Tag: #Lordhelp

When you fail the test

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It’s been one of those days. To think I’m even on the iPad after all the technical difficulty I had this afternoon, is a testament in itself. There’s no way around the fact that I’m one “stubborn cookie”. So you might be wondering what test I failed. I’ll get to that in a minute. Well I’ll just spill the beans! Sunday afternoons I usually work on the short devotion I’ll teach on Wednesday. Today was no different. The irony of this is, I’m going to share on James 1:2-4. Considering it joy when we face trials of many kinds. My trial today was a technical trial that lasted for hours and with 12 reboots of the iPad to try to get around the technical problems. It was SO frustrating. I mean, really! I think God was probably getting a bit of a chuckle because I wasn’t even close to being joyful because I was so frustrated.

Here’s the issue. The last three iOS updates which are supposed to be “all that” have been a nightmare to me. I’ve talked to many people with good vision and I have yet to find one who likes the latest three updates. For me the issue is, when I zoom the screen (that’s a triple tap and drag – and I’m always zoomed in to see since I have low vision) if I edit anything then I basically lose control of the screen; it automatically scrolls and wiggles all on it’s own and won’t let me control the screen. It is horrible. Rebooting only allows me to read it, but once I make any changes, even a single letter, it does it again.

So there I was working on my notes (or rather trying to) all afternoon and it did nothing but frustrate me AND I was making those notes on having JOY in trials. Ok Lord! You might be getting a laugh but I’m down here shaking my head and knowing I failed that test. I will still teach on this on Wednesday because life is a good teacher and God is teaching me right along with everyone else.

I’ll copy/ paste my notes here. Who knows, just maybe I can complete them in the blog. It’s worth a try. I’ve tried everything else and nothing has worked. So here are my notes……

Devotion for 2/18
Tonight I want to open with James 1;2-4(NLT) “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” (NLT‬‬)

How many of us count it as an opportunity for joy when we face trials? Anybody? Me neither. Well….. We’re learning. Let’s think about this. When we experience tough things in life, pure joy is not usually our first response.

As we are facing something tough our first responses are often times uncertainty, anxiety, fear, frustration, even dread. There could be some moans of “not again” and “Can’t I catch a break!” We all know the drill, from different situations.

The scripture in James doesn’t eliminate these feelings in a believer and honestly rarely is my first response joy. However, it can be. In those few verses of James we learn that we can consider and approach our tough times with joy. I did fail this test today but just hear me out. When a tough situation arises, we have opportunity to trust God with the situation. That makes our burden lighter as we realize God can somehow work it out.

Joy is brought about by the greater “picture at play’. And indeed I did laugh a bit after my initial great frustration. (Which repeated itself again and again until it wore me out.). The greater picture is that trials develop our maturity and perseverance. When our minds are focused on the present, here and now, everything can feel harder and much worse.
If we see out current suffering in light of the “grand scheme”of our life, our development of perseverance is important and going through these trials refines us so we can choose to respond in joy, as we see God developing us.(wow! That was a long run-on sentence!)

Until the day we die, God will be developing us into the image of His son Jesus. Romans 8;29-30 says. “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. (NLT‬‬) That is the love of our God. How truly rich we are when we know God’s precious Words and study them.

The way to experience Joy in the midst of trials is to look to Jesus. He’s got us in His hands. He wants us to surrender, confess our sins, repent and live for Him. Look at the big picture in your life. The moment by moment that develops us along the way. So I failed the “finding joy” in the technical trials today and it wasn’t just the iPad, it was also the stove and the microwave. I could tell you some stories but we live and learn, wake up the next day and do it again. Hopefully passing the next test with “flying colors”.

Well that’s the end of my notes and Glory to God, I was able to make some edits without the screen taking on a mind of its own. I know I’m not the only one who “deals with life”. Let’s try to keep our focus on Jesus when our frustrations try to get the best of us. When I share this lesson on Wednesday, this days struggles will be gone. Only God knows what tomorrow holds. Let’s trust Him with His best.

Www.shannonkhinson.com.

UGHHH…..The Irony

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Oh the irony of life! God surely has a sense of humor and sometimes I don’t quite find it so amusing. Thus the title of this blog. Usually Sunday afternoon finds me working on the upcoming devotion for the homeless ministry. This Wednesday I am planning to teach on thankfulness. The thing is, it’s been a frustrating day. Whether it is the real struggle of miscommunication, trying in vain to see power points that I can’t see, not able to follow worship music in church…. Etc….. and here I am working on a devotion about thankfulness. Okay Lord! Help me be teachable so I can in turn teach others. The struggle is real!

