Author: Tammy M Cardwell

Holes in Your Soul?

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

These are probably my favorite shoes…at least today. I have literally worn them out so completely that the duct tape you see is only covering holes in my soles – not really doing much to protect my foot. But you can’t see this important detail when you’re just looking down at my shoes.

Today, when I admitted to myself that I really need to dumpster these beauties, it occurred to me just how much they resemble the way we are sometimes.

We can look all pretty on the outside, making everyone think we’re just fine, while our souls seem to be held together with duct tape. The wounds may be hidden, but they are very real. I encourage you, don’t let yourself stay in such a condition. God is there, and He doesn’t just patch us up; He makes us new.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Remember Whose Kid You Are

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

A friend used to tell her children, as they walked out the door, “Remember whose kid you are.” She wasn’t talking about herself, but God. When we keep in mind the fact that GOD is our FATHER, it changes us. It changes the way we think, the way we act, who we are.

So who IS our Father? Today, my Flourish journey (Passion Publishing/LifeWay) inspired me to do something I’ve never done before. I added the words “my Father” to a passage…and it seriously brought the Word’s message home in a whole new way.

Psalm 24:1-10 (ESV)

“The earth is my Father’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for my Father founded it on the seas and established it on the waters. Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord my Father? Who may stand in my Father’s holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing from my Father the Lord, and vindication from my Father God their Savior. Such is the generation of those who seek my Father, who seek Your face, my Father, God of Jacob. Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory, my Father, may come in. Who is this King of glory? My Father, the Lord strong and mighty, my Father, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory, my Father, may come in. Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty – my Father – he is the King of glory.”

THAT is who your Father is, child of God, and don’t you forget it.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Do You REALLY Love Him?

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

John 14:15 ends with “But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandments, even so I do.” Because Jesus loved the Father, He kept His commandments.

It’s the same for us. If you love Jesus you keep His commandments; John 14:15, 21, and 23 declare it. Likewise, if you don’t keep His commandments, you don’t love Him.

Do you love Him?

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Do I?

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

I recently had to stop in the road because two little dogs had dashed into the street. One crossed the road, but the other got confused and was wandering. I prayed for the poor things, but then I realized what they’d been after and was floored.

A large dog was jogging beside a woman. He stayed right at her side, never seeming to even notice the little yapper that was chasing after him. He never broke stride, never looked away. He was doing EXACTLY what he’d been trained to do.

And he was carrying his own leash. Literally. He held it in his mouth as he jogged down the sidewalk beside a woman who obviously had total trust in him. And the two made me think.

In a sense, we’re all like that dog. God calls us to run along beside Him, but though He gives us a guide (the Word and the Spirit) that He could use as a leash to control us, He ultimately leaves the decisions up to us. What do we do? What do I do? Do I actively choose to walk faithfully beside Him, not turning to the right or left?

Do I?

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Leaving an Invaluable Inheritance

Tammy M Cardwell1 Comment

As a follow-up to last week’s post, http://tammycardwell.com/2020/02/29/invaluable-inheritance/, I’d like to suggest one thing you can do to help your grandchildren learn to love the Word. But first, a question.

Do you have someone who has passed, and you still keep their last voice mail on your phone? Or perhaps you wish there had been a voice mail you could have saved?

Voices are important, but we tend not to realize how important they are until a loved one is gone. That’s why, a few years back, I did a simple but powerful thing.

I used my phone’s Voice Notes app to record The Golden Children’s Bible for my grandchildren. I then copied those recordings onto flash drives and presented them as gifts. These weren’t professional by any stretch. They were all me, just Granna reading a book to them.

I’ve begun working on something similar for them for this Christmas. I’m recording the book of Proverbs. Again – ME, with my hesitations, flubs, and even a, “Hey, Granna doesn’t always get it right.”

With this idea of preparing a spiritual heritage for my grandkids firmly in mind, I plan to follow this with chapter-by-chapter commentaries (still in Proverbs). I won’t comment on every verse, but will share my thoughts on those that I’m particularly drawn to.

