Do you like to shop? Oh I do! It doesn't matter what it is for I love to shop! I love to shop for my kids, for other people, myself. It doesn't matter if it is a new vacuum sweeper (which I just got and was so excited) or going to a garage sale, I love to shop. And even though I love to shop, I am also very very frugal. I have read the books, watched the Dave Ramsey videos, and done all my home work on how to be a good steward of my money so when today I read these words in my quiet time with God they just jumped off the page: God gave us a down payment for what is to come. Down payment? That is like a dirty word for those who follow the rules of becoming debt free. You aren't suppose to have a down payment, you are suppose to pay it in full! So I read the verse in its entirety and those dirty words fired me up!
"Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a down payment, guaranteeing what it is to come." 1 Corinthians 1:21-22.
Don't you just love that verse?!! The Joy that we feel as a follower of Christ, knowing and trusting that God ALWAYS has our best interest in mind and is in complete control of our everyday lives is just a down payment for what is to come. The Hope that we feel as a follower of Christ, that even when things are not going so well, He will work all things to the good of those who love Him is just a down payment for what is to come. The Comfort that we feel in knowing the same Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead is the same Spirit that lives in us is just a down payment for what is to come.
In 1 Corinthians 2:9 it says it this way, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him."
So whatever you are facing today, good, bad, and everything in between I pray this is an encouragement for you. You can have Hope, Feel Love, and have Comfort because You were paid for in FULL by the blood of Christ, but these are just a down payment for what is to come! Now that is a down payment I can be excited about!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
My Word for 2011
I hope you each had an awesome Christmas and New Years Day!!!
I don't know about you, but usually every year about this time I always think about how I am going to be different. You may call them New Year's Resolutions or life changers, but it is always the same: work out more, eat better, be healthier, spend more time with God and on and on and on. Every year it starts the same, but every year it ends the same too- I have failed.....miserably.
But 2010 was different (the workouts-not so much). I challenged myself last year to just spend time reading the gospels. Soaking all I could of Jesus' red letters through the eyes of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I also picked a word to focus on 2010 and it was humility. Yep-I was humbled. My eyes were opened to how big God is and how small I am, yet He still uses me.
My word for 2011......Fearless. Ironically, this is one of the topics I speak on at Women's events all the time and yet I still am so fearful. I don't walk around looking like I'm in a Wes Craven horror movie all the time. If you were around me you probably wouldn't even know. My fear resonates as worry. I am a worry wort and I am tired of it. Worry is just fear that God isn't in control. I worry about my husband. I worry about my children. I worry that I am not hearing God. I worry about money. I worry about loved ones. I worry about what the world is coming to. I worry about the ministry God has given me in FCA. I worry that I can't do it all and when I can't what will suffer. I worry about being a good wife, mom, friend, sister, daughter, minister. Yep-I worry, but not anymore.
My verse for the year will be Psalm 27:1-3:
I don't know about you, but usually every year about this time I always think about how I am going to be different. You may call them New Year's Resolutions or life changers, but it is always the same: work out more, eat better, be healthier, spend more time with God and on and on and on. Every year it starts the same, but every year it ends the same too- I have failed.....miserably.
But 2010 was different (the workouts-not so much). I challenged myself last year to just spend time reading the gospels. Soaking all I could of Jesus' red letters through the eyes of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I also picked a word to focus on 2010 and it was humility. Yep-I was humbled. My eyes were opened to how big God is and how small I am, yet He still uses me.
My word for 2011......Fearless. Ironically, this is one of the topics I speak on at Women's events all the time and yet I still am so fearful. I don't walk around looking like I'm in a Wes Craven horror movie all the time. If you were around me you probably wouldn't even know. My fear resonates as worry. I am a worry wort and I am tired of it. Worry is just fear that God isn't in control. I worry about my husband. I worry about my children. I worry that I am not hearing God. I worry about money. I worry about loved ones. I worry about what the world is coming to. I worry about the ministry God has given me in FCA. I worry that I can't do it all and when I can't what will suffer. I worry about being a good wife, mom, friend, sister, daughter, minister. Yep-I worry, but not anymore.
