Dear Heavenly Father please wrap Your big arms around Cindy. Please take her fear, catch her tears in your hands, and whisper to her every minute of every single day how much You love and adore her. Help her to live each moment completely in You and Your presence. Send her people, family, friends that will help to carry this huge burden. Protect her family and love on them as they walk down this journey. For they are not walking it alone. Help them to see that this is a path that will bring them closer to Your amazing loving heart. We love You Lord-Amen.
Welcome to the site today. Thank you for visiting!
Are you ready to live a blessed life?
Serve.
Is there a neighbor who needs help with their yard? Do you know a family who could use some meals? Is there a single parent who is struggling to keep it all together? Do you have a friend who needs a few minutes to herself? It might be someone you don’t know who needs help loading his or her groceries.
I know He will lead you to someone you can serve, He will help you serve, and then because He is just so awesome, He will bless you for doing what He called you to do!!
Then he said, "Do you understand what I have done to you? You address me as 'Teacher' and 'Master,' and rightly so. That is what I am. So if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other's feet. I've laid down a pattern for you. What I've done, you do. I'm only pointing out the obvious. A servant is not ranked above his master; an employee doesn't give orders to the employer. If you understand what I'm telling you, act like it—and live a blessed life. John 13:12-17 (The Message)
Dear Father God, are you sure you want this girl? I don't know your word like Beth Moore does! I know you have asked me to get in the pool but I feel like the water is right at my chin. Is that Your hand keeping my head up and my eyes on You? Life is very real for me right now, yeah I know its because you have called me to it. I desire to let the women I speak to, see You. I want them to see You and Your love for them. I want them to know You. I want them to be in relationship with You. What if I stumble? Am I worried about details? Am I trying to keep control of something? I know You are wanting submission, all of me; my control issues and pride, oh and even my weakness! Please remove the veil I keep throwing over my eyes and help me to see only You. Thank you for not leaving me alone in this deep pool! I love you Lord-Amen
Saturday morning at 10:00 I started my first fasting experience. I find it interesting how awesome His planning and timing of everything is. He knew just the right time, He knew when I needed it and He knew where it would take me.
Temptations *One of my favorite things is yummy food *Preparing and cooking all the meals for my family *Sense of smell was heightened big time all day *Saturday night neighborhood bbq (all this yummy food my neighbors had prepared) *Dessert (this is a big deal for me!) *Saturday night baseball game *Sunday morning breakfast (breakfast is my favorite meal)
On Sunday during service Pastor Jason led us through scripture and a message. The very first thing I tasted after 25 hours of no food, was communion. My first immediate thought, "God you taste so good and sweet!"
Jesus answered, "It is written; ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’" Matthew 4:4
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8 Blessings *Knowing I can do all things through His strength *Serving my family *Experiencing God and coming close to His heart *Being able to hear Him say I am to only be reading His Word right now *Lunch on Sunday afternoon didn’t taste the great, so I now have the awesome contrast of Him with earthly food
Is life to busy, too loud, to chaotic, to full right now? Is there too much on your plate? Is your calendar so full you don't have time to fit just one more thing in? Has God been whispering to your heart that He wants you to slow down, be quiet, clear things off your plate? Can you hear the whisper? Join me in making time to slow down, be quiet and sit still!
This is what the Lord says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the Lord. Jeremiah 9:23-24
We live in a world that admires people for how smart they are, or how intellectual they can be. We live in a world that admires people for their strength, how much weight they can lift, how far they can run, and how fast they can swim. We live in a world that admires people for making money and we have a list of the richest people in the world.
Today I am thinking about what God admires. I think He loves to admire His children using their talents and abilities wisely. I think He puts a higher priority on knowing Him and living a life that reflects this relationship. Living a life that reflects His justice and His righteousness.
Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord." 1 Corinthians 1:31
This hits very close to the heart for me. I have spent many minutes, hours, days, weeks, and years being concerned about the admiration I receive from others. I have to be VERY aware of my motives and be in constant check with God and ask myself…"who is getting the attention for this?" The desire of my heart is that I have stepped over far enough on the stage that the only one you see is Jesus!
May we live a life that brings all the admiration back to the Lord.
One reason I know God has a sense of humor....He blessed me with two little boys who like to get dirty!
Yes I am that kinda of girl...a "girly girl" who does not prefer to get dirty. I like to stay clean, and I like to wear white. I don't mind picking out certain times to get dirty, as long as I know I can clean up when I am done.
I don't mind fishing, but I don't want to bait my line, I don't want to take the fish off the line and I most definitely don't want to clean and gut the fish. NO Thank you!
Did you know that when God asked us to "go fish" He told us just that..."Go fish and I will do all the cleaning up!"
So I rest assured in knowing its not my job to "clean up others" I just need to "reel them into the heart of God!"
