When playing this game called “cookie face”, contestants must move the cookie from their forehead to their mouth without dropping it or touching it! The participants employed a variety of strategic plans including (but not limited to) standing still and only moving facial muscles vs. purposely jumping around, catching it and eating it- before anyone noticed! God’s plan for all generations is heartfelt and will not be thwarted. He always wins in spite of the vanity of many nation’s counsel, even in the face of aggresively bold people! Psalm 33 describes how-not only does His counsel stand but His plans succeed to all generations! – Teresa #generationtogenerationwillcommendHiswork #thearthisfullofthesteadfastloveoftheLORD #whenmyplansfail,HehasTHEplan

Psalm 33: 1-11 (ESV)

33 

1

Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous!

    Praise befits the upright.

2 

Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre;

    make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

3 

Sing to him a new song;

    play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

4 

For the word of the Lord is upright,

    and all his work is done in faithfulness.

5 

He loves righteousness and justice;

    the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.

6 

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,

    and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

7 

He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;

    he puts the deeps in storehouses.

8 

Let all the earth fear the Lord;

    let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

9 

For he spoke, and it came to be;

    he commanded, and it stood firm.

10 

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;

    he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

11 

The counsel of the Lord stands forever,

    the plans of his heart to all generations.

Our American team danced for the Ugandan teens! Thankfully, Price helped us throw something together and we had a team huddle before performing for this energetic crowd. I was inspired by my small group (the older girls). When the girls were practiced and ready for their dance competition, they circled around for prayer. The prayer that Alice led them in will always be in my heart. She earnestly pled for the blood of Jesus to soak them and their efforts so that they would be successful for Him. I no longer worried about the outcome of the competition for them because they were already deemed victorious in heaven’s eyes! As we sing praises today to the LORD most high and practice giving thanks, this will makes us ready for daily love aka eternal life!!- Teresa #taughtbyUgandanfaith #teensdancetheirheartsout #Americansinspired

Psalm 30: 11,12 (ESV)

11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;

    you have loosed my sackcloth

    and clothed me with gladness,

12 

that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent.

    O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

For young men who are trying to decide if it’s cheaper to “date” than marry, this is my interpretation of the Proverb in verse 26 below. A wife stops at nothing to make life precious for her husband! In contrast, an evil woman (one who does not love that man) will give him a meal by reducing him to a loaf of bread. It temporarily satisfies them both but has little sustenance for a lifetime of joy. – Teresa #bewise #Godloveisagapelove #pursuinglove #Christinvestedinthechurch

Proverbs 6: 20-26 (ESV)

Proverbs 6:20-26 English Standard Version (ESV)

Warnings Against Adultery

20 

My son, keep your father’s commandment,

    and forsake not your mother’s teaching.

21 

Bind them on your heart always;

    tie them around your neck.

22 

When you walk, they[a] will lead you;

    when you lie down, they will watch over you;

    and when you awake, they will talk with you.

23 

For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,

    and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,

24 

to preserve you from the evil woman,[b]

    from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.[c]

25 

Do not desire her beauty in your heart,

    and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;

26 

for the price of a prostitute is only a loaf of bread,[d]

    but a married woman[e] hunts down a precious life.

Footnotes:

a Proverbs 6:22 Hebrew it; three times in this verse

b Proverbs 6:24 Revocalization (compare Septuagint) yields from the wife of a neighbor

c Proverbs 6:24 Hebrew the foreign woman

d Proverbs 6:26 Or (compare Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate) for a prostitute leaves a man with nothing but a loaf of bread

e Proverbs 6:26 Hebrew a man’s wife

We may be sweetly broken by falling on the One who has authority to destroy both body and soul in hell. This is the beginning of salvation. The fulfillment of salvation is to be entrusted with His kingdom by abiding in Him (like a branch bearing grapes, connected to the vine). The process is painful but significant. This type of weighty importance brings God’s glory to the forefront. – Teresa #bougieandblessed #brokentobehealed

Matthew 21:42-45 (ESV)

42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

“‘The stone that the builders rejected

    has become the cornerstone;[b]

this was the Lord’s doing,

    and it is marvelous in our eyes’?

43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. 44 And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”[c]

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them. 46 And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.

When you have given all your physical strength and God asks you to give more, I propose that He will provide from His life-giving source (eternal life). Eternal life means to know God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent (John 17:3). We can know in our heads a few things about God. However, when we experience in our hearts His overwhelming, life-changing perspective of us (how much we are worth to Him), we are only then empowered with eternal life.- Teresa

Matthew 20:26b- 28 (ESV)

But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,[c] 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,[d] 28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

This young girl was teaching me how to read the Luganda version of John 3:16. Her head was sparkly with glitter (for winning one of the games we had just played) and her voice was so intent on passing this beautiful scripture on to me! Her victorious presence reminded me of this Psalm giving us hope that with clean hands, pure heart we can ascend the hill of the Lord. Make no mistake that it is not our “filthy rag righteousness” giving us access but our trust in His righteous act! Jesus is God’s Son and our Savior from sin’s penalty. Authenticity is what He requires of us. – Teresa #foolingnoone #therealthing #glitteronourheads #Hisvictoryoveryou

Psalm 24 English Standard Version (ESV)

The King of Glory

A Psalm of David.

