Heaven Sent Sentiments

Sharing the hope of Jesus, one heaven sent story at a time.
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  • Monthly Archives: February 2019

    • True Test of Surrender

      Posted at 6:53 PM by Shanon Crenshaw, on February 25, 2019

      I surrender

      Hello! It’s a beautiful, sunny day here in the Pacific Northwest West and Mount Rainier looks gorgeous covered in snow. I love it!

      In my writing room, on my desk, and on my walls, I have various quotes from different authors and teachers of mine that inspire, educate, and direct my thoughts on my writing and my faith.

      Today, I was re-reading a quote that I had written down from my Oswald Chamber’s devotional, dated April 28th, that I had focused on last year.

      “The true test of abandonment or surrender is refusing to say, “Well, what about this?” The moment you allow yourself to think, “What about this?” you show that you have not surrendered and that you do not really trust God.

      But once you do surrender, you will no longer think about what God is going to do. If you totally abandon yourself to God, He immediately says to you, “I will give your life to you as a prize…” And once you do get to the point of total surrender to Him, you will be the most surprised and delighted person on earth.”

      Reading this today really convicted my heart. I have a few projects I am working on that are definitely God-given—-jobs that I would never have taken on myself. I truly feel blessed that these opportunities were provided to me by Him. 🙂

      However, today I find myself asking that very question about one of them in particular, “Well, what about this?”

      When that happens, I focus so much more of my effort and concern on fixing what I perceive to be wrong, instead of praying and leaving it to God and His timing, knowing that resting in where He has me today is right where I need to be.

      Now don’t get me wrong, I work here and there on normal mistakes and problems, that can easily come up. The “problems” I’m talking about are where you know deep down inside yourself you’ve given it enough attention and you need to move on, but…just one more thing! You don’t have peace anymore about it and all clear thoughts are gone.

      At this point, I know that the surrender I once had given to God is gone, and I need to give complete surrender back to Him. It is not my will I want done, but His.

      I know that God has brought me to this very moment in time. I believe that He is the Orchestrator of my life and that every event in my life has His seal of approval.

      Flora Tan, a Christian blogger, explains it perfectly in this way, “As a Christian, yielded to God’s will and committed to do His will, I know that I might not be perfect but as I surrender my life to Him day-by-day, He holds my destiny in His hands and brings to perfection that which is lacking in me through situations and life experiences.”

      Our Father and our God, I surrender my heart and life to You,

      Day-by-day,

      moment-by-moment,

      I surrender all to You,  knowing that You alone are the Author and Perfecter of my faith. (Hebrews 12:2)

      I am confident

      All the glory to God,

      Shanon

      Chambers, Oswald. My Utmost For His Highest. “What You Will Get, April 28th devotional.” Discovery House. 1992. Print.

      Image of Philippians 1:6 by 4GIVENministry.com.

      Image of “I surrender…” by I Surrender All–Adams Rib. adamsribpodcast.com.

      Tan, Flora. Christian blogger. 2018. www.a-simple-christian.com

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      Posted in God at Work | 6 Comments | Tagged abandonment, Christian, God's plan, God's will, Jesus, Surrender to God
    • Demonstrations of Love

      Posted at 9:18 PM by Shanon Crenshaw, on February 14, 2019

      jesus heart

      Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

      What a beautiful day! I am so thankful to God for all of the people He has placed in my life to love, especially my husband and two daughters. They are my greatest treasures on this earth!!

      Today I was thinking about the word “love” and all of the connotations it can have. This concept stood out to me the most:

      I don’t believe a person can truly experience the full depth of what love is, until you move beyond the idea of love as an emotion, and into the reality that it is actually a verb.

      Love pours itself out to others.

      Love forgives.

      Love believes and looks for the best in others.

      Love soothes the hurts and pain this life can bring.

      Love steps in when no one else does.

      Love comforts a grieving heart.

      Love gives without anticipating anything else in return.

      Love sacrifices self.

      ***

      Jesus set the example of love as an action word. His whole life is a demonstration of the way to love others and the Bible is filled with His instructions.

      Love pours itself out to others.

      God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. (Heb 6:10; NIV emphasis mine)

      Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4:10: NIV emphasis mine)

      Love forgives.

      Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tender-hearted, and forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. (Ephesians 4:31-32, emphasis mine)

      Love believes and looks for the best in others.

      Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Cor 13:7, ESV, emphasis mine)

      Love soothes the hurts and pain this life can bring.

      Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all of our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4, NIV emphasis mine)

      Love steps in when no one else does.

      The generous will themselves be blessed, for they share their food with the poor. (Proverbs: 22:9, emphasis mine)

      Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. (Romans 12:13, emphasis mine)

      Love comforts a grieving heart.

      Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God. (2 Cor 1:3-4, CSB, emphasis mine)

      Love gives without anticipating anything else in return.

      Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. (Matthew 5:42, NIV, emphasis mine)

      Love sacrifices self.

      And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:2, ESV, emphasis mine)

      Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13. ESV, emphasis mine)

      ***

      What about you? How do you demonstrate love to those around you? I did not begin to fully demonstrate the full depth of my love for others until I gave my heart, my life, and my will to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

      the greatest

      The transformation of my heart, to love fully the way Christ does, began that day and it continues as we speak. It is a choice I make every day– to live a life fully committed to the action of love in my life and to serve the Father who died on the cross to demonstrate His love for me.

      All the glory to God,

      Shanon

      Image of “I love the LORD…” by revivalfocus.com

      Image of “The greatest thing I have ever done…”  by http://www.facebook.comJesus lifestyle.

