Old Stuff

I was outside today weeding my garden getting it ready for spring plantings, enjoying the warm weather and checking the growth of the winter plants. As I always do this time of year I take time to groom my peach tree. I wonder if it hurts the tree, but I imagine the little tree is thankful to be rid of these life sucking useless fruit. I go through each branch and carefully seek out the "mummies'. Dead little fruit seeds that never became peaches. I knock them off the tree carefully not to disturb the new growth and clean off any dead leaves I see. I was curious when my husband called these seeds "mummies", they do look like little dead peaches that have been mummified. Isn't it interesting how in our lives we have "mummies". We think something is fruit it hangs around for a while until God knocks it off. When He knocks it off at first we are saddened, we don't understand how something we thought was good could be taken away. After a while we realize, that load, that burden would have just made things more difficult , frustrating. I got to thinking. God took me from a terrible life without him and transplanted me into His garden, His care, where I said "Lord, groom me!" As the years have gone by I have watched this little tree go from death to life, to fruitlessness to fruitfulness all the while still grooming it. I didn't really care if the tree produced a lot of fruit, in fact if it had one or two peaches I was overjoyed because I knew this tree was a dead tree at one time. Any fruit was better then none at all. I watched it turn from season to season into beautiful blossoms. then green leaves with peaches. To orange red and yellow leaves, and then barren sticks. I loved each turning knowing that something beautiful and delicious would come out of all this. You know that little tree was destined to die, just like me, until it was transplanted into my yard. God watches us bloom and fruit and change, and He is happy when we produce small fruit or lots of fruit. I believe He is overjoyed in watching us grow. I'm happy to be in my Papa's garden, that He prunes me with love and that He works in my life. Thank you Lord for pulling me from a rotten orchard and grafting me into your family tree. I know that sometimes the things in my life look good to me, yet you see them as unnecessary burdens. Please continue to gently remove the dead "mummies" from my heart and in my mind and how I live daily. Alive and Loved, Diane

Seeds!

Good Morning. So today as I stare out the window of the gym listening to Kari Jobe, the world around me starts to melt away and I begin to see Papa's world through what I believe His eyes would see. I imagine each plant and tree as this small seed buried in the soil waiting for His voice to make it rise up and become something great, or something small. I watch it as it struggles through the dirt pops it's head out and becomes what God has created it to be. A rose, a palm, an oak, a redwood, a dandelion, a blade of grass in an endless ocean of blades of grass. Each one has a different job, yet all of them so important so beautiful. I can see the wonderful things my Father has created, and He watched them all rise, and diminish in a blink of an eye. He spoke this world into existence with His word, the seeds of His spoken word. The same word He says to plant in our hearts. The heart, the core of our bodies. This is why the word of God is so life changing, it has roots, buried deep in our hearts. It struggles sometimes to burst forth from our heart and become a great work, or a small deed. All equally important, all from our Father. Where your heart is there your treasure will be also. In this day and age when even the seeds of this world have become endangered, think about where your treasure is and how deep the seeds of God's word are sown in your heart. All around us is the evidence of His word, you can't miss seeing a plant without seeing the fruit of it's work. The seeds of life are all around us, take one and plant it in your heart, let it grow and become something great, or small, just let it grow. Father I am in awe of you today as you are always amazing and humbling me. Please let your seeds of life become what you have designed them to be inside me. Let me see the fruit you have planted in this world, and give back the fruit of Your Spirit. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. They will benefit those around me, and most importantly me as well by changing the way I view your people. Thank you for your word that is sown into my life. Standing In Awe, Diane

Reboot!

My computer keeps crashing on me, I have installed windows vista too many times to count. Finally I decided to upgrade to windows 7 but in order to do that I had to put vista back and pray my computer wouldn't crash. Do you ever notice that the old ways of thinking and doing things make your life crash? Sometimes God changes our operating systems. The way He wants us to learn things and the way we do things. Eventually you have to delete all of your old ideas from your memory banks however just like computers that old stuff is stored somewhere in our minds. Until we completely delete the old ideas and cling to the new man/women idea we will constantly have to restore ourselves, just like the computer. Thank you God that we are so much more easily restored than the machines of this world are. I thank God for His graceful restoration. How about you, do you keep rebooting the old self? If so do a Godly restore and delete the excess baggage it will do your heart good. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeriemiah 29:11 Be at peace! Always Rebooting My Mind, Diane

Papa!

