November 2017 - Sherry Stahl

Month: November 2017

There Is A Sunny Day Somewhere
```
"Come and see what our God has done,
what awesome miracles he performs for people!”
~Psalm 66:5 NLT
```
I love my iphone…kind of addicted to it. I love how I can get information with just a touch. Since weather is ever changing throughout the day in Canada I use the weather app a lot! It often makes me want to visit Shelby at school because even when it’s cold, rainy, snowing or just grey here, it almost always shows blue skies in Florida. Proof that:

There Is a Sunny Day Somewhere…
You just have to look for it!

I was listening to a sermon this week that helped set my focus on the sun and not the clouds. When a verse touches my heart or a quote from a sermon hits me I sometimes write it on a cue card, a napkin, a bulletin insert or if I’m near a computer, I put it into a graphic and print it out. While I was listening to Matt Tapley’s sermon this week I started to make up a graphic you’ll find below. It inspired me to write this post and run another short series called Sherry’s Sermon Notes because I’ve been encouraged with some great teaching lately and want to share the insights with you! I just can’t keep them to myself 🙂

In the sermon; The Presence, The River and the Works of God, Matt was talking about how we all go through hard times. I pay attention when he talks about adversity since he and his wife Lisa have faced the most difficult of life’s circumstances with the passing of their daughter Sarah. Sometimes people can look at your social media and think your life is glamourous without knowing all you face behind the scenes. Matt’s words helped me to shift my focus and to look for what God IS doing when he said:

“Don’t get stuck in your moment.
Every time I fly on a plane..I love that moment when you just lift beyond the clouds…
cause every day…even if it’s the darkest, dreariest day here…
It’s sunny somewhere…
If you can just get high enough, it’s sunny right where you are…
if you can have a perspective shift…if you can get above the clouds…there’s reason to have hope!
When you have a promise and a reality that don’t meet
Focus on what God IS doing”
~Matt Tapley

Psalm 66:5 says to look at what God has done…not focus on what He hasn’t done. I gave my brain a perspective shift as I began to thank God for the things He was doing and talked about them; the cloudy thoughts dissipated and hope grew. Today I went for a walk and the sky was a bright blue. The sun was shining bright. I felt the Lord was showing me how much my perspective had changed and how I was able to see it was sunny here! As I walked, I checked my weather app and noticed that not everywhere had a sunny day, but today I did! The sun wasn’t just in Florida 🙂 Here’s the picture to prove it.

Let your eyes rise today to look above the clouds and see the SON!

Prayer

Father…Thank you for creating me with the ability to change my perspective. Help me not to live in the bondage of feelings that tell me I can’t change and neither will my circumstances. You are the God of the impossible who makes all things possible…I hope in You! In Jesus Name…Amen

[tweetthis]There Is a Sunny Day Somewhere…you just have to look for it! Ps 66:5[/tweetthis]

[tweetthis]Let your eyes rise today to look above the clouds and see the SON![/tweetthis]

If you liked the refreshing in this #SoulH2O devotion, you’ll love my latest Soul H2O Devotional book: 40 Thirst Quenching Devotions for Women.

#Dare2Share
Post in the Comment Section below and bolster the faith of someone else!

Here’s the graphic I made up. I hope you print it out and put it somewhere to remind you:
1. Psalm 66:5
2. Psalm 46:1-5
3. Psalm 68:35
4. Isaiah 64:3
This post is Used with permission from Matt Tapley’s Sermon recorded on The Lakemount Podcast. Check them out for A Time of Refreshing!
http://www.lakemount.ca Click on Grow to see the list of sermons or find on iTunes. They even have a church app for the podcasts.

YOU CAN OFTEN FIND ME LINKING UP WITH:
MONDAY Monday Meditations – Laura J. Davis, Soul Survival – Donna Reidland ,
TUESDAY Cheerleaders of Faith #RARaLinkup – Kelly Balarie ,
WEDNESDAY Coffee For Your Heart – Holley Gerth , Word Nerd Wednesdays — Liz Giertz
THURSDAY Heart Encouragement Thursday – Crystal Storms , Chasing Community – Barbara Bradford Ottinger
FRIDAY Dance With Jesus Linkup – Susan B. Mead , Grace and Truth Linkup – Arabah Joy , Counting My Blessings – Deb Wolf, Fresh Market Friday – Crystal Twaddell ELLEN’S PICKS– Ellen Graf-Martin

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You Don’t Have To Die, To Lay Down Your Life

You Don’t Have To Die, To Lay Down Your Life is Part 3/3 in the: We Stand On Guard For Thee! Series. You can click here to find Part 1 or Part 2.

