Genesis 1: 3- 5 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.
Genesis 1 2:8,9 The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.
I can be as pale as the softest peach, the hint of a kiss of pink touching the golden yellow to form just the whisper of apricot, or as vibrant as the deepest, richest coral, my intensity having meshed with royal red. My colors range from soft to the deep warmth of clay planters, their hominess holding lovely plants on your front stoop. In the same garden you can see me as a peace rose, with pink meshing with yellow, a tiger lily, a soft and pleasing orange, and coral bells, a living, showy orange red. 
You see me as health as I am the color of yams, carrots, butternut squash, and pumpkins. My colors abound in times of harvest. You see and smell my lushness with oranges and tangerines, melons and mangos and are sometimes able to see my color just by my scent.
When I start affecting some of your metal pieces, you become annoyed, looking to brush away my invasion of color with steel wool. That’s okay, I was just warning you of deterioration and the need to protect and prevent further destruction and damage.
In the mountains of southwest America, you see my strength in the deep and rich, robust colors of sienna and terra cotta, the warmer and vigorous desert and cactus flowers that unfold and announce their proud beauty in the heat of the sand.
When I am hair someone’s head, I am sometimes a deep rich russet and auburn and the colors are a beauty to behold, but I can fade to a mixture of strawberry and cantaloupe. But then I can be lighter, tawnier, more titian, and the occasional thought of stubborn and hot tempered spring to mind as you watch in admiration as the sun kisses the tresses.
I am the color of new, or re-birth and beginnings, but one can also see me at the end, at the closing. I bring a bit of excitement, anticipation as I just begin to rise over the horizon, not yet lighting the sky with my brilliance; just turning the dark to purple bruising. I have such a vibrant range and you look up in awe as I share my hues with you. The colors become richer, brighter, as I spew forth the light of day, and you are so touched by the burst of orange and pink flames that shout of the new day’s dawning. It makes me proud that you look and admire the vibrancy of my colors.
sunrise 4/18 
sunset 6/17/18 
I am the beginning of sunshine and the end of sunshine. You stand amazed looking at the peach, coral, flame and blaze of my brilliant orange. My vibrancy shines in the early, early mornings just before the sun peeks over the horizon. But later, my colors burst forth with a wealth of hues of warm colors that blaze across the evening sky and amaze you, awe you. It glows and shines on your faces as you look at my flames of color. For as I emblazon the sky with the richness of the pinks, lavenders, and oranges, you recognize another nice day will open tomorrow.
You look at the brilliance of my colors in flame and in the sky, in the harvest, across the mountains of Arizona, that crowns a head with the richness of a combination of blond and red to red and brown…. and you recognize me. I am orange with my wonderful complement colors; orange in all my blazing glory.
Can you see some of my many hues? I’m a favorite at ‘mybellaviews.’
Matthew 6:34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for today is its own trouble.
Philippians 4:6,7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Right now, I have a friend who is going through a time of unemployment and while picking up spare jobs, has lost her health insurance, is having car issues, and because she could not afford a cell phone contract with one of the major companies, signed on with another non-contract company. The phone died today, there is no battery replacement for that model phone since 2013, and some of the jobs require her to use the phone for an hour appointment with people. She is feeling so overwhelmed, and has been so strong in her faith and knowing that God is going to come through and some great opportunity will open and she will be on a new path. Each month is a question as to if she will have enough for her rent, food, and so forth. And so far there has been. Although she no longer has a lease, it is month to month payment for her rent, so more costly than a lease, but things are too unsure now to commit to anything longer than monthly.
So the cell phone is dead and cannot be revived, and that is her business. Her clients need to be able to reach her, and have their one hour appointments. She is picking up various writing jobs, and those employers were reaching her by text and possible email. But there is now no phone service, just email availability, which is no help in a coaching and psychology setting.
And now, her vehicle is acting up, and it seems like it might be an expensive thing to have fixed. For the first time in all these months, I am hearing fear, anxiety and she is unable to concentrate on the writing work she has to do over the next few days. Frustrated, overwhelmed, she headed out for a walk a few moments ago.
I’ve admired her faith, her searching for positions and the belief all would be fine. But now the burden is heavier, and the uncertainty has slithered in. Did she miss a step or path He told her to walk? Is she too prideful to ask for help? What is the lesson she is supposed to be learning?
I am still learning to grasp that faith. It is more rapid for me to have a decline into anxiety sooner than she has. I believe God let me see this as an example as to the way I SHOULD walk my difficulties. We all have stress, and some just walk, maintain faith with a smile, and one would never know they have concerns. Others wear it constantly. And some wear it when they begin to feel overwhelmed. I want to be the one who walks confidently always knowing things will work out for my good.