I lay here awake at 5:30 in the morning thinking of you Father, all that you have done for me and everything you have given me.  I am grateful.  I feel like a little girl waking up from a dream I look forward to my life ahead, like a new journey, a new lease, a second, third chance.  My dreams are filled with friends I have known and joyful times I have had all because my Father gave me life.  Life precious, sometimes fragile, a gift.  It is a chance to learn to love others and to give what you have as a gift to your Daddy.  I, like so many prodigal daughters and sons, have been keeping my gifts to myself holding onto the coin in my hand not wanting to share it with the world.  What good is this coin when someday I will say goodbye to this world and all of the wonderfully different and lovely people I have met.  I realize that none of us is perfect, we are all pieces of God's perfect plan and each person I have met and encountered has shaped my life, and my heart.  My Papa has done all of this for me.  He created the doctors for me.  He created the surgeons for me.  He created the device that makes my heart beat now for me.  Like my pacemaker, my heart, my life can not beat without my Papa.  I feel the warmth of Him in my soul, the joy of His salvation in my heart and I can not express my gratitude for second and third chances.
  Life is a gift, a precious commodity that you can use to enrich and change someones life.  Take the chance. Reach out, love the unlovable.   Make friends.  Keep them.  Look back when you are done and hear, well done good and faithful servant.  I do not regret my life, nor the friends I have had I only regret the pain I may have inflicted and I pray that God will help me to make amends for this.  Know this you are in my thoughts and prayers always.  May the God who has so richly blessed me, bless you, in this LIFE He has given you to spread His love.

Looking Forward To Him,
Diane

Blessed Rain!

I have been sitting outside listening to the rain dance on top of my patio awning.  As I sit outside and sip my tea, yes tea in summer, how can you not, I listen to the sound of Papa's voice as He thunders above me.  I am transplanted to a garden island with beautiful cool breezes and summer storms just like this, Kauai.  I was not able to go this year, however, I don't feel as if it was such a horrible thing.  Even if I never step foot on my island again, He blessed me with that gift, for a season, I basked in His beauty.  And now, He is bathing me in it again.  How is He so mighty, so beautiful in the rain, His voice booming through the clouds blessing us with showers.  Sometimes I just sit with my Daddy, lately it is just He and I in a quiet relationship.  Songs in my heart and in my mind reminding me that God is always with me, no matter what may come.  This is my church the rain is the congregation and all of creation is singing and clapping for joy at God's handiwork.  He is awesome to behold and mighty to witness.  Thank you Father for the summer thunderstorms You have blessed my heart and I am content.

Loving His Blessings,
Diane

Worship Him!

Worship, do we realize the privilege that it is. What I love most about worship is the ability to be in the presence of the Living God. Like the days when Moses would speak to God when His presence in the form of a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night stayed with the Israelites. Do we realize the power of Him the Almighty when we are allowed to glimpse His glory in worship? Do we appreciate the fact that He has let us, invited us into His throne room. I take this for granted because I don't worship Him enough. Every day should be a day of worship unto our Father, in our lives, in all that we do. He is so loving and forgiving, and beautiful. When I stand and survey the life that I have been so graciously given, all of the revelations of God I have seen through friends and family, I am in awe of how and why? That our Savior, our King, Papa, Abba, Father, knowing us, still lavishes us with His presence. Life without God would be like a desert with no water in sight, always thirsty never being able to drink deeply to satisfy the thirst within us, lost and wandering not knowing where to go. My prayer is that I will always relish in the worship of my Father, that I will never forget that He is awesome to behold, that He holds this world , my life in His hands, and He does this with love. I would have to say one of my favorite books of the bible is Psalms, David had a heart for God, He worshiped the Lord with His heart, He loved the Lord. I know that for me, there is no greater happiness then to worship my Father, His words are like music to my ears and they stir in me a heart of worship for a life I could never repay Him for, and for a love I did not earn. Worship Him where ever you are!

Diane Maldonado,
Gratefully Loved By Papa

My Rock.

I haven't been on here in over three months, too long. Tonight I am going to a worship service at my high school band directors church, and I am so excited. Sad to say I have not worshiped with a fellowship for a long time, too long to go without feeling the outpouring of our Father's spirit on His children. The painting of the women with her hair flowing, full of sin, has changed. Although it still means the same to me, it now has a huge rock in the center of the photo, and waves are crashing upon this rock, however it stands firm and strong. God is the rock in my life, always has been, always will be. Whether I worship alone, find Him alone, or with my other brothers and sisters this one thing runs true, He is my rock, and my salvation. Even when the waves crash against me I am firmly grounded in Him my rock, my fortress, the heart of my life, the breath of my soul. Thank you Lord for never abandoning me even when the ocean around me rages.

Diane Maldonado,

Standing On The Rock.