Lessons from Mrs. Marcum

So....I was helping out at the OU softball tournament and they had my working next a 75 year old lady, Mrs. Marcum. Oh-we had the best time! For 3 hours we talked about our families, our jobs (Yep-she still works because she loves it!), and our relationship with Jesus.
She is so in love with Jesus! The way she talked about Him made me want to get saved all over again. When talking about her family, she could have shared if they were great athletes or if they were smart or what they all did for a living, but Nope-she shared with me how each one came to know Jesus. As I was soaking in everything she had to say, we were interrupted by a woman wanting to buy a shirt. This "interruption" became an amazing divine intervention. The customer was writing a check for her shirt and asked what day it was. Then she asked what month and year as well. She then apologized for so many questions and added that she was suffering from a terminal brain tumor that caused her to say and do silly things. Without missing a beat, my new friend said, "Honey, do you know Jesus?"
I couldn't believe her boldness (this-coming from someone who is in full time vocational ministry). She didn't care what people thought, she just wanting to make sure this young lady had a relationship with Jesus. They proceeded to talk about what all the ladies tattoos meant and how she lost her son to suicide in February and I watched in awe of how compassionate, sincere, and loving Mrs. Marcum was to someone she had never met and would probably never see again. I truly believe I got a glimpse of the meaning "What would Jesus do?"

The customer left and I couldn't get enough of Mrs. Marcum's heart and wisdom. She then began to talk about her husband of 56 years!!! She was so open and honest about marriage and how it wasn't always perfect and sometimes she had to give 100%-there is no 50-50 in marriage. Oh, but how she loved her husband!!! I asked her if she could give me one piece of advice in strengthening my own marriage, what would it be? She winked and simply said, "Honey, I never had a headache a day in my life." We just burst out laughing. Wisdom and sense of humor? This lady has it all!

If I could impart some of Mrs. Marcum's wisdom on you I would encourage and challenge you to 1) Be bold for Jesus today! Our relationship with Jesus is personal, but it should never be private!
2) Look for an opportunity to show someone Jesus. God may want to use you to show His Heart, His Love, and His Compassion!
3) Love your Spouse, pray for your spouse, encourage your spouse, even when it is hard. Marrieage is not easy, but it is worth it and the rewards are a love for 56 years (and maybe a few less headaches:))

The Rock

We hear almost everyday lately about the storms and hurricanes that are impacting our nation. I have been hearing a lot about Earl, lately. I watch the news to see people running around preparing for the storm and it reminded me of this little Methodist church I grew up in and a song we use to sing, The Wise man and the Foolish man. It went something like this (and be glad I'm not singing):

The wise man built his house upon the Rock

The wise man built his house upon the Rock

The wise man built his house upon the Rock

And the rain came tumbling down

The rain came down and the floods came up

The rain came down and the floods came up

The rain came down and the floods came up

And the House on the Rock stood firm

The foolish man built his house upon the Sand

The foolish man built his house upon the Sand

The foolish man built his house upon the Sand

And the rain came tumbling down

And the house on the sand went SPLAT!

Now that I have that song stuck in your head we can continue:) As I was reading the verses this song was based on (Luke 6:46-49) there are a few things that stuck out to me that maybe God wants to use to speak to you today. In Verse 48 it says, "And WHEN a flood arose..."

This verse doesn't say "IF" a flood arose, but "WHEN" a flood arose. It is inevitably, we will go through storms of life. You may be struggling in your marriage, you may have lost your job, you may have lost a parent, your child may be struggling, you may just be wondering what your purpose is on this earth. Whatever your storm is-Whatever flood has hit your life, the Bible says in these verses there is one way and only one way that we will stand firm and not get knocked over-THE ROCK! You can't stop the storm from coming, but you can keep it from knocking you down by laying your foundation on the Rock, Jesus Christ. So, how do we do this?

Jesus says in verse 47, "Everyone who come to me and hears my words and does them..." First, we must come to him. That sounds easy enough...Right? Well, if you are anything like me Jesus, sometimes is about the Fourth on the list. Often times when I get hit with a storm, my first phone call is to my husband, my second phone call is to my sisters, my third phone call is to my parents, and then I will come to Jesus. Our foundation is laid when we go to Jesus first...always!

Second, we must hear God's word. How do we do that? Being faithful goers of a church and getting in the Bible and actually reading it ourselves. God's word is the weapon we have against the enemy. How do we expect to face our enemy in the storms of life without our only weapon?

Third, Jesus says we must do them. We can't be merely hearers of the Word, we must be doers of the Word. We don't do these things to check off a list, but so that we can build our foundation because, Ladies, the storm is coming.

I share with you these things not to make you fear or worry about the storm, but encourage you to focus on the Rock, after all Jesus says those who have laid their foundation on the ROCK, the storm "could NOT shake it."

Lesson from Vince Lombardi and Jesus

Hello Ladies!!!

I really hope you are having a great start to a new school year!!! The smell of fall is upon us: leaves changing, cooler weather, and oh....football! That is really all that is talked about or watched this time of year in the Roberts' house. As a coach, one of my husband's favorite coaches is the legendary Vince Lombardi. There is a quote from Vince Lombardi that God has used to speak to me and my relationship with God and others. The quote is, "Some people find things in the game that don't exist, but football is only 2 things-blocking and tackling."

God used this quote to challenge me in my faith and help grow me as a follower of Christ and maybe He wants to do the same for you too. How? Well, I always thought that to be a more mature Christian you had to know more about the Bible, memorize more scriptures, you had to do more things, or not do more things. You had to understand the book of Revelation, know apologetics so that you could defend the Christian faith, know theology by studying different commentaries people wrote about the Bible. None of these things are bad things and really can be positive, but these things became the focus of my faith, And when it did I often found things in "the game" that don't exist. I became legalistic, judgmental, and religious and not just towards other people, but towards myself as well. I was so hard on myself and others that there was no freedom. You see, I was making the gospel, the good news, into a list of things I could do or should do, couldn't do or shouldn't do. Then, I read Luke 6:27-36:

But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good

to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray

for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the

cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away

your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone

who begs from you, and from one who takes away your

goods do not demand them back. And as you wish

that others would do to you, do so to them. If you love those

who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners

love those who love them. And if you do good to those who

do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners

do the same. And "if you lend to those from whom you expect

to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners

to get back the same amount. But love your enemies and do

good and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be

great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the

ungrateful, and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.

When I read these verses and realized these words of Jesus was telling us that the "Game of Life" is only about 2 things: 1)Accepting God's LOVE through His son, Jesus Christ. 2) Giving LOVE to others. Anything else is finding things in the game that don't exist. As a follower of Christ and person in the ministry, my life looked nothing like this and that bothered me immensely. How could I go on to study and learn and try to understand the rest of the Bible when I couldn't understand and live these 9 verses in Luke. I truly believe if every person who claimed to be a follower of Christ would live according to these 9 verses, the world would be changed for the Kingdom of God, starting with me. But how could I love like that? I am not capable and even when I try I fail miserably. Then God simply whispers in my ear "You're right you can't, but I can and I live in YOU!!"

In 2010, I have committed to just read the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) and get as much Jesus as I can. It has been 8 months and God is doing some amazing things in me and through me. I truly believe God is giving me His eyes to see people the way He sees them (most of the time)) and I am still working on seeing myself the way that He sees me.

Now, after reading this I challenge you to read Luke 6:27-36 again and let God speak to your heart!

Water girl

Hello Friends!!!

So....I get a phone call from my husband yesterday and his words to me were, "Sarah, can you be my water girl for games?" Believe it or not, I was super excited! I have always been a Knight because I was a fan (#1 Fan:)), but now he is asking me, not just to be a spectator, but to be a part of the team! Is it a glorified position? No. Will anyone really notice me? Probably not. But all you have to do is watch the movie, Waterboy, and you will know it is an important job (and you might laugh a little bit too).

As a follower of Jesus Christ, you are now on the team. And as a member of that team God has something specific He want to accomplish through YOU!
1 Corinthians 12: 4-6 says, "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit, and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord, and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone."

You may think "I don't have any gifts or talents" or "does anyone even notice what I do?" or "does what I do really matter?"

YES!! You do have gifts and God wants to use them to do something great for somebody. YES!!! God notices everything you do. YES!!! what you do, no matter how big or how small, matters to God and to the people He has called you to do it for.

If God is stirring something inside of you right now, I challenge you to open your Bible and read 1 Corinthians 12 and read about all the gifts and talents that God gives people and then pray and ask God where He wants to use you. Whatever it is, just know it was created for you!

Just remember, before David killed Goliath, before David was a soldier and before David was King, he was first shephard and WATERBOY for the army of Israel:)

I know my job as the new Crossings Knights' watergirl is going to be fun, simply because I am not standing on the sidelines but a part of the action. Ladies, it is time to get in the game!

Silent Treatment

Hello Ladies!



I know it is that time again.....School!!! We are starting our second year at Crossings Christian School and still haven't sold our house. Boo! However, after much prayer we are living in a duplex in Edmond. Yay!! Even though it is small, we are so thankful that we live closer to work and school. I have to admit leading up to this decision was a hard road. Do we move or not move? Are we not being patient with God or lacking in Faith? Are we hearing God or missing Him? Did God actually lead us to this school or did we hear Him wrong? Such a range of emotions, I am sure you have went through similar situations.

Have you ever seen the movie Dirty Dancing? Come on be honest:) I have to admit, I love this movie! There is a scene where Baby goes to talk to her dad out on the deck. She is crying and upset and says, "You can't keep giving me the silent treatment!" There is nothing but silence..... and scene. I have to be honest, I think I have said those exact same words to God so many times over the past year and probably even yesterday. There have been so many times that I feel like I hear God, see God, and feel God in every area of my life. And then there are those times when I feel like I don't hear, feel, or see Him. Maybe you can relate. Here is something that has helped me along this path of silence.

