February is a time to celebrate love. For me, it’s also a time to celebrate, honor, and remember our loved ones and the history that each of us have built and continue to build together.

Last month I drove my grandpa to Texas to see his sister one last time. She was diagnosed with lung cancer just before Christmas. The cancer is spreading quickly and the doctors are unsure how much time she has left. It was a sad reunion given the circumstances, but at the same time it was also a gathering filled with warm memories, laughter, and numerous stories of times past. Sitting in her small apartment surrounded by family I hadn’t seen in decades was a blessing and a beautiful reminder of the rich family history and the love shared through several generations.

When we said our goodbyes tears flowed and hugs were unending. It was sad knowing this will be the last time we see my grandpa’s sister on this side of eternity, but by the grace of God we’re able to hang on to the promise that it won’t be the last time we see her. The root of our family history and the love that keeps us together is the very root that will unite us again in our Father’s house. Through Jesus Christ we have been redeemed and have been given the gift of eternal life (John 3:16).

Take time this month to celebrate the love that holds family and friends together whether close or far apart. Above all, hang on to the eternal gift of love from the Father through His Son Jesus Christ.

Amanda Johnson is a freelance writer and a ministry assistant with a non-profit organization that reaches women across the world. She also serves as assistant editor with Ruby for Women, an online magazine for women of all ages. Her blog Forever In Him can be found at http://www.ajwrites4him.blogspot.com/

Throughout February the Jesus Boat Blog community will focus on the book of Psalms.  I’ll go out on a limb and say that this is one of the most beloved books of Scripture, one that believers turn to most often.

The Psalms speak to us, not merely as God’s word, but as a poetry that captures our feelings and gives us words to express our deepest emotions:  weariness, anger, doubt, grief, joy, sorrow, anxiety, hope.

Psalms are used in daily worship and in private prayer.  They form the basis of many hymns and praise songs.  They are read at weddings and funerals.

Psalms provide comfort for the sick, hope for the oppressed, reassurance for the weak, and strength for daily living.

Most of all, Psalms teach us about the character of God.  You cannot begin to know who God is without reading through the book of Psalms.

We invite you to join us as we reflect on this powerful book.  Along with the weekday blog, we’ll be posting passages from Psalms on the Jesus Boat Museum’s Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/JesusBoatFans.

We’d also like to share your stories. If you’d like to share a brief story of how a Psalm has touched your life, brought you through a trial, or revealed God in a personal way, visit the blogging community webpage to contact the Editor. http://www.jesusboatmuseum.com/blog/?page_id=1181

We’ll select some of these stories to share throughout the month of February.

I will extol the LORD at all times;  his praise will always be on my lips.
I will glory in the LORD;  let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Glorify the LORD with me;  let us exalt his name together.  (Psalm 34:1-3)

Karen Wilber serves as the Editor of the Jesus Boat Blog community.

In this changing and unpredictable world, the only constant thing is prayer. The power of prayer is the same today as it was yesterday, and will be till the day of Jesus’ return. And because of that the miracles that people saw two thousand years ago are still possible today. Yes, it is. All we need to do is believe.

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. Matthew 21:22

Many of us know about this promise in the scripture and draw strength from it. Then why is it that it takes forever for our prayers to get answered? Is there a problem with our belief? Maybe it is, but it can also be about the way we pray. During the time I was standing for my marriage, initially, it was all about “Jesus, please restore my marriage. Please make my husband fall in love with me again. Only you can do it God, and no one else. You told us to believe and you will answer our prayers. Please help me oh Lord. It hurts so much.”

I won’t say it was not at all helpful. It was because it gave me the strength to face each day and look at the future with hope. The present was terrible, but my attention was arrested by the hopeful tomorrow. However, I was not seeing all that I wanted to see, and that part was the most painful. But the God we serve is a faithful and loving God. Oh how much I love Him!

God showed me the power in the scripture and told me to use scripture verses in my prayer.  And then He told me to fast. I did a couple of them but the breakthrough came when I went on a 40-day fast. I only used to have dinner and spent the whole day on water alone. It’s an amazing experience, and I will definitely do it again. Glory be to you always Heavenly Father, Precious Jesus Christ, and Blessed Holy Spirit.

You do not have to go for a 40-day fast, if you don’t feel led. The Holy Spirit nudged me to do it. No, He doesn’t speak to me in a loud voice, nor does He come in a vision. He speaks to me as the tiny voice that tells us what to do. Many call it the conscience. The way you fast is your decision, but the objective of fasting is to pay our homage to God, and show Him in our small ways that we put Him above our needs.

Fasting is about not doing something that we love doing. It can even be about abstaining from sex (sex should only be between a married couple) or something else that we absolutely need like meals, coffee, etc. The one lesson I learned is when we fast, we shouldn’t think about what we are sacrificing and instead concentrate on God, on the sacrifice that Jesus made for us. I made a point to thank Jesus every time I felt hunger pangs.

