President Jan's Blog

This week Monday I was finishing up my reading in the book of Hebrews. One of the verses that jumped out at me was in chapter 11:5: (NKJV) Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have, for He Himself has said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.”
Contentment: that’s not the American way, is it? We have to have something new, something better, something to keep up with the proverbial “Joneses.” God’s Word is pretty clear; He calls it covetousness in this verse. A whispered prayer, Lord God, work contentment in me!
A few verses later, 11:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. After writing that verse in my journal, I wrote two words: Enough said.
One other neat thing to share. The journal that I am currently using has scripture verses on the bottom of each page; the verse on that page was Matthew 28:20 “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Words of Jesus, for you, for me.Words from the great I Am; Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever. God is in the details.
Today and each day as you walk with the Lord may He remind you of who He is. Introduce Him to those you meet along the way.

Long time; no blog! Just what I thought might happen; I guess that I have to get used to this manner of communicating.
As I was reading in Romans this past week, so many things really impressed me and spoke to my life. One passage that stood out was Romans 11:33-36: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.”
May these words minister to you; rest in the arms of this mighty God; explore the riches of His wisdom and knowledge. Secure in His love, tell others about Jesus.

My quiet time reading yesterday completed the book of John. Chapter 20, verses 30 and 31: “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”
Do I need any more incentive or encouragement to be “in the Word?”
May God minster to you through His Word. Blessings on your worship of the Triune God this weekend.

While at work yesterday (a women’s clothing store) I found out that one of “the” colors for early fall will be purple. How nice for me; many of the traditional fall colors do not work well with my coloring; purple should be ok! How nice for the LWML, since purple is one of “our” colors.
My quiet time today included John 19:2: “And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe.” Then, again, in verse 5: “Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe…”
The soldiers put the purple robe on Jesus to mock Him, the King of the Jews. Because Jesus willingly endured the ridicule and torture, the cross and grave, you and I can wear purple knowing that we are the dearly loved sons and daughters of the King. His crown of thorns won for us the crown of life eternal; how wonderful for each of us!
When you see the color purple, may it remind you of the love of God in Jesus Christ. Wear purple knowing you are a son or daughter of Jesus. How nice for all of us!

I am somewhat embarrassed as I share this with you; I called my local library today to renew a book that was already overdue. My excuse was that with my recent travel schedule, I hadn’t had time to get to the library, and further, I hadn’t finished the book. I was able to renew it and the book is now due on August 25th. The problem? The title of the book is, “Getting Things Done; The Art of Stress-Free Productivity,” by David Allen. Guess that I hadn’t read enough of the book to make a difference in my “getting things done.”
Heavenly Father, as I read Your Word, apply it to my life; let there be a difference in me as a result of the time that I spend in Your Word. Change me, make me over, forgive me, restore me.

July 9-12, 2009, I had the opportunity to represent the LWML at LWML-Canada’s 5th convention. LWML-Canada was formed in 1993; they operated on a biennial basis until 2003 when they went to a triennial schedule.

During the opening business session on Friday morning, the League Pledge was spoken. What a powerful reminder of what binds us together as sisters in mission, offering our service to our Savior! It was a pretty emotional moment for this president to participate in.

The theme of the convention, Shine Like Stars, was brought home by the speakers, worship, music and breakout sessions. I picked up a few ideas and possibilites for our organization.

A bonus for me was to be able to see Parliament Hill; what an impressive place that is! On Friday night I was able to view the light and sound show that takes place twice a night during July and August.

It was good to see many Canadian friends who were part of the International LWML for many years.

Please pray for our sisters in LWML-Canada as they make a difference in Canada and overseas in mission and in service.

This morning in my quiet time the reading was from Luke 10. Jesus’ words to Martha in verses 41 and 42 were also for me: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and trouibled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken from her.”

I, like Martha, can become worried and troubled about many things: speeches to write, thank you notes to send, e-mails, decisions, packing, “home” things, etc…and yet, I, too, need to be reminded of the one thing that is need; time with Jesus and His Word. My prayer often is to ask the Lord to apply to my life what I have read and learned. Today is no different; Lord grant me clarity on the important things in my life. Thank You!

The 4th of July weekend is over; were you bombarded with noise? The noise of fireworks…people gathering for picnics and parties…bands playing in community parades. As I sit at my desk, I am enjoying the peace and quiet. The other day I was entering a department store and realized that the music was playing outside of the store, even before I stepped foot inside! Once inside, the music continued, and to make it even noisier; some departments had their own music playing. Yikes! Is there no peace and quiet anywhere?

Psalm 46:10 reminds me, “Be still and know that I am God.” Lord, remind me to listen to You in a quiet place, to hear Your direction, Your still, small voice. Crowd out the noise of everyday life; fill me with Your Word; help me to internalize that word, to be “of the Word,” and see the life-changing power of Your Word in me.

Have a great week, walking with the Lord. Remember to be together in prayer at noon on Mondays, and to pray regularly for the LWML.

God blessed the 33rd convention of the LWML with tremendous programming, inspiring Bible study, excellent speakers, terrific entertainment, mission speakers sharing their stories, and more. Look to the Hills…God Reigns, was truly a mountaintop expereince for your president. After spending a couple of days exploring the Northwest with family, its back to work, following up on all the details, thank you letters and notes….and celebrating the 4th of July! Continue to pray for the LWML, and for the grants that will be receiving our Mite offerings this biennium. Check out the LWML Web site, www.lwml.org for the latest updates and news.
God bless each of you; God bless America; God bless the LWML!

After almost two years of encouragement from the LWML Communication Department, President Janice Wendorf is finally venturing into the 21st century and starting to blog!

The goal is to write about things that happen as I travel representing the LWML and to share insights into what God is showing me as I spend time in His Word.

May God bless each of you who are reading these entries; may we all be Lutheran Women (Children and Men, too) who are in the Word; of the Word; walking with the Lord!