Sheep in the Midst of Wolves

“Whoever is angry with someone will be liable to judgement.” Matthew 5:22

Last Monday, the Philippine National Police Chief, Director General Oscar D. Albayade, pronounced that the recent series of murders of priests should not be a cause of alarm for the public. This is in glaring contrast to the message of today’s gospel. 

Jesus said, “You shall not kill; whoever kills will be liable to judgement. But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement...” As followers of Christ we need to recognize the growing culture of death, hate and anger in our society and speak out against it. 

Isn’t it alarming that the Global Peace Index of 2018 ranked the Philippines as the 2nd “last peaceful” country in Asia Pacific after North Korea? What kind of a country are we leaving our children? 

We need to start with our own hearts. Is there anyone we are angry with, have not forgiven? We need to make our hearts bastions for Christ. According to Wikipedia, “bastion fortifications offered a greater degree of passive resistance and more scope for ranged defense in the age of gunpowder artillery compared with the medieval fortifications they replaced.” 

The more hearts claimed for Christ, the more bastions of the Holy Spirit in our country, the more we will be able to defend against the onslaught of the enemy. We need to guard our hearts and minds against the many deceptions, and attacks thrown at us.  

Jesus, our brother, You send us out as sheep in the midst of wolves. May we be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. (Matthew 10:16)

WOYWW: St. Anthony of Padua

Two notebooks for two friends of mine turning 60! May they bloom more in God’s garden! 

"Whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:19

Today is the feast day of the well loved Saint Anthony of Padua. He is known to be the patron saint of lost things or people, and Catholics habitually pray for his intercession when we lose small or big things. That is because once he lost his book of psalms that contained many of his notes and comments. This book was very precious to him especially since the printing press had yet to be invented. He prayed, and the novice was moved to return it as well as other items he had stolen. That psalter is now preserved in the Franciscan friary of Bologna. 

What is not so well known is that Saint Anthony was a very effective preacher, even to the simple minded. This would not have been discovered had he not been forced to give the homily when there was no one else who was prepared to do so. The Dominicans who were well known for their preaching visited Anthony's Franciscan order, and assumed the Franciscans would give the homily but no one had prepared. The head of Anthony's hermitage then asked him to preach on whatever the Holy Spirit inspired him to speak of. To their surprise, Anthony delivered so moving and effective a sermon, that the news reached the ears of Saint Francis of Assisi. Saint Francis thereafter entrusted the teaching of his friars to Saint Anthony. 

Before this happened, Anthony had spent many hours in private prayer and study. There was a time he was very sick, and during his recuperation, he would read the Bible and learn from it. His sermons contained many passages from scripture, and in one surviving lecture, there are at least 183 Bible passages. 

One day when St. Anthony was in Rimini, there were many heretics mocking him, and refusing to listen to his preaching. St. Anthony then went to the seashore and talked to the fishes about God’s love. Many onlookers saw a shoal of fish with their head above the water listening. After that, the miracle story spread and Rimini was purged of heretics. 

Lord, like Saint Anthony, teach us from Your Word. Plant it in our hearts that it may bear fruit and we shall give You glory. 

Light in the Darkness

“You are the light of the world.” Acts 5:14

Now more than ever we have to be the light that Jesus calls us to be. It is an upward call, and for everyone the call is unique. “A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise Your Father in heaven.” 

I thank God for every opportunity I have to testify to His goodness and faithfulness. Tomorrow I will give a talk about our business to employees in HSBC. Even if the talk is about our business, and how it grew, I always emphasize that our business is a gift from God, and He is our partner. My mother who started it in 1967, did not have money and used fabric scraps to make the first things she sold. She did not have a degree in business, and she did not have a strategy. Her capital was praying to God. 

We too have that capital, that wealth, that asset. We need to pray for our families, our homes, our work, our neighborhoods, our cities, our church, our country. Only then can we be light and salt to others. Only then will we have the courage to do what God calls us to do. To be a light in the creeping darkness. 

