Going all retro and stuff...

I am pulling out an oldie. I made myself crack up reading something I wrote myself. I mean sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself. I just thought I would sound really vain for a minute!


I was on facebook tonight and I cracked up at a fellow sister of mine (we are in bible study together). She has on her favorite songs "Please don't go girl" by New Kids on the Block. I was madly in love with Joey back then...I really thought we would get married one day. The Lord had another plan for me. I can still sing most of their songs to you! I ran 2 miles down the beach in Destin to try to catch a glimpse of them at the hotel they were staying at. To my horror, my sisters and I had just missed them. My life was over! My granddaddy felt sorry for us so he went to the local WalMart (of course) and purchased one of their videos for us. We must have watched it a thousand times. Enough of that! I wanted to do my own little random list of quirks and you can send me yours!

1. I can't stand all of those surveys people send out!
2. Please don't ever send me "Christian Chain Mail"you know the kind:" if you love Jesus you will forward this in the next 30 seconds or else..." Do I need to back that up with some scripture...because I will :)!
3. I carry deodorant on my person at ALL TIMES. There is a stick in my purse, my car, my backpack and just about 10 tubes in my bathroom. Ever since I have been teaching over the last 7 years I almost throw up before I teach every time and I sweat to death. If I don't sweat then Jesus didn't show up and it was Jenny teaching in the flesh! I have a phobia that I may perspire and offend people.
4. I am 27 years old and I still have acne... people come on!!! I mean when does this junk end? I went to the dermatologist and he just gave me some rip off cream! Whatever. I wanted some acutane or something but he laughed (he laughed!) and said that I did not have that bad of a case and I was being a little dramatic. Next!
5. I pretty much eat the same stuff every day (obsessive compulsive)! I am teaching my child to do the same. She seriously had like the kids meal at Chic-fil-A for a month straight. Call DHR! I would get her the 6 pack kids meal. I ate two nuggets and she ate the rest.
6. I love Fancy Cake "Little Debbie's" (Rod calls them my cigarettes. He said when I was sick recently that he was embarrassed that he had to make the purchase for me. Talk to the hand Rod because I found your stash in the drawer with the bullets you are making. All that staying down stairs to make bullets while you hoard your snack cakes...I am on to you. Proverbs 31 woman knows what goes on in her house!)
7. I am extremely competitive! I don't even let my younger nieces and nephews win at connect four! They have to learn to be tough. I also enjoy racing kids on their bicycle and winning! I want to train them to push themselves...ha ha!!
8. I like go-kart racing! I am so serious about this...I will find the fastest card and I will try to beat you! I almost had to get air lifted out of the Track in Destin because I talked so much smack to everyone that they decided to cream me. My shoe even flew out of the go-kart and on to another track I was hit so hard. You have to love that kind of lovin from your brothers in Christ. I have even been kicked out of the Track for ramming people. This other person just comes out of me when I get behind the wheel. I can't control it.
9. I WILL NOT DRIVE A MINI-VAN! Rod can keep up with the fight but he is going down on that one. He can drive a van for all I care (he's 40 so go for it paw paw...no offense to anyone)... but I will not! The wheels on my bus are not going round and round.
10. I own a Glock and I know how to use it. My dad was and is in law enforcement and I have been highly trained with the use of guns (plus I took classes on my own and I love to shoot). People always get so tickled about that and I have no idea why! I am heavily armed though because I live with a hunter. Do not try to throw any surprise parties for me. I have debated often would I shoot someone if they came in my house. I will try to lead them in the sinners prayer and I am shooting for sure :). If you don't know my sense of humor...this is not up for debate or discussion.
11. I take a shower before I exercise.
12. I wanted to get a motorcycle before I found out I was having Morgan. I am thinking I will trade the 4-Runner in for a(pink) Harley eventually. Rod thinks that is hysterical but I am very serious. No, that is not me on the bike in the pic above...but you just wait!
13. I am very serious about chocolate chip cookies. They must be baked to perfection...very soft. I am passing this on to Morgan. I have a picture of her waiting by the oven for them to come out.
14. I eat a midnight snack almost every night and have done this for years. I am about to go fix me up some purple and red skittles!
15. I do not talk before I have had my time in the word. If you need a ride to the hospital or are in an emergency don't call me until I have gotten in the Spirit. I am kidding, I would take you to the hospital. Also, it is a joke now...but I usually don't answer any of my phones. I will not be in bondage to the telephone (I don't screen usually. I just don't have the ringers on unless Morgan is at Mother's Day Out). People think I am all about the phone since I am an extrovert but that is not true. The Lord Jesus made me to have neck problems so it hurts to talk long. I do love to talk about Jesus with friends on the phone. That can take a while...I won't lie to you.
16. I shave my legs EVERY DAY! I am horrified that some girls don't. I have tried to talk myself into it...but I can't.
17. I do not like for there to be dishes in the sink...at all. When I was pregnant and on bed rest, I made Rod take a picture of the sink and downstairs so I could know in my heart that what he said was true. he he :) When you are pregnant you do crazy things.
18. I make myself car sick. I can not listen to talk radio in the car. I only listen to cds or sermons. It is automatic that I will be getting car sick if this does not take place. At least I tell Rod that. I am queen of the cd player. DJ Jenny Fresh they call me. I love to ROCK out and get my praise on especially in the car! It just goes! This is also being passed on to my sweetie. If the Praise isn't on...Morgan has a problem. No talking in the car...just singin and praisin.
19. My pjs have to match. It drives Rod crazy (he is king of not caring if he matches...dude will wear a brown belt with black shoes...no sir!). Morgan has to match too.


