Thankful

The title of this post is thankful, b/c that is how I am feeling right now...and this is why. Over the past week I have been feeling pretty down in the dumps. I cry about anything, commercials, movies, pictures of my kids (I realize how fast they are growing), homesickness, etc. I know, I know...a week ago I wrote about the joy of having a Godly perspective and I try, really I do. Somedays I do and somedays I just don't, but I remind myself on those days why I should. :) Anyway, last night before bed I sat down to do my devotion. My devotions have been coming from an In Touch magazine my mom sends to me. The devotions are short and sweet, but powerful. The last couple of days that I have done one, I wasn't focused nor was I listening to God. He was trying to speak to me in my time of feeling blah and I was not paying attention. Instead my mind was on bills to be paid, laundry to be done, etc...I read the words, shut my Bible and went about my day. Well, last night I sat down once more, opened my Bible and my devotional and saw the titles of the devotions I had been reading were: Results of Discouragement, The Outcome of Discouragement, and Spiritual Causes of Discouragement ...Hello!!! DISCOURAGEMENT! That is how I have been feeling, discouraged. So I reread them...and God spoke. No, I didn't hear any booming voice, but he spoke to me through his Word, once again. We are memorizing a verse at church, it is Hebrews 4:12, "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." I understand that verse now, when God speaks to you, you know it, you feel it, and you are moved by it. I sat and wept tears of joy and sadness as I finished these devotions last night. Tears of joy b/c God speaks to me, little ole me, and reassures me once again, we're right where we are supposed to be! Tears of sadness b/c He had been trying to get through to me for a few days and I ignored him and was too busy to hear what He had to say.

These are the verses that spoke to me last night. James 1:2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, b/c you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

2 Corinthians 7:9-10 "yet now I am happy, not b/c you were made sorry, but b/c your sorrow led to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. "

This next one is the kicker, if you remember, back in my first blog, I talked about how God used the verse out of Joshua to let me know to come to SC...it says, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terriedied; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Now read this verse from last night, and remember I was feeling discouraged about being here and not in Ky or not with my family...basically I was just feeling sorry for myself, but God reminded me gently through this verse to keep on keeping on.
1 Chronicles 28:20 "David aslo said to Solomon his son, "Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the service of the temple of the Lord is finished."

WOW! Okay God, now what is the work I am supposed to do while I am here? That is the question and my prayer!

Let's be reminded why we feel discouraged...Satan! Discouragement is one of his most effective weapons; he knows that if he can destroy our courage, we won't accomplish anything for Christ. Instead we'll be too busy feeling sorry for ourselves and miss out on some pretty awesome things!

Prayer: Dear Lord, I know without a shadow of a doubt, my family and I are where you want us to be. You have made that very clear. Help me to focus on the things that are to be accomplished for you while we are here, instead of dwelling on the past. Thank you for your many blessings and the precious memories I have from the past. But I am now focused on the present, the here and now, use me to further Your kingdom. Amen!

The Joy of a Godly Perspective

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

What an awesome verse. All to often, I wonder what in the world we are here for. I can't begin to express how much I miss living in Wilmore, Ky. I miss my friends. I miss being only 3 hours from my family and making weekend trips home. I miss our church, oh how I miss our church and family there. Just thinking about it makes me tear up. When I think like this and dwell on the past I am doubting the awesome plans that God has for us here. If you have kept up with my blog, you know, as well as I do, God wants us here. He made that clear in many ways. When dwelling on all these things He reminds me of how he has blessed us here. We have met so many wonderful friends. He has led us to a church we enjoy going to. Craig and I have drawn closer during this time. Believe it or not, even during this busy volleyball season, we see him more than we ever did in KY. Craig was pulled in so many different directions when we were there because he had 4 jobs...a realtor, a migrant recruiter, professor, and a volleyball coach. Now he is just a full-time coach and he loves it!

