The most recent development at our home happens to be that we have left the Church closest to us and are now traveling to Naples to be apart of the fellowship there. This was something the Lord had established that we do prior to my visit to Tri-cities, but unfortunately, we delayed. It is hard to leave somewhere you get plugged in, but when God says GO it is best to listen in HIS timing and not our own! Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to Christmas eve service down in Naples, but I guess it was quite a festive event. John heard all about it last Sunday along with getting introduced to many of the folks at the church. He got to go by himself as he was the only one not yet suffering from the sinus headcolds. , In his fellowship time he got some really neat advice from some fellow brothers about being patient for the Lord to reveal his plan. This seemed to be a re-occuring theme for the day for him. Just another way for God to use others to speak to our heart! However, the neatest piece of advice that John came away with was this:
“Many times when we seek to hear the Lord’s plan for our lives, we only do so in an effort to CONSIDER (mull over & count the cost) the Lord’s plan, rather than with an attitude of first time obedience to WHATEVER God has in store.”
In theory, everybody wants to be in God’s will. Everyone wants God’s plan because in the end we understand in our heads that His plans are SO MUCH better than anything we could come up with on our own. That He is God and we are FAR from anything but a pile of filthy rags. Whether your personality is reflective of a ‘Mary’ or a ‘Martha’, we all do this in many ways that we may not realize. Either personality has it’s own demons in the way ‘considering’ plays its role. Marys’ tend to worry and dwell in the What If’s, impossibilities, and how to’s. Marthas get a piece of the puzzle and start plotting & planning for ways that will make things happen. Neither one is abiding, resting or dwelling in the fact that the the Lord has got things under His control. Especially when we have trouble RELINQUISHING the control to the Lord. That in a nutshell is the heart of the matter. Control, whether through worry or self-reliance are both sin and disobedience. Lately we have experienced a period of unanswered prayers in seeking His direction so these are the scriptures He has me meditating on. Trusting, seeking, dwelling, abiding, listening and just plain old sitting at his feet. Knowing full well that He has some amazing plans for us and to continue practicing that list above until He is ready to share, His perfect timing is in place, and WE are ready to receive it. At this point His voice will be unmistakable.
Psalm 37:3-7 3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. 4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: 6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun. 7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
John 15:4-5, 7 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. 5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will[b] ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
Proverbs 14: 20 Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise. 21 Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.
Psalm 51:1,10 1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalm 139: 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
These are some of the scriptures that are speaking to my heart lately. Making certain that we are ready to obey, rather than just consider His will for our family. Here are some questions posed on a “New Years Devotional” from truth media, that were asked to ponder over as they relate to the past year and looking toward redeeming further growth, in the coming year.
Here are some questions we might ask ourselves:
How real has the Lord Jesus Christ been to me?
Did I seek His will when making decisions?
Was my life a good example for others?
Did I help anyone else come to Christ?
How many prayers did I have answered?
If I could do it over, would I live the same way?
Happy New Year!
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Christmas cooking
I must admit that last Christmas I was a bit of a GRINCH! It was our first year away from our family, traditions, familiar friends & traditional Christmas as we knew it. It didn't feel like Christmas at all! However, this year I wanted to be different. I wanted to choose to live OUTSIDE my feelings of grinch-like tendencies and make a conscious effort to redeem Christmas. One of the ways I accomplish this is by baking. It is one of my true pleasures to bake gifts to give out to neighbors. However, here in Florida you must plot and scheme to do this. You have to make things ahead of time and wait for the weather to co-operate. It seems to be against my nature and logic to turn on the oven for a day filled with baking, on a hot day! If the consequence ends up being that the air conditioner and I BOTH have to work OT in the heat it is a NO THANK YOU! This last weekend there was a "cold front" coming! Highs in only the upper 60's! WOO HOO! God is so good to me! I had all my cookie batters made up ahead of time, and we cooked/baked our little hearts out! Here are my little helpers!
All week long, when the kids would go to bed I would make my candies that just get a bit too hot to have the kids 'help'. I even got to make some new things this year as a result of following some food blogs! At the risk of sounding girly, it feels like Christmas when my kitchen is filled with good things to give out to my neighbors!
Since you are so far away and I can't send many of these things thanks to the Florida heat here is the next best thing. Here are my favorite holiday recipes and some new ones I tried this year! Enjoy.
I use peppermint oil for these rather then the extract! Gives it a bit more punch but only use 1/4 tsp if using oil!This tasts very similar to the See's candy Cappacino sucker! I used instant Starbucks coffee since I couldn't find espresso powder!
Ground up some more yummy candy cane pieces to press into the top of this recipe! This one makes A LOT so I did half it!
Basic Sugar cookies; need some deocrating inspiration? Here is where I got mine! However, when I couldn't get the Royal icing quite right from her site, I was in a pinch for time so here was Icing recipe I switched to! They turned out really pretty and the kids got to help a lot more than the prior method!
Almond Roca Toffee; I like to add almonds to mine!
Candy Cane Chocolate Bark
Will have to give you the recipe on this one as I didn't follow one recipe exactly. Took 2 recipes instead and made this yummy treat!
3 Cups White CHocolate Chips (1 1/2 pkgs)
1 pkg Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
1 C Milk Chocolate Chips
1o Oreo cookies
Pepermint candies (either candy canes or cheaper to buy the round disk peppermint candy!)
Peppermint oil
1. Line a baking sheet with foil.
2. Prepare the Oreos by scraping off the middle filling and placing cookies in a Food Processor. Process till coarse crumbs. Set aside. *
3. Unwrap the candy, (Approx 15 disks) and place in food processor. Grind up till coarse crumbs. Set aside.*
4. Mix together the dark chocolate chips and melt over a double boiler. Once melted spread evenly on the foil lined cookie sheet.
5. While chocolate is still soft, sprinkle with oreo crumbs. Place a piece of wax paper over crumbs and press crumbs into the chocolate layer. Do not remove wax paper and place cookie sheet in the freezer to harden.
6. While the other layer is cooling, melt white chocolate chips in a double boiler till smooth & creamy. Add peppermint oil (couple drops) and mix till well combined.
7. Take the cookie sheet out of the freezer and remove the wax paper; set aside wax paper for use later.
8. Drop white chocolate evenly over the cookie sheet & spread carefully over the cookie layer so as to not mix cookies into the white chocolate. Spread fast so that the white chocolate doesn't harden on you. Sprinkle with peppermint candies and then press them into the white chocolate (using wax paper). Place in the refridgerator or freezer till hardened.
9. Break into pieces and enjoy!
Hope you have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New year! If you are tempted to be a scrooge, here are some cute and small reasons to be grateful this Christmas! These little baby skinks were on the side of the road the other day. They were so cute I had to get a couple pictures. The live at a house down the street from us and were on the side of someone's home. I felt compelled to tell the owner of the home what was outside seeing that on her porch she had toddler toys in view! When I told her about the ones we saw she told me that she not only had just those 2 but there are a total of 5 living around her property! Poor lady! BTW, no one was skunked when taking pictures of these cute creatures. Michaela wants to trap them, take them in to get de-skunked and train them to be pets. That is something she IS NOT getting for Christmas!
Merry Christmas!
Friday, December 11, 2009
Christmas picture fun!
Well, got the Christmas cards in the mail the other day! I was lazy used a picture that turned out real well from our visit to Washington this past summer! Gotta love the beautiful mountain backdrop for a nice picture!
However, last year on clearance, I bought Santa hats. I had ANTICIPATING a tad bit of BRAGGING. Yes, I was going to do CUTE Pictures of us in co-ordinating shorts and T's at the beach in santa hats! I suppose God didn't want me to brag since we never really made it to the beach together! SO, when the santa hats were out of the Christmas boxes we headed for the park in whatever we were wearing!
While I didn't get pics done in time for Christmas cards, I really enjoy doing those collage Calendars for those far away family members that have most everything. Since 'winter pictures' are not really possible, we have to create our own kind! Gotta put some kind of winter feel to the pictures for the month of December! Here are the ones that made the cut!
John was not too thrilled with this idea. His face screams TAKE THE PICTURE AND GET THIS OVER WITH! :o)
A Posing picture! Notice the shorts and blue sky!
A candid while playing a little bit of Santa tag!
One of the problems with the bright blue sky was that it was hard to tell if everyone was looking at the camera after the shot! Bummer!
One final jolly pose!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
One way Stomach bug
After my previous post that i may be sharing remedies on my blog my Dad, who gets my posts delivered to his e-mail account made sure to reply; "That's weird!" He would be one of the Nay-sayers I was chatting about! Love ya dad even if you think I am weird! If you don't care about the content of this 'Natural remedy' post in particular please just delete! :o)
Recently my family suffered from a bought of some sort of stomach virus. It effected only 3 out of the 5 of us. There was no vomiting so, without being graphic, this gives you the general idea where the stomach bug was being flushed out (no pun intended)! If the stomach bug would have caused probelms with vomiting AND the later, my treatment would have been different so please keep this under advisement.
For Michaela and I, to avoid getting the bug, we just took the immune boosters listed below under the link for Immune boosters for the whole family! Berry well, Vitamin C (or Emergen-C), Vitamin D, Bee Immune, Colostrum transfer for both of us! This kept she & I from getting the bug!
When the body is trying to expell a virus from the system, in either direction, our initial medical reaction is to stop it immediately with chemicals. I remember when Immodium AD came out in the stores and it was great at stopping the inconvenience ASAP. However, what I later came to understand is that there are much better, more natural ways, to help this process along, without keeping the nasty bugs in your system!
Papaya enzymes (I just buy these at Wal-mart in the vitamin section)
Probiotic
~This one for little kids Rhinophos chewable probiotic
~This one for the older ones, my hubby & myself Beeyoutiful Tummy tune-up or Ultimate defense)
I actually ended up using the Tunny tune-up on Abby as well because the Rhinophos wasn't strong enough for her.
Bentonite clay; read about the benefits of this toxin flusher here. You can usually purchase this at a local health food store or from the website above here.
Vitamin D3 (I just get the huge bottle from Costco 2000 IU)
If you are just getting started with Immune boosters from Beeyoutiful, you can save a bit on this pack for the whole family!
Multi-vitamins for the whole family Men, Women, Kids
Besides pushing a lot of fluids, all of them were complaining of stomach cramps so we gave papya enzymes for this.
The bentonite clay is taken to draw out the toxins (virus) from the gut. You can't use metal spoons while mixing this as the metal does something to the clay, so I use plastic spoons. Keep in mind that the clay DOES taste just like dirt. We mix 1 tsp to a little water and it makes basically a slimey blob that is easily swallowed. The they need to take a full glass of water afterward! If you have a child that has a strong gag reflux you may want to purchase some capsules. My kids are pretty great troopers so they just swallow the blob-o-dirt. You only do this once a day for the duration of the spell plus one extra day.
While the Clay draws out the bad stuff the Probiotics re-innoculate the stomach with the proper/good bacteria. About an hour after the clay I gave a probiotic.
At meal time I give vitamins such as the D3, Colostrum, berrywell, bee immune, along with their normal multi-vitamin .
One bonus about giving kids the liquid vitamin (superkids), immune boosters (berry well)is that it absorbs faster. When you have things coming out as fast as they come in, absorbtion is a big deal!
After doing this stuff yesterday when it all began, everyone was doing much better the next day. Abby and Ben had some residual effects, but it was their body ridding itself of the final bugs and fighting through the infection. I continued the immune boosters, probiotics for a couple days after to keep the body fit to fight off any other bugs they come on contact with!
On a side-note....... If you do not have a good health food store nearby and you want to place an order for Beeyoutiful products AS WELL AS some bulk herbs & spices, the company More than alive does sell both! To keep your shipping rates low this is how I do it.
If you just want to purchase Beeyoutiful products and get it at a discount, beeyoutiful has a supplier that 'sells' the products at a 15% discount and beeyoutiful gives a portion of the proceeds to fund their family mission trip to Kenya. Since I love a good deal AND a GREAT cause I like to order through her when I do not need to include any herbs with my order! To order through her, just email your list of items to sales@valuesdrivenfamily.com. You can order anything from Beeyoutiful.com through her but she only recieves the discounted price from the beeyoutiful products.
Anywho, this is how we took care of the latest stomach bug! Love and hugs to ya all!
Recently my family suffered from a bought of some sort of stomach virus. It effected only 3 out of the 5 of us. There was no vomiting so, without being graphic, this gives you the general idea where the stomach bug was being flushed out (no pun intended)! If the stomach bug would have caused probelms with vomiting AND the later, my treatment would have been different so please keep this under advisement.
For Michaela and I, to avoid getting the bug, we just took the immune boosters listed below under the link for Immune boosters for the whole family! Berry well, Vitamin C (or Emergen-C), Vitamin D, Bee Immune, Colostrum transfer for both of us! This kept she & I from getting the bug!
When the body is trying to expell a virus from the system, in either direction, our initial medical reaction is to stop it immediately with chemicals. I remember when Immodium AD came out in the stores and it was great at stopping the inconvenience ASAP. However, what I later came to understand is that there are much better, more natural ways, to help this process along, without keeping the nasty bugs in your system!
Papaya enzymes (I just buy these at Wal-mart in the vitamin section)
Probiotic
~This one for little kids Rhinophos chewable probiotic
~This one for the older ones, my hubby & myself Beeyoutiful Tummy tune-up or Ultimate defense)
I actually ended up using the Tunny tune-up on Abby as well because the Rhinophos wasn't strong enough for her.
Bentonite clay; read about the benefits of this toxin flusher here. You can usually purchase this at a local health food store or from the website above here.
