How having a strong faith in God could be the difference between seeing God's blessings in your life or not.

The passage that Pastor Gene Tanner (Pastor of VNC in Valparaiso, IN) preached on a while back has been taught to me in several different ways over the past few months. Coincidence? I think not. In fact, shortly after I heard someone else speak about that very same passage, relating it to parenting. It became a transforming story for me during that season of life that God kept bringing it to my attention. It is one I can easily relate to, and identify with, on many levels.

Pastor Tanner preached from Numbers 13:1-14:45. This is the story where God told Moses to send 12 spies to the land that God had promised them-- Canaan. After spying for forty days, the spies were to bring back food from the land and suggest the best plan of attack for taking over the land. When they came back to share their report only two spoke out of their faith-- Joshua and Caleb. The other ten spoke out of their fear and their inadequacies because what they saw reminded them of how terribly small they were. If you are not familiar with this story, you might be interested in reading one of my older posts that goes into more depth on the details of how this historical tragedy all went down, before reading this post.

God has used this story multiple times throughout this year to speak to my heart about how I view myself and my circumstances. God used one of Susie Larson's blog posts on this passage, back in November, to show me that there are times in my life when I have to trust God even when my feelings suggest otherwise, and even when those around me suggest otherwise. This would have definitely been one of those times for the Israelite people. My focus at that time was on how we influence each other (for better or worse) by the attitudes we allow ourselves to possess. My application was that we must practice discernment when choosing who we listen to, and we have to be careful knowing that we will influence those around us when we speak out of our disbelief.

Something different stuck out to me the last time I heard this familiar story.
I found myself wondering if the story would have been different if those other ten spies had faith as strong as that of Joshua and Caleb. I felt like God was telling me that we must intentionally create a spiritual discipline of trusting HIM more than our feelings over and over again in the small things, until it becomes second nature to operate out of that faith with the big things. I want you to think on this for a minute because what I am talking about could be the difference between grabbing hold of the blessings that God is trying to place in your life, and stomping away from them in bitterness, while hanging your head in disappointment!!! That is a VERY BIG DEAL! The stakes can be quite high here. We should be careful not to downplay the radical difference having a strong faith makes!!!

When we do not think, speak, and operate out of our faith in the small things, we are creating a bad habit of focusing inward that will leave us feeling significantly inferior. That is going to be the very mindset that will keep us from boldly grabbing hold of the blessings God has for us.

When we step forward in fear, we feel weak and vulnerable. We start with the mindset that we are hopeless and if we're hopeless then what is the point? I am convinced that no feeling is worse than the feeling of being hopeless. I know, because I have been there. Hopelessness is a "cowering in the corner" kind of feeling that keeps us from experiencing the satisfaction of God's blessings in our lives.

Luke 6:45 says, "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks."

You may have heard this children's song sung in your church when you were little:

Oh, be careful little mouth what you say.
Oh, be careful little mouth what you say.
For the father up above, He is listening with love.
Oh, be careful little mouth what you say.

And with Luke 6:45 in mind I say, "Oh, be careful little mind what you think."
Where does your mind seem to go on a regular basis? Or rather, where do you allow your mind to go???
Your mouth is going to give proof of where your mind has been... eventually.
Has God ever placed a blessing before you and you wanted it, but you didn't go after it because you allowed yourself to feel worthless, not good enough, smart enough, big enough, pretty enough, or important enough?? It can be hard to get out of the pit of despair. We find ourselves there when we pull out the shovel and dig up one inferior thought after another. The further we dig the harder it is to pull out of.

Alisha's "You will be blessed by your faith" Progression:

Wherever your mind goes, your heart will soon follow.
************
Whatever you pour your heart into, you will soon give voice to.
*********
The things you allow yourself to say will directly impact the amount of faith you have.
******
Faith in God will give you courage when there are obstacles in your life that could keep you from grabbing hold of God's blessings.
***
When you act out of that courage, God will move and you will be blessed.
-------------------------------
THEREFORE,
We should "...live by faith, not by sight" (2 Cor. 5:7) ...

...and that starts with allowing our minds to dwell on God's strength 

and His endless resources more than we dwell on ourselves and our limited resources, trusting that He is working on our behalf and has our best interests in mind as we pray to him, depend on Him, and lean on His strength.

