Terri's Wellspring

Staying in Faith

14 01 2014

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Hebrews 11:1 New Living Translation

You may be in a season where situations of what you see and hear seem so contrary to the desires for our lives. Brokenness in relationships, finances, jobs and health seem so common place. As believers we are compelled to stay in faith. It is easy to say our trust is in the Lord, when everything is moving along fine. The challenge comes when we appear to be troubled on every side. Is our first response to recall the promises of God? Do we remember that He will supply our needs, or that He will keep us in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Him? Do we remember that He said that He would rebuke the devourer for our sakes? Do we walk in the knowledge that He is God and He is in Control? I am working on basing my first response on His word. Staying in faith He provides the strength, courage and peace that we need. He is faithful to be with us every step of the way. We give Him the Honor and the Glory for each blessing.

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: faith, Hebrews 11, staying in faith
Categories : FAITH, Uncategorized

Hana

13 01 2014

Road to Hana

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5-6

The legendary road to Hana reportedly has more than 600 turns. It is a beautiful journey that starts with a coastal winding road that quickly gives weigh to one sharp turn after another that follows the shoreline of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. My husband and I ventured on this historic fifty-mile trip with a map and a camera hoping to capture the many beautiful sights and views promised along the way. On our journey, we shared an experience that we will treasure for a life time.

The road to Hana mimics life’s journey in so many ways. It is an ancient pathway that requires perseverance and faith to make it to your destination. The roadway was full of twists and curves with many turns on steep cliffs where you could not see what was around the bend. Moving forward required having faith and courage to travel the next section of the road. At some points the road narrowed to one lane for two-way travel. These segments required slow travel, patience and courtesy for fellow travelers taking turns to continue on the journey. Those on the journey moved at different paces. Some moved at a glacial pace, stopping to observe all of the natural splendor available along the way. There was much to see: the lush greenness of the rainforest, waterfalls cascading into streams and rivers, and the amazing views of the beaches and coastline. Others were in a hurry to get to their destination and seemed inpatient with those who were trying to take it all in. Like life’s journey, a good balance of perseverance, faith and a steady pace seemed to be what was required for a successful trip.

Our passage today is a reminder to put our trust in the Lord. Whatever life has in store for us, twists, turns or the unexpected around the bend, we can put our trust fully in Him. He directs our path. He provides for our needs. He is our Heavenly Father who makes a way for us for every challenge along life’s journey. We can put our faith in Him to provide for us and strengthen us for the road ahead. We can be thankful along the way for each blessing that He has provided; family, friends and the beauty of love. Whatever our journey has in store for us our trust is fully in Him.

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: faith, Hana, Proverbs 3:5-6
Categories : FAITH, Uncategorized

You Have My Praise

3 01 2014

I will praise you, LORD, with all my heart;
I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done.
I will be filled with joy because of you.
I will sing praises to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1-2

My heart is full of praise for our Savior, Jesus Christ. He continues to bless us in ways we could not have imagined. Peace, joy and faith empower our journey to keep moving forward and we are thankful. When I think about His goodness and His mercy that surrounds my life, my living and those I love, I am so humbled and so grateful. I praise Him for who He is… our Creator, our Mediator and our Ambassador of peace. I praise Him for what He does… He provides redemption for my sins and shortcomings and provides renewal for my mind, body and soul. I praise Him what He has yet to do… continuing to be God, faithful to His Word and His abundant promises. We thank Him and praise Him for each blessing, each miracle big and small that makes my life possible.