...and you thought you knew me!

Sifted Like Wheat

I have read multiple articles on the sifting process (which is referenced in Luke 22) and I learned that sifting is separating the what from the chaff and preparing for the harvest. That is so like Jesus to use that analogy when describing what Satan was going to do to Peter.
Chaff is the inedible, dry, scaly protective casings of the seeds of cereal grain, or similar fine, dry, scaly plant material such as scaly parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw. In agriculture chaff is used as livestock fodder, or is a waste material ploughed into the soil or burnt.

The sifting was to separate the pure from the impure to prepare for a harvest. Relate that to the process of sanctification. The bull headed type people, like myself, will tell you that they have probably had this take place in a spiritual sense. There are some things that need to go for us to have a harvest of the soul and the Lord can use whatever means to allow our impurity to become pure and useful not something that is thrown out as fodder.

I could be way off here but here are my thoughts on the verse below: Christ references Peter as Simon when speaking with him in Luke 22. We also know that Christ renamed Simon Peter to Peter as in Mark 3:16These are the twelve he appointed: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter...
We also know that Peter denied Chrit three times and after the death and resurrection of Christ what did Peter do? He went back to the life he had before the shame of his denial. He dropped the net to follow Christ and then picked that net back up after a monumental marking fall in his personal life. Peter loved Jesus. That is so us when we do something that we know better but we don't have the excuse of ignorance or being lost. It almost makes the guilt worse. Peter went back to becoming a fisherman instead of a fisher of men. We do get a huge sense of guilt and feel like we can't be used of God again when we really blow it. With the Lord is unfailing love and with Him is full redemption. So back to my thoughts on this verse below Christ called him Simon and to me it sounds like He is saying talking about Peter before he dropped his net and followed Christ...maybe the state of being unredeemed. Since Peter's denial and betrayal (which haven't we all betrayed Christ by our actions)Christ knew that for Peter to understand his redemption and live a life worthy of his calling that something in Peter was going to have to go. Only then could Peter turn back, help snatch others from the flame and strengthen the brethren and preach the gospel to the Jews as we are told in Galations 2:7. In the meantime, how fitting it is that Peter penned these words under the influence of the Holy Spirit: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 1 Peter 5:5-6" If anyone knew of the need to humble themselves it was him. So let us continue to humble ourself under the mighty hand of God. That is our freedom.


