Avatar Is Proving That We Are All Aliens

This is truly amazing.

OK, perhaps not quite in the way you are initially thinking, but it's true none the less. The following article is from CNN about people's response to James Cameron's movie sensation Avatar.

Audiences Experience 'Avatar" Blues

When I read this, the first thing that came to mind was, "Yes! Halleluia and Amen! Come quickly Lord Jesus!"

Even those who do not believe in a deity of any sort can recognize the soul-sickening desire for more: More beauty, more honor, more love, more of everything that is right and good in this world. The Creator of all has so much more in store for us and we are created to long for it. Just look at the descriptions of heaven and the new earth in Revelation 4, 5, 21, & 22. Yes, James Cameron has a vivid imagination, but Who do you think created him that way?

Did I long to travel to Pandora after watching the film? Yes. Several times. But what got me so much more excited was knowing the the real thing will be so much better. This is how we can witness to those around us who express the same longing after watching the film: And our new world will never be invaded!

2 Corinthians 5:1-3, 5
For we know that if our earthly house, a tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. And in fact, we groan in this one, longing to put on our house from heaven,... And the One who prepared us for this very thing is God, who gave us the Spirit for a down payment.


Hebrews 11:13-16
These all died in faith without having received the promises, but they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth. Now those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been remembering that land they came from, they would have had the opportunity to return. But they now aspire to a better land - a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God. for He has prepared a city for them. 

Don't be fooled. People long for better. Are you going to deny telling them about Him who will create it anew?

What To Do When Your're Off

I have not been able to get back on a schedule and it's killing me. Christmas? OK, enough said. Then the whole week after was playing games with the boys, and while that was a wonderful time that I wouldn't trade, it's still not a schedule. Last week was suppose to get back to normal. It didn't. The kids didn't go back to school until Tuesday, and of course, I got sick Monday night and was miserable until Friday. Kevin was also on vacation all week.

So Tuesday and Wednesday I was busy cleaning up after the Christmas chaos, and trying to breath. Thursday and Friday were snow days and the kids stayed home sliding and having a grand ole' time. It was so cold and icy that even our Sunday service was cut back to only morning worship. No Life Group (Sunday School) and no evening service. Oh, and today?... and it's Kevin's day off.

Now, I really am not complaining. I wouldn't trade any of those things – except being sick – because they were all blessings. They just weren't a schedule. Yes, some were in my schedule, but that's not quite the same. I always forget what a creature of habit I am until my habits are thrown by the wayside. I miss being alone in the house. Desperately. I forget how bad I am at forcing myself to stop what I'm doing while others are around to read my Bible, take a few moments listening to God, or be still and productive; not just being still and being lazy. (Such as watching a movie or playing video games as opposed to studying or writing) Honestly, these last few weeks have been a great reminder... of how weak I am.

So I pray a portion of my favorite Psalm:

Psalm 51:10-13, 15-17

God create a clean heart for me and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not banish me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore the joy of Your salvation to me and give me a willing spirit.

Then I will teach Your ways, and sinners will return to You...

Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare Your praise.

You do not want a sacrifice, or I would give it; You are not pleased with a burnt offering.

The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit. God, 

You will not despise a broken and humbled heart.

Amen and Amen!

Such A Beautiful Place

Yesterday we took Lauren and Elijah to see the 3D version of Avatar. It's a stunningly beautiful film whether you like the story line or not- which we did. Not only was it fun to see the kids be enthralled with 3D effects, but as the movie progressed, to watch them get involved in it.

About a third of the way through the film two of the main characters get to fly to a new location called the Halleluia mountain range on the alien world Pandora. It is a surprisingly, spectacular location since parts of the mountains actually float in the air. During the scene one of the people in response to the beauty says a curse word, and I heard Elijah say aloud to himself, "Why are they saying bad words in such a beautiful place?"

That pierced my heart.

Here I had been earlier that morning praising God for the beauty and majesty of His creation. What He has made beautiful for us in this world, and yet I take it so much for granted. We all do: With the words that we say, the impatience that we express, and the annoyance with which we pridefully snub what He has created for us to enjoy and take pleasure in.

Psalm 139:14
I will praise You, because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well.


The point isn't that everything seems beautiful all the time, but to see the beauty in all things at least some of the time. Was the movie Avatar a great, Godly movie? No. In fact, if anything it teaches to worship Mother Nature. But that doesn't mean that I can't see the beauty and value in portions of it. I learned a great lesson from God through my son even though that was not James Cameron's intent.

How are you treating the beauty around you? Have you seen it lately?

Luke 12:27-28
Consider how the wildflowers grow: they don't labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that's how God clothes the grass, which is in the field today and is thrown in the furnace tomorrow, how much more will He do for you - you of little faith?

