Lessons Learned

This week our oldest two girls have been at Child Evangelism Training (which they love!).  Our other two girls have been playing with some very sweet friends of ours who live about an hour and a half away (which they also love!).  My honey's been working late, although we were thankful that he was able to get home on time one night so we could have a date night. :)  All that to say that, for the first time in almost 18 years, I had a lot of time to myself.  During that time I learned quite a bit:

I learned about getting rid of excess (as I shared in yesterday's post).  It also helped that I was cleaning out my dresser and closet and got rid of 5 trash bags full of clothes - really?  That's almost embarrassing.  I don't actually buy clothes very often at all.  I'd just keep clothes past their usefulness.  I also learned once again that we actually had a desk under all the clutter in the dining room.  I still have multiple things that need gone through, but Rome wasn't built in a day, right? :)

God showed me something else yesterday while I was walking.  The 2nd half of Philippians 4:11 came to mind, "for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content."  Followed closely by Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me."  As I was walking and talking with God and mulling over the idea of excesses, I realized that for me excess is often a symptom of discontentedness.  Wow, I'd been discontent and never really put my finger on it.  This tied to so many things.  I always have an Amazon shopping cart going.  Really?!?  I did just tell you how much clutter is in my home and what I'm going through and getting rid of.  Could it be that I'm not being content with what I have, which is why I'm always wondering what else is out there?
Same for food.  If I'm full, but then thought about a chocolate chip cookie, is it discontentedness that makes me get up and eat something for the taste when I'm not even hungry?  As I thought and prayed, I felt God showing me that even things in the past that affected our marriage were really tied to being discontent.  And I never even realized it and certainly never thought of myself as discontent.  I also realized that it's a symptom of misplaced focus.  If I'm abiding in Christ, how could I be discontent?  Wow - great thing to learn.  It is my goal to be content with where God has me.  (I came home from my walk and this eye opening experience to find the above picture on facebook.) :)  1 Timothy 6:6 "Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment"

Another lesson God showed me was that He is with me.  Hebrews 13:5b "I will never leave you nor forsake you."  I always thought of that verse in the context of times of trouble.  However, I've seen through this week, that He is and will always be with me, in times of trouble but also in times of peace.  You must understand, that I LOVE  being a wife and mother.  I think that my husband and kids are the best and I love hanging out with them.  In fact, that's been one of my fears - my kids growing up.  My dream for my life was to be a wife and mother and I'm relishing that role.  I worried that once my kids grew up, the best part of my life would be over.  While I'm still loving that my kids are still young and at home, this week was a little glimpse for me that, even though I had a lot of alone time, I wasn't really alone.  And it was good.  I enjoyed getting projects done and spending time with God while I went about my day.  (I know He's always with me.  But in the busyness of this stage of life, I'm often talking to so many other people that I don't talk to Him as often.  Hopefully that will change.)

So there you have it, 3 things I learned this week.  Oops, make it 4.  I also learned that I talk to myself a lot...I talk to the animals a bunch too! ;)

Rose Colored Glasses - repost

This post was originally posted in Nov. 09, but I've been thinking quite a bit lately about the truth that God showed me and I thought you might like to see again (or for the first time). :) Enjoy and have a wonderful week glorifying God in your life (which will not look like anyone else's life - it's not meant to). :) Here's a thought to share with you. (I've actually been meaning to post this for a month now.) If you're like me, I tend to look at people through rose colored glasses and think that everyone else has it together. People I admire surely never fuss at their kids, their kids must always treat each other sweetly and the parents respectfully, and, oh yes, surely their house is always clean and orderly. Now in my head, I know that's not right. We're all sinners and (believers) are being sanctified. But, I sure fall into the rose colored glasses trap. Here's a picture that my 3rd daughter took last month. The flowers were a birthday gift for my grandmother. When I saw the picture, I was amazed at how pretty it looked and wondered where she took it. You must understand that, by default - not choice, our house tends to be decorated with clutter. I'd love to be orderly and organized but fall far short of that goal. In the picture above, I thought it looked so nice and decluttered, I wondered where she took the photo. Here's the other half of the story:

If you, like me, tend to look at other people and think they have it all together, you may be seeing a close up shot of the flowers and not a total picture (as above). God is good and He is perfect - people aren't and we should never let ourselves think they are. :)

Have a great day!

We’ve Got It Backward Secret Church blog post

Life has been so crazy busy around here lately that I haven’t been making time to post. However, I really appreciated your comments MariBeth, Stacie, and Jackie. (By the way, my oldest daughter raves about the book Heavenly Man. It’s on my to read list.) Here’s another post I wanted to share with you from the Secret Church blog. There’s a link at the bottom if you want to join and have these posts delivered daily to your email.