Don’t get me wrong, I am thankful but it honestly takes a shift of perspective. I’m sitting here making notes for Wednesdays devotion and my iPad starts doing this odd “jiggle scroll movement” on its own, over and over. Mind you… it only does this on ZOOM and guess what? I’m typically zoomed in when I’m online so I can see. I’m actually laughing at the moment at the irony.

Let me share a short bit from my notes for Wednesday: I Thessalonians 5:18, “Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. (NLT) In Philippians 4:6 the Apostle Paul links prayer and thanksgiving. “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬ ‭(NLT‬‬)

Thankfulness starts in the heart and prayer is so important in addressing heart issues.  For example; When we take the focus off the problem and choose to thank God , our attitudes can shift for the better We can address whatever we are facing by praying about it and thanking God. If you know what I deal with day to day , all I can say is, Lord take the wheel! I’m done!” Miscommunication is frustrating. Technology issues are frustrating. My cochlear implant battery actually died while sitting here on the porch. I normally immediately change it but it’s kind of peaceful sitting here in utter silence.

I’ve been praying about the church situation. I love the church we’ve gone to for the last several years but right now circumstances have us trying to find one closer to home since my husband takes our son to work Sunday mornings. If you know me, I can get lost in true worship. I can often times recognize songs by the musical chords before the lyrics even start (thanks to my cochlear implant processor) But the non traditional churches we’ve visited are so loud, with heavy bass and drums, I am unable to follow. The lyrics were up on the screen today. We sat on the second row. I told Ron it is so weird the way I see (or don’t see). I see some of the letters but I can’t make out the words. (Optic nerves are too small so all the stimulus doesn’t get through). The music is so overly LOUD it distorts things to my hearing with my implant. (that’s most churches) Tears actually spilled over in my frustration today. (Just briefly. Sometimes you’ve got to let it out.) God knows. It’s just a weird season right now. BUT…. I’ve got to be thankful. God help me find the silver liner during this time.

So that is where I am today. Linking prayer and thanksgiving, making my requests known to God. He knows anyway. Thanking Him for this coming week, this coming devotion, thanking Him for working all these things out according to His Will and pleasure. As you prepare for Thanksgiving week, make time to reflect on God’s goodness and faithfulness. Take time to include others who may not be fortunate to have someone to share a meal with. There are many ways to reach out to others. When you bless others, God returns the blessing to you in some way.
Happy Thanksgiving week to you all!

Www.shannonkhinson.com

The “shape”of Love

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A small pocket cross, reminding me of Jesus’ love.

This has been one of those days/ weeks when I could write a couple of blogs on different topics or as troubled as I am by recent events, I could just be silent. I’m going to attempt a blend of these.

Today would have been my Dad’s 83 birthday. We sure do miss him but know he’s in the best place with Jesus. I miss his wisdom and insight and would have been seeking out his counsel over recent local and national events. (Excuse my run on sentence) Dad worked hard for our family but always took time for us and our activities. He’d come to our games/ activities then go back to work and stay until his work was done. Some of his long time employees truly loved him and Mom. They seemed like family. Most of all he was a man of faith. He loved Jesus and served the less fortunate at his church’s food pantry.

This morning my brother sent a little group text to me and Mom, sharing a picture video of memories with Dad. It brought a big smile to my face and he sent Dad’s signature emoji 😎 We sure do miss him and continue to live out his legacy of faith, family and service to others. I told them in this mornings group text that we should do something to celebrate him by looking out for others. He was always doing that. I knew him many times to bless someone without them ever knowing it was him. With an upcoming beach trip with girlfriends I got some snacks today I knew the others would like. That is something Dad would have done.

He would have liked the devotion I taught last night for the homeless and less fortunate friends we have. Last night I shared on biblical love and how much God loves us all. I asked my husband if I could buy some pocket sized crosses to give out and he agreed. I shared the following verses. “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” John‬ ‭15‬:‭13‬ ‭(ESV‬‬) Following this, I shared two verses from 1 John 4 at the end of verse 16, “God is love, and all who live in love, live in God, and God lives in them.” And also verse 19, “We love because God first loved us” (NLT) This sets the stage for understanding that God’s very nature is love. He doesn’t just show love, He IS love. He loved us first. The end of the devotion was sharing 1 Corinthians 13 on biblical love. It is so different than worldly love. Lord help us to demonstrate Your love to the world. After I finished, I told the people about the crosses we had brought for them. I carried one in my pocket many years ago. Now I have a cross necklace I wear. I explained I knew some days can be tough. You can reach in your pocket, feel the cross and remember God’s love for us. He sent His only son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. (John 3:16).