Luke 22:31-32 31"Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. 32But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers."


Footnotes:

My Bright Morning Star

Earlier I was thinking about the fact that one day there will be no enemy taunting us (for those of us in Christ). No more death, no more evil, no more sin nature. Think about what life would be like without all of the spiritual forces of darkness. A place where we will no longer walk in darkness, where there will be no need for the sun because the LORD will be our light. A place where we are never rejected...His gates will never close. A place where we are fully known and loved to the core and the thing is...we will operate out of that love and security to the fullest extent. And Jesus will be all that we need. No more hunger, no more poverty, no widows, no children left without a father, no more victims, no more jealousy, no more adultery. If I am banking on the fact that Jesus is the word made flesh to dwell among us...then what He speaks is truth and what He says will be accomplished. Nothing will go undone. Every wrong will be made right. He is just too much! There are so many times that the Lord has gone out of His way to allow me to see Him work in my life and in others. Listen, if you are a skeptic and don't believe the bible is relevant you need to camp out a while in the book of Daniel. Let me just say that the more I come to know the more I realize that I don't know. His word is a glorious masterpiece! Back to Daniel was given words of prophecy and so many of them have been fulfilled through what we would call history. Every i will be dotted and every t crossed.





So a couple of hours have passed before I have been able to get back to my post. I was on the couch typing this earlier and a Chris Tomlin song was playing and I was so busy lifting one hand in praise and trying to peck at the keys at the same time. Rod looks at me and doesn't really say anything but I know he thinks I am weird (he has thought that for years now I am sure...haha). I just hope to never go out and worship in public when I am not doing so in private. Yet the rocks were going to cry out if I did not praise Him. Morgan came running in singing Hosanna! She then ran out of the house proclaiming: "Hosanna in the Highest!" Cracked me up. He must have been ordaining some praise!



Anyway, I am so ticked off. So many of you know that we lost one of our best friends recently. He was our brother in Christ and he was very precious to us. I have no doubt at all that he was a believer hands down. Yet those of us who are left are here rehearsing a million things in our minds of "what ifs" and "what could we have done?" It still seems unfathomable to think that our friend for the last decade would commit suicide. You can read about that HERE click on the link which will re-direct you to my old wordpress. I have thought about it all every day for the last couple of months. I still can't believe it. It was so final and so tragic. He is missed so much. I feel so bad for his wife. This is not how things were supposed to be.



A girl I went to school with lost her daughter a few days ago. She was playing in the neighbors driveway and they backed up not knowing she was there and it took her life. I hate that it is this way. We just weren't meant for death. I think that is why it is the final enemy to be swallowed up.



I was thinking about Steven Curtis Chapman and their precious daughter that is now in heaven. Then, another friend that I went to school with was in a bad wreck and it claimed the life of her 2 year old and she was so injured that she is still recovering in rehab.



My little sister was driving down the road with her husband and they came up on a wreck that had just happened. The grandad was in his truck with three kids and he was not wearing his seat belt. The kids were not in a car seat either. A car pulled out and they collided. These children saw their grandfather and legal guardian get killed. They saw his mangled body under the truck as they screamed for their mommy and daddy. So tragic.



Not to be morbid but the older I get the more I realize how much suffering so many people are going through. What in the world do we do with all of this?