‘For I know the plans I have for you. Plans to prosper and not harm.’ Jeremiah 29:11. Believing it when all is going well is easy. It’s more difficult for the liar to whisper ‘it’s not true. You should have protected yourself. Now it’s too late. You’re doomed.’ I need the Holy Spirit to remind me Satan lies, always. But I shouldn’t always need the reminder. I should KNOW it. I do know it. That’s faith.
But I occasionally let doubt and fear slither in. Thankfully the Holy Spirit does remind me I am not alone, God has this, and all will be well.
She came back after a few minutes walking on the beach and had a firm plan, was steadier and had a temporary plan. No need to get a cell phone now; she could maintain contact via email, then stop on her way home on Sunday and get a cell phone plan. So for now, armed and somewhat confident again, she went downstairs to write her articles and do her jobs. The car issues will be dealt with once the exact problem with it is known. She’s back to having her faith restored. Although definitely tired and so ready for this phase of her life to end, her prayer and the walk on the beach and the knowledge that God has a plan, has restored her.
This is the kind of response He wants for us. Although the road may be rocky, and we get fearful and nervous, He wants us to ‘be anxious for nothing…’.
So now, she is back, working and doing today’s tasks, for that is all we have is today and what comes. Slightly shaken, she was not derailed by worry, fear, anxiety. She knows she can trust Him
Thanks for being a wonderful example of faith for ‘myBellaviews.’
Matthew 2:1-6 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” … And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, “Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rules of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.”
Luke 1:31-33 “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
Luke 1:68-69 “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David, as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, who have been since the world began, that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us, to perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant, the oath which He swore to our father Abraham: to grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
It’s the Christmas season. This is the time of year when Christians celebrate the fact that God sent his son, Jesus, to earth, to take human form, to know man’s feelings, frustrations, needs, desires, and anger, joy and so forth. God wanted his son to become man in all manner….with the ultimate goal of being the sacrifice for all of our sins. No more pigeons, goats, lambs or other animals to be slaughtered as a sacrifice as the Old Testament had the Jewish peoples do in their temples as sin offerings. The many rules and mandates for sin sacrifices would be over. God had sent His only Son, Jesus, to take the place for all time of the animals being sacrificed, of being the sin offering for all, forever. His death would free us all….if only we would believe in Him.
There is no finer reason for the season, than to recognize and be humbled by the ultimate gift of the Saviour’s arrival, persecution and death….for us. He is the reason for the season…and if I had my way, He is my reason to strive to be better, not just for this time of year, but each day.
It is not just the hectic scrambling for the “perfect” gift, the shopping, the sale, the pressure to decorate, to do it all. But for those who believe as I do, that Jesus was sent to be sacrificed to free us; that’s the most important reason for us to remember and honor the most special birth to ever occur.
His arrival, his sacrifice, his death….on a cross, after a severe whipping, (I can’t even imagine having a whip strike me once and tear flesh from my body), but our Lord received 40 lashes. But He did get a crown….Royalty! No, this crown was not of royalty, but of thorns, a mockery, not any kind of true acknowledgement of being with the Prince of Peace, the Son of God, the final sacrifice. Jesus came to die for OUR sins. Not his sins; He had none. But his death was to free us from eternal damnation…simply if we believed and asked for His presence in our lives. (John 3:16) It’s that simple, that freeing, that special.
I have asked and received. I strive to follow life in a manner worthy of following Christ. Because I want to. Not because it is demanded, but I want to be pleasing to Him, to honor the ultimate sacrifice. But lo, I am so short of His goodness. Daily, I get frustrated and realize I fall so short of being Christ-like. You have so much to do, Holy Spirit, to help me overcome all these shortcomings. But no matter if I never overcome any of the shortfalls, if I die tonight, I die saved.
The reason for this season, that Christ came for us, and sacrificed His life for mine. What a wonderful–the best–blessing!
This is what I am most grateful for this season. This is my blessing…my bellaviews.
Merry Christmas and many blessings
Deuteronomy 31:8 He will never leave you not forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.
Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Isaiah 35:4 Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you,
Isaiah 41:10; Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will uphold you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Psalm 56:3 Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?
‘Fear not, do not be afraid, be strong and of courage’ and verses just like them appear 365 times in the Bible. God wants us trusting in Him to guide us through scary treacherous pathways. That is sometimes scary in itself. You believe in faith that He is there always, then troubles start, fears multiply and you clearly SEE things getting worse, so begin to fear more. So in order to defeat these fears, we must know and be able to retrieve these words and promises.
