What a day...

Today I lit my lights...I also volunteered at my daughters school dressed as a cheer leading reindeer....it was so fun and it embarrassed her so much. All in all it has been a good day. I am a little cranky tonight because I am tired but, I realize that God is good and there is no reason to feel that way. I also got something in the mail that was unexpected and it made me incredibly happy. I must say God blesses us when we least expect it and I am truly thankful. I am tired and this is short but one last thought for now Thank God for the little things and find beauty in all things and when God chooses to bless you it will bring such amazing joy it is indescribable.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Be thankful....a tad early!

Today I am so happy to tell you that my children got baptized. I have to say that when I got baptized it was an amazing experience but, to watch my kids get baptized was truly moving. I wanted to cry tears of Joy but, I held them back. Today was altogether a blessed day full of love, joy, and God, with a serving of attitude and a side of arguments. I did get the lights put on my house today and I light them tomorrow, I am so excited to light my lights for the first time of the year. I am lighting them tomorrow because halloween is a day that I consider to be of the devil and I want to SHINE Jesus. As we wind down the weekend and we approach November I want to challenge everyone to find one thing to be thankful for everyday of November. I heard about this from a friend and I decided to try it. I believe, if you are thankful for something everyday you will see things in a new light. Psalm 28:7 says The Lord is my strength and shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song. Give thanks to God when things are going good and especially when they are not, maybe just maybe you will find yourself with a happier heart. I will start 2 days early I am thankful that God has enough confidence in me to raise my kids, hopefully the way He wants me too and, that I have the strength to follow through on consequences when they are needed....I hope! I find myself second guessing myself and wondering if I am doing this or that right and, I think at times that I am the WORST mom EVER!!! I have looked up some verses in the Bible and in Deuteronomy it talks about if your child is rebellious and does bad things they stoned them (paraphrasing here A LOT) but, in Psalms 127 it says that children are gifts from God, they are I fully agree but, they can so totally be a handful as well. it says in Proverbs 29:15 The rod of correction imparts wisdom, but a child left to himself disgraces his mother. I find myself sighing and wondering why God chose me for this task? Then I am reminded at how much joy I get from my kids, frustrating times and all. I would never trade them for anything so I take a big breath and let it all out I give them to God and we continue our journey through life. I am also thankful for the best parenting handbook  EVER written.

That's my thoughts for the day,


Crazy for Christmas

Actions and Consequences...

Today was a busy day I got up and cleaned up the house and then went to get my mom to come visit and be at my kids baptism tomorrow. We were going to the pumpkin patch but, alas my very strong willed and very opinionated daughter got in trouble and I cancelled it.....for both of them. Yes I know I am a mean mom but actions have consequences and so I had to give a punishment to her. As believers we need to realize every action we do has a consequence and it can be good or not so good.....if we have a problem with someone, we need to go to that person and talk to them if we don't then the only one getting hurt is us because we let it eat at us. That is the consequence of avoiding something that could be healed. if we lie even small ones there are consequences and it is breaking the 9th commandment. There is a record of all our actions good and....you get the picture but, the good thing about some records is...they can be erased.  Jesus paid for all of those actions on the cross and we have been forgiven all we have to do is ask. I have forgiven my daughter but, she still has to learn now that how she acts can and will get her into trouble. I pray that the lessons I teach my kids now they will carry with them...(at least the good ones). I know this is short and sweet but, it is all I have to say today I am excited about tomorrow.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Giving...NOT...Getting!

The chill in the air is a crisp reminder that winter is indeed coming, there are 2 days left until I get my Christmas lights put up and, I am very excited about that one. The time of Thankfulness, Joy and Reflection will soon be upon us, with those times there will be sadness, loneliness and frustration. So many people from the needy to the not so needy experience the last three of that list. It breaks my heart that so many view the Holidays with dread for what ever reason. We should be celebrating not crying, Jesus was not sent to Earth to bring sadness, He was sent to bring Joy, Love, Kindness, Peace....LIFE. My goal is to try and show at least one person the Joy of the season, the reason we have it and why I live it year round, with the hope of helping them see Christ. The gift of giving does not have to be extravagant, to see someones face light up with one kind gesture is beautiful. The other day there was a brother and sister in the grocery store, he was looking at squash when I walked in and asked me what they were so I told him. We got behind them at the checkout and I asked what are you doing with the squash? He said my mom is sick and I want to make her squash soup.....the cashier said that will be $1.51 the look on his face was pure devastation, he said it says .39 cents....the cashier said that is per pound. The boy hung his head and walked away my heart went out to him and his sister, I told the cashier I will get it. The cashier looked so surprised and a look of Joy came over his face, almost like he thought WOW there are good people in the world...He smiled really big and said here, you give it to them. I took the bag and handed it to the kids digging for more money I said here you go. The boy looked at the cashier (I think for approval) and he smiled the most wonderful smile, the most grateful smile and his sister was speechless. Both kids looked like it was Christmas morning and they got their mom the best gift ever. They both said thank you and left the store. My daughter then took her change and found the can that is out for a little boy who needs a new heart, she smiled at me when she dropped the money in the can. When I was driving away we saw them again, they were waving wildly and smiling and saying Thank You. That my friends, is what it should be about everyday, giving what you can either of yourself or, if you can, help someone at the store. The Holidays should be a happy time not because of what we get but, because of what we give.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Moving slow feeling spiritually sluggish? Try God!!!

I am not functioning properly this morning, I took a muscle relaxer last night that the Dr. prescribed and I do not like how drugged I feel now. I am moving very slow and my mind feels sluggish so don't even try to think about thinking. Sin is like that, when we sin we should as believers "feel" it. It should make us feel bad and spiritually sluggish (just my opinion) we should not like how sin makes us feel. I know some may say well that is not that bad...or they have sinned far worse than I have....sin IS sin big or small it is all the same in Romans 3:23 it says for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (NKJ) It does not say some have sinned it says ALL have sinned. Isaiah 64:6 says But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away. (NKJ) I am a sinner saved by Grace.....it is simple as that. I am thankful to God that He has grace, mercy, love, compassion, forgiveness for what we do and understanding, with out all of that, we would feel like we are fully drugged up all of the time with the worst possible drug there is (just my opinion...again). With God we are FREE and that is a wonderful feeling.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

The best of me is you.....