It was a somber time because we heard Charlie Kirk had been assassinated. However being a little short on volunteers, we all worked together to love and serve the people who were there. It’s about being the “hands and feet of Jesus”. I love being a part of this.

We were exhausted when we got home but we wanted to know what had happened to Charlie Kirk. We were shocked and saddened at what we discovered. He was only 31 years old. A loving husband and father and champion for Faith Family and Freedom. What has baffled me the most besides the tragedy itself is the comments and rash remarks made. Even more perplexing is people making it about racism. The world is truly evil and troubling. This is not politics as usual people! This is spiritual warfare! “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Ephesians‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬ ‭(NKJV‬‬) We are really living in evil times.

There was also the stabbing of the Ukrainian refugee on the light rail train in Charlotte. Totally unprovoked. She was a beautiful young lady who had fled war torn Ukraine but was murdered in cold blood in Charlotte NC. She didn’t get a second chance in life, but her killer got 14 chances and released from jail again. SICK world. Our justice system is such a failure. When people have dogs that are known to attack those dogs are put down. Meanwhile multiple time offenders are released back on the streets to do it again or worse. This is outrageous!

Bottom line, we are in a time where evil runs widespread. We have to stay Prayed up and constantly aware. Do you know Jesus? These days, you never know when it might be your last and like the young lady who was stabbed, you might not get a second chance. Praise God for His love, grace and mercy. He is always ready to wrap you in His loving arms when we surrender to Him and confess our sins. There is no time like the present to ask Jesus into your heart to be your Lord and Savior. Let Him turn your life around for His glory, honor and praise.

Lord helps us shine for you in this dark evil world. Shine brightly Jesus for the whole world to see. 🙏🏼 Be blessed, and better yet, Be a Blessing.

Www.shannonkhinson.com

My first Zoom meeting

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I accidentally took this screenshot while my iPad was under my video magnifier. The lower right square was supposed to be my face but it’s the machine 😂😂


I just had my first “Zoom” meeting experience. Let me just say, that was interesting! The Advanced Bionics Cochlear Implant Consumer Specialist (CICS) in the Southeast region invited me to attend the nation wide zoom training for mentors. I certainly have my doubts about this. Yes, I would love to share my story! Yes, I love to positively encourage others and share tips. I’ve had my CI for 16 years but I also am legally blind. My success rate has been all over the scale during the last 16 years.

Yesterday I had another mapping with my Audiologist. She turned my levels up and made a few adjustments so I could understand better when I left her office. She encouraged me to try the mentor training. She said there are all levels of success, so I gave it a try today.

The zoom meeting was closed captioned but it was so small I had to zoom in on my iPad to follow along. When I zoomed in on the iPad I could no longer see the speakers. I finally decided to use my video magnifier for people with low vision. This machine makes things large. Once the iPad was on the video magnifier the group could no longer see my face but rather saw the magnifying machine. When the main group broke into regional groups the captioning disappeared but I saw a familiar face. With the captioning no longer working I decided to just zoom in on faces. Oh the things I try when faced with a new challenge. Zooming in large in a zoom meeting! How ironic!

One big take away from this experience, for a good zoom experience, either hearing(even with cochlear implant technology) or sight is so helpful. If you are like me and limited in both categories you will need a big dose of patience and a determination to try anyway. One thing I bring to the table of mentoring is the mentality to never ever give up. Where there is a will, there is a way. I will try again if I’m sent another invitation to the next meeting in September.

The picture below sits on a table in our family room. It’s a reminder to me and anyone else who sees it to believe in yourself. Everyone brings a unique set of abilities to the table. We all fall short in some areas but God’s power is made perfect in our weaknesses. That’s one huge reason to be thankful.

My website is currently down as I wait for the release of my files. I’m hoping to combine my website and blog together. In the meantime if you’d like to check out my autobiography “Rooted by the Water” you can find it on Amazon in hard over, soft cover and e book formats. Thank you for journeying with me. Please subscribe to my blog and share it with others. Blessing to you all.