It hit me like a two-by-four across the head at church on the Sunday before Remembrance Day:

You Don’t Have To Die, To Lay Down Your Life

I was listening when Pastor Nathan movingly shared about how we need to be thankful for those who gave up their lives in war for the wonderful freedoms we benefit from. In North America we’re blessed to be able to speak freely…to worship freely…to live FREE!

Next, he read John 15:13 and when I heard this familiar verse I felt the proverbial whack on the head and the thought went through my mind, You Don’t Have To Die, To Lay Down Your Life. Not many of us are asked to die for our freedoms anymore but we still need people who are willing to lay down their lives if we want to keep our current freedoms. You see, when people keep silent, their liberties are lost and that’s why I’m thankful Canada has people like Faytene Grasseschi!

Just over a month ago I attended a conference she hosted called Women On The Frontlines. I learned about her My Canada Organization and was I ever impressed! Faytene is a young woman, dynamically inspiring Canadians from sea to shining sea. She’s a mom with two young children. She could easily sit back during this busy time of her life, but instead she is laying down her life for her country.

The Principle that You Don’t Have To Die, To Lay Down Your Life comes straight from Scripture. Paul taught the Roman believers this when he said,
```
“I urge you, brothers and sisters, 
in view of God's mercy, 
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing to God
--this is your true and proper worship.”  
(Romans 12:1)  
```
God is asking you, through Paul to be a living sacrifice. Since you can’t die and keep living you can be sure He isn’t asking for martyrs, but God is asking you to lay down your life on a daily basis. He’s asking you to lay down your plans, your desires…your will…to fulfill…His plans, His desires…His will!

It’s not an easy thing to do or Jesus wouldn’t have struggled so much in the Garden of Gethsemane. Battling it out in prayer, Jesus was eventually able to live by His statement, “not my will but yours be done”. The strangest thing happens when you begin to pray and trust God with your life, your will truly does become His will.

So, who or what has God asked you to lay down your life for?

Prayer

Father…I thank you for the great examples I see in people who are laying down their lives for others. Help me to be not to be inspired just in thought, but moved to action. I choose Your will over my convenience or comfort and want You to live through me today! In Jesus Name…Amen

[tweetthis]When people keep silent, their liberties are lost.[/tweetthis]

[tweetthis] Do you know anyone who is “laying their life down” for a cause?[/tweetthis]

If you liked the refreshing in this #SoulH2O devotion, you’ll love my latest Soul H2O Devotional book: 40 Thirst Quenching Devotions for Women.

#Dare2Share
Post in the Comment Section below and bolster the faith of someone else!
1. John 15:13
2. Romans 12:1
3. John 10:11
4. Romans 5:8
Over the last years Faytene has devoted herself to serving as the pioneering director of TheCRY Movement (V-Kol Media Ministries) which has hosted 12 mass prayer gatherings in Canada and 2 internationally (in Hollywood & Israel), founding & directing the activist organization MYCanada which has equipped thousands of Canadians to be a voice for socially conservative values to the Parliament of Canada, pioneered & led the Women on the Frontlines gatherings in Canada, pioneered & led the Back to Life Movement in Canada and hosted many training events and outreaches. Faytene has emerged as a respected national leader, conference speaker and talk show guest.

Faytene is married to Robert Grasseschi. They travel extensively as a speakers and servants to various national and international initiatives. They have a passion for revival and to empower the Body of Christ to be salt and light in the earth, rise into all the Word of God has for them, to carry the fragrance of Christ and live lives of impact.

http://www.faytene.ca
http://www.4mycanada.ca
http://www.womenonthefrontlinescanada.com

YOU CAN OFTEN FIND ME LINKING UP WITH:
MONDAY Monday Meditations – Laura J. Davis, Soul Survival – Donna Reidland ,
TUESDAY Cheerleaders of Faith #RARaLinkup – Kelly Balarie ,
WEDNESDAY Coffee For Your Heart – Holley Gerth , Word Nerd Wednesdays — Liz Giertz
THURSDAY Heart Encouragement Thursday – Crystal Storms , Chasing Community – Barbara Bradford Ottinger
FRIDAY Dance With Jesus Linkup – Susan B. Mead , Grace and Truth Linkup – Arabah Joy , Counting My Blessings – Deb Wolf, Fresh Market Friday – Crystal Twaddell ELLEN’S PICKS– Ellen Graf-Martin

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From Sea To Sea We Stand On Guard For Thee!