So, I guess my point is...I need to have a Godly perspective! Life is a journey...but there is no end in this journey, instead there is a goal! Whatever sends us running for Him, makes us embrace Him, and causes us to wholly depend on Him, is the best good in our lives.

There are times in my life that I have been so full of gratitude and awe that I haven't been able to do anything but sing praises to Him. One of those times is when I was hiking in Glacier National Park. The sights I saw were breathtaking! My friend Kimmy and I sang "How Great is our God" as we hiked along the trail. :) Then there are other times we haven't been able to see how God could possibly be there in the dark circumstances of life. Craig and I experienced something awful in May of 2004. It is a persons worst nightmare and we lived it! At this time I couldn't understand why this incident had happened. What kind of good could come from this?! I questioned God a lot. But I have learned that God always-in all things-is up to something good in our lives....and that "good" is always eternal good!

So, let's just praise the Lord!

Love you all!

3 wins for the home team

I think I may be getting a glimpse of why God has sent us here. Abouta week ago after Craig's practice 3 of the girl's on his team gave their lives to Christ...praise God! You see, Craig shared with me that he has been praying for these woman since he has been here. They are great women, but some of the team had not accepted Christ, or had accepted Christ but were no longer making Him part of their lives. I don't know these woman personally, yet. So I can only tell you what Craig has shared.


Craig has had devotions with them, he has chats with them about drinking, sexual purity, etc. He has set curfews too. He soon realized this wasn't doing any good and wasn't going to change the way they chose to live their lives. So he prayed for God to make them broken, so that they may have a heart for Him. He prayed that something would happen to bring them to their knees. Well, something did happen. I won't go into details, but something drastically changed in one player's live. As she stood there and told the teammates she couldn't be a part of the team any longer...they were broken. Craig stood in front of the 17 girls and read Hebrews 12:3 to them and shared the message of salvation. After that a few musicians came out and played worship songs. Three of them we're brought to their knees in front of our Holy, faithful Heavenly Father. God is so good!

Sunny Sunday

So sorry it has been so long since I've written a blog. I've been pretty busy the last few weeks. Since I've written my family has been down here twice! The second time was a complete surprise. My mom called Tuesday evening and said they were leaving at 6 the next morning and heading this way. Their was an auction my step-dad needed to attend in Spartanburg, which is about 1 hour from here. His boss and his wife also rode down with them b/c their son lives in Greenville, SC. It was so nice to see them again! We had a great time together. I"m looking forward to the next visit from friends and family!

I've turned 30 years old since I've blogged...I can't believe it. That used to sound so old to me and now I'm there! It hit me yesterday when I found out a girl that I work with, whom I assumed was around the same age as me was only 18! And when asked how old I was, I had to say 30. I just picture myself as a girl in my twenties still. Wow, time flies! I can remember my freshman year of college like it was yesterday...it was ten years ago!!!!!!!!! Okay, I'm getting depressed...moving on.

I'm sitting out here on my beloved porch swing. It is one of those days that you just have to be outside no matter what. 7o degrees, blue, sunny skies, a nice breeze...ahhh, so refreshing and beautiful! Even though there is a lot of stuff that could be done inside, it will have to wait. This is what the weather will be like in heaven, I just know it! :) Getting back to my porch swing, I love it! It was a b-day gift from my mother-in-law. We live out in the country, so it is so peaceful, except for the occasional dog barking. Across the street from us is nothing but a forest...the wind sounds so loud coming through it, but it is calming. I have many great memories from when I was a child that took place while sitting on a porch swing. It was on my grandma and grandpa Frazie's back porch. As a child I was blessed to live right next door to one set of grandparents. One of my memories is of me and my grandma Dodie snapping green beans, while swinging and talking. Another memory is of me, my grandma and grandpa swinging one summer evening during a big storm. We watched the rain surround us, while it rolled off the porch roof. Those are great memories, maybe that is why I love my porch swing so much. :)

Well, I hope you all enjoy your Sunday as much as I am. Have a great week!