Blessed are the Thirsty

“Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

Yesterday, a parish priest, Father Richmond Nilo was shot dead as he was preparing to say mass in the Nuestra Señora de la Nieve Chapel in Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija. He is the third priest to be murdered since December last year. The last two priests were known political activists working for justice for the people. 

There is an old song by the group Kingston Trio named “Desert Pete”. It tells of a water pump in the desert. When travelers cross the dry dusty cactus desert, they are joyfully surprised to find this water pump. There’s a bottle of water and a note stuck to to the pump which says, “This pump is old, but she works. You’ve got to prime the pump. You must have faith and believe. You’ve got to give of yourself ‘fore you’re worthy to receive. Drink all the water you need but leave the bottle full for others.”

The traveler has to pour all the water in the bottle over the pump to get it to work. If he drinks all the water first, the pump won’t work, he’ll get thirsty again and the next travelers won’t be able to drink. 

Life is like that. We are all travelers, pilgrims, thirsty and hungry for the meaning of life and our purpose. Some of us, just take our one life and spend it on ourself. But we will soon be empty again. Some of us meet Jesus and empty ourselves into His hands. He will be the living water for us, and He will give our life meaning and purpose. 

I do not know much about the priests who were murdered but I am pretty sure they knew Jesus and were willing to pour out their lives for Him and for others. Lord, be with Your people and fight for us. Amen.

One Thing

“Why did you do such a thing?” Genesis 3:13

Adam and Eve could have had a perfect life. God provided everything they needed and they lived in this wonderful garden we can only dream of. There was only one thing, ONE THING God commanded of them. “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die (Gen. 2:6-7)”.

Now there was a serpent in the garden. Instead of stepping on it, the woman listened to it and actually conversed with it. There are many serpents around us. The best thing to do is not converse with it because it is crafty and deceiving. It can convince us of things we wouldn’t do otherwise. The serpent said, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from ANY tree of the garden?” The serpents in our life always try to make God appear harsh and tyrannical. 

Eve answered, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or TOUCH IT, lest you die.’” Where did the exaggeration come from? Only from accepting the serpent’s invitation to interact with him. 

The woman continued to listen to the serpent. “You surely shall not die! God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So the woman ate from the forbidden tree, and gave it to her husband to eat. 

The man and the woman were banished out of the garden. Now man and woman had to work for their food, toil over land with thorns and thistles. Fast forward to Luke 10:41-42. Martha is toiling over a hot stove, preparing food for Jesus and His disciples while Mary her sister was sitting at Jesus’ feet, enthralled with His words. Martha complained to Jesus, “Please tell my sister to help me.” 

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—really only ONE thing. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Let us learn a lesson from Eve. We should not listen to the serpents in our lives. Let us instead make it a priority to listen to God. 

In My Father’s House

“You should have known that I would be in My Father’s house.” Luke 2:49

We should spend more time in our Father’s house. There is such an abundance of blessing when we are in the presence of the One who loves us best, the maker of our bodies, minds and hearts. I see Him tinkering, fine tuning, putting things in the right places as the Bible says in Psalm 16:6: “The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.”

If we do not take the time to bring our car for maintenance, and just keep using it until it needs repair, it will not run in optimal condition. Basic car servicing saves us time, money, and reduces the risk of a breakdown. So it is with our bodies, minds and hearts. We need regular time with our Maker. Let us not run to Him only when we are in trouble. 

When we take time to connect to God every day, we will be able to build an intimate relationship with the One who knows us best. The One who only wants to give us good things. The One who wants the absolute best for us. Sometimes we settle for mediocre. Sometimes we are deceived by the glittering things the world offers, or the things that excite us, or what makes us feel good. Talking to our Father, just being silent with Him, will help us see the truth if we want to see the truth. 

When something bothers us, and there’s always something, we can lay it at the feet of God knowing that our concerns are His concerns. In Our Father’s house, there are many mansions, many rooms, and there is always a place for us there. 

Water of Life

“One soldier thrust his lance into His side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.” John 19:34 

In the following verse we read that this testimony was given by an eyewitness at the crucifixion. He saw the soldier pierce Jesus’ side when He was still on the cross, and observed that blood and water flowed out. 