Vitamin D3 (I just get the huge bottle from Costco 2000 IU)
If you are just getting started with Immune boosters from Beeyoutiful, you can save a bit on this pack for the whole family!
Multi-vitamins for the whole family Men, Women, Kids
Besides pushing a lot of fluids, all of them were complaining of stomach cramps so we gave papya enzymes for this.
The bentonite clay is taken to draw out the toxins (virus) from the gut. You can't use metal spoons while mixing this as the metal does something to the clay, so I use plastic spoons. Keep in mind that the clay DOES taste just like dirt. We mix 1 tsp to a little water and it makes basically a slimey blob that is easily swallowed. The they need to take a full glass of water afterward! If you have a child that has a strong gag reflux you may want to purchase some capsules. My kids are pretty great troopers so they just swallow the blob-o-dirt. You only do this once a day for the duration of the spell plus one extra day.
While the Clay draws out the bad stuff the Probiotics re-innoculate the stomach with the proper/good bacteria. About an hour after the clay I gave a probiotic.
At meal time I give vitamins such as the D3, Colostrum, berrywell, bee immune, along with their normal multi-vitamin .
One bonus about giving kids the liquid vitamin (superkids), immune boosters (berry well)is that it absorbs faster. When you have things coming out as fast as they come in, absorbtion is a big deal!
After doing this stuff yesterday when it all began, everyone was doing much better the next day. Abby and Ben had some residual effects, but it was their body ridding itself of the final bugs and fighting through the infection. I continued the immune boosters, probiotics for a couple days after to keep the body fit to fight off any other bugs they come on contact with!
On a side-note....... If you do not have a good health food store nearby and you want to place an order for Beeyoutiful products AS WELL AS some bulk herbs & spices, the company More than alive does sell both! To keep your shipping rates low this is how I do it.
If you just want to purchase Beeyoutiful products and get it at a discount, beeyoutiful has a supplier that 'sells' the products at a 15% discount and beeyoutiful gives a portion of the proceeds to fund their family mission trip to Kenya. Since I love a good deal AND a GREAT cause I like to order through her when I do not need to include any herbs with my order! To order through her, just email your list of items to sales@valuesdrivenfamily.com. You can order anything from Beeyoutiful.com through her but she only recieves the discounted price from the beeyoutiful products.
Anywho, this is how we took care of the latest stomach bug! Love and hugs to ya all!
Natural remedies/ Disclosure
Once upon a time, just after I met and married my hubby I had the awesome opportunity to work for a Naturopathic midwife. In that one short year of my life, I learned countless ways to combat many illnesses without having to run to urgent care or the family doctor. MOST of my family members enjoy poking fun at me for it........ Usually, they are all rallied about by my misguided hubby. However, since we moved far away from that 'fuel' that kindled his fire, he no longer mocks it anymore and just takes whatever I put in front of him. What I learned and what I continue to learn about are basically using herbs, homeopathic and vitamins to help the body do what God designed it to do.
Illnesses and viruses are usually shorter in duration and frequency at our house for 2 reasons. Preventative measures and boosting immunity. I WISH it had more to do with impeccable hygiene habits but, that would DEFINITELY not be keeping it real!
So I have started a new label under posts called natural remedies. This is in no way, shape, or form, medical advice that takes precedence over a real doctor. If in doubt please seek medical attention but what I am going to do is just post things that we go through, what I did to treat it and how it worked.
It am NOT a 'trained professional'! Just a mom that likes to study about weird stuff and has some information that works for my family! Hope it works for yours too if you choose to use any of them!
Illnesses and viruses are usually shorter in duration and frequency at our house for 2 reasons. Preventative measures and boosting immunity. I WISH it had more to do with impeccable hygiene habits but, that would DEFINITELY not be keeping it real!
So I have started a new label under posts called natural remedies. This is in no way, shape, or form, medical advice that takes precedence over a real doctor. If in doubt please seek medical attention but what I am going to do is just post things that we go through, what I did to treat it and how it worked.
It am NOT a 'trained professional'! Just a mom that likes to study about weird stuff and has some information that works for my family! Hope it works for yours too if you choose to use any of them!
Saturday, December 5, 2009
The hunt continues
As many of you know from reading my last post we have begun house hunting. There in lies the premise for this post.
Just last week we literally stumbled on the ‘perfect house’. It basically had all of our heart’s desires in a home AND then some. It wasn’t in perfect condition, however, with some new paint and TLC it would be ‘perfect’ to suit all of our needs. (It even had one room that had Seattle Seahawk colors on the wall with SEAHAWKS written on the wall; who knew bad taste in football teams traveled THAT far away! YIKES. John shook his head in shame telling me that was the first room to get painted!) LOL! It was built in 2001, so this meant is was new enough to have a lower insurance premium, but not new enough to have the possibility of Chinese drywall! COOL! We had seen another home that was still in the back of our minds as a possibility but it was much older and missing several things things that this home had. Like a bigger yard, fence, pool, quiet street, ect. It seemed as though this one was the whole package and our search was over!
As John and I spent time with the Lord to ask Him if HE concurred with our thoughts neither of us got scripture about it being ‘the house’. John got scripture about going and dwelling in the Land again. Basically I got scriptures stating I needed to have faith. Maybe I am just a bit picky, but I asked the Lord for specifics. I wanted something along the lines of having the subject of a HOUSE in the scripture? Nothing, but we thought maybe John’s scripture was enough and that I just needed to have faith in the fact that God wants us to have this sweet treasure? To be honest, I got discouraged and basically gave up seeking to get confirmation. John felt like he got confirmation on a price/offer so we placed an offer on the home and the seller to pay a 6% concession. There was no peace as a result of that offer on my part because I knew I stopped seeking. I began praying for God to PLEASE protect us if we stepped out on our own and not under His direction. The bank countered our offer with only paying a 3% concession and we knew right away that this was above the offer John had peace with. We pretty much walked away from the offer all together and put it in the Lord’s hands. If we are to have it then God will make it clear to us through more scriptural confirmation AND the bank will accept our previous offer.
All the while God kept bringing to mind another property we had looked at, but fairly quickly dismissed. It was no longer even a caditate for consideration as far as John and I were concerned. However, the realestate agent kept asking our agent if we were still interested? It was owned by a church and they used it as house for recovering addicts and possibly visitors to their church. It was older, not well cared for, smelled of cigarettes, needed A LOT of work, not in the best part of town and NOT even in Lehigh but a little north of it (East Fort Myers to be exact). However, the home was much bigger than the others we had seen for the same price. It could accommodate an extra family and visitors to stay with us. It also had plenty of room for bible studies. So I felt the Lord tugging at my heart asking WHY we are here? Is it to have the nice house, huge yard, pool , in an acceptable part of town? OUCH! I know that we can accomplish both things in either home, but only God knows where we will have the biggest impact and what we will need, long term for what He is calling us to do. Oh, how our ‘hearts desires’ can sometimes be so short sighted looking only to the immediate need/wants rather than the fact that God has a LONG term plan going on. So we are continuing to seek more confirmation from the Lord. I am well aware that we NEVER “surprised God” by making a choice using our moderate understanding of what God thinks is best for us. However it is quite similar to old adage “When life hands you lemons, make lemonade”. However, we are the ones providing the Lemons for GOD to make Lemonade! Settling, not His first and foremost plan for us but He will make due with the effort we have given. Handing God ‘lemons’ and HIM orchestrating all those affected by our mess…….. We never make decisions in a vacuum and there are always casualties of decisions made without Christ. However, God is a God of redemption. It is God’s pleasure to have us submit to Him and give Him ALL our messes repentantly. Repentance is the key to getting our hearts back in line with the Lords desires for us.
I wish I could tell you that we HAVE confirmation on 'the house' God wants us to own, but so far we keep on seeking until our hearts are in line with scripture and attain the peace that only comes from making a decision based on the Lord's will for our lives. If you think about it please pray for us to get that confirmation! Love you all!
Just last week we literally stumbled on the ‘perfect house’. It basically had all of our heart’s desires in a home AND then some. It wasn’t in perfect condition, however, with some new paint and TLC it would be ‘perfect’ to suit all of our needs. (It even had one room that had Seattle Seahawk colors on the wall with SEAHAWKS written on the wall; who knew bad taste in football teams traveled THAT far away! YIKES. John shook his head in shame telling me that was the first room to get painted!) LOL! It was built in 2001, so this meant is was new enough to have a lower insurance premium, but not new enough to have the possibility of Chinese drywall! COOL! We had seen another home that was still in the back of our minds as a possibility but it was much older and missing several things things that this home had. Like a bigger yard, fence, pool, quiet street, ect. It seemed as though this one was the whole package and our search was over!
As John and I spent time with the Lord to ask Him if HE concurred with our thoughts neither of us got scripture about it being ‘the house’. John got scripture about going and dwelling in the Land again. Basically I got scriptures stating I needed to have faith. Maybe I am just a bit picky, but I asked the Lord for specifics. I wanted something along the lines of having the subject of a HOUSE in the scripture? Nothing, but we thought maybe John’s scripture was enough and that I just needed to have faith in the fact that God wants us to have this sweet treasure? To be honest, I got discouraged and basically gave up seeking to get confirmation. John felt like he got confirmation on a price/offer so we placed an offer on the home and the seller to pay a 6% concession. There was no peace as a result of that offer on my part because I knew I stopped seeking. I began praying for God to PLEASE protect us if we stepped out on our own and not under His direction. The bank countered our offer with only paying a 3% concession and we knew right away that this was above the offer John had peace with. We pretty much walked away from the offer all together and put it in the Lord’s hands. If we are to have it then God will make it clear to us through more scriptural confirmation AND the bank will accept our previous offer.
All the while God kept bringing to mind another property we had looked at, but fairly quickly dismissed. It was no longer even a caditate for consideration as far as John and I were concerned. However, the realestate agent kept asking our agent if we were still interested? It was owned by a church and they used it as house for recovering addicts and possibly visitors to their church. It was older, not well cared for, smelled of cigarettes, needed A LOT of work, not in the best part of town and NOT even in Lehigh but a little north of it (East Fort Myers to be exact). However, the home was much bigger than the others we had seen for the same price. It could accommodate an extra family and visitors to stay with us. It also had plenty of room for bible studies. So I felt the Lord tugging at my heart asking WHY we are here? Is it to have the nice house, huge yard, pool , in an acceptable part of town? OUCH! I know that we can accomplish both things in either home, but only God knows where we will have the biggest impact and what we will need, long term for what He is calling us to do. Oh, how our ‘hearts desires’ can sometimes be so short sighted looking only to the immediate need/wants rather than the fact that God has a LONG term plan going on. So we are continuing to seek more confirmation from the Lord. I am well aware that we NEVER “surprised God” by making a choice using our moderate understanding of what God thinks is best for us. However it is quite similar to old adage “When life hands you lemons, make lemonade”. However, we are the ones providing the Lemons for GOD to make Lemonade! Settling, not His first and foremost plan for us but He will make due with the effort we have given. Handing God ‘lemons’ and HIM orchestrating all those affected by our mess…….. We never make decisions in a vacuum and there are always casualties of decisions made without Christ. However, God is a God of redemption. It is God’s pleasure to have us submit to Him and give Him ALL our messes repentantly. Repentance is the key to getting our hearts back in line with the Lords desires for us.
I wish I could tell you that we HAVE confirmation on 'the house' God wants us to own, but so far we keep on seeking until our hearts are in line with scripture and attain the peace that only comes from making a decision based on the Lord's will for our lives. If you think about it please pray for us to get that confirmation! Love you all!
Saturday, November 28, 2009
My Thankful List
Being that quite a few things have transpired since my last post I figured, in order to keep you from snoozing through a post I would keep it short and sweet…….. Never done that before so I suppose we will see how that goes!
1. I am thankful that I have a pretty amazing husband, 3 great kids that the Lord has blessed us with and an extended family that has been grafted into our clan through adoption.
2. I am so thankful for my sustained health and the fact that everyone else in our family is healthy! I have been seizure free for many years now, thanks to the Lord’s sweet provision and the ability to pay for the medication necessary to keep me well!
3. John, not only has a job in this uncertain economy, but it is a job that is truly a gift from God. He has had several opportunities to witness; mostly through acts of kindness, but those are rare between inmate and officer so they speak volumes. It also gives him time/energy to pour more into our family! This is just awesome to see the fruit from this happening as we become more knit together and indivisible for the work that God has called us to!
4. God is providing for us and continues to take care of us above all that we could ask or think!
5. I am so THANKFUL the kids and I got to go home and visit/recharge with my relatives and Calvary Chapel Tri-Cities church family back in August. Also, very grateful for opportunities to eat food (mostly ice cream and ranch dressing) that we can’t find here in Florida.
6. We seem to have some direction about the WHY behind being here in Florida. (To be disclosed when we have more evidence/direction)
7. A family from our church in the Tri-cities will be moving down, possibly within a year, to come alongside us in what the Lord has planned! We are prettyhappy ELATED/AMAZED about this! It will be so wonderful to have fellowship for our family as we encourage each other to follow the path that God has laid out for each of us here!
8. As per the Lord’s direction, we have been house hunting again in an area that is about 45 minutes, yet only 20 miles, SouthEast of our current location. The town we are looking in/ around is called Lehigh acres.
9. The housing market is still pretty affordable here, but prices are slowly rising because investors are saturating the market. It has also been a bit tricky to navigate this market for these reasons:
~Foreclosures that have been ‘invisibly’ or visibly trashed. Some people are so upset they are losing their homes that they pour cement down the drains & toilets to make sure whoever buys the house has to “pay” for taking it away from them. They get back at the bank by selling off all light fixtures, pool equipment, AC/HVAC systems, kitchen cabinets, ect.
