GCR Women

Have you ever anticipated someone's coming?  Perhaps you prayed and prayed that this person would come. Time passed.  You kept praying.  Finally, the person you prayed for is here! That's what the Jews did.  They anticipated the coming of Messiah.  They prayed and prayed.  Centuries passed.  They kept praying.  Finally, He came. Some didn't recognize Him, but those who did saw Him for who He was.  They knew He had come from the Father.  Even when they didn't fully understand the impact He would have on their lives, they knew He was the answer to their prayers.  They saw Him.  They saw His glory. And because they were faithful and told His story, we believe.  We pray for Him to come into our lives.  We anticipate what His coming into our lives will mean.  Love comes full circle through Jesus.  He came to us from the Father.  Through Him, our lives are transformed.  Through Him, we have salv...

We’ve been memorizing scripture together for five years now.  It’s been a blessing to me. I hope it’s blessed you, too.  I hope that through the years you’ve developed a desire to write God’s Word on your heart. As 2018 begins, we have a new opportunity to start again - whether memorizing scripture or reading God’s Word daily - to soak in the beauty and richness that comes from making God’s Word part of our DNA. Join us as together we fill our hearts and minds with golden nuggets of truth - God’s truth. We will all be enriched. Richly blessed, Patrice Colossians 3:16a NIV Let the word of Christ dwell richly within you, ...

Christmas Day. So full of memories, so full of meaning.  Earlier this month, I encouraged you to watch “The Christmas Candle” on  Netflix.  I hope you did.  It’s one of the sweetest Christmas stories I’ve ever watched. The heart of the story is told in the theme song:  “Miracle Hymn”. The lyrics describe our Christian hope in words that few songs or hymns do. Something about this hymn resonates in my soul. Here are the lyrics: Miracle Hymn On a starry night in Bethlehem, ​a child was born to bring light to men, ​and our faith waned, our eyes grew dim. ​In a candle's light, we found hope again. ​ ​There are miracles all around, ​miracles yet to be found. ​Hid in every heart is an answered prayer. ​Like a candle's flame, hope will lead us there. ​ When the darkness comes, let the light shine through. ​A spark of flame will ignite in you. ​In a candle's glow, a virgin's womb, ​in a simple prayer, in the empty tomb. ​ ​There are miracles ...

This time of year, I look back over the past year and reflect on what I've done and where I've been.  Often, it's the mistakes and missed opportunities that stand out the most.  But the apostle Paul reminds us to look forward, not back.  We know we can't change the past, whether good or bad.  But our choices for the future - the ones we make right now - can be made with an eye toward the prize we hope to attain. So, as 2017 comes to a close, pray to the Father for wisdom and insight for the choices you'll be making from this day forward.  Don't tie yourself to failures in the past.  Build on successes and keep moving ahead.  No successes?  Then, start now and make progress. The best is yet to come. Looking forward, Patrice Philippians 3:13-14 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win th...

We recently watched "The Christmas Candle" on Nextflix.  It's a film based on a Max Lucado book and it has a sweet and timely message for the season - indeed for all year long.  I don't want to reveal the plot.  The story is compelling. God knows the darkness is a lonely and scary place.  He didn't leave us there alone, on our own, struggling to find our way out.  He sent the Light - His Son Jesus - to shine on us and show us the path to life and He asks us to share it with others. Each of us has moments when we need someone to shine a little light into our lives.  Clouds cast all of us into the shadows from time to time, and the gentle glow from a friendly flame can lead us back to light and life.  Each of us has a little light to share. There's someone whose name comes to mind right now that is very gifted in shining her light.  She doesn't wait to be asked; she seems always to know where to shine.  She isn't caught unaware; she s...

The bird is back. Last summer, while visiting at Mom's. we heard a strange thumping noise.  At first, we thought the HVAC compressor was going out.  No, not that.  Air in the water pipes?  No, not that either.  The washer spinning out of balance?  Wrong again. It was a bird throwing himself at the bedroom window.  There's a large shrub that grows next to this window, and a confused but determined red cardinal perches on one of the upper branches.  Starting at dawn and continuing throughout the day, he throws his body against the glass.  He must see something in the reflection in the glass that makes him certain that he needs to fling himself at the window, thus causing the rhythmic thumping.  And even though he makes no progress, he keeps up the battle.  We thought he had figured out that his efforts were wasted and had stopped his folly, but no.  When we were at Mom's over the Thanksgiving holiday, we heard him again....

For years, I've been using the same ink pad in my calculator.  If you use a calculator in your work, you might wonder why I would do that.  Good question.  If you don't, let me explain.  Mine is a printing calculator, an adding machine.  I use it to calculate sums, distances, etc.  The ink pad allows my calculator to print in both black and red.  Over time, as the ink is used up and dries out, the printed numbers become dimmer and dimmer.  I got used to straining to read the pale numbers and forgot to order a new ink pad. It's kind of like my glasses.  For the past three or four years, I've been using the same glasses.  It's not that they continued to allow me to see clearly, especially after I stepped on them.  I just got used to looking at the world through them and seeing everything just a little blurry and double.  I kept putting off a visit to the optometrist and optician for a new pair. Sometimes I get used to lookin...