So, while I only have memories of the God-led conversations I had with my grandparents, my grands will be able to hear me share the important things any time they want – even after I’m long gone. And all it requires is a simple phone app and a little time.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Invaluable Inheritance

Tammy M Cardwell1 Comment

Psalm 119:111 (ESV): Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.”

In revisiting this verse today, the word “heritage” stands out. Your heritage is what you inherit. God’s Word is my inheritance.

Yes, we inherit it from God Himself, but I see more here. I see a spiritual application of Proverbs 13:22 (KJVER): “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.”

My grandparents, both sets, left me this tremendous inheritance, an enduring love for God’s Word. I saw them love it. I saw them live it. I discussed it with them. More valuable than any money they were able to leave, it is also the only inheritance that will last forever, and I will be eternally grateful for it.

Now it is my responsibility and honor to leave that same heritage for my children’s children!

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

I did a follow-up post at https://tammycardwell.com/2020/03/02/leaving-an-invaluable-inheritance/

The Light

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

Psalm 129:105: “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light for my path.”

John 1:1-14, 3:18-21, and 8:12 remind us that The Word is Jesus and Jesus is The Word and that Jesus, the Word, is light – not just light, but The Light.

Know Jesus/know The Word. To truly KNOW the one, you must KNOW the other. The Word without the Spirit gives head knowledge only. To know Jesus, but not dig into The Word to learn more about Him is to have a very shallow relationship.

Know them both, have them both living inside you. Then you will see The Light obliterate darkness and your path become clear.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

My Heritage Forever

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

Psalm 119:111 (ESV): Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.

God’s Word is the one thing I can invest in that is eternal. I know the “lay up treasures” verse isn’t exactly talking about The Word, but it still applies. If my goal is to get ready for eternity, then I should practice today what I will be doing a thousand years from now – obey whatever God says, fully and forever.

God’s Word IS my heritage forever! Unlike a trust, which can be broken and the money done away with, God’s Word will never “run out” and cannot be taken away from me. Even were armed men to come in and remove every Bible from my home. The Word I have planted in my heart is THERE, and there it will remain, providing a continual return on my investment.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

It’s The Word

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

I’m going through the Flourish journey (Passion Publishing/Lifeway) with friends, and we’re studying Psalm 119. I’m also, in my private time, working my way through Job yet again. It is amazing how much the two books teach me the same lesson.

“If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life. Save me, for I am yours; I have sought out your precepts. The wicked are waiting to destroy me, but I will ponder your statutes.” Psalm 119:92-95 (ESV)

These verses also reflect a truth about Job. He could have written them, in fact. Job’s delight was in God’s precepts. They were more important to him than food. They were the most important thing in his life.

This passion is why his faith was so great that it prompted God to bring Job to the devil’s attention, and even though Job slipped near the end of the trial, the foundation that was his faith kept him from going under.

After all was said and done, it could have been Job who declared, “If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.”

In our Flourish journey, we are sharing what God teaches us, and I love how He gives each of us our own, personal lessons while we study the same words. So far, my lessons have all revolved around this point: The Word is paramount, and making it the focal point of my life is essential. It’s not that I CAN immerse myself in it and make it a part of me; it’s that I MUST immerse myself in it and make it a part of me.

Everything else that seems important will eventually disappear. Only one is eternal: God’s Word. (1 Peter 1:24-25) That alone should be enough to make us realize how vital it is to our very lives.

Celebrating Jesus!

Tammy C

Facing the Mountain

Tammy M CardwellLeave a comment

We all face mountains. The question is, how do we face them? One man starts up the mountain without worrying about its height or terrain, trusting God to lead him every step of the way. Eventually, he pauses to glance around and sees he’s made it halfway up without even realizing it.

Another man stands on the dark side of the mountain, with no light to reveal its features or face. It is fearsome and he shivers at its base in terror, not daring to put one foot in front of the other. Yet if he waits for the sun the truth of the mountain will be revealed and his path become clear.

It is not the mountain itself that matters, but how we face it. If we trust in God with all our hearts and refuse to rely on our own, faulty logic, if we turn to Him for direction at every step, He will show us the right path to take.

Celebrating Jesus and Proverbs 3:5-6!

Tammy C