May God bless you in abundance as you develop your spiritual discipline of thinking, speaking, and acting out of your FAITH in HIM!!!

On a side note:
Isn't it so interesting how we can pull so much from one story in the Bible? We are blessed with RICH wisdom when we dig into the Bible and digest all it has to say to us. While I am sure that there have been thousands of sermons done on this passage all throughout the generations, here are just three that have personally impacted me that I would recommend:

• To hear Pastor Gene Tanner's sermon from this Sunday you may click here.


• To hear Adam Stadtmiller (author of the new book Give Your Kids the Keys) talk about what we can learn as parents from this passage, you may click here.


• To read Susie Larson's wonderfully written blog post on this passage, entitled "Silence Your Unbelief," you may click here.

"What's next Papa?"

Romans 8 (MSG)
The Solution Is Life on God's Terms

With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.

God went for the jugular when he sent his own Son. He didn't deal with the problem as something remote and unimportant. In his Son, Jesus, he personally took on the human condition, entered the disordered mess of struggling humanity in order to set it right once and for all. The law code, weakened as it always was by fractured human nature, could never have done that.

The law always ended up being used as a Band-Aid on sin instead of a deep healing of it. And now what the law code asked for but we couldn't deliver is accomplished as we, instead of redoubling our own efforts, simply embrace what the Spirit is doing in us.

Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God's action in them find that God's Spirit is in them—living and breathing God! Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, ends up thinking more about self than God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn't pleased at being ignored.

But if God himself has taken up residence in your life, you can hardly be thinking more of yourself than of him. Anyone, of course, who has not welcomed this invisible but clearly present God, the Spirit of Christ, won't know what we're talking about. But for you who welcome him, in whom he dwells—even though you still experience all the limitations of sin—you yourself experience life on God's terms. It stands to reason, doesn't it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he'll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ's!

So don't you see that we don't owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There's nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God's Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!

This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children. And we know we are going to get what's coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we're certainly going to go through the good times with him!

That's why I don't think there's any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what's coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens.

All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it's not only around us; it's within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We're also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don't see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. After God made that decision of what his children should be like, he followed it up by calling people by name. After he called them by name, he set them on a solid basis with himself. And then, after getting them established, he stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what he had begun.

So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn't hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn't gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God's chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ's love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We're sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I'm absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.



(The Message (MSG), by Eugene H. Peterson)

The heart of me.

This one is the mother of all motherloads because it is the salvation message.

At the real heart of who I am is a God who saved me and gave me a reason to live in the first place.

What does being saved mean to you?
What are you saved from?

A long while back I wrote a post about the difference between salvation and sanctification, according to how I understood it in my own life. "Salvation", being a time back when I was five years old, when I accepted that God was who He said He was and all that it entailed, and "sanctification", being the process I have been on ever since. This is what I believe in, and this is large part of what makes up the heart of who I am. Though it is very general, and does not give any specifics, this is my testimony. Read on for more details if you are interested...

I wanted to make a really cool (or what I thought would be cool) illustration, and I just couldn't muster it up...so here's my second best option for making the point I want to make.... (great set-up, I know)...

YOU-GOD

YOU-SIN-GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-DEEPER SIN-GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-DEEPER SIN-JUSTIFICATION FOR SIN-GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-DEEPER SIN-JUSTIFICATION FOR SIN-REALLY UGLY THING YOU NEVER IMAGINED YOURSELF DOING-GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-DEEPER SIN-JUSTIFICATION FOR SIN-REALLY UGLY THING YOU NEVER IMAGINED YOURSELF DOING-GUILT AND SHAME- GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-DEEPER SIN-JUSTIFICATION FOR SIN-REALLY UGLY THING YOU NEVER IMAGINED YOURSELF DOING-GUILT AND SHAME- HURT, PAIN, DISAPPOINTMENT- GOD

YOU-SIN-SIN TO COVER UP PAST SIN-NEW SIN-DEEPER SIN-JUSTIFICATION FOR SIN-REALLY UGLY THING YOU NEVER IMAGINED YOURSELF DOING-GUILT AND SHAME- HURT, PAIN, DISAPPOINTMENT- GOD

YOU-FORGIVENESS-CLEAN SLATE-HOPE FOR THE FUTURE-GOD

YOU-GOD


THE BAD NEWS ABOUT SIN FOR THE UNBELIEVER.
The bad news is that your sin separates you from God and all the blessings he has for you. The road that leads us to indulge in our sinful nature is the road that leads to death. Period. If you are human, you are a sinner. There is no way around that, and the sin that separates you from God is the one that keeps you from getting into Heaven. Heaven is perfect, so sin can't exist there, so YOU can't be there...unless, of course, someone perfect pays the price, and offers themselves as a sacrifice for you.

THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT SALVATION.
Salvation is the process of being saved. If you pray the prayer asking for forgiveness, acknowledging that God is who He says He is and that He died on the cross for your sins, asking God to take away your sin, then YOU are saved by the power of Christ that is in you. Salvation really is that simple. It really is just a moment of declaration that God is THE God of your life, and accepting that He calls you to be with Him. With salvation, there is immediate freedom in knowing that our sins are forgiven. The cleansing of our souls is rejuvenating and energizing. Awesome, one time experience. If you have not accepted Jesus into your heart yet, or if you want to learn more about what that is about salvation and how to be saved, you can click here.

WHAT IS SANCTIFICATION?
Sanctification is something different. Sanctification is a process. Where Salvation is a solitary act that wipes away all of the sin from our past and becomes the bridge that gets you into Heaven when you die, sanctification is a process that continues on for the rest of your life here on earth until you are in Heaven.

Unfortunately, we are still human, and we are still drawn to worldly things. We let our guard down. We forget what God told us was important. Temptation comes in front of us again and we fall into a trap of sin we never intended to fall into. We're not perfect, but with God in our hearts, we can be made perfect. Sanctification is the process of being made more and more into the likeness of God until the day we are made perfect in Heaven. God wants you to be close to Him, so He will continue nudging you and drawing you closer to Him. His spirit convicts you when you go off course, and you can ALWAYS come back at ANY time, ask for forgiveness, and get a clean slate again.

THE BAD NEWS ABOUT SIN FOR THE PERSON WHO IS STRIVING TO LIVE FOR GOD.
If you decide to let things come between you and God, (sin) you will find yourself feeling off. Where is that hope I once had?? All sins start with a wrong thought left unchecked. If you ignore that still, small voice telling you to bolt in the other direction, entertaining thoughts of how fun, satisfying, or liberating indulging your sinful nature would be, you are setting yourself up for making a bad choice. Every sin has a consequence. We still have to deal with the consequences of sin here on earth, whether we choose to acknowledge that we are sinning or not. If we allow sin to creep into our life, little by little Satan gets a stronghold over us until we don't know how to get back to where we were. We feel lost. God's will won't seem clear anymore. It will be very hard to discern where God is at work in your life and around you. You'll start to doubt God because you won't be able to see Him. If someone asks you where God is at work it will seem foggy. Your prayers will seem strained, at best. You'll miss out on the blessings that come with obedience to God. Satan is a thief and a liar.

"I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:9-10

Satan's attacks on you are inevitable. Temptation is going to be in your life at some point, but you do not have to act on the sin just because a temptation came to your sweet little mind. Satan is the thief that steels your joy, and zest for life. Don't fall into his trap.

A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THOSE WHO ARE STRUGGLING, AND WANT TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT ACCORDING TO GOD.
When you catch yourself coming off the path that leads you closer to God, stop yourself, ask for forgiveness and get yourself distracted with what God has for you. Make a choice to run from the appeal of the sin. Find an accountability partner...someone you trust who will hold you to the standard God asks of you. Check out the post after this one if you feel you are weak in standing up to the lure of sin in your life. It's verse after verse of what God has to say about how you can avoid sin in your life. You have the power of God on your side. You can be more than a conqueror when you seek God, and tap into the power He provides.

In the words of Susie Larson, "Be strong and last long! God is the one who will keep you strong to the end."

God bless.

Faith, hope, and love, but the most challenging of the three is...

faith...
I think.

"When the train goes through a tunnel and the world gets dark, do you jump out? Of course not, you sit still and trust the engineer to get you through."
-Corrie Ten Boom

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."
(Ecclesiastes 3:11)

"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."
(Romans 8:28)

Susie Larson blasted out a great post a while back on her blog that shares some of the things she learned about standing in faith while waiting for a breakthrough. She gave seven key things to remember when seeking God's best will for your life. Here they are:

1.) Humble yourself before the Living God. Then make time and space to hear from Him. He will speak to you about His desires for you.