~Short sales: a term that basically says “I am trying to avoid foreclosure with my dignity and credit in tact. PLEASE buy my house for less than what I paid for it. However, since I really don’t want to HAVE to sell it to you, don’t expect me to let you see my house or negotiate a price for 1/3 of what I paid.”
~ Chinese drywall, which the government says is perfectly safe to inhale inert Strontium isotopes that stink like rotten eggs? It is in many of the homes on the market but is not disclosed since it is ‘safe’. Many of the homes built between the years of 2004 to 2006 are effected and since this was a time when there was a huge housing boom it is hard to know what is and is not a home with that drywall. It is so sad to see that people had to go into foreclosure on their ‘dream homes’ because they were unlivable. Even if you have one sheet of this stuff in your home it will cause BIG problems. It breaks down appliances, AC units and damages copper wiring within the year. People who have lived in these homes have the same health problems, however, even though the complaints are the same it is unrelated to the drywall? No worries though……. Obama will LOAN you upwards of 100,000 to ‘fix’ your unrepairable home. Many are struggling to afford their mortgages ‘as is’ and are then forced to foreclose. GRRRRR!
With all these obstacles in our path we are SO GRATEFUL we are seeking the Lord for direction. Only He knows what house we should have so when He says NO, it is easy to walk away KNOWING HE has our best interests at heart.
10. Ever since we realized that my seizure disorder would not be able to sustain another pregnancy, I knew that God gave me a hope that we would adopt to complete our family. John half-heartily agreed with this notion because, he saw howupseting devastating it was, for me. To have the desire to physically bear more children, but submitting that desire to the Lord, KNOWING it was time to let my body be done. However, adoption was MY hearts desire, not John's. After 6 years of praying for my husband to let the Lord speak to his heart on this matter, God has come thorugh. WE will be pursuing adoption once we get settled into the home God has for us here in Florida. The kids are VERY excited and pray daily for their new sibling(s) and that God would keep them safe till we meet him/her/them.
11. I am so thankful that the Lord has chosen this time of isolation for our family. Weird I know, but it has caused John & I to take a very good look at the fact that “you are going to get out of your children, exactly what you put into them”. Yes, we homeschool, yes we use Christian curriculum, yes, we talk about what the Lord is doing for us as a family and how He relates to us. However, how much of this is just scratching the surface? How much of this really cultivates a relationship with us AND more importantly, Jesus? Meaning if they only hear about the Lord through quaint little stories at church and via a short devotional in the morning before school, are they really equipped or are they starving spiritually! Since this has been brought to our attention, we have been doing family devotions in the evening. Just going through the word, reading and answering questions. I only wish we had started doing this earlier as it allows them to ask us questions without shame for not knowing. It gives us opportunities to diffuse all the worlds influences that creep to tempt their hearts. A place in our children’s hearts needs to be cultivated more proactively in the world we live in. The bonus is getting to see them grow in the Lord more fervently, turn to Him when they struggle in their sin AND, most importantly, get victory over those areas they give to the Lord.
12. This year we got to have someone over for Thanksgiving that we know from back home! A former co-worker of John’s moved here to Cape Coral about a couple months ago. We have gotten together a couple times to share our ‘confusion’ with the new culture here in Florida and swapping stories from back home. John and she also had a nice time swapping work stories of their time spent at Benton county as well as being so THANKFUL each of them no longer work there.
I know this is longer than I promised so I will stop there! I am thankful for more than just these things but I know you are already probably thinking “I don’t really care whatever else you are thankful for because you are so long winded” and ready to move along to check your Facebook page. Please just don't post a status update of that you now "need a nap because Theresa's blog is so long"! I will still chose to love you even if you do this but I may send you a poopy diaper in the mail. I work in the church nursery! :o) For those of you naysayers like Ryan, I, just want to let you know, there are 3 separate posts I started along these lines and never got finished because they were a bit too long individually. So, in a way this really is LONG STORY SHORT! He He! Hope you all are well and enjoying getting ready for your Christmas celebration! BIG CHRISTMAS HUGS SENT FROM FLORIDA! Especially because I am not sure if we will get Christmas pics out this year! Anyone want to come celebrate Christmas on the beach with us? Just let me know!
1. I am thankful that I have a pretty amazing husband, 3 great kids that the Lord has blessed us with and an extended family that has been grafted into our clan through adoption.
2. I am so thankful for my sustained health and the fact that everyone else in our family is healthy! I have been seizure free for many years now, thanks to the Lord’s sweet provision and the ability to pay for the medication necessary to keep me well!
3. John, not only has a job in this uncertain economy, but it is a job that is truly a gift from God. He has had several opportunities to witness; mostly through acts of kindness, but those are rare between inmate and officer so they speak volumes. It also gives him time/energy to pour more into our family! This is just awesome to see the fruit from this happening as we become more knit together and indivisible for the work that God has called us to!
4. God is providing for us and continues to take care of us above all that we could ask or think!
5. I am so THANKFUL the kids and I got to go home and visit/recharge with my relatives and Calvary Chapel Tri-Cities church family back in August. Also, very grateful for opportunities to eat food (mostly ice cream and ranch dressing) that we can’t find here in Florida.
6. We seem to have some direction about the WHY behind being here in Florida. (To be disclosed when we have more evidence/direction)
7. A family from our church in the Tri-cities will be moving down, possibly within a year, to come alongside us in what the Lord has planned! We are pretty
8. As per the Lord’s direction, we have been house hunting again in an area that is about 45 minutes, yet only 20 miles, SouthEast of our current location. The town we are looking in/ around is called Lehigh acres.
9. The housing market is still pretty affordable here, but prices are slowly rising because investors are saturating the market. It has also been a bit tricky to navigate this market for these reasons:
~Foreclosures that have been ‘invisibly’ or visibly trashed. Some people are so upset they are losing their homes that they pour cement down the drains & toilets to make sure whoever buys the house has to “pay” for taking it away from them. They get back at the bank by selling off all light fixtures, pool equipment, AC/HVAC systems, kitchen cabinets, ect.
~Short sales: a term that basically says “I am trying to avoid foreclosure with my dignity and credit in tact. PLEASE buy my house for less than what I paid for it. However, since I really don’t want to HAVE to sell it to you, don’t expect me to let you see my house or negotiate a price for 1/3 of what I paid.”
~ Chinese drywall, which the government says is perfectly safe to inhale inert Strontium isotopes that stink like rotten eggs? It is in many of the homes on the market but is not disclosed since it is ‘safe’. Many of the homes built between the years of 2004 to 2006 are effected and since this was a time when there was a huge housing boom it is hard to know what is and is not a home with that drywall. It is so sad to see that people had to go into foreclosure on their ‘dream homes’ because they were unlivable. Even if you have one sheet of this stuff in your home it will cause BIG problems. It breaks down appliances, AC units and damages copper wiring within the year. People who have lived in these homes have the same health problems, however, even though the complaints are the same it is unrelated to the drywall? No worries though……. Obama will LOAN you upwards of 100,000 to ‘fix’ your unrepairable home. Many are struggling to afford their mortgages ‘as is’ and are then forced to foreclose. GRRRRR!
With all these obstacles in our path we are SO GRATEFUL we are seeking the Lord for direction. Only He knows what house we should have so when He says NO, it is easy to walk away KNOWING HE has our best interests at heart.
10. Ever since we realized that my seizure disorder would not be able to sustain another pregnancy, I knew that God gave me a hope that we would adopt to complete our family. John half-heartily agreed with this notion because, he saw how
11. I am so thankful that the Lord has chosen this time of isolation for our family. Weird I know, but it has caused John & I to take a very good look at the fact that “you are going to get out of your children, exactly what you put into them”. Yes, we homeschool, yes we use Christian curriculum, yes, we talk about what the Lord is doing for us as a family and how He relates to us. However, how much of this is just scratching the surface? How much of this really cultivates a relationship with us AND more importantly, Jesus? Meaning if they only hear about the Lord through quaint little stories at church and via a short devotional in the morning before school, are they really equipped or are they starving spiritually! Since this has been brought to our attention, we have been doing family devotions in the evening. Just going through the word, reading and answering questions. I only wish we had started doing this earlier as it allows them to ask us questions without shame for not knowing. It gives us opportunities to diffuse all the worlds influences that creep to tempt their hearts. A place in our children’s hearts needs to be cultivated more proactively in the world we live in. The bonus is getting to see them grow in the Lord more fervently, turn to Him when they struggle in their sin AND, most importantly, get victory over those areas they give to the Lord.
12. This year we got to have someone over for Thanksgiving that we know from back home! A former co-worker of John’s moved here to Cape Coral about a couple months ago. We have gotten together a couple times to share our ‘confusion’ with the new culture here in Florida and swapping stories from back home. John and she also had a nice time swapping work stories of their time spent at Benton county as well as being so THANKFUL each of them no longer work there.
I know this is longer than I promised so I will stop there! I am thankful for more than just these things but I know you are already probably thinking “I don’t really care whatever else you are thankful for because you are so long winded” and ready to move along to check your Facebook page. Please just don't post a status update of that you now "need a nap because Theresa's blog is so long"! I will still chose to love you even if you do this but I may send you a poopy diaper in the mail. I work in the church nursery! :o) For those of you naysayers like Ryan, I, just want to let you know, there are 3 separate posts I started along these lines and never got finished because they were a bit too long individually. So, in a way this really is LONG STORY SHORT! He He! Hope you all are well and enjoying getting ready for your Christmas celebration! BIG CHRISTMAS HUGS SENT FROM FLORIDA! Especially because I am not sure if we will get Christmas pics out this year! Anyone want to come celebrate Christmas on the beach with us? Just let me know!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Pleasing the Lord
I pray that when I grow up, God will guide my tongue in the manner that displays that He really can bridle the tongue enough to allow some smart things out when I am not in the way! :o) Until then I will share things from others who have mastered the art enough to be remembered for it!
Love this quote:
Teach me. O God, to use all the circumstances of my life to-day that they may bring forth in me the fruits of holiness rather than the fruits of sin. Let me use disappointment as material for patience: Let me use success as material for thankfulness: Let me use suspence as material for perseverance: Let me use danger as material for courage: Let me use reproach as material for longsuffering: Let me use praise as material for humility: Let me use pleasures as material for temperance: Let me use pains as material for endurance.
John Baillie
I came accross this devotional today and while there is a lot going on, we are seeking after the Lord and He says it is not time to share quite yet. .
Anywho, enjoy this perspective which is oddly enough very close to what we are studying at women's bible study right now...... If we would only just live to please the Lord, how much easier our lives would be!
Written BY: Bob Hoekstra
More on Enoch's Pleasing Walk with God, by Faith
By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death...for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:5-6)
Before Enoch was taken to heaven, he walked with God in a manner that pleased the Lord. Enoch's faith in God is what was pleasing unto Him. "Before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him." Pleasing God, as Enoch did, should be our desire. Many people waste their lives by aiming to please themselves. Their lives are choked with self-indulgence. "And the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity" (Luke 8:14). They have ignored the fact that pleasing self cannot lead to spiritual growth and Christlikeness. "We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves... For even Christ did not please Himself" (Romans 15:1, 3).
Others live in carnal bondage to human opinions. Their consistent priority is to please people. This was part of King Saul's downfall. "Then Saul said to Samuel, 'I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice'" (1 Samuel 15:24). We cannot aim to please man and still serve God. "Do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a servant of Christ" (Galatians 1:10). Living to please God is what we were created for. This can never happen apart from faith. "Without faith it is impossible to please Him." Coming to the Lord in true biblical faith begins with a conviction that God exists. "For he who comes to God must believe that He is." Additionally, God-pleasing faith eagerly anticipates the Lord's gracious response to all who truly seek Him. "He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Although there are many blessings that result from pursuing the Lord, the ultimate reward is God Himself. God told this to Abraham. "After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, 'Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward'" (Genesis 15:1).
Lord God Almighty, too often I have aimed at pleasing myself. At other times, my goal was to please people. Thank You for Your patience and forgiveness. Now, my heart desires to please You in all things. By faith, I know that You exist. By faith, I seek You, anticipating the grand reward of knowing You better and better, in Jesus' name, Amen.
Love this quote:
Teach me. O God, to use all the circumstances of my life to-day that they may bring forth in me the fruits of holiness rather than the fruits of sin. Let me use disappointment as material for patience: Let me use success as material for thankfulness: Let me use suspence as material for perseverance: Let me use danger as material for courage: Let me use reproach as material for longsuffering: Let me use praise as material for humility: Let me use pleasures as material for temperance: Let me use pains as material for endurance.
John Baillie
I came accross this devotional today and while there is a lot going on, we are seeking after the Lord and He says it is not time to share quite yet. .
Anywho, enjoy this perspective which is oddly enough very close to what we are studying at women's bible study right now...... If we would only just live to please the Lord, how much easier our lives would be!
Written BY: Bob Hoekstra
More on Enoch's Pleasing Walk with God, by Faith
By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death...for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:5-6)
Before Enoch was taken to heaven, he walked with God in a manner that pleased the Lord. Enoch's faith in God is what was pleasing unto Him. "Before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him." Pleasing God, as Enoch did, should be our desire. Many people waste their lives by aiming to please themselves. Their lives are choked with self-indulgence. "And the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity" (Luke 8:14). They have ignored the fact that pleasing self cannot lead to spiritual growth and Christlikeness. "We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves... For even Christ did not please Himself" (Romans 15:1, 3).