Also, wanted to recommend the book Radical by David Platt. It’s a truly God glorifying, let’s get somethings straight in line with Scripture, and very challenging book. It’s basically taking a look at the American dream (what can be a very self-focused pursuit of pleasure) and a look at what following Jesus looks like Biblically. It's suggesting that the American church has a blind spot (materialism for one) as we're seeking that American dream that’s causing us to miss things. I’ve read it once myself and once as a family read aloud. I’ve thought about reading it through again and posting thoughts on each chapter because I'm a slow learner. :) (Someone reading it will tell me parts of a chapter that challenged him and I barely remember that chapter - yep, gotta read it again.) Anyway, if you hadn’t heard of it, I highly recommend it. (You can also get free downloads of David Platt’s sermons on itunes. He faithfully speaks Biblically correct, and normally uncomfortable in our culture, truth.)

Here’s the Secret Church blog post:

WE’VE GOT IT BACKWARD

Posted: 04 Apr 2011 11:00 AM PDT

By Drew Carson When I hear Americans talk about the persecuted church I can’t help but think that we’ve got it backward. During my years of ministry in North Africa and the Middle East, I’ve heard dozens of stories of ostracism, abuse, imprisonment and even murder as Muslim-background believers struggle to live out their faith. But despite these hardships, the label “persecuted church” is foreign to these believers. They don’t see themselves that way. They believe they’re normal, because they read in the New Testament that persecution is what Christ-followers should expect. They are literally living out the Book of Acts. What many believers in my area of the world do recognize, however, is strangeness about us. I was talking with a friend not long ago who often bumps into Western Christians. He says it takes him “forever” to find out that they’re believers. Another friend who’s from the Arabian Peninsula met many Christians while studying in the United States. But he had to go back to his home country — which ranks among the world’s top offenders for religious persecution — to hear about Jesus. He doesn’t understand why Christians in America are so afraid to share their faith. Sometimes he wonders if Americans know Christ at all. Yes, there is persecution. Yes, we need to pray for the countless Christians around the world who live with fear and pain most of us cannot imagine. But frankly, I hear the persecuted church praying for us — that we will not be such lukewarm and weak people, who, at the first sign of opposition, give in and shrink from sharing what Christ has done for us. Make no mistake — American Christians do face persecution, albeit in a different way. We’re persecuted because we have a way of life to protect and we’re not going to do anything to jeopardize it. We face intimidation as our culture pushes Jesus toward irrelevance. That’s a form of persecution because it inhibits us from fully living out our identity in Christ. We are addicted to our comfort, and for our comfort’s sake we’re not willing to take a risk. Satan uses pain in some places and pleasure in others. So what do we do? I want American believers to recognize the incredible moment in history in which we are living; a time when the Muslim world is opening as societies undergo rapid change. It is highly important for us to find ways to be involved in the midst of that change. This is not a time to sit back — this is a time to risk a lot for the Lord.

It is my hope that every Christian in America will reach out to people from North Africa and the Middle East and build relationships with them through which the Gospel can flow. Most have never heard. We can change that.

________ Drew Carson, and his wife, Julie, have spent 18 years sharing Christ’s love in North Africa and the Middle East. They have three children.

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Jesus' Example

Another precious bit of encouragement God's given me in His word:





In Luke 9 we read about Jesus sending out the disciples to preach the gospel (having given them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases). Picking up in vs. 10 & 11,





"On their return the apostles told him all that they had done. And he took them and withdrew apart to a town called Bethsaida. When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing."





As a follower of Jesus (and as a mom), I find such an example to follow here. I'm sure that Jesus and His disciples were looking forward to being alone and having some uninterrupted time. How often do I have the same types of desires, my own plans for a moment. However, when the crowd followed, Jesus welcomed them and taught them and met their needs. When my girls were little, I often was followed no matter where I went. (I tease saying that in our house a closed door is simply a door waiting to be opened.) :) No matter where I went, even the restroom, it often seemed someone needed me. I remember at that time, reading the above passage and receiving such encouragement. No matter where Jesus went, someone needed Him. And how did He respond? He welcomed them. He taught them. He met their needs. As His follower, how can I do less? (Of course this requires walking in the Spirit and putting it in His hands. In the flesh and in my hands, I'm a mess and feel sorry for those around me!) :)

I'm so thankful for Jesus' example and His empowering Holy Spirit working in us!

Whose Hands Is It In?

Spending time in Luke 9 yesterday, God gave me another obvious, yet aha moment (at least for me). In Luke 9:12 - 17 we read of Jesus feeding the 5,000. The disciples were thinking about the obvious - the day was ending, the crowd was huge, didn't it make sense to send them away so they can get some food and lodging? Jesus told the disciples to give the crowd something to eat. Of course, the disciples pointed out that they didn't have enough food the meet the needs of the crowd - all they had was "no more than five loaves and two fish - unless we are to go and buy food for all these people." (vs. 13) (Can't you just identify with the realistic problem solving objections they throw at Jesus telling Him why they can't possibly do what He's told them to do. I know I can.) Jesus, of course, tells them to have the crowd sit in groups of about 50. Jesus then broke the loaves & gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied and 12 baskets of broken pieces were picked up afterward.