I got some news yesterday that has shaken me down to my core. I wanted to run and hide but, I had to go volunteer at the High School and I deliberately missed my Bible study last night. I did not sleep well, I was awake by 4:00 this morning, fortunately there were no floating glow sticks to discombobulate me further (like yesterday wow). I got some lab results back and it looks like I have RA or they think I do. I am only 37 I asked my husband I am not middle age am I? He just laughed....I guess I am. The thing is even though I am tempted to cry....I feel peace seems a little strange to me but, I have to say (again) through all of the things that have been happening I have not freaked out like I have in the past. All I have to say about that is THANK YOU GOD!!! Psalm 34:1-4 says... I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall be continually in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh magnify the Lord with me, And let us exalt His name together. I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from my fears. (NKJ)  I have friends that are praying for me and, God is good He will see me through this time. In the mean time I have decided to try and stay positive learn what I can and see what can be done naturally (some of the meds have some very ugly side effects). I have noticed that when I started this blog things have been coming at me, (Murphys law in full force) and I am thinking the devil (I do not give him respect therefore I do not capitalize any part of his name) is not happy with me. I am standing here right now and I am shouting from the roof tops...(actually I am typing quietly but, I want to shout) satan YOU LOSE!!!!!! I will not let this get me down and I will not blame God and, I will do as Psalm 46:10 says Be still, and know that I AM GOD; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. (NKJ) Yes sometimes I feel like I am falling apart but, this time I am not going to let anything get the best of me, that's all for God because, the best of me is God!

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Do you make promises? Do you keep them?

I dreamed of carrots and adopting kids, I was woke up again by a cat meowing and I believe I was praying for my friends and family before I was fully conscience what a night. My kids love doing devotions before bed, it is something we just started. Last nights was about making a vow to do something and following through with it. The story was about a missionary coming and talking to a class, the missionary asked can you give up one pop or candy bar a week, and give that money to help others?  Some of the kids said yes. Three of the boys were playing on a hot day and decided to get a pop. One boy said we can't, we promised to give one up and I have not done it yet. The other two said we will give up two next week and bought one. The boy was upset but he kept his promise. Promises are made to be broken....NOT!!!! If we can not keep a promise we should not make it. God keeps His promises to us, if we make a promise to someone and break it what is that telling them? In my opinion it is sending the message if you a believer is breaking your promise, what will God do? I do not want to send that message out to people so if I can not guarantee I can keep a promise I DON'T make them. it says in Numbers 30:2 If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth. (NKJ) it says in Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (NKJ) What God says He does it is that simple, So my question is this if God keeps all of His promises shouldn't we? If we are to represent God here on Earth then, shouldn't we truly represent Him? I know that I have made promises that I could not keep and, it made me feel bad especially when it comes to my kids. If we say we will pray for someone, we need to do it, if we say to someone we will help them, we need to do it. One broken promise is to many God Does what He says, I believe He expects us to do the same. How can people trust us when we tell them about God if we make a promise and do not follow through? I challenge you today review what you say, if you are not sure you can keep your word do not give it, the hurt it can cause is so not worth it!

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Thy will.....not mine.

This morning I woke up to a cats meow and instrumental Christmas music drifting from my daughters room, one was pleasant and the other....I have to admit I tried to ignore it but, I was not able to the poor pitiful kitty saying please wake up I want you to pay attention to me....How often can we say that we "meow" at God especially when we do not see things going the way we think they should. We want attention for various reasons and like the kitty we keep at it, God (just my opinion) will let us keep at it until we can fully let go of the situation and let Him have it. The longer we go the more frustrated we become, the more angry and depressed we get until, we have successfully made our lives a HUGE mess. Jesus even did not want to bear what God wanted but, He did...Matthew 26:39 says He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will". (NKJ) Jesus had a "human" moment but, it was just a moment, at this time Jesus did not have the "sinner" nature. That came when He was on the cross, when Jesus uttered the words "it is finished" is when we had the chance for ultimate forgiveness because, Jesus took our sin and shame and bore it for us. It is NOT our will but, Gods that we should desire. Paul was talking in 2 Corinthians 12 about a thorn in his flesh and begging God to remove it three times and God said NO!!! 2 Corinthians 12:9 says And He said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness. (NKJ) Paul then goes on to say he will gladly take the infirmities and everything that comes with it for Christ because in  weakness is strength....(I paraphrased quite a bit).  I am NOT perfect I do not want to be, that would be a responsibility I could not handle but, I am learning with things in my life that God will get His way in everything. It is just up to me on how long it takes to happen.....The more we fight it the longer it takes if we surrender ourselves to God and let Him pilot our life there will be less turbulation. Buckle up Ladies and Gentlemen with God at the wheel it should be an interesting ride.......Can you say "not MY will but, Your will be done?

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

I AM A SINNER!!!!!

I AM A SINNER..........I mess up, I make mistakes, I do not always make the right choice, and yes I sometimes do things I KNOW is wrong. My Pastor said this morning when we are born we are born into a town called sin and there is only 1 way in and 1 way out......Just turn around (Paraphrased this a tad bit). The simple fact is we sin, yes I said WE...it is what we do about this problem that will determine if we see our Maker for eternity or just a brief moment to hear our sentence. I will not sugar coat it for you.....you either do as the Bible says or you don't. 1 John 1:8-10 says If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we CONFESS our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. (NKJ) All we have to do is confess and ask God for forgiveness, we need to allow God into our life so He may work in us to work through us. Some may say I have messed up to bad there is NO forgiving me, or I do not deserve to be forgiven. Let me tell you what God chooses who is to be forgiven and He wants to forgive you. Mark Lowry explained it very well to someone once who said the same thing, He asked this person if he had gotten another man's wife pregnant and then murdered her husband to cover it up??? the man said no....so I ask you, have you done that? Well King David did and God said he was a man after His own heart. God can and will use ANYONE to minister to others, He loves us so much. God gave a special gift to us His son to die for our sins, Jesus paid the price so we do not have to. John 3:16 says For God so loved the world that He gave His ONLY begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not parish but have everlasting life. (NKJ) Today is the day to start God Loves you and, He is waiting to welcome you into His loving arms. Will you ask Him into your heart and let Him forgive you? Maybe you can not forgive yourself for something, letting God forgive you may help you to forgive yourself...........

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Night before Christmas anyone?? My way....