Others live in carnal bondage to human opinions. Their consistent priority is to please people. This was part of King Saul's downfall. "Then Saul said to Samuel, 'I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice'" (1 Samuel 15:24). We cannot aim to please man and still serve God. "Do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a servant of Christ" (Galatians 1:10). Living to please God is what we were created for. This can never happen apart from faith. "Without faith it is impossible to please Him." Coming to the Lord in true biblical faith begins with a conviction that God exists. "For he who comes to God must believe that He is." Additionally, God-pleasing faith eagerly anticipates the Lord's gracious response to all who truly seek Him. "He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Although there are many blessings that result from pursuing the Lord, the ultimate reward is God Himself. God told this to Abraham. "After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, 'Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward'" (Genesis 15:1).
Lord God Almighty, too often I have aimed at pleasing myself. At other times, my goal was to please people. Thank You for Your patience and forgiveness. Now, my heart desires to please You in all things. By faith, I know that You exist. By faith, I seek You, anticipating the grand reward of knowing You better and better, in Jesus' name, Amen.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
An additional puzzle piece
I mentioned a couple posts ago that I was pondering our puzzle pieces. Basically God was giving us some information to ‘sit on’. His plans get revealed to us before hand but it is only when circumstances follow that the plan actually looks feasible! One of puzzle pieces had to do with John’s job. While his job is a tremendous blessing, one thing about being a corrections officer, the hours are harder on the body as you get older. Don’t get me wrong, 12 hour shifts have their advantages and can be an amazing blessing. Only working 15 days a month is very neat, however if on the other 15 that you do work, you are present only in body, but the brain should be categorized as the ‘walking dead’, this is not so great. Also when the off days are spent recovering from the working days, many times this results in permanently working with an intellect that is a few fries short of a happy meal!
A little history for you….. When my hubby and I married in 1998 he was already a corrections officer. He had a ‘specialty position’ though, working with inmates on the road crew. The reason why it is such a great position for most, is that it has normal hours of operation. Back then, he worked Tuesday through Saturday 7am-3pm. Being that I was raised by a police officer who was on rotating shiftwork, this schedule was a piece of cake! These hours meant that he still had a little energy left when he got home for us AND enough ‘spring in his step’ to maybe attend an evening service at church or go to a friends house for dinner. In all his years as a corrections officer THESE were probably the most care-free and fun for him. You see, my hubby has the gift of evangelism and when he worked this type of job, he had so many opportunities to witness to people. It wasn’t like he had a ‘captive audience’ either. He never abused his position as an officer to shove the gospel down someone’s throat. He would merely have his bible in his work van, read it during lunch breaks and just live out his relationship with Jesus in front of the people on his crew. Inmates are pretty much used to being treated with disrespect and when you do not fill this role with them, it makes a big difference. Many of them would strike up conversations about the bible. After a short while of conversation, the barriers that were standing in between them and the Lord was eradicated. Being that many of them are invariably at a pretty low point in their life, they are already ‘seeking’ something that makes a lasting change or difference in their life. Talk about my hubby being in the right place at the right time. Unfortunately, after a couple years of being a work crew officer, my hubby tested for a supervisor’s position. He always regretted making this move as it felt like ‘trading in’ his most effective ministry for career advancement. Although, God still used him in his new positions, it never felt as right as when he was really being used with his work crew. As a supervisor, he was grateful for the fact of KNOWING from experience, that career advancement isn’t all it is cracked up to be. With more responsibility, comes greater headaches that are not worth the pay increase! He never imagined that he would ever be presented with the opportunity to do this former job again until just recently.
A month ago, there were two work crew positions that came available in the department here. They seemed to take forever to post them all the while John was just chomping at the bit to apply! He figured that maybe they would have to cut the program, since budgets around here are very tight! What is very neat about the timing of the posting is that it was a month after John’s one year anniversary and annual evaluation. One of the requirements for being considered for the position was that you had to be there over a year. God is so good and His timing is always so perfect!
He put in a letter of interest for the position as soon as it was posted. There were many rumors flying around that they already had in mind who they wanted for the positions. While there were quite a few applicants, there were less than a dozen interviews. Everyone who was interviewed was sent an e-mail of when they needed to show up for their oral board interview. A few minutes after receiving the e-mail, John got a radio call from the Captain asking if he got the e-mail and was planning to make the interview. John felt his heart jump a bit but didn’t want to read too much into it. No one else on his crew received the same radio call to confirm.
The interviews were today. He called me RIGHT after his interview and said that he didn’t think he did well! He was pretty bummed thinking he must not have made it. An hour later he called me again stating that the Captain called him and offered him the job. So beginning on October 5th John will be running a work crew and working 4 ten hour shifts. Having a set schedule opens up many opportunities for ministry not only at work but for home fellowship too! This is just one more piece of the puzzle that has been revealed to us and we want to share with you all! More to come as God begins to reveal more of His plan for us here!
A little history for you….. When my hubby and I married in 1998 he was already a corrections officer. He had a ‘specialty position’ though, working with inmates on the road crew. The reason why it is such a great position for most, is that it has normal hours of operation. Back then, he worked Tuesday through Saturday 7am-3pm. Being that I was raised by a police officer who was on rotating shiftwork, this schedule was a piece of cake! These hours meant that he still had a little energy left when he got home for us AND enough ‘spring in his step’ to maybe attend an evening service at church or go to a friends house for dinner. In all his years as a corrections officer THESE were probably the most care-free and fun for him. You see, my hubby has the gift of evangelism and when he worked this type of job, he had so many opportunities to witness to people. It wasn’t like he had a ‘captive audience’ either. He never abused his position as an officer to shove the gospel down someone’s throat. He would merely have his bible in his work van, read it during lunch breaks and just live out his relationship with Jesus in front of the people on his crew. Inmates are pretty much used to being treated with disrespect and when you do not fill this role with them, it makes a big difference. Many of them would strike up conversations about the bible. After a short while of conversation, the barriers that were standing in between them and the Lord was eradicated. Being that many of them are invariably at a pretty low point in their life, they are already ‘seeking’ something that makes a lasting change or difference in their life. Talk about my hubby being in the right place at the right time. Unfortunately, after a couple years of being a work crew officer, my hubby tested for a supervisor’s position. He always regretted making this move as it felt like ‘trading in’ his most effective ministry for career advancement. Although, God still used him in his new positions, it never felt as right as when he was really being used with his work crew. As a supervisor, he was grateful for the fact of KNOWING from experience, that career advancement isn’t all it is cracked up to be. With more responsibility, comes greater headaches that are not worth the pay increase! He never imagined that he would ever be presented with the opportunity to do this former job again until just recently.
A month ago, there were two work crew positions that came available in the department here. They seemed to take forever to post them all the while John was just chomping at the bit to apply! He figured that maybe they would have to cut the program, since budgets around here are very tight! What is very neat about the timing of the posting is that it was a month after John’s one year anniversary and annual evaluation. One of the requirements for being considered for the position was that you had to be there over a year. God is so good and His timing is always so perfect!
He put in a letter of interest for the position as soon as it was posted. There were many rumors flying around that they already had in mind who they wanted for the positions. While there were quite a few applicants, there were less than a dozen interviews. Everyone who was interviewed was sent an e-mail of when they needed to show up for their oral board interview. A few minutes after receiving the e-mail, John got a radio call from the Captain asking if he got the e-mail and was planning to make the interview. John felt his heart jump a bit but didn’t want to read too much into it. No one else on his crew received the same radio call to confirm.
The interviews were today. He called me RIGHT after his interview and said that he didn’t think he did well! He was pretty bummed thinking he must not have made it. An hour later he called me again stating that the Captain called him and offered him the job. So beginning on October 5th John will be running a work crew and working 4 ten hour shifts. Having a set schedule opens up many opportunities for ministry not only at work but for home fellowship too! This is just one more piece of the puzzle that has been revealed to us and we want to share with you all! More to come as God begins to reveal more of His plan for us here!
Monday, September 21, 2009
Noteable accomplishments
Last Friday the girls recieved their yellow belts in Karate. They were actually set to recieve their yellow belts before we went on vacation, however, our plane left before they could attend the 'moving up' ceremony. Getting them to smile was quite a challenge!
They test every 5 weeks and if they have worked hard and put forth effort at home and at the studio, they recieve a stripe on their belt. I debated on posting pictures everytime they recieved a stripe and figured it was a bigger deal when they actually have more the share! The instructor offered to give them their new belts right when we got back, but we all agreed that it would be more fun to be apart of the ceremony.
It is also great for the kids to see the other people, young and old, who have worked hard to their accomplishments. Here are some pictures of their ceremony/class!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Some new family members
We told the kids that once we returned from our trip to WA, we would look at getting another dog. This was not a new idea because the kids were told that once we got to Florida we would look at getting another dog, however, knowing that we were going to be gone for a month and not really finding what we were looking for before now, put that on hold. They had been asking for another dog for 2 reasons: 1) to give Hershey someone to play with and 2)So my younger ones will be able to snuggle with a dog. Abby and Ben are both allergic to dogs but, thankfully they are not so allergic that they can't take an allergy med. for it. I know that sounds horrible to put your kid on medications so they can have a pet, but I can't describe how relentless my kids are. For some crazy reason they got on the "I want a dog kick" a couple years ago, then got my hubby on board and despite my best arguements to say no (even threatening allergy shots) they agreed to whatever it took to get a dog in the house. Especially since where we used to live it seemed like those hypo-allergenic dogs would be very spendy! We prayed about Hershey before getting her and I am so glad that God just knew she wouldn't be hard on their allergies!
We did know that if we were to ADD to our family with animals they were going to HAVE to be a hypo-allergenic breed. I don't have the money to pay a puppy mill for a dog, nor do I care to keep them in business by buying a non-mut dog from a pet store that keeps these puppy mills in business. Since the economy is still not very good here, there are tons of animals that get surrendered for no other reason than they can no longer afford to feed them. I figured it might take a couple weeks to find what we were looking for. However, we visited all the shelters in town on Thursday and at the last one we saw these 2 sweet girls. Granted I only wanted ONE more dog, however, since this was a mom and daughter pair, the refuge didn't want to separate them. I guess their surrender was a very sad situation so they thought separating them would not go well for either of them unless they went with each other. They seemed a little scared on the first day so we went out with Hershey the next day to introduce them and see of they might click. They were a bit friendlier that day which was very neat.
Meet Curly Sue (on the bottom), she is the momma, and Permy (on the top), she is the daughter. They seem to be adjusting well, however it might take them some time to get adjusted to dog food. When they came into the shelter the people were having a hard time getting them to eat anything, so one of the employess brought some of the 'dog food' she cooks for her animals at home. This was consistent of greens, whole wheat pasta and ground beef so they got pretty used to this diet. Still not sold yet that I will cook for them so I am praying they will begin eating kibble soon? Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Pondering my puzzle pieces & God's plan
Jeremiah 29:11-13
11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Romans 5:1-5
1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
For many reasons, I have been pondering these verses lately. What immediately caught my attention is the fact that our worldly definition of ‘prosper’ is so off base and opposite to the Lord’s. I looked up the word prosper, however in the KJV, the word that is used is Peace. When I dig deeper into that word peace, in Hebrew it means rest & safety. DUH, kinda sounds like another way of saying peace? After reading the first verse, I can see how awesome it is, that all I have to do is understand God has plans for us and all we need to do is rest in His plan. Seems simple enough right? He promises the end result of doing this is sweet intimate fellowship with Jesus and that He will hear our prayers which provide Him direct access to our hearts. (My paraphrase) With that kind of direct access, comes a yielding heart that is moldable to His plans over our own.
Then my mind slips into the realization of the second scripture. While God does have plans to give us peace and keep us from harm, He never promises that life will be easy. This is sometimes where my “heart to heart” kinship with the Lord gets tested. Many times, God’s plans have periods of refinement that do not FEEL like peace or safety. Dyeing to self through whatever circumstance is usually painful. Many times, those periods when dying is the only option that serves the greatest purpose, became so much harder because I got distracted with how I felt about dying. Just as a baby cries when they have a dirty diaper, we adults can kick against the Lord’s plan when the process gets uncomfortable. We question God’s process eventhough we KNOW He desires peace, rest and safety for our lives. Sadly, this is where kinship and the Lord’s direct access to MY heart gets muddled by self-loathing.
Hence the reason for this verse:
Philippians 4: 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
If testing our faith produces a temper tantrum, isn’t is so awesome that God knows exactly what we need to do, to get right back on track. This verse functions a bit like the tazer/stun gun that cops use to disable a criminal. It jolts them out of their stupidity to get them to comply. This verse stings to the heart to get our eyes off our petty problems and onto the Lord. He is so faithful to keep it simple, for simple folks like myself. After all, God’s ultimate goal is very dis-similar to that of a police officer. He desires a heart that is more than just compliant. The ultimate goal of the Lord is not forced manipulation to achieve the task at hand but restoration. He wants that fellowship back that willingly offers Him humble obedience and that direct heart accessability again.
How come the knowledge that God HAS a perfect plan that suits our best interest, is not enough? How come that concept is not something we cling to while persevering through the refining process? Since not much has changed since the fall of man, I suppose it is much in the same manner by which Adam and Eve KNEW there was ONE tree they were not to eat from but ended up hanging out by that tree? Knowledge is not really good for anything unless it is preceeded by a trusting in, relying upon and clinging to, relationship with Christ.
