Monthly Archives: February 2011

by

Where do I begin?

Seriously.  Where do I begin? We got back from the Worship Conference on Wednesday night late.  It was an incredible three days at Gateway church in Texas.  So much information, so many great people, and God totally showed up…I mean big time.  I mean like…I am c-h-a-n-g-e-d.

So many revelations, big and small, and so you can understand my dilemma of not knowing where to start.  I’m flipping through my notes from the conference as I’m typing and one thing that just jumped out at me is this:

Worship is a lifestyle, not an event.

Wow.  Did you get that?  Worship is how we live our lives.  Worship means that God is a part of everything we do, everything we say, of who we are.  Worship isn’t the thing we show up and do at church once a week.  Although a part of worship is corporate, you can’t come to a building one hour a week, sing some songs, listen to a 30 minute message and then go home and ignore God all week and call that worship.  Worship is a daily thing…minute by minute even.  It’s constant.  Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:

 

Rejoice always

Pray without ceasing

In everything give thanks

For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus

 

Rejoice always.  Pray without ceasing.  In everything give thanks. 

Constant God connections.

Now does he mean we should run around acting like a bunch of crazies or that we should stay on our knees all day long?  Well maybe not in the actual sense because we all have to make a living, we have a house to take care of, families and other things that require our attention in life and I don’t think God wants us to be lazy about those things or neglect them all together.  BUT, can we have an attitude of constant praise?  Of constant prayer?  Continually be thankful?

YES!!!

There are a gazillion opportunities throughout the day for us to recognize God’s goodness and say thanks to Him, to stop and take a minute and whisper a prayer for a friend, to utter praise to Him for the beauty of the sky.  It’s about keeping a continual flow between us and God.

And out of that continual flow between us and God…

Worship becomes a lifestyle.

And when worship becomes a lifestyle…

God is glorified

and

we are changed.

by

Leavin’ on a jet plane…oh and a bit about a horse and some goats

So have I mentioned that I’m flying out to Texas in just a little over 5 hours to head to Gateway Church for the Worship Conference 2011? 

I am so excited I can hardly stand it…but a bit nervous at the same time.  I’m not a big fan of flying.  Or being away from home really.  Anyhow, I would love it so so much if you’d be praying for me and the folks that are going that we would be moved and changed and renewed and blown away and anything else you can think of.  I can’t wait to get back and tell you all about it.  I’m taking my notebook…and my camera!!  Maybe I’ll get a chance for a pic with Kari Jobe?  That would be pretty cool.

On another note, my neighbor’s horse died.  It’s pretty sad really because the horse belonged to her husband who passed away several years ago.  I can imagine it was pretty tough for her to bury that horse.  Pray for her too if you think about it?

So, anyway my neighbor also has a few goats as well.  The horse and the goats would roam around in the pasture area that was fenced off and Hubby would always joke with the kids whenever we drove by the house that there was a bunch of goats in that yard, but one of them looked sorta like a horse.  Of course, that might be one of those “you had to be there” things.

Well since the horse died, two of those goats have done pretty much nothing but lay or sit or whatever it is that goats do there on the ground where that horse is buried.  Every time I pass by the house, there are those two crazy goats sitting on top of the dead and buried horse.  I did see them get up to go eat yesterday but then they were right back over top of that same spot.  Poor things, I know they miss that horse but there’s no sense in hanging around the disturbed dirt really.  That horse has moved on the stable in the sky. 

Now I’m sure God has plenty of lessons in this, but what resonates in my heart is…MOVE.  Keep moving.  Don’t give up.  In life, there are disappointments.  There will be pain and heartache and loss.  But we have to keep going.  There will be moments of joy and blessing and wonder.  But we have to keep going.  We can’t lay down in the dirt and wallow in regret and we can’t try to hang on to something God’s done with.  God said His mercies are new everyday.  He’s not giving us new mercies so we can keep on living yesterday’s revelation after He’s ready to give us something new.  And He’s not giving us new mercies so we can keep mourning our failures till we stink of death.

Are you in the middle of a rough patch?  Are you facing a failure?  God’s bigger than that thing.  Keep moving.  Don’t give up.

Are you still dancing around in a season that God’s already moved on from but you just don’t want to let got of?  Keep  moving.  Don’t get stuck.

Hey that rhymes!  I’m a poet and didn’t know it!  Ha!  Ahem. 