As we are traveling on Saturday to the Water Park I announce…"eww that sure is one stinky skunk!" And thus began the weekend topic of choice for my two and half year old. The questions came in slowly and calmly at first, "momma where’s skunk?" "Why do skunks stink?" "Why do skunks spray?" "Will skunk spray me?" "Can skunks spray people?" (Just a little note our little guy has an amazing vocabulary for a 2 ½ year old which can be overwhelming at times) And the answers went out patiently and calmly at first. The car ride to the Water Park was just under two hours and every question that a little guy could possible ask about a skunk was asked. However the favorite question that was asked repeatedly was "can skunk spray me?" Daddy and I took turns answering, with mommies main answer being, "honey skunks only come out at night, right now the skunk is sleeping so no he won’t spray you." The mention of sleep then helped my little guy associate his crib with the situation, which led him to ask, "will skunk spray me in my crib?" We tried numerous times to change the topic of skunks, however our intelligent little guy could always word associate something and bring it right back! As we got closer to the Water Park he started to share concern that the skunk would be in the pool, mommy reminded him that skunk was sleeping and skunk didn’t like the smell of sun block.
Our time at the Water Park was "skunk free" no skunk sightings or even talk of skunks!
And our car trip home was also skunk free as little guy fell asleep. However our little guy was refreshed and ready for more discussion when we picked Ellie up from the doggie daycare, "did Ellie girl get sprayed by a skunk today?" And as mommy ran into the store to get stuff for dinner daddy took all skunk questions as he waited in the car. Hey he did have AC in there!! "What skunks eat for dinner?" "Will there be skunk at home?" "Will a skunk spray me when I get out of car?" "Can skunk spray me?"
So this brings us to Saturday evening at home, where we need to eat, relax, take a bath, and get ready for bed. "Skunks take bath?" "Can skunk spray me in bath?" "Will skunk spray me in crib?"
Sunday morning brought more skunk talk. "Skunks eat brekast?" "What skunks eat for brekast?" "Skunks at church?" "Can skunk spray me?" Daddy decides to dress Tanner in his "anti skunk" clothes for church hoping this will help lower the amount of skunk talk for church.
After church we create "anti skunk spray" so that if little guy sees a skunk he can protect himself. We had a few practices with the spray, so he would know just what to do!
Our trip to the home improvement store on Sunday even brought even more "skunk talk" "Skunk be in store?" "Can skunk spray me?" "Skunk eat plants?" "Where does skunk sleep?" "Horses get sprayed by skunk?" "Skunk eat ice cream?" "Will skunk be at house?"
Daddy decides on the car ride home after our ice cream cone treat, we need to make this sign for our front door:
Prayer time last night, little guy wanted God to protect him from the skunks. We explained that God made the skunks and He would definitely protect him.
I am happy to report that one of the first questions out of little guy this morning, "No skunks right momma?" "What if we wake skunks up, can they spray us!"
Little guys prayer this morning at 'brekast' "Thank you God for brekast, my body and no skunks"
Today might seem a little harder without daddy here to share the questions!
Hello and welcome to the blog today. I want you to know you are loved by a God who thinks you are the greatest thing He ever did! So take that love He has for you and share it with those around you and just wait and see what happens!
Today I am challenging us to love on the people around us.
Go out and look for people that need to be loved on.
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
Well it is Tickle Tuesday at our house today...we usually celebrate this special day every week. I love to walk into each of the boys room and announce:
"It's Tickle Tyler Tuesday" and then tickle away until he giggles so hard my heart feels like it will explode and then walk over to brothers room and announce "It's Tickle Tanner Tuesday" and then tickle the little guy until he yells out..."momma pease stop tickle me".
This is such a great start to my day...I am going to be selfish and say...it's all about me at the moment when I am tickling my boys. I get such joy from seeing their faces light up, their smiles grow bigger and bigger and their giggles get stronger and louder.
Dear Precious Father thank you so much for Two Terrific Boys! I feel honored and blessed to tickle them today!
If you were asked by someone who is seeking out a relationship with Jesus, "why do you go to church?" How would you answer? What if they asked you "why are you attending the church you go to?" Can you answer them? What if you were asked; "Why are there so many different churches?" "Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:21-24
Do you know about God; or do you know God? Can we worship what we do not know?
I want to be in a relationship with my God. I want Him in every detail of my life, so that I know Him intimately. I want a true, real and genuine everyday relationship with Him.
What does it mean to worship in spirit?
I believe we are not capable of even worshipping the Almighty with out His strength in us…which is provided by the Holy Spirit. God made this possible when He sent His son to die for us, He then left us with the gift of the Holy Spirit so that we could live out the righteous life and worship Him.
What is doing church look like?
I don’t want to be doing church. I don’t want to be numb and fill a spot on a pew. I don’t want to let the gossip, flesh, and world take away my experiences with God. I don’t want to limit myself to a building, a doctrine, or a style of worship. I don’t want to be restricted to worrying that if I raise my hands, clap or shout Amen that I will offend someone else.