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : Uncategorized

Fan the Flame

2 01 2014

This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. II Timothy 1:6-7 NLT

We were each born with a God-given purpose. We are equipped with unique abilities that give us all the tools and talents needed to accomplish our assignment. During our life’s journey, we explore and nurture our gifts as we accept the call on our lives for God’s service. We are all called to serve. We may not be called to proclaim God’s Word from a pulpit but in our families, our communities and in our interactions with one another we are to demonstrate God’s love in ways that fulfill our purpose. Our hands, our words, our tasks emanate His love, His compassion, His mercy that exemplify His Son, Jesus Christ. What a tremendous gift to the world to use the gift that is inside of you. You have what it takes to accomplish the task and to carry it through. He made you for this task. He has given you the tools and the talents to make it happen. You are empowered, careful not to embrace fear but to walk in confidence of the God we serve. Our passage today reminds us to keep our gifts active, alive and on fire. We are to fan the flames within us to keep our gifts fueled with the air that it needs to grow and to shine bright. We fan the flames today within us to use our gifts for His Glory.

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: 2 Timothy 1:6-7, Fan the Flame, terriwellspring.com
Categories : PURPOSE, Uncategorized

Starting Strong

1 01 2014

“Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do.” Joshua 1:6-8
Launching a new year we want to start out strong. We want our initial days to set a firm foundation to allow us to thrive in the year ahead. In our heart, mind and soul, we want to be strong in our faith and in our determination to walk in His purpose for our lives. The passage for today is a reminder of the Lord’s instructions to Joshua as he moves into leadership of God’s people. Joshua is called to be both strong and courageous. I believe each of us is called to be strong and courageous in our walk with the Lord. Strong in our faith and confident in the God that we serve. We can place our trust fully in Him to lead us, to guide us and to provide strength when we need it. Even when our strength falls short, His strength is perfected in our weakness. Courage requires healthy doses of confidence to walk were the Lord is leading and to stand flat-footed in the face of adversity. We can stand strong when we are careful to obey God’s Word and to stay focused on His path for us ahead. Detours to the left or to the right create havoc in our lives. We are proclaiming strength and courage today to walk in His purpose. We are proclaiming clear focus on His leading and His Word. We will be strong and courageous in 2014.

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: Joshua 1, Starting Strong, terriwel
Categories : ENCOURAGEMENT, PURPOSE, Uncategorized

Turning the Page

31 12 2013

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:18-19 ESV

In the continuum of life, we are blessed with time increments that allow us to create new starts. The 24 hours in a day, the Mondays that mark a new week, and the turn of the seasons each gives us a chance to turn the page and start anew. Today, we are preparing to turn the page on the 365 days of last year. All the triumphs, challenges and transitions of the year will soon come to a close. Hopefully, last year was a time of walking in faith, steadfast in our purpose and experiences of God’s love, peace and joy were part of our everyday living. It could be that for some of us the blessing of survival and resilience was a recurring theme of the year. As we look to a new day in a new year, we can all share our thanks to God for His goodness in allowing us to cross the finish line of 2013. We may be a little frayed along the edges or a bit weary in our spirits but the hope of tomorrow is upon us. A new year marks the beginning of a new start. We can start 2014 with a renewed mind and spirit knowing that God continues to be faithful to His promises. He is faithful to be with us. We are never alone. He promised to lead and guide us, as we are careful to listen for His direction. He said that He would provide for each of our needs. He is Jehovah, Jireh. The fruit of the Holy Spirit remains available to us love, peace, joy, forbearance, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and discipline. We have such treasured blessings to help us face whatever tomorrow may unfold. We thank God for the blessings of last year as we turn the page and stand in faith for the blessing to come.

Forget what happened in the past, and do not dwell on events from long ago.
I am going to do something new. It is already happening. Don’t you recognize it?
I will clear a way in the desert. I will make rivers on dry land. Isaiah 43:18-19 GWT

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: Isaiah 43, New Start, terriwellspring.com, Turning the Page
Categories : REVITALIZATION, Uncategorized

Thankful

30 12 2013

Shout to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with joy;
come before him with singing.
Know that the Lord is God.
He made us, and we belong to him;
we are his people, the sheep he tends.