In his book “The Case for Christ”, Lee Strobel asked a doctor what would happen in such a case. “Hypovolemic shock would have caused a sustained rapid heart rate that would have contributed to heart failure resulting in a collection of fluid in the membrane around the heart called Pericardial Effusion, as well as around the lungs (Pleural Effusion). The spear of the soldier apparently went through the right lung and into the heart. The fluid would have the appearance of water followed by a large volume of blood.” That is what happened in the physical world.

But what happened in the spiritual realm is actually more momentous. With the first Adam in Genesis, God put him to sleep and took a woman, the first Eve, out of his side (Genesis 2:21-22). Jesus is the 2nd Adam, and God took the 2nd Eve out of His side, the Church, symbolized by blood (the sacrifice of the Eucharist) and water (baptism). 

In Ezekiel’s vision in chapter 47, the prophet describes the water of life. “Wherever this water flows, everything will live” (v.9). Through the water of life from the wounds of Christ, Ezekiel’s vision is fulfilled.

Lord, by Your Spirit, may we, Your people, Your Church, bring new life, healing and transformation wherever we go. 

Interconnected

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” 

Mark 12:31

 We are all connected. It is very distressing when we see so much disagreement and disunity in our nation. Even if we do not see eye to eye, we should be civil and kind because in reality we are all neighbors. 

A farmer, who grew award-winning corn in a state fair every year, was interviewed by a newspaper reporter. The reporter found out that the farmer shared his corn seed with his neighbors. “Why do you do that?” he asked. “Aren’t they in competition with you?”

The farmer explained that the wind picks up the pollen from the corn and blows it from one field to the other. “If my neighbor grows inferior corn, the cross-pollination will surely affect the quality of my corn! I have to help my neighbors grow good corn so I can consistently have good quality corn.” 

We need to help others live better lives. It is not enough to work hard to get richer, to be able to afford a nice house, cars or vacations abroad while many live lives of quiet desperation. We cannot have peace if others around us are at war. 

WOYWW: A Valuable Bequest

This is what I am working on. I plan to have a giveaway of a hodgepodge of stuff on my Instagram account. Let’s see if I can actually make a lot of stuff for it! 

“Stir into flame, the gift of God bestowed when my hands were laid on you. The Spirit God has given us is no cowardly spirit, but rather one that makes us strong, loving and wise.” 2 Timothy 1:6-7

Imagine having an inheritance, a valuable piece of commercial property in New York, a fabulous gem-studded clock by Faberge, or a magnificent painting by Michelangelo. The only thing is you had absolutely no knowledge of it. You did not know about it because you did not bother to read the will outlining your bequest and what you had to do to have it. 

The gift of the Holy Spirit, which Paul talks about in his letter to Timothy, is a gift Jesus died to give us. It is an amazing bequest, much more precious than anything money can buy. And it is available for anyone! Young, old, rich, poor, someone with a PhD or with no education at all. It is absolutely crazy not to find out how to have this gift for ourselves, or if we have it, to stir it into flame!

Previous Posts

For my growing collection of prompts, 

inspirations, creative pursuits,

courageous artists and their art, join me here!

or on Facebook and Instagram

Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 

peek at desks and projects!

I find a lot of inspiration

visiting my friends here:

Mondays @ Soul Survival, A Round Tuit
One More Time, Dream Together
Small Wonders, Testimony Tuesday,  Titus 2 Tuesdays, 
Count Your Blessings, Word Art Wednesday, 

 Unite,  Rubie Tuesday Link Up, Be Inspired

 A Little R and R,  No Rules Weekend Blog Party
Cheerleaders of our Faith, Reflect
Wow Us Wednesdays, Sitting Among Friends

The Weekly Creative, Three Word Wednesday
Word Filled Wednesdays
Great Blog Train Bloghop, Cheerleaders of Faith
Women with Intention Wednesdays
Christian Blogger Link Up, Word Filled Wednesdays

Thoughtful Thursday,  Hearts4Home Thursdays, Thought Provoking Thursday
Tune In Thursday Homemaking Party, Purposeful Faith

Thriving Thursdays with Serving Joyfully

Thursday Favorites, Desire to Inspire Legacy Leaver Thursday
Beloved Brews Thursdays, Sincerely, Paula

Creative Things, Bloom! Soul Survival, Inspiration Gallery
Hearts for Home Thursday

Dance with Jesus Friday, Lyli Dunbar, Fresh Market Link up
Grace & Truth Link Up, Dance with Jesus
Glimpses of His Beauty

Blessings!

