Emailed Entries to Internet Cafe Devotions Falling for Jesus Contest

Be still and know that I am God! Ps 46:10

In the late fifty's a lot of young people traveled all over to "find" themselves. I was one of them. I was very shy, afraid of groups and liked to stay by myself and hated it at the same time. When I did go anywhere I put my all over mask on. This time it was Europe.

I got myself a motorbike, leathers and pup tent. Strapped my guitar on the back of the bike and off I went. People do not bother bikers, unless they want to be bothered. So this rough tough looking girl went to every museum, old buildings, 1200 year old Churches and things like that. I stood in awe of the masters and architects of the past. .........................

I am riding through a forest and I come to a still place. That is the only way I could describe it. It was a gloomy day. The still place was in a clearing.

Railroad tracks ran through the middle and came to a sudden stop in a pile of gravel. A lonely bench stood at one side. I stopped my bike and looked at the gravel. The stones were all smooth and round, small ones and larger ones all of different colors. I picked up two smooth stones and put them in my pocked and left, but not before picking up a brochure that was available for picking up. I did not look at the brochure until two days later. All the time my hands played with the stones in my pocket. Then when I needed to make a fire and was looking for some paper, I found the brochure back and sat down and read it. It told the story of the Jewish people that had been taken to this place to board the train, never to be seen again. The place had been kept as a memorial and every smooth stone represented a life that one's been. My hands were holding two stones that I had removed from the memorial.

Two lives. I could not forget this, no matter how I tried. So I turned back . I did find the place again. It was a beautiful afternoon. The sun was shining through the trees the light filtered on my hands, as I sat on the bench holding the stones and crying for no reason. I carefully put the stones back and prayed. I knew I was in a special holy place. I asked my Father in heaven to help me and guide me in all of life. Sometimes I am still looking to "find" me, but I know that my God had found me.

Gery Vandenhaak

Cafe Chat Meme

Café Chat is the Internet Café's weekly meme! On Thursday of every week there will be a new open ended question for us to chat about and your objective is to write a response to the question of the week and then post it on your blog!

A good question can change your life. You don’t believe me? What about questions like, “will you marry me?” or “do you want to have a baby?” A simple yes or no to either of those questions could change the direction of your whole life. Are you convinced yet? If you are convinced about the fact that questions can change your life than we are at a good starting place, and if you are not sure yet, stick with me over the coming months to see if you change your mind.

In my past, I have been asked questions that changed my life, and I am not talking about the kind of questions I presented in my opening statements. I believe God has used people to ask me questions, or even at times I feel like God has asked me a question in my heart that needed an answer. My answer to those questions changed the direction of my life. Sometimes, in small ways, and a few times in major life changing ways.

My hope for “Café Chat” is that God will use the questions I post weekly to change your life in some way, big or small. The questions themselves are not what is going to change your life; it will be the answers you give to the questions. Even more specifically, it will be your actions to your answers. A word of advice, no true change that will stick long term will happen to your life if you leave God out of the plan. God through His wonderful son, Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit will change our behaviors, actions, and even our lives. Without God we can do nothing, and with Him all things are possible.

In closing, I will leave you with a challenge, and know that I am challenging myself at the same time. Live out through Christ’s power the answers to your questions, and in the process I hope we will bring honor and glory to Jesus.

Your fellow servant,
To Know Him (aka: Kim)


The question for each week is listed below:

For questions about this meme or to make suggestions for future questions, please contact Kim: kim@internetcafedevotions.com

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Welcome to the Internet Café!

Grab a steaming hot cup of something and sit on down, we are blessed that you have stopped in to join us! It is ultimately our prayer that the Café will provide a “daily cup brimming with blessings” to each friend and visitor.

Every corner café offers “blends” that weave together coffees or teas that embrace different origins to create a unique experience. We, at the Café, are honored to have a “blend” of Christian women each with a unique passion for sharing God’s love. As each blend is unique and distinct, so are our writers, bringing her own flavor to the Café.

Each distinctly different ~ Each purposeful and passionate.

The Internet Café unites women of faith; unites women through the exhortation, edification and encouragement of each other through God’s guiding hand. We seek to unite women regardless of our stage of life or the signs that mark our church doors. Passionately we believe that through our written words we can support women on their own personal journey of faith, inspiring them to live as true disciples.

The devotionals will always uplift and never condemn. They will be rooted in Scripture, and offer reflections and prayers. Our purpose is to UNITE women of faith, encourage each other on life’s journey, and create an environment that is welcoming to each and every person who stops by for a “cup.” May you leave with a cup “brimming with blessings.” Psalm 23:5

For specifics on what we believe: beliefs

*This blog was originally founded by Darlene Schacht and is associated with Christian Women Online Digital Magazine but it is now individually owned and operated by Lori Macmath and Amy Grant Bayliss.

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Guidelines For Writers

The purpose of The Internet Café is to unite women of faith, regardless of our stage in life, our roles as women, our hair color, our political party, or the church we attend. We believe that one of the best ways to do this is to encourage each other in faith, by our spoken and written words accompanied by a short study each day to challenge and motivate you.

Most of our devotions are written by regular monthly contributors but we do accept submissions for use in guest spots. Also, from time to time a writer will step down to pursue other interests that God has placed on her heart and will need to be replaced. That is why submissions are important.

We are seeking devotions that will capture the interest of Christian women and inspire them to pursue the heart of our Father. Devotions should:

• be uplifting and void of condemnation.
• reflect a Biblical perspective.
• contain Bible verses (along with its reference and the translation it was taken from.)
• contain a short prayer.
• have questions to ponder at the end of the post that would welcome dialogue with our readers.

We are interested in inspiring devotions that share the God moments in day-to-day life; the honest transparency that brings you closer to the heart of Jesus; and words that guide readers into Biblical truth. We are not interested in publishing work that is written in an academic tone with the purpose to solely teach as though in a Sunday school setting. We must reach our readers and make the word relevant by using personal stories, experiences, and analogies. We also do not accept poetry. While we enjoy a theological type of writing, this blog is based around devotional material.

Devotions should be approximately 400-700 words in length, and should be well proofed for errors before submission.

Authors must own the rights to any works that are submitted.

Devotions must be submitted in a Google doc, Microsoft Word for Windows format or .pdf files with the author’s name, telephone number, URL, and email address marked at the top. Authors should also include a short bio and photograph.

We will try our best to consider all submissions, but unfortunately, we will not be able to include all devotions that are sent to us.

Please note that all writing is done on a volunteer basis.

Please email your submissions to:
lori@internetcafedevotions.com

Contact Us:

Feel free to contact us at any time.

lori@internetcafedevotions.com

amy@internetcafedevotions.com

Please allow 2-3 days for a reply.

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