2.) Pray and believe that His Word is true and that His promises are backed by the honor of His name. How often do we pray without engaging any of our faith muscles? You know the difference between rote prayers and faith-powered prayers! Once God has revealed His promise to you, be bold like David and lay hold of it through prayer!

3.) Give thanks and embrace contentment for your current lot and your daily blessings. There's much to thank Him for today! He has blessed you today! Stay in the moment while believing Him for the future.

4.) Stay in the Word and trust Him to confirm His way for you through His Word.

5.) Refuse an unbelieving heart or a striving spirit. When you catch yourself living in reaction to these things, get back to that place of peace. Be still and know that HE is God! (Ps. 46:10).

6.) Trust His timing and process in this matter. He knows best and works all things together for the good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28).

7.) Remember that every promise He makes has eternity written all over it. In other words, His blessings to us are for more than just us. His promises to us are meant to spill over onto others and to create a ripple effect that we will carry with into eternity. No matter how we choose to view our hearts' desires, there will always be a broader perspective to gain and a bigger picture to see, because when we fully lay hold of His promises for us, our breakthrough will deeply impact and bless others. That's why things take time. And it's always worth it to wait for God's best.

"He is always good and He puts certain desires in our hearts that we might pray them into fruition. Of course I'm not talking about 'name it claim it' theology, but I am saying that God sets eternity into the heart of man. He drops desires into our hearts because He intends to fulfill them. We must pay attention to the longings of our hearts. Sure, at first they may be unrefined or misdirected, but as we dare to place our hearts' desires before the Living God, He will shape, fill, and bring clarity to His desires for us." -Susie Larson

Isn't that great news? For somebody today that is great news! Has God given you a promise in your life? Don't give up. Keep your faith strong by bringing that thing back to him and thanking him for it. Do not be side-tracked by lesser things in your waiting. He is a good God. This is the verse Susie ended her post with- Isaiah 64:4. I just love this statement that presents itself as one of God's faith-building promises...

Isaiah 64:4 ~ For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like You, who works for those who wait for Him!

Thank you Lord, for this promise! We put our hope and faith in you, trusting that you are a good God who works all things together for the good of those who are called according to your purpose.

The freedom that only God can give.

I have the privilege of going to a speaking seminar this week with one of my mentors. I will be in Grand Rapids, Michigan at the "SPEAK-UP WITH CONFIDENCE SEMINAR" where I will be critiqued and will have the honor of fellowshipping with other women who are influencing people in their own unique way. I have a lot of mixed emotions about it all right now because I am painfully aware of all of my many shortcomings, but I am trusting that God can do good things through me in spite of me and I am trusting that He has something to show me through this seminar that will matter in the future. I am hoping to have all kinds of exciting nuggets of wisdom to share with you all by the time I get back. If you are a friend of mine, would you please be in prayer with me that this week be a time of God speaking clearly to my heart and pray for my sweet husband who is taking time off of work to tend to our three rascals?? :) In the meantime, here is one of the messages I have prepared and plan to share in the time that I am there...

I think that sometimes if we can just label a person it helps us to feel better about ourselves. Our words have power. If I can just label someone as being “stupid” for instance, then I might be able to convince myself that it’s their fault for anything that they do that I do not like, so I don’t have to take any kind of blame at all for them being the way they are. If I told you that a girl was forced to sell her body in an effort to feed her starving brothers and sisters…well, then, you kind of feel like you have to care about that girl, don’t you? But, what if I told you that there was woman who was proud to be a prostitute? She sleeps with as many men as she can possibly find-and whether those men were married or not makes no difference to her, well…then what? You might have a word you’d like to call her, don’t you think?

