Queen Jen's Gems

 Have you ever felt stuck? Have you ever felt like you were going in the same cycle over and over again? You know, you felt like you were doing the same thing and not getting anywhere? Just when it looked like things were turning around in your favor and getting better, it didn't work out. As a matter of fact, it seemed like you got pushed back farther from your goals and breakthrough. You thought, "This is it. This is my time." "It's going to work out this time." But you end up being hurt, confused, disappointed, heartbroken again and again. I experienced this a lot this year (some months more than others) and maybe you did too! Today, I want to talk about a man in the Bible who could also relate with us. His story is found in John 5:1-8. At the beginning, we see there is a pool called Bethesda where people who were disabled came to sit at. The people had different conditions as some were blind, while others were paralyzed. In verse 5, we see there was one ...

 As we celebrate this Christmas season, people are getting ready to celebrate. The decorations are up. The shopping has been finished. The gifts are all wrapped and ready to give. The dinner is being prepared and ready to eat soon. It sounds like you're ready for the holidays! Then you may be on the other side of it thinking to yourself, I have not done any of that or I've started, but I haven't finished. You may be thinking, "I'm definitely not ready!" I'm going to say it's okay to be either group. 2020 has been a rough year. In the midst of a pandemic, the fact that we are still here is a reason to celebrate all by itself! Not only are we still here, but many of us experienced personal situations that were very hard and heartbreaking. None of us could have ever imagined all the things that has happened in 2020, but we still have a choice in how we respond to what happens. We can ready ourselves every day by putting on some armor. You thought soldiers...

 Spring. Summer. Winter. Fall. 4 seasons. Very different, yet similar in ways. Every season has to be experienced. The seasons have many noticeable changes and then some not so noticeable changes. We see the leaves changing colors in the fall and new life springing up in the spring. Then sometimes it seems like the seasons run together and we have a really cold day in fall or it snows in the spring (which has really happened!). Just like there are 4 different seasons we experience in nature, we also experience different seasons in our lives. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, "There is a time for everything, and everything on earth has its special season." Every season has a purpose. Every season of our lives is different marked by noticeable changes and some not so noticeable at first glance. Something is happening at every season. It's up to us to look for it and find out what it is, The seasons in our life will teach us, grow us, enlighten us, cleanse us. We have different seasons...

 Have you ever played the game Follow The Leader before? It's pretty fun if you haven't and a great one to play with children! In the game, people have to form a single file line. The person at the front of the line is the line leader and will do certain actions. Everyone else in the line has to do exactly what the leader does. This means that the people need to be watching the leader closely and keep their eyes forward in order to know what to do. In Psalm 23, David talks about following God. In verse 1, he talks about God being His Shepherd. A shepherd is someone who leads, guides and takes care of the sheep. A shepherd and sheep have a close relationship with each other and spend a lot of time with each other. David was able to call his Shepherd because he had a relationship with God and spent time with Him. We can say that too when we know God for ourselves. As we move to verse 2, it talks about how God will lead him to pasture and still waters. Pasture is an area set aside...