As God begins to unfold His Plans to “prosper us and not to harm us” in whatever manner He choses to do this, I am praying for our family. That in the midst of His plan, to have yielding hearts that will hold fast through whatever refinement is necessary to achieve things He desires. Counting the cost of following Jesus in the times of comfort is never any challenge. However, when you begin walking according to the Lord’s plan you become a target for spiritual battle. Ergo the need to for this verse of which I am making my memory verse:
Ephesians 6: 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
What are God’s plans for you this year? Do you think He is calling on you to count the cost, in ways that you don’t care to be stretched out of your comfort zone? What scriptures have helped you when you were being stretched persevering through refinement? Feel free to share if you have any words of wisdom!
11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Romans 5:1-5
1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
For many reasons, I have been pondering these verses lately. What immediately caught my attention is the fact that our worldly definition of ‘prosper’ is so off base and opposite to the Lord’s. I looked up the word prosper, however in the KJV, the word that is used is Peace. When I dig deeper into that word peace, in Hebrew it means rest & safety. DUH, kinda sounds like another way of saying peace? After reading the first verse, I can see how awesome it is, that all I have to do is understand God has plans for us and all we need to do is rest in His plan. Seems simple enough right? He promises the end result of doing this is sweet intimate fellowship with Jesus and that He will hear our prayers which provide Him direct access to our hearts. (My paraphrase) With that kind of direct access, comes a yielding heart that is moldable to His plans over our own.
Then my mind slips into the realization of the second scripture. While God does have plans to give us peace and keep us from harm, He never promises that life will be easy. This is sometimes where my “heart to heart” kinship with the Lord gets tested. Many times, God’s plans have periods of refinement that do not FEEL like peace or safety. Dyeing to self through whatever circumstance is usually painful. Many times, those periods when dying is the only option that serves the greatest purpose, became so much harder because I got distracted with how I felt about dying. Just as a baby cries when they have a dirty diaper, we adults can kick against the Lord’s plan when the process gets uncomfortable. We question God’s process eventhough we KNOW He desires peace, rest and safety for our lives. Sadly, this is where kinship and the Lord’s direct access to MY heart gets muddled by self-loathing.
Hence the reason for this verse:
Philippians 4: 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
If testing our faith produces a temper tantrum, isn’t is so awesome that God knows exactly what we need to do, to get right back on track. This verse functions a bit like the tazer/stun gun that cops use to disable a criminal. It jolts them out of their stupidity to get them to comply. This verse stings to the heart to get our eyes off our petty problems and onto the Lord. He is so faithful to keep it simple, for simple folks like myself. After all, God’s ultimate goal is very dis-similar to that of a police officer. He desires a heart that is more than just compliant. The ultimate goal of the Lord is not forced manipulation to achieve the task at hand but restoration. He wants that fellowship back that willingly offers Him humble obedience and that direct heart accessability again.
How come the knowledge that God HAS a perfect plan that suits our best interest, is not enough? How come that concept is not something we cling to while persevering through the refining process? Since not much has changed since the fall of man, I suppose it is much in the same manner by which Adam and Eve KNEW there was ONE tree they were not to eat from but ended up hanging out by that tree? Knowledge is not really good for anything unless it is preceeded by a trusting in, relying upon and clinging to, relationship with Christ.
As God begins to unfold His Plans to “prosper us and not to harm us” in whatever manner He choses to do this, I am praying for our family. That in the midst of His plan, to have yielding hearts that will hold fast through whatever refinement is necessary to achieve things He desires. Counting the cost of following Jesus in the times of comfort is never any challenge. However, when you begin walking according to the Lord’s plan you become a target for spiritual battle. Ergo the need to for this verse of which I am making my memory verse:
Ephesians 6: 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
What are God’s plans for you this year? Do you think He is calling on you to count the cost, in ways that you don’t care to be stretched out of your comfort zone? What scriptures have helped you when you were being stretched persevering through refinement? Feel free to share if you have any words of wisdom!
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Going home again
I know I have been silent for a while and it has been due to a mixture of reasons. In July, I was finishing up school with the kids, getting yearly evaluations done, (state requirement for homeschoolers in Florida) and getting other things in place. I was also making preparations to come back to our family’s home city & state, to rest for a while.
We got to visit family members & close friends that we miss dearly. I have lived in that area since the age of 11 and the kids were all born there, so it is still considered ‘home’ to me. It was just the kids and I that got to go back and my hubby had to stay here in Florida and work since he didn’t have the vacation time available. Even the kids, when faced with the decision to do something fun like Disney World or come back and see family/friends, chose to come visit our former home. We planned to be away for the entire month of August to catch up with and spend quality time with the folks that have meant so much to us and are still a great encouragement. What an amazing blessing! It was so refreshing to see/hear the familiarity of cousins playing together, sharing family stories and old friends sharing their hearts about what the Lord is doing in their lives. It was very relaxing to be in our home church that holds fast to the boldness of the word. Where folks are encouraged to ask for prayer from the whole body, share praises of how God is working in their lives OR get answers from our pastor about where they are reading in the bible that isn’t making sense…….. It is one of the ways our very large church still gets that sense of community with one another as we share in each other’s questions, burdens and victories! Where if someone shares something they are going through, someone else who recently went through something similar can then come to them and share how God brought them through it.
One thing I have always admired about our pastor is his ability to keep it simple while challenging the more mature Christians to dig deeper and make sure he is right on. He is the first one to correct us when we think to highly of Him and gives all the glory to where it is due! You never even have to guess his sin areas as he is the first to point them out to show us he is no different than any of us. He is the first one to ask people to call him Steve rather than ‘pastor’. He says people get weird if you have to be called pastor and can’t be approached as a fellow believer. The title of a pastor is a grand responsibility but doesn’t make him better than anyone else who also loves Jesus and desires to be used by the Lord is less visible ways. Being humble enough to admit his failings puts everyone at ease knowing that no matter how much you grow as a Christian, there is always further growth to be attained! That we are all sinners saved by grace, no one more holy than anyone else! My hubby and I are so fortunate to have served under his leadership to get a great foundation in our own relationships with the Lord. (He would be pretty embarrassed to know I was blogging and telling the world about how awesome he is since not only is he pretty modest but he also knows that it is God that has accomplished these things through him. However this still doesn’t change the fact that I appreciate him so much that I think he may forgive me for expressing this appreciation? Maybe?) If you don’t have this kind of teaching at your home church, but want experience what I am ranting over, you can always listen to him at this site: http://www.calvary-tricities.org/studies.html and download his studies in MP3 format for free!
Anywho, back to our visit........... We were able to see my family and the many people we hold near and dear to us here in the Tri-cities. It wasn’t just blood family members that we looked so forward to visiting with, but many of our church friends that have adopted us and we consider to be family members. Many of these sweet folks were responsible for spiritually parenting me in my late teens and early to late 20’s. The days when I was ‘Too wise in my own eyes’ to listen to my parents. They were faithful to rebuke me when I needed it and show me the truth regardless of if I liked it at the time. In their wisdom, they knew that the truth was a far greater gift than making sure I felt good about what I heard.
I got to see some very special brothers in Christ, who came alongside a man that had no clue of his need for Jesus. However, once he was told of God’s great love for him by these faithful men, had a thirst for Him that was unquenchable! They put up with his un ending questions, hung out with him as he struggled to figure out what this new life in Christ meant, discipled him when he was faced with temptations. In doing so, they played a huge part in making him the man that I later married!
Saying goodbye to all the folks that we love so much was pretty painful and filled with tears for the kids and I. Cousins, adopted ones from church and related were really hard to let go of! However, it was a great reminder that no matter how many miles separate us from those wonderful people, the bonds that Jesus forms together will never be lost, regardless of time or distance! This was proven when relationships just picked up where they left off! For this reason, I am in AWE of how much we are so amazingly blessed by this fact!
There are many things about this place that are so near and dear to my heart, however, at the same time I know it is no longer my ‘home’. Don’t get me wrong, if God said we could move back, there would be NO hesitation! We would find our niches, re-join in all the places we were active and even find some new places to minister where God could stretch us. However, while I will never forget the people, the teaching we grew so fervently under and the standards through which God grew a body from 30 people to 3000, it was a chapter in our lives that is no longer what God has in store for us. While we are still uncertain of the reason why we continue to be in Florida I do know for a fact that we are suppose to be there. Comfort has never been a word used to describe this journey, however, God’s plans rarely have anything to do with our comfort. They mostly entail further purification and dying to self. While speaking with one of my friends back there I was trying to describe this strange place we find ourselves in. The best way I could describe what God was doing with us here was to tell her that this journey is basically much like a 1000 piece puzzle. Eventhough we only have maybe 10 pieces to the puzzle, there is still so much that God, in His divine wisdom, just has not revealed to us quite yet. So our task at hand is to be in His word, prayed up and seeking Him continually. If we are diligently doing this, we will be able to receive the next pieces of the puzzle to His will for us!
Instead of spilling the beans on what we do know and try filling in the blanks with possibilities of how these pieces fit into the grand plan, it is better just to remain silently steadfast in prayer to ask for direction. Some interesting things are on the horizon, that are both exciting, yet scary as we continue to seek the Lord and desire to be used by Him to accomplish His will and not our own. I thank the Lord every day that it is HIS burden to carry the WHY’s, WHEN’s and HOW’s, so that all we really need to do is rest in Him.
We got to visit family members & close friends that we miss dearly. I have lived in that area since the age of 11 and the kids were all born there, so it is still considered ‘home’ to me. It was just the kids and I that got to go back and my hubby had to stay here in Florida and work since he didn’t have the vacation time available. Even the kids, when faced with the decision to do something fun like Disney World or come back and see family/friends, chose to come visit our former home. We planned to be away for the entire month of August to catch up with and spend quality time with the folks that have meant so much to us and are still a great encouragement. What an amazing blessing! It was so refreshing to see/hear the familiarity of cousins playing together, sharing family stories and old friends sharing their hearts about what the Lord is doing in their lives. It was very relaxing to be in our home church that holds fast to the boldness of the word. Where folks are encouraged to ask for prayer from the whole body, share praises of how God is working in their lives OR get answers from our pastor about where they are reading in the bible that isn’t making sense…….. It is one of the ways our very large church still gets that sense of community with one another as we share in each other’s questions, burdens and victories! Where if someone shares something they are going through, someone else who recently went through something similar can then come to them and share how God brought them through it.
One thing I have always admired about our pastor is his ability to keep it simple while challenging the more mature Christians to dig deeper and make sure he is right on. He is the first one to correct us when we think to highly of Him and gives all the glory to where it is due! You never even have to guess his sin areas as he is the first to point them out to show us he is no different than any of us. He is the first one to ask people to call him Steve rather than ‘pastor’. He says people get weird if you have to be called pastor and can’t be approached as a fellow believer. The title of a pastor is a grand responsibility but doesn’t make him better than anyone else who also loves Jesus and desires to be used by the Lord is less visible ways. Being humble enough to admit his failings puts everyone at ease knowing that no matter how much you grow as a Christian, there is always further growth to be attained! That we are all sinners saved by grace, no one more holy than anyone else! My hubby and I are so fortunate to have served under his leadership to get a great foundation in our own relationships with the Lord. (He would be pretty embarrassed to know I was blogging and telling the world about how awesome he is since not only is he pretty modest but he also knows that it is God that has accomplished these things through him. However this still doesn’t change the fact that I appreciate him so much that I think he may forgive me for expressing this appreciation? Maybe?) If you don’t have this kind of teaching at your home church, but want experience what I am ranting over, you can always listen to him at this site: http://www.calvary-tricities.org/studies.html and download his studies in MP3 format for free!
Anywho, back to our visit........... We were able to see my family and the many people we hold near and dear to us here in the Tri-cities. It wasn’t just blood family members that we looked so forward to visiting with, but many of our church friends that have adopted us and we consider to be family members. Many of these sweet folks were responsible for spiritually parenting me in my late teens and early to late 20’s. The days when I was ‘Too wise in my own eyes’ to listen to my parents. They were faithful to rebuke me when I needed it and show me the truth regardless of if I liked it at the time. In their wisdom, they knew that the truth was a far greater gift than making sure I felt good about what I heard.
I got to see some very special brothers in Christ, who came alongside a man that had no clue of his need for Jesus. However, once he was told of God’s great love for him by these faithful men, had a thirst for Him that was unquenchable! They put up with his un ending questions, hung out with him as he struggled to figure out what this new life in Christ meant, discipled him when he was faced with temptations. In doing so, they played a huge part in making him the man that I later married!
Saying goodbye to all the folks that we love so much was pretty painful and filled with tears for the kids and I. Cousins, adopted ones from church and related were really hard to let go of! However, it was a great reminder that no matter how many miles separate us from those wonderful people, the bonds that Jesus forms together will never be lost, regardless of time or distance! This was proven when relationships just picked up where they left off! For this reason, I am in AWE of how much we are so amazingly blessed by this fact!
There are many things about this place that are so near and dear to my heart, however, at the same time I know it is no longer my ‘home’. Don’t get me wrong, if God said we could move back, there would be NO hesitation! We would find our niches, re-join in all the places we were active and even find some new places to minister where God could stretch us. However, while I will never forget the people, the teaching we grew so fervently under and the standards through which God grew a body from 30 people to 3000, it was a chapter in our lives that is no longer what God has in store for us. While we are still uncertain of the reason why we continue to be in Florida I do know for a fact that we are suppose to be there. Comfort has never been a word used to describe this journey, however, God’s plans rarely have anything to do with our comfort. They mostly entail further purification and dying to self. While speaking with one of my friends back there I was trying to describe this strange place we find ourselves in. The best way I could describe what God was doing with us here was to tell her that this journey is basically much like a 1000 piece puzzle. Eventhough we only have maybe 10 pieces to the puzzle, there is still so much that God, in His divine wisdom, just has not revealed to us quite yet. So our task at hand is to be in His word, prayed up and seeking Him continually. If we are diligently doing this, we will be able to receive the next pieces of the puzzle to His will for us!