Luke 7:36-50 tells us about a sinful woman, a prostitute to be exact, who came weeping to Jesus over her past sins. She came to him at a time when he was with the Pharisees. These men knew all about her reputation, and carried strong opinions about her. They also carried a high status, according to the society in that time. They were thought to be very wise and dignified, and she was considered to be one of the lowest of lows. If anyone was going to be labeled anything you can bet it was her! The Pharisees mocked people on a regular basis who did not carry their status, knowledge and wisdom. When they saw what was going on they questioned Jesus out loud. All the while, she continued to offer her sacrifice to Jesus, weeping. He saw her heart. He knew her hurts, her questions, her doubts without her actually saying a word. His heart went out to her. The Pharisees thought he lacked discernment and questioned that if he truly was the Jesus they thought he was he would not be allowing her to touch him like that. Jesus didn’t fear them. He fears God only. God’s assessment is the only one that matters, and Jesus knew that. Jesus turned to the woman, and boldly and unapologetically spoke God’s message to her. In doing so, he answered the questions heavy on her heart that day that she had yet to voice. His message to her was this, “Your sins are forgiven. Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Mark 5:24-34 tells us a different kind of story. It’s a story of a woman who was also looked down on, but for different reasons. Instead of having a reputation for being “overtouched”, as was the case of the prostitute, she had a reputation of being “untouchable”. She was labeled “unclean”. She was hemorrhaging. By giving her a term “unclean” it gave the rest of society permission to avoid her at all costs. After 12 years of being ashamed of who she was, spending all the money that she had looking for a cure, and continually getting worse in spite of the doctor’s efforts, she gained the courage to find Jesus in a crowd. She thought if she could just touch his clothes than she would be healed, and nobody would have to know that she touched him. Tired, but determined, she made her way through the crowd and caught up to him. She grabbed for his cloak and immediately her bleeding and suffering stopped. (vs. 29) For her to be in the crowd was unacceptable, and yet Jesus calls her out right in front of all her critics. “Who touched my clothes?” he asks. Afraid, she slinks back as people act like it’s no big deal and he should just move on. He is indignant. “Who touched me?” he asks again, looking around. The woman fell at his feet, scared, and trembling. She told him her story. He stopped everything and listened to her story. She mattered to him. In a crowd of people who considered her a nuisance, he put the spotlight on her, and cared about her. When she was done speaking, he cut through the chaos of the crowd and referred to her with an endearing term, “daughter”, that meant that she had a special place in his heart, and was like family to him. With one word he answered the question closest to her heart. The one that she gave up asking long ago, “Am I worthy that anyone would associate with me ever again?” He goes on to say, “Your faith has healed you”. In front of all those who had been judging her, he not only accepts her, but says that what she has done is blessed and admirable. It was her courageous faith that healed her. He establishes a new identity for her. “Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

In both of these stories Jesus cuts through the noise of all of those around him and he focuses on the one person who was coming to him in faith, asking for the freedom that only he could give. In both stories his point was clear, “I see you. I get you. I know you're not stupid, crazy, or useless. It’s going to be okay because you came to me in faith. From this day forward, you are a new person.” He turns to you now and speaks that same message over you, “When you come to me in faith, I wipe away your past. I give you permission to grab hold of that right this minute, to carry yourself with pride and dignity from this day forward, even when other people tell you that you’re a disappointment or a lost cause. Don’t listen to those guys. I’ll deal with them. YOUR faith has saved you. YOU have been remade. And from now on, YOU may go in peace.”

Lesson from my 3 year old: What do you do if your needs are not being met?

Continuation from the previous post.

TRUST.
Over and over and over again. (all day, every day)
My answer: "What do you do if your needs are not being met?" TRUST. and then trust some more.

I am not a super star mom with the power to know all things, and I cannot do all things well. I make mistakes every single day in parenting. I tell my children to trust me because I know more than them on most things, but sometimes I have to recognize the fact that I am not all-knowing and that there are times I have be vulnerable enough to let them teach me something. (I hate those times) :)

God, on the other hand, is ALL-KNOWING! There is NOTHING hidden from Him. You CAN trust Him! He sees you. He has not forgotten about you. You are precious to him. He knows all of the intricate details of your life...the good, the bad, the ugly.

He does ALL THINGS well. Lean on HIM!

You don't have to wonder if he is up to something good. You don't have to wonder if he just doesn't know what he is doing. He sees the whole picture. Where I, as a parent, might just not understand the situation accurately, or might be driven by my own selfish motives from time to time, God is not. He has HIS best interests in mind, but they always coincide with YOUR best interests. He sees your situation much better than you ever can. He sees through the eyes of eternity. You can always trust Him to have the big picture in mind. Even if you die in an effort to obey what He was calling you to do, you can rest assured that God will use all you did to His glory in the future generations. Others will be blessed by the choices you make, and nothing you do for the Lord will ever be done in vain. Also, a little concept that we trust to be true even when we can't wrap our brains around it is that "your reward will be in Heaven". You can trust Him with your life.