Numbers 24:17 says: "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob a scepter will rise out of Israel." If we are going to make it with an ounce of victory we have to keep our eyes on the bright morning star. He will give us signs of His presence and He will guide us to the end of our days. Sometimes confusion creeps in because we take our eyes off of Him. Our despair can turn into doubt. Let me tell you when our friend took his life it made me want to think about heaven even more. I felt as if a rug was pulled out from underneath me, leaving a pang of sorrow in its wake. I was so jealous for him with a godly jealousy. I know what it is like to suffer. Those of you who have been in any of my bible studies know that the Lord allowed the enemy to SIFT ME LIKE WHEAT! I NEVER EVER want to go back to that type of school as long as I live. Boy did I learn some things the hard way, yes! I still sought God through it all but it was one of the scariest times of my entire life. So yes I could share in my friends sufferings because I was well acquainted with it myself. I prayed fervently for him to be set free. Yet he gave up and no longer fought the good fight. Was that God's will for him to kill himself, No! But is he in heaven, yes!
**PAUSE** I have my praise music (it is just filling my house with praise) on and I can't contain the feelings of praise it stirs in me. I can't even sit down. Praise the Lord!

Anyway, why didn't the Lord heal my friend of what he was going through? God WILL NOT force us into obedience and He certainly will not force us into the spacious place of our promised land in Christ. He died to set us free but as a sign reads in Washington: FREEDOM IS NOT FREE. He was our ransom, yet we are going to have to believe Him and fight the good fight to cross over our spiritual Jordan's. We have to claim that ground and take back what the enemy has stolen. We will have to work intentionally to be free of hindrances in this cosmos.

Lord, help us to fix our eyes on You!

Back in the day before we got all technical, people had to focus on the skies to get them through the sea. (I can't imagine a life without motion sickness meds...just sayin') Seafaring people would watch the sun to tell whether they were headed east or west. They could also use the night sky to navigate their position. The stars were fixed references and served as instruments to guide.

"Remember that the morning star was considered the harbinger of dawn (a harbinger is a sign of things to come). When Jesus called himself the bright Morning Star, he was saying that he is our reference point--the sign that a new day is dawning on the world. Scripture tells us that this will be a day that will never end. Its light will be so steady, strong, and fixed that darkness will finally be banished from the earth. No more sin, no more sorrow, no more tears. If the first coming of Jesus is like the star that announces the dawn, his second coming will be like lighting, bringing the swift fulfillment of his kingdom.

Like the ancient mariners, who were able to read the skies, we need to remember to look up, to lift our faces to the Bright Morning Star, because it is only when Jesus is our reference point that we understand our true location in space and time.

Jesus faulted the religious leaders of his day for failing to interpret the signs of the times. Let us pray today for the grace to be like wise seafarers, joyful when they saw the morning star rising in the east." (Praying the Names of Jesus, Spangler)

Morgan and I have been going outside, laying towels out, and laying on the concrete to look at the stars. Last night she anticipated it so much that she was literally outside having a count down for it to get dark. It is good to consider the heavens and the work of His fingers. She and I talk about God and how He knows each star by name. He is truly awesome in power.

Psalm 8:2-4
2 From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise [a]
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.

3 When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,

4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
So as I conclude I almost tremble but we are just going to have to suffer here, figuratively speaking this world to me is outside of the gate that is to come. So, let us go to Him outside the camp, bearing disgrace because it is so momentary. I am not discounting pain but I am saying we have to go to His throne now since this world is not our "enduring city" because we are looking for the city that is to come with whose architect and builder is the Lord.

Hebrews 13:12-14 (New International Version)
12And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. 13Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore. 14For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.

Lord of the Sabboth, Lord of our Hearts

"Beware in your prayers, above everything else, of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things, above all that we ask or think. Each time, before you Intercede, be quiet first, and worship God in His glory. Think of what He can do, and how He delights to hear the prayers of His redeemed people. Think of your place and privilege in Christ, and expect great things!"-Andrew Murray

I love this quote above by Andrew Murray. I studied a couple of verses yesterday that had me thinking how lifeless and mechanical our relationship with the Lord can become. Yet He is mighty, wondrous, everlasting, worker of miracles, awesome in power and He is love. He is to be feared and reverenced above all, yet we get our head so stuck in the dirt on earth that we can't live the lives that God has intended us to live when we house in our body the Holy Spirit. We can quench it and quench it in our quest to feel, to matter, to communicate and we lose our joy. When we drive by the cemetery on the way to church Morgan yells out, "hey Shelby!!! I hope you have fun at school today!" She is on her way to school so Shelby must be in school up in heaven. Yes she is because we will never know the vastness of our God. We will continue to learn forever. Wouldn't heaven be so stinking boring if we weren't going to learn something! We will set foot on real live property and one day a new heavens and a new earth sort of like this earth but only perfect and restored. We are so busy fixing up our bodies, better yet being infatuated with our earthly tent. I will be the first to tell you I have fallen into that trap over and over. There is the verse above my mirror in the bathroom that reads: "Charm is deceptive and beauty is vain..." Because it is! Satan wants us to become so self-absorbed in our outward appearance that he truly turns up the heat to lure us in. If we are so flipping insecure (been there, done that) we will not operate in the way that we were created. We will just be "lovers of self" even if we are downgrading ourselves. We are to be holy, consecrated, set apart for the Lord and we nod and say yes! amen! yet that is not our belief system...it can just be words on a page. Yet how many times have you and I been a tool in the hands of the enemy because we weren't willing to throw our self at the mercy seat of God and get our worth from Him? I have often chided (if you know me this is nothing new) that the Lord put me and Rod together so that I could work out all and I mean ALL of my insecurities. The Lord is perfecting that to this day as Rod will present many opportunities for me to have to run to Jesus and seek Him through His word. Rod is not the gushing affectionate type. In fact, when he hugs anyone (except Morgan) he gives three taps on the back almost as if to say we are...just...friends. He doesn't come from a family who is just gushing out love or being demonstrative. DO NOT get me wrong his family loves like mad it just doesn't come across in the way of external expression. So over the last 7 years I had to come to a point (after one year. We had the roughest start and thank God we have persevered. I think both of us wondered what in the world we got ourselves into.) where I had to just let Rod off the hook on thinking that he was going to meet my needs in a way that only God can. We are wise to not put all of our hope and expectation in flesh and blood it will usually disappoint.
So, before I write a novel are you wanting me to get on with those scriptures I was talking about or not?!?

1 Corinthians 8:1Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. 2The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. 3But the man who loves God is known by God.

Man the Lord has been taking me back to some basics lately. For example when a passage of scripture is used over and over and it becomes cliche I tend to stay away from it. Wrong on my part because it is God's word. Well, 3 times in the last week the Lord brought up the "love" passage. And to put under the microscope what he has been teaching me it would be these verses in a nutshell:

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

1. Knowledge puffs us up. It eventually leads to pride and we know that pride comes before a fall. We can become so familiar with a passage that we know it but we don't apply it and we are not operating out of love. So, we become proud. We need zeal coupled with knowledge that comes out of a heart of love for God and God is the one that fills our hearts with love (Romans 5:5).

2. We become like a noise, like some loud brash sound, when we function out of legalism. God wants us to delight in Him. He desires for us to guard our hearts or let Him be the watchman on the city wall of our hearts to delegate what can come in and what can't. Yet it is easy to turn to ritual and legalism when we aren't coming before the Lord and allowing Him to speak, or not confessing our sins, and allowing Him to heal us. We will never experience His love or full redemption when we wallow in unbelief. What can cure us is to hang onto His word and allow it to penetrate our hearts. It takes work and confrontation. Case in point...There was a commitment that I failed to keep recently. The lady in charge basically told me that I needed to be a doer of the word and not just a hearer. We don't live in the same state so she doesn't really know if I am a "doer" or not. Nevertheless, I welcomed her words because I know I am not always a "doer" but at times a "hearer" when I don't put what I have heard into practice. Love is going to have to be what motivates us to action. If you need some ask God for it. As we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us!

3.Having a pseudo knowledge, but possessing no power. We can think we really "know" Him and can rattle off a thousand scriptures but our hearts can be so far from God. Yet this verse says: 1 Cor 13:3 But the man who loves God is known by God. To know Him is to be known by Him. He reveals Himself to the contrite in Spirit. There are times where I have a bad attitude or I am holding a grudge and I literally have to lay prostrate on the floor and acknowledge the Lord in that and allow Him to change me. Heck, I have been mad at some catty little 5 year olds this week (for being rude to my child)! We just need Him!

4. Love builds up. Pride seeks to tear others down. The enemy has been on mission to do just that for a mighty long time. To have agape love, from cherishing our Lord, is to build up one another. We are so good at tearing people down but what if we didn't participate? Can we have a new start even if that has been our pattern for years and years and people know us for that? YES!! And God will be glorified in our turning around. The word for build up is oikodomeo means "to build up, build, edify, strengthen, build in a spiritual sense, built up and to embolden." I don't really use the word embolden much but it means "to foster boldness or courage in; encourage." Won't it be so much better for our inner man if we were encouraging, building up, helping people to be built up when maybe they have been torn down their entire life.
The wording for love switches in the verses from agape love (from God) to agapao in the Greek. This is God's love which is revealed through Christ namely. We love because He loved us.
Knowing and doing should be coupled together but knowing is not really "knowing" if it does not motivate our feet.

I am asking God to fill us and that we would delight in Him like Psalm 37:4:
"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart." When we indulge in delight over God we look more like His son. He transforms our sin nature into something more liberating. Our desires change.
I was reading this morning about the Pharisee's (the term Pharisee didn't become something negative until later among Christians...they were very zealous for God). They resorted to the law and legalism over and over and they missed The Christ. We can be saved all day long but never awake from our slumber and really know Him. Anyway, the Pharisee's got ticked at Jesus' disciples for picking some heads of grain on the Sabbath. They were not supposed to even spit in the direction that the wind was blowing for fear that their saliva would be working as to grow something, like they were watering grain or something LOL. There were hundreds of man made rules that they kept in their religious piety. Like Paul he was flawless in following the law but I am sure he was so stinking miserable yet maybe motivated by his anger because anger can be a big motivator. That is why we need to stick to the scriptures when it comes to us following a bunch of man made rules that can enslave us and separate our hearts from life and vitality. So Christ, always blowing the door off of its hinges, answers them and tells them that "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."
In essence they are so busy being over zealous that they miss the point. The Lord had appointed the Sabbath as a day of reflection leading to worship and also rest. They took it and made it harsh, strenuous, and legalistic. What God set aside for their good they turned into a burden to heavy to bear. Let's be careful to not only draw near with our mouths but to draw near with our hearts.

Here is another quote by C.S. Lewis. I don't normally quote him because it seems that only the super spiritual quote him and I am not all that. LOL.






"The happiness which God designs for His higher creatures is the happiness of being freely, voluntarily united to Him and to each other in an ecstasy of love and delight compared with which the most rapturous love between a man and a woman on this earth is mere milk and water. And for that they must be free. Of course God knew what would happen if they used their freedom the wrong way: apparently He thought it worth the risk."

Reflections

Morgan-4

Little shoes and
Flowers that bloom

A girl who thinks she is witty
and my, my, she sure is pretty

Our time is flying by
Sometimes I just want to sit and cry

So many prayers prayed
It seems like just the other day
I cradled her in my arms
Safe from all harm.

Here one day and gone the next
I sure hope I have done my best
To point her to Jesus
and one day send her out of our nest

It has all been in the blink of an eye
I shut my eyes and now she is almost five,
I sit for a minute and sigh
A precious love like no other
Thank You Lord for making me her mother

Fear

"It is neither safe nor prudent to do anything against conscience." -Martin Luther

"My conscience is captive to the Word of God." -Martin Luther

"Beware that you do not lose the substance by grasping at the shadow." Aesop

I thought these were some really good quotes. Especially the last one! How often are we grasping at shadows, trying to hold on to yesterday or heck even trying to hold on to what was 10 years ago. Even if it meant our demise or slavery, we tend to forget and be robbed by trying to grasp the wind and we miss today.

Also, a shadow can be in front of you or behind you. Let me be real honest and tell on myself I can get really hung up on fearing the future. If you are a person that can't relate: GOOD FOR YOU! Glory to God. I would say a lot of us fear the future or the Lord wouldn't have so readily addressed it in His word.

Matthew 6:25-33 25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

So earlier today I had to go and get my eyes dilated and I seriously felt the need to tell everyone in target that I am not one of those people who "wears their sunglasses at night" (remember that song?). I can't stand when I see people walking around in a store with sunglasses or when someone wears them at night. I am getting off of the subject here. Anyway, Morgs was over at a friends house playing and Rod was helping someone out. So, he called me and his blue tooth was on and he forgot so he couldn't hear me saying hello. I totally start to panic that he called because he just really doesn't call me unless it falls under a few categories: 1. to discuss the checking account (that is always fun). 2. He needs a favor. 3. SOMETHING IS WRONG! I can usually tell by the sound of his voice what he is calling about. So, all that is to say I sometimes panic a little when he calls. So, I have this whole scene in my head of why he was calling and the main character was Morgan. I started to freak out on the inside when he didn't answer the phone. So, I called my friend and asked about Morgan. I was already starting to become fearful over a blasted phone call. I am not usually this irrational but I used to have a MAJOR stronghold of fear. I MEAN MAJOR! Sometimes it washes over me like a tidal wave. Don't you just hate that? Anyway, there are so many people around me right now that are struggling with some of these things: Will I ever get married? Will I ever get through school? Will we be able to keep our house? Will I live on the street after I get out of this drug rehabilitation program? Will I get custody of my child again? Will my marriage ever get better? Will my husband ever find a job? Will the stock market come back up? How will I die? Will my loved one ever come to accept Christ? What is heaven really going to be like? What will happen if I try to break free of this co-dependency? What if my husband doesn't love me anymore? What if I lose my job?
The list could go on and on. Yet the Lord calls us to take out our sword of the spirit (the Word of God) and use it! The enemy will try to paralyze us with fear. Stand firm and let God speak to your fears whether they are imaginations or realities.

We have got to put our trust in Him. It doesn't mean we won't ever be injured or vulnerable. He is just faithful to see us through until we leave here and head to our heavenly dwelling place.

Deut. 31:6 "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

Take a firm stand against the enemy knowing that Your God will not leave or forsake you.

I'm Back!!!!

Well, I am back on blogger! I didn't like wordpress. Sorry. Please update your blog roll if I am on it. I am so tired or I would have much to say. I register my sweet baby for kindergarten tomorrow. I can't believe how fast time is flying by!

One of my precious friends texted me this morning with the news that one of her co-workers died in a car accident last night. This lady loved Jesus and is at home with Him now. My friend told me how this lady had worked so hard for her retirement and now she can't believe she is gone. Then of course you know of the blow we took with the tragic loss of one of our best friends. I still can't think about it without feeling like someone has punched me in the stomach.

Rods mom and I were talking and she asked me if I had heard about one of the families siblings who died. I had not heard until she told me. What made me sad is that she lived a life for herself and at the end she died alone, without even her children around her.

Not to be over the top morbid but we only get one turn here on planet earth. Life is so stinking hard at times but we have an Almighty God that is our refuge and fortress and help in time of need. Keep running to Him until you kiss this place goodbye. I will be the first to tell you I have sinned my tail end off. Yet our God is a God of full redemption. He is completely other and worthy of you following Him and worthy of your trust. Oh that the Lord would give us hearts to love Him more and that we would have wisdom to number our days aright.


Psalm 39:4
"Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life.

Psalm 90:12
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

I have been so busy lately. Life has been a revolving door and I have neglected my sweet blog land! I have so much to say but I am about to fall asleep while I am typing.