This is a race that we are running and a race has a beginning and an end.  There are water stations all along the way for us to be refreshed and restored.  There are first aid stations all along the way for us to get patched up.  But there’s still a finish line to get to.  The water is amazing and it feels so good when we are so thirsty, but don’t fret…there’s plenty more water along the way.  God’s got lots more in store for you.  The bandaging covers our wounds and we may fear continuing on may bring more wounds…and it probably will, but don’t worry…God’s healing salve never runs out.  Any pain or disappointment we may suffer along the way will all be worth it when we reach the end.  But here’s a tip ~ for me and for you ~ if you’re still breathing, you’re still in the race.  Keep going.  Keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep your eyes on the guy with the checkered flag…He’s the one with the nail-scarred hands.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,

let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame,

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners,

so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Hebrews 12:1-3

by

Five Minute Friday: Friendship

It’s Friday!!!  For obvious reasons, that’s awesome because the weekend is at our doorstep…praise!  But another thing that makes Fridays great is….

FIVE MINUTE FRIDAYS with The Gypsy Mama!!  Time to stop, drop and write for five minutes straight….no editing, no back-tracking, no pauses.

This week the focus is friendship.

GO!

Gosh I had the hardest time getting this one started…and can’t imagine why except that the idea of writing about friendship for only five minutes seemed almost impossible.  There’s so much to say!!  See when I step back and look at my circle of friends, for one thing it’s huge and keeps getting bigger.  Sure there are those few who I am closest to of all, but the list of people I call friend is so diverse and amazing that I could just go on for days!  I have friends who are still in high school and friends who have grandchildren.  I have friends who live just up the road and friends who live in another part of the world.   New friends who just recently crossed my path and old friends that I have known for as long as I can remember.  And every single one of them at one point or another have blessed my socks off.  Sometimes it’s just more than I know what to do with!

I can’t say enough just how thankful I am that God has seen fit to place all these incredible people in my life, but I am forever grateful to have been given this clan of brothers and sisters in Christ to walk through this life with, to worship our Creator with, to hang with for eternity.  Praise!!

STOP.

Alright, if I can be honest this one was so much tougher than I thought.  I guess there are some things in life that are just difficult to put words to…this being one of them.  If I can be really honest, I deleted what I had typed at first and started over.  It just felt lame and corn-ball-ish in comparison to how I truly felt in my heart.  Still not satisfied with the words between the GO and the STOP, but I think I could try this one a hundred times and still not say enough.  I am so very blessed…

by

For you, for me, for all…

I had started typing something else completely and decided to put that away for another day because I suddenly felt so strongly that God has laid something different on my heart for today.  And it’s this…

For the mother who feels like she is ready to pull her hair out, who has had all she can stand for one day of screaming kids and bathroom interruptions and ingratitude, who just wants a minute alone to herself to breathe and regroup…He knows how you feel.  He’s stood in front of crowds of people who have demanded His attention, pulled and tugged on His clothes, and yelled at Him for doing good things on days when they said He wasn’t supposed to be doing anything.  People followed Him from place to place, hanging on His every word.  He had to get up at the crack of dawn just to get some time alone to be with His father.

For the friend who has been back-stabbed by someone loved and trusted, by someone you shared your secrets with, by someone you poured out your heart to…He understands.  He’s been betrayed by one of His closest friends.  He shared His heart with someone who then turned their back on Him.

For the one who feels like they are without worth to anyone, that no one listens to them, that people find it easier to ignore them than acknowledge them…He’s been there.  His life was sold for 30 pieces of silver.  The people in His own hometown wouldn’t listen to Him, questioned His authority.  People still even after His ultimate sacrifice choose to ignore Him, to say He never existed, that He wasn’t who He claimed to be.

For the one who feels ugly, undesirable, plain…He’s felt that.  The Word says that He wasn’t beautiful or desirable, that there was nothing majestic about Him, that He probably just looked like everybody else.  And by the time He endured the cross, He’d been beaten so severely that He was barely even recognizable as human.

For the one who feels overwhelmed by the draw of sin, that the temptations they face are just too strong, that they can’t get away from the thing…He lived that one out, weakened by the lack of food or water.  He was offered the best the enemy had to give and fought back with the Word of God.

For the one who feels like the weight of the world is about to crush them, that they can’t possibly carry another thing…He’s bent under the crushing weight of the cross.  He knows the moment when you just can’t carry it another inch and He knows the necessity of sometimes needing help from a brother or sister… just ask Simon the Cyrene.