This post From Sea To Sea We Stand On Guard For Thee! is Part 2/3 in the: We Stand On Guard For Thee! Series. You can click here to find Part 1 and Part 3. You don’t have to be Canadian to enjoy them, but it might help 😀

From Sea To Sea We Stand On Guard For Thee!

“Then the LORD replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:2-3 NIV

Apparently, I’m not a very detail oriented person.

For the first time in my life…and let’s just say that’s been more than 20 years 🙂 I noticed that the Canadian Coat of Arms has a unicorn in it!

I started to worry about what the founding fathers of Confederation might have been doing when it was created in 1921¹ until I learned how the unicorn was a symbol for Scotland and also a part of the UK coat of arms. So, I’ll let Scotland wonder about their unicorn…but even more astounding than a unicorn on our coat of arms is the banner holding the inscription of our Canadian Motto: ‘A Mari usque ad Mare’ which translated from the Latin means “From Sea to Sea”. Every Canadian is familiar with this phrase; we’ve heard it countless times, but I doubt everyone knows where Canadians got the inspiration for the slogan?

On a morning in the late 1800’s a man named Samuel Tilley had an encounter with God during his daily devotions. When Tilley read Psalm 72:8 which says,

“He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.” KJV

Tilley felt like the words leapt off the page as he read. He understood that God was speaking to him about this new country of Canada he was helping to form. Tilley shared this revelation with the other Founding Fathers of Confederation and they all could see how the words of Psalm 72:8 described the Canada they had begun to dream about.

It was as if God was listening to their conversations {insert a sarcastic look here}. Their dream was for a country to go from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean; from the Saint Lawrence River to the North Pole.

By July 1,1867, when Confederation papers were signed, our nation was a far cry from the dream of From Sea To Sea with only four provinces; out of the future ten provinces and three territories, initially united to create Canada. A Royal Proclamation in 1921 with the release of the Coat of Arms embedded Psalm 72:8 into the DNA of our nation, but it took 82 years for Canada to fulfill its God inspired geographical goals when the last province of Newfoundland joined in 1949.

I really see the Founding Fathers of Canadian Confederation to be just like Habakkuk and the people of Israel from the verse above.
- They took a revelation from God and adopted it as their motto when is was merely a statement of great aspiration, but with nothing to back it up.
- They wrote down this revelation so it was plain for others to see by etching ‘A Mari usque ad Mare’, From Sea to Sea on our Coat of Arms.
- They ran with it. If they didn’t I wouldn’t have Psalm 72:8 memorized today!
Generations followed and kept speaking the destiny of From Sea to Sea, until it came to be.

Has God revealed something to you about your future?

Does it seem hard to believe it could ever become a reality? Let Canada’s history be an encouragement for you today. Begin to declare over your circumstances the truth of God’s revelation and run with it…until you see it come to be!

Prayer

Father…I thank You for speaking to me. You reveal your dreams through mine. As I ask for your guidance help me to hear your revelation clearly and not be afraid to run with it. Let me speak out promises You’ve given until they are the reality You desire and help me not forget You when the dream becomes the norm. In Jesus Name…Amen

[tweetthis]They kept speaking the destiny of “From Sea to Sea”, until it came to be.[/tweetthis]

If you liked the refreshing in this #SoulH2O devotion, you’ll love my latest Soul H2O Devotional book: 40 Thirst Quenching Devotions for Women.

#Dare2Share

Post in the Comment Section below and bolster the faith of someone else!
1. Habakkuk 2:2-3
2. Psalm 72:8
3. Zechariah 9:10
4. Ezekiel 12:25
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms_of_Canada Website Accessed: 2017-11-13
6. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/a-mari-usque-ad-mare/ Website Accessed: 2017-11-08
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Leonard_Tilley Website Accessed: 2017-11-08
8. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sir-samuel-leonard-tilley/ Website Accessed: 2017-11-08
9. https://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/province/dominiondates.htm Website Accessed: 2017-11-08
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O Canada, We Stand On Guard For Thee!

