Producing Where You’re Planted— New Perspectives Series This week, I’ve been thinking about recent life events in light of the everlasting. And the Lord has brought me back to seeds. Again. But this time, it was about seeds bearing fruit in a life so fruitful, that fruit continues to be produced even after the loved one has gone “home” to be with our Lord. And with that, I thought of Pastor Bob Templeton (Pastor Judy’s husband). He has been so much on my heart lately—everywhere I look, I see the fruit of his life and his ministry continuing on, and...

Connect the Dots—New Perspectives Series Seven months ago, I received a prophetic word from Pastor Fred Brothers—one in which God was telling me I needed to “connect the dots”.  And then, on April 13th, Pastor Fred gave me the same word for our church after we posted the Superbloom blog.   So I thought, “Lord, what exactly does that mean—to connect the dots?” Then the Lord reminded me that over these past few months, I have seen accelerated growth—especially in our leadership team. In some, this growth has taken the shape of a sudden shift from where they were, to...

Servanthood— New Perspectives Series First thing this morning, I was reminded of an old Don Francisco song—and the chorus goes something like this: Do you love your wife? For her and for your children, are you laying down your life? What about the others—Are you living as a servant to your sisters and your brothers? Do you make the poor man beg you for a bone? Do the widows, and the orphans cry alone? This song has always had a way of bringing me back to the truth of God’s love walk. And this week, He’s been dealing with me about becoming...

A Spiritual Superbloom — New Perspectives Series Sitting in our local coffee shop, listening to the muffled coughs and muted sneezes around me, I smiled to myself. Much of our area is pastureland studded with oaks and pines, and right now, with all the blessed rain we’ve received, we have wildflowers aplenty. In some places, the yellows and oranges are so vibrant it looks like a sunrise might have dripped onto the hillsides! All that beauty is great news, right?  So what’s the bad news? The bad news is that right now, all of nature is celebrating the start of...

Holy Spirit 4 – Encounter the Holy Spirit During the posting of my last blog, we were in the final stretch of bringing my book to publication. The whole experience awakened in me a profound respect for others who write their stories. And since the book’s publication, I’m beginning to understand what it’s like to be vulnerable on a whole new level! In my blog Reflections 4, the Holy Spirit had said to me, “You could have stopped at any point in this journey and I would not have been upset with you.” As He was speaking that to my...

Holy Spirit 3 - The Power of God in the Midst of Your Storm I’m sure you’ve noticed that it’s been a while since I’ve posted. During this break from blogging, I have been working to get my book, The Power of God in the Midst of Your Storm, ready for publication. And, as of this writing, both the Kindle and Paperback versions are available on Amazon! But during this final push to get the book ready, the question came up—why did I write the book? What was the purpose behind sharing my story? And, the answer has everything to do with...

Holy Spirit 2 - A Way in the Wilderness  14 “Therefore, behold, I will allure her, Will bring her into the wilderness, And speak comfort to her. 15 I will give her her vineyards from there, And the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; She shall sing there, As in the days of her youth, As in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt. 16 “And it shall be, in that day,” Says the Lord, “That you will call Me ‘My Husband,’ And no longer call Me ‘My Master,’ Hosea 2:14-16 NKJV Has the Holy Ghost ever given you a Scripture, that in...

Shining a Light—Holy Spirit Series Lately, I’ve been aware of things moving, sensing things changing—in both the natural as well as the Spirit. And in the midst of all the motion, I’m feeling the Holy Spirit’s urging to shift gears here too—to move past those surface “Reflections” of my last blog series and look into the depths. And I believe that it’s as we change our perspective, linger in His presence, and experience His goodness that we will find that deeper connection with the Holy Spirit, and a greater understanding of Who He is to us. As we start off...

War and Peace—Reflection Series As I was thinking about everything going on in the world today—with so much fear and a future filled with uncertainty—the Holy Spirit reminded me about a day in my own life when, overwhelmed by fear, I too, faced an uncertain future. The day was January 9th, 1993. Just the day before, life was looking rosy. I had been released from prison to stay with my parents while I got back on my feet. They lived in a small community at the base of Big Sur and my bedroom was nestled in the pines overlooking the...

Peace and Joy — Reflection Series If you have read any of my previous blogs, you’ll know that most center around a season in my life spent in prison. And, lately, as I have been reflecting back on that season, I’m realizing that the Lord used that time to develop and deepen my relationship with Him. And, out of that deeper relationship, has come a confidence, a boldness, and an unwavering belief that the promises in His Word are true for my life. Over this past month, I’ve heard many believers say that their lives have been shaken by fear and...

Forgiving Oneself — Reflection Series In my last blog, I mentioned that I had finally been able to forgive myself. One of my readers reached out and asked if I could expand on it in my next blog.  May I say upfront, in all honesty, that it’s still something I wrestle with. And because I don’t think I’m alone in that struggle, I want to talk about recognizing the need to forgive ourselves, and what it might look like to walk out that process. About a year after I was released from prison, my father said this to me, “I...

Freedom and Forgiveness — Reflection Series A friend of mine asked me an interesting question this week.  I look forward to our conversations because she always pushes me to think outside the box. This day her question was, “Over the past several years, what area in your life has had the biggest change or the most growth?” To my surprise, I replied without any hesitation, “Freedom!” The minute it left my mouth, I knew it was true. You know that feeling you get in your spirit when something speaks to your heart? Yep. That’s the one. But even though I...

How Great is God’s Love – Reflection Series With my life (and everyone else’s) put on ‘hold’ these past many months — I’ve had plenty of time to look back on my life. Back before lockdowns and shutdowns, before masks and protocols, before Covid threatened to change life as we know it. God took me back to a time when life was stacked against me on all sides. And I was facing it all alone. The date was Friday, August 21, 1987—to be exact. To be honest, I can even remember the gut-wrenching emotions of that day. Helplessness. Hopelessness. Exhaustion....

Impossible is Possible – Reflection Series It was November 1991, and I had just completed my first year in prison. On this particular day, I was making my one allowed weekly call to my Pastors on Kauai. The first peculiar thing about this day was that Pastor Larry answered the phone. That in itself was not unusual, but instead of handing the phone to his wife, Pastor Josie--like he did most every week--he said, “I need to talk to you!” It turned out that Josie had been sharing all the testimonies coming out of our prayer group—salvations, healings, and baptisms...

As I was preparing my sermon for Mother’s Day, May 9th this year, I received the song list from my worship leader, Kathy. Attached was a note saying, “If you’re not comfortable with the first song because of the date this weekend, I’ll sure understand. But I really believe God picked this song.” When I read her note, I was completely at a loss as to what date she was talking about—but then, it hit me—it would be my wedding anniversary! But, since my husband had moved on to heaven 8 years ago, I told her it wasn’t a problem...