For the one who has given and given and given only to have someone else take and take and take and never give anything back in return, to completely put yourself out there for someone else, to offer all you have only to have it thrown back in your face…happens to Him all the time.  He gave everything He had on a tree on a hill ~ for me, for you, for all ~ and yet so many refuse to take what He has given.  He laid down His very life for us.  He gave it all.  And there were people there that day who spit in His face, people who still today spit in His face.

Brother, He knows your secret pain, knows your fears, your struggles.  Sister, He feels your hurt, knows your desires, your dreams.  He’s not a here today, gone tomorrow kind of Savior.  There’s not a step you take that He’s not with you, not a hair on your head that He hasn’t numbered.  Don’t let the enemy lie to you and tell that no one understands, that no one cares.  

You matter.

And your pain is never wasted.  Your struggles are never overlooked.  Your tears are never ignored.

You matter to God, friend.

You matter to God.

by

Flesh, Spirit, and beginnings

Do you ever come to a place where you find it hard to read the Word of God?  I mean for the most part, usually I can’t get enough.  I love digging into His word and finding all sorts of precious treasures there.  But for the life of me, I can’t seem to focus lately, especially the last couple of weeks.  I think I have started two or three different attempts during this time to begin a study through a particular book of the Bible, only to get sidetracked a couple of chapters in.  What in the world is going on here?

I was sitting at my kitchen table drinking iced tea and adding a few things to my One Thousand Gifts list (for more about that, check out Ann’s blog site – A Holy Experience) and just outta nowhere, it hit me.  I knew right away why I was having trouble getting into the Word….two reasons in fact.   First,

Because my flesh doesn’t like the way it feels.

God’s word calls us to be more, go deeper, stretch ourselves.  God’s word will not allow us to remain complacent in a world where lost people are wandering without.  God’s word will not stand for us continuing to roll around in our sin beds.

God’s word calls me away from everything my flesh desires.

And that causes an ache…an unfulfilled want.

This flesh that leads me astray, this part of me that follows my flippant and constant changing emotions, this side of me that wanders in the dark.  The last thing this flesh wants is for me to be led by the spirit, the place where I am bound for all eternity with the One True God.

But there was one other thing that was jamming me up, the other reason…this one I heard God whisper to my soul…aligned.

You’re trying to mold yourself into the shape of something

 that you’ve determined to be My desires for you.

And as much as I love that you are in love with My Word,

you’re digging in places I haven’t led you to yet, child.

We’re going back to the beginning ~ Me and you.

And all of a sudden the pieces start to fall into place so quickly that I can almost physically feel a whoosh of wind.  It all starts to make sense now.  I see over the last several months of my life the stepping stones ~ so many things that happened that I noticed without noticing~ a preparation of my heart for this thing, this plan of my glorious God to bring me back to the beginning.  Back to my First Love. 

I have no idea what to expect next…and honestly, I’m pretty excited about that.

 

by

Five Minute Friday: And then some…

Today must be a day of firsts…my first DaySpring product review and now my first Five Minute Friday.  On Fridays Lisa-Jo, aka The Gypsy Mama, opens the forum for posts, but here’s the thing.  You have five minutes to write about whatever prompt she’s given you.  No editing, no thinking and rethinking wording, just go…just type it on the keys as it’s falling out of your head.  Once you’re done here, be sure to click here and check out some of the other posts on Lisa-Jo’s page. 

This week’s prompt is: And then some…share your week!

{gosh, I’m a little nervous}

GO:

So this week has been somewhat of a blur.  I’ve had a rotten cold and so I missed an entire day on Thursay…well at least most of it.  I slept most of the morning, got up and ate a little lunch and then went back to bed and slept till four in the afternoon.  I guess my body needed it.  I’m not complaining at all just so you know.

I think one of the coolest things that happened this week and that it occurred to me that I am a blogger.  Yes, me.  Wow.  How did this happen?  This is coming from someone who generally has a lot to say, but never thinks anyone really cares all that much to listen.  And yet, I keep typing.  It’s therapy for me to get it all out and what the neatest part of it is…I’m finding that there are people out there ~ complete strangers ~ who know exactly where I’m coming from.  Holy moley.  It really started to sink in this week that this is a ministry that I have embarked on.  My heart just does flip flops at the thought because I’ve desired for so long for God to show me where I fit in because for the better part of my life, I just well…didn’t fit.

But I’m not taking this thing lightly.  No sir.  Lord if I am in this for the wrong reason, then take it right away.  But as long as I am here for You, I pray Lord that You would be blessed and glorified.  Take my junk and lay it out there for all to see if it means that someone else might find that they aren’t alone in this deal.  My heart is an open book.