My verse for the year will be Psalm 27:1-3:
The Lord is my light and my salvation
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
whom shall be afraid?
When evil doers assail me to eat up
my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is
they who stumble and fall.
Though an army encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear; though war arise
against me, yet I will be confident.
I will not worry because that is fear and I will not have fear because the Lord is my light and my salvation. I will not fear what the world has for me this year. I will not fear what the enemy has for me this year. I will not fear the unknown of 2011 because my God is the God of the stinkin universe. My confidence will come from God and God alone. I will live like my God is in control. I will live like the King of Kings is my father. I will live like I am co-heir of the throne with Jesus. I will live like the same spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in me. I will live fearless!
So....What's your word?
Friday, December 10, 2010
The Great I AM
Do you ever just get in those ruts? You just kinda feel blah. Nothings really going wrong, but nothing is really going great either. I don't know if its the colder weather or the lack of sleep (my baby boy is not sleeping so well right now), but what ever it is I don't like it! I am clawing my way out of this rut and what better way to do it than taking my focus off me and turning it to God. So...That's what I have been trying to do. I read a book by Louie Giglio called "I am not, but I know I AM." Wow! It was an awesome book and I totally recommend it. In it, it talks about Moses at the burning bush. In Exodus 3, Moses asks God, "God, suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me. 'What is His name?' Then what shall I tell them?" God says to Moses, "I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: "I AM has sent me to you."
God's name is I AM! I love that!
God is so awesome, He doesn't even have a name. He's just I AM. I started looking in the Bible about all the things I AM is and the more I did, the smaller I got and the bigger God got. The power of I AM is so overwhelming.
When YOU are overwhelmed...........I AM parted the Red Sea
When YOU feel powerless................I am created the universe and yet knows your name
When YOU are sad............................I AM raised Lazarus from the dead
When YOU get frustrated...................I AM went through rejection from man so you would never have to been rejected from God
When YOU start to lose hope.............I AM is Hope
When YOU don't feel love......................I AM is Love
When YOU don't feel accepted.................I AM is Forgiveness
When YOU don't feel purpose.................I AM is your purpose
When YOU feel insignificant.........................I AM created you for significance
When YOU feel underapprciated.................I AM looks at you with proud Father eyes
When YOU feel inadequate......................I AM uses the inadequate
When you feel I AM is No Where..............Remember, I AM is the Alpha and Omega, who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
There are so many times when we get in these ruts that we don't feel I AM in the present so we must go back and be reminded of who I AM was in the past. The past gives us hope and power that I AM is working in the present for the future. May you be encouraged by I AM today!
Just for a little extra encouragement, Go listen to Nicole C. Mullen's song I AM and get your praise on:)
God's name is I AM! I love that!
God is so awesome, He doesn't even have a name. He's just I AM. I started looking in the Bible about all the things I AM is and the more I did, the smaller I got and the bigger God got. The power of I AM is so overwhelming.
When YOU are overwhelmed...........I AM parted the Red Sea
When YOU feel powerless................I am created the universe and yet knows your name
When YOU are sad............................I AM raised Lazarus from the dead
When YOU get frustrated...................I AM went through rejection from man so you would never have to been rejected from God
When YOU start to lose hope.............I AM is Hope
When YOU don't feel love......................I AM is Love
When YOU don't feel accepted.................I AM is Forgiveness
When YOU don't feel purpose.................I AM is your purpose
When YOU feel insignificant.........................I AM created you for significance
When YOU feel underapprciated.................I AM looks at you with proud Father eyes
When YOU feel inadequate......................I AM uses the inadequate
When you feel I AM is No Where..............Remember, I AM is the Alpha and Omega, who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
There are so many times when we get in these ruts that we don't feel I AM in the present so we must go back and be reminded of who I AM was in the past. The past gives us hope and power that I AM is working in the present for the future. May you be encouraged by I AM today!
