Joyous New Year to You!

May God richly bless your family this year. 2017 is going to be the turning point and I know He is going to do something amazing!

Happy New Year from the Clausens!

Merry Christmas from All of Us to You!

May you have the Lord's Light shining on you and yours through this holiday season! Here is just a glimpse of 2016 for the Clausen/Cox Clan! God is so good!

Happy Thanksgiving to You and Yours!

Happy Thanksgiving!

From Living Sacrifice Ministries

and

The Clausens

The Love of God!

Romans 5:5 

"And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us."

We go through day to day lives, many saying, “no one loves me,” but the Bible says there is one who loves us, more than we love ourselves. There is one that sticks close to us, even when we don’t always feel his presence.

 

We can live our lives, going through each day, not hearing a word of encouragement from anyone, but that isn’t what God intended for you to do. Even if there is no one in your life who will offer it to you, know you can go to the one place where you can receive encouragement each day. Affirmation after affirmation of God’s love and His desire for your life… It is in His Holy Book, the Bible. It was intended for daily use…

He will tell you every day, you are loved, you are cared for, that you are fearfully and wonderfully made. He promises to walk with you, talk with you, lead and guide you… God is good and His love is never ending.

Romans 8:39

"Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Faith Steps!

It is funny how life changes and it ends up not looking like you thought it was going to look like. You

see your children growing and following their own paths, and your own life changes are just as surprising to you than what you ever thought it was going to be for yourself. You see yourself another year older, and haven't done all the things you thought you would, you find yourself experiencing things in life that you didn't expect to experience, and yet you keep on going.

You take each step by faith, knowing that God has a plan, not your plan, not what you thought it was going to be, but a plan. You know tomorrow will be another experience, another challenge, and maybe even a new blessing. Take what you are given and praise God for a new day, He will show you the right path if you are listening to Him and letting Him lead you.

II Corinthians 5:7 - For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Joshua 1:9 - Have I not commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neighter be though dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersover though goest.

God's Going to Do the Same for You and Me

I love to read the Bible, read about all the people that God led through the wilderness, how He brought them

out of Egypt and the bonds of slavery, how He saved the widow and her son from starvation. I think about how He placed Esther into the King's Court as the King's wife, for "just a time as this." How He was there for David through his youth, through being chased by King Saul, to being crowned king of Israel. I think about all the prophets, the disciples, and the early church, who stood for God, some never had a pillow to lay their head on as they went from city to city sharing the gospel of Christ. 

I think about His deliverance of each person in His word, how He chose a time and a place to show up and show out His goodness for all to see. To show others that He is real and He will do what He promises. I have seen some good times in my life, prosperity, health, love, strength, and blessing. In the same respect, I have seen poverty, weakness, sickness, hatred, ignorance, and homelessness. There were times we asked, "I thought you promised an abundant life..." 

Here's what I have learned in all of this... "...In whatsoever state you are in, therewith be content..." Phil 4:11 and "In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God, in Christ Jesus, concerning you." I Thes. 5:18

It is not easy to sit alone, in the middle of a storm and just say, "Okay God, this is happening to me, I am okay with it and I am trusting in you. I know you have allowed this, now teach me what you want me to learn through this trial." It is the hardest thing to do... first of all, you aren't okay with it... it hurts, it is hard. Second of all, it isn't fun or easy to sit and wait to find out what you are supposed to be learning through it all. You want to say, "why are you doing this to me?" I know Bob and I have had a hard time with trials and struggles. I am one who says, "Okay this is happening, what can I learn, I have to be patient, and I know God is going to show up in this somehow." Where Bob is the one who wants to know, "why this trial, why now? What more can I possibly learn from this mess?" 

Somewhere in the middle of all this, we both come together in the name of Jesus, seeking His will and way and wait patiently on Him, together, standing on God's promises, and waiting on Him to do something amazing in our lives. What about you? How do you handle struggle? Do you ask God to help you through or do you try to figure it out on your own? The Bible says to "wait patiently on the Lord..." which is one of the hardest things to do. He tells us to take Him at His word, to trust in what He has promised and to stand, even when you can't stand. In the face of your deepest fear, trial or distraction, do as Jehoshaphat did, he feared, but in the face of fear, He lifted his eyes to the Lord and stood, worshiping His God and waited on God for His answer. 

He will deliver you, and at the end of your madness, your trial, you will have an amazing testimony that someone else may need to hear to encourage them. If God delivered the children of Israel, time after time, through their doubts, fears, and disobedience, their love, devotion and strength. Imagine what God is going to do for you, His loving, faithful servant, standing strong, waiting on Him... What God did for His children then, God will do the same for you and me.

Being Thankful!

"I will Bless the Lord at all times, His praises shall continuously be in my mouth."  Psalms 34:1

I have so much to be thankful for, even when I do not realize it. I try to make it a point every morning, when I first wake up to thank the Lord for the day. I was thinking about that this morning... Not just saying, "Good morning Lord, thank you for the day..." but literally, thanking Him for the little things I have already noticed about the day as I open my eyes, begin hearing the sounds of the morning, and realizing I still have breath inside of me for another day.

This morning was no different than other days... I woke up, I began to say my usual, "Good Morning, Lord!" Just as I began to get the words out of my mouth, there was a great light in my eyes, before I could even get them open all the way. I was thinking to myself, what is that light, since I knew the weather was still wet, cold and gloomy, but as I opened my eyes and let them focus, it was as if God, Himself was saying "Good Morning." to me first.

The clouds were everywhere, the sky was gray and the rain was still hitting my window, but just for a few moments, the clouds swirled around and they thinned out enough that the sun was shining through my bedroom window, falling right on my pillow. I felt His warmth and strength around me, as I lay there thanking Him for my day and praising Him that He saw fit to give me one more day to live here with my family.

What are you thankful for in your life? 

When I cannot remember what to be thankful for, I remember God's promises, things He has given me, through His Word, through my faith in His Son, and when I get to the point when praises just won't come for the things in my day... I sit back and think on these things.

• I am the Righteousness of God - II Cor. 5:21
• I am Loved - John 3:16
• I am Strong - Isa 40:31 and I Cor 16:13
• I am Armed - Eph 6:10-18
• I am His - Isa 54:50, Heb 13:5
• I am Protected - Ps 61:3 and Ps 57:1
• I am a Child of God - John 1:12
• I am Known - Ps 139:1-2
• I am Redeemed - I Cor 1:30
• I am Transformed - Rom 12:2
• I am Fearfully and Wonderfully Made - Ps 139:13-14
• I am Saved - Rom 5:9 and 10:13
• I am Trusted - Prov 31:11
• I am Content - Heb 13:5
• I am Justified - Rom 5:1,9
• I am a Good Work in Christ - Phil 1:6

When you feel you have nothing to be thankful for, take some time to search the scriptures and see what God has done for you and what you have become In HIM... 

Happy Thanksgiving!