STOP.

Alright well you wanna know something funny?  For my first Five Minute Friday, I forgot to start the timer.  Duh.

by

Dayspring Product Review

I’m so excited about this post.  This is my first DaySpring product review and did I ever get blessed with the product they sent me to check out!

I received the John 3:16 Heart and Globe Canvas Print which is one of their products listed on the (in)courage website…which I would definitely recommend you checking out as well.  Great products, a book club, community and also blog posts to encourage your spirit.

Okay so, I was really looking forward to receiving the print because the photo of it on the website was just lovely but when I actually pulled it out of the box, all I could say was WOW!  The colors were just gorgeous…so much more vibrant than I imaged.  I loved it right away!  And I was even more tickled to find that it matched my bed spread perfectly!  Ahem.  Back to the print.

As I was pulling the plastic covering off the print, I found a slip of paper in the wrapping that told the story of the inspiration for the print.  Gosh, how did I miss that before?  It just made it all that more beautiful to know the story behind it.  The print was actually inspired by Madison Atwood, an 11-year-old girl with mental and physical disabilities.  With only the outline of a heart to go on, Madison created a beautiful work of art that was not only full of beautiful colors, but also told a story…a story of the big big love God has for us.  It was the message of John 3:16 as seen through the eyes and created by the hands of this sweet child.

So the print is 16″ x 20″ but a larger size is actually also available.  And here’s the great part ~ it’s on sale right now!  It’s regularly priced at $56.99, but for the February special you’ll get 30% off!  That brings the cost down to $39.89.  Totally a deal!  Give it a look-see here and check out the rest of the DaySpring products while you’re there!

Disclaimer: DaySpring gave me this item to review on my blog, however these opinions are 100% mine.

by

The onion disease.

I have suffered from the onion disease my whole life (or at least for as long as I can remember).  It’s the disease that causes us to add layers to ourselves so that we seem more interesting, or more beautiful, or more Godly, or more anything really than what we know we are.  There are the layers that offer us protection…layers that say I don’t need anybody in my life or I will never allow anyone to know the real me or if I never love then I will never hurt.  We add layers to please others, to fit into others’ ideals of who we should be.  We add layers that say we are okay with something when we know full well we aren’t, but we call it the cost of fitting in…the “I need you to like me” layer.  Let’s be honest.  We all suffer from a varying degrees of onionliness. 

Because for me, (and I’m guessing for many of you) it’s really hard to just be me.  And you know why?  Because if I show you me, the real me…the me without layers of padding and protection and fluff…and you don’t like that me – the one that’s without all the bells and whistles…the one that is just the plain old me – then that means it’s really me that you don’t like.  It’s not that you don’t like who you think I am.  It’s me.  And at that point I could try and add layers to please you but underneath it all, the pain of knowing that you’d rather have the fake would still remain.  And that pain would probably be excruciating.

Why am I like that? 

Is it because I don’t think I’m likeable just like I am?

That would be a resounding YES. 

Is anybody else out there like this?  Always feeling the need to un-say stuff because you didn’t get the reaction you thought you’d get and you know your cool points total just took a dive?  Always starting your sentences with “I could be completely off-base here, but…”?  Always feeling like you have to be a part of eh-vah-ry-thing because you might miss a key moment and lose your spot with the “in” crowd.  It seems like a constant struggle sometimes to make sure the layers are properly placed and that there are enough of them.  And it’s a struggle that I find myself getting quite tired of. 

I must admit that I have let some of my layers go.  The upkeep on them was just too much.  And of course some of them required other layers in order for them to be effective.  Exhausting.

The prayer is prayed…

Search me, O God and know my heart

Test me and know my anxious thoughts

See if there is any offensive way in me,

And lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:23, 24

 

Enter Jesus.  And His healing Balm of Gilead.  And His Handy Dandy Holy Moley Layer Remover 3000.

Some of the layers come off slowly causing an ebb and flow of pain as bit by bit is torn away and it seems the tearing away will never cease.  Some of the layers come off quickly…are snatched away all at once…and the pain comes all at once and the exposed wound left behind throbs with every heartbeat.  And when the pain reaches the heights of all I can bear and threatens to drags me into the depths, He smears that balm on my wounds.  It is cool and calming.  Its fragrance is salvation to my soul.  And the healing begins. 

And the old worldly layers I have covered myself with for so long slowly go…and He becomes my covering.

Are you wearing layers that are wearing you out?