I believe we have so many of these verses to fear not as reminders, daily reminders if we separate one for each day, since God knows our human selves will feel fear at times. We need to be reminded that He is there, in control. And that certainly does not mean that we don’t rest on our laurels and not do what we can to follow His path to improve circumstances, but it means TRUSTING in Him to have the final answer, to get us safely to our place, out of the wilderness. And that is what He means each time He urges us to ‘fear not…’ ‘Move forward, I know you are unsure, but trust in Me and move ahead. I am there to guide your path.’
It’s not that God is saying never feel fear, it is feeling fear, but moving ahead in trust at the same time. It feels much easier to me to move ahead when I remember I am not alone and should not be doubting and fearing the future. He will guide my paths because I am one of His children. And I trust Him.
Yes, I have fear sometimes, and have to remind myself of these verses, have to go and look up others and reinforce my mind. But fear is the devil’s best tool. He loves to make you doubt, ensure you know you will fail, that God cannot possibly endorse this silly endeavor you would like to try, and on and on….
So God’s word reminds us over 365 times, to ‘fear not, be not afraid, have good courage.’ I challenge you to find more verses than the ones I wrote. Tuck them into the fabric of your mind so you can pull them out when the devil tries to evoke fear and doubt in your spirit.
Thank goodness for these verses for me to step forward and ‘do not be afraid’ with all of ‘myBellaviews.’
Proverbs 22:6 Train a child in the way that he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
Deuteronomy 23:23 That which has gone from your lips you shall keep and perform, for you volunterily vowed t the Lord your God what you have promised with your mouth.
Numbers 30:2 If a man makes a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.
A few weeks ago, I was feeling down, discouraged….and there really was no reason for me to be feeling this way. None. It was a month after Hurricane Florence, but I suffered almost no damage, and my neighborhood was in good shape. Many of the folks I knew were also dealing with MINOR issues, and few had major ones. But inexplicably I felt a pall, just down and awful. Yuck, and it made me feel selfish and ungrateful.
I was going to visit a neighbor, just ready to enter their porch, when I heard a car crash into something, continue on, and then something dragging and banging from the rear of the car. I spun around, at first seeking how to evaluate and help. As I watched a young woman ordered her son out of the car to pick up whatever was dragging, then wondered aloud what had caused the noise. It was very evident she had hit my garden posts which then dislodged her right wheel well. The staggered landscape timbers which had been pounded into the sand around mine and my neighbors’ gardens, forming one larger garden area, now lay strewn about the driveway.
The boy told his mother it was a big thing that had come off. She ordered him to hurry and pick it up and get back into the car.
At this point, I now came down the stairs, a little surprised she was not going to check for damages her car had caused; I called to her asking about the damage to the fence posts. She seemed totally unaware of any damage, but did get out of the vehicle, ordering her children to stay inside. I walked her back to the area, and showed her. She apologized and said she had not seen it as they were all looking at the beach from the road. (From my house on the road one cannot see the beach because the dunes are high, and thankfully they had held during Florence’s damage.)
I didn’t call her on her obvious fabrication, but indicating the fence told her it needed to be repaired. (At this time, both her children were out of the car and standing with us while we had this conversation. I admit to being bothered at the lie of looking at the ocean at when her car hit the property, but I also wanted her to take responsibility.)
She asked if it would cost money. I told her no, but it would cost a bit of time and labor as she would have to re-dig the posts and pack the sand back between the road and the garden. She asked if she could do it the next day, and I told her that would be fine. I only asked her first name, knew what the vehicle looked like, but purposely did not take down license number, cell number or anything.
A few neighbors came out as she and her children were driving off and asked what had transpired. They shook their heads learning I had not asked for any identification, clearly doubtful that she would not show up. But something had ‘prohibited’ me delving for more info.
I knew I WANTED her to honor her word. Yet, I doubted I would see her return, but was hopeful.
But the next afternoon, as I was leaving the house, she and her daughter (who was between 4-6 years old) were repairing the fence. She asked if she was doing it correctly since some of the posts looked like they were leaning. I assured her she was and as more sand was packed around it would get firm around the posts and thus lean less, as well as the rain packing down the sand over time.
I was so surprised and pleased, and told her so. What a wonderful example of showing her child how to act and behave, and the importance of keeping one’s word. She not only told her child proper behavior, but lived it, showed it, accepted responsibility for harm to someone’s property, and then came to make the repairs. It made me so thankful that she followed through, and also renewed my faith in others. Her act lifted that feeling of sadness and moroseness I’d been feeling.
Neighbors were also going by and told her they were pleased she had returned, and that she was teaching her daughter such a valuable lesson. I think God saw to it all. Her actions renewed me, helped lift the pall, and redeemed my faith in others.
Thank You, Lord, you always come through when I have some melancholy. Your bounty amazes me and ‘mybellaviews.’.
Hi, I'm Kathy. Welcome to my website!