I Love Mark Lowry's "Pipers Night Before Christmas" I have tried a time or two to write a clever poem about the night before Christmas but, I was not ever happy with how it sounded so I tossed them out. I am gonna try again......My version of what happened the night before Christmas.....

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the Country every creature was stirring including the donkey. Mary was sitting upon the poor donkeys back really wanting down so she could take a nap.

The baby was kicking and stirring inside her saying mommy it is almost time for me to arrive here. The town was ahead the end was in sight Mary started to relax and not be so uptight.

They got all checked in the deed was done the taxes are settled and those are no fun. Time to go find a place to rest only to hear we have no beds.

But, my wife is with child what can we do?? I am sorry sir we just have NO ROOM. Inn after Inn they were told the same thing  Joseph was weary and Mary was too.

Joseph helped her down as Mary said, I am so tired this can not be right, we have been looking for a room all night. The last Inn keeper over heard her and had to say, I may have SOMEWHERE you can stay...

It is not a room I am sorry to say but, I will let you sleep in my stable with clean hay. We will take it!!! how much do I pay? There is no charge for you this day.

They got settled in with the blankets and hay Mary wanted to rest it had been a long day. Rest she would not get...for the baby decided it is time for Him to come, with the old day behind them and the new one just begun.

In a field not so far away were Shepherds and sheep saying Good Night to the day, they had watched the line of people going towards town and they were so happy they were not around but, their happiness was about to be turned upside down.

For right in front of them in a very bright light  stood a whole bunch of Angels what a beautiful sight...They sang for unto you is born this day a baby lying in a manger filled with hay.

Go to the town all filled with people, go find the King it should be simple. Follow the star that is shining so bright it will be your guiding light. So to the town they went not quite in dismay to find the king that was born on this day.

When they arrived what a Glorious thing to see they could not help but go down on bended knee A King was before them so tiny and small yet, He was to be the Greatest King of them all. They Bowed and worshiped and visited all night the King that was born to save all of our lives.

That my friends is what happened on the night before CHRISTmas.....

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

God vs Culture.....

My kids told me yesterday as we were driving that the air smells like Christmas. Did you know the air can smell like Christmas? Well I have news for you IT DOES!!!!!! According to my kids anyway....I love how kids think sometimes. So now, the air smells like Christmas and, my house has for a while, I guess it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas and smell like it too....There are 65 days until the Greatest Birthday EVER!!!!!

I was wondering what to write (like that is new) and now I know, I saw a picture on FaceBook and it was making fun of a culture so, me being naive like I am said, if it is making fun of something that is important to that group of people, how can we lead them to Jesus? I was then told (by people who are of that culture)  that I have to understand the culture to understand the "joke" for lack of a better way to say it. So I am ok with that, I can laugh at myself I am a quirky kind of person....I celebrate Christmas ALL YEAR and I have been called nuts, insane, crazy, you name it I have been called it. I am ok with that too because, I am ok with me (for the most part). I was also told that there must be something in my culture that I laugh at and I am not sure there is. As Beth Moore says we live in a Babylon culture we need to learn to be culturally relevant with out being spiritually irrelevant. Our lives are surrounded by an all about me, I don't care about you culture, I find nothing funny with that. In Philippians 2:3-4 says Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. (NKJ) I can tell you in this dog eat dog world there are not many that do this. Romans 12:2 says And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (NKJ) it goes on to talk about abhorring evil and clinging to what is good (Paraphrasing here). God does not want us to enjoy the bad things that seem to tempt so many, He wants us to stay away from them. My question is this...then why do so many people cling to evil and abhor good? Why do people get a rush from doing bad things? Because satan is urging them on and making it ok when it is not. I think that if God had not promised to never flood the earth like He did when Noah was around, we may have had to build another Ark or two or..... Culture is culture and God is God I may not understand one and I am learning the other. What some believers may find funny I choose not to, that does not mean they are wrong to laugh, it just means they are culturally relevant without being Spiritually irrelevant and that is way cool.....

That's my though for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

It's God's opinion that counts not the worlds....

My day started late so therefore it makes my whole morning late but, that is ok it has given me time to adjust my thoughts and attempt to get them in order and somewhat organized. We all know I am not the most organized person in most cases...give me a fund raiser or a project to do and I am all over it. As I sit here and sip my oh so good and needed cup of coffee listening to Christmas music I am pondering the events of yesterday and what I need to do today. On my list of things for today is the usual chores and making a new flavor of cheesecake for the men's dinner at Church tonight and try to figure out dinner for the family all at the same time. All that I am putting on the back burner for now to bring up what happened yesterday to my little girl at school. I pick my daughter up at school almost everyday she is almost 10 and in 4th grade she likes school for the most part but, like every girl at that age she has issues with friends and now she is becoming more aware of how she looks I am thinking she is 9 going on 16 at times. Both of my kids have what I guess people call buck teeth and will need braces (and only with God's provision will they get them). Yesterday My daughter (I will call her K) K was in music and, a girl was singing off pitch and when they got back to class K mentioned to the other girl that she was singing a bit high on one of the songs. The girl turned around and said at least my teeth don't stick out when I sing....K said it is not my fault my teeth stick out...the answer K got was "yes it is". It devastated her she was crying when she came up to me and covering her mouth and saying I want braces NOW!!! I have to say the mommy in me was fuming and saying YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL and I don't like stupid people but, the Jesus in me told her that we need to forgive mean people and love them because that is what God wants us to do. This morning I looked up some scriptures that I am going to show her this afternoon and hopefully help her see what God says about it and help her feel better....I have to say I LOVE my FaceBook friends they were so supportive and kind and that helped her feel better too. It says in Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. (NKJ) As believers we need to watch what we do and say because even something we may think is innocent may not be seen that way by others. We need to hold ourselves to higher standards then the world has. In Colossians 3:12-13 it says Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do.(NKJ)  We must forgive because God says so plain and simple whether we want to or not. It says in Matthew 18:21-22 Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." (NKJ) I am thinking it means DON'T keep track God always forgives us so we should always forgive others....(just my opinion). I know that I have covered some of this before but, I can not stress enough how important it is to grasp this. How we live will teach our kids to live, if we want revenge then that is what our kids will see and learn. In this other girls case she is the "new" kid in class and I told K maybe she is unsure of herself and just wants people to like her, or maybe she was made fun of herself at her last school. I will pray for this girl and K and maybe a new friendship will form and that would be really cool....God has His ways of working on and through us I pray I can teach my kids that in everything there are ways to minister to others. I told my daughter this morning that she was beautiful and that God made her in His image and He does not make mistakes...the final thought is this we should see ourselves how God sees us not how the world sees us.