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      Posted in Reflections/Stillness | 2 Comments | Tagged bible, Christian, Demonstrations of love, God is love, Jesus, ultiamte sacrifice, Valentine's day
    • A Widow’s Call

      Posted at 7:07 PM by Shanon Crenshaw, on February 9, 2019
      Cool Paul

      My dad, Paul early 70’s

      Last week I spoke about my mom and celebrated her, on what would have been her 68th birthday. Today, I would like to share some thoughts on an incredible blessing God gifted to me and my sisters, our dad, Paul.

      When I woke up last Saturday morning, February 2nd–my dad’s birthday–the Lord placed a scripture on my heart concerning my dad and over the course of the week revealed to me, through the Holy Spirit, my dad’s faithfulness to Him and showed me his legacy.

      honour widows

      It is easy, through the lens of time, to look back and see how God has a plan for our life, knows our hearts completely, and uses us in ways that can bring triumph out of tragedy.

      In fact, God may start a ministry in your life, in such a subtle way when you are young, that it is only revealed, upon reflection and with the help of the Holy Spirit, when your hair is a little grayer and smile lines have deepened. Such is the story of my dad.

      ***

      Back in the mid to late 1960s, when my dad was in California and right out of the Air Force, he and his cousin Jack hung out a lot, they even went out on double dates together. Jack and his high school girlfriend, Sue Thorne, my dad, and his date went to the movies and restaurants together frequently. Deep friendships were formed.

      What God was working behind the scenes of these lives links them all together for eternity with God at the center–my dad was beginning a life that he would have never imagined for himself, but God did. A life of selflessness and compassion, a ministry of helping family through their hardest times: as widows.

      In late 1969, Jack got the call to go to the Vietnam War. He was newly married and his wife, Sue, was pregnant. My dad, at 26, was already out of the Air Force and was a civilian. Because Jack and my dad were so close, he asked my dad, should anything happen to him, to step in and help Sue out if she needed it.

      Sadly, Jack was killed in the Vietnam War at 19 years old with a six-week-old baby at home, my sister Melanie. My dad stepped in right away because my mom didn’t have parents to help, her in-laws were not very nice to her, and other family members had young kids themselves and couldn’t help as much as they would have liked.

      My dad brought diapers, soothed her when she was crying, and just helped out in any way he could like Jack asked him to. Over time, they fell in love and got married. Three daughters blessed this couple, and there were no dividing lines of love. All were loved and cared for equally.

      My parents, Paul and Sue, were married around 19 years before my mom passed away from cancer. My dad has never remarried. My mom was the love of his life. I believe, that if God had remarriage in His plans for my dad, he would have been open to it. But God had other plans…

      A few years after my mom died, my grandpa had a stroke. The stroke left him paralyzed on his left side, unable to walk, and he also couldn’t talk anymore. Being a widow himself, he didn’t have someone to live with him. This is where God used my dad.

      My dad moved from California to Indiana, moved into the farmhouse, and took care of him. He worked a local job at night and took care of him during the day. I don’t remember him complaining to me–not that what he was going through wasn’t difficult–but he grew up with the mindset that you do what needs to get done. Period. He cared for my grandpa as long as he could in the farmhouse he loved so dearly.

      A few years went by, and during that time he lived with my husband and me for a short while, getting to know his grandkids, making memories, and helping us out. He also lived with my sister, helping her out in the same way–as dad and grandpa! 🙂

      God soon had another plan for my dad to help out a widow–his Uncle Pete. As a recent widow, Uncle Pete needed someone to live near him on his property, spend time with him, and keep him from overtaxing himself. He was known to do too much in relation to his capabilities. His mind made plans his aging body couldn’t keep up with. This is where my dad partnered alongside him and helped him complete the tasks he wanted to do around his house and property.

      My dad had a long history with Uncle Pete. Whenever my dad was on leave from the Air Force, it was Uncle Pete who always stepped in to pick him up and bring him home. My dad never forgot how he helped him and now he was at a place to help him out. It was never a burden to him, he loved and respected his Uncle. He stayed and helped out until Uncle Pete’s care required more than one person.

      ***

      Decades ago, when my dad was beginning his life, I’m sure he never envisioned a life of moving around so much. He may have thought he would have lived in one neighborhood raising his family. God had a different plan. He used the tragedies in his life as a way of helping others and bringing Christ-like love and compassion to their time of need.

      To those on the outside, my dad’s life may appear as though he moved from house to house and didn’t place his roots down in one house and job like many people do.

      In reality, what my dad chose to do, is place his roots in Christ first, and follow the directed steps of His savior.

      god directs his steps

      My dad is a faithful and remarkable man. I love him deeply for many reasons, but what stands out the most is what a selfless and compassionate man of Christ he is.

      Happy 75th birthday, pop!!! You mean the world to me!!!

      All the glory to God,

      Shanon

      Image of 1 Timothy 5:3 by heartlight.org.

      Image of Proverbs 16:9 by One Accord Ministries.org.

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      Posted in God at Work | 4 Comments | Tagged Answering God's call, bible, birthday, Christian, Faithful dad to God, Jesus, Proverbs 16:9
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    • Shanon Crenshaw

      Shanon Crenshaw

      God is first and foremost in my life. I LOVE: my husband Steve, daughters Suzanne and Savannah, my AMAZING family and friends, the majestic beauty of the Pacific Northwest, traveling and camping, a GREAT cup of coffee with my morning devotionals, and my Sumner Family Church family. :)

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