How building our vocabulary increases our beauty

When I was younger my mom had a conversation with me about what words I chose to use. It was not a conversation about cussing. At this point, we had already established the idea that I would not be someone who was cussing. She was referring to my everyday vocabulary. Her idea was that we would determine how we saw things in life, and our take on life, by the words we chose to use to describe life. Her example was that she was going to start using the word, "beautiful" more, because she wanted to SEE beauty in her life. I liked that. It made sense to me, as a child.

There were times I reflected on that, and times I didn't give a CRAP! :) CRAP! Ya hear me!? :) There were times when it was harder for me to express gratitude, and see beauty, in my life. Right after college, when I did not get offered a job...and then, right after having kids who made me feel like I was going insane, I experienced, a raw feeling of "Is this all there is?" Here's the thing. I have read the verse that talks about "thinking on what is praiseworthy..." I love that verse on a good day. But on a bad day, (deep sigh) it's a lot harder to muster, isn't it?

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."
Philippians 4:8

There have been days my kids all slept through the night and I had a shower, put on make-up, had a clean outfit to wear that makes me feel good, ate a great breakfast, had a few compliments thrown my way, etc. etc. On those days, I feel like saying things like, "Isn't God so good?"

Then, there are those days when I stayed up past midnight on facebook, got woken up three times in the night to a whiny, hard-to-understand baby, didn't have anything healthy in the house for breakfast, couldn't find an outfit that fit well and was clean, and didn't have any coffee to make. :( Those days make me want to say things like, "CRAP!" :) I'm smiling now, of course, because I am very aware of how ridiculous I sound, but in that moment, I am not usually smiling.

Sometimes I need to switch up my vocabulary. Sometimes I need to trust my feelings less, and trust my God more. I need to develop a discipline of talking in a way that pleases God even on a bad day. There was a time when I thought, "Well, that is fake, and I don't want to be fake" so I let myself rant and rave and go on and on about my frustrations, worries, hang-ups, and other garbage in my heart. It didn't feel right, though. I would tear through the house like a Tasmanian devil just so I could "be real". What's that about? Who I REALLY am, is not always pretty. Who I want to be is someone who IS always pretty. The more I allowed myself to wallow in self-pity, describing my life with words that referred to the drudgery I was experiencing, the worse I felt, and the less good I was capable of accomplishing. The longer I stayed stuck there, the worse it got for me. If I keep thinking, "I'm just being real" and never stretch myself to be anything more than "real" then I am denying myself of being GREAT for God. At some point I had to say to myself, "this being real stuff is not all it is cracked up to be. I want to be better than real. I want to be authentic, but at the end of the day it is more important to me to be uplifting, encouraging, strong, obedient, and loving."

Here's where I am at now. Lord, Thank you for this day. You provide a roof over our heads, and even a roof over our cars. You provide food in our stomachs, and we even have enough food that we can throw some of it away when my one year old dumps it on the floor. You provide GOOD things in our lives. All good things come from you. I will develop my vocabulary today, as a means of honoring you, as the Lord of my life. You will search my heart, and weed out the offensiveness that is not coming from you, and I love you for that. I love your grace as I continue to strive to put your will above my own. I will speak out of love today. I will use words like, "abundant, extravagant, gracious, precious, and hopeful" rather than "sucks, stupid, crap, and hopeless". Thank you, Lord, for redeeming the ugliness that is hidden deep inside of me that only you know exists. You truly know what is best for me. It is for that reason that I give my life to you and your calling for me. Amen?

My mom is someone who is FULL with joy, and it spills out onto everyone around her. She has created a discipline of speaking what is hopeful and beautiful in her life. It is second nature to her now. On my bad days when I call her up and ask her what I can do to be more like her, there are times she cannot even tell me how she does what she does. It's not what she DOES anymore; it's become who she IS. Who she IS, is beautiful.

May we create discipline in our vocabulary, so that God can honor that, and change us into who HE wants us to be...which will increase in beauty with time.

My strength comes from the Lord.