Just for a little extra encouragement, Go listen to Nicole C. Mullen's song I AM and get your praise on:)
Monday, November 29, 2010
Being Different
We've all heard the saying "Be in the world, not of the world." I have heard it my entire life, but I believe now more than ever, He is not just asking me, He is calling me to be different from the world. At first I thought, "Different? Are you crazy, God?! I have worked my entire life not to stand out, but to fit it. Nobody wants to be different. The "different" kids got made fun of. The "different" kids rode the short bus. The "different" girls weren't cool. That is not the life I want God!"
"If people want to follow me, they must give up the things they want. They must be willing even to give up their lives to follow me." Mark 8:34
As a follower of Christ, I must be willing to give up the things I want, the worldly things, for the things of God. I may not get to have all the clothes I want or the house I want or the trips I want or the car I want and having these things are not wrong But the Love of those things is. And I Loved those things! (and sometimes still do:)) My deepest desire is to know God more and more so that I can become less and less. Because when that happens people start noticing the "difference" and that difference in Jesus and I do have Love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Can you see these things or live in them or wear them? Nope, but you and everyone around you can feel them. It's different:)
I had the opportunity to have lunch with Miss Oklahoma the other day and she was such an amazing young woman. She was absolutely beautiful inside and out. Her face lit up when she talked about her relationship with Jesus and I loved it! She said a statement that someone had told her before she went out to Hollywood that just stuck in my head. She said, "Something is wrong when our lives (as Christians) makes sense to unbelievers." I love that!
We are called to be different from the world!
The world says love those who love you. Jesus says love those who hate you and pray for them.
The world says have the most and then you will be the best. Jesus says the last will become first.
The world says live so that you can have servants. Jesus says live to serve.
The world says do what makes you happy. Jesus says do what makes you Holy.
The world says what you wear, live or drive makes you happy. Jesus says if you have me, I will make you happy.
The world says you can love God plus love things. Jesus says you can not serve two masters, you can not love me and money.
So how do we do it? I can't tell you how to do it because I don't know where your weakness is, but I can tell you what mine is and how I am working on it. Yes, working on it! I am still a work in progress. I read a verse in Luke 11: 34 and it says, "Your eye is the lamp of your body. when your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness."
If my eyes are the key of making my body full of light then I had to be different in what I watched and looked at. For me, I had to stop watching the TV dramas like Desperate Housewives or Greys Anatomy. For me, I had to stop reading US Weekly and People and OK magazine because I was obsessed with the Hollywood world. I am not telling you this to show how great I am, but just the opposite, I am that weak. I can't watch and read anything and everything and not be affected. Comparison kills contentment and when my eyes saw these things my contentment with Christ and Christ alone was gone. Now, have I obtained this being content 100% of the time? Nope but my Light is getting brighter and brighter every day.
I read this devotion by Max Lucado the other day and loved it! And it says exactly what God has been putting on my heart and hopefully yours too: To be different.
"If people want to follow me, they must give up the things they want. They must be willing even to give up their lives to follow me." Mark 8:34
As a follower of Christ, I must be willing to give up the things I want, the worldly things, for the things of God. I may not get to have all the clothes I want or the house I want or the trips I want or the car I want and having these things are not wrong But the Love of those things is. And I Loved those things! (and sometimes still do:)) My deepest desire is to know God more and more so that I can become less and less. Because when that happens people start noticing the "difference" and that difference in Jesus and I do have Love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Can you see these things or live in them or wear them? Nope, but you and everyone around you can feel them. It's different:)
I had the opportunity to have lunch with Miss Oklahoma the other day and she was such an amazing young woman. She was absolutely beautiful inside and out. Her face lit up when she talked about her relationship with Jesus and I loved it! She said a statement that someone had told her before she went out to Hollywood that just stuck in my head. She said, "Something is wrong when our lives (as Christians) makes sense to unbelievers." I love that!
We are called to be different from the world!
The world says love those who love you. Jesus says love those who hate you and pray for them.
The world says have the most and then you will be the best. Jesus says the last will become first.
The world says live so that you can have servants. Jesus says live to serve.
The world says do what makes you happy. Jesus says do what makes you Holy.
The world says what you wear, live or drive makes you happy. Jesus says if you have me, I will make you happy.
The world says you can love God plus love things. Jesus says you can not serve two masters, you can not love me and money.
So how do we do it? I can't tell you how to do it because I don't know where your weakness is, but I can tell you what mine is and how I am working on it. Yes, working on it! I am still a work in progress. I read a verse in Luke 11: 34 and it says, "Your eye is the lamp of your body. when your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light, but when it is bad, your body is full of darkness."
If my eyes are the key of making my body full of light then I had to be different in what I watched and looked at. For me, I had to stop watching the TV dramas like Desperate Housewives or Greys Anatomy. For me, I had to stop reading US Weekly and People and OK magazine because I was obsessed with the Hollywood world. I am not telling you this to show how great I am, but just the opposite, I am that weak. I can't watch and read anything and everything and not be affected. Comparison kills contentment and when my eyes saw these things my contentment with Christ and Christ alone was gone. Now, have I obtained this being content 100% of the time? Nope but my Light is getting brighter and brighter every day.
I read this devotion by Max Lucado the other day and loved it! And it says exactly what God has been putting on my heart and hopefully yours too: To be different.
On one side stands the crowd. Jeering. Baiting, Demanding
On the other side stands a peasant. Swollen lips. lumpy eye. Lofty promise
One promises acceptance, the other a cross
One offers flesh and flash, the other offers faith.
The crowd challenges, "Follow us and fit in."
Jesus promises, "Follow me and stand out."
They promise to please. God promises to Save
God looks at you and asks, "Which will be your choice?"
Monday, November 8, 2010
One Thing
Do you ever read stories in the Bible over and over and then one day you read them and something jumps out at you that you never noticed before. It happens to me all the time and today was no different. I was reading Luke 18:18-30 about the Rich man who asks Jesus, "What must I do to inherit the Kingdom of God?" Jesus talks about the commandments and the man insists that He has kept all of them since youth. But then the statement that crushes the man: "There is one thing you lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come and follow me." The man walked away sad because he was very rich. I had always read this story and thought do we really have to sell everything to follow Jesus. It was one of those things I didn't understand.....until today (it sometimes takes me awhile to get it). The statement, There is one thing you lack, is what made it all click for me.
It wasn't the money that was the problem, it was the love of the money that was the problem. It was the one thing that the man loved more than God. It was the one thing that the man put before God. It was the one thing that became an idol in his life. It was the one thing he wasn't willing to give up to follow Jesus and Jesus knew it.
We have to know that God is a jealous God. He is jealous of anything that comes between us and Him. He longs to have all of us, all of our heart, mind, and soul.
Do you have a one thing? Is there one thing that keeps you from going all in? Is there one thing that gets in the way of you and your relationship with God? Is there one thing that keeps you from following Jesus with everything in you?
I encourage you to ask Him today!
I have been praying this verse and I encourage you to do it too, "Search me Oh God and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. If there be any hurtful way in me (my one thing), lead me to the everlasting way." Psalm 139:23
Maybe its a relationship you don't want to give up. Maybe its the love of money that is an idol to you. Maybe its the shame of a past sin that you can't let go of. Maybe its a current sin that you aren't willing to let go. Maybe its pride and/or selfishness . Maybe its laying your own dreams and desires down for God's. Unfortunately for me, I'm not sure it is just one thing, but maybe a few things. I am praying through it and asking God to reveal them to me and more importantly give me the strength to change.
Here is to laying down our "one things" in order to have the life that God intends us to!