How often I look at a situation in life that Jesus has brought me to and am tempted to think "I can't do this!" The thing is - it's true. Often I CAN'T do whatever the situation requires. (5 loaves and 2 fish can't feed 5,000 people.) However, that's speaking of things in human hands. Those loaves and fish couldn't feed that many people until they placed them in Jesus' hands. Likewise, often I can't do things in my own hands, on my own, in my own strength. However, if I place (whatever it is) in Jesus' hands - He CAN do it!

It's a matter of WHOSE hands is it in.

Learning From/With Peter

I love how God will show us something in His Word that we’ve missed before. The Holy Spirit is a wonderful teacher!!!! (understatement) :)

This morning as I was reading Luke 5:1-11, He showed me something I’ve never really noticed before, but it’s something I truly desire to live!

On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
(Luke 5:1-11 ESV)

There’s a sequence to Peter’s relationship with Jesus. In the beginning, He recognizes Jesus as Master and obeys Him even when it doesn’t make sense. Through this obedience, He is blessed in a way that is completely out of the realm of what is to be expected humanly speaking and Jesus (God the Son) is glorified. Peter recognizes that Jesus is God (not only Master) and he sees his own sinfulness in contrast. It drives Peter to his knees asking Jesus to depart because he knows he’s not worthy to even be in Jesus’ presence. Jesus’ response is to tell Peter to not be afraid, from that point on Peter would be catching men. (A career change that will shift the major focus from providing for himself and his family in the present to following what Jesus was calling him to do –Peter and his family’s physical needs were met, but the focus was on Jesus.) Peter’s response to this is to leave EVERYTHING and FOLLOW Jesus.

I wonder how often I’m tempted to recognize Jesus as Master and partially obey but stop there. How much will I be missing if I do that! My desire is to obey Him completely in faith, even when it looks crazy to the world. (Imagine what Peter would have missed had he only let Jesus use his boat, but not gone out to fish again.) I long to see Jesus as He is, to recognize He is God, to understand my own sinfulness and to radically abandon everything in my pursuit of Him. I know that He’s called me to be a wife and mother and to homeschool my children. Radical abandonment doesn’t mean leaving this. In fact, it means living this out completely for His glory with my focus on Him, serving and loving others following His example. It means dying to myself, my desires, what would be pleasing to me now (self focus), in order to live completely and totally for Him. The phrase He gave me last year totally applies – whose life is it anyway? (Not mine anymore, I gave it away. My desire is for it to be totally His.) I know that none of us can live this completely this side of heaven. (Peter didn't either; I love him because I can identify with his humanness and failings, yet his love for Christ.)

So that’s my desire for the new year, to live a life radically abandoned to Jesus. Following Him and living for Him. This life here, today, is just the beginning, a dim picture of what will go on forever – eternity. May we have an eternal focus and live for Him. (What a life of joy and peace that passes all understanding! Not a life void of trouble; He’s told us that in this world we will have trouble, but a life of His joy and His peace. A life lived for Him!)

Happy New Year!

Update & Food for Thought

Thank you for the prayers for my oldest daughter. She's doing well. (I don't think having her wisdom teeth out was as bad as she had feared.) :)



We were blessed last week by a trip to the beach. (Thanks to some wonderfully generous friends of ours who allowed us to use their condo.) It was a wonderful time of refreshment. While there it was such a blessing spending time together, enjoying God's creation, & special times with the Lord. I was not looking forward to coming home to reality but had to keep reminding myself that reality is why God put me on this earth - to glorify His name in the midst of reality. :) (Mind you, I have a wonderful life and am extremely blessed. Just who would want to leave the beauty of the beach?) :)




While there, I was blessed to read some great books. One of my new favorite books is The One Thing You Can't Do in Heaven by Mark Cahill.
By the way, do you know what that one thing is? Witnessing. When we breathe our last this side of heaven, we'll have no more opportunities to share Christ with the lost. We need to redeem our time well. One of the points that I really appreciated in the book was the perspective on witnessing. He said that, while a counselor at a Christian summer camp, he felt God lay on his heart that he needed to discuss witnessing with the teenagers. They discussed it and decided that when they witnessed, they would either win someone to Christ (win), plant a seed (win), or be rejected (lose). (Your odds are pretty good.) The next day during his quiet time with the Lord, the Lord led him to verse after verse saying that when we're rejected for Christ's sake, we're earning rewards in heaven. That means that when we share Christ with others we will either win them to Christ (win), plant a seed (win), or be rejected (still winning rewards for ourselves in heaven). That means that sharing Christ with others is a win, win, win situation. Those are odds that can't be beat. The only way to lose is to not do it. The book was a very easy to read book, full of great wisdom, and quite a few ouches for me. :) Witnessing is something that I want to do, but haven't really had a lot of background or practice with. I know that God's working on me. I love Him and should be sharing Him with others. How can I love them without sharing this all important new with them?



