NorMel House Devotions

  "You have searched me, Lord , and you know me.  You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.  You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.  Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord , know it completely.  You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.  Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.  Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?  If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.  If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,  even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.  If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,”  even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.  For you created my inmost bei...

  There are things in life that take us by complete surprise. Life’s pathway will bring struggles; we each have our own particular heart ache. Yet, we can be confident, we serve a God who knows the beginning and the end! He has given us a light for our path and we must trust our sovereign God; that He knows what He’s doing. When wrestling with assurance we can see that the devil is strong. He will do anything to separate us from God’s love so we must pray for perseverance! We must also pray that we will see God’s presence in our lives and that God will keep His eyes on us. By faith, through grace, we are united with Christ and therefore perfect in God’s sight. When we know in faith, that this is true for ourselves, then we may know that no matter thick or thin, no matter what trial or trouble, we are well protected, for He will hide us in the shadow of His wings. What a blessed comfort it is to us, to enter day by day, knowing that the Father sees His children through the lens of H...

  Forgiveness is something that many of us often struggle with. We may have a hard time forgiving someone for hurting us or we may struggle with wondering if we are truly forgiven by God. The Bible tells us “For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:34). If we come to God in faith and repentance God will forgive us.  We owe God more than we can ever give; we enjoy God’s mercy, grace and incredible riches at Christ’s expense. Whatever anyone may have done to offend us pales in comparison to what we have done to offend God. Who are we, who have been forgiven so much by God, to withhold forgiveness from others who owe us so little? #MondayMeditations Mel of the NorMel House

  ASK. SEEK. KNOCK. 3 loving invitations from our Lord Jesus. The bible tells us in Matthew 7:7-8  “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." God delights in answering our prayers so ask in faith and be assured of receiving all that God has promised us in His Word! #MondayMeditations

The NorMel House instagram pics - so much beauty   So much beauty. So incredibly delicate yet tough. So much more than a simple flower. It reminds me of hope. It reminds me of God's consistency in creation. It reminds me of mercy new every morning. It reminds me of who is really in control of life and to stop and appreciate it. It reminds me that beauty can exist in the middle of this marred and broken world. It reminds me that the great Giver indeed does give us our daily needs. I'm not a plant person, I don't remember to water the plants inside my house and I do absolutely nothing for the ones outside. Still these reflections of work by the Great Artist come back ever year to remind me that even though we may have a bleak and cold season beauty and warmth will return.  #Godissogreat #NoartistlikeTheArtist #Godrenews #Godgivesusallweneed #HopeinHim #Bestill  #ChildofGod

  Every year these amazingly beautiful flowers sprout up through the weeds in the thing I call our "garden". The owners before us (over 7 years ago) had nice gardens with many pretty flowers. Being the allergy prone person I am, I have nothing to do with the gardens or lawn. I attempted to weed the first 2 years we were here but gave up as I got sick every time... These beautiful flowers continue to return EVERY year without fail and amaze me with their beauty. Through no help of mankind they push through past the myriad of weeds to share their glory and beauty with me every year. And every year again I'm reminded of how amazing our God really is. He created these beauties. He brings them back every year to make me smile and every year again I'm impressed with His stunning creation. There truly is no artist like The Artist. From the NorMel House where we find joy in God's amazing artwork

  Easter weekend More than just chocolate and bunnies and fun. More than just an extra day for a church service. More than just a long weekend. How much more? Well, it's a matter of life and death. If Christ didn't give up His life for us our debt would not be paid, our lives would not be redeemed. But it didn't end there! He rose from the dead and ascended into heaven! This is oh so important. We have a place in heaven because He went there to prepare a place. Death won't hold us in the grave because Jesus conquered sin and death! We are saved, redeemed, delivered, and given a place of glory as children of God because Jesus Christ made it possible! I stand in awe and amazement at this Grace. We are so undeserving, yet Jesus said "Into Your Hands I commit my Spirit". He gave up His life for our sake; how beautiful it is to be loved by God. From The NorMel House to yours, may we give up our spirits into the Father's gracious Hands that our Saviour Jesus Chr...

Emotions betray us. I know, I know, there’s a purpose for them, but the way I see it, it comes down to Faith versus Feeling.  I am a person who lives with overwhelming emotions. Not just moody, or fluctuating, but OVERWHELMING. Have you ever felt overwhelmed by something? Have you ever been so submerged in something, so surrounded by it, so overtaken by it, that it literally feels like it’s the only thing in your world at that moment? I have. I do. Constantly. I am not an expert, or a doctor, or a scientist, nor do I have any qualifications but one; life. When it comes down to making decisions most people will go with what they feel is right; I don’t. I go with what I know is right. God has given us everything we need in order to know what is right and wrong. Plain and simple (well, not really, our emotions can make things very complicated and sometimes there’s no black and white line, or writing on the wall, but you’ll get my drift eventually). I should start by saying that I don’...