That's my though for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Defeat your Goliath....

David must have been scrawny.....the youngest of  eight sons and only the three eldest went to war....Goliath now he was a BIG man if my calculations are right TEN feet tall (or more)  for an average person that in it self is intimidating but, to have more then one Goliath? That is down right scary. We encounter goliath's in our lives everyday, it can be scary when we come across them because, they can seem so much bigger and stronger then us. David had a courage that no one else had, he had a strength that again no one else had yet, he was mocked and his brother got angry with him...his own brother that must have been hurtful and frustrating for David. Now fast forward to our time....I can think of several times in my life where I had to face goliath, and my goliath's were bigger badder and meaner and,  in some cases my goliath's won. I know goliath won because my trust in God my Father was not there, my faith had wavered and I was weary. If we keep God in our court like David did then, God who is much bigger then a ten foot giant will give us the upper hand. 1 Samuel 17:45-47 says Then David said to the Philistine, You come to me with sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in THE NAME OF THE LORD OF HOSTS, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God of Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that The Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's and He will give you into our hands. (NKJ) So no matter what battle you are fighting or what war is raging around you, hold on to the courage like David did to face what is plaguing you and to show the strength that David had to stand up and tell your goliath that you come in the name of the LORD of hosts. Ephesians 6:12 says For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (NKJ)  We can face our goliath's because we have someone bigger, stronger, more powerful then any goliath we will ever face and in God we can stand tall and confidant that even if we may lose some battles with God we will win the war.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Distractions Distractions......

My mind is blank today.....sometimes I wake up with words running rampant in my head and other times I have to start out like I did today and the words come. Today I am not so sure what will happen I have so many distractions swirling around it makes it kind of hard to concentrate. Distractions...they take away from the important things in life and we tend to think (at least I do) oh, I forgot that!!! Oh well I will get to it later and it NEVER gets done. In this crazy, mixed up, distractable world we live in I am thinking that sometimes we let distractions organize our lives and we end up more a mess than when we started. I believe if we step back and let God organize our lives we will then have more prioritized lives. Some people like disorder or thrive off of it. I do not like it but, I am not the most organized person around I can tell you, if something is where it is supposed to be I can find it even if the junk drawer is piled high with...junk. Organized people still get distracted especially if they are going through something in their lives that turns their world upside down and makes them discombobulated. God can take your distractions away, He can help you focus on Him and He will distract you from your distractions....I do not know about you but, God is one distraction I welcome in my life. With God as your distraction the things the world throws at you will not sting as much...they will sting because we are humans with a sinner nature but, God will be right there to take those stings for you only if you let Him. My challenge to you..... let go of life's distractions that turn you inside out and let God distract you, and see how you feel then, I am guessing it may just feel a bit like peace......

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Sarah Laughed.....

Sarah laughed.......I think I would too. In Genesis God promised Abraham and Sarah a child, they waited and waited and ok you get the picture they were OLD!!!! When Isaac was born Sarah was in her 90's and Abraham somewhere around 100 give or take a few....WAY past the age of having a kid. When God makes a promise He keeps it we may just have to wait for it for a while or a really long time but, it will come. As we walk in our lives and worship God and develop our relationship with Him we will start to get an understanding that yes indeed He will not fail and HE WILL KEEP HIS WORD to us. Where I am sitting or standing or walking or running at times, I have to trust that God will provide. I need a job, we need a home to call our own and it looks like it won't happen but, God has a plan up His infinite sleeve and at just the right moment KA-BAM!!!! its raining blessings and yes I meant to say RAINING. Sarah and Abraham took it upon themselves to fulfill the promise that God gave them and that is not what God had planned.....ya well DUH!!! When we take it upon ourselves to "provide" Gods promise to us on our own, it is bound to backfire in such catastrophic proportions that it will take a work of GOD to fix. It would have just been easier to LET GOD do it....don't you think? I love the teachings my Pastor is doing in Genesis it allowed me to see that they were not perfect they had their struggles too and it is seriously a very well played out Soap Opera, so much better than the Young and the Restless, or Days of our Lives. When we can step back and relax and let God do His thing we will find it to be a tad easier on us and our lives and the lives of those around us. God was sitting right there with Abraham when Sarah laughed and he asked why did Sarah laugh saying surely I am to old to bear a child? (paraphrasing here) He then went on to say (and I just love this part) "Is anything to hard for the Lord"? He went on to say other things but, that question sure is a doozy don't you think? Promises Promises Promises and God will keep every one of them....Sarah laughed, will you?

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

I am accountable are you?

I have to say it is an odd feeling to be posting so late in the day but, this weekend has been so full of blessings that I think I am ok with that. My 9 year old daughter wants to start a blog too...she wants to call it the Mini Me of Mommy.....I think that is pretty cool that she wants to do what I am doing so, I am adding on to this blog for her so I can help her with it. It got me to thinking that we as adults are examples to our kids and they like to copy what we do. In some cases that is not a good thing. I am held accountable to be a good example to my kids because, if I do something that is not right or sinful and they copy it then it is on my head until they become of age to be accountable. It says in Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. (NASB) That sounds like a good instruction to me and since it came from the best child raising manual around we should probably listen to it. I do not know about everyone else but, I mess up all of the time when it comes to raising my kids and sometimes, I wonder how God could have trusted me to raise them. I then realize that God does not make mistakes He is perfect after all and He does know what He is doing. I need to lay down myself and let God raise my kids through me....yes there will be times I take over and I will have to start again but, God being full of grace, mercy and forgiveness is patient and will continue to teach me through all my mess ups. I am excited for my daughter to start her blog she even wants to sign it Crazy for Bunny (her kitty) it should be fun to read as she gets older and matures....if she keeps up on it....I guess we shall see..

That's my though for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Under Construction!

