Ever since I was in the 6th grade I have tried keeping a journal. Unfortunatley, I am very sporatic in my drive to do so. As I sat here today deciding and praying on what to write about, I began looking through some old entries I had written and forgotten about. When I came across this one, it just seemed right. It was written when I was part of a small home church, and I was feeling the call of the Lord to do more than I ever thought possible. I pray this blesses you in some way. Perhaps it is here just for you.
January 30, 2006
Mark 7:34 'Then, looking up into heaven, He sighed deeply and said to him. “Ephphatha!” (that is “Be opened!”)' As I read this and breathed deeply myself, the Holy Spirit came over me so powerfully. How beautiful it was (is)!
“Be opened!” He said to me.
“In what way?” I asked.
“Teach.” He replied.
“But I am a woman, My Lord.” I reasoned.
“But you are My woman!” He proclaimed.
Tears spill from my eyes at the beauty of His declaration; The joy of His Word to me. As I sit here there is a peace, but also a battle. I know what He is telling me, I have confidence in that, however, it will not be easy.
“Don't worry about it. Declare the truth and believe.”
Thank You my God;
Thank You my Master;
Thank You my Savior;
Thank You my Father;
Thank You my Friend.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Friday, June 12, 2009
Happy Anniversary
Today is my 10 year wedding anniversary.!
It made me start thinking though. Why do we celebrate anniversaries? There are all kinds of celebrations too. Some are happy remembrances of a day, such as a wedding or a birth. Others are somber reflections of someone's life on the day of their death, or of a time gone by. No matter the emotion, we tend to remember things that happen on particular days.
I believe it boils down to the fact that God just created us that way. He tells us throughout His Word to remember. We are to remember what He has done, and is doing, for us. God tells Moses to remember the sabbath because it is holy.(Exodus 20:8) He also promises to remember His people and His promises to them.(Leviticus 26:42) Jesus tells His disciples at the last supper to continue to “Do this in remembrance of Me.” (Luke 22:19) We are made to remember.
As Kevin and I reflect today on the last 10 years, I know we will most be thinking about all the Lord has done for us as a married couple. It still blows us away. Won't you celebrate with us?
It made me start thinking though. Why do we celebrate anniversaries? There are all kinds of celebrations too. Some are happy remembrances of a day, such as a wedding or a birth. Others are somber reflections of someone's life on the day of their death, or of a time gone by. No matter the emotion, we tend to remember things that happen on particular days.
I believe it boils down to the fact that God just created us that way. He tells us throughout His Word to remember. We are to remember what He has done, and is doing, for us. God tells Moses to remember the sabbath because it is holy.(Exodus 20:8) He also promises to remember His people and His promises to them.(Leviticus 26:42) Jesus tells His disciples at the last supper to continue to “Do this in remembrance of Me.” (Luke 22:19) We are made to remember.
As Kevin and I reflect today on the last 10 years, I know we will most be thinking about all the Lord has done for us as a married couple. It still blows us away. Won't you celebrate with us?
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Shaving Knee Hairs
I have to admit that I'm a bit of a perfectionist. It really does annoy me at times, because I have the tendency to want to forget or give something up because I can't get it done just right. I'm constantly striving to get things perfect in an imperfect world, with a far from perfect body.
I was asking God the other day why I keep failing so miserably when I so desperately want to do things right for Him. I realize that none of us ever will reach perfection here on this earth, and that Jesus is the only one who has or will ever be able to do it. That is why He was the acceptable propitiation for our sins. I'm just tired of what seems to be a constant cycle of getting myself in the right spot and doing the right thing, only to find myself suddenly realizing some time later that I've been missing or forgetting some aspect.
I happened to be talking to God about this frustration of mine in the shower since that's the only quite, alone time a mom tends to get. At the same time, I was shaving my legs very carefully since we were having a pool party that afternoon. You ladies know what I mean. One doesn't want a big ol' patch of hairy leg when in a bathing suit in front of every one you go to church with. Later that afternoon while driving to the party I looked down at my knees. There were little hairs sticking out everywhere! It looked like I hadn't shaved that spot in a month or more. Why, of all times, did I now finally see them?