Snow Day

Yesterday was a snow day here!

It was funny how there was so much concern about the whopping 4 inches of snow we were going to get. On Wednesday, talk of it consumed the long grocery store lines and Facebook statuses. School was canceled and provisions were stored.

We finally received a dusting around noon.

Our family prepared in a different way. The kids were allowed to stay up late and watch a movie in their sleeping bags so they could camp in the living room afterward. Kevin and I – well, mostly Kevin – poured gallon after gallon of water onto the sidewalk so that the kids could skate on it the next day. Waking up late on the Snow Day, the kids went sliding on the snow-less ice while Kevin and I made breakfast: Hot chocolate, cut up apples, bananas, cheese, crackers, and a bowl full of homemade cinnamon crunch popcorn. (It can't be any worse than Cinnamon Toast Crunch!) Then we all sat in front of the TV and watched Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs that I had secretly rented the day before.

The rest of the day was filled with more sliding, munching, movie watching, and game playing. It was a great day. But- it was suppose to be a SNOW day, and it was not what we had really expected. It was better.

Isn't that the way it works sometimes with how we understand God? There are so many times that I've felt Him moving me in a particular direction for a reason I assumed was correct. Then, when I get there, the outcome was so much better than I could have ever imagined. The amazing thing about how God works is that if I hadn't planned for what I had originally thought would happen, then what did happen, never could have occurred even though not initially anticipated. (Read that again. It actually does make sense.)

God blows our mind with the “Better” when we give Him our best.

The Greatest Joy

I've been discovering the greatest joy recently. One of my children has been hungering and thirsting for the Word on their own and I have had the privilege of guiding him through it. There is an amazing joy when you get to experience someone come to salvation and seek God, but when it's a child of your own the joy is exponential; Especially since I have not been able to raise him as much as I like. I've had to trust God completely in this matter, and He has proven Himself faithful and loving once again.

Praise You Father for Your faithful love to us all! May we always strive to seek You with all our heart, soul, and mind. Please plant a passion for You and sharing Your Great News with those around us. We are all Your children. May we give You the greatest joy by hungering and thirsting for You and Your Word.

Surprise Treasures

Sometimes we just don't expect what we find.

I've been reading through the book of 2 Chronicles recently. I know it's not right, but I never expect to glean a lot of useful information for daily living out of certain books of the Old Testament. Oh, I know they're there, but some of it can be so dry with all the genealogies. While it's useful in other ways, and interesting to discover, the daily life aspect isn't top on my list while reading.

Once again though, God has shown me how wrong I am. Here are some wonderful verses I've found that are very applicable to my daily life though. Take some time today to reflect on them and understand how they can impact you as well. I pray they bless you as much and more as they did me.

2 Chronicles 12:7-8
“...' They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them but will grant them a little deliverance. My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. However, they will become his servants so that they may recognize the difference between serving Me and serving the kingdoms of the land'”

2 Chronicles 13:18
“The Israelites were subdued at that time. The Judahites succeeded because they depended on the Lord, the God of their ancestors.”

2 Chronicles 15:7
“But as for you, be strong; don't be discouraged, for your work has a reward.”

2 Chronicles 16:9
“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to show Himself strong for those whose hearts are completely His...”

Getting Sick

I have a cold.

These past few weeks were so fun filled that I wore myself out. Thinking back on it, I've realized that this happens every Christmas. There is so much build up to the season itself, and then the whole week after we play games, stay up very late, and eat a lot of sweets while the boys are here. All that combined means I crash afterward: They left last night and I got sick tonight. Or as I say- God hit my reset button.

It's interesting that after we have pushed ourselves too hard, too fast, that we need a rest whether it fits into our schedule or not. The only choice we have then is whether to heed the warnings and slow down or plunge ahead with a hand full of pills to cover the symptoms while we continue to over do it.

It's the same thing with listening to the Spirit. God gives us warnings but it is up to us to pay attention to them- even when it's not in our schedule. If we ignore or rationalize what we are being told to do we become more and more sick, but this time it's not a runny nose and stuffy head. It's a hardened heart.

Hebrews 3:7-15
Therefore, the Holy Spirit says:

Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the desert, where your fathers tested Me, tried Me, and saw my works for 40 years. 

Therefore I was provoked with this generation and said, “They always go astray in their hearts, and they have not known My ways.” So I swore in My anger, “They will not enter My rest.”

Watch out, brothers, so that there won't be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that departs from the living God. But encourage each other daily, while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened by sin's deception. For we have become companions of the Messiah if we hold firmly until the end the reality that we had at the start.

A Cool Thought

Read the following verses and watch the video:

John 1:1-5
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that had been created. Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it.


Colossians 1:15-17
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation; because by Him everything was created, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and by Him all things hold together.