I went the the women's conference this weekend and was totally blessed to be there. We studied Colossians, in the 3rd chapter it talks about what we need to take off and what we need to put on. we are Under Construction and in my opinion we always will be. We need to have the habit of trusting God by being rooted in our faith....when we develop this habit and an OH NO situation arises it will be easier to just give it to God and let Him deal with it. I believe the path to trusting God starts when we seek the things of God and set our minds on them and not the things of this very ungodly BA-BALONY world. It gives a not so nice list of what we need to put to death for instance and only to name a few impurity, evil desire, covetousness and a few others. Wow sinner nature sure is a doozy but, there is more we must also put away from us the things we practice such as....anger, wrath, malice, slander and cussing (paraphrasing here). Putting on our new self will take practice as well but, it will also take us making the choice to allow God to do His work in us. The new "clothes" are compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience (do not forget DO NOT ask for those.) we must also forgive each other as God forgives us 70x7 everyday, above everything else we need to LOVE. Love is a choice we do not always feel it, when we love whether we want to or not it will bind us together in perfect harmony. The conference was called Decisions Decisions and we need to make some, God is calling us to Him and with that call is the need to heed His word. When we do yes, the enemy will rise up against us and throw EVERYTHING he has at us, he will try to discourage us and hurt us. Even with all of that, with God and the love of our brothers and sisters in Christ, standing united we will fight against the devil and he will flee. Habits are hard to break because, we have practiced them for so long. The new habits must be practiced with the same diligence the old ones were, we will fall there is no doubt about that therefore that is why we will always be Under Construction (again just my opinion).

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Simplicity is bliss.....

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens, Brown paper packages tied up with string, These are a few of my favorite things.......these may have been Maria's favorite things but, not so much mine...I LOVE the movie and all of the music in it but, if I had to list my favorite things it might go something like this.....Snowflakes on holly and sleigh bells on reindeer, Lots of good wishes that fills you with good cheer, opening the door for carolers to sing these are a few of my favorite things....there are 72 days 16 hours and 30 minutes until the greatest Birthday ever I can not wait...what memories do you have of  the Holidays? Do you stress or enjoy them? I know I have mentioned this before but when ever I say how many days until Christmas I get groans at least from the adults the kids go YAY!!! People stress out so much it makes them not enjoy anything about the Holidays, and that just is not right. God wants joy in our lives and stress flat out TAKES IT AWAY!!! We should celebrate celebrate dance to the music as we are rocking around the Christmas tree, and we dream of a White Christmas as we go over the river and through the woods. Let us not forget to listen to sleigh bells ring and we as parents are wishing for a silent night.....but, I am telling you to have yourself a Merry little Christmas. Breathe let the stress go and take time for yourself once in a while to decompress have an eggnog or pumpkin spice latte re-evaluate what you want to accomplish and make changes. Nothing has to be elaborate Jesus was born in a barn not the Hilton simplicity is bliss. Go all out if you want just remember it can be fun and simple and still be beautiful. God is not complicated we make things complicated therefore we stress and worry so much and it affects the whole season. Take time to stop and smell the evergreen and breathe in life and let go of stress.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

God has a sense of humor.....

I had a blow yesterday......it looks like God is in the mood to test my faith. The other day I wanted to write about being specific in praying because God has a sense of humor but I didn't. Today I am...I am going to take you back in time to what seems a long time ago but in reality it has only been about 5 years. We lived in a house that we thought we were buying in fact the people did not own the house at all and stopped making payments and the real owner took over possession of the house. Bottom line we had to get out no choice about it. We wanted to buy so we tried and almost did but, that is when the economy took a dive and we couldn't all of our money had gone to inspections, appraisals and getting ready to move into this house we were told was ours only to have it take so long that it got taken away we were looking at seriously being homeless not a good place to be. I prayed to God I told him what our need was and I thought I was being specific I said my dream  home is a home that has walls facing North South East and West with a roof that does not leak NEVER in my wildest dreams did I expect what happened next. My husband said...........what about a travel trailer? I said WHAT??? NO WAY!!! He then said it is better than nothing. so we tried and succeeded in getting the trailer. God provided a home with walls that face North, South, East and West and the roof did not leak, and an added bonus it had WHEELS!!!! I seriously said HAHA God very funny. Less than 300 square feet for 4 people and 2 cats...everyone tripping over everyone else...all of our belongings in storage (which 95% got ruined there and had to be tossed). We lived in the Dreaded Dream house for almost 4 years during that time I struggled and fought and was depressed gained a ton of weight and was down right miserable. A year and a half ago God presented a house for us, one we could afford, the Landlady is super nice and we could have our cats. so we moved in, I was in the accident and today a year and a half later we are looking at having to move again due to a situation beyond our control. I lost my job we do not have any "moving" money and I am looking at having to live in the dream house on wheels.....Honestly I DON'T WANT TO! God has a plan I know He does I have to trust Him and Pray and keep my faith strong. God will lead us where we are to go and provide what needs to be provided....I have had what I feel is more than my fair share of stress and tears and and and I could keep going but, I won't....I read a quote today that I am at this time going to make my motto it says "Every evening I turn my worries over to God. He's going to be up all night anyway" ~Mary C. Crowley
So with God's great sense of humor and unique way of teaching us lessons we move forward and a piece of advice for you and myself too.....Be very SPECIFIC when praying because God will answer just maybe not quite the way we expect Him to.....God loves us very much and He knows what He is doing, I am glad He does because I am clueless....how we respond to situations will determine how we learn our lessons (just my opinion here) God just wants to teach us He does not want to hurt us. That's what satan does he comes to steal, kill and destroy and try to get us to turn from God and we can't let that happen.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Will you accept the challenge?

You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains; You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas; I am strong, when I am on Your shoulders; You raise me up... to more then I can be. (Brendan Graham) I have these lyrics playing in my head today. I love this song and when I hear it being sung it sends goosebumps down my spine. When we are weary God is strong and I am so thankful to Him for it. I get the feeling that believers all over are weary and down trodden. I want to issue a challenge to everyone...Get on your knees and pray. Pray for your friends, family, co-workers, the homeless, the un-saved, pray for EVERYONE even if you do not know them, you just may be the only one that does. The world we live in is in such a desperate state these days and I believe prayer, intercession on our knees, faces how ever to God will be the only way to save it. We have so many other things coming against us but, it is just one common enemy that causes all of the mayhem, malice, and hate....satan. Matthew 18:18-20 says Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there in the midst of them. (NKJ) I believe if we stand united in prayer no matter where we live we will see things start to move. My heart breaks to see the oppression that is rampant all over and we need to break it and take our Countries back for God. We need a REVIVAL in our land...the only way that will happen is if we stand up and join in together and PRAY!!!!!

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Life is one wild ride....

Before I begin there are 74 days 17 hours and 9 minutes until Christmas....and today I am kinda just rambling enjoy....
I love the earliness of the day when everyone is still sleeping and I am wishing I was too....the time to be in reflection of  my life, year, month, week and day....it is a time to have one on one time with the cats that seem to think, oh she is up it is time to monopolize her time and not let her get anything done.....it is my time to chat with God, even if I can not get the words to come out right because, my brain has not kicked it into full gear yet due to lack of coffee. My Life......is Gods so, lets start with my year....welllll maybe a bit farther back than that. In March of last year something happened that changed the whole direction of my life....I was in a car accident, not a real bad one but, it was enough to completely overhaul and do an extreme makeover Life edition. As a school bus driver we always think of safety first (at least the good ones do) even in our own cars. So why any person driving a BIG truck would think it was safe to stop on rail road tracks is way beyond me.....Then think oh I should not be on here and start backing up.....WITHOUT knowing whats behind you!!! A professional faux pas most definitely but, even though it is what started this whole thing I forgave him...people make mistakes. So fast forward a bit after months of Dr's and tests and all sorts of uncomfortable things I am put on a leave of absence from my job because, I can not lift more than 15 pounds and could not chain my bus so my days as a bus driver are over. I have done volunteering, I co-captained a relay for life team that was fun and, I lost a friend because, I was trying to comfort another friend and she did not like the songs I was posting......my year....accident, permanent injury, unemployment, volunteering and losing a friend .....In the last tad over a month School started and so did Fall. My son started High School which he was dreading and discovered he likes it...I would love to say love but, I am not sure that is exactly accurate. My daughter is in 4th grade and she thinks life is so hard because the days seem longer I made new friends that I am so blessed to have....in the last week I have spent it with Hubby under my feet (if you want the future he has another week) I tried new recipes and started a Beth Moore Bible study...In the last day I have said to my son I am grateful for the opportunity to be irritated with your teenage attitude, taken the kids to the Dentist, threatened my sons Christmas if he does not pull those last 3 teeth out, went to my Dr. and was told almost the same thing all the other Dr's told me over the last tad over a year ok it has been 1 year 7 months and 2 days exactly.....but who is counting??? So I almost feel like I am in a vicious cycle but, all along God has walked with me through my pain, struggles, lack of sleep, kids attitudes, and frustrations I know He has a plan for my life. I also know that my life is not the worst, there are people out there that have far more serious things going on, I know I am blessed. This has started the ball rolling I am a rainbow of emotions when I look to the future but, God is running this roller coaster of my life and I know He will make it one wild and colorful ride.

P.S. this is only part of it...God Bless you today and always!

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

What do your dreams say?

I had a rather disturbing dream last night. It was a mixture of so many unlikely things that it could have been funny yet it was very much.......shuttering just thinking about it. In my dream there seemed to be a million different things going on but, what was the focus is the situation that had me in a very vulnerable and embarrassing place. I seriously felt stuck and could not move I could have but, it was something I was not willing to do and it got worse and worse and I just woke up. I do not remember many of my dreams I can wake up feeling wow that was weird but, not actually remember anything about it so this was a rare for me. I believe God can speak to us through dreams being sinners sometimes that is the ONLY way God can talk to us. I do not interpret dreams but, I feel like God is impressing this on my heart and maybe it is what I am supposed to hear. I am not sure the people in my dream are key it was the feeling stuck and unwilling to move that stood out. I have many different directions in my life right now sometimes I seriously feel like a multi-directional round about. In some areas of my life I have felt stuck, overwhelmed, unsure of my footing unwilling to move for fear of causing an avalanche of nuclear proportions so, I stay put in a "safe" place. God does not want me in a safe zone He wants me on that high wire trusting Him to be my safety net. In my willingness to grow and learn and trust in God I have to step out and move, in order to have Him work through me I have to work for Him. I can not let what others may think of me stop me from doing what needs to be done, it is what God thinks of me that counts. What I feel it means is this....No matter what situation I am in I have to be willing to move, speak and do what needs to be done in my life and my walk with God. I need to step out on the high wire (afraid of heights and all) and trust that God WILL catch me when (not if) I fall and there will be a time that God will catch me He always does. The intention is not there to fall but, fear, anxiety, doubt, anger and other things can make us lose our step along the way and to have God as our safety net is one wonderful thing...The key here is to be willing and unafraid to do what God wants me to do.....there I said it in a round about way :-)

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

What are you waiting for?

Today I seem to be at a loss for words. I wanted to write about prayer and being specific in what we pray for because, God has a sense of humor but, that does not feel right if you know what I mean. I prayed for guidance and for God to speak through my words and I seem to have stalled. Life seems to be like that sometimes, we stall and are in a time of waiting, we ask for what? I can not answer that I just know we wait. It is in those times we need to pray and seek God and worship Him. We can have some of our most precious moments when we are on our knees. When my life stalls it tends to make me feel unsure, impatient and sometimes I get down right angry. I really dislike feeling that way so, I pray and when I do it is a beautiful thing. Getting angry will not solve anything it just prolongs everything. Gods time is His time and we need to set our watches to it, if only.....we knew what His time was. Psalm 27:14 (NKJ) says...Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord. Waiting is not a strength of mine I have a hard time with it but, as I have said before, these times are lessons learned in our lives to build that strength, courage, patience, compassion and the character of God in us. Instead of struggling and flailing around just relax and go with the flow right in to Gods plan. It took Joseph 13 years of waiting that is a long time. I pray that I do not have to wait that long but, I will if I have to.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Inhale...Exhale...

I woke up feeling discombobulated this morning and I am not sure why..I am feeling burdened and somewhat overwhelmed....A scripture came to mind when I looked it up I found two. In Psalm 55:22 (NKJ)  it says... Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved. In 1 Peter 5: 6-7 (NKJ) it says... Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. When we cast our cares upon God it gives Him control of our life and relieves us of the burden we carry. I find myself carrying my burden and so much more, at times it feels like my spirit is being stepped on and suffocated. God wants our burdens so we can breathe.... breathing is an important part of living. I am not talking about inhale... exhale...I am talking about breathing in God...His love, comfort, peace, His LIFE!!! Breathing in God and breathing in air are two different things one feeds our bodies the other feeds our spirit. When we are carrying our burdens we suffocate our spirit and it makes it hard to lean on God let alone to stand and walk WITH God. It seems to me that as we walk with God and live our lives that even the strongest of believers have difficulties with this issue too (just my opinion). We are called to walk with God who we have never seen, touched, or talked to in person to solely rely and trust with EVERYTHING in our lives (Noah did it and he had to build an ark), to not ever doubt that, or be shaken....as sinners (humans) that is next to impossible (I said next to). We will have doubts, concerns, sinner nature relapses but, God is an awesome God!!!! He will be waiting for us when we come back from our temporary I need to fix this moments. God will carry our burdens we just have to trust Him to......WOW I feel better now!