That's when God spoke to me. "It's because you have exposed them to the light of My sun and you were finally looking for them."
Oh. That made sense- For all those questions. That is why it is so important to keep bringing the things we are doing before God. Some hairs may have grown in. Now I had a choice. Did I ignore them, forget about them, or shave them? You have a choice too. Little things will keep popping up in this world. We don't need to give up or just ignore them. We need to constantly thank God He showed them to us and then shave them.
Perhaps I should keep a small razor next to the Bible in my purse...
I was asking God the other day why I keep failing so miserably when I so desperately want to do things right for Him. I realize that none of us ever will reach perfection here on this earth, and that Jesus is the only one who has or will ever be able to do it. That is why He was the acceptable propitiation for our sins. I'm just tired of what seems to be a constant cycle of getting myself in the right spot and doing the right thing, only to find myself suddenly realizing some time later that I've been missing or forgetting some aspect.
I happened to be talking to God about this frustration of mine in the shower since that's the only quite, alone time a mom tends to get. At the same time, I was shaving my legs very carefully since we were having a pool party that afternoon. You ladies know what I mean. One doesn't want a big ol' patch of hairy leg when in a bathing suit in front of every one you go to church with. Later that afternoon while driving to the party I looked down at my knees. There were little hairs sticking out everywhere! It looked like I hadn't shaved that spot in a month or more. Why, of all times, did I now finally see them?
That's when God spoke to me. "It's because you have exposed them to the light of My sun and you were finally looking for them."
Oh. That made sense- For all those questions. That is why it is so important to keep bringing the things we are doing before God. Some hairs may have grown in. Now I had a choice. Did I ignore them, forget about them, or shave them? You have a choice too. Little things will keep popping up in this world. We don't need to give up or just ignore them. We need to constantly thank God He showed them to us and then shave them.
Perhaps I should keep a small razor next to the Bible in my purse...
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
In Ten Years
This Friday is my tenth wedding anniversary. I can't believe it's been that long, but at the same time, it feels like so much longer since we've know each other since childhood. The funny thing is that several of our friends have also recently had their 10th anniversaries or will be very soon. A lot was going on 10 years ago! I've realized how much we've changed in the last 10 years: And believe me, it's for the better! Kevin and I have really grown in our relationship with God and thus with each other. We are amazed at how far He's brought us!
Last Saturday, we were blessed to be able to go to part of a Ted Dekker conference called The Gathering (I use the term, conference, loosely. It was hard to describe, but amazing!) Dekker is a fiction writer I love to read who is also a Christian. His writings all have Christian elements and allusions, but I wouldn't call him a Christian author really, and I was glad to see he felt the same way about his writing. As he was talking about the over 25 books he has published I realized that he was first published less that 10 years ago. Wow! What a ride he has been on!
Dekker then said something about how God will use the people in that very room over the next 10 years. That really hit me hard, because that is exactly what God has been talking to me about. What will be my reality in 10 years? Where will God lead Kevin and I? We just need to be willing to follow. I have to admit, we are really nervous and a little scared about it, but we trust that it will be the best for God's kingdom and that is what we are here for: To glorify Him. I don't think He'll mind if we have to close our eyes every once in a while and scream while He takes us on the roller coaster He built for us. At least we got on!
Think about where and who you were 10 years ago. How far has God brought you? Has He been speaking to you about where your going? Where do you think He'll have you in 10 years?
Last Saturday, we were blessed to be able to go to part of a Ted Dekker conference called The Gathering (I use the term, conference, loosely. It was hard to describe, but amazing!) Dekker is a fiction writer I love to read who is also a Christian. His writings all have Christian elements and allusions, but I wouldn't call him a Christian author really, and I was glad to see he felt the same way about his writing. As he was talking about the over 25 books he has published I realized that he was first published less that 10 years ago. Wow! What a ride he has been on!