Celebrate being YOU

Good morning friends. I'm up bright and early this morning and feeling especially happy and excited! I've got my starbucks anniversary blend coffee setting on the table beside me....aww, the aroma is fabulous! My family is coming in today for a visit!!! WoooHOOO! I'm so excited to entertain them in my new house and then spend the rest of the weekend on the lake in a lake house here. My mom and Steve rented a lake house for the weekend and a pontoon boat. What fun! I can't wait to kiss my nephew's face off either!!! :)
I'm also feeling motivated to write about a topic that I have a heart for. For it wasn't long ago, about 7 years ago to be exact, that I let the devil get a hold of me. That is when I started believing his lies. The lies that I wasn't good enough, skinny enough, smart enough, pretty enough, etc. Believing the lies led to a dangerous disorder. I began to binge and purge, once a week, once a day, everyday, three times a day. I don't know who I was during this time...I don't know how I let myself get to that point. How in the world did I ever think that was okay?! The devil is sneaky, he'll make you believe a lot of things...just like he did Eve. He must have been pretty tricky to make her believe it was okay to eat that fruit after the Almighty God told her not to eat! He tricks and lies to me and you today. Don't let him get you!!

Proverbs 14:10 says, "A heart at peace gives life to the body." My prayer for you an myself is that we will be at peace in our own body and with our own body. Are you at peace with the person God made you? If you don't peace within yourself you won't ever have peace with other people. God could send you another mom friend you've been praying for, but if you're not at peace with yourself that won't work. Before you can experience healthy relationships, you've got to be happy with who God made you!
If you're focused on imperfections, like I was for so long, and wishing you looked like someone else, were someone else, you are allowing the devil to steal your peace and replace it with wrong thinking. Please don't get caught in that trap, I can tell you from experience it is an awful place to be!
The devil will try to convince you that you are a weak little worm and when he does he laughs! He's evil, he's mean, he's the father of lies! You need to declare out loud, "I am a child of the Most High King and He thinks I am great!" As a matter of fact he is enthralled with your beauty! (Psalm 45:11) It doesn't matter the what size you are, the color of your hair, how tall you are...God made you just the way you are! Imagine spending a long time making something for your son or daughter, making sure everything is just the way you want it. Then when you give it to them they say, I don't like it! And they start to tear it up and destroy the masterpiece you created just for them. Our body is a masterpiece that our Father created just for us, embrace it, don't pick it apart and destroy it!
You may not be happy with every aspect of yourself, but you need to be happy about the basic person that God created you to be. When you start practicing that mindset, your peace will return! And that is a great way to live!
I now have that peace. Thank God I only suffered from my eating disorder about a year. He sent two wonderful people into my life to help me overcome! I couldn't have done it without the faith that my Almighty God would heal me! "He is the truth and the truth will set you free." John 8:32

Prayer for you and me: Lord, I pray that Your peace will overtake me today. Please take away all wrong thinking from me.

Watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyheJ480LYA

(A lot of these ideas came from my Daily Wisdom for Mother's devotion book)

Driving out fear

I am a worry wort. I try not to be...I know it is a sin. I read all the verses many times that remind me not to worry. I do okay for awhile, then before I know it, the worry creeps back in. I find myself worrying about silly stuff, stuff that hasn't even happened and probably won't happen, but I make up this ordeal in my head and get all anxious and flustered and then I snap out of it and think why do I do this to myself!?

So there is this flu going around, HINI (aka swine flu), have you heard of it? If you watch any kind of t.v. read newspapers, etc, you have. It's turned me into a germaphobic! I'm constantly squirting hand sanitizer on myself and my poor kids. I've got bottles of it everywhere...3 in my purse, 2 in my car, 1 in my kitchen, and 2 more in the cabinet for when we run out...which will be soon at this rate. :)

Craig swears he's already had swine flu. When we first moved down here, he had all the symptoms...fever, chills, cough, sore throat. The kids who are experiencing these symptoms at the college are being quarantined. Anyway, he was never tested for it, so we'll never know. Thankfully the kids and I didn't get whatever it was, even though we we're living in a 2 room tiny, little house.