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Instant Life???

I made instant oatmeal for my daughter before she ran out the door to go fishing today and it struck me, I prefer the regular oatmeal that actually has to cook over the just add hot water stuff. The texture and flavor seem different to me. Texture is important to the taste buds which brings up my next point (yes I do have a point)....I loved my slow cooker (yes I said I loved an inanimate object), it took its time to cook to the perfect tenderness and the juiciness and oh my goodness yummy, it takes time to make something really good. I had to say goodbye to my slow cooker as it went to appliance heaven a few months ago so, until I can get another one my slow cooking days are over......for food anyway. I have seen so many times in life people want instant this and instant that, we are a desperate society and we want it NOW!!!! In life Ladies and Gents it don't work that way...God....if I had to describe Him it would be this, God is not an instant God He likes to take his time to let His plan simmer and cook until it is the right time to let it happen, and ONLY then will He act. If we had our way everything would be moving in a fast forward motion and we would miss so much. I am thankful God has His own time and makes us wait...yes I DISLIKE waiting but, the lessons I am learning make it worth it in the end. But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 (NKJ) When we wait on God it builds patience I for one need to learn a few more of those but, it builds faith, trust and a relationship with our Father God aswell...from what I understand God has never promised an easy life, it would be nice sometimes to say life was easy but, I am thinking it might get boring after a while. I do not want an instant life I want to enjoy the blessings of a slow cooked life to savor the flavors of the experiences that God the ultimate chef has in store for me. Ok maybe sometimes it would be nice to have something thrown in that may not take as long to cook....I'm just saying.....

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Bless the Lord when???

I totally knew what I was going to write about this morning. I do not know if I had dreamed it or, it just left so I am sitting here racking my brain trying to remember and something says don't forget to pray.....So I started to pray...I prayed for the sick, the ones needing a job...(hey I am in that group), my family and friends and what I would write about....during this time I kept having 2 scriptures running through my brain. I started thinking hmmmm maybe....so instead of sitting here befuddled I am running with it drinking my coffee on the way and praying I don't make a mess.....Psalm 34:1 says...I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth...(NKJ) I am sad to say that this is a lesson that has taken a long time for me to learn and I am still learning it. I relied way to much on me over the years and not on God. I did not bless the Lord at all times there were times in my life I wanted to just curse Him but, I did not. As much as I wanted to, there was something telling me not to. In life we tend to place people and things on pedestals and thinking highly of them kind of like a form of worship and therefore we break the 1st commandment. I am not saying this is something we set out to do but, it happens in our society today kinda like what Beth Moore said it is a Babylon....How can we bless the Lord at ALL times when our focus is somewhere else? when we look at other things I can almost guarantee we take our eyes off of God and our life will probably go South for the winter while we stay North. When we are down and tired and not wanting to go on we should bless the Lord at all times it says in Matthew 11:28-30  Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden light. (NKJ) Jesus was telling us we can go to Him when we are in need, when our life is falling apart when we are stressed, when we are hurting and He will give us rest....therefore we can bless the Lord at all times when we lay our burdens down and let God carry us through in good times and not so good times (I do not like the word bad) we can or should bless the Lord.....I am still learning I will always be learning and it is a journey I look forward to because I know that no matter what I am not alone.......

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Is it all about you or God?

The Ladies of my Church have started the Beth Moore Bible study of Daniel and I am excited to do the homework for the first session. Beth was talking about us being surrounded by our own Babylon, and by being surrounded by our Babylon it becomes all about me and not about God (I am paraphrasing here). We have all heard the questions when making a deal with someone "what's in it for me?" "what do I get out of it?" I am guilty of asking the same things at times. We are surrounded by a self centered, selfish, only looking out for me world that unfortunately, God seems to have been put on the back burner and forgotten. We get so involved in our lives that we really do not even notice until, something happens and we call out to God for help. Let me ask you this....Why should God listen? I do not know but, He does because, He loves us. When Israel was taken to Babylon there were only 4 that stood out they were the minority back then......and God was there with them through it, and blessed them for it. In this day and age I want to stand out, I want to conquer my Babylon not let it conquer me. God needs to be first in our lives, it should not be about me, it should be about God. Daniel refused to eat the King's food because he did not want to defile himself, we should not defile ourselves with the things of our Babylon. For each person, Babylon is different (my opinion here) and we have our own things to overcome but, I have good news...God will help us overcome, He will walk us through the fire, He will protect us from the lions den....if we allow Him to...by following Him and walking with Him. Give Babylon to God let Him help you conquer it...Philippians 4:13 says I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (NKJ) Through Christ we can conquer Babylon, take the 'ME' out of your life and put 'GOD' back in the middle....

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

It's beginning to look a lot like.......