24 

The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof,[a]

    the world and those who dwell therein,

2 

for he has founded it upon the seas

    and established it upon the rivers.

3 

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?

    And who shall stand in his holy place?

4 

He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

    who does not lift up his soul to what is false

    and does not swear deceitfully.

5 

He will receive blessing from the Lord

    and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

6 

Such is the generation of those who seek him,

    who seek the face of the God of Jacob.[b] Selah

7 

Lift up your heads, O gates!

    And be lifted up, O ancient doors,

    that the King of glory may come in.

8 

Who is this King of glory?

    The Lord, strong and mighty,

    the Lord, mighty in battle!

9 

Lift up your heads, O gates!

    And lift them up, O ancient doors,

    that the King of glory may come in.

10 

Who is this King of glory?

    The Lord of hosts,

    he is the King of glory! Selah

Footnotes:

a Psalm 24:1 Or and all that fills it

b Psalm 24:6 Septuagint, Syriac, and two Hebrew manuscripts; Masoretic Text who seek your face, Jacob

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

When God is in our midst, we are healed, not despised or rejected. He fills us with good things and brings deliverance! Grace and Alice showed me so much of God’s goodness in Kampala and even at the school dance competition at Togo. They danced and worshiped with their whole hearts, and were quick to include all of us! – Teresa #raiseurvoice #joyfuldancing

Psalm 22:19-31 English Standard Version (ESV)

19 

But you, O Lord, do not be far off!

    O you my help, come quickly to my aid!

20 

Deliver my soul from the sword,

    my precious life from the power of the dog!

21 

    Save me from the mouth of the lion!

You have rescued[a] me from the horns of the wild oxen!

22 

I will tell of your name to my brothers;

    in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:

23 

You who fear the Lord, praise him!

    All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him,

    and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!

24 

For he has not despised or abhorred

    the affliction of the afflicted,

and he has not hidden his face from him,

    but has heard, when he cried to him.

25 

From you comes my praise in the great congregation;

    my vows I will perform before those who fear him.

26 

The afflicted[b] shall eat and be satisfied;

    those who seek him shall praise the Lord!

    May your hearts live forever!

27 

All the ends of the earth shall remember

    and turn to the Lord,

and all the families of the nations

    shall worship before you.

28 

For kingship belongs to the Lord,

    and he rules over the nations.

29 

All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;

    before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,

    even the one who could not keep himself alive.

30 

Posterity shall serve him;

    it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;

31 

they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,

    that he has done it.

Footnotes:

a Psalm 22:21 Hebrew answered

b Psalm 22:26 Or The meek

Before we left for Uganda, I was blessed with a vision of a very tall, “well cared for” young man who appeared paralyzed and unable to get on his feet. I asked God to show up for this young man and told God that I would trust His powerful mercy and grace to work through me. After meeting various young people, I became aware of the lack of funding for college education at a secondary level. Similar to our country, in Uganda the young people who are “well cared for” may also be at the greatest risk. They are at risk for becoming immobilized by false expectations of social media setting for them unrealistic expectations of fame and fortune. The every day hard work of showing up, setting goals and plodding from point A to B to C may not always be glamorous but necessary for character development. Throw in a healthy dose of Bible reading, prayer, fellowship and we will see an unstoppable generation for God’s glory. I trust you, Lord, to show up in a mighty way to provide this message to the young people of today’s generation. I trust, Lord, that You will even use a miniscule life testimony like my own to speak about the importance of our tiny mustard seed of faith. -Teresa- #socialmediadangerstothosewhocanaffordaphone #prayingdaily #yourlifeisignificant

Matthew 17: 14-30 (ESV)

Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon

14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” 17 And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon,[a] and it[b] came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly.[c] 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” 20 He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”[d]

When Peter realized the significance of Jesus’ life (“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”) he also tried to assert a worldview of prosperity to that role ( “Far be it from you, Lord![d] This shall never happen to you.”). Peter could not equate God’s glory with suffering. I have this same mind block many times. If something arises that causes pain, I want to eliminate it from my life instead of embrace it and learn why the pain is there. At times, I find the pain is a result of other’s sin (those who I love). Even worst is when I discover that it’s a result of areas needing healing in my own life. There’s nowhere to hide with that- only naked transparency before the Son of the living God. The good news is that He calls us to follow His example, to embrace suffering which ultimately in His plan brings healing. Just as going through grief causes our hearts to break but eventually mend. Death to self causes our hearts to break but in time He brings about His glory and purpose. It’s not always about us, but about His purpose for our lives. – Teresa #don’tkickagainsthegoads

Matthew 16:13-17:9 English Standard Version (ESV)

Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock[a] I will build my church, and the gates of hell[b] shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed[c] in heaven.” 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord![d] This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance[e] to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life[f] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. 28 Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

I’m overcome by these two beautiful members on our team: Annika and Riley. Annika made a picture book/with words to touch my heart and Riley exudes sharing friendship, always authentic. When your day is rough, remember the people God puts in your life to bring a bit of joy!!- Teresa