Instead of spilling the beans on what we do know and try filling in the blanks with possibilities of how these pieces fit into the grand plan, it is better just to remain silently steadfast in prayer to ask for direction. Some interesting things are on the horizon, that are both exciting, yet scary as we continue to seek the Lord and desire to be used by Him to accomplish His will and not our own. I thank the Lord every day that it is HIS burden to carry the WHY’s, WHEN’s and HOW’s, so that all we really need to do is rest in Him.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Some Poetry
Ever since we have stopped our formal schooling/schedule I have found Michaela at the computer...... She just finished a section of 'How to write a poem' in her English. She apparently wanted to try to do some on her own, without the pressure of it being an assignment and just to have some fun! I told her that once she was finished I would share her work on my blog. Love the randomness of a child. Here ya go!
PEOPLE
Some people are pretty, some people are nice
Some people give others,good advice
Some people are disabled ,and some are sweet
Some people are mean , and they're not a treat
Some people are far, some people near
And some are deaf,thay can not hear.
BUTTERFLY
Butterflys are so pretty
I give them, not much pitty
They swing back and forth with glee
Showing there colors to me
It is easy if you know
How buterflys live, and grow.
GRASS
Grass is green grass is yummy
Grass is good for a bunnys tummy
Some grass is soft, like fluffy shirts
Some grass is sharp and it hurts
After it’s mowed, grass smells sweet
The little bunny likes the neat treat
DAD’s
Some dads are strict ,some are cool
Some dads like sitting, in the pool
Some dads are plump and some are skinny
Some are not, such a ninny
Some dads are nice or sweet
And some love to eat meat
PEOPLE
Some people are pretty, some people are nice
Some people give others,good advice
Some people are disabled ,and some are sweet
Some people are mean , and they're not a treat
Some people are far, some people near
And some are deaf,thay can not hear.
BUTTERFLY
Butterflys are so pretty
I give them, not much pitty
They swing back and forth with glee
Showing there colors to me
It is easy if you know
How buterflys live, and grow.
GRASS
Grass is green grass is yummy
Grass is good for a bunnys tummy
Some grass is soft, like fluffy shirts
Some grass is sharp and it hurts
After it’s mowed, grass smells sweet
The little bunny likes the neat treat
DAD’s
Some dads are strict ,some are cool
Some dads like sitting, in the pool
Some dads are plump and some are skinny
Some are not, such a ninny
Some dads are nice or sweet
And some love to eat meat
Sunday, July 5, 2009
In Debt We Trust ~ Scarey!
A friend of mine posted this movie on her facebook today. Although it is an hour & a half long, if you are not educated about HOW credit cards work, WHY they are so successful at making money (most Americans simply do not care to inquire about this) it is worth watching because the information is invaluable! Better to be informed AND educated about how credit effects your family, than simply ignorant or apathetic. After and hour it features the Democratic group ACORN and we all know how credible they have been. UGH! Although you do have to "eat the meat and spit out the bones" it is worth watching to get a well rounded view of how we can control our own economic health!
It is produced by a man that says he is bi-partisan and is a skeptic of typical media, but I will really appreciate his efforts once he makes a movie on how Obama was elected by the media!
Here is the desciption of the video:
In America's earliest days, there were barn-raising parties in which neighbors helped each other build up their farms. Today, in some churches, there are debt liquidation revivals in which parishioners chip in to free each other from growing credit card debts that are driving American families to bankruptcy and desperation. IN DEBT WE TRUST is the latest film from Danny Schechter, "The News Dissector," director of the internationally distributed and award-winning WMD (Weapons of Mass Deception), an expose of the media's role in the Iraq War. The Emmy-winning former ABC News and CNN producer's new hard-hitting documentary investigates why so many Americans are being strangled by debt. It is a journalistic confrontation with what former Reagan advisor Kevin Phillips calls "Financialization"--the "powerful emergence of a debt-and-credit industrial complex." While many Americans may be "maxing out" on credit cards, there is a deeper story: power is shifting into fewer hands.....with frightening consequences. IN DEBT WE TRUST shows how the mall replaced the factory as America's dominant economic engine and how big banks and credit card companies buy our Congress and drive us into what a former major bank economist calls modern serfdom. Americans and our government owe trillions in consumer debt and the national debt, a large amount of it to big banks and billions to Communist China.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9016886482738598023
It is produced by a man that says he is bi-partisan and is a skeptic of typical media, but I will really appreciate his efforts once he makes a movie on how Obama was elected by the media!
Here is the desciption of the video:
In America's earliest days, there were barn-raising parties in which neighbors helped each other build up their farms. Today, in some churches, there are debt liquidation revivals in which parishioners chip in to free each other from growing credit card debts that are driving American families to bankruptcy and desperation. IN DEBT WE TRUST is the latest film from Danny Schechter, "The News Dissector," director of the internationally distributed and award-winning WMD (Weapons of Mass Deception), an expose of the media's role in the Iraq War. The Emmy-winning former ABC News and CNN producer's new hard-hitting documentary investigates why so many Americans are being strangled by debt. It is a journalistic confrontation with what former Reagan advisor Kevin Phillips calls "Financialization"--the "powerful emergence of a debt-and-credit industrial complex." While many Americans may be "maxing out" on credit cards, there is a deeper story: power is shifting into fewer hands.....with frightening consequences. IN DEBT WE TRUST shows how the mall replaced the factory as America's dominant economic engine and how big banks and credit card companies buy our Congress and drive us into what a former major bank economist calls modern serfdom. Americans and our government owe trillions in consumer debt and the national debt, a large amount of it to big banks and billions to Communist China.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9016886482738598023
Friday, July 3, 2009
The undivided heart
Is 43:18 "Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old.19 Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.
Are you living in the past? Or are you trying to re-create the past where you are? Some times when we dwell on things of old we miss the exciting new thing God has for us to do. When we try to re-create the past, it opens our heart up to resentment, to be critical or to frustration because the past is not meant to be re-created. Take time today to ask the Lord to help you not to consider the things of old, but to clearly see the new and exciting road He has created in the wilderness so you can walk in it.
(Unknown)
Our pastor sent this out to the church body the other day and it got me to thinking about the way we grow in Christ. We grow in our faith, from infancy (brand new believer) to mature Christ-centered adulthood. We actually may never reach spiritual adulthood eventhough this is the goal. It is a life long journey, yet sometimes we tend to look back and envy our past relationship with God and forsake the new growth He wants us to take hold of.
At first, as a new believer, we are so unfamiliar with God’s ways. We are newly re-born into unfamiliar territories, however, the overwhelming peace is confirmation that God is good and He will take care of our needs. God proves this in many small and large ways, when we are first saved so that we have instantaneous proof of His provision, goodness, and faithfulness to take care of us. He protects us from some of the repercussions of the poor choices we made before we came to know Him, by covering them with His abundant grace. He also allows us to suffer some of the consequences of these choices, so we will not turn back to make the same errors again. In His effort to keep us near His feet, He continues to protect us from further poor choices by surrounding us with older believers to hold us accountable while also limiting our temptations/circumstances to only what we can bear. We can rest in the fact that God will always have an ‘escape plan’ waiting for us if we do make a ‘wrong turn’. When we realize we are ‘in the wrong place at the wrong time’ and the current surroundings are dangerous to our re-birth in Christ, He is faithful to provide us a way of escape. Just as infants look to their mom to keep them safe, God so desperately wants to do the same for us. He will move heaven and earth to keep us from making choices that will harm us. He will woo us in this manner to capture our heart and so we learn to hear and trust his still small voice over the booming voices of the world around us.
After we grow a bit we become even more ‘mobile’ in our walk with the Lord. We are learning and growing through every biblestudy we attend, and at every quiet time invested with the Lord. Basically, figuring out how to shed the "old man" and become the new creature created in Christ’s image. We become quite aware that there is a serious spiritual battle going on around us, and the war is waged over our eternity. While exploring the world through our new eyes, decisions become a big deal where we truly begin to desire to be in the center of God’s will. Because the battle of the flesh and the spirit is still very new, we begin asking God to protect us from ourselves. It is clear that hearing His will for us is a learning process. How God wants to do things may be at odds with how we have always done them but that desire to follow the Lord is what God sees. Therefore, He is faithful to place road blocks to protect us from stepping out of His will. It is very much like a child who is learning to crawl and explore the world around them. They are ignorant to what is out there that might hurt them. So, we as parents, provide safe places for them to play such as a playpen or we put up baby gates to keep them out of places where they might be harmed. We use barriers/boundaries because we love them and they are not yet old enough to understand the dangers that an older child understands as harmful.
As they grow a little more, become more mobile, parents begin the training process. We begin removing barriers to teach discernment of right and wrong, safe and unsafe. Coming alongside them & train them to obey because it will lead them down a path of righteous living. We begin to teach them in the bible the WHY behind discernment of right and wrong. This is very similar to God training us in our walks with Him. Just like with our children it is a life long process of teaching, reproof, encouragement and love invested with the ultimate goal of obedience and an allegiance to Christ.
In the teen years, this is usually when God ‘shakes us loose’ from this dependence on the former ways of living out God’s will. Since teenagers tend to be fickle & flakey based on how they feel in the moment, this is another indicator that we need to be putting on the mind of Christ. We seek the Lord and He may not provide an instant answer. He asks for more of our walk in order that we further die to self so that be can really LIVE for Him. We, being teens, may chose to rebel when we don’t receive our answer immediately, by maneuvering in front of the Lord and then, expect God to again protect us from ourselves. When we do this, we risk our flesh getting too wrapped up in what we are pursuing. We grasp at circumstances to justify or confirm the pursuit. Finally, in a last ditch effort to "not go outside of God’s will", we then wonder why we are SO conflicted and not able to discern His will over our own agenda/circumstances.
In our walks with the Lord growing up is a longer process for some more than others. Some people remain babies for far too long and desire spiritual milk rather than the training process of discernment, reproof & seeking the Lord diligently. It is the spiritual weaning process where we are no longer caudaled in the decision making process. God has established enough of a relationship with us where we can begin to weigh all decisions on the basis of knowing scripture and seeking His will for the direction of our lives. It is also the time where He removes many of the remaining barriers in order to grow us up and teach us to seek and trust Him more.
It is confusing to see mature Christians resort to the things of old & the former ways of God working in their life. Asking God to place barriers where we should and should not go, when instead we should be asking for direction before seeking any opportunity. It is much like grown children asking to be given a bottle again. Once we have grown past our the toddler years in Christ and are spiritually eating solid foods, there should not be this unhealthy dependence to ask for the former relationship of barriers & limitations in our path to figure out God’s will. Instead we should be so intimate in our walk with the Lord, that He has every opportunity to make His plan for us abundantly clear. We can therefore, step out in an obedient confidence, through scriptural confirmation, that we are moving forward in His will.
1 Corinthians 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able;
Hebrews 5: 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
God wants our loyalty to Him first……... He warns us to seek Him first, because He already knows our needs. If we don’t diligently seek and continue seeking to get an answer BEFORE following in our pursuit, God is not in it. Without God being at the forefront, we run the risk of becoming double-minded. The pursuit of God in an effort to follow His will is never the easy route, but it is the route that keeps us from have a flakey, divided heart.
James 4: 7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
Matt 6: 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 7: 7"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
Are you living in the past? Or are you trying to re-create the past where you are? Some times when we dwell on things of old we miss the exciting new thing God has for us to do. When we try to re-create the past, it opens our heart up to resentment, to be critical or to frustration because the past is not meant to be re-created. Take time today to ask the Lord to help you not to consider the things of old, but to clearly see the new and exciting road He has created in the wilderness so you can walk in it.
(Unknown)
Our pastor sent this out to the church body the other day and it got me to thinking about the way we grow in Christ. We grow in our faith, from infancy (brand new believer) to mature Christ-centered adulthood. We actually may never reach spiritual adulthood eventhough this is the goal. It is a life long journey, yet sometimes we tend to look back and envy our past relationship with God and forsake the new growth He wants us to take hold of.
At first, as a new believer, we are so unfamiliar with God’s ways. We are newly re-born into unfamiliar territories, however, the overwhelming peace is confirmation that God is good and He will take care of our needs. God proves this in many small and large ways, when we are first saved so that we have instantaneous proof of His provision, goodness, and faithfulness to take care of us. He protects us from some of the repercussions of the poor choices we made before we came to know Him, by covering them with His abundant grace. He also allows us to suffer some of the consequences of these choices, so we will not turn back to make the same errors again. In His effort to keep us near His feet, He continues to protect us from further poor choices by surrounding us with older believers to hold us accountable while also limiting our temptations/circumstances to only what we can bear. We can rest in the fact that God will always have an ‘escape plan’ waiting for us if we do make a ‘wrong turn’. When we realize we are ‘in the wrong place at the wrong time’ and the current surroundings are dangerous to our re-birth in Christ, He is faithful to provide us a way of escape. Just as infants look to their mom to keep them safe, God so desperately wants to do the same for us. He will move heaven and earth to keep us from making choices that will harm us. He will woo us in this manner to capture our heart and so we learn to hear and trust his still small voice over the booming voices of the world around us.