I'll leave you with a Charles Spurgeon quote from the book (food for thought), "Every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter."



Have a wonderful week living for Him.

Hold His Hand in the Storms

I love how God will reveal Himself more and more as we continue to read His Word. Sometimes I will have read a portion of Scripture multiple times before, but I love how God will show me something new. :)

This morning as I was reading in Matthew, I was reading the section in chapter 14 where Jesus was walking on water. Peter asked Him, if it was really Jesus, to tell him to get out of the boat and walk to Him. Jesus told Peter to come and he was fine until he saw the wind, became afraid, and began to sink. Of course, Jesus rescued Peter and took him to the boat. What I never really noticed before was verse 32 “And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.” I guess in my minds eye, once Jesus took Peter by the hand, the storm stopped. In reality, it continued to storm but Peter was safe with Jesus in the midst of the storm. The wind didn’t stop until they got into the boat.

Just a little further, in chapter 16, verse 24, “Jesus told His disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

I tend to like to imagine a “Disney” type of world. You know the one, where everyone is really nice. (It is a small world after all.) :) A world where we’re all here for fun and to be happy. (I like happy.) However, that is not real life. We live in a fallen world. Storms come. Really hard things happen; things that take our breath away and make us weep. Jesus knows. He’s in the midst of the storm with us. He will be with us and save us, but that doesn’t mean that the storm will immediately stop. He’s promised us as His followers that we will have trouble. (“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33) As His followers we are to take up our crosses and follow Him. We are to die to ourselves (again and again, -it seems I keep trying to go my own way). The storms will assuredly come, but when we seek Jesus and look to Him, He will hold our hand in the midst of the storms. He asks us to follow Him. He’s gone before us and will sustain us. He will use us. What a promise from such a precious Savior who bought our salvation with His own blood.

Hold His hand in the storms.

Same enemy - Same tactics

One thing that God kept impressing on me while I heard different speakers at the Answers in Genesis Apologetics Conference was that Satan is still using the same line of attack that he used against Eve in the garden - "Did God really say....?"

Today we may not hear "Did God really say that you can't eat the fruit?"

However we will hear it dealing with the issues of our day, those we're familiar with:
Did God really say Jesus is the ONLY way to heaven (as opposed to one of the paths)?
Did God really say that He is the creator (as opposed to evolution - did He really speak things into existence, is carbon dating wrong, what about all those "experts")?
Did God really say wives to submit to their husbands (as opposed to "I am woman, hear me roar!")?
Did God really say homosexuality is a sin (as opposed to a predisposed genetic disposition that should be protected as a civil right)?
Did God really say children are a blessing and a reward (as opposed to a drain on our bank and patience accounts)?

Yes, our enemy still uses that question, "Did God really say?" as a line of attack.
We must be grounded on the authority of His Word. Yes, He really did say. (That's one reason we must study and know God's Word - so that we'll recognize when something is in line with it and when something isn't. When we have a question, God's Word should be the place we go for Truth.)

The underlying issue we often deal with is whose authority do we trust - God's or man's? Whose wisdom will we rely on and base our decisions and our life on - God's or man's? (This mentioned often at the conference and at the Creation Museum; it is so true. It's a foundational issue affecting how we view everything. Who's the most important authority? God or man?)

God's Word is infallible. (Man's is quite fallible.) God is trustworthy. (Man is not.) God is the King of kings (1 Tim. 6:15), the great I Am (Exodus 3:14), the author of life (Acts 3:15), the Alpha and Omega (Rev. 1:8), the beginning and end. He's everything - and so far beyond our comprehension.

When things don't make sense to our finite minds, we must trust Him. He is Wisdom. We must choose to trust Him and live our lives according to His Word. We really do have to train ourselves to recognize it when we're facing a "Did God really say?" attack. He did say and He is our fortress that we can run to during attack.

"He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress,
and for his children it will be a refuge."
Proverbs 14:26

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence is in him."
Jeremiah 17:7

Broken Hallelujah

Here's a beautiful song that I heard for the first time in church yesterday. It's one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. I just sat in church with tears streaming down my face. It was especially powerful to me since Eli (my nephew) went to be with Jesus just 8 weeks ago. Seeing my brother and sister-in-law have to endure this valley is heartbreaking. God is good, no doubt about it, but it's hard. Here are the words to the song "Broken Hallelujah" by Mandissa. (Be sure to pause the music in my sidebar to hear the song on this post.)