So, I pulled out my devotion book for mothers, which I haven't read in years. And God is so good, he was talking right to me again. This devotion is about driving out fear...and just a side note, I'm home alone in our new house all night tonight. I'm scared. I hate to be alone, so again, this devotion was perfect for tonight.

"Okay, so I've accepted the fact that I'll never be perfect. But it's good to know that God's perfect love is available to me and that His love drives out fear. You know, as moms, we encounter a lot of fears concerning our children. We fear they won't develop properly when they are growing inside of us. We fear we'll do something wrong as parents. We fear they aren't learning like other children. We fear we aren't spending enough time with them..and on and on and on.

But Romans 8:15 tells us that we did not receive a spirit that makes us slaves to fear; rather we received the Spirit of sonship. That entitles us to the right to cry out to God as our Abba, Father. He wants us to run to Him when we're fearful. He wants to cast that fear right out of our hearts.

So, if you're struggling with fears of inadequacy, or if you're worried about your children to the point that your stomach is in knots (that's me)...run to God! Let Him replace your fear with HIs perfect love. Now that's a deal you can't refuse!" That devotion came from a book called "Daily wisdom for Mothers".

I can choose to spend my days worrying and being fearful of the unknown, or I can trust in my Almighty Heavenly Father, and bask in His perfect love, and enjoy the days knowing that He is in control! Not me.

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear (and worry) . :)

Here's that right hand again...Isaiah 41:13 "For I am the Lord your God, who takes hold of your right hand, and says to you, Do not fear, I will help you."

and again...Isaiah 41:10 "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

Change! You can count on it!!

I really should be napping right now. I'm tired, Jackson's asleep, Anna Claire is in her room having quiet time. I read a devotion before my attempt to nap and when I laid my head down and closed my eyes, my mind was racing...so I thought I would blog while I'm feeling a little inspired.

Being homesick is no fun!! I'm homesick for Lexington, KY. If you asked me, and Kelly Ripa(she mentioned this on her show the other day), Lexington is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Yes, I've been to the ocean and I've been to the mtns. They are both breathtakingly beautiful...but not far behind on my list of beautiful places is Lexington. The rolling hills, the horse pastures everywhere you look, the outrageously expensive barns, the beautiful fences that outline the pastures, the rock walls built hundreds of years ago that still stand everywhere you turn. I tear up just thinking about "home." It isn't where I grew up, but I love that place and my friends that are there and long to be back. BUT!!!!!!!!!!!! I am reminded, "like it or not, that change is constant and it is a part of modern life. There are 3 things that don't change...1. God's love 2. Friendship with his Son 3. The power of the Holy Spirit. When you think you've had just about all the change you can handle reach out and take one step farther into God's wide open arms. Though his love, power and friendship never change, He made you and me with a big elastic spiritual cord that strectches with every tug and pull. He knows exactly how much give it's got. If He's calling you to stretch, He knows you have what it takes....so REACH!!!" Barbara Johnson

God knows a lot more than us...right? :) He knows what is best for us. He knows change can make our lives richer. We serve a God of change! Live for today, but be excited for the change that tomorrow might bring. God says, "I will never leave you, come to me and I will give you rest. In my presence is fullness of joy."

When I'm feeling sorry for myself, God gently reminds me how he has already blessed us here in Anderson. I do like it here, I have met some awsome people whom I LOVE to spend time with. Anna Claire has been blessed with a handful of friends. Craig loves his job. We have a nice house, and not to mention we are close to mtns and the beach. :) I have everything in the world to be thankful for!

Psalm 16;11 "you have made known to me the path of life; you will feel me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand."