the story of Jesus. It is the story of how someone messed up really bad. How Jesus forgave him. How a church family showed grace and forgiveness as Jesus has called them to do.

Do you see what I see?

I see grace flowing freely, not just being academically talked about.

And it is beautiful.

Chasing After Their Hearts,
Glenda Johnson

Are You Feeling Hurried Today?

I am leaving in a few minutes to go to the church building to worship with other believers. I am sure many of you are planning to do the same thing.

A typical day, for most people, in "churchdom" on Sunday, goes something like this:

10am Sunday School (if your church has Sunday school)
11am Assembly/Worship Service
12pm Head out the door for Lunch
1pm-5:30pm Football (Here, we will watching the Ravens)
6pm Evening service (If your church has an evening service)
7pm head home to get everyone ready for work and school for the next week.

On the average, on a Sunday, people spend usually 1 hour, some possibly 2 hours, a rare few 3 hours, (that are broken up by food and football) in congregational worship of God. These are the norms.

This morning I was reading in the book of Nehemiah. This is what I found.

Nehemiah 9:1-4

¹ On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. ² Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. ³ They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the LORD their God. ⁴ Standing on the stairs of the Levites were Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Kenani. They cried out with loud voices to the LORD their God. 

The first thing I was struck by in this passage was the amount of time these people spent in reading God's Word, confession,and praise. I had to figure out just what a quarter of the day meant. This is what I found.

The Jewish day is considered twelve hours. So, that mean, according to this passage, they spent three hours reading God's Word. Then, after that, they spent three hours confessing their sins and worshiping God.

Math was my worst subject in school, but, that is six hours as best as I can add it up!

My husband is a preacher. There are people who get really fussy if we are still in the service after 12 noon. They have plans. This is supposed to be a family day! The Baptists are beating us to the buffet!

I must say as I read this passage this morning I was really convicted. I began to think about the following;

What would our churches look like if we spent three hours this morning reading God's Word? 

Would lives be transformed by the power of God's Word?

What difference would we have in relationships with each other and with our community that needs to know Jesus, if we spent three hours this morning confessing our sins (that were realized as we read God's Word) and truly worshiping God? Would the DNA of who we were as a church be changed? 

Would I be changed?

Would we be more effective in changing the world?

This passage is humbling. I know that a six hour church service is not really very culturally relevant.

But,

I would like the opportunity to see what would happen, when a group of believers came together with the thought of six hours spent in God's Word, confession and worship, and an open heart.

Sounds like I need to suggest and plan an event. 

Even if it is just with a few brothers and sisters in Christ.

Maybe it is time.

To make time.

For God .

In a new, yet old way.

Chasing After Their Hearts,

Glenda Johnson 

Daily Devo- Luke18:15-16 "A Childlike Faith"

Luke 18:15-16

15 Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Lord may I never keep a child from You. With either my actions or my deeds. Really that is actually the easy part of obeying this verse. How do I receive the Kingdom like a child is a little tougher. We spend our entire adulthood trying to teach children how to grow up and love you, God. How to "properly" worship you God. How to act like someone who is walking with you God. And yet, that is not at all what this verse says. I need to look around me and see how the children view You. How they worship You. How they serve you.
This is what I see:
Children love God, simply because He is God.
Children worship with reckless abandon. The jump, sing, dance, spin with joy, and all because they are excited about singing and praising God.
Children love to serve other people simply because they love Jesus and because they accept the fact that it makes God happy.
Children will tell others everything they know about God without worrying about what they don't know, or of they will say something wrong.

God is simply who He is He in a Child's eyes. 

The difference I observe between a child and an adult is I have yet to ever see a child try to replace God with themselves. Only adults do that.
Please forgive me Lord for the times I have neglected to see the beauty of a child's faith.

Today :

I will observe the faith of the children around me.
I will watch and I will learn.
I will drop my pride so that I can see God through a child's eyes.
I will chase after their heart, so I can see His heart! 

Chasing After Their Hearts,
Glenda Johnson

A Long Way To Go

The are days I wake up and all the problems from yesterday crash down even before I put my feet on the floor. Then almost immediately, the problems I anticipate for today collide with with those of yesterday and  my attitude is in the toilet, before I ever even make to the bathroom.

I will bet that some of you are the same way. Why do we put ourselves through that? Not only ourselves, but how about our husbands, children, friends, coworkers, and everyone else that comes across our path?

Our attitude affects them all.

I cannot control all the situations around me. That is a hard realization from the
"Control Freak Queen"!

I can however change my responses.

I saw a video that made me feel ashamed. Then, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes as to what I needed to change.

The video was of the Haitian people singing praises to God. That might not seem so life changing, except that it was the very night, just a couple of hours after the huge earthquake last week.
Even more amazing is that they did the same thing the next morning, the next evening, and continue to do so.

They did this amidst total devastation, death, and a very uncertain future. Also, while aftershocks continued on a regular basis. And are still continuing.

Humbling to say the least. Life changing.

Do I have problems? Yes.
Are some of them devastating? Yes.

Can I sing and praise God each morning?

The only right answer is YES!

This is the song I have been singing each day.




I am trying to remember that there is nothing yesterday, today or tomorrow, that God does not know about, or is not in control of.

To me, that is

INDESCRIBABLE!!!!!!

I have a long way to go, to a faith like the Haitians. I desire to chase God's heart like they do!


Will you sing with me today? Tomorrow?

Chasing Their Hearts,
Glenda Johnson
womanaftergod@gmail.com
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