Patsy  

God’s Fingerprint

“Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” Mark 12:17

This is one of the most satisfying encounters of Jesus with the Pharisees and Herodians. These people were the trolls of Jesus’ day. They pretend to be righteous and truthful and wise, when all they wanted was to trap Jesus. They asked Him whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not. How we all wish Jesus’ answer was different! 

Back then, their taxes were even more crippling than ours. There was not only the income tax, there were crop taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, emergency taxes, and a tax collector could even stop someone carrying a load to pay taxes on that as well. The taxes and the grain were sent to Rome and it was used to support the lavish lifestyle there. No wonder there were riots because of the taxes imposed on the Jews. 

Jesus’ answer utterly amazed them. He was not trapped. On the contrary, His answer still resonates with us today. It is so dismaying and disheartening to see how our taxes are being wasted, stolen even, by people in government with no conscience. One department spends 3 million pesos a day churning out fake news and who knows what other mischief. Millions of pesos are being spent with no corresponding documents. Jesus asked His questioners to show him the Roman coin, the denarius. “Whose image and inscription is this?” On one side, the face of Tiberius Caesar Augustus was inscribed, on the other, the words, Pontifex Maximus or “Highest Priest”. 

“Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God.” Pay Caesar his taxes even if we do not like what he does with it. We are citizens of two kingdoms. One kingdom, in which we are exiled for a little while, will not last. We are also citizens of an eternal Kingdom. 

In Genesis, we read that each one of us, is made in the image and likeness of God. His fingerprint is on us, just as a potter’s fingerprint is on his clay pot. You and I we belong to Him. Kingdoms come and go. Caesars, no matter how much power they seem to have over our lives, decay and become dust. Let us just follow the instruction in Jeremiah 29:7: “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”

Mere Stewards

“He leased it to tenant farmers and left on a journey.” Mark 12:1

The man in Jesus’ story does not seem to be a wise businessman at all. He spends a lot of money planting a vineyard, building the wall around to protect it, providing a winepress, a  vat, and a lookout tower. Then he leases his property to tenant farmers and goes far away on a journey. 

At harvest time, he sends a servant to  the vineyard to collect his portion of the fruit. The tenants beat the servant and send him away empty. Every time the owner sends someone, the vine-growers either harm the servant or kill him. Finally, the man sends his beloved son thinking the tenant farmers will respect his only son. Alas! The farmers had other plans, and wanted the inheritance of the land for themselves! They killed the son and threw his body outside the vineyard. 

No, he is not a wise businessman at all! This is a story of the limitless love of God. He provides everything we need for us to bear abundant fruit. Most of the time we think what we have is ours, the fruit is ours, the time we have on this earth is ours. We claim the gifts without thanking the giver, without giving back to Him what is His. We accumulate and accumulate without asking the “landlord” what He wants us to do with His property, His vineyard, with the life He has loaned to us. 

How amazing is our God, that He showers us with gifts, and leaves us to multiply and use them! We are mere stewards of His property. He gives generously at first, and waits patiently for us to give Him good fruit. The more we give Him, the more generous He is with us! Woe to those who do not realize this! Like the tenants in the story, they too will be destroyed by their own greed and blindness! 

War Room

“Thus will I bless You all my life; lifting up my hands to You in prayer...” Psalm 63:4

Psalm 63, one of King David’s psalms, is full of poignant imagery. Here we see how David longed for God. “My flesh pines and my soul thirsts like the earth, parched, lifeless, without water.” 