 Are you ready to let them go?

by

Fair trade wares, coffee with love, and a baby on the way…

In the short time that I have been blogging, I have “met” some pretty amazing people.  Although I’ve yet to have the opportunity to lay eyes on them, I do consider them to be a wonderful part of my life.  There are a few of those fellow blogger buddies for whom I have been especially grateful as we have walked together through quite a bit of Lysa TerKeurst’s book Made to Crave via Mary Kathryn’s blog.

I wanted to take an opportunity to introduce to you one of them.  Her name is Elora.  She is married to Russ, who is as she puts it “the one who flutters her pulse.”  They have a son, Devonte…and as God would have it, they have are in the process of adopting a child from Ethiopia.

I was unaware as to how costly adoption fees can be.  They are quite expensive – anywhere from $9000 to as much as $20,000 or more.  There cannot however be a value placed on how precious it will be to have this orphaned child nestled into the home and hearts of a loving, Godly family. 

WE have an opportunity here as the body of Christ.  First and foremost, we must cover this family with our prayers.  Lift them up by name to the Throne of Grace. 

But we also have a chance to pitch in and help. 

For the rest of this week, through February 12, 2011, Russ and Elora are hosting a trunk show through Noonday Collection.  This site’s sole purpose is to bring income to impoverished countries by selling jewelry, scarves, and gift items made by artisans in those countries and help fund adoptions.  So through February 12, for every purchase you make from Noonday, 10% will go to Russ and Elora’s adoption fund.  Just be sure when you check out that you enter Elora Ramirez in the “instructions to merchant” section of the online shopping cart.  I placed an order today and can’t wait for my earrings to arrive!!

And for my coffee drinking friends, here’s another option.  Check out their page at the Just Love Coffee store and pick up some yummy fair-trade coffee.  A portion of the proceeds from your purchase there will also go towards the adoption fund. 

Bottom line?  We can help a family get one step closer to bringing their child home and at the same time get some pretty nice stuff.  To me, this is a win-win.


by

Wow. I got nothing. But I really do have everything.

Well isn’t this just something.  The kids are with my folks and Hubby is outside in the yard.  The house is quiet except for the soft wurring of the ceiling fans and as I sit here at the computer trying to bang out a post, I got nothing.  Hmmm.  Oh, wait, the doorbell just rang.  Hang on…the folks are here with the kids.

pause.

Okay, well about the quiet house, nevermind.  Kids are back home, TV’s on, piano’s being banged on, my four-year-old keeps drinking my water, Hubby’s phone is ringing and my oldest is complaining about the little one taking something out of his room.  Oh well.  The quiet didn’t matter all that much anyway because I really couldn’t think of anything to write about right this second.  Um, excuse me one moment again while I retrieve my little one from the laundry basket and finish listening to the oldest list off the Ten Commandments. 

pause.

Alright back at the computer.  In the midst of all this, it was nice that Hubby and I got to take a little break earlier this morning and spend a little time at the coffee shop.  (We have church on Saturday nights, so our Sundays are free.  Not sure why I felt compelled to tell you that.  Gah.)  Anyhow, I guess you could have called our coffee shop time a date of sorts.  We try to do that every now and then, but our “dates” are more often during the day than at night.  But that’s alright.  As long as we have that time I suppose it doesn’t matter when it is.  Alright, my apologies but you’ll have to excuse me one more second.  The little one has to “do poopies with his butt” (he’s very specific) and Hubby is banging on the backdoor.  BRB…

pause…again.

Sorry, that took a little longer than I thought.  Once the little one was done, he decided he needed a snack.  And now I’m not sure if I can concentrate at this point anyway.  The oldest is bouncing a ball in the den, Hubby and Mom-in-Law are talking in Spanish and going in and out the front door.  And the little one is trying to show Hubby a hole in his pajama pants.  And getting crumbs on the bed.  And humming a song.

This is life.  But I wouldn’t have it any other way.  I love my family.  I love that even at 11, my oldest still likes to come sit in my lap and hug me.  I love listening to Hubby have a conversation with the little one about why big boys don’t wear diapers and how ants are going to come eat all the crumbs.  I love that we have the opportunity to spend time with Mom-in-Law who otherwise would be living in another country.

Even in the midst of chaos, I find the blessings of God.  Even in the middle of the craziness of my day, I am overcome with joy.  I can’t help but smile as I think of my lovely little family.  And although the words don’t flow very well between stops and starts, and although momentarily I may think I’ve got nothing to say, I could actually in fact go on forever because in truth, I have everything.

And now Hubby is vacuuming up the crumbs.  And whistling.  *sigh*