It wasn't the money that was the problem, it was the love of the money that was the problem. It was the one thing that the man loved more than God. It was the one thing that the man put before God. It was the one thing that became an idol in his life. It was the one thing he wasn't willing to give up to follow Jesus and Jesus knew it.
We have to know that God is a jealous God. He is jealous of anything that comes between us and Him. He longs to have all of us, all of our heart, mind, and soul.
Do you have a one thing? Is there one thing that keeps you from going all in? Is there one thing that gets in the way of you and your relationship with God? Is there one thing that keeps you from following Jesus with everything in you?
I encourage you to ask Him today!
I have been praying this verse and I encourage you to do it too, "Search me Oh God and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. If there be any hurtful way in me (my one thing), lead me to the everlasting way." Psalm 139:23
Maybe its a relationship you don't want to give up. Maybe its the love of money that is an idol to you. Maybe its the shame of a past sin that you can't let go of. Maybe its a current sin that you aren't willing to let go. Maybe its pride and/or selfishness . Maybe its laying your own dreams and desires down for God's. Unfortunately for me, I'm not sure it is just one thing, but maybe a few things. I am praying through it and asking God to reveal them to me and more importantly give me the strength to change.
Here is to laying down our "one things" in order to have the life that God intends us to!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Bullet holes
So....I was driving to my husband's football game and a very interesting car passed me. Ok, I will be honest, it wasn't eye candy at all. It looked like an early 80's Buick that had been driven across country about a 100 times. But that wasn't the thing that caught my attention. It was the fake bullet holes along the side of the driver side door. You know the fake things that you can get to go on your car like the fake baseball crashing through your window and the "leftovers" of Rudolph the red nose reindeer that go in the grill of your car (that is my personal favorite-it really shows the Christmas spirit:)), and of course the fake bullet hole stickers. There is nothing like saying, "How can I make this car that barely runs awesome? Ah yes, fake bullet holes. That will do it." Although it makes me laugh, it also got me thinking about the things we do to make ourselves look and feel better about ourselves. I truly believe that we all live with insecurities, I know I do.
Honestly, I fight insecurities everyday. Everything from physical insecurities to personality insecurities. I fight the thoughts that if people knew the "real me" they probably wouldn't like me so in a sense I wake up thinking, What bullet holes am I going to put on today.
Maybe it is the bullet hole that I have to dress cute so that people will notice my clothes and not me. Maybe it is the bullet hole that I have to act perfect so that no one will no that I am covered with imperfections. Maybe it is the bullet hole that I will do more things for more people because I long to hear praise from people not just my creator.
Do you walk around with any of these bullet holes too?
We try to cover a sinner with these bullet holes in hopes that we too can "appear" like something we are not and weren't created for.
In John 5:44, Jesus says, "How can you believe when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God."
We were not created to receive glory and praise from one another, but to testify to the Glory of the one true God! Let me say that again, YOU and I WERE NOT CREATED TO RECEIVE GLORY AND PRAISE FROM ONE ANOTHER, BUT TO TESTIFY TO THE GLORY OF THE ONE TRUE GOD!!!
We don't have to cover ourselves with bullet holes because we are covered by the blood of Christ. We don't have to be perfect because we are loved by perfection. We need to believe God when he says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We need to believe that we were made in his image so we are covered with the fingerprints of God-not bullet holes!!!!
I want more than anything that when people see me they see Christ and they can't see Him when I am covered in bullet holes.
I will not let my insecurities keep me from testifying about the one and only GOD!
Will you?
Honestly, I fight insecurities everyday. Everything from physical insecurities to personality insecurities. I fight the thoughts that if people knew the "real me" they probably wouldn't like me so in a sense I wake up thinking, What bullet holes am I going to put on today.
Maybe it is the bullet hole that I have to dress cute so that people will notice my clothes and not me. Maybe it is the bullet hole that I have to act perfect so that no one will no that I am covered with imperfections. Maybe it is the bullet hole that I will do more things for more people because I long to hear praise from people not just my creator.