With my love and my sadness

I come before You Lord

My heart’s in a thousand pieces

Maybe even more

Yet I trust in this moment

You’re with me somehow

And You’ve always been faithful

So Lord even now

When all that I can sing

Is a broken hallelujah

When my only offering

Is shattered praise

Still a song of adoration

Will rise up from these ruins

I will worship You and give You thanks

Even when my only praise

Is a broken hallelujah

Oh Father, You have given

Much more than I deserve

And I have felt Your hand of blessing

On me at every turn

How could I doubt Your goodness

Your wisdom, Your grace

So Lord hear my heart

In this painful place

Chorus

I lift my voice

Your Spirit moves

I raise my hands

I reach for You

Chorus

Ancient Words

This month our church is focusing on how precious God's Word is - what a gift it is to us!
This truth has really hit home with me this year.

My sweet little nephew, Eli, was born and went home to Jesus a month ago today. His birth and homegoing have made such an impact on my life. Since my brother and his wife went to their ultrasound and learned that his kidneys weren't functioning and his lungs weren't developing very well, we prayed so much for his healing but, most of all, for God's will to be done.
My brother and his wife have been such wonderful testimonies to God's presence and His working as He's been carrying them through this.

Through this very traumatic time, God's Word has been such a blessing. I know that for me, since little Eli and my sweet brother and his wife have been constantly on my heart for months, so much of God's Word spoke to me about this at different points. From the beginning, when I happened to be reading in the gospels about Jesus healing the blind man and His disciples asked why the man was born blind - was it his sin or his parents and Jesus answered that it was neither but rather this happened so that God would be glorified in his life. (I read that just after their ultrasound and was encouraged - this did not sneak by God - He knew about it and would bring Himself glory through it.)

Then, a couple weeks before Eli's birth, I was reading in Mark 6. Jesus had just fed the 5,000, sent the people home and the disciples across the lake ahead of Him, while He went off into the hills to pray. The Amplified Bible tells us in verse 48 that Jesus saw the disciples were "troubled and tormented in [their] rowing, for the wind was against them". Jesus came to them walking on the water. The disciples were scared but Jesus told them in verse 52 "Take heart! I AM! Stop being alarmed and afraid." How powerful. Take heart - I AM - stop being alarmed and afraid. I kept repeating that phrase over and over.

This week, as I was reading through John, I came to John 12:26 where Jesus said "If anyone serves Me, he must continue to follow Me [to cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying] and wherever I am, there will My disciple be also. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him."

I was digesting that thinking - okay, I am not just to love Jesus and talk about it, but I'm to serve Him - put feet to my faith. And how should I serve Him? (1) Cleave steadfastly to Him. (2) Conform wholly to His example in living and, if need be, in dying. Also, I saw that it's not that Jesus will be where we are but that we will be where He is and God will honor us when we serve Him.

I read on to verses 27 & 28 where Jesus said, "Now My soul is troubled and distressed, and what shall I say? Father, save Me from this hour [of trial & agony]? But it was for this very purpose that I have come to this hour [that I might undergo it]. [Rather, I will say,] Father, glorify (honor & extol) Your [own] name!" I got so excited! I realized that my brother and his wife are doing exactly this. Throughout this whole experience, their prayer has been that God would be glorified. That is not to say that this is not the hardest and most heartbreaking experience of their lives - it is. But they have been serving Jesus - following His example and He has used them as such a testimony. What a blessing!

It just boggles my mind to realize how amazing God's Word is!!!! Below I've printed the words to the song "Ancient Words". (It's also playing when you come to my blog.) Above I've mentioned ways that His word has encouraged me and my famiy through this very specific event. His word encourages all believers in so many different events in their lives. And His word has been encouraging His followers for centuries!!!! What a mind boggling thought. This morning in church as I was listening to God's word, I thought about people in ancient times and in the middle ages receiving comfort and guidance from His word also. Wow! His word truly is living and active (Hebrews 4:12). These words that bring us such comfort, such guidance, such wisdom were penned thousands of years ago and yet He is still speaking to us through them.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of your word!

Ancient Words by Michael W. Smith

Holy words long preserved
for our walk in this world,
They resound with God's own heart.
Oh let the ancient words impart


Words of Life, words of Hope
Give us strength,
help us copeIn this world,
where e'er we roam
Ancient words will guide us Home.


CHORUS:Ancient words ever true
Changing me and changing you,
We have come with open hearts
Oh let the ancient words impart


Holy words of our Faith
Handed down to this age
Came to us through sacrifice
Oh heed the faithful words of Christ.


Holy words long preserved
For our walk in this world.
They resound with God's own heart
Oh let the ancient words impart.


CHORUS x4

We have come with open hearts
Oh let the ancient words impart

God's Handiwork

God is the ultimate artist. My 3rd daughter took these wonderful pictures of flowers in our backyard.

As you can see, some of these pictures are of weeds and others are of flowers currently blooming. I think it's amazing that God even made what we consider weeds to be beautiful. His beauty is everywhere! I never would have even noticed these had my daughter not had an eye for beauty and borrowed my camera. I wonder how much beauty I often miss because I'm just too busy.

"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." John 6:28-34

May you have a wonderful day worshipping God who takes care to make the flowers beautiful and cares so much more for you. (Jesus died for you, not the flowers.) :) Enjoy glorifying Him today. :)

30 Day Huband Encouragement Challenge

I love Nancy Leigh DeMoss' ministry Revive Our Hearts.
Around the holidays, I found on her website some 30 day challenges. http://www.reviveourhearts.com/challenge/
I decided to take the 30 day Husband Encouragement Challenge.

I had really, over the last few months, been burdened to try to be sure that I was being a godly wife. I know that God has called me, first and foremost to glorify Him through being a godly wife and mother. Being a sinful woman, however, I often fall far short.

Back to the challenge. I actually probably took more like 60 days to do the challenge but it was such an encouragement anyway. God taught me something wonderful through it. (Although I don't think the challenge was specifically geared at what God taught me, He used it. Isn't God just like that? When we're seeking Him, He'll reach out to us.)

The lesson I learned was about forgiveness. Now, don't get me wrong. My husband is a wonderful man, a terrific daddy, and cherishes me much more than I deserve. However, he is a fallen man, just like his wife is a fallen woman. ;) We both mess up sometimes. I'd kind of gotten the wrong idea on forgiveness. When there was an issue that I disagreed with him on, even though I submitted on the outside, I stewed inside. I thought I would forgive, but my forgiveness was more like "I love you anyway." God really showed me that love is not "I love you anyway" but rather "I love you." Let the issues go and leave them in God's hands. (He's so much more capable than us.)

If you're interested, there are a number of other challenges on her website. I'm thinking of taking the "True Woman Makeover" next. For more info, check out her site (linked above).

It's Whose We Are!

I wanted to share with you a thought that's been on my mind for a few months:

I think we all experience this when we or someone we know and love is expecting a baby. We love that little one, not because of what they've done or will do but, simply because of whose they are. Put simply, it's not who they are but rather whose they are.
There's a spiritual analogy. God loves us because, as believers, we belong to Him. It's not because of anything we've done, simply because of whose we are! What a blessing!

Psalm 100:3
Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Titus 3:5
he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy

Thank you for those of you who have continued to pray for my brother, sister-in-law, and their little one. (The situation remains the same - praying for a miracle and, most of all, God's will and for Him to receive the glory. They have found out the baby is a boy and have named him Eli, so we can pray for him by name.)

Around our house, life is crazy and busy but good. :)

We're back into our school and activities routine and added yet another activity (dance for the older 3 in addition to the youngest). :0 The weeks fly by and on Friday evening I'm shocked it's already the end of the week.

Feels good to be back to normal but, as you can tell, one result is much less computer time.

Heading out the door to speech club right now. Have a great weekend!

Victory in Jesus

I just finished reading Revelation and am so thankful that God has the victory and we can know that now, while we're still in the midst of hardships and sorrow this side of heaven. I'm thankful that He offers us life giving water free for the taking

Revelation 22:17
The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

There is so much sorrow in the world. My husband learned on New Years Day that a cousin of his had taken his own life the night before. What sorrow we feel, especially for his aunt, uncle, surviving cousin and her family. How difficult!
We also continuously lift up my brother, his wife, and our newest little niece or nephew who, outside of a miracle from God, is not expected to spend long with us this side of eternity.
A local homeschool family we know experienced the murder of a cousin the Sunday after Christmas.
I also know a 29 year old missionary who, totally unexpected, died of a brain aneurysm the week of Christmas leaving behind a young wife and 2 children ages 2 & 2 months.
A friend of mine also told me of a homeschooler in their area whose 6 month old died (possibly SIDS) on Christmas Eve.
So much sorrow and heart ache - I'm so thankful that we can bring it all to the throne of God and lay it at His feet. He weeps with us and is the only one who can heal and work all things for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes. (Romans 8:28)

Also, what a wonderful joy to know the end from the beginning - He has victory in His hand. He has conquered death and will one day throw it into the lake of fire and

Rev. 21:3-4
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.'"

Wishing you joy in the victory and God's arms underneath you carrying you through the trials and sorrows this side of heaven.