Dekker then said something about how God will use the people in that very room over the next 10 years. That really hit me hard, because that is exactly what God has been talking to me about. What will be my reality in 10 years? Where will God lead Kevin and I? We just need to be willing to follow. I have to admit, we are really nervous and a little scared about it, but we trust that it will be the best for God's kingdom and that is what we are here for: To glorify Him. I don't think He'll mind if we have to close our eyes every once in a while and scream while He takes us on the roller coaster He built for us. At least we got on!
Think about where and who you were 10 years ago. How far has God brought you? Has He been speaking to you about where your going? Where do you think He'll have you in 10 years?
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Questions
Sometimes I just like to sit and ponder questions about how God works or things about heaven. There are no solid answers, they are just fun to think about. Here are a few I've thought of lately. Feel free to make comments about them, or post some questions of your own.
*Do you think angels yawn? And if so, do they catch them from us at times?
*Why did God create sleep, and will we still need to for eternity?
*When was God the most pleased / frustrated with me?
*When Adam and Eve realized they were naked in the Garden of Eden, I doubt God thought, “Oh man, now I have to go get my robe on!” So, had they ever asked God about His coverings before that time as they walked in the garden in the cool of the day? (Genesis 3:8)
*What's the 90% of our brains we supposedly don't use, really for?
*Was the original language before the tower of Babel Hebrew, or did He change them all?
*Why is Hallelujah an international word?
*Why were we created to love stories so much?
*Does all of God's creation ask questions? Or just humans, angels, and donkeys (Numbers 22:28-32)?
What do you ponder?
Monday, June 8, 2009
Due To Technical Difficulties...
I'm sorry there has not been a blog for the last two days. I have two things to say about this:
The other problem is my lack of PC savy. I've forgotten how to do everything I once knew how, but I did discover that really doesn't matter. They do it different now anyway! I spent over an hour of my precious Internet time the other day just trying to get one video to come up on this blog. I have no idea if it's something I'm doing wrong or if it's my laptop which has become quite snarky lately. Either way, I'm having technical difficulties.
This morning after having to close yet another program that was not responding and restart my computer, I realized something. I'm so very, very thankful to God that He allows me to “restart” when my “program” is not responding. Perhaps my focus is off kilter and I need to clear my head and focus on Christ alone again: RESTART! It could be that I've been going along with what God has told me, but have begun adding too much of me and not enough Him: RESTART! There have also been times when I have gone against the Word and grown “weary of doing good” (2 Thessalonians 3:13): RESTART!
Hey, I know that there will not be any memory chips added. I've got to run on whatever capacity the Good Lord has given me till He upgrades me to that new body. Oh, the possibilities! So until that day I will praise the Lord for the grace He has given me to RESTART.
- Yes, I know writing one everyday may seem a bit much at times for me to write and for you to read, but God has really been on my case for missing two days in a row. He's not allowed me a peace about it, so I'll try not to let it happen again.
- Technology and I are in a love/hate relationship.
The other problem is my lack of PC savy. I've forgotten how to do everything I once knew how, but I did discover that really doesn't matter. They do it different now anyway! I spent over an hour of my precious Internet time the other day just trying to get one video to come up on this blog. I have no idea if it's something I'm doing wrong or if it's my laptop which has become quite snarky lately. Either way, I'm having technical difficulties.
This morning after having to close yet another program that was not responding and restart my computer, I realized something. I'm so very, very thankful to God that He allows me to “restart” when my “program” is not responding. Perhaps my focus is off kilter and I need to clear my head and focus on Christ alone again: RESTART! It could be that I've been going along with what God has told me, but have begun adding too much of me and not enough Him: RESTART! There have also been times when I have gone against the Word and grown “weary of doing good” (2 Thessalonians 3:13): RESTART!
Hey, I know that there will not be any memory chips added. I've got to run on whatever capacity the Good Lord has given me till He upgrades me to that new body. Oh, the possibilities! So until that day I will praise the Lord for the grace He has given me to RESTART.
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