After we grow a bit we become even more ‘mobile’ in our walk with the Lord. We are learning and growing through every biblestudy we attend, and at every quiet time invested with the Lord. Basically, figuring out how to shed the "old man" and become the new creature created in Christ’s image. We become quite aware that there is a serious spiritual battle going on around us, and the war is waged over our eternity. While exploring the world through our new eyes, decisions become a big deal where we truly begin to desire to be in the center of God’s will. Because the battle of the flesh and the spirit is still very new, we begin asking God to protect us from ourselves. It is clear that hearing His will for us is a learning process. How God wants to do things may be at odds with how we have always done them but that desire to follow the Lord is what God sees. Therefore, He is faithful to place road blocks to protect us from stepping out of His will. It is very much like a child who is learning to crawl and explore the world around them. They are ignorant to what is out there that might hurt them. So, we as parents, provide safe places for them to play such as a playpen or we put up baby gates to keep them out of places where they might be harmed. We use barriers/boundaries because we love them and they are not yet old enough to understand the dangers that an older child understands as harmful.
As they grow a little more, become more mobile, parents begin the training process. We begin removing barriers to teach discernment of right and wrong, safe and unsafe. Coming alongside them & train them to obey because it will lead them down a path of righteous living. We begin to teach them in the bible the WHY behind discernment of right and wrong. This is very similar to God training us in our walks with Him. Just like with our children it is a life long process of teaching, reproof, encouragement and love invested with the ultimate goal of obedience and an allegiance to Christ.
In the teen years, this is usually when God ‘shakes us loose’ from this dependence on the former ways of living out God’s will. Since teenagers tend to be fickle & flakey based on how they feel in the moment, this is another indicator that we need to be putting on the mind of Christ. We seek the Lord and He may not provide an instant answer. He asks for more of our walk in order that we further die to self so that be can really LIVE for Him. We, being teens, may chose to rebel when we don’t receive our answer immediately, by maneuvering in front of the Lord and then, expect God to again protect us from ourselves. When we do this, we risk our flesh getting too wrapped up in what we are pursuing. We grasp at circumstances to justify or confirm the pursuit. Finally, in a last ditch effort to "not go outside of God’s will", we then wonder why we are SO conflicted and not able to discern His will over our own agenda/circumstances.
In our walks with the Lord growing up is a longer process for some more than others. Some people remain babies for far too long and desire spiritual milk rather than the training process of discernment, reproof & seeking the Lord diligently. It is the spiritual weaning process where we are no longer caudaled in the decision making process. God has established enough of a relationship with us where we can begin to weigh all decisions on the basis of knowing scripture and seeking His will for the direction of our lives. It is also the time where He removes many of the remaining barriers in order to grow us up and teach us to seek and trust Him more.
It is confusing to see mature Christians resort to the things of old & the former ways of God working in their life. Asking God to place barriers where we should and should not go, when instead we should be asking for direction before seeking any opportunity. It is much like grown children asking to be given a bottle again. Once we have grown past our the toddler years in Christ and are spiritually eating solid foods, there should not be this unhealthy dependence to ask for the former relationship of barriers & limitations in our path to figure out God’s will. Instead we should be so intimate in our walk with the Lord, that He has every opportunity to make His plan for us abundantly clear. We can therefore, step out in an obedient confidence, through scriptural confirmation, that we are moving forward in His will.
1 Corinthians 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able;
Hebrews 5: 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
God wants our loyalty to Him first……... He warns us to seek Him first, because He already knows our needs. If we don’t diligently seek and continue seeking to get an answer BEFORE following in our pursuit, God is not in it. Without God being at the forefront, we run the risk of becoming double-minded. The pursuit of God in an effort to follow His will is never the easy route, but it is the route that keeps us from have a flakey, divided heart.
James 4: 7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
Matt 6: 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Matthew 7: 7"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
A video you must watch!
A fellow blogger published a link on her blog to this amazing woman's story....... This is a video of a woman who is diagnosed with cancer...... The prognosis is not good for her, but yet she has self-lessly used this experience to minister to other women! It is an hour long presentation but I am telling you it is so worth your time to watch! I usually don't blog things like this, but felt compelled that this is definately worth sharing! If you have a blog I encourage you to pass this along as well!
http://deathisnotdying.com/eventvideo/
She refers to several things in her talk about a book list and such which can be found at her website http://www.deathisnotdyeing.com/
God Bless and did I already say WATCH THE VIDEO? ;^) HUGS!
http://deathisnotdying.com/eventvideo/
She refers to several things in her talk about a book list and such which can be found at her website http://www.deathisnotdyeing.com/
God Bless and did I already say WATCH THE VIDEO? ;^) HUGS!
Friday, June 12, 2009
HE equips the called
"God doesn’t Call on the Equipped, HE Equips the Called"
I have heard this phrase throughout my life as a Christian, but each year I am challenged to apply it further. To allow this concept to resonate deep within my personal relationship with Christ. I have been one of those many Christians where I have dictated what I CAN and absolutely CAN NOT do. There have been many occasions/situations in my life when I have shamefully informed the Lord "Anything but THAT Lord." Such a disappointment that I could tell the Lord what He can or can not do in my life when, in fact, He is the author of my existence. Reminds me of when Moses was having doubts in the wilderness of if God would keep His word:
Numbers 11: 23 The LORD answered Moses, "Is the LORD's arm too short? You will now see whether or not what I say will come true for you."
I am so thankful we serve a very patient God! He lovingly proves his faithfulness over and over again to a very forgetful people, like myself.
Have you ever seen a ministry that touched your heart or heard someone speak about something that got you a little fired up? Maybe thinking there is more for God to do through you? Something greater than that of yourself, which would very well allow God to increase and you to decrease? If that initial stirring is not faithfully committed to fervent prayer, it will eventually be quenched. God is a gentleman and will not force His plan on anyone. He will also recognize when we place value on the distraction of life OVER the desire to see His plan revealed in us. Many times, the stirring dies as it is replaced with the normality of life as usual. The soothing words "I could NEVER do that," may begin to rest easily in your mind as it slowly replaces the initial stirring & desire for God to accomplish something greater.
So many times we can quench the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts by placing too much validity on our resume of self-doubt, self-pity, or just plain selfishness. Unfortunately, we place these self-centered things smack dab in the center to where we will surely, stifle the path of God’s design. God perspective is quite different on the subject of what we can and can not do.
Phil 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
We are totally correct in the "I can’t" statements. Even the bare minimum that we do on a daily basis, we can’t accomplish effectively without Christ’s strength! So, even in the small things, we are in need of His constant help! Why then do we then limit/stifle His creativity to accomplish something with greater importance & purpose. As the scripture in Philippians, clearly demonstrates, it is not about us AT ALL, but instead, the effectiveness of God doing the work through us.
Psalm 143: 10 Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness.
What we fail to understand/comprehend is that those people we look up to, or who have effective ministries are not naturally gifted or equipped for the calling God has placed before them. They are supernaturally equipped, for the Plan God calls them to fulfill. God doesn’t look at our ‘resume’ and then decide if we are qualified to follow His will. In my humble opinion, this ‘world-view’ is one of the pivotal reasons why we see so much stagnancy in the modern church today. Admiring qualifications & experience OVER a heart that just wants to serve God. All we need is a yielding spirit, open to whatever He wants to do in & through us to further His kingdom. Remember, the point of everything we do is not about what we want, our comforts, our security, or our self-serving ideals. Much of our life’s direction, should have a Kingdom purpose. To allow God to have full control of our lives, so that He can make us most effective for HIS purpose. To lay down our rights and give up our ideas so that HIS plan can unfold can HE will be glorified. Romans 8:12-13 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
We as Christians have many liberties today in order to make choices for our lives. It is actually quite sad how few choices we allow Him to lead us towards. We instead, limit God by taking the ‘bull by the horns’ approach and settle for what WE think is best, rather than really relying on what God KNOWS is best by waiting for his direction! God is interested in being apart of ALL your decisions. Something we fail to realize the harsh reality of no decision is made within a vacuum! Each one can not only permeate through our own families, but also impact or fail to impact the lives of others around us. If we are not living out the example of reliance in Christ through our decisions, what makes our process set apart from the world? Praise the Lord for His redemption and for this verse here in Romans 8: 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
When we do make foolish choices, and we all have, we can at least have this hope that He will use it to His Glory. It doesn’t mean we get a free pass when it comes to suffering the consequences, but that we can have hope that He will use it for a Kingdom purpose..
In Psalms 37 it says:
3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. 4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: 6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
This is a very active passage and requires a lot of us dying to our flesh to fulfill the promises listed. If we would only trust, delight, commit & trust (ya think God is trying to make a point by listing trust twice?), THAT is when God can do a marvelous work in our lives! How much do we miss out on by our limited amounts of trusting, committing, & delighting? How much do we miss out on by quenching a fire he began in our hearts?
1 Corinthians 9: 24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
I have heard this phrase throughout my life as a Christian, but each year I am challenged to apply it further. To allow this concept to resonate deep within my personal relationship with Christ. I have been one of those many Christians where I have dictated what I CAN and absolutely CAN NOT do. There have been many occasions/situations in my life when I have shamefully informed the Lord "Anything but THAT Lord." Such a disappointment that I could tell the Lord what He can or can not do in my life when, in fact, He is the author of my existence. Reminds me of when Moses was having doubts in the wilderness of if God would keep His word:
Numbers 11: 23 The LORD answered Moses, "Is the LORD's arm too short? You will now see whether or not what I say will come true for you."
I am so thankful we serve a very patient God! He lovingly proves his faithfulness over and over again to a very forgetful people, like myself.
Have you ever seen a ministry that touched your heart or heard someone speak about something that got you a little fired up? Maybe thinking there is more for God to do through you? Something greater than that of yourself, which would very well allow God to increase and you to decrease? If that initial stirring is not faithfully committed to fervent prayer, it will eventually be quenched. God is a gentleman and will not force His plan on anyone. He will also recognize when we place value on the distraction of life OVER the desire to see His plan revealed in us. Many times, the stirring dies as it is replaced with the normality of life as usual. The soothing words "I could NEVER do that," may begin to rest easily in your mind as it slowly replaces the initial stirring & desire for God to accomplish something greater.
So many times we can quench the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts by placing too much validity on our resume of self-doubt, self-pity, or just plain selfishness. Unfortunately, we place these self-centered things smack dab in the center to where we will surely, stifle the path of God’s design. God perspective is quite different on the subject of what we can and can not do.
Phil 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
We are totally correct in the "I can’t" statements. Even the bare minimum that we do on a daily basis, we can’t accomplish effectively without Christ’s strength! So, even in the small things, we are in need of His constant help! Why then do we then limit/stifle His creativity to accomplish something with greater importance & purpose. As the scripture in Philippians, clearly demonstrates, it is not about us AT ALL, but instead, the effectiveness of God doing the work through us.
Psalm 143: 10 Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness.
What we fail to understand/comprehend is that those people we look up to, or who have effective ministries are not naturally gifted or equipped for the calling God has placed before them. They are supernaturally equipped, for the Plan God calls them to fulfill. God doesn’t look at our ‘resume’ and then decide if we are qualified to follow His will. In my humble opinion, this ‘world-view’ is one of the pivotal reasons why we see so much stagnancy in the modern church today. Admiring qualifications & experience OVER a heart that just wants to serve God. All we need is a yielding spirit, open to whatever He wants to do in & through us to further His kingdom. Remember, the point of everything we do is not about what we want, our comforts, our security, or our self-serving ideals. Much of our life’s direction, should have a Kingdom purpose. To allow God to have full control of our lives, so that He can make us most effective for HIS purpose. To lay down our rights and give up our ideas so that HIS plan can unfold can HE will be glorified. Romans 8:12-13 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
We as Christians have many liberties today in order to make choices for our lives. It is actually quite sad how few choices we allow Him to lead us towards. We instead, limit God by taking the ‘bull by the horns’ approach and settle for what WE think is best, rather than really relying on what God KNOWS is best by waiting for his direction! God is interested in being apart of ALL your decisions. Something we fail to realize the harsh reality of no decision is made within a vacuum! Each one can not only permeate through our own families, but also impact or fail to impact the lives of others around us. If we are not living out the example of reliance in Christ through our decisions, what makes our process set apart from the world? Praise the Lord for His redemption and for this verse here in Romans 8: 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
When we do make foolish choices, and we all have, we can at least have this hope that He will use it to His Glory. It doesn’t mean we get a free pass when it comes to suffering the consequences, but that we can have hope that He will use it for a Kingdom purpose..
In Psalms 37 it says:
3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. 4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: 6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
This is a very active passage and requires a lot of us dying to our flesh to fulfill the promises listed. If we would only trust, delight, commit & trust (ya think God is trying to make a point by listing trust twice?), THAT is when God can do a marvelous work in our lives! How much do we miss out on by our limited amounts of trusting, committing, & delighting? How much do we miss out on by quenching a fire he began in our hearts?
1 Corinthians 9: 24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Just a mom? I think not!
These are some of the thoughts I have been questioning lately so I hope they speak to you in some way!
The world is really turning into a crazy place? I have heard of people with 5 or more children getting harassed by total strangers. Not that I condone or think that this is acceptable either, but me? With only 3 kids in tow? Here in Florida, usually you only find 1.5 children per family, so I suppose I have ‘broken the mold’ a bit. Can’t wait till I can annoy more of the population when our family size increases!