Come into his city with songs of thanksgiving
and into his courtyards with songs of praise.
Thank him and praise his name.
The Lord is good. His love is forever,
and his loyalty goes on and on. Psalm 100

I am giving thanks for this time and this place. I am here because of the blessings of the Lord. He has provided this journey for me and I am thankful. I can rejoice with praises in my heart for He is God. I know that the Lord is God. He is our creator and knows our purpose. He knows everything about us including the hair on our heads and even the tears that fall from our eyes. He is God and we belong to Him. We are His people. I am His child. He is God and in Him there is no lack. He provides for His sheep, for every need and is able to even provide for the desires of our hearts. We belong to Him. He leads and guides us. We can put our full trust in Him. We can thank Him for His goodness. Songs of praise and thanksgiving can fill our hearts and come forth through our lives. He is good. He is good and He is great. His love for us never ends and endures forever. We are thankful.

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: Psalm 100, terriwellspring.com, thankful
Categories : GRATITUDE, Uncategorized

New Ways for a New Year

27 12 2013

But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:20-24

A new calendar year is nearly upon us. We have just a few days before we celebrate the arrival of a new year. For many watch night services and parties will be the activities of choice to experience the close of one year and the entrance of another. We can give thanks for all the blessings of the past and look forward with great anticipation of the future. This is hopefully a time of reflection and planning about next steps in the various aspects of our lives; our health, our work, our relationships with family and friends and our relationship with the Savior. I am so thankful that the Holy Spirit can provide renewal to our heart, mind and soul to prepare for what’s next. We want to be renewed for the coming year with our old ways left behind. Jesus can provide a changed heart and a refreshed lens for new strategies and next steps for thriving in the New Year. I want to thrive in 2014. It starts with creating a God-sized and God-inspired vision for what is possible. With Jesus’ help we can shed old habits, hampering attitudes, and hindering procrastination. We can lay aside weights and seek what the Lord would have us to do. In the coming days, let’s ask the Father for His renewal to permeate our hearts and for His ways to become our ways for thriving in the year to come.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, Hebrews 12:1 ESV

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : REVITALIZATION, Uncategorized

Prince of Peace

23 12 2013

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The Everlasting father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

We celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace during this season. We seek peace in our lives at every level; in our world, in our communities and in our homes. Peace is the absence of conflict and the presence of harmony. It is a state of being that is missing and seeming elusive in the world today. Jesus brings the gift of peace first to our hearts. It is an internal serenity that calms our fears and silences the conflicts of uncertainty and discord. We need His peace today. It can start in my heart and in yours. In relationship with the Heavenly Father, His Holy Spirit can give us the peace that we seek. He can create peace in our hearts that is beyond our circumstance, above the fray of daily living. He can give us peace that keeps our heart still even in the face of adversity, a peace that surpasses all understanding. We need and petition the Lord to provide His peace in each heart today. Accepting His peace and His love we can experience the abundance Jesus came to provide for His children. We can nurture His peace in our hearts and share it with others. The bright light of His love and His peace can flood our hearts, into our words and into our actions. His peace is contagious. Starting with one and then another it can spread across our families, our workplaces, cities and this world. As we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace, let us seek peace in our hearts and with one another.

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : Uncategorized

Memories of Love

20 12 2013

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. I Corinthians 13:4-7

My fondest memories of Christmas are the times that I have spent with my family. My parents, my sisters and my brother all gathered in various rooms of my parents’ home engaged in conversations and family games. Over time spouses and children and now our children’s children have expanded our family size greatly. With more family has come more love. My husband and my daughter make this season bright and I am thankful. With Christmas upon us, we are anticipating another time of sharing. Our time together is an opportunity for laughter, catching up on the latest family news and to be present in each other’s lives. The expectation of a secular Christmas is a bunch of presents, too much food and other things that are distant from its true meaning. My memories of Christmas are not presents or things but of the people I love. This is a good thing to remember when your budget may fall short of your expectation of Christmas or your gift list. It is a good thing to remember if your memories of Christmas are not filled with peace and joy. Focus on your family and those who you love. Give them the present of your presence. Make new memories for Christmas.

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. I Corinthians 13:13

Comments : Leave a Comment »
Tags: Christmas, I Corinthians 13, Memories of Love, terriwellspring.com
Categories : LOVE, Uncategorized