Have you ever met someone who totally changed who you were, just by being who they were? I am blessed with inspiring and motivating mentors lately, close and far. I always have, actually. I just didn't always know to call them mentors. It isn't that they are all sitting down with me for coffee once a week. Some of them I sit down with and I ask them questions, and others I learn from by simply observing and listening closely when they talk. Some of them I sought out, and others I just happened to bump into along the way. Most of them don't even know how much they are influencing me just by being who God is calling them to be. I guess they cannot know unless I tell them. Lately, God has given me eyes to see who some of them are, and the desire to give a handful of them an extra thanks.

One of them is Susie Larson. She is an author, speaker, and a radio host. I just cannot say enough good about her. I mean, REALLY, I cannot. From miles away, she spreads wisdom and encouragement to anyone who wants to listen. Having said that, I read a clip on her blog today that I thought would strike a chord with many, many moms..."tapping into the strength God gives, and that is readily available to us all". Please read a little blurb about a dream she once had. If you are interested in reading the post, in its entirety, click here.

"Lord, I don't know what just happened at this event, but I do know this: I want more! More of You! More of Your power and Your presence in my life!"

I fell asleep with those words on my tongue. And I had a very vivid dream.

In the dream people were busy with their daily lives, rushing to and fro - totally unaware of the power that hung overhead, completely within their reach. The 'power' looked like rolling colorful clouds with bolts of lightning shooting through them. Every once in a while, someone had the presence of mind to pause and look up. Then they'd reach up and grab hold of the 'power' and place it on their children or their wallet, or their own heart. But then they'd go along their way and not look up for a long time after that. But in my dream there was one woman who camped in the presence of God. She lived there. She reached up with great regularity and accessed what God made available to her. And the result? Her life glowed with the power made available from on high.

I woke up from my nap absolutely stunned. As I snuggled in my bed for just a while longer, I pondered this vivid dream, and the Lord whispered this across my heart, 'Most of My people only scratch the surface of what I've made available to them.'

Isn't Susie wonderful? Of course, she would probably prefer that I say, "Isn't God, working through Susie, wonderful?" ;) She is always quick to give God credit for the good she is able to accomplish. Either way, I hope her words inspire you, like they do me. For the rest of her post, go here.

God's blessings on you, mommies, as you continue to daily muster the energy to serve your families. :) Moms, May you not grow weary in doing what is right, for at the proper time, your family will reap a harvest. Love you all. Thank you for visiting our site today.

My kitchen, My life.

Okay, okay...Time to get honest: (oh no, right?) Alright here it is:
My kitchen is USUALLY a mess these days. I did a before and after picture on a day when I actually cleaned my kitchen, and I thought the pictures might make some mom out there feel better about herself.

Here it is:

And here's what my kitchen usually looks like: Scroll up to see the AFTER picture. Then, come back to this one and click on it to see it up close. I just have to mention a few things that are cracking me up as I look at this picture. Consider it like a where's waldo deal. See if you can spot all of these things in this picture:

1. No paper towel on the roll, and has not been replaced.
2. Pots and pans, and stones all accumulated over 3 days because there were too many dishes in the sink so I could not wash them.
3. Lotion? Hair smoother? I think my 2 year old found them in my room and brought them out and I snagged them from her and they ended up there. :)
4. Ice cube trays from making baby food.
5. Water bottles that are needing to make it to the recycling.
6. Bottles that need to make it to the dishwasher.
7. Clean nipples and tops to the bottles in a bottle basket thing, that are clean. (bottles are still in the dishwasher)
8. My daughter's blankie.
9. Bowl to the slow cooker in the clean dishes rack.
10. And the finale: Two baskets piled on top of each other containing our kids Easter candy, with a container holding dry spagetti in front of it, next to a knife block that has no knives in it because they are all dirty next to the sink.

Hope you are all feeling TEN times better about yourselves by now. As the saying goes, "better to bless than impress". :0)

Have a blessed day dear mommies.

My two year old puts the toys away

Our precious 2 and a half year old son, Preston, was very busy while I was on the phone today, which is why I had such a great conversation, uninterrupted. I was not paying much attention to what he was doing to keep himself busy until I was wrapping up my conversation. I watched Preston as he waltzed into our kitchen with a pair of socks in his hands. He opened our kitchen cupboard and tossed them in there and slammed the cupboard door shut. I opened the door and this is what I found...
... just thought I would share. This must be his idea of putting the toys away. :)