The preacher Leonard Ravenhill said that no man is greater than his prayer life. A big 18-wheeler truck can't be powered by Piaggio Ape engine! We need a power outside of ourselves, and that can only be accessed by prayer and faith. 

Saint Monica is one of my favorite saints. I can imagine how she prayed for her profligate son, Augustine, who left the Church, 

had concubines and bore a son out of marriage. But she did not give up praying. Augustine eventually converted to Christianity, became a great writer, a priest, a Bishop, and then a Saint! 

I can picture Saint Monica in her war room, her prayer closet, pouring out her heart to God, knowing He cannot resist answering a persistent mother’s prayer.  

The mother of John Hagee, the fiery preacher, is another persistent mother and powerful prayer warrior. John is the second son of a preacher and heard 10,000 sermons growing up but he had no desire to be a Christian. One day, coming home late and tiptoeing past the bedroom of his mother, 

he heard her sobbing out to the Lord, “Lord God in heaven, save my son, John!!! If he leaves this house without knowing Jesus Christ, he'll be lost forever!" John Hagee went to bed with his mother's prayer thundering in his ear. In the days and nights following, he could still hear his mother's voice. Two months after, he surrendered his life to Christ Jesus “crushed by the power of his mother's prayer".  

He said his mother went to war with the devil for his soul in her prayer room. Indeed, our prayer room is our war room! Like Saint Monica, and John Hagee's mother, 

let us never give up praying for our heart’s desire! 

The End of the World

“Let your love for one another be intense...” 1 Peter 4:8

Saint Peter, at the start of this passage, writes, “The end of all things is at hand. Therefore be serious and sober-minded so you will be able to pray. Above all, let Your love for one another be intense, because love covers a multitude of sins.” 

Last night I had the strangest dream about of all things, the end of the world. There was a giant computer screen in the sky that everybody around the world could see, and a woman’s automaton voice was warning of the coming apocalypse. The screen was filled with swirling masses of gas, and a countdown, and lots of other changing images. The strange thing was almost no one was minding it. We were in an amazing theme park, and even if people could hear the countdown, people were running around trying to find the most exciting ride, the best blockbuster attraction. People were laughing, talking to each other, pulling each other to and fro. 

Isn’t that a picture of what’s happening in the world? In the Bible, there are several warnings about the end of the world. It may not happen to everyone at the same time, but for each and everyone of us, the end of the world will come. My neighbor, the one who gayly waves at me from across his car and gives us gifts every Christmas, his end of the world came yesterday. I will never see him again in this side of the world.

We live our lives as if there is no end in sight. But there is a countdown for each of us as surely as there was a visible one in my dream. No doubt God wants us to enjoy ourselves in this beautiful world He gave us, BUT He reminds us to live bearing in mind what is important. “Be serious and sober-minded so you can pray. Love one another intensely. Be hospitable to one another without complaining. Use your gifts to serve others. In all things, may God be glorified.” 

WOYWW: Joy!

“My soul magnifies the Lord...” 

Luke 1:46

There is a lot of joy in my heart this morning. I feel like a mother who after 9 months of difficulty, patience, praying, trusting in the Lord, finally gave birth to an awesome baby! I promised the Lord at the start of the year, and even drew it on my vision board, that I would create workshops once a quarter, then once a month, “all for His glory”. 

I held workshops in February, March, and April. 

This May, I became more ambitious, and developed a workshop which was quite challenging. I prayed hard for God’s grace upon me and the participants. Yesterday finally came, and I was expecting 5 participants, and that was totally ok, to have 5 willing “guinea pigs” to practice on! Uh oh, God surprised me. That’s an understatement! There were 22 participants, and some came after traveling for hours from Laguna! A major uh oh! Heebie jeebies in the form of “Is this workshop going to be worth all the time and effort for them?”, “Will they enjoy it?”, and the big one, “Am I up to it?!!!”

But then God and His marvelous faithfulness became concrete for me, when I just enjoyed His gifts, His daughters (and one son), and the moment. Yes, it was challenging for everyone, but how much sweeter is the fruit for having been born after some hardship! 