In short praying scripture verses with you and your loved ones’ names on it; believing and confessing that God has already worked the miracles you are waiting for, and fasting is a power package that will definitely show the result you expect. Just make sure that what you are asking is in line with God’s will. You will know that from what God said about the situation you are in. These three aspects of a prayer life will do wonders for you, but above all you will be closer to God like never before and never be the same person again. Praise God!

Debbie is a believer who knows for sure that God can do anything. She writes about what she has experienced, and prays that it will show others that their cause is not lost. We all have hope in Christ! Praise God.

God loves new things: new songs, new hearts, new heaven and earth, new names. Living realities are promised to us by God. “Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I declare” (Isa 42:9). On the morning of Pentecost in Acts 2, the believers experienced something new from the Holy Spirit’s fiery presence.

Jesus’ mission on earth involved a radical break from the traditions of man, but not the laws of God. He fulfilled every jot and tittle of the Mosiac Law (Matt 5:17-18). Tradition teaches us what we must ‘do’, but Christ shows us how to ’be’. Therefore, under the new covenant, God writes His law on human hearts rather than tablets of stone (2 Cor 3:3).

Jesus uses a parable about garments and wineskins to demonstrate Jewish legalism. He reveals how the old covenant is inflexible and outdated: “No one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined” (Matt 9:17; Mark 2:22; Luke 5:37-38). The ‘old wineskins’ of Judaism could not contain the vigorous new life of Christianity.

Godly dreams give renewed hope; and hope sustains us in a barren world. Jesus came to give freedom to the poor, oppressed, sick and broken-hearted. He exposes afresh the heart of the ancient faith. Our Messiah is the God of new beginnings (Col 1:18). He is the new wine of a better covenant (I Cor 11:25; Heb 8:6). Jesus’ arrival in the world was the dawning of a joyful new era between God and mankind.

During this new year, I want to taste and see that the Lord is good (Psa 43:8). Since God’s compassions are always fresh every morning, I want to cherish the wonders of His boundless vibrant life. He restores my soul. What indescribable delights await as we pursue His enduring grace!

Anna Darlene Free Edmondson and her husband make their home in Tifton, Ga USA. where they raised their children Annalee, Elijah, Luke and Gabriel.  Her joy is bird and deer watching.

Since I live in a milder climate zone, I decided that given our drought this year, I would plant a winter garden.  It seemed easy at first, but growth seems to be a problem.  First my collard plants disappeared, then the cabbage, and now the broccoli.  My secret visitor does not seem to like the Brussels sprouts, or the spinach.  Yet, it seems as if watering and fertilizer is not enough to make them thrive.

So, it turns out that the gate in my garden had a gap at the bottom.

At first, I could not figure it out.   I closed the gate and we live on a fenced property, so no animals should be able to get into the garden…Obviously that was not true, since plants were getting into the garden.  That left the deer, who could leap over the fence, or small night animals I have not seen.   I was mystified.

Until our one not-so-herbivore dog was found in the garden.  Maybe she likes to pull up vegetables, because she certainly does not like to eat them!  She showed me the point of entry at the bottom of the gate.   We got a small metal clip to close the hole, and my garden has since remained intact, even though it is smaller.

The gate is only part of the story.

Yes, the enemy comes in to take away what is ours by right as children of God.  A baby boy born with a defective heart and needs a transplant.  A baby born with a genetic deformity, or condition.  Children orphaned by their parents’ death.  Families that end in divorce.  Illness that takes over.  Finances that lie in ruins.  The devil roams like a prowling lion.

We try to yoke ourselves only with believers, but wolves come into the Church, and take our crop, even before it matures.  They steal what is not theirs, and the consequences can take our breath away, because we never suspected them in the first place.  That is why they look like sheep in the first place!

Yet, even then, we will not fall…

Yet, when our backs are up against the wall, and destruction is all around us, Jesus comes in and fills the gap.  He grows a new crop, or provides another way.  He provides a miracle, or a way out.

Yes, sometimes tragedies happen.  Babies and children die, accidents happen and more.  The end result is Yahweh’s will, because he wants us to come to Him with our whole heart.  That doesn’t mean that we let the devil attack us, but we follow God as much as we are capable and He will do the rest.

The Lord will make sure that we have our crop, no matter how the devil attacks us.  Now that the gate in my garden is fixed, I can prepare for my fresh crop of vegetables.

Behold, I stand at the door and knock!  If any man hears my voice, and opens the door, I will come in to him, and eat with him, and he with me.  Revelation 3:20 KJV

Kim Kufus is a Christian inspirational writer who shares in a ministry with other special needs parents, at His Special Kids (http://www.hisspecialkids.info).  She blogs for Jesus Christ, runs a prayer group, gardens, steals moments on the porch swing with her husband, and homeschools her two sons.