Mary Christmas

The other day I heard someone say that she wanted to have a Mary Christmas rather than a Martha Christmas. That really stuck with me. Yes, that's what I want too - a "Mary" Christmas. As I pondered it the day I heard it, I wondered which Mary & Martha they were originally talking about. To be honest, I realized that the natural comparison was Mary & Martha - the sisters in the Bible. But, to me, I first thought of Mary, Jesus' mother, & Martha Stewart! :) Either comparison was just what I needed to hear.

I love Mary & Martha in the Bible - I want to be Mary but find myself so often distracted like Martha. Martha's heart was right - she invited Jesus into her home and was doing all this work to serve Him; however, her heart was distracted by the work. (A funny side story. When my oldest two were younger, I passed a church board that said something about Mary & Martha. I wasn't sure if the girls had heard of them or not, so I told them the story as we drove. As I told about Martha being stressed out trying to get everything done, I heard a little voice pipe up from the back, "Mommy, that sounds like you!" I had to tell her I was just thinking the same thing.) :)

I also love the comparison of Mary, Jesus' mother, and Martha Stewart. Nothing against Martha personally. To me though, it just spoke in my mind the differences of focusing on Jesus - whose birth is Christmas - and all the busy, fun Christmasy things we can do to "make this Christmas wonderful."

I, for one, needed the reminder to slow down and get my focus on Jesus. This doesn't mean idleness, simply not getting distracted.

As you can probably tell, this month has been busy and I was extremely anxious earlier this week. It's all good things, but I've been distracted. Not the fault of the activities, just the fault of my focus.

Here's some of what's been going on with us (and why my posts aren't very regular). :)

The girls had an all day speech marathon in a city 1 1/2 hours away the beginning of the month. It went well and they had a great time.

That weekend we cut down our Christmas tree. (A family tradition that's treasured.) We also got to enjoy a quick visit with my brother and his family.

That afternoon the oldest had a puppet team performance and the oldest two were in the local Christmas parade, which we all attended and enjoyed.

That night, we came home and decorated the tree.

The following day, we enjoyed the oldest three's Christmas piano recital.

The following week we also enjoyed attending a Christmas play in another city (1 1/2 hours away).

The girls are participating in a local Christmas musical. It's wonderful - such a Christ honoring, original production! (It's by a very talented young woman who's written, directed, choreographed, and taught all the dances.) The older three have parts in the play and the youngest is dancing to a song in the play. It's wonderful. They've enjoyed the practices, performing the songs and reading Scripture at a local nursing home, and are enjoying the performances this weekend.

We enjoyed a wonderful time at missionary geography club learning about how Christmas is celebrated in 5 different countries and enjoying treats from each of those countries.

We also snuck in a camping weekend at an area about 3 hours away with wonderful Christmas activities. It was cold but lots of fun!

I've grown up using an advent wreath this time of year. It's such a special part of advent - looking forward to celebrating Christ's birth in Bethlehem and looking forward to His return. It's a tradition that we've continued with our children. This year, thanks to recommendations from a couple homeschool mom's I know, we've added Jotham's Journey.

It's wonderful and leaves us hanging on the edge of our seats. (The kids often beg to read the next night's portion, but we've stuck to our grounds and not read ahead - even though I'm tempted.) It's kept us faithful in our advent devotions. (To be honest, we normally miss at least one Sunday of the advent wreath - but not this year!) :) The story is a bit intense for little ones, but we are loving it!

Wishing you a "Mary" Christmas and that you will enjoy this wonderful time of year and find yourself drawn to Christ and focused on Him, thankful for His coming & His sacrifice for our salvation, and looking forward to His return!

Where's Our Focus?

I just finished reading Job and thought I'd "talk out loud" sharing some of what God is showing me. :) May it bless you as it's blessed me.

I tend to have a problem with focusing on myself and whatever's going on with me. I may not appear to be a selfish person on the outside but, there it is, it's true. For example, right now my husband and I are working through some things, trying to make some decisions, and I can get very preoccupied. Now mind you, we're seeking God's guidance, praying a lot, asking Him and just bringing it before Him trying to do what He desires. So, it looks like I'm doing right yet still, I realize, I'm focusing on (the thing that's going on with) me.

As I was finishing up reading Job, I saw a connection. Job had gone through a lot (understatement) and he was trying to figure out what was going on and why God had allowed it. He was keeping God in the picture but the focus was on himself and what he was going through. Toward the end of the book, God spoke with Job and reminded Job of who He is! He is amazing and way beyond us. He created the world, is very involved with His creation, and is so far beyond us that we really can't understand it all (this side of heaven). When we truly look at God and who He is, we realize how insignificant we are. Job saw this when he answered God saying "My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes." (Job 42:5-6)

The most amazing thing is that, even though we are so very insignificant in comparison to God, He loves us with an amazing love. He knows us better than we know ourselves, even knows the number of hairs on our heads, and loves us. (I often am amazed that He knows me that well and loves me anyway!) :) How amazing to realize that the author of creation, King of all kings, has invited us to approach Him as His beloved children. That Jesus died for our sins because He desired us to be with Him forever. What an amazing love - God is indescribable.