Mary was a very young girl when God visited her. She held the Creator of all good things in her womb for a little while. She said “yes” to God and never imagined how much blessing it would bring not only her, but the whole world. In a small way, we too can carry Jesus into the world, when we use our gifts, when we say yes to God, when we are brave enough to try for bigger things. God is faithful! God looks with favor upon each of us and has many wonderful things in store! 

Previous Posts

For my growing collection of prompts, 

inspirations, creative pursuits,

courageous artists and their art, join me here!

or on Facebook and Instagram

Joining the lovely Julia Dunnit for a 

peek at desks and projects!

I find a lot of inspiration

visiting my friends here:

Mondays @ Soul Survival, A Round Tuit
One More Time, Dream Together
Small Wonders, Testimony Tuesday,  Titus 2 Tuesdays, 
Count Your Blessings, Word Art Wednesday, 

 Unite,  Rubie Tuesday Link Up, Be Inspired

 A Little R and R,  No Rules Weekend Blog Party
Cheerleaders of our Faith, Reflect
Wow Us Wednesdays, Sitting Among Friends

The Weekly Creative, Three Word Wednesday
Word Filled Wednesdays
Great Blog Train Bloghop, Cheerleaders of Faith
Women with Intention Wednesdays
Christian Blogger Link Up, Word Filled Wednesdays

Thoughtful Thursday,  Hearts4Home Thursdays, Thought Provoking Thursday
Tune In Thursday Homemaking Party, Purposeful Faith

Thriving Thursdays with Serving Joyfully

Thursday Favorites, Desire to Inspire Legacy Leaver Thursday
Beloved Brews Thursdays, Sincerely, Paula

Creative Things, Bloom! Soul Survival, Inspiration Gallery
Hearts for Home Thursday

Dance with Jesus Friday, Lyli Dunbar, Fresh Market Link up
Grace & Truth Link Up, Dance with Jesus
Glimpses of His Beauty

Blessings!

Patsy  

WOYWW: The Grass Withers

I was watching a movie on my phone, and painting on my planner last night. I also have some unfinished projects- a stuffed cat and bear I am painting. 

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the Word of the Lord endures forever.” 

1 Peter 1:24-25

When I look around me, it seems as if I am safe. My house has a strong foundation, the building where I work has withstood earthquakes and storms, I have flown back and forth in airplanes many times, and the people around me have my good at heart. The truth is my house may have termites gnawing somewhere in secret. Some time ago, my helper who has apparently very good hearing, heard termites attacking her bedroom door and we were able to call a pest control company. As for our building, in the past month, the fire alarm sounded twice! We never know when the fragility of solid things around us impacts our consciousness. 

Of all we know in this world, only the Word of God stands sure and eternal. In 1 Peter 1:23, it says that we can be born anew, not from perishable seed but from imperishable seed, “through the living and abiding Word of God.” Our eternal spirits crave eternal food, and there is only one, the living bread of life, the Word became flesh. So let us try not to satiate ourselves with what the world can offer, but spend more time in pursuit of what our soul hungers for. 

Gird Up!

“Gird up the loins of your mind...” 

1 Peter 1:13

Back in Peter’s day, men wore flowing garments that they had to tuck into belts when they had work to do. The long garment could seriously impede them if they had to run or work fast, so it was necessary to tuck it in so they would not trip over them. But how do we follow Peter’s admonition to gird up in relation to our mind?

I think it means to be ready for the work the Lord has for us. Yesterday my sister, niece and I went on our regular store visit to some of our branches. When we got to SM San Lazaro and Robinson’s Manila, we found the stores were clean, the displays were well arranged for the coming Father’s Day. They were well stocked in order to sell well. The staff did their duties and we did not have to remind them of anything they missed in relation to their job. Our staff has a manual where their job is described and all they need to do is to follow it. 

We too have a manual. If we want to do our job well, for our Father in our “family business” as I like to call it, we need to study it, and follow it. The Bible teaches us so much, especially how to gird up the loins of our mind. We have to be able to think clearly, and exercise self-control. In that way we can look forward to the special blessings and inheritance held in store for us!