I want to be obedient to God. I want to be real with my Creator and give directly back to Him from my heart. I want to be passionate about who He is and who I am and live in that every minute. I want to be praising, and worshipping a God who is so amazing. I want to fall more in love with Him. I desire to spread His love to those around me. I desire to be submissive to His will and build relationships with those around me that lead people to His heart. I want to focus more on the person and their need for love and a relationship with their Creator. I want to see them through the eyes of Jesus. I want to bring my friends to a place where they will be loved on and accepted. I want to be surrounded by a bunch or God’s children who are in hot pursuit of Him and desire to bring everyone along with them!
May we refuse to be numb, may we desire to be passionate!
Did you know that God wants to bless us? Did you know that He loves to see His children smile and feel joy?
Did you know there are people in our world that don’t know their God loves them? Did you know there are people not living life joyfully?
Today I encourage you to lift someone that you don’t know up in prayer. Go to a blog that you have never visited and pray for that person. Pray for a neighbor you have never met. Pray for your child’s schoolteacher for this year. Pray for the person driving next to you in traffic. Pray for the person sitting next to you in the waiting room.
There are people in our world that need to be lifted up. So join me today in lifting them up to the only One who can bring them joy.
“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26
May we be passionate about bringing the love of God to everyone!
My girl loves to play ball just like the boys, she loves cheese just like the boys, she loves to lick peanut butter off the spoon just like the boys, and she loves to snuggle just like the boys.
This is Ellie Mae and she is the sweetest most lovable dog in the world! Today I am sharing her with you because she brings joy to my heart. She loves on me when I am feeling sad and she snuggles with me when I am cold. We have been through quite a bit together and I have grown to love her more than I ever thought I could. You know those crazy dog loving people...I never thought I could be in that group...and please know...I don't love all dogs...but look at this face how could you not love this dog...HA!
So today if you need a smile or some love, Ellie would love to bring a smile to your face and she will most definitely love on you if you need it! (or even if you don't..HA!)
Hello and welcome to my blog today! I am glad you are here, now I am going to put you to work!
I am currently working on a session titled Being Real and It's about time. I need your help! I am going to post a bunch of questions and if you would give your feedback, opinions, and comments I would love it!
What makes God real to you?
Are you real with God?
What keeps you from being real with God?
How real can you be?
What issue(s) is it hard to be real about?
Can we be too real?
Have you ever been too real?
Do you feel being real is biblical?
Why do we fear being real?
What makes things real to you?
Do you want to be real?
Can something fake/temporary make us feel better?
Thank you so much for your help with this. You are all so encouraging, and uplifting to me and I am enjoying being a part of your lives!
We all have them. The straw that broke the camels back; the last straw; and my last nerve. We as humans have limits. There are speed limits, credit card limits, 10 items or less limits, and alcohol consumption limits. Humans put limits on relationships. Parents use limits with their children.
Today is not about agreeing or disagreeing about whether limits are good or bad.
His grace is not limited, His love is not limited, and His acceptance of us is not limited.
Do we limit God? This marriage is too far out of whack to be saved. There is no way this relationship can be restored.
We are too far into debt, our house is about to foreclose, and we are buying groceries on our credit card.
We have tried for 6 months to get pregnant, it’s not working.
Our child has decided that living on the streets and doing drugs is okay.
This church is so worried about being politically correct and following rules, where is God in all this mess?
The doctors have said 6 months to a year.
Do we limit how God can work? Do we limit who God can use? Do we limit where we can see God? Do we try and contain Him so it makes sense to us? Do we limit God so we can feel comfortable?
I believe the very controversial book The Shack is so controversial right now because we are limiting God. We are a saying that God can’t use a fiction book to speak to the hearts of people. Really?
I am blogging about this today because this is a very real thing for me right now. I am questioning myself right now. "God how am I limiting you?"
I hear Him saying…"Child please don’t limit Me, I am limitless and I want You to experience all of Me."
Psalm 147:5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.
John 3:34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.
May we experience the freedom God has for us by not limiting Him to do His thing!!
We are driving in the car and the song Everlasting God by Chris Tomlin comes on the radio. I am singing along and thankfully both of my boys were born with an insane amount of love and grace for their mommas singing, they just humor me and let me go!
Tyler asks from the back seat, "mom while I wait on the Lord am I supposed to be sitting or standing?"
Whoa..did you catch that? First my soon to be four year old asks, "while I wait….." He is including himself in this whole waiting for God thing, like he gets it. And second his only concern is whether he is "supposed to be sitting or standing?"
Again my boy has taught me the importance of simplicity! He does get it my friends. I am the one who tries to go and do something, or put in my two cents. I am the one who has a hard time just sitting or standing!
May you keep your waiting simple!
Micah 7:7 But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Psalm 5:3 In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.
Psalm 27:14 Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.
Psalm 33:20 We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.
Psalm 38:15 I wait for you, O LORD; you will answer, O Lord my God.
Psalm 130:5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.
Isaiah 30:18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
Lamentations 3:24 I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him."
Romans 8:25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
Titus 2:13 While we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,
Jude 1:21 Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
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