Do you walk around with any of these bullet holes too?
We try to cover a sinner with these bullet holes in hopes that we too can "appear" like something we are not and weren't created for.
In John 5:44, Jesus says, "How can you believe when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God."
We were not created to receive glory and praise from one another, but to testify to the Glory of the one true God! Let me say that again, YOU and I WERE NOT CREATED TO RECEIVE GLORY AND PRAISE FROM ONE ANOTHER, BUT TO TESTIFY TO THE GLORY OF THE ONE TRUE GOD!!!
We don't have to cover ourselves with bullet holes because we are covered by the blood of Christ. We don't have to be perfect because we are loved by perfection. We need to believe God when he says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We need to believe that we were made in his image so we are covered with the fingerprints of God-not bullet holes!!!!
I want more than anything that when people see me they see Christ and they can't see Him when I am covered in bullet holes.
I will not let my insecurities keep me from testifying about the one and only GOD!
Will you?
Friday, October 15, 2010
His Autograph
Hello Girls!
Did you ever wait after a game or concert or even see someone famous in a restaurant and ask for their autograph. The writing of a person's name is so huge these days. People pay a lot of money (ridiculous amounts of money) for the signature of some one's name. Now, I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy getting them from a few of my favorite people. I hang them up in my office or a few are hung up in my two boy's room. One of my favorite autographs is from my sweet daughter, Chloe. Why? Because it is written everywhere! Her name is on everything: I open up my journal, she has written her name on every page. I look at her toys and blankets and her name is written on all tags to claim that they are hers. I look at the head rest behind my seat and right there in big black letters is CHLOE. Her dad and I were even shown where she lays down for rest time. How did we know it was her spot? She had written her name on the wall next to her mat. Yep!-There is no mistake about where Chloe has been because her autograph is written on everything she comes into contact.
This reminds me of a couple of verses in the Bible: Romans 1:19-20.
Did you ever wait after a game or concert or even see someone famous in a restaurant and ask for their autograph. The writing of a person's name is so huge these days. People pay a lot of money (ridiculous amounts of money) for the signature of some one's name. Now, I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy getting them from a few of my favorite people. I hang them up in my office or a few are hung up in my two boy's room. One of my favorite autographs is from my sweet daughter, Chloe. Why? Because it is written everywhere! Her name is on everything: I open up my journal, she has written her name on every page. I look at her toys and blankets and her name is written on all tags to claim that they are hers. I look at the head rest behind my seat and right there in big black letters is CHLOE. Her dad and I were even shown where she lays down for rest time. How did we know it was her spot? She had written her name on the wall next to her mat. Yep!-There is no mistake about where Chloe has been because her autograph is written on everything she comes into contact.
This reminds me of a couple of verses in the Bible: Romans 1:19-20.
"For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For His invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse."
This verse explains that just because God seems like He is invisible, His power and divine nature are not because He has autographed everything we see around us. How can we question God's power and divine nature when you are in the mountains of Colorado? How can we question God's power and divine nature when you are standing on the edge that over sees the grand canyon? How can we question God's power and divine nature when you see your child being born?
God has written his name on everything we see so that when we go through hard times and rough times of questioning if He is real or not, we can walk outside and see a beautiful arrangement of wild flowers and say, "Oh there you are, God." Or you can see the kindness of a stranger and say, "Oh there you are, God." Or you can hear the laughter of your spouse and say, "Oh there you are, God." Or you can see the childish writing of a little girls' name on a piece of paper and say, "Oh there you are, God."
Last, but not least, God has written His name on you! You are his greatest autograph. The Bible says we were created in HIS image. Just like Chloe writing her name on her toys to say they are hers, God wrote His name on you to say that you are HIS. You are an amazing masterpiece of the God of the universe. What you see as a blemish or a problem, He sees as another autograph of His that makes you special and unique. I see it. Do you?
I challenge you this week to go out and notice God's autographs outside your door!
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