A Cool Thought

Revelation 21:5-8
Then the One seated on the throne said, "Look! I am making everything new." He also said, "Write, because these words are faithful and true." And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give to the thirsty from the spring of living water as a gift. The victor will inherit these things, and I will be his God, and he will be My son. But the cowards, unbelievers, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all the liars - their share will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."


It breaks my heart for so many....
Isaiah 6:9-10 "And He replied: 'Go! Say to these people: Keep listening, but do not understand; keep looking, but do not perceive. Dull the minds of these people; deafen their ears and blind their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their minds, turn back and be healed.'"

My New Year's Resolution Is To Not Make One

Happy 2010!
Can you believe we have come this far?


I love and hate new year's resolutions. Being a person who thrives on goals, resolutions are a nice way to start out the new year. However, being human, I seldom - very seldom - keep them, and that always gets frustrating. So this year the Lord brought a Scripture to mind:


Matthew 5:33-37
Again, you have heard it said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne; or by earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your "yes" be "yes", and your "no" be "no". Anything more than this is from the evil one.


When we make a new year resolution, we tend to rely on our own strength and will power. That's why I'm always failing them. So this year, daily prayer and guidance will have to suffice as a resolution. I will rely on His strength and the power of His will to get me through and to do right in habits, health, and heart. Then I know they will be accomplished because He is Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11).

Looking Back

Since today is the last day of 2009, I'd like you to think on either the lesson you've best learned from God this year, or perhaps one defining thing that has happened in your walk with God.

Mine? This blog! I can't believe how much a part of my life this has become. I've felt for years that God wanted me to write, I just never knew how or had the courage to follow through. This blog has taught me so much. Everything it contains are things I am learning. After all we retain information better when teaching it rather than just reading it. So I'm learning a lot! The verse that spoke the loudest to me on this matter was 1 Timothy 1:12. It is my banner flag for this year:


"I give thanks to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, appointing me to the ministry."


How would you define 2009 in your life?

Just Me And God

I am at peace right now.


Actually being at peace is something that doesn't come along very often. Don't get me wrong: I have peace all the time which is very evident in my life. I know it's there and working in and through me. It just doesn't seem like there are many times where I relax enough with few goals or plans to enjoy being at peace for long, but this week I am.


This is the week that my whole family is together and is just enjoying being that way. My two older boys are with us and all we are doing is eating, playing games, and watching movies. I love it. I'm doing just enough housework to keep everything from getting bad, but not so much as to be stressing over it. It's really nice.


As I've talked to God about this - actually, apologizing for not writing as much and spending enough time with Him - He's let me know that it's OK. That has greatly added to my peace. This week is a Sabbath for me. During the year I don't take time off to just enjoy the blessings that He has given me. Oh, I thank Him often, but I am always wondering what I should be saying, learning, or doing for Him next. That's what He's called me to do. However, for this week, He's let me relax. I'm taking the time to just thank Him throughout the day for the many blessings He's given me, and you know what the best part is? It's just between me and God. I get to revel in Him personally and intimately for a whole week. 


I am so very blessed.

What About You?

I'd like to hear from you today:

What was your favorite Christmas gift this year?

It may be something that was under the tree, or that blessed you in some way. But whether long or short, I want to hear something from you!

Prayer Request

Today is a great day!! My two older boys are flying in to be with us for a week. Honestly, this is the only present I truly want. We are looking forward to a week of nothing but fun, food, and games.

However, they are also flying and changing planes by themselves with a lay over in Chicago. PLEASE pray for a safe trip, no delays, and excellent weather.

Enjoy all your leftovers today!

Merry Christmas!!!

Today we celebrate the birth of God's proven grace and love: The birth of Jesus the Christ!

Thank you Father for caring enough to go through all this for us. Thank you for all the intimate plans and details You created to point us to the birth of Jesus before He was ever born. You, who laid the foundation of the earth as the morning stars sang (Job 38:6-7), also laid the foundation of salvation in our hearts through the Words you gave the prophets. 


Thank you Jesus for your love and willingness to suffer as one of us for our own sake amidst scorn and contempt. You showed us not only the Truth, but how to love one another; for we were child-like and clueless! You came in the most humble of circumstances to show us how to have little, though You are so very much (Philippians 4:12-13). 


Thank you Spirit for showing us how to have confident power in all humility. You, who are so close to us, have guided me so lovingly - even knowing who I am. You give me the words the Father has to encourage, strengthen, chastise, and confirm me.


Praise to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit on the celebration of the birth of our hope in salvation!!!

That's What We Get

I think the blatant black hole of over commercialization and mad pre-Christmas rush, is a little bit of God's way to get back at us for making it that way.

Tis' the season to learn patience,
Fa-la-la-la-la, La-la-la-la!