I felt like I got hit on the head at church this week! As Pastor Nathan talked about honouring the men and women who fought for the liberties we often take for granted, I had so many AHA moments and began feverishly writing. Sorry pastor, but I really didn’t hear what you spoke on after that point, but I hope you feel happy knowing you inspired this series 🙂 For today and the following two or three Mondays, my Soul H2O Devotions are a product of the revelations at church in a Series I’m calling: We Stand On Guard For Thee! You don’t even have to be Canadian to enjoy them, but it might help 🙂

O Canada, We Stand On Guard For Thee!
```
“I will stand at my guard post
and station myself on the lookout tower.
I will watch to see what He will say to me
and what I should reply about my complaint.”
~Habakkuk 2:1 HCSB
```
For our Women In Music & Media (WIMM Canada) June event I booked the most adorable member of #LeafNation…Martina Ortiz-Luis! For those of you who don’t know her, Martina is the full-time anthem singer for the NHL‘s Toronto Maple Leafs. She’s leaving arena’s awestruck with her stellar performances and astounding voice of both national anthems: O Canada and The Star-Spangled Banner…not bad for a sixteen year old! This amazing girl came and inspired all us women working in media with her voice and her heart.

As we celebrated Remembrance Day (the Canadian version of Veteran’s Day) at church and sang our national anthem I was struck by the words in a very profound way. I thought about the state of our nation and felt like we had not kept up our end of the song to the Canadians who first sang the lyrics.

***PINTEREST PINNABLE***

The line in our anthem where the early settlers included a request for God to keep our land glorious and free is where I feel they were counting on us to partner with God to see that achieved. Sadly, we’re beginning to watch those freedoms crumble as we forget to fulfill our role to Stand on Guard For Thee.

Just like the Israelites in Habakkuk’s day, we’re all called to find our position and guard the spiritual condition of our country.

Looking into the history of our National Anthem I was filled with pride as I read the intentionality of our former leaders to pass along their faith to the next generation. Actually, there was another ‘Canadian Song’ written for our Confederation in 1867 that #LeafNation wishes was still around since it was called The Maple Leaf Forever! The chorus’ words express a desire to see God bless our nation forever.
```
Chorus:
 The Maple Leaf, our emblem dear,
 The Maple Leaf forever!
 God save our Queen and Heaven bless
 The Maple Leaf forever!
```
The words to the original O Canada Anthem were written in 1880 by a French poet and judge. Although the English translation is much different it holds the same hope that faith will guard our nation and keep it free.

May we as Canadians carry the cross for our generation and Stand on Guard For Thee!

Prayer

Father…
I thank you for the nation of Canada. I’m blessed to be a recipient of freedoms I didn’t fight for and liberties I don’t deserve. I ask that you would help me to not forget the cost of these privileges. May I uphold my part to see faith in Christ passed on to the next generation of Canadians.
In Jesus Name…Amen

[tweetthis]I will find my position and stand guard for the spiritual condition of my country.[/tweetthis]

Click Here for PART 2 or Here for PART 3
1. Habakkuk 2:1
2. Micah 7:7
3. Ezekiel 3:17
4. Psalm 85:8
If you liked the refreshing in this #SoulH2O devotion, you’ll love my latest Soul H2O Devotional book: 40 Thirst Quenching Devotions for Women.
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Canada Website Accessed: 2017-11-05
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Maple_Leaf_Forever Website Accessed: 2017-11-05
YOU CAN OFTEN FIND ME LINKING UP WITH:
MONDAY Monday Meditations – Laura J. Davis, Soul Survival – Donna Reidland ,
TUESDAY Cheerleaders of Faith #RARaLinkup – Kelly Balarie ,
WEDNESDAY Coffee For Your Heart – Holley Gerth , Word Nerd Wednesdays — Liz Giertz
THURSDAY Heart Encouragement Thursday – Crystal Storms , Chasing Community – Barbara Bradford Ottinger
FRIDAY Dance With Jesus Linkup – Susan B. Mead , Grace and Truth Linkup – Arabah Joy , Counting My Blessings – Deb Wolf, Fresh Market Friday – Crystal Twaddell ELLEN’S PICKS– Ellen Graf-Martin

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