As of right now there are 81 days 17 hours and 5 minutes until Christmas. I am seeing Christmas things being displayed in stores now and the song 'It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" keeps running through my brain. I hear instrumental Christmas music drifting from my daughters room as she sleeps and soon it will be coming from my sons as well. My desire is to get people to see why I celebrate all year long....let them call me crazy, nuts, insane I am ok with that. I have heard that Jesus may not have been born on December 25th but, in the Spring...so someone picked a random day in a different time of year to that I say What is the difference? at least now we get what would be once a year believers (that is if both Christmas and Easter were close) to twice a year believers it doubles the chance to minister to them and hopefully lead them to being EVERYDAY believers.......who wouldn't want that opportunity? People love the "feeling" that comes with Christmas the warm fuzzys you get, the Joy, how about Love, Compassion, Peace, Giving to others and lets not forget the goodwill towards men, women and kids too. These are GREAT to have at Christmas BUT, (thats a big one) shouldn't we have that ALL year? It would be nice to have warm fuzzys so have a cup of tea with someone you love they may need cheering up. Joy well thats obvious It says in the last part of  Nehemiah 8:12 the joy of the Lord is our strength I do not know about you but God's strength is what gets me through sometimes. Love I do believe that is an important one, John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. (NKJ) Jesus said that to us I am thinking we need to listen. Compassion....everyone needs compassion and it seems more evident at Christmas time then any other time I have seen (just my opinion here), Peace this I think is more for ourselves we need to have peace every day of our lives yet it seems to be more of a Holiday decoration....Giving to others as we can even small things like a hug, or a smile or a quick note to let someone know they are thought of. Goodwill toward men, women and kids too...well I think that kinda goes along with love one another, and go out in to all the world....I for one think all of these should be present in our everyday lives, and if they were the opportunities to minister would be abundant and I want to minister. So the "Feelings" of Christmas I want in my life so I can show the world Jesus...after all Christmas is all about Jesus and since we believe in Him I think we should Celebrate Him all year long not just for a few weeks.....

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

Do you really see what you read?

How often do we sit down and really read our Bible? Not to read for reading it sake but, actually take in what it is saying. I admit I do not read everyday and I know I should. However today I was reading Psalms and realized something, I was not taking in what I was reading. I admit I was looking for something to write about because in my prayers Psalms came to me. I am not saying that is how I read my Bible every time, I actually have gone back and reread a passage several times to make sure I understood it. Since I started this blog I have been in my Bible more, doing more in depth reading to find scriptures to quote on here. What I have been finding I am fascinated with. I am enjoying the promises and the encouragement in passages I have read before but, I am seeing for the first time. I have been saved for 32 years (that is most of my life) I have been really close to God and then, not so close it has been in the last 7 or 8 years that I have started my journey to get back in touch with God. I may have stopped going to Church and I did not pray a whole lot and I never read my Bible during that time, I must say it has been a struggle to climb my way back to Him. I have lived in this area for 9 1/2 years and it was only about 4 years ago (I think....oops, I am thinking again) that I found the Church that really FEEDS my spirit. I look back and see the rocky roads I have traveled, there were definitely some doozys. Now I look at where I am and I have bumps, some pretty big ones at times but, nothing like the axle breaking, tire popping, whiplash causing road I was on. I am thankful for God, He is loving, kind, gentle, forgiving, firm, and full of compassion. What amazes me is, we can do some horrible things as humans, sinners, God's creation that would make anyone cringe at the sight of us and yet, God embraces us, teaches us and guides us to the right path. I believe He allows trials to happen we do have lessons we need to learn, it does not mean God hates us or turns away from us. No, He watches us and sends out His army of Angels to help fight. In all of my years especially the ones where I really was not where I should be with God, I NEVER forgot Him or how I believed, I just did not follow Him like I should have but, God watched me and guided me home.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

~Dear God~

Dear God~

Everyday of my life I look to you, I pray for my family and friends and the unsaved. I am walking without seeing where I am going, I feel blind in this world and unsure of what I am supposed to be doing. There are times I feel like Job where it seems everything is going wrong in my life.Yes I yell and scream and ask you why and sometimes, I get only quiet in return. I complain about my life to my friends or anyone that will listen and at times I question if you are real. There are times in my life I feel like no one cares and I am the only one going through this trial....BUT, with all of this I do realize a few things too. When I walk without seeing and being blind...I am walking by faith, I am walking with the understanding and belief you are leading me and there is NOTHING you don't see. When I am feeling like Job well those are the times I am learning lessons in my life that I am in need of learning. One thing I do know is this.....you are NEVER far from me. When I yell and ask why...well I know that You being the ultimate patient parent EVER, are allowing me my temper tantrum and, as I do with my kids....I am sure you are saying when you are calm feel free to come talk to me..(gotta LOVE...Love and Logic). Let us not forget, that when I complain about my life, I understand that I am being selfish because, You gave Jesus to die for me, He gave His life for me and well, if anyone has the right to complain...it would be Him and...He didn't.....( He did ask You to take the cup from Him but, He also said not my will but, Your will... Mark 14:36 I paraphrased here) Are You real??? All I have to do is look around to know that there is NOTHING in this world that could create the beauty of it other than YOU! How about all those times when I feel like no one cares? or I am the only one going through this trial? Well....You care about me and You send people to me that I need to meet. Some lifelong friendships have developed from that and most importantly YOU are there ALWAYS!!! As for he trials, everyone has them, I know there are some so much worse than mine. I also know that with You walking with me, I can get through them. With that all being said I say this Father forgive me for my doubt, unbelief  and sin help me to see your grace, mercy and joy. Lead me on the path you choose for me in this life. When I start to stray please give me the gentle reminder or the 2X4 if needed to get me back on track. My life is NEVER as hard as it seems I believe that is just me adding a tad bit of drama to make it more interesting...Thank You for loving me ALWAYS!!!!

Loving You forever,

The sinner that was saved by Grace

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas

How big is your mustard seed?

Yet again I sit here thinking...drinking my eggnog coffee and wondering how I should start. Faith comes to mind and, I am literally arguing with myself because, I have already posted about faith. Then something else pops up and says but faith never gets old. So faith it is, along the journey of life I have encountered many people that say to me "my faith is not strong enough". I have had people say you are stronger in your faith than I am, and to them I have had to say no i'm not. I struggle sometimes, I ask the question why? a lot......and yet I still believe why? because I believe without seeing. God IS there watching me and when I struggle, He will carry me through it. Hebrews 11:1 says...Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (NKJ) all I have to do is look around to know that God is there the trees, flowers, birds in the air all of it so wonderfully made by the one that made us. So my question is this, seeing what is around us, how can we not believe? God is evident in the small ways and, He is evident in the big ways, and I believe the biggest way He is evident is YOU!! Whether we have faith that is big or small the important thing is WE HAVE faith....Matthew 17:20 says...So Jesus said to them, Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. (NKJ)  Do you know how big a mustard seed is??? it is TINY!!!! so if we have to have just a small amount of faith to move a mountain, just imagine what we could do if our faith was huge.....With all of our struggles we can be assured of one thing, God is God and He always will be. We have to trust Him and have faith in Him....But, without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJ). I am thinking God is pretty AWESOME and having faith even a small amount will give hope to those that feel it is all impossible.

That's my thought for the day,

Crazy for Christmas