Application to myself, I need to get my eyes of myself and put them on God. I need to pay attention to where I put my focus. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..." (Psalm 111:10)

Lord, open our eyes to focus on you rather than ourselves. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

thought for the day - wisdom & understanding

I wanted to share with you from my quiet time reading today. I'm in Job, chapter 28 and Job is talking about wisdom and how no person or animal on earth (on their own) knows how to find it.

Vs. 23 - 28 God understands the way to it and he alone knows where it dwells
for he views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
When he established the force of the wind and measured out the waters,
when he made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm,
then he looked at wisdom and appraised it; he confirmed it and tested it.
And he said to man, 'The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.'

(Note to self, just shared with you all.) May we look to God and never to ourselves or other people for wisdom and understanding.
Fearing God is wisdom and shunning evil is understanding.
Thank you, Father, for spelling it out so clearly for us.

Voddie Baucham

Just wanted to share with you all some encouragement my husband and I've been enjoying lately. I recently heard of Voddie Baucham (from various sources) and went to his website to learn more about him. I was able to download (free) and listen to a number of his sermons from sermon audio.

Voddie speaks on a lot of apologetics/worldview topics (pertinent to all believers). He also has a burden to live life according to the Bible, not the culture (whether inside or outside the church - we need to measure our decisions against the Bible, not what we've always done). I've told my kids often that, growing up, I was so inside the cultural box that I didn't even realize that I was in a box. I had no idea that there was another way to do things. I'm so thankful that my children have been exposed to other ideas: such as truly trying to weight what's coming at us and determine the worldview of the author/speaker even in things such as tv shows and commercials; homeschooling; courtship; a goal of not living in debt; seeing children as a blessing rather than a burden. (Don't get me wrong - I have a wonderful family and was blessed with a terrific childhood. I just was very influenced by the culture's norms and didn't even question much of what I thought or did, to my own detriment.)

Here's are the links for Voddie Baucham's website and also sermon audio:

http://www.voddiebaucham.org/vbm/home.html

http://www.sermonaudio.com/source_detail.asp?sourceid=voddiebaucham and

http://www.sermonaudio.com/search.asp?speakerWithinSource=&subsetCat=speaker&subsetItem=Voddie+Baucham&mediatype=&includekeywords=&keyword=voddiebaucham&keyworddesc=voddiebaucham&currsection=sermonssource&AudioOnly=false&SourceOnly=true&keywordwithin=

I've also been privileged to watch a DVD of one of his messages and read a book of his: Family Driven Faith.

It's such an encouragement to hear someone unapologetically speaking biblical truth (even as unpopular as it often is in our culture)!

I'd encourage you to listen to some of his messages. (I downloaded them and burned them on CD so I could listen to them any where.) The first one that I heard (and absolutely loved - lots of meat to pray on and consider) is "The Centrality of the Home in Evangelism". I loved "The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World" & "Why I Believe the Bible" and thought "The Table of Nations" was very thought provoking (a perspective I'd never really considered). I really have not listened to any of his messages that I wouldn't recommend, but those were some that I really enjoyed. :)

Encouragement

A very sweet, encouraging lady from our church called to share something precious with me that she asked me to please share with other moms.

She told me that, in the Hebrews 11 "faith hall of fame", we were mentioned. I was intrigued. Through reading an older book (I forget the name but it was from the mid1800's), she was drawn to Hebrews 11:3 and a truth taught in that verse.

Hebrews 11:1-3

1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for.
3By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

What was pointed out in the book she was reading was that, already at that point in history (mid 1800's) people were being drawn to evolution - trying to explain the world while taking God out of the picture. What a privilege to share with our children, as we train and disciple them, that God made the world - the big bang theory and millions of years of chance are actually fantasy. As I've been reading through the Bible this year, I keep seeing how integral this fact is to our faith. God is great - He is our creator - He is our everything! (And how amazing that our wonderful God humbled Himself to come down to earth in the form of Jesus, God the Son, suffer and die for our sins so that we can be with Him forever, and then He conquered death by His resurrection. What amazing love - He created us, loves us, suffered and died to conquer death so that we can be with Him. Wow - may we never take that for granted.)

Hebrews 11 states that when we believe God's Word and how He tells us the world began, this is faith and it mentions it before mentioning all those wonderful examples of faith in the old testament. He's made a way for us to choose to trust Him and to tell of that trust and teach it to our children (that they also may be blessed by faith - Eph. 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.). What an opportunity - privilege - challenge.

May you have a wonderful day thanking God for all He has done, proclaiming Him, and discipling your children.