In Luke 4 Jesus is the Chapter where Jesus is tempted by Satan 3 times, but the part I want to focus on is Luke 4:1-2:

Jesus full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan

and was led by the Spirit in the desert where for forty

days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during

those days, and at the end of them was hungry.

Can you be full of the Holy Spirit and still end up in the desert? Yes, Jesus did! Can you be alone and hungry and still be in the will of God? Yes, Jesus was! This was no doubt a very difficult time for Jesus, but if you read on you will find He clung to one thing, and it wasn't hearing from God, or feeling God, or seeing God, but it was with God's word! He made it through the desert with the promises of God's Word. He made it through the temptations of the Enemy by God's Word. And it wasn't until after He went through the desert was it time for Him to begin the purpose for which He was created: To become the Messiah. We have to remember that through the silence, through the desert, through the temptations there is something God is preparing you for, whether it something He is doing in you and through you. There is purpose for being led into the desert. Are you prepared with God's Word? I'm working on it-will you join me?

I got Jesus yes I do. I got Jesus how about you? (Sorry, it is officially football season, so everything is a cheer:))

Have a great week!

Lessons from Mom's of the Bible #3

Hello Girls!

Our third and final Mom of the Bible that we are going to look at and learn from is the only woman that can claim (and it be true) she raised the perfect child. Yes, we are going to look at Mary, mother of Jesus. How can we talk about mom's of the bible without talking about the ultimate mom, the most famous mom of the world-after all she did raise the son of God. We are going to look at this amazing mom in Luke 2:41-46.

Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.

When he was twelve years old, they; went up to the Feast, according to

the custom. After the Feast was over while his parents were returning home, the

boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking

he was in their company, they traveled for a day. Then they began looking for him

among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to

Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple

courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

Three days! Three days! Mary lost the son of God for three days! Can you imagine that prayer time:

Dear God, I know you trusted me with the raising of your

son but I have seem to have lost Him. Can you help me

out?Can you find him for me? So sorry. My bad

Amen

I'm sure it was something like that:)

The lesson we can learn from Mary is: Was she an amazing mom, Yes!! Was she a perfect mom, No!!! God did not choose Mary to be the mother of Jesus because she was going to be the perfect mom and God did not choose YOU to be the mom of your little blessings because he thought you were going to be the perfect mom.

If you are anything like me I know in my head nobody is the perfect mom, but there are some who look pretty darn close and they look nothing like me. We are so hard on ourselves as mom's sometimes like when our kid won't eat their vegetables, or they throw a fit in the middle of Wal-mart, or you leave them at Wal-mart:) We need to learn from Mary that we don't have to be perfect because we are loved by perfection, Jesus. You see, Mary is the most famous mom in the world not because she was the perfect mom, but because her son became her savior.

So whenever you have those down days about not being the "perfect mom" just remember Mary and let God love on you!

P.S-I love your feedback!

Lesson #2 of Lessons learned from Mom's of the Bible

Hello Friends!

So...how have we been doing letting go and letting God? Just remember life is a marathon not a sprint. It is an everyday process:)

Our second lesson from Mom's of the Bible comes from Sarah. Nope-not me, but Sarah the wife of Abraham. In Genesis 15 we read that God promises Abraham that he will be the father of many nations even though he didn't have any children at the time. The Bible says that Abraham believed God, but then days, weeks, and years went by until Sarah was 90 and Abraham was 100 and still there was not one child born to them.

We pick up the story in Genesis 18:10-15.....

Then the Lord said, "I will surely return to you about this time next

year and Sarah, your wife, will have a son." Now Sarah was listening

at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah

were already old and well advanced in years, and Sarah was past the age

of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, "After I am worn

out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?" Then the Lord said, "

"Why did Sarah laught and say, 'Will I really have a child now that I am old?'

Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time

next year and Sarah will have have a son."

As we read on we find that God does indeed give them a son named Isaac at the promised time.

The lesson we can learn from Sarah is that: GOD IS FAITHFUL EVEN WHEN WE ARE FAITHLESS.

It 2 Timothy 2:13 says, "He will remain faithful even when we are faithless for He can not disown himself."

There are promises He has given to you and to me throughout the entire bible. You may say where? Well.....

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

God works all things to the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

For I know the plans I have for you. Plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

As far as the east is from the west, our sins have been removed from us. Psalm 103:12

Just in these short 4 verses of the Bible you find the promise of giving you the desires of your heart, working bad situations into good, plans to do great things in and through you, and the promise to forgive ALL your mistakes.

Like Sarah, we go though life with doubts about these promises and so many more, but learn from Sarah God will be faithful to YOU even when you lose faith in Him!
How can we be sure? We can be sure because God has already began fulfilling these promises by sending his Son Jesus Christ. Jesus meets our greatest desires, Jesus gives us hope in hopeless situations, Jesus guides us as we pray about his purpose for our life, and Jesus is the reason God can look at us and see purity.

Whatever you're are going through today, please know God is working. Even though you may not hear him, he is there. Even though you may not feel him, he is there. Even though you may not see him, he is there. God is working in you and through you while fulfilling all His Promises to YOU!
God IS Faithful even when we are faithless!!!