Let me share one of these MANY experiences that I have encountered. I was at Costco and was waiting in line with my brood. A lady in her 60’s +, got behind me in the food court line. In the course of watching me instruct who was going to continue to push the cart and who was going to help me gather the food/drinks, she blurted out “Those are ALL yours?” NO, she was not talking about the groceries I had in my cart, but yet about my ENORMOUS amount of children (only 3 keep in mind). SO many things were running through my mind at that point in time but I managed to keep it simple and respectful. I bit my tongue and through the course of our conversation, felt a genuine pity for a woman who apparently never experienced children & motherhood as a blessing. She was a mother alright, but as she related, 2 was her limit. She spoke of her mothering years as if she was raising cockroaches rather than children.
I wonder if my encounter is a reason why many Christian families chose not to have more children; if possibly we have adopted this world-view of mother-hood & nurturing children are truly a “less~than” calling. That fallacy that more that the allotted 2.5 children are so much work/money/evergy/effort, that adding to our workload and draining your pocket book beyond this is not worth it? Has the Christian community been dupped into the many ‘logical/worldly/self-centered’ reasons why we should not be raising more arrows to shoot out and win souls for the Lord.
She asked many questions that I thought I would blog them so you can get an idea…….. “Do you work?” I replied that “Being a mom was my job 24/7. It was a more rewarding & productive career choice than anything I could accomplish outside the home and I wouldn’t trade that position for anything else.” She then discounted my statement by saying “Oh…….. you are one of THOSE moms” I gleefully said, “I suppose so!”
To my curiosity, to see how polite this woman could be, I couldn’t resist sharing with her that we were not done adding to our family. In the course of numbering our one boy verses 2 girls, I mentioned we were hoping to add one or 2 more. Her look was priceless. I then knew, for certain. that she had no self-restraint, nor desire to be polite as her next question, “YOU’RE PREGNANT AGAIN?” I kindly explained that NO I wasn’t pregnant but that we hope to add to our family through adoption. “Why would you want to do that?” she replied. I explained to her how fortunate my children are to have 2 parents that love them! That there are so many orphans in the world today that deserve that same kind of forever home and unconditional love! Her next rude question was expressed with a bit of a cringe on her face, “Overseas adoption?” I told her that I wasn’t sure in which manner the Lord would add to our family but I was open to HOWEVER, God wanted to bring our kids home. I think I left that woman in the most confused state of mind, but at the end of our conversation she had a smile on her face and seemed to have a curious but genuine respect for my statements. Quite honestly I could really care-less what she thought of me, but I was glad that God would not let me back down and allow her to treat the calling of motherhood as valueless.
There have been many of these conversations I have experienced here in FL. Most of them I did not handle so gracefully and it was easy to just ignore their blatant rudeness or just blow off their comments as if the inquisition didn’t deserve my attention. After all, they do come off to be quite rude and genuinely OK with being extremely unhappy or selfish people. HOWEVER, the first time I did answer someone with a genuine answer, I realized something in the reflection of my children’s faces. MY KIDS ARE LISTENING! If I say nothing to refute the claims, my children may have no idea that I disagree with those discounted ideas of motherhood and therefore, infer that they are not worthy of my efforts to train them up in the Lord. The first time I answered someone’s question about my career choice with something like “I think I have the best job in the world! I wouldn’t trade being at home with my kids for any amount of money or status because money can’t buy what I experience on a daily basis”…… My children’s (especially my eldest daughter) faces perked up with and an irreplaceable countenance of joy. Everything about their demeanor just beamed with “WOW! Mommy finds our time together as valuable and irreplaceable!” At that point they knew that I valued motherhood.
Many of my younger mothering years kinda felt like I was “Doing motherhood” much like an inmate does their time. Awaiting for that next phase where my every moment was not being occupied. So selfish to want what I wanted over the demands of nurturing my little ones. Especially on those days when being a mom isn’t immediately rewarding and our attitudes reflect this. There are days when it does feel a bit like we are ‘doing time.’ The truth is we all have those days when we are cleaning up vomit, potty training, or just a day where it has been a battle of wills and you are ready to call in sick. Since this is not an option we then have a choice where lately I have been challenged by this question. DO I feel/display this attitude of valuing my job at very moment of mundane or on the verge of exhasperation? No, I shamefully fall short of this on a daily basis because I am a sinful, selfish woman that is desperate for a constant heart change. They key that I have learned to ask God for is the ability to CHOOSE joy, regardless of circumstances. So, while none of us moms have it all together and are constant reflections of the joys of motherhood, we are usually given these little AHA moments to show our little treasures that they are worth every moment we are able to pour into their hearts! When complete strangers have the audacity to consider your quiver-full an inconvenience we are presented with a choice. To defend the fact that children ARE a valuable entity to our family OR not respond at all. Each one speaks volumes to their little hearts.
Here are some more blogs that I have been reading about the same subjects!
http://sahmissionary.blogspot.com/2009/06/mothering-and-ministry.html
http://parunak.com/pursuingtitus2/2009/06/05/adventures-in-mothering/
http://likeawarmcupofcoffee.blogspot.com/2009/06/burdens-or-blessings-dealing-with.html
http://christinnjon.wordpress.com/2009/06/09/duty-of-discipline/
The world is really turning into a crazy place? I have heard of people with 5 or more children getting harassed by total strangers. Not that I condone or think that this is acceptable either, but me? With only 3 kids in tow? Here in Florida, usually you only find 1.5 children per family, so I suppose I have ‘broken the mold’ a bit. Can’t wait till I can annoy more of the population when our family size increases!
Let me share one of these MANY experiences that I have encountered. I was at Costco and was waiting in line with my brood. A lady in her 60’s +, got behind me in the food court line. In the course of watching me instruct who was going to continue to push the cart and who was going to help me gather the food/drinks, she blurted out “Those are ALL yours?” NO, she was not talking about the groceries I had in my cart, but yet about my ENORMOUS amount of children (only 3 keep in mind). SO many things were running through my mind at that point in time but I managed to keep it simple and respectful. I bit my tongue and through the course of our conversation, felt a genuine pity for a woman who apparently never experienced children & motherhood as a blessing. She was a mother alright, but as she related, 2 was her limit. She spoke of her mothering years as if she was raising cockroaches rather than children.
I wonder if my encounter is a reason why many Christian families chose not to have more children; if possibly we have adopted this world-view of mother-hood & nurturing children are truly a “less~than” calling. That fallacy that more that the allotted 2.5 children are so much work/money/evergy/effort, that adding to our workload and draining your pocket book beyond this is not worth it? Has the Christian community been dupped into the many ‘logical/worldly/self-centered’ reasons why we should not be raising more arrows to shoot out and win souls for the Lord.
She asked many questions that I thought I would blog them so you can get an idea…….. “Do you work?” I replied that “Being a mom was my job 24/7. It was a more rewarding & productive career choice than anything I could accomplish outside the home and I wouldn’t trade that position for anything else.” She then discounted my statement by saying “Oh…….. you are one of THOSE moms” I gleefully said, “I suppose so!”
To my curiosity, to see how polite this woman could be, I couldn’t resist sharing with her that we were not done adding to our family. In the course of numbering our one boy verses 2 girls, I mentioned we were hoping to add one or 2 more. Her look was priceless. I then knew, for certain. that she had no self-restraint, nor desire to be polite as her next question, “YOU’RE PREGNANT AGAIN?” I kindly explained that NO I wasn’t pregnant but that we hope to add to our family through adoption. “Why would you want to do that?” she replied. I explained to her how fortunate my children are to have 2 parents that love them! That there are so many orphans in the world today that deserve that same kind of forever home and unconditional love! Her next rude question was expressed with a bit of a cringe on her face, “Overseas adoption?” I told her that I wasn’t sure in which manner the Lord would add to our family but I was open to HOWEVER, God wanted to bring our kids home. I think I left that woman in the most confused state of mind, but at the end of our conversation she had a smile on her face and seemed to have a curious but genuine respect for my statements. Quite honestly I could really care-less what she thought of me, but I was glad that God would not let me back down and allow her to treat the calling of motherhood as valueless.
There have been many of these conversations I have experienced here in FL. Most of them I did not handle so gracefully and it was easy to just ignore their blatant rudeness or just blow off their comments as if the inquisition didn’t deserve my attention. After all, they do come off to be quite rude and genuinely OK with being extremely unhappy or selfish people. HOWEVER, the first time I did answer someone with a genuine answer, I realized something in the reflection of my children’s faces. MY KIDS ARE LISTENING! If I say nothing to refute the claims, my children may have no idea that I disagree with those discounted ideas of motherhood and therefore, infer that they are not worthy of my efforts to train them up in the Lord. The first time I answered someone’s question about my career choice with something like “I think I have the best job in the world! I wouldn’t trade being at home with my kids for any amount of money or status because money can’t buy what I experience on a daily basis”…… My children’s (especially my eldest daughter) faces perked up with and an irreplaceable countenance of joy. Everything about their demeanor just beamed with “WOW! Mommy finds our time together as valuable and irreplaceable!” At that point they knew that I valued motherhood.
Many of my younger mothering years kinda felt like I was “Doing motherhood” much like an inmate does their time. Awaiting for that next phase where my every moment was not being occupied. So selfish to want what I wanted over the demands of nurturing my little ones. Especially on those days when being a mom isn’t immediately rewarding and our attitudes reflect this. There are days when it does feel a bit like we are ‘doing time.’ The truth is we all have those days when we are cleaning up vomit, potty training, or just a day where it has been a battle of wills and you are ready to call in sick. Since this is not an option we then have a choice where lately I have been challenged by this question. DO I feel/display this attitude of valuing my job at very moment of mundane or on the verge of exhasperation? No, I shamefully fall short of this on a daily basis because I am a sinful, selfish woman that is desperate for a constant heart change. They key that I have learned to ask God for is the ability to CHOOSE joy, regardless of circumstances. So, while none of us moms have it all together and are constant reflections of the joys of motherhood, we are usually given these little AHA moments to show our little treasures that they are worth every moment we are able to pour into their hearts! When complete strangers have the audacity to consider your quiver-full an inconvenience we are presented with a choice. To defend the fact that children ARE a valuable entity to our family OR not respond at all. Each one speaks volumes to their little hearts.
Here are some more blogs that I have been reading about the same subjects!
http://sahmissionary.blogspot.com/2009/06/mothering-and-ministry.html
http://parunak.com/pursuingtitus2/2009/06/05/adventures-in-mothering/
http://likeawarmcupofcoffee.blogspot.com/2009/06/burdens-or-blessings-dealing-with.html
http://christinnjon.wordpress.com/2009/06/09/duty-of-discipline/
Friday, June 5, 2009
My big girl turns 10
It seems the time has flown by so fast that we are now into the double digits with Michaela. She is growing and changing on a daily basis which is exciting and scarey as a parent. Not wanting her to be too big for mom and dad but yet wanting her to grow in the Lord and become the awesome young woman God is calling her to be. Instead of enjoying getting into the double digits, like most kids her age, she sees this age as one more stepping stone towards the teen years and all the things beyond her immagination at this point in time. We celebrated her special day by going to Chuck E Cheese with the family and bringing Cake to church to share with all our friends.
For her birthday, Michaela got a gift that just keeps on giving. This year we decided to give the kids all rollerblades for their birthday. Abby, the adventruous one, got them first on her birthday last month. We did this on purpose because Michaela is very afraid of anything new. We figured if we gave them to Abby first Michaela would get to watch how much fun Abby was having and would enjoy the thought of joining in the fun. Well, our plan worked and she went to the store to pick them out with Mom. Little did we know this birthday present would be the gift that keeps on giving and would make a great Mastercard commercial!
Roller blades $65
Trip to the Urgent care doctor, follow-up to the Pediatric Orthopedist approx $50 so far.
A beaming smile knowing how COOL it is to have our first fractured bone & purple cast for people to write on! PRICELESS! When her doctor told her she would get a cast her smile WAS SO HUGE! We can even decorate it with glitter so I think that might be a nice weekend craft project!
What happened? The girls were playing on their rollerblades in the driveway to get comfortable with the way the skates work, how they were different from the roller skates they had previously, practicing how to stop and also rolling into the grass as a way of getting use to them. Since our driveway is sloped this makes 'getting used to how they work' more of a challeng then just skating on a flat surface. So, I figured it might be fun to take them to a park on a level surface so they can have a more safe environment to learn. The park we went to has a cement sidewalk around the perimeter and Michaela was doing great! She took a couple laps around the park and then just started skating on the basket ball court. Her feet kind of locked up against one another and she fell backwards, putting all her weight on her left hand/wrist. She wasn't going very fast so she hardly even reacted. She was hurt a little and had a slight grimace of uncomfort but wasn't crying like I would have expected her to if anything was broken? We went home after that & iced it. She seemed to be Ok as long as she didn't twist her wrist suddenly. It was when Abby grabbed her hand (forgetting it was hurt) and Michaela cryed out that we knew for certain she would need to see someone. At the walk in clinic they gave her a temporary cast to immobilize the wrist and prevent further injury and made an appointment for the pediatric orthopedist. Come to find out he is a pretty popular Dr as many of the folks knew of him. For those of you interested in the logistics, she has a buckle fracture on one of her arm bones (sorry not sure which one) and the Growth plate in her wrist is a bit damaged. She will be in her cast till the 1st of July. Not too thrilled about HOW they will be taking it off but due to the fact that her Orthopedist is really sweet I think he may be able to alliviate her worries! She is still able to do Karate which is very neat, but is kind of a bummer when she has to sit out if the technique will not be something she can do. Anywho, this is what is going on that is pretty exciting in our corner of the world! I am working on